Friday Fantastic Feature Author Feature

Today I'm really glad to have Nancy Medina - writes under Lissette E. Manning -  here with me.  Without further ado, lets get up and close with our guest.


About Nancy Medina

Nancy Medina is an author from Connecticut who writes under the pseudonym of Lissette E. Manning. She has been writing since she was six-years-old and spends most of her time trying to place her thoughts into order and giving life to the stories that are always brewing inside her head. 

She enjoys reading books, listening to music, playing the occasional video game, watching movies, and spending time with friends and family. She's also a bit of a computer geek.

Her writing genres of choice are Science-Fiction/Fantasy, Romance, Erotica, Paranormal, Short Stories, as well as Poetry. She's currently working on several projects due out sometime in the new year, as well as her finishing her NaNoWriMo project, The Corsicanth Princess.

*CeCe*:  Welcome to my den,Lissette. Please tell us your name, officially that is. :)

*Lissette*: Hi. I’m Lissette E. Manning.

*CeCe*: What project are you currently working on?

*Lissette*: I currently have several projects  that I’m working on.

One is a Romance/Comedy novel (sort of) titled Until There Was You. It centers around Angelia Montgomery who’s been in love with a celebrity friend of hers for years. She finally gets to meet him face to face and all sorts of shenanigans ensue.

There’s also a Science-Fiction/Fantasy novel titled Marius that’s centered around a series I’m working on called Tales of Velosia. Marius discovers he’s a shape-shifter and learns how to deal with that aspect of his life along with protecting the realm against outside forces.

I’m also in the process of editing and rewriting my NaNoWriMo project from last year titled, The Corsicanth Princess. It’s pretty much about a teenage faerie who must accept the circumstances surrounding her birth and exile to Earth in addition to restoring balance to the world she really comes from.

These are just a myriad of projects I’m working on, of course.
 

*CeCe* : What inspired you to write the first book?

*Lissette*: I wrote my first book, Closure, via a writing class I was taking online back in 2010. It was for an assignment I was given that grew into the story it is now. Self-publishing it was an experiment, of sorts. I wanted to see what would happen and if I could make something of my writing. I’m very glad I took that chance and have enjoyed the journey, thus far.

My inspiration behind it, I confess, is Ben Barnes. There’s just something about him that intrigues me so I modeled my character, Ben Morgan, around him.

*CeCe* I know what you mean about Ben Barnes. I find him quite intriguing. What genres do you write?

*Lissette* I write Science-Fiction/Fantasy in addition to Romance, Erotica, Paranormal, Young Adult, Poetry, and Short Stories. I think we can safely say that most of my stories center around Romance themes so I guess that would be my main genre, right?

I do dabble in other genres, though, and am also currently working on a Horror short story called Marty Pattinson which centers around a vampire/ghoul who seeks revenge on those who wronged him.

*CeCe*  How do you create your characters? How do you mould them to fit what you require for the story?

*Lissette* Hmmm . . . this is quite a intriguing, mostly because the characters seem to just pop in my head and don’t stop speaking until I write what they want me to. Of course, there’s also my muse who will fuel the urges to write so that I can make each character come alive.

I mostly just listen to what the characters have to say and write down their life stories and experiences. Each of them has a unique voice and I do my best to make them seem as real as possible.

Of course there are times when my muse will throw a curve ball at me and will change a story idea out of the blue. When that happens, though, I use things to my advantage so that I don’t lose the voice for whichever character I’m writing of/about at that given moment.

*CeCe*:  What is your writing style like? (more description, dialogue…)

*LIssette*: My writing style is a balance of description and dialogue. Not too much and not too little, so to speak. Just enough to keep a reader interested in the story.

Ironically that’s what a friend of mine told me recently when I shared an Erotica piece I wrote titled Forever Yours that pertains to Tales of Velosia. He said, “You have a nice knack for giving just enough to enlighten the reader without overdoing it with back story.  Perfect.“

*CeCe*: Have you ever hated a character/ a story you wrote?

*Lissette* I don’t exactly hate a character or a story I’ve written, really. I’ll just be displeased with the fact that things didn’t come out the way I wanted it to. Mostly, I’ll just set the character or story aside when this happens and work on them later on in order to make them more likeable. Sometimes, I can make that work, but on others they prove to be lost causes and I’ll never work on them again.

*CeCe* How did you do the research for the book you are currently writing?

*Lissette*: For the current book I’m writing, I haven’t had to do much research for it. The characters are centered around real-life people so I’ve been using what I know about those I’m including in the story to make them real and likeable. The story has pretty much been writing itself, so to speak, since I’ve had so much inspiration from my friends and those I’ve included in the story.

*CeCe*:  What project are you promoting?

*Lissette*: I’m currently promoting my book, Broken, a Romance/Drama short story centered around Ellie Morgan, Ben’s now ex-wife, from my first book, Closure. It’s her take/feelings on what’s she gone through since leaving Ben.

It’s found for sale exclusively at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007I5HRBK




Book Blurb:

The past is hard to bear, but sometimes, we must face it, no matter the cost.

Displeased with the life she’d led, Ellie Morgan walked away from it all in hopes of finding happiness amidst all the turmoil. She knows it’s only a matter of time before she has to face the bitter reality of the repercussions caused by her past actions.

Broken and bereft, she tumbles head first into her despair. Yet there’s always a silver lining to every cloud, a certainty she knows is there if she’ll allow herself to see it. To do that, she must let go of the past and put her ghosts to rest, once and for all.

Excerpt:

The alarm went off, its loud shriek grating within my ears. Groaning loudly, my hand sneaks out from under the duvet and slams down on the button in hopes of turning it off and promptly missed the mark.

The clock slides off of the night table, clattering to the floor and shattering into a million pieces. Peeking out from under the covers, I slowly crawl over to the edge of the bed and stare down at the mess I’ve inadvertently made.

Broken shards of plastic are scattered in every direction. Large, small, and even some minute pieces it would take forever to find them.

As I stare at the damaged clock, I come to the realization that it sort of resembles certain aspects of my life. There were so many pieces needing to be glued together that I’d never be able to put them back together again. A slight shiver crawls down my spine as I consider the significance of what I’m seeing.

Giving myself a mental shake, I shove the bed covers aside and slide out of bed, careful not to step on the splintered pieces. Walking towards the kitchen, I grab the broom and dustpan and trudge back to my room to clean up the debris.

Satisfied with my efforts, I hurry back to the scullery and toss the pieces into the trash can. I tuck the broom and pan into a corner of the pantry, grabbing a can of instant coffee, a bag of flavored oatmeal, and the bottle of Nutella.

The door swings closed behind me as I step up to the kitchen counter and deposit the lot onto its shiny surface. Whirling about, I yank open the refrigerator and rummage about until I find what I’m looking for. Dropping a new set of ingredients beside the rest, I take a moment to run down the hall and into the bathroom to brush my teeth clean.

As I stare at the reflection in the mirror, I mull over the thoughts that have been consuming me this cold and dreary Tuesday morning. Images of the broken clock keep rising to the surface. With each one, certain parts of my life spill forth in vivid detail. The miscarriage, my walking out on Ben, Mom’s ending battle with cancer, and Luli’s suicide.

The film of the life I’d lead tumbles forth, weaving and converging as I try to make sense of everything I’m feeling. The hurt, pain, betrayal, lies, and anger - I hate feeling this way. Deep inside, I have no wish to acknowledge what I’ve locked away for so long.

*CeCe* Great Excerpt, Lissette! Where can readers and fans find you? (online that is)

Website: http://www.simplistik.org
Blog: http://www.simplistik.org/lissetteemanning
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LissetteElizabethManning
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/xLizzieBethx
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4867044.Lissette_E_Manning
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Lissette-E.-Manning/e/B00535P6O2
Google +: https://plus.google.com/b/108975492094713089871/108975492094713089871
Email: LizzieBeth1095@sbcglobal.net 

Here are other books by Lissette E. Manning:

Love is supposed to be forever. Sometimes, we're not meant to keep it. 

Ben Morgan thought he had it all - fame, fortune, a beloved wife, and a loving family. His work kept him out

of the country for long stretches at a time, but he did his best to provide for those he loved. He never

imagined that his being away so much would have severe repercussions. When his life starts to shatter and

his wife walks away without another glance, he's left to deal with the pain and sorrow of the choices that

he's made in the past. 

A world too different from what we once knew . . . all we hold onto now is survival.

Memories of the dead remind Annie Page of the world she'd once known. Renegade forces are closing in, seeking to command the little that remains. Yet she refuses to stand by and watch the world crumble.

Her children’s love the driving force behind the choices that she’s made, she’s determined to make their world a better place. Yet their survival comes with a price – one that she never meant to pay.

Thank you so much for coming over today, Lissette. 

X Is for X-Files

''The Truth is Out There''

I am a Sci-fi fan (when done right)  and a huge fan of this TV series. As a teen, I'd sit in the living room, my eyes, unblinking, glued to the TV, my heart pounding inside my chest as I watched excitedly, but couldn't pull away.  Other than Alien abductions (which I truly loved as a teen) and suff, I enjoyed how Agent Scully and Agent Mulder worked together. Although Scully was at first placed in pretense of helping Mulder with his investigations, they came to find out that they could only trust each other and no one else. I enjoyed watching Scully change from Sceptism as the series progressed, and  how their friendship changed from Platonic to romantic (I'm a hopeless romantic).

At times some series were seriously creepy, but very interesting.

Are you fan of X-files or sci-fan?

W is for Warrior

The picture that comes to mind when I think about a Warrior is fearless, intense and hust out for justice.

According to TheComplete Writer's Guide to  Heroes and Heroines: 16 Master Archetypes by Tami C Cowden, Caro LaFever and Sue Viders, the warrior is driven, remote and controlled. Dark and dangerous, justice is this man's watchword. He sees everything i black and white, right or wrong. Shades of gray are an anathema to him. He is the judge and jury, and if necessary, the hangman too. He is Tenacious, Principled and Noble. His flaws  are: Self-righteous, Relentless and Merciless.
 Whoa! *taking a deep breath*. This guy is all sorts of intense, I think.

Just the other day, I watched Braveheart, one of my all time favourites, starring Mel Gibson as William Wallace and began analysing his character. It's a bloody movie, but gives a wonderful example of the Warrior Archetype.
 After returning home from abroad, William Wallace falls in inlove with his childhood sweetheart and secretly marries her. The next day one of the soldiers attempt to rape her, but is comes through ok and  Wallace sends her off on horseback, but is later captured and executed. All in all after witnessing the injustices surrounding him and losing his loved ones, he is compelled to rebel against the English and helps his army leading them to victory at the Battle of Stirling Bridge. Even to his death, he refuses to beg for mercy and he was still shouting 'Freedom' as his last words before he is executed.

Bloody, dark and a film that potrays a true warrior. There are other films out there that portray this archetype, but this is the one I came up with when I thought about the 'W' letter.

Oh, yeah Buffy is a warrior, unafraid to rush in and slay those vampires.

What characters do you admire in a Warrior? Any examples of Warriors you know, whether from personal experience or books or movies?

V is for Venice and Vienna

Oh, Venice! The home to the famous Italian baroque composer, Antonio Vivaldi, and one of the most beautiful places in the world.
Venice is one of those places right up there on my list that I'd love to visit hopefully soon.

Things to do while in Venice - although I hear it is expensive, they have a gift for bargaining the price. And if they do it like we do in Kenya, then I'm sure I'll be fine. haha.

1. Get around in a gondola -this is is up, up there on my list :)
2. Visit the carnivale dressed and masked like it's going out of style.
3. Check out Casa Di Giuletta, probably write a note or two to Romeo -oh which reminds me of the movie Letters to Julia....so romantic.
4. Take a Grand Tour on the Canal

The carnival starts 40 days before Easter and ends the day before Ash Wednesday. According to history, the Venica Carneval tradition started in 1162.




Vienna and Venice have one thing in common. Well, alot, but one thing I found out while researching for a project was that Vivaldi moved from Venice to Vienna.

Vienna is where I live, and it is one of the most beautiful places I've ever lived in. It is  the capital city of Austria, the City Of Music, and the place Sigmund Freud developed his ideas. Although, he was born in Moravia, his family moved to Vienna when he was 5. There are also other important personalities who were known to have been born or had lived in Vienna. Another example is the brilliant Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Although he was born in Salzburg, was a court musician in Salzburg, he visited Vienna in 1781 and chose to stay. Maria Antoinette the Archduchess of Austria and Queen of France was born here as well.
It is said that the name Vienna is of Celtic origins. The history of Vienna goes back to 500BC when the Celts settled along the Danube river. Later on during the middle ages, Vienna was home to the Babenburg Dynasty and later became the resident city of the Habsburg dynasties

Things to do while in Vienna:

I wrote a couple of posts of places to visit for this challenge, like Schönbrunn Palace, the Opera. Other places worth seeing are the St Stephen's Cathedral which is located in the 1st District in Vienna. The interior is magnificent and so is the view up on the Northern Tower of the Cathedral, where you experience a beautiful view of the city.
In summer, one can enjoy sitting outside the cafes, enjoy Viennese coffee and pastries, or have the most delicious ice cream ever. Take a walk along the cobbled stoned 'Am Graben'. This street is reserved for pedestrians and is scattered with shops, cafes.


The Mozarthaus is one place to visit if you'd like to know more about Mozart and his geniusness. Everything Mozart plus conzerts are held here. This is the entrance, the area around it is still maintained - sort of medieval style.

Belvedere - this is a historical building which used to be the summer palace of Prince Eugene of Savoy. It consists of two Baroque palaces. Belvedere is know for its beautiful gardens and museum. This is quite a huge place, and worth the time.




Prater - It's a large public park and houses the  largest amusement park in Austria, known for the Giant Ferris wheel.

Last week, my daughter and I did an impromptu visit to Madame Toussands at the Prater. She wasn't feeling so well, and her paedetrician's is to the park. It was fun. Here are some photos of her. I can guarantee you after this trip, she was feeling much, much better..LOL

U is for Unwritten

Sometimes life seems to spin round and round, and hardly have my toes touched the ground, it takes off again.

Ever woken up and felt as if everything seemed to be repeating itself like the previous days, months, or years before? Feel as if you neither moving forward not back, always standing in the same place, sinking, sinking into the quicksand called life?

Yep. I felt that way today. Sort of like that movie Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray. Alarm went off, woke up, zombie-shuffled into the bathroom, took a shower, drank my tea and dashed out of the door to catch my bus at 6am. Yesterday was the same, and the day before, and the day before (I'm really glad I have some off days coming up..phew. :D)

Anyway, once I plugged my earphones in my ears, and pressed a song from my mobile and relaxed, I realised it was one of my favourite songs. And I haven't listened to in a while: Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield. Not only are the lyrics uplifting, she has a fantastic voice.

Later on I thought  about my morning. Every morning I get the gift of waking up, watch the sun rise (or the drizzling rain). What I choose to do about my day, is up to me. I have the ability to decide if it will be as boring or consuming as the previous one. Open a blank page, write. No one else can write it for me. With that I'd like to share Natasha's song from Youtube. Hope it brightens your day. :)




Ever felt as if you are having Groundhog Day? What do you think about 'writing the unwritten'?

T is for Tsavo

In mood for a safari? Tsavo National Park is the place to be.

Tsavo National Park is Kenya's largest parks. It is divided into Tsavo East and Tsavo West. The difference between these two is the terrain. Tsavo West has more hills and mountains than East. This park is managed by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS). The climate is warm and dry, ideal for any safari fan. Tsavo East is patrolled by large herds of elephants. The largest lava flow in the world, about 300 kilometres in length can be found in this area. There is an abundance of lodges and camps, whichever one prefers.

From 1996 to 2001, I worked in one of the most beautiful lodges in I have even been to and seen. Salt Lick Lodge in the Tsavo West. At that time they were owned by Hilton Hotels, but now belong to Sarova Hotels.  This beautifully built lodge is divided into two wings. A bridge connects the two. The restaurant and reception are at the centre.

The area around the Salt Lick Lodge is not fenced in, so the wildlife strolls by and during the dry season, come in search of water. (There is a water hole at the front)



The other attraction is, watching the sun rise while flying inside a hot air balloon. This was one of the best experiences ever for me.  It gives one a whole new dimension of game viewing, as well as this exhilirating feeling that I can't just describe.

Man Eaters of Tsavo (The scary and dangerous times)

Written by Colonel JH Patterson, it is a true story and tells of when he was in charge of building a bridge for the Uganda Railway over the Tsavo river in 1898. During the night some of his workers were continually being dragged from their tents and then killed by to large male lions. After some time the workers started to believe that because the lions were so fearless, it was actually the Devil in the shape of a lion that was doing this.

In December 1898, after the death toll had risen to 28 Indian workers and a large number of locals, work on the bridge was brought to a halt, until the lions had been shot. After many nights of waiting, Colonel Patterson did eventually kill the lions, which are now on display in the Chicago Natural History Museum in the USA.Source

Author Interview with T. Michelle Nelson

Today I have the pleasure of hanging out with another talented Inkspeller, T. Michelle Nelson, on my blog. Welcome, T. So glad you are here, it being Sunday and all. :)


CeCe: Please tell us your name

Michelle: T. Michelle Nelson

CeCe: Please tell us about your book. When will it be released and by which publisher

Michelle:.The Life and Death of Lily Drake will be coming out in August and is published by Inkspell Publishing. It is the story of a single mom, Lily Drake, who is your everyday hard-working single mom…until a gorgeous vampire shows up on her front door who she mistakenly assumes is her blind date for the evening. As one crazy scenario after another unfolds, she finds herself falling in love with two vampires, slaying the evil ones, and being prophesied as the savior of the entire undead race.

The Life and Death of Lily Drake is not your typical vampire love story. It’s a tale about the humorous mistakes a woman makes simply trying to survive not only life, but the dating scene. How will Lily manage working full-time, taking care of her young son and fighting the undead at every turn? Lily will have to figure it out, but who better to save the world than a mom?

CeCe: Lily Drake sounds like a wonderful character. :) And a mom? I'm all in.What project are you working on?

Michelle: Currently I am working on a sequel to this novel. Several of the original characters will be making appearances. It was too hard to let them go!

CeCe: Oh, I know what you mean. The characters we create are part of us, so hard to let go. :) How much research did you do for this project?

Michelle: The majority of research involved was getting historical facts straight. I love history, but I wouldn’t call myself a history buff. I do well to remember my own birthday! Some of my vampires are very old, so I had to get dates and time periods correct.

CeCe: Oh, I do love a story with some Vamps in it. And it sounds like a blast. How did you come up with the story idea?

Michelle: Actually, it started as a dream then it gradually developed into the story it is now. Lily Drake is a little bit of me, and a little bit of who I’d like to be, and has traits like some of my best friends. It was really important to me to write a story that of course, was fantasy, but had a realistic main character that was relatable.
CeCe: Which genre is the book?

Michelle: I’d call it a paranormal romance for lack of a better term.

CeCe: Which genres do you enjoy reading and writing?

Michelle: I enjoy reading almost everything short of instruction manuals. I’m a “wing-it” kind of gal! But as far as writing, I don’t necessarily mean to write romance, it just happens… and it always does!

CeCe: Where can readers and fans find you - online that is?

Michelle: Website is coming soon, and I’m on facebook and twitter under T. Michelle Nelson.


 Definitely looking foward to The Life and Death of Lily Drake in August . Thanks for the interview, T. Have a wonderful Sunday!