October is always a busy month for me, since the majority of my novels include mysterious hauntings, and ghost stories gain an even wider appeal as Halloween approaches. In fact, the history of Halloween, or All Hallow’s Eve, links back to the Celtic festival of Samhain, a time when the barrier between the physical and paranormal worlds grows thin. In the Christian religion, November 1st marks All Saints' Day, the day waiting souls would be released from earth. All Hallow's Eve, then, was considered the last night for restless spirits to take their revenge. While there are plenty of desperate--and sometimes dangerous--spirits in my novels, they're not going anywhere until the mystery behind their haunting is unraveled...no matter what the time of the year it is.
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| The Hyannis Library is on the MA Registry of Haunted Locations kept by the MA Paranormal Institute |
But this is the month to celebrate all things spooky, and I'm excited to have three presentations coming up in the next two weeks, each one a bit different, and each one at a different library on Cape Cod. On Wednesday, October 19th, I’ll be with Katie O’Sullivan, a fellow Cape author, at the Hyannis Public Library on Main Street in Hyannis. This is a wonderful place to have a discussion about history and hauntings, as during one of my prior events there, I learned the building has been deemed haunted by the Massachusetts Paranormal Institute. Parts of the building date back to the original house which became the library's permanent residence in 1908. Katie and I will be there from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m., chatting about the inspiration behind our books, the local Cape settings, and the various paranormal elements we’ve included in our novels: ghosts, mermaids, and a half-angel, half-human Nephilim, to name a few. In addition, my latest novel, HAUNTED SOULS, is set in Barnstable Village, which is right around the corner.
On Tuesday, October 25th, Katie and I will be joined by another local author who writes for our publisher, Kevin Symmons, at the Osterville Library at 43 Wianno Ave. in Osterville. We’ll do an author panel on spooky fiction, discussing not only supernatural and paranormal themes but also the dangerous human bad guys in some of our stories. We’ll be there from 5:00 to 7:00 pm, with time for Q&A and book signings.
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| A photo I took of the Old Jail one evening. Seriously, what's in that top right window? It was closed. And there's something red in the bottom left window as well. |
Right before Halloween weekend, I’ll be at the Mashpee Public Library, 64 Steeple St. right near the Commons, from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm on Friday, October 28th. I’ll talk more in depth about the inspiration behind Haunted Souls: the Old Jailhouse, a structure built in 1690 and reputedly haunted. A visit with my sister sparked the initial idea for my fourth novel, and I’ll share the story as well as the story of my overall writing journey.
Finally, I have some events for those who aren’t on the Cape…not one, but two, Halloween Bog Hops. If you’ve never done a blog hop before, it’s a great way to discover new authors, win prizes, and enjoy posts about the season…all online. You start at one stop on the hop, which will be a blog with a seasonal post and a giveaway contest. My giveaways will be signed print book (either SILVER LAKE or GULL HARBOR) to my individual winner. A group link at the bottom of the post will take you to the next page on the hop, and you can make your way all the way around, entering the individual contests along the way. Each one also has an overall hop-wide giveaway with a Rafflecopter widget recording entries. I believe both Rafflecopters will have a grand prize of a large gift card. So be sure to stop back here between Oct. 24th and the 31st, and if you’re in the Cape Cod area, I hope to meet you at one of the events!
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| The Snarkology Halloween Hop is an annual tradition organized by author Melissa Snark - 10/26 - 10/31 |
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| The ABA Halloween Hop is hosted by author Casi McLean and begins on Oct. 24th. |
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