The New Fall Line Up

September 22, 2013September 22, 2013Tmonique Stephens

The New Fall Lineup.

I’m addicted to TV. I know, as a writer we’re supposed to askew TV in favor of a keyboard or pen and paper. But I love and need the escapism television provides, also it rejuvenates my muse.

With this in mind, there are some new fall shows I’m salivating over.

Sleepy Hollow (Fox)

Ichabod Crane (Tom Mison) partners with Sleepy Hollow’s sheriff (Nicole Beharie) to solve the mysteries of a town ravaged by the battle between good and evil. The writers and producers of Fringe are at the helm of this series so I’m all in! I’m intrigued by the time travel twist and the headless horseman riding around a modern town. Though if I’m not hooked by the third episode the show will be ditched.

This show premiered on Monday September 16^th and I was pleasantly surprised. Sleepy Hollow opens with Ichabod beheading a man in battle during the Revolutionary War. He dies and in the next scene we see poor Icahbod—who happens to be a stud—crawling out of an underground grave. There is the usual culture class of revolutionary man meets the modern world, but what really sets this series apart is the death of the town Sheriff in the first fifteen minutes which dumps the entire mystery in the lap of Sheriff Abby Mills. Her suitcases were packed to leave for Quantico and the FBI, but once she gets a gander at the Headless Horse, her plans change. It is refreshing to see an African American woman leading a paranormal series. Abby and Icahbod make and interesting couple and I can’t help wonder if a future romance will grow.

There are twists and turns already brewing in the plot. The Headless Horseman is one of THE HORSEMAN as in the apocalypse horsemen. Abby and her sister are somehow linked to The Horseman, and there are witches. I plan on staying tuned. What about you?

A.G.E.N.T.S. of Shield.

Based on Marvel Universe’s fictional and secret law-enforcement agency. Avengers‘ Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen will write and executive-produce.

I loved the Avengers and love anything Joss Whedon touches. I will definitely watch and DVR this show.

Almost Human (Fox)

This action-packed buddy cop show is set in a future in which LAPD officers like John Kennex (Karl Urban) are partnered with highly evolved human-like androids like Dorian (Michael Ealy). Fringe‘s J.H. Wyman, who will write, will reteam with Lost‘s J.J. Abrams andBryan Burk as executive producers. This made my list because I love Karl Urban. I first spied him in Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers, but he sealed the deal with my heart in REDS and both Star Trek movies. He’s a wonderful character actor.

Dracula (NBC)

Inspired by the classic Bram Stoker novel, this drama stars The Tudors’ Jonathan Rhys Meyers in the title role. Based on a script from co-executive producer Cole Haddon, this version finds Dracula in London posing as an American entrepreneur who wants to bring modern science to Victorian society. But his true plan — to seek revenge on the people who ruined his life centuries ago. I loved Meyers in The Tudors’ and a new take on Dracula is always welcomed.

The Originals (CW)

This Vampire Diaries spin-off focuses on the show’s Original Family. Klaus (Joseph Morgan) returns to New Orleans — a town he helped build centuries ago — to reunite with his diabolical former protégé Marcel (Charles Michael Davis). My daughter got me hooked on Vampire Diaries. Though the love triangle plot is tried, I love the bad boys and Klaus is a terrific villain. I’m looking forward to him taking charge in Nawhleans.

I have a few favorites that I can’t wait to return. Top 2 are The Walking Dead in October and Game of Thrones next year. Along with Person of Interest, Supernatural, and The Voice, my TV dance card will be full. As you can see, I lean heavily towards paranormal and fantasy shows.

So what will you be watching this fall?

Love of Mythology Giveaway Hop.

May 31, 2013May 31, 2013Tmonique Stephens

Welcome to the Love of Mythology Giveaway Hop

ETERNITY is part of the giveaway!!

Why did I choose to write about the Egyptian Gods?

About five years ago, I decided I wanted to write a series. I’ve always loved paranormal romances, vampires, werewolves, the fey, shape shifters, novels about other worlds inhabited with different species. Naturally, I gravitated to what I enjoyed reading, but I was tired of the usual books populating the genre. Fangs, claws and fur, oh my. I considered writing about the Greek Gods, but I had recently started reading a popular series about the Greeks and I felt I had no new ideas to offer.

Then I thought of the Egyptian Gods. Ancient Egypt is one of the most well documented cultures. Although the Egyptian Gods have a wealth of history and folklore, there aren’t many fiction books about them. Their story remains untold.

With hundreds of deities to choose from, I settled on the four: Nu, mother of the pantheon. SET and Nephythys, estranged spouses and their unwanted son, Anubis. I added two humans, twin brothers Roman and Reign. As their stories unfold, so does the treachery, avarice and lust of the Egyptians gods. I’m having a blast writing discovering these fascinating characters.

Eternity is a story of reincarnation and redemption. Roman Nicolis, a mercenary falls in love with the Elyssian, the wrong woman. He seduces her, taking her virginity and cursing them both. For two thousand years, Roman wanders the earth searching for the only woman he can love. Time and again, Roman finds her, only to lose her horribly. Now, in present day New York City, they meet again. And this is his last chance to get things right.

EXCERPT

Curled on his body in the middle of Central Park, Roman let Stella sleep. Holding her wasn’t a hardship as his mind wandered to the future, their future. Foolhardy, definitely, but what else could he do when he held the object of his obsession in his arms?

Remember your promise and let her go.

He stroked a wayward lock of hair behind her ear and slid his fingers down her silky cheek. She nuzzled him, turned her face into his palm and kissed him. Every noble intention evaporated like a bead of sizzling water in a hot skillet. Cock rock hard, he had to kiss her, feel her breath on his skin, in his body. In the deserted park, he needed her now.

The fine hairs on the back of his neck bristled. He froze. Battle instincts surged to the forefront, screaming for action, instead, he listened to the night surrounding him and waited. Though not a hub of wildlife, the creatures of Central Park were silent. They also waited. Somewhere, nearby, a predator stalked.

He nudged Stella. She stretched, making him aware of every curve and hollow she possessed, and purred, a sexy rumble deep in her throat. Before she could say a word, he cupped her head and pulled her into a quick kiss.

“Shhh, we’re in danger,” he whispered against her lips.

Her head popped up and she eased off him. In the gloom, her frightened eyes met his. “What?” She mouthed.

“We have to get out of here.”

Crouched low, he took her hand, together they crawled along next to the hedge. He looked over. His keen eyesight picked up nothing and no one. So why did the same excitement he used to get before a battle race through his veins? Stella squeezed his hand. Her wide eyes sent him a question he couldn’t answer.

He drew his gun from the small of his back and the silencer from his jacket pocket.

“Roman?” Her voice wavered.

He spared her a glance. “Whatever happens, do exactly as I say. Understand?”

Her head bobbed on her neck.

“Walk beside me, not in front or behind. Got it?”

Not far from the nearest road, they stuck to the trees and away from the open expanse of the Great Lawn.

Leaves crunched behind them. He’d never run from anything in his life. Even before the curse and his immortality, he stood his ground and killed everything in his path. Now, whatever stalked him, stalked her. His senses told him only one lurked in the darkness, but with Stella to protect, he couldn’t risk it.

The Delacorte amphitheater loomed ahead. He guided her into the shadows. Stationed behind a statue, he aimed and watched the route they had just taken. Stella clutched his jacket, her shivering body pressed close.

“Tell me.”

“There’s someone out there.”

“It could be anyone, ’kids maybe?”

“Maybe.” He agreed purely to reassure her. But as he spoke, one hundred yards away, something peeled away from the shadows of a large tree and charged.

“Stay.” He ordered. Through his jacket, her nails dug into his back. He pulled away, but she wouldn’t let go. He shrugged out of his jacket and advanced. She called to him, begging him to return, but the blood rushing in his ears drown out her voice. He rushed forward and focused on the attacking foe.

Wait. He skidded to a halt. He had a shot, but . . . something was wrong. The height was too short. Whoever ran toward him must be a child—or running on all fours. He squinted at the slice of darkness closing the distance between them. The tree coverage ended and speckled moonlight dotted the Great Lawn, uncovering the thing barreling forward. For a split second his mind tried to unravel the impossible nightmare quickly shrinking the distance, before he fired three shots between its widely spaced eyes. It roared and charged faster.

“Run, Stella!” He fired running back to the theater. She hadn’t listened. Instead of running away, she met him. He grabbed her hand and ran, but she couldn’t keep up and the thing behind them closed the distance.

“Is it him, The Strangler?” she shouted breathless.

They ran past The Preserve, rounded a column and then stopped. Shrouded in gloom, the outline of the pond appeared in front of the Belvedere Castle. He didn’t want her to see what chased them, but before he could stop her, she turned. Her scream pierced the night. Yards away, a bellow replied. He jerked her around and shoved. She stumbled and fell into the water.

“Go!” This time, she didn’t fight. For a second, he watched her swim. Then turned in time for claws to dig into his side.

Sneak Peek Sunday Cinco De Mayo! Villains Need Love Too.

May 4, 2013May 4, 2013Tmonique Stephens

I’m continuing with the scene from last week. Everlasting, is the second novel in my Egyptian God series.

SET, The God of All Evil, needs love and affection, just like a regular guy.

SET drew his expanded self together and calmed, reined in his darkness. Once composed, a tendril wrapped around her waist and dragged her limp body to the edge. He transformed from his preferred state to a more solid form, his dark swirling essences, momentarily trapped beneath a barrier of thin, translucent skin. He could be any-thing, male, female, or animal, but he made himself into a form he knew she would desire; a tall, muscular male. He looked down and studied his member jutting proudly forward. Cylindrical, the appendage had none of the features that completed the male anatomy. No sacs containing DNA, no veiny sinews, and no bulbous head with a slit opening.

Not his favorite form, he tolerated it for Nephythys. His gaseous state was much more functional. The boundaries of flesh disturbed him. Limited him. Made him vulnerable to all the vagaries humans suffered. Never would he bind himself into human form. She would have to accept this substitute.

SET spread her legs apart and studied her opening. Dry, no moisture wept for him. In his gaseous form, her arousal didn’t matter. He could penetrate every part of her body, simultaneously filling, repeatedly until all his frustrations were excised. He touched the jutting part of him to her opening and felt her shriveled membranes brace. This will hurt, he thought with a cruel grin. His essences pulsed beneath the translucent skin, taking pleasure at the thought of her pain. But physical pain healed while a wounded heart festered.

Somewhere on the island, her spirit waited for his departure and the ritual cleansing to be completed. Once the Nulls removed all evidence of his presence, only then would she rejoin her body. Nothing of his visit would remain. Angry, he thrust inside and buried as deep as the appendage allowed. Something pricked his eyes, and a bead of moisture rolled down the slope of his face. He touched the strangeness, smoothed it between his fingers.

Tears. He jerked away from his wife and reverted to his gaseous state. This is why he never took the disgusting form. Quivering in annoyance—or maybe fright—he fled the destroyed room and ended up in the alcove.

Thank Ra she wasn’t here to witness the display. It would give her pleasure to see him so weak. Her laughter would ring in the council chamber. The God of Evil would not suffer humiliation. Agitated, he swirled about the room, brushing every surface, filling every microscopic crevice. He brushed something. The remnants of man.

I hope you enjoyed it.

Romance and Heartache

October 9, 2011July 21, 2012Tmonique Stephens

How do you write through heartache? For me, my muse is stronger and more focused when my life is falling apart. Looking back over the course of my life, I can say during my happier period when my love and my life were harmonious, writing was the furthest thing on my mind.
Heartache can strip you bare and leave you with nothing to hold onto except bitterness and despair. But when depression sets in, fueled by betrayal, self-doubt and loneliness, my muse would wrap me in her arms and take me to a place where the happily ever after is dictated by the whims and limits of my imagination. A world where the hero never lies is trustworthy, loyal and completely faithful to the woman he loves. My muse wipes my tears, bolsters my self-esteem and even tells me I’m beautiful and brilliant.
As a writer, I look forward to the escape writing gives me. That imaginary door I open and step into a world I created and populated. I take my characters by the hand, or sometimes they grab me by the throat, and together we go on a journey far, far away.
I look forward to those times, the journey I take inside my private world with characters that not only love and trust me, but look forward to the time I spend with them. Sometimes, reality is just too cold and heartless. The expectations of family, friends and work are harder to climb than Mount Everest and the fall from grace is just as deadly as if you slipped on that treacherous mountain.
Writing gives me hope and makes me laugh. When you’re going through heartache, those two emotions can keep you and me afloat for another minute, and hour, one more day … to write again.