Flirting with a Demon

Flirting with a demon.

In writing my Actual Magic series for Young Adults, Lilly Noble & Actual Magic, I’ve always found people to be amazingly interesting, and the interest they generate keeps me forever curious to see what they will do next.  See if you can figure out exactly why I included this scene in Lilly Noble & Actual Magic.

Here's an excerpt:

As the boat neared the breakwater, Lilly sensed someone’s stare.  She glanced up.

The handsome boy with the wavy black hair and ice blue eyes grinned at her and winked. 

Oh great.  First a snub, and now a smile?  Did he think she was crazy, or better yet, desperate?

“Stop looking at me like that,” she whispered under her breath.

As if in response to her words, his eyes widened for a split second, and a nervous smile twitched the edges of his broad lips.  He acted surprised, but she knew he was too far away to hear her whisper. 

Was that even possible, or had she just imagined his reaction?

She felt silly, but she decided to see if she could get him to respond again.  “Don’t stare at me,” she whispered harshly.  Then, she leveled an even gaze at him and waited.

He pressed his lips together in a defiant line and studied her face for a long moment.  Then, he looked away, as if confused and deliberating.

The boat’s hard rocking made Lilly’s stomach roll.

The boy turned back and dazzled her with a brilliant smile.  His lips moved.

“You’re kind of cute, and very bossy,” a hoarse, deep whisper floated into her ear.

Lilly flinched.  She heard his words clearly, as if he’d been standing right next to her.  How was that possible?  Then she remembered his words and instantly became annoyed with him.  “Do you honestly think you have a shot with me?”

The boat’s lurching made her seasick.  The strangeness of the conversation didn’t help.

“You were interested a few minutes ago,” came his retort.

“I was curious a few minutes ago.  Now, I’ve changed my mind.  I’m not curious anymore.”

“Okay, but kiss me anyway.”

“Get over yourself!”

“You turned out to be a lot cuter than I thought you’d be.”  With his eyelids at half-mast, his seductive expression was unconvincing.  In fact, he looked about to doze off.

She caught the meaning of his words, and instantly grew wary.  Apparently, Zymura was not the only one on the island who knew she’d be here.  “‘Than you’d thought I’d be’?  How could you possibly know anything about me?”

He gaped at her and then clumsily covered his surprise with a grin.  “Don’t you like me?”

The boat swayed.

Lilly clutched her stomach.  “No, and I think I’m going to throw up.”

“Sure, you say that now, but I’ll get you to change your mind.”  The smug grin on the boy’s face betrayed his belief that he’d successfully covered the tracks of his error.

“What are you doing?” Zymura interrupted, breaking the spell.

Posted by Deborah McTiernan
Author of Lilly Noble & Actual Magic
Dares readers to believe in themselves and discover the magic within!
photo credit: Neil. Moralee via photopin cc

Visit Raven's Landing, Maine

In writing my novel, Lilly Noble & Actual Magic, I remembered as a kid, I found scary places both intriguing and terrifying. Again and again, I felt drawn to the unknown like a moth to the flame. 

Here's an excerpt from Lilly Noble & Actual Magic :

At the front of the ship, a distant fog-blurred smudge of gray grew massive and darkened. A tall, black chunk of rock jutted out of the Atlantic Ocean’s choppy waves. At last, the island. As the ferry drew closer, she made out the silhouette of impressive stone structures crowning the cliffs.   Bonaventure’s Academy, with its huge blue and gold domes capping cobbled walls of mortar and stone, looked like a medieval fairy tale castle.

She caught her breath and swallowed hard. “The school is beautiful. What’s it like on the inside?”

“I don’t want to spoil the surprise. Just wait, you’ll see. But, you’re going to love it.”

The bluff dropped off into a sheltered cove with a rocky breakwater and a generous swath of jade-colored sand.  A sun-bleached wooden pier stretched from a boardwalk of businesses at the dunes’ edge, out into the deep water.

Thin strands of jellyfish, clam shells, driftwood, and seaweed cluttered the tide line. A tornado of big black birds cartwheeled and cawed in the swirling mist.  Zymura gestured to the rapidly approaching chunk of land.

“Welcome to Bonaventure’s Academy of Magic.”  Lilly nodded. “Those birds, are they vultures?”

“They’re ravens.”

“Oh, right. Raven’s Landing Island, I get it. What are they circling over?”

Shivering, Lilly tugged her coat tight around her shoulders and yanked the zipper up to her neck. “I have no idea, but now that I think about it, they always seem to be in the same place.”

“They’re kind of creepy.” Searching her pockets, she found her mittens and pulled them on over her hands. “Yeah, well, they’re ravens. What can I say?”

Posted by Deborah McTiernan, Author of Lilly Noble & Actual Magic ~ Dares readers to believe in themselves and discover the magic within!

See Real Friendship in Action.

In writing my Actual Magic series for Young Adults,  In creating characters that really mattered to me, I also explored their friendships and bonds with one another, and what those relationships brought to the power of the story.

This scene was about establishing trust.  Here's an excerpt:

Lilly decided to test her theory connecting the smell of sweaty feet to someone telling her a lie. “Zymura, do me a favor?”

“What?”

“I want you to lie to me.”

The girl hesitated. “Uh. Okay, why?”

“I want to know if I have the power to detect a lie,” she said nervously, almost giggling again. “The only way I can think to test myself is to know that what you’re saying to me isn’t true before you tell me.”

“Oh, I get it. Good idea. Okay. Let me think,” she paused, gazing upward for a moment.

“I really hate this school,” Zymura said, twisting her face in disgust for dramatic effect.  The air immediately saturated with the sickening stench of stinky feet.

Lilly held her breath and controlled the urge to gag against the smell.

“Well? Anything?” Zymura asked, looking at her curiously.

“Yeah, you really stink.”

“Thanks,” the girl said with a grin. The salt sea air rushed in, replacing the stench.

Lilly breathed a sigh of relief. She was satisfied that she’d proven her theory correct. She did, indeed, possess the power to detect a lie. 
Then as an urgent afterthought, she added, “We’ve got to keep this a secret though.”

Zymura quickly nodded her understanding. “Right! What good is the ability to detect a lie if everyone knows about it?”

Posted by Deborah McTiernan, Author of Lilly Noble & Actual Magic

Dares readers to believe in themselves and discover the magic within!

Guest Post : Catherine Carrigan / It’s Not Where You’ve Been, It’s Where You Are Going

Hi Everyone, this week I am sharing another blog post from the website one of my favorite authors, and someone I am proud to call my friend.Catherine Carrigan, author of What Is Healing? Awaken Your Intuitive Power for Health and Happiness, http://amzn.to/GRTW7z, a Health Intuitive, wrote this blog post.

You can find out more about Catherine and her wonderful new book on her blog, www.catherinecarrigan.com Catherine’s book is also available on Amazon as an audio book. Catherine’s book, What Is Healing? Awaken Your Intuitive Power for Health and Happiness, has been consistently trending Number 1 as a Best Seller on Amazon in two categories – medicine and psychology and alternative medicine reference books.

Here is Catherine’s blog:

It’s Not Where You’ve Been, It’s Where You Are Going
Posted on Feb 12, 2014 by Catherine Carrigan

Too often in life, our past consumes us, mentally, emotionally and energetically. What other people did or did not do. What we did or did not do. Things we appear to have missed out on. Prayers that seemingly went unanswered. Resources we believe we might have needed but didn’t have. “Accidents” that apparently happened. When we focus so much of our energy in this way – on what happened in the past – we actually steal energy from where we are going.

We are so energetically and emotionally encumbered that we have little to no energy to run the present, much less move forward courageously into our future. We feel exhausted and depressed. If 50 percent of your chi is in the past, how can you move forward full on? It’s not about where you have been – what’s important now is where you are going. Why is this the case? If you listen to the story about your past, more than likely you will hear the story about your wounding.

The truth is, your wounds can stop you in your tracks or they can even kill you if you let them. Your wounds can either be the place where you allow the light to get in or where you shut down totally and never grow out, grow up or move on. How do you stay focused on where you are going?

1. Recognize that you have gifts that you alone are here to give the rest of the world. Ask yourself, “What would happen if I wasn’t here to make my contribution?”

2. Focus on who you are serving. Chances are there may be others on a similar path, but only you can contribute your specific vibration. Even if 100 other people are saying the same thing, maybe somebody needs to hear your message the specific way you say it. Maybe someone needs to receive your energy in the way that only you can deliver it. Recognize that your purpose is bigger than you, it’s bigger than we and it’s all about US.

3. Realize that it took inner strength to get you as far as you have already come in your life. Call on this strength to move forward. If you have overcome even one challenge in your life so far, you can use those very same inner resources to move forward in every other area.

4. Honor the truth that you are not your challenges, you are not your illness, you are not your wounds. You are a soul with limitless resources.

5. Know that there is no such thing as a vacuum anywhere in the universe. That means that you already possess everything you need to move forward in this moment. Even if it’s just a phone number, you have what you need right now to move ahead in this instant.

6. Instead of becoming overwhelmed by the enormity of any challenge, simply ask yourself, “What’s my next step today?”

7. Motivate yourself with positive thoughts. When I was writing my second book, What Is Healing? Awaken Your Intuitive Power for Health and Happiness (Total Fitness: Atlanta, 2013), I knew that my first book was the best-selling book of the original publisher and had been translated into Chinese.

I knew that I had the ability to write from my heart in a way that is transformative for other people. As I was writing my book, I kept telling myself, “Knock it out of the park.” In other words, I knew what I was capable of, and I went for it.

My book went to No. 1 in two categories on Amazon in 2013 and so far has 20 five-star reviews. I dug deep inside, wounds and all. One of the best ways to have a great attitude is to bless your past and move forward anyway. It’s not where you’ve been, it’s where you are going.

Thank you, Catherine!

Posted by Deborah McTiernan Author of Lilly Noble & Actual Magic Paranormal books for teenagers Dares readers to believe in themselves and discover the magic within!

Crafting a Scene from a Single Idea

How I Craft a Scene from a Single Idea, and then Weave it into the Story

Title: Discover the Magic within you to believe in yourself.

In writing my Actual Magic series for Young Adults, I drew upon all my favorite story characters I loved as a kid to create my own.

Here's an excerpt:

“You will learn that the way you think holds the key to all things magic. Have the courage to imagine only great things. By pushing your minds far beyond what you already understand, you will discover what is yet to be.”

Mondragon took his place next to her. “Good afternoon, Bea,” he whispered hoarsely into her ear as if they were lovers. The wide grin on his face told her he’d been up to something. Probably something that, when she found out later what that was, she wouldn’t like it. She ignored him for the moment. She was too deep in her speech to bother with him now. At least this time he showed up.

“The Bonaventure-Mondragon is awarded to the student or team of students who push their minds far beyond our known supernatural reality and create a thought or a way of thinking about our world that we’ve never before considered.” “Like a frog with wings?” Morlock teased with a twinkle in his dark brown eyes.“Not if you’re casting about for something else,” she smiled at the students.Mondragon knew better than to interrupt her during her orientation speech. What was going on with him? “What if that is exactly what you want?” he persisted.

She shrugged and studied him. Whatever Mondragon was up to, he’d better have a good explanation for why he was acting like this. “Well, then, a winged frog would definitely be a success.” Beatrice pointedly returned her attention to the students. “Your grades will be decided by the number of successful spells you cast, not by the size or the perfection of your results.

And remember this: The Bonaventure-Mondragon Award isn’t just a competition. It’s also about cooperation, how fairly you play the game, and what you learn about yourself along the way. While you attend school here, you will do no harm to yourselves or to others as you study and learn. And if you’re really lucky, you’ll make friends — real friends you’ll keep forever. Boys and girls, attending the Bonaventure Academy of Magic is as much about your character as it is about the magic. Keep that thought in mind should you be tempted to cheat, or steal, or sabotage someone else’s spells.”

Posted by Deborah McTiernan Author of Lilly Noble & Actual Magic Dares readers to believe in themselves and discover the magic within!

Crafting The Story

 Lilly Noble & Actual Magic Excerpt 

Crafting the first few paragraphs of a brand new story presents an amazing challenge to every writer. That handful of words must convey to the reader not only the story’s who, what, where, when, and why, but also, its mood, tone, and voice.A daunting task!

Before I began I knew a few things about Lilly. I knew what happened to her before her story began, what frightened her most, who was now missing from her life, and the emptiness she felt because of it.  With the first draft, these opening paragraphs were initially a huge twenty-six pages long.  I knew I had to pare it down!  After much editing, here is the opening gambit.

Lilly Noble & Actual Magic  Page 1

Lilly Noble shivered violently against the blustery chill, but underneath all the layers of clothing she wore, she also trembled with fear.  Was she being sent away to the strange new school as punishment, or because her father couldn’t bear to look at her anymore?  Since the accident, his abrupt mood swings and sudden naps whenever she walked into the room he occupied made her wonder if he blamed her for the car accident that took her mother’s life.  About that particular day, Lilly could remember not a single detail. The lingering amnesia that the doctors had said was a side effect of the coma left her with an untrustworthy memory.  If there was a good thing to come out of leaving home, it was that Lilly would be far away from Morgann, her new stepmother.  The woman’s unblinking glare barely concealed a simmering hatred, and the rancid aroma of stinky feet seemed to cling to her like a nasty cloud.  With a brilliant flash, lightning ignited the gloom overhead.  Thunder rumbled and echoed across the sodden gray skies like eerie voodoo drums.  The ferryboat chugged mightily forward, lurching across the heavy North Atlantic chop. A fog horn bellowed somewhere off in the distance.  Its lighthouse remained a phantom, thanks to the drooping clouds obscuring everything, and bleeding all the light from the late summer afternoon.Something inside the fleur-de-lis locket at her throat slithered and hissed. Lilly closed her fist over the pendant to block out the sound. She wanted to toss the thing into the sea, but it had belonged to her mother, and her father said its luck would keep her safe while she was far away from home. Lilly decided she could use all the luck she could get, even if it came in the form of a creepy locket.

To all of you editors and would-be editors out there in Cyberland - did I answer all of those initial story questions?

Posted by Deborah McTiernan, Author of Lilly Noble & Actual Magic
Dares readers to believe in themselves and discover the magic within!

Foolproof Fudge Recipe

Best Recipe for Foolproof Chocolate Fudge Recipe yields approximately 5 pounds Ingredients: 1 stick butter4-1/2 cups granulated sugar1 can - (10-1/2 ounces) Regular evaporated milk1 - 10 ounce bag mini marshmallows24 ounces of chocolate chips (milk chocolate or semisweet)1 tsp vanilla Optional: 2 cups chopped nuts OR 2 cups Heath Bits Line a 9 X 5 X 3 - inch loaf pan, a 9 X 13 - inch pan, OR a cookie sheet with foil, extending the foil over the edges of the pan. Butter the foil and set the pan aside.In a heavy sauce pan, combine butter, sugar, and milk. Cook and stir over a medium-high heat until the mixture starts to bubble.Reduce heat to medium. Continue cooking, stirring constantly for 7-8 minutes, until the mixture turns a very light golden color. Don’t let the color get too dark, or when the fudge cools, it will become hard and crumbly.Remove pan from heat. Add marshmallows, chocolate chips, vanilla, (and nuts or Heath Bits), and stir until the marshmallows and chocolate melt and mixture is combined.Spread the fudge evenly in the prepared pan, score into squares with a hot knife while warm.Cover and chill in refrigerator for 2-3 hours or until firm.When fudge is firm, use foiled to lift it out of the pan. Peel away the foil. Cut fudge into squares on a cutting board. Make yourself a cup of coffee, scrape out the sauce pan, and lick the spatula. Store tightly covered in fridge for up to one month. Open tin, serve, and watch the expression of joy one the faces of your friends. photo courtesy of: www.WorthTheWhisk.comHappiest holidays to you and yours! Thank you for visiting my blog! Posted by Deborah McTiernanAuthor of Lilly Noble & Actual MagicAmazon Best-Selling AuthorParanormal Books for ages 9-12 and Young AdultsDares readers to believe in themselves and discover the magic within.www.deborahmctiernan.com Follow your dreams or follow the crowd.