Author Spotlight--Rebecca Besser

Rebecca Besser is the author of the zombie novella, "Undead Drive-Thru" and "Nurse Blood," and a graduate of the Institute of Children's Literature. Her work has appeared in the Coshocton Tribune, Irish Story Playhouse, Spaceports & Spidersilk, joyful!, Soft Whispers, Illuminata, Common Threads, Golden Visions Magazine, Stories That Lift, Super Teacher Worksheets, Living Dead Press Presents Magazine (Iss. 1 & 2), FrightFest eMagazine, An Xmas Charity Ebook, The Stray Branch, and The Undead That Saved Christmas (Vol. 1 & 2), the Signals From The Void, and Save The Chapel charity anthologies. She has multiple stories in anthologies by Living Dead Press, Wicked East Press, Pill Hill Press, Hidden Thoughts Press, Knight Watch Press, Coscom Entertainment, Crowded Quarantine Publications, and Collaboration of the Dead (projects), and one (each) in an anthology by Post Mortem Press and NorGus Press. She also has a poem in an anthology by Naked Snake Press.

She's also an editor and has edited: Dark Dreams: Tales of Terror, Dead Worlds 7: Undead Stories, and Book of Cannibals 2: The Hunger from Living Dead Press; Earth's End from Wicked East Press; End of Days: An Apocalyptic Anthology (Vol. 4 & 5/co-edited) from Living Dead Press; and she's currently editing It's Weighing On You Mind from Hidden Thoughts Press, and co-editing Beneath The Pretty Lies from Wicked East Press.

When she's not busy writing and/or editing, she's formatting book covers, building/maintaining websites, and writing book reviews.
For more information, visit her website: www.rebeccabesser.com

I met Rebecca, the Diva of Horror, a few years ago, through ICL's forum. I love her twisted mind! I say that affectionately, of course, but really...this woman's horror can scare the crap out of you! If you are following her on Facebook, you know she's a busy woman with so many accomplishments. She's here today to chat with us.

~Hi Becca! Tell us when and why you became a writer.

Bec: In my opinion, you don't 'become' a writer. You either are one or you aren't. There are either words spinning inside you, fighting to get out, or there aren't. That being said... I was born a writer. It's a gift given to me by God. :)

~I've been to your website, and was blown away. Not just by the amount of credits you have under your belt, but also the variety--children's stories and poetry, adult poetry, horror, hint fiction, photography, cover art...and the list goes on! Is there any one genre you haven't written? Why not?

Bec: I don't think I've written a mystery yet... Well, not completed one anyway. I have a MG mystery started that I need to finish. I even have a Christian Fantasy novel started! LOL

~Of all your publishing credits, which is your favorite, and why?

Bec: Favortie credit? Hmmm.... I'm going to have to say the Earth's End anthology. I have a story in it and edited the collection. What most people don't know about that book is that it was my personal project and got dumped by a press because the owner and I had a personal falling out (which was COMPLETELY unfair to the authors who were accepted). I fought hard and found a new press to publish it so that the authors in it weren't let down.

~By the way, I have a copy of that anthology on my TBR pile!
Not only are you a writer, but you're also an editor. When you put on your editor cap, what is your biggest pet-peeve about other people's work?

Bec: Everything. Commas and tenses are the most common mistakes though.

~Tell us about your hidden talent.

Bec: Hidden talent? You mean I'm hiding something?! DAMN! Now I'll have to find it! :p

~I envy your ambition. You're a wife and mother, a blogger, a writer, a photographer, and an editor. Do you keep to a schedule? Give us your best tip on keeping balance.

Bec: Best tip? Don't give up when life gets crazy. There are times I have no time for ANYTHING! So, no, right now I have no real schedule. I do things when I can, but you should know I'm a great multi-tasker, so I do lots of things at once. Maybe that's my secret... hehehe

~Tell us about your next project.

Bec: My online serial novel, "Nurse Blood," is now complete, so I need to write the extra novella of content for the book (when it's released). I'll also be starting on my zombie novel series, "The Hunger Plague." ;)


~Thanks again, Becca, for taking time out of your busy schedule. You can learn more about Rebecca Besser, and also get blown away by all of her publications, by visiting her website. www.rebeccabesser.com

"Crystallophobia (Fear of Glass)," by Jim Bronyaur & Rebecca Besser (Book Thoughts and Author Interview)

I recently had the pleasure of reading "Crystallophobia," the first book in the Series of Fears. Check out the Facebook page!

Although I'm a big fan of Stephen King, I haven't read horror in a long time. Actually, I don't remember ever reading a zombie story. What can I say? I live a sheltered life. But I have to tell you, I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed the story line and the fast-paced tension of this book. I literally sat on the edge of my seat and gnawed on a fingernail while I read.

Jim and Rebecca keep the action moving in this tale of a struggling small town called Streinersburg, Ohio. We enter the lives of the townspeople on a normal Tuesday morning, when a sudden explosion changes everything.

I'd love to talk more about this book and series, but I thought it would be more exciting if the authors answered a few questions for us.

~Welcome, Jim and Becca! Thank you for allowing me to read the first book in The Series of Fear. Is this your first collaboration?

Bec: We wrote some poetry together back in the day on Soft Whispers. A Line At A Time, I believe it was called. Other than that...this is the first story/book we've written together.

Jim:  Yeah, we had small stuff before.  This is our biggest to date.  And plus, it’s a series, so we’re sort of stuck together, for now. 


~Well, so far, so good. You two work well together. You both have amazingly twisted minds! How did this project begin?

Bec: A joke from a post Jim did on Facebook saying there would never be sparkling zombies. I told him we could rock them and make them badass... LOL

Jim:  Yeah, we have weird conversations.  I’ll say something random and Bec finds a way to turn it into a horror book.  We started writing this story last year but it fizzled out a little.  Then I saw a show about fears and it sparked an idea for a series.  I wanted to take fears and twist them… turn them in a horror series… it just so happened that we had this sparkling zombie idea with pieces of glass in their bodies, etc. so our first fear was born – Crystallophobia, fear of glass.

~The characters had me laughing out loud, cringing and even I felt a little sad for the two old ladies. I enjoyed peeking into the townspeople's lives. Who created which characters?

Bec: I had Sparkles, her mom, the teenager, and the ambulance drivers. :) Everything else is Jim because he started the story. LOL

Jim:  I enjoyed Sparkles… for the time she was there (hehe).  I just thought of a small town, hidden away from the rest of the world, and wrote.  My favorite character of course is Perkins.  His name is cool and he was just fun to build. 

~Which book is the next in the series? Could you give us a little hint what it's about?

Bec: Technology and The Devil/Demons.

Jim:  The next one is Bec’s idea.  It’s a sick premise and I fell in love with it.  A man who was raised Amish gets engaged and moves into a more modern time.  His fiancée gives him a cell phone as a present and soon he begins to think that technology is coming to life to kill him. 

~Ooh! That sounds like a good one too! How can everyone get their copy of Crystallophobia?

Bec: Kindle and Nook!

Jim:  Yup.  And soon enough, we’ll be distributed through Smashwords for .PDF, Sony, Apple, etc.

~Thanks again for stopping by! Good luck with your series. I can't wait until the next one comes out!
*****

Connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Plus, sign up for free e-mail updates from this blog in the top right-hand corner of the page.

*****

Author Spotlight--Kim Curley

Kim Curley began her writing journey in 2008, taking an online course titled, 'How To Sell Your Fiction Novel.' With the encouragement of a friend from work, she enrolled in a correspondence course and became a 2010 graduate from the Institute of Children's Literature of West Redding, Connecticut. In 2009, she became a member of SCBWI-Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators. Although she enjoys writing children's lit, her goal is to branch out and write for adults as well. She prefers writing fiction/fantasy, to provide escapism for readers everywhere. "I write what I would want to read, when I get the chance to read." A housewife and mother, she resides in the Pacific Northwest. Her story for Wicked East Press Sci-Fi/Apocalypse Anthology, "Earth's End," titled, "Faith: An Apocalypse Story," is her first published piece for a book.

Earth's End: Anthology, edited by Rebecca Besser and published by Wicked East Press, was released on January 26, 2012.

~Welcome, Kim! Thank you so much for joining us today. Congratulations on your recent success!

Thank you so much for having me visit your blog, Denise. And thanks for the congrat's on the story-I'm really excited about it! *jumps up-&-down* Okay-I'm done...for now!

~Which do you prefer writing--novels or short stories?

Both have their challenges, so I'd have to say both. However, I'm "long in the tooth," so writing novels fits how and what I write. Short stories are a great way to brush up your writing skills though!


~I see in your bio that you enjoy writing fantasy. Now that you have a Horror story under your belt, do you think you'll write more in that genre?

I'd like to write for all genres, as each one has a different "voice." We should all go outside our "bubble" and try something new. A writer might find their niche in something opposite what they originally started writing!


~I've never written Horror but I love to read it. I know we share the same love for Stephen King. One of my favorite books by him is The Stand. What's your favorite Stephen King book and why?

I haven't gotten through The Stand, so my hats off to you. Most of his books are on my "To Read" list. "Christine" is one of my favorites, but then I LOVE antique cars, so there's a personal connection I have with the story (and no, I've never had a possessed car, darn it!!). I admire Stephen King's book, "On Writing." A short book, Mr. King cuts out all the BS of most books about writing and just gets to the point. Some people say its an autobiography, but it isn't. The book is about his journey to becoming a writer, with tidbits of useful information throughout.


~Kim, your story, "Faith: An Apocalyptic Story," is one of the hair-raising stories featured in Earth's End. Could you tease us with an excerpt?

"Throwing the door open and entering, she found herself in a makeshift lab; test tubes, microscopes, and petri dishes sat on a granite counter top. Further into the elongated room, an autoclave rested in a corner. She came to a set of swinging doors and pushed through them, entering another room, which was much smaller than the first. The tabletops here were cluttered with Bunsen burners, beakers, flasks, and microscopes. She stared at the mess, not sure of what she was looking for. Curiosity eventually got the better of her, and she leaned over a microscope, searching for a clue. Her eyes widened in surprise at the sight: blood samples showing human and lion compounds stared her in the face–an intermingling of the species. She turned away from the eyepiece, as she’d just witnessed proof that the Atlanteans had, in fact, been trying to make an animal/human hybrid.

She swore under her breath, casting glances around the room, when her eyes lit upon what she’d been hunting for. Clutching the thin piece of metal she’d taken from the man, she took three giant steps to the door, inserted the key, and turned the lock. After she heard a dull click, she pushed the door handle down, and was met with an awful stench as she opened it: a mixture of urine, fecal matter, and iron.

There were oil lamps in this dungeon area, casting odd shadows on the walls. Steel bars separated her from whatever, or whomever, lay in wait in the darkness.

A moan escaped from something, or someone, in the cage closest to her, adding to her anxiety." ~ Faith: An Apocalyptic Story by Kim Curley - Earth's End

~Animal/human hybrids? A laboratory? Yikes! This excerpt is full of tension. You've got my attention! How and when can we get a copy of Earth's End?

This book is AVAILABLE NOW!! Check out Amazon, or Pill Hill Press: www.pillhillpress.com/shoppe-wicked-east-press.html  


~What other projects are you working on and where can we find more of your work?

I have two nonfiction pieces for Hidden Thoughts Press that have been accepted for publication: one is a nonfiction submission about my struggles with JRA-juvenile rheumatoid arthrits in "It's Weighing on Your Mind," anthology. That's coming out in the near future. The second, another nonfiction piece. This one is about anxeity/panic disorders, for another Hidden Thoughts Press anthology. I've got a kids fiction novel I really want to get done by spring so that I can take it to a regional SCBWI conference. As far as other future projects: there are several binders full of stories just waiting to be completed! 


~Kim, thank you so much for joining us today. I'm looking forward to getting my copy of Earth's End: Anthology. Good luck with your future endeavors. 

Thank you so much, Denise! I've been really fortunate to have found myself surrounded by talented writers who are personable and professional. I owe a lot of who I am to them all!


Follow Kim Curley's Blog and follow her on Twitter!