The Battle Between Venus and Mars

This weekend, a business trip that began on Friday became an opportunistic time for me to visit with my brother and Mum in San Diego.  Since she and he always come to my house in Los Angeles, for holidays, my kid's birthdays and, in the case of my Mum, for face-time with me for a week at a time, it was neat for me to go to them.  Not to mention I got to do it solo, because of the integrated business trip at my awesome new job.  Yeah, when you have been married as long as I have, a No Kids, No Husband overnight trip is perilously close to nirvana.  But, I digress.

What I want to tell you about is a conversation I had with my brother.  He's a handsome, single musician, on the fast track to famous for his amazing musical ability (check out www.banjoslim.com!) and we got into a lively discussion on the subject of.........don't laugh........mascara.

Over a couple drinks, and beef kabobs I cooked myself at The Turf Club in Golden Hill, San Diego, Mum and I were lamenting the banes of our existence.  For Mum, she has been on a years-long search for the perfect pair of white linen pants.  I mean, since I have been old enough to remember, she had dragged me through various women's departments looking for the elusive clothing.

She asked me mine, and I knew it right away.......the perfect mascara.  Just plain old black mascara yet I have spent the balance of my adulthood (and some scary black-eyeliner phases in my teens) trying to find the best balance of wand, color, texture and, for lack of a better word, lastability.  As of this writing, I search still.

My bro was almost choking on his laughter.  Mum accused him of not understanding, and trotted out the always incendiary saying, that he was from Mars and we were from Venus and he'd never understand us.  Let me tell you, he took major offense.

And it is this that prompts me to write; I feel compelled to apologize to all men everywhere for not understanding your epic search for the perfect disposable razor.

I had no idea the anguish of purchased, once-used, and discarded drugstore items shared by the hairier sex was akin to that shared by those of us with the fine, tiny lashes just looking for a boost Mother Nature did not see fit to bestow.  My brother explained that the exhaustive search conducted to find his right balance of blade, stem, and, it has to be said, "shavability" matches mine.

Another drink (or two) later and we saw eye-to-eye.  I felt his pain and he felt mine.  He may be from Mars and I may hail from Venus, but for one brief flash in time, like the harmony achieved during a solar or lunar eclipse, our planets aligned.  We knew.  We had felt the sting (no pun intended, Bro) of failed merchandise and advertisements that had never fulfilled.

Yet, it appears we haven't learned.  Mum will come and visit soon and like lambs to the slaughter, we plan to go shopping.  Where?  Probably a drugstore and a mall.  Looking for those damn pants and that friggin' mascara.  And sometime this week, my brother will dart stealthily into a CVS and, with furtive glances to either side, grab a package of pink Lady Schicks.

Teeth and Talons sinks its teeth in a reviewer!

Perhaps you aren't used to me writing horror.  Perhaps it's that you aren't sure I can cut the mustard in the terror-arena.  Whatever the reason, if you are vacillating over if you should read Teeth and Talons, A Horror Anthology, I hope this newt review might help you make up your mind.  


I was reviewed by the meticulous Wanda Hart over at There For You blog and she posted her thoughts here: thereforyoumelissa.blogspot.com/.../teeth-and-talons-by-sama...  in a 6 out of 5-star review!


I was blown away by how much the reviewer loved the four stories in the anthology and the fact that she took the time to comment on them individually.  So, please check out this great review for my first horror book:

http://thereforyoumelissa.blogspot.com/2012/01/teeth-and-talons-by-samantha-combs.html

TEETH AND TALONS by Samantha Combs (Reviewed by Wanda Hart)

A Horror Anthology by Samantha Combs

Copyright © 2012 SAMANTHA COMBS

Cover art designed by Paragraphic Designs

Well I love a challenge and this is my first ever anthology. This is 

thus a true challenge. So I spend an entire minute figuring out 

how does one review an anthology. At the end of that minute 

after considering hunting down other such reviews on the internet 

I decided I'll take it a story at time. Then I will do a synopsis 

of the entire anthology. Here goes. Hope you like it.

The Ink Man

The Ink man was an intricate story which surprised me in its richness and 

character building. 

It was refreshing to read a short story that was so rich in character

development and in setting both mood and location in order to ground

the reader. 

The story itself was also unique and spoke to perception of ones self

and others.  It's in the miscalculation between being able to discern

between friend and foe that the true horror of the story is hidden.  

I loved the layered aspect and stand in awe of the author that could

accomplish so much in so little pages without ever letting the reader

feel as if they are not part of a real story unfolding. 

I take my hat off to the author for accomplishing so much with this

story. Apart from being a technically brilliant story it was a really

enjoyable read to boot. 

 The Robbery Countdown

This short story was a fun read, not much time or space to work in

any character development but the reader will be left with the sense

of no bad deed ever goes unpunished..  I really liked the dialogue

between the shop owners in this story and was giggling to myself

as I read it. 

 Rock and Roll All Night

Aah, my favorite story in this anthology.  All is not what it would

seem and as with

The Robbery Countdown being evil does not guarantee that you are

 the hunted and not the prey.  I really liked this story and especially

liked the casual way in which the twists were introduced into the plot.

The Chair

Really liked this story as well and loved the end.  In this, the lesson

might very well be that you should not push people too far, it might

so happen that they come upon something that will push back for them……..

I love Samantha Combs' writing style.  It is clear, concise and

technically correct.  If any grammar or spelling mistakes were to

be found in this anthology then I missed it while being enthralled

by the stories. 

But no amount of technically proficiency would make me enjoy

this book as much as I did without a very generous share of talent.  

This girl can write!

I have seldom come across an author with her talent for economizing

language without compromising on the story line.  The horror aspect

dawns on the reader with time.  As the stories keep playing off in my

 head I realize that I should be wary as to what I accept as being the truth……..

I can't think of a single market that would not enjoy this anthology

even if horror is not your preferred reading material.

I give this anthology a 6 out of 5 rating.  I will definitely recommend

it to all and gift it to a friend with anticipation as to hear their opinion

and takes on this story.

A Friday the Thirteenth Treat

So, today is Friday the 13th.  As a showing of thanks for fans recently making my first book, SPELLBOUND, #72 in Christian Science-Fiction/Fantasy (yeah, I don't get it either) in the Kindle store, I have a special treat to share.  I have self-published a new book, trying out the KDP Select program over at Amazon.  May I present TEETH AND TALONS, A Horror Anthology by Samantha Combs, available for $.99:

And here is the teaser:

What do a tattoo artist, a rock band, a trio of thieves and a hen-pecked son have in common?  They are all about to enter the realm of the undefined, the supernatural, the horrific.  Four new stories from Samantha Combs, award-winning author of Young Adult and Middle Grade fantasy, explores the unexplained and the unbelievable in the adult world.  Join her on the journey into madness.  And don’t look under the bed.

I am hoping that being known as a paranormal and fantasy writer will help me segue into being known as a horror writer as well.  Several friends and people I follow (namely, J.A.Konrath) have recently weighed in on the whole KDP Select program and they can't find anything wrong with it.  Neither could I, but what do I know?  So, this self-published anthology, coming available sometime today for Amazon kindle, is my personal experiment to test the program out.

Three of the four stories have been seen elsewhere, but the first story, The Ink Man, has never seen the light of day.  Or computer screen.  And I am rather proud of it.

I will check in periodically and let you know how its going.  I'll report my sales figures and the number of books that sell.  And it would be neat if you all read it and review it as well.  Hope you enjoy your Friday the 13th surprise treat.  And like the blurb says, don't look under the bed.

Doing the Next Thing on the List

During the turbulent time 2011 was for me, there were moments when I thought "I can't do this."  Related both to my employment situation, the major surgery I had in May, my family's financial condition, and after I was laid off, the desolation of my period of unemployment.

Luckily, I happen to be the daughter of the most brilliant woman in the world.  She always told me "Take a deep breath and just do the next thing on the list."  Compartmentalizing things and creating a mental checklist always saw me through.

I was just thinking that this philosophy can be applied to my writing as well.  When I first had this thought, I was ready to dismiss it right away.  I reasoned, a pantser (which I am) can't possibly do that since I have no idea what IS on the list in the first place.  But then, I put it to the test last night.

During the time I had the night job, Mondays and Tuesdays were my days off and therefore those evenings were the only times I had to write.  Most nights it was effortless.  But recent stresses and difficulties at the night job had made the "flow", well, go.  I was stalled.  And I was again last night......stalled.  Then I heard a familiar voice in my head.  Instead of the directed and demanding voice of my Muse, I heard the comforting voice of my Mum.  "Do the next thing on the list," she said.

How? I whined.  I've written myself into a corner.  I can't go left or right and I'm facing a wall, Mum.

Then go up.

I sat there blinking for a while, kind of stupidly.  Then I did look up.  I looked up to the wooden ceiling of the den I write in, day after day, and gasped.  The scene I wanted, the scene the book needed, was playing itself out on my beams.  Yep, there was my antagonist, in an AMAZING setting, being, well, antagonistic.  I wrote steadily for an hour and at the end came up with 900 plus words for a super scene that slips effortlessly into the storyline and introduces a new conflict.  Thanks Mum!

So, I challenge you to a new trick when you are stumped or stalled in your writing.  Try and think about what would your character think about doing next.  If he/she had an imaginary checklist: Find love, check, lose love, check, defeat demon, check, then imagine him/her methodically checkboxing finished tasks.  I've always drilled my professional mantra into you, Write, Publish, and Be Informed.  Now, please adopt my personal one.  Do The Next Thing On The List.

Oh....and don't forget to look up.

My Dress Code for 2012

I haven't been silent about the suck-ass year 2011 was for me and my family.  My employer went bankrupt, laid me off and closed and still owes me back wages.  I was unemployed for six months and we barely made it through, before I found another job.  I believed this job was the answer, and instead, it only compounded the problem and skewed my whole family dynamic.  I ended up working unconventional hours and undesirable days, an agreement I still don't remember making at hire.  Nevertheless, I enjoyed the job....at first.

It soon became clear to me it was harmful to my children for me to be away at critical hours of the day, namely nights and weekends.  My Mum HATED the job and even though I loved the people working under and with me, I grew to as well.  She fervently begged me to leave it and I began to consider doing that, mentally.  I just wasn't there yet.  I wanted 2011 to be over.

Even though last year was my break-in year, those two books I published through Astraea Press were a small island in a huge ocean of crap.  That being said, you know now why I am hanging my star on 2012.  And its starting out great so far.

I begin a new job on Monday.  A job, I just know, I will excel at and is smack in the middle of my wheelhouse.  I have no less than three new publications releasing this year.  Digital at first, but if I make the sales threshold, I'll see them in print.  Everspell (YA, Astraea Press) in January, The Detention Demon (Middle Grade, Musa Publishing) in Feb and Waterdancer (YA, Musa Publishing) in September.  I also have three (maybe four!) manuscripts-in-waiting that I am writing and am super-excited about where the storyline is headed.

I bought my daughter new dresses and my son a new baseball glove yesterday.  I shouldn't have, but didn't care.  With all the times I had to say "No" last year, it thrilled me to say "yes".  And I wouldn't trade the looks on my babies faces for anything.

So, please forgive me my personal pep talk.  I am happy.  Happier than I have been in a very long time.  Many people have said it, but now I can really believe it.......2012 is my year.  Welcome to my own kind of debutante ball.  My own coming-out, absence only the prom-style dress.  Tapping away on my trusty Toshiba, I'm more comfortable in pink fuzzy slippers, thank you.

New Cover for The Detention Demon

Hi fans!

Wanted to drop a quick note here to introduce the new cover for my fourth publication, the forthcoming Middle Grade horror story, The Detention Demon.  And also to shout from the rooftops, again, about my amazing publisher, Musa Publishing.

My book is due in less than a month and I am fully edited, have a freaky-neat cover, and am fully ready for the February 10, 2012 release date.  Color me impressed.

I hope you are too.  Check out the new cover!

Here's the blurb:

Wayne is a Junior High school boy who just got detention for fighting in school to protect his longtime best friend, Gumby.  But recently, there have been stories about detention.   Kids have mysteriously disappeared, creating creepy rumors about detention class. Now, Wayne finds himself trapped in there with school bully Bubba Dugan.  Keeping his distance from Bubba won’t be Wayne’s only problem.  In fact, those rumors about the detention teacher don’t seem like stories at all. 

With his best friend Gumby, a crew of delinquents and a surprising late addition, a pretty cheerleader harboring a secret crush, Wayne and his group of misfits will have to band together to outwit the detention teacher.  He’s protected his best friend from harm his whole life…..but, can he protect him and everyone else against something that might not even be human?  

I am stoked for both the release AND the new cover and I'm sure this will appeal to a young boy, who is my first target audience.  Of course, I dream the book will appeal to all.  Please be sure and let me know what YOU think.