Archive for May, 2026
Welcome to the May 2026 issue of my newsletter, “News from the Crypt,” and please visit Carter’s Crypt, devoted to my horror, fantasy, and paranormal romance work, especially focusing on vampires and shapeshifting beasties. If you have a particular fondness for vampires, check out the chronology of my series in the link labeled “Vanishing Breed Vampire Universe.”
Also, check out the multi-author Alien Romances Blog
To subscribe to this monthly newsletter, please e-mail me at MLCVamp@aol.com, and I will add you to the list.
For other web links of possible interest, please scroll to the end.
My contemporary fantasy novella “Bunny Hunt” was featured in N. N. Light’s Heaven’s Spring into Books event:
There’s another short excerpt below. Melanie’s nephew Scott’s dog escapes at an Easter egg hunt and chases a rabbit into the woods.
This month I’m interviewing another “Haunting of Pinedale High” author, Celaine Charles.
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Interview with Celaine Charles:
What inspired you to become a writer?
I have always loved the smell and feel of bookstores since I was very young. Having ADHD, finishing a book was tricky for me. But once I found my genre…fantasy…I was enveloped into the world of stories and fell in love with reading. Soon after, I heard the quote, “If there’s a book you really want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” ~ Toni Morrison. That’s exactly what I did. A year later, I ran into a woman at my son’s karate class. She introduced herself as a writer, and I blurted out that I was a want-to-be-writer. What she said next changed my life. “If you’re a want-to-be-writer, then you are a writer.” From that moment on, I called myself a writer and dug in to do the work. As of this coming June, I will have published nine books. I will forever be grateful to that amazing human for saying the right thing at the right time. And with all the noise in the world these days, I also thank God I was able to pay attention and listen.
What genres do you work in?
I am a multi-genre author, writing contemporary poetry, young adult fantasy, young adult paranormal, and even contemporary romance short stories. I’m also looking into the world of children’s picture books. I’ve won two awards via unpublished children’s literature contests, but I am still seeking out an agent for this genre. Ultimately, my goals are to shine a little light into the dark corners of life. For me, reading is an escape from all the horrors of the real world. I guess I love writing all kinds of books…so I go wherever my imagination leads me.
Do you outline, “wing it,” or something in between?
I call myself a recovering pantser, so in these terms, a recovering winger (haha). I used to write by the seat of my pants, letting the story unfold how it may, but now, after publishing my first book and experiencing real deadlines, I have become more of a loose planner. I tend to use the tricks I teach my third graders (I’m a teacher during the daytime). I think about all the parts of my story now, before I begin, but once I start writing, I give my characters permission to change course when needed. And to be honest, it’s needed (for the better) a lot of the time. When all else fails, go back to those school writing templates…they’re perfect when you’re not sure how to start or when you get stuck in the middle.
What have been the major influences on your work (favorite authors or whatever)?
I am a huge fan of VE Schwab, Maggie Stiefvater, and Cassandra Clare. I guess with that you can see I am a huge supporter of character-driven stories. I write in close-third-person, all the while pretending it’s first person. I want my characters to tell my stories from their perspectives, meaning I want my readers to think, feel, and breathe my stories with all their senses.
How has your teaching career affected your writing (if it has)?
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been stuck as a writer, and I go back to the tips I teach my third-grade students. SWBST—somebody wanted but so then. Whenever I write myself into a pickle (which happens a lot), I have to pull back and ask myself the same questions I pose to my student writers: Who is the somebody in your story? What do they want? But what happens to them that rocks their world? So, what must they do to then arrive at this amazing ending?
All the stages of writing are true: plan, draft, revise, edit, and publish! We just need to make sure we hit each one with all our hearts…trust the writing process because it works when you let it!
Please tell us about your poetry workshops.
For the last five years, every April for National Poetry Month, I’ve led my school (K-5th grade) in some kind of poetry project. We’ve done form poetry, like elfchens, haiku, and tanka, as well as free verse poetry where we engage our senses. I always start by sharing master poets to become our mentor texts, and then I slide into their actual experiences (whatever age they are) to help them realize they have lots to say and in poetry, there’s no wrong way to say it. My goal is to free students up from having to follow a lot of rules. I want them to open up and realize they can break every rule if they want to because poetry is freedom. And all their voices deserve to be heard.
What will we find on your blog?
My writing blog, Steps in Between, is all about my writing journey. I started sharing my road to authoring in 2017, when I hadn’t published a single book, and simply shared all the steps I was taking to get to a published book. I love my blog because it’s my true author heart. Readers can learn tips and tricks and hopefully share in the l-o-n-g process that goes into planning, drafting, revising, editing, publishing, and then finally marketing a book. It’s so much! And to be honest, as soon as I actually published a book, I started writing less on my blog. The reality was, I had no time. Soon after you publish a book for the first time, deadlines begin to appear out of nowhere! Your time is eaten away by simply writing more, and for me, I neglected my blog. I’m just now getting back to it because honestly, it keeps me grounded and real and alive. So, watch for more to come on Steps In Between!
Concerning “The Haunting of Pinedale High,” what was it like to write in a shared world? How did you ensure the consistency of your book with other stories in the series?
I love writing challenges, and when The Wild Rose Press announced The Haunting of Pinedale High series, I knew I would be participating in some way. The scary part? Ghost stories terrify me! I don’t read scary books. At all! But a few characters stirred in my belly, and I knew I needed to figure out a way to give them a voice in a ghost story…of my own. So, I decided to write a cozy ghost story! Once I realized I could write a ghost story that wasn’t exactly scary (don’t get me wrong there is spook and danger in my book), I realized I could create something special! I enjoyed the Netflix shows, Girl Haunts Boy and School Spirits, and so I took vibes from those stories and voila! My story fit right in the middle!
I read several other Pinedale High stories and modeled some of the teachers and setting of the school into my own tale, and suddenly everything fell into place. I haven’t read, Her Death was Doubtful, by YOU—but I will very soon! I love that we’ve written stories in the same stand-alone series!
Just for fun: Do you believe in ghosts?
NO! I mean, maybe I just don’t want to because I want to sleep at night. Like I said above, the thought of actual ghosts scare me!
What is your latest or next-forthcoming book?
I am working on book three from my Keepers Series. Seam Keepers (book 1) and Dream Keepers (book 2) are young adult portal fantasy stories that have all the good tropes like teens training to become world saviors, good versus evil, shapeshifting, friends to lovers (sweet-style), family drama, high stakes, adventure, demon battles, girl power, other realms, and more! I love these stories and the team camaraderie that grows across the series. The third book, I’m writing now, completes everything with a lovely bow on top…or does it?! 😊
I’m also publishing my third romance short in a collection, Caught a Spark, Fourth of July Romance Shorts. This book is the third book in a holiday romance series, The Holiday Chronicles. My story in the anthology is called, Written in the Sky. Our first book for Halloween was called, Midnight Meet-Ups (my story titled, Masquerade Meet-Cute). Our second book for Valentine’s Day, Sweet Chaos, came out in January 2025 (my story entitled, Drawn to You). I’m so excited for this third book to release, and I’m already planning the fourth book about New Years Eve!
What are you working on now?
I’m working on the stories mentioned above. Written in the Sky is in the final editing stages. My third Keeper Series book is in a drafting stage. Finally, I’m working on a couple children’s picture books. I am querying one with agents right now, and the others I continue to work on. I swear breaking into the children’s picture book genre is tougher than writing a full novel! Consider me humbled! Finally, I have several new book ideas I’ve been planning for a long time, once these current projects are completed.
What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
I would say to anyone who has an inkling to write—just write! Do it! Write now and think later. The art of revision is always there. But you can’t edit a blank page, so if you’re reading this right now, and have the slightest idea of writing a book, please just do it! Somebody out there is waiting for your story.
What is the URL of your website? What about other internet presence?
Newsletter
Author Website
Instagram
Facebook
Linktree
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Some Books I’ve Read Lately:
THE FRIEND OF THE FAMILY, by Dean Koontz. I like this much better than most of Koontz’s recent novels. THE FRIEND OF THE FAMILY includes no sociopathic geniuses bent on destroying the universe for their own gain (thank goodness) and very little of the author’s typical ranting along the lines of “it’s getting awfully hot, and why are we in this handbasket?” The antagonists operate on a personal level with believable motivations. I also enjoyed the historical setting. The narrator, Adiel (originally named Alida but renamed by her foster parents) tells her story in the form of a memoir from 1930 into the 1940s. The detailed memories preserved in her journal, along with the mature language in which she writes even at the age of seventeen, are credibly explained by her precocious, voluminous reading from early childhood and especially by her photographic retention of everything she reads and hears. Her foster parents’ amazement at her ability to recall the full texts of books with no effort surprises her, since she’s had little exposure to normal human interaction. Ignorant of her birth parents’ identity, she has grown up in a freak show owned by a con man known as the Captain. He essentially owns her, too, treating her like a circus animal, although he doesn’t physically abuse her. His one indulgence consists of stealing books for her to keep her docile. At age seventeen only five feet tall and about ninety pounds, Alida/Adiel never grows any further. I found it frustrating that her alleged shocking deformities aren’t described until the end, in her foster mother’s epilogue, and even then not in detail. The reticence to preserve her dignity as a human being makes sense, but how can we believe she’s horribly grotesque if we’re told but not shown? We know only that she has a beautiful face but a monstrous though petite body. Wealthy, eccentric, warmhearted filmmakers Frankin and Loretta find her exhibited almost naked in a nightclub. They pay the Captain an exorbitant amount to relinquish all claim to Adiel. Once she manages to accept the permanence of her new life and family, she plunges into it with joy. She explores the vast house and grounds with her three homeschooled adopted siblings, seeking mysteries to solve. And of course there’s a loyal, intelligent dog (although not a Golden Retriever). In many novels, this change would constitute a fairy-tale ending. For Adiel, though, it’s only the beginning. Koontz does an excellent job of spanning several decades with a combination of showing and telling, without losing the reader’s interest. We discover Adiel is more than she seems when she accidentally performs a miraculous healing. She conceals this phenomenon from everybody else for sound reasons, including the fact that she doesn’t know how it happened or whether it can be repeated. The Captain eventually tracks her down, having run out of money during the Depression. Yet the confrontation with him and his homicidal minion, a “freak” in more than a physical sense, forms only one segment of the narrative. The book’s true climax culminates in a revelation that surprised me but felt entirely appropriate.
TRACE ELEMENTS, by Jo Walton and Ada Palmer. A collection of essays by two distinguished science-fiction authors. Divided into three sections, “Genre; or, The Modern Proteus,” Section 2 focusing on more personal, autobiographical material, and Section 3: Craft, the book contains both individually authored and collaborative pieces. Almost every essay inspired me to react with either, “Well, THAT’S new information,” or, “My brain just exploded!” (quoting from characters in a pair of current PBS cartoon series). Some topics include the history of SF publishing, the history of romance, definition of genre, robots, anime and manga, what genre dystopian narratives fit into, and providentialist thinking (the reader’s expectation that, in general, characters will get what they deserve). The contrast between “external” science fiction” and “imprint SF,” which functions “in conversation with” the ongoing development of the genre, particularly intrigued me. Genre – “imprint” — science fiction and fantasy “has distinct pacing and reading protocols.” Reading SF requires a particular “skill set” as much as writing it does. Literary fiction that includes some SF or fantasy tropes isn’t the same thing. That’s why (to cite a notorious example) Margaret Atwood’s exasperating insistence that THE HANDMAID’S TALE isn’t SF makes a certain amount of sense, despite its apparently being based on her misapprehension that “science fiction” equals space opera. Her work isn’t in conversation with the genre community. Section 2 of the book features essays such as Walton’s and Palmer’s accounts of how they sold their first novels. The section on Craft, among other things, addresses censorship, the purpose of reading, and the “protagonist problem,” the fictional tendency to single out one character as THE person with the power to save the world or otherwise solve the story’s central problem. Real-life consequences, if this fictional convention is taken too seriously, can entail either thinking of oneself as a non-protagonist and therefore unimportant or laboring under the delusion of being the protagonist on whom a vital outcome depends. Section 3 also includes several poems, most notably the concluding piece, Ada Palmer’s heartbreakingly beautiful “Somebody Will” (which has been set to music and is available on one of Heather Dale’s albums, also accessible on YouTube). If you’re a fan of speculative fiction, you should get this collection for the articles on genre alone.
THE SHIP WHO DARED, by Mercedes Lackey and Veronica Giguere. The first new book for a long time in the “brainship” series created by the late Anne McCaffrey. This novel is a sequel to Lackey and McCaffrey’s THE SHIP WHO SEARCHED. You don’t absolutely need to have read that book, or any others in the series, before this new one, but it would help. Still, a novice reader could pick up from context the essential facts about brainships and the interstellar society in which they function. One thing I especially like about THE SHIP WHO DARED is that it reads like a Mercedes Lackey novel, not always the case with her collaborations. I’m fond of her immersive, conversational style. A purist might object that some of the colloquialisms in the dialogue sound almost too much like contemporary American English; however, I simply accept them as the authors’ “translation” of the way Earth people in this far future setting talk. In brief, a brainship is the ultimate cyborg. Babies with birth defects too severe to be corrected even in this advanced civilization can be placed in “shells” that bestow enhanced senses and other capabilities far beyond the ordinary human norm. As adults, they become the brains of starships or sometimes facilities such as space stations. In return, they must enter contracts to work off the enormous debt for the technology they benefit from. Each brainship has a mobile, non-disabled partner informally called a “brawn.” Tia is unique in that she was wired into her shell at the age of seven, stricken with an exotic disease that completely disabled her, instead of at birth. She and her brawn, Alex, romantically bonded even beyond the close friendship customary between brain and brawn, work under contract for an interstellar courier company. The company exploits its shellperson employees to the extent it can get away with, a theme running throughout the story. When the military authorities offer Tia and Alex the chance to test a cutting-edge, top-secret singularity drive, they accept despite some misgivings. The huge payment for that service will get them much closer to paying off their contract and becoming free agents. Unfortunately, a glitch in the system results in arriving at random points in space as often as the appointed destination. Coincidentally, at each unexpected place where they end up, they stumble on people in need of help. But how long can their luck in finding their way back hold up? At first the plot feels a bit episodic, with the ship bouncing around from one unrelated crisis to another. In the end, though, a connection among their seemingly random adventures comes to light. Alex and Tia are delightful characters with engaging individual quirks, and the warmth of their relationship pervades the story. In the end, with the problem of the rogue hyperdrive settled and their employment situation happily resolved, the novel comes to a satisfying conclusion. Yet it holds ample potential for sequels, which I hope may appear at some future date.
THE FARAWAY INN, by Sarah Beth Durst. Another cozy fantasy by the author of THE SPELLSHOP and THE ENCHANTED GREENHOUSE, but unrelated to those two. While they’re adult novels set in a secondary world, THE FARAWAY INN is a YA contemporary fantasy. Calisa, the sixteen-year-old protagonist, hadn’t planned to leave her urban home and spend most of the summer before her senior year in “a place with a truly excessive number of trees.” After she catches her boyfriend cheating on her, though, Calisa accepts her mother’s proposal to visit her great-aunt’s Faraway Inn in the wilds of Vermont. The bed-and-breakfast doesn’t match Calisa’s vague memories of childhood visits. The place turns out to be rundown and mostly empty. Furthermore, Auntie Zee doesn’t want help and only grudgingly agrees to a three-day trial period. Calisa throws herself into cleaning, cooking, and weed-clearing in hopes of being allowed to stay longer. The change of scenery and chance to make herself useful eventually grant her the perspective to realize she’s better off without her two-timing boyfriend. Getting to know Jack, the absent caretaker’s attractive, helpful, charmingly awkward teenage son, doesn’t hurt. The strangeness of the inn begins to reveal itself almost at once. Auntie Zee imposes two strict rules: Don’t ask questions, and don’t open doors without permission. Naturally, Calisa often finds herself breaking those prohibitions. Random doors sometimes open portals into other worlds. A statue seems to move when her back is turned. One guest keeps a gargoyle in his room. Another is a green-skinned woman with an affinity for plants. There’s also a miniature dragon hanging around the house. When additional regulars, each decidedly peculiar to some extent, show up expecting the usual level of service, they’re justifiably dubious of Calisa’s ability to measure up to Auntie Zee’s standards. Moreover, Jack confides in Calisa that his father disappeared several years earlier. No wonder the place is falling apart. Although with plenty of surprises and twists along the way, the story concludes as the genre-savvy reader would expect. Jack and Calisa track down his father; Auntie Zee admits she needs help and accepts Calisa as the logical provider of it; Calisa matures while reassessing her personal situation. She strikes me as a sympathetic character, a believable teenager with typical anxieties, yet not at all whiny or otherwise annoying. Jack is also appealing, It’s fun to meet the variety of not-quite-human guests and watch Calisa solve the challenges presented by a magical family business. Also, I can’t neglect to mention the physical allure of this trade paperback. It has the most elaborate, beautifully colored edge drawing (artwork on the edges of the pages, visible when the book is closed) I’ve ever seen.
For my recommendations of “must read” classic and modern vampire fiction, explore the Realm of the Vampires:
Realm of the Vampires
*****
Excerpt from “Bunny Hunt”:
Bob stopped struggling to escape and stared in the direction indicated. “Bunny? Go pet the Easter Bunny?”
Sure enough, a large rabbit with cinnamon-colored fur, nibbling on clover blossoms, crouched in the grass under the trees near one of the walking trails that wound through the tame woodlot. Though its ears twitched at the ambient noise, it didn’t seem in any hurry to run from the human intruders on its territory.
Linda shook her head. “A wild bunny wouldn’t want to be petted. Anyway, it’s almost time to find eggs.”
Both Bob and his older brother switched their focus to the man in charge of the hunt. At that moment, Kiki lunged forward, jerking the leash from Scott’s loose grip.
“Kiki, no! Stop!” he yelled. The dog had already dashed out of his reach, though. Frantically barking, she raced toward the rabbit. “Kiki, come!”
Not surprisingly, the pup ignored him. A second later, the director of the event blew his whistle as a signal to start.
“You go ahead,” Melanie said to Scott. “Don’t worry, I’ll catch her.” Without waiting for a response from him, she hurried toward the woods after the dog and rabbit. They’d already vanished into the trees, but she had Kiki’s continuous yapping to guide her.
She raced along the narrow trail. Judging from the volume of the barking, the dog hadn’t gotten far yet. Melanie sprinted toward the noise, hoping to sight the runaway around the next curve in the path. What if she chased the rabbit into the underbrush?
No need to worry about that problem until she caught up with the animals. Rounding a bend, she forced herself to a burst of speed. She didn’t see her quarry, but the yapping grew still louder. After the second loop in the trail, she almost tripped over Kiki’s leash and skidded to a stop.
Not far off the path under the trees, the dog stood with her front paws pinning the rabbit to the ground. She kept barking but didn’t move otherwise, as if she had no idea what to do with her thrashing, kicking prey. The wild animal appeared to weigh at least ten pounds, barely smaller than the dog herself.
Panting and sweating from the run, Melanie lifted her ponytail off the damp nape of her neck while she seized a loop of the leash with her other hand. If one of those kicks connected, Scott’s pet could get seriously hurt. “Kiki, drop it!”
The pup didn’t even glance at her. That must have been a command she either hadn’t learned yet or chose to ignore. Melanie gave the leash a firm jerk. Startled, Kiki tumbled off the flailing rabbit and struggled to land on all fours.
The rabbit sprang upright. Melanie retreated a couple of steps, hauling the dog with her. To her surprise, the rabbit turned its head and gazed up as if assessing her. Kiki, already recovering her balance, strained at the leash.
“Well, what are you waiting for, bunny? Get out of here.”
I’m talking to a wild rabbit. Unless maybe it’s an escaped pet? That possibility would account for how little fear of humans it showed.
Staring straight at her, it reared up on its haunches. Its amber eyes gazed at her with an expression of unnerving attention.
What’s it thinking about me? Melanie shook her head. Whoa! Now I’m giving it credit for human intelligence.
A bright shimmer dazzled her vision. When it faded, the animal was standing on its hind legs—and growing. It expanded to person-height. Kiki emitted an alarmed yip and huddled against Melanie’s leg. Melanie simply froze, her mouth gaping open.
When the glow faded completely, a human-size bunny stood before her. It—no, she—displayed the same cinnamon-brown fur and long ears. Her face had the general shape of a woman’s, but with whiskers, amber eyes, a button nose, and rabbity incisors. Her leg joints bent at an angle suitable for hopping. Most striking, two vertical rows of nipples, four and four, adorned the front of her body, and her belly bulged with an obvious pregnancy.
-end of excerpt-
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The long-time distributor of THE VAMPIRE’S CRYPT has closed its website. If you would like to read any issue of this fanzine, which contains fiction, interviews, and a detailed book review column, visit the Dropbox page below. Find information about the contents of each issue on this page of my website:
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All Vampire’s Crypt Issues on Dropbox
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Carter Kindle Books
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Writers Exchange E-Publishing: Writers Exchange
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You can contact me at: MLCVamp@aol.com
“Beast” wishes until next time—
Margaret L. Carter