Where would we be?

So, I read an ebook two nights ago. Several things jumped out at me as I read it that let me know that the writer was definitely NOT a resident of the state they set it in. Not only did the describe the summer weather as humid, which it never is, they mentioned a 6 hour drive between two cities that takes 3, maybe 3 1/2 hours, tops. This leads me to my topic at hand.

Research.

Why should you do? What should you look up? How do you research?

Now, if you're like me, research is fun. Take one of my stories, Two of a Kind. I took two hours to look up the flowers I used to describe the decorations on statues. I had to make sure they were native to the region I was using as the origin, the color variations possible and what they looked like. It may seem excessive for a single descriptive section of just a few paragraphs, but they were a vital part of the plot. Since I wrote specifics, I wanted to have the facts correct.

I looked up fact pages on Wiki, always a good source, though one I cross check with other sites whenever possible. It is, after all, a site compiled of information by the people and sometimes people don't know their butt from a hole in the ground. Yep, I went there. LOL

 I looked up flowers from the region on a wiki page, then looked up a few horticulture sites. Then I googled pictures so I could see the colors myself, which I find is the best way to cement them in my head so I can really describe them. I also found myself researching jungle animals, black jaguar melanin issues, plant poisons and cures, flight time between Brazil and California, weather patterns, driving distance from the airport to a city/mountain range I set the story in, antiserums and how they are created. . .just to name a few things.

You can hit your local library for books on your subject, check online websites, find an expert or researcher in the field/area you are wanting to write about, or just go see for yourself if you plan to use local settings. Ignore the temptation to say, 'Only this or that person would know this info is wrong.' Get it right from the start. An author who doesn't even take the time to get to know the region/time/people they are writing about is a pretty sloppy writer in my book.

Make the effort to get to know your subject if you're going to use it. Or, do like I do so often when I can't figure out what I want in a modern story or the facts of the known universe contradict me; make it up! Fantasy stories are prime for making up your own rules and facts, like the alternate history of the Carthera people. Mixing the two takes work; you have to make sure you stick to the world you create when you write, but it can help you out of those sticky situations sometimes.

Besides, learning something new every day is a GOOD thing!

***

For those wondering about the next installment of The Experiment, it is close to being done. Kids kept me busy yesterday, so I had no time to write until 10 pm. Once 11 hit, my pillow was calling my name too insistently to resist. It'll be posted soon!!

Free Reads Reviews!

Hi All! I have plans with my best friend, who happens to be one of my follwers-so hey, see you in a bit! Then of course this afternoon is the big game. So. . .since I can't guarantee any of The Experiment from me today, I thought I'd share some of the anthology stories I've enjoyed on GA for your reading pleasure. I hope you enjoy them too!

The Price of Love by Quonous 10: An unstoppable evil is threatening the world. Barh, the last Magi is on a quest to find Chenoth, a spirit of great power entrusted by the God's to protect the people. But Chenoth's aid comes at a price, a price Barh is not sure he can pay. (5,470 wd mm fantasy)

Repairman's Lust by Rush: Al is a mechanic a lonely man. Chad is a satellite repair guy still troubled by a past abusive relationship. When Al called to get his satellite fixed he never expected someone as beautiful as Chad to show up. Can Al fix Chad's broken heart? And can Chad repair more than just Al's satellite? (5,887 wd. mm modern)

Without You by Myk: Even the most difficult times are manageable with the help of someone you love, but without that person, what would you do? (12, 219 wd. mm modern)

Roving Dreams by Renee Stevens: Adrian Jackson was involved in a horrific car accident. Can he find his way back to his partner Randy or will he forever be lost in the recesses of his mind.  (2,562 wd. mm modern/paranormal)

The Demon King and the Faery Prince by Nephylim: The Faery Queen is itching for an excuse to go to war with the Demon Queen. When the Demon Queen gives her the perfect excuse the war is on. However, its outcome is not what either of them could have imagined. (8,313 ws. mm Fantasy)

With Open Arms by Cia: (Yeah, adding one of my own. This story really resonates with me) Fear and pain surround Wes. His journey is witnessed and shared by the one person who will never give up on him. He just has to take that first step.  (4,629 wd. mm modern)

Running Cia's Brain

So this was a prompt on GA about a small man/woman running your brain and what your day would be like from their perspective. I couldn't pick just one. So, enjoy seeing what See and Uh get up to each day! 

***

    “Hey, why is she still sleeping? The kids are up already. Get the pons, that’s part of your job.”

    “Sheesh, bossy much?” Uh grumbles as he walks over and kicks the pons to force their person awake. “There, happy now? She didn’t go to bed until late last night and her hypothalamus is going to be cranky.”  He slumped back into his chair and glared his partner.
 
 “She’d have gotten more sleep if you had just left her parietal lobe alone. Gods, you’re horny all the time, and it’s just not right.” See glared back and rolled her eyes in disgust.

    “Hey, you have your jobs, and I have mine.”

    “Whatever. Oh good, the kids are gone to school. Let’s get the cleaning done. Give me a hand with the cerebellum so she’ll get started.”

    “C’mon, can’t we just--”

    She cut him off, “No, we cannot just… Get to work.” The two of them were soon moving around tweaking parts of their human’s brain until she finished all the chores waiting for her.

    Uh looked around. “She’s hungry now; the hypothalamus is starting to shiver a bit. How about some bacon and eggs?”

    See raised her eyebrow at him. “How about no? Toast and fruit would be good though. Plus some tea.”

    Grumbling, Uh watched as she got their human to start making breakfast. “How come she always has to eat healthy?”

    “You know why. Now stop whining. It’s writing time and then she’ll have to play with the kids. She needs energy to work right. You are so careless.” See pointed at him. “Remember that time you pushed her thalamus so hard she started drinking and hallucinating? That was nearly a disaster!”

    “I liked it better when she was little and this was easier.” Uh was drooping, tired out by the time their human was ready to go to bed that night. “I have a juicy dream for her tonight though.”

    “Would you leave her parietal lobe alone!” See slapped his hands away from where Uh was gently stroking it.

    “Hey, if she has to dream she might as well get a bit of fun out it. I was just going to give her a little orgasm. She could use the sex scene in her story tomorrow.”

    See pushed him away and began rubbing their human’s occipital lobe. “I want her to dream about their first date, not when you made her tumble into bed with him the first time. She’s writing a romance, not porn! There, all set.”

    See stood back and smiled tiredly. She looped her arms around Uh’s waist and hugged him. They stumbled together to their resting place in the medulla oblongata to keep her rhythms steady during their rest. Snuggling together, they finally relaxed.

    “It was a good day,” See said.

    Uh pulled her closer. “You bossed me around all day.”
  
   “Yep, and you liked it. We work well together.” See sighed and kissed his neck. “Good night.”
  
   “Goodnight.”

Sometimes we just have to have a little fun. I like Uh a lot! More of The Experiment will be coming tomorrow. Don't forget to comment if you like these little story dribbles; I have more I can share.

My lovely online friend, and one of my favorite authors, Nephylim, was interested enough to interview me as to my writing and the websites I'm part of. I'm a little slow, the blog posted yesterday. Oops!

I'm sort of an open book (for most things) but there might be a few things there you didn't know, as well as a list of upcoming projects. I hope you check it out, and her blog as well. She has a huge amount of online content, a few book now published, YAY!

Check out her blog through the linked image below!

A Little Tease

I will have another part for The Experiment tonight, but for this morning I wanted to share a prompt I'm titling 'A Little Tease'. I hope you enjoy it ;)

***

 It is sinuous and tempting. That shy glance over a bare shoulder and that little roll of your hips are beyond my ability to resist. A chance moment becomes an opportunity for more.

I slide in, taking up the empty space around you. My hands float above your waist, heat radiating from your dewy skin. Your hair drags against the hollow of my throat as you roll your head to the side and back, your eyes closed and your teeth buried in your succulent bottom lip.

Your neck curves before me, an elegant arch of pale white skin that calls to me to taste and tongue the soft flesh. It tantalizes me unbearably.

I can't resist it.

The chill is driven from my hands by the heat you emanate. I run my now fiery palms up your curves and angles to bury them in the cool mass of your silken hair. They wrap in the sleek strands, tugging your head back that final inch until you're vulnerable to my caress, extended and balanced on the edge.

I pause and breathe you in. Your skin is perfumed with an exotic blend of spice and sweet. Electricity leaps between us as I close that miniscule gap keeping us so painfully apart. The flavor of you fills me, unique and more intoxicating than a thousand wines. Your moan vibrates against my lips as I suck and nibble at the feast laid bare before me.

Any distance between us disappears as you fall against me, your hips still rocking and swaying to a music only you can hear. Nothing has ever felt as good as every solid line of your body resting on mine.

Not the first time it happened, when you trusted your body to me so long ago.

Not last night when the clothes between us had fallen away and this moment was swept aside by a greater passion.

My nibbling at your neck ends at your ear, where I swirl my tongue around the delicate edge until you shudder.

"Hi honey, I'm home," I whisper with a tender smile.