How the word Jinx came to mean bad luck or a person who causes bad luck is a twisted tale. Here’s my unofficial and very subjective theory based on research, deep thought, and at least one glass of Scotch. Way back in the sixteenth century, a bunch of Scotsmen sat around the fire with nothing to do so they invented yet another drinking game. They named it High Pranks—how this translates to Scots Gaelic I have no idea and since […]
Magic
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“The sky’s spinning.” Ruprik eyed the gaudy carnival canopy above him through narrowed eyes. Cold from the cobblestones seeped into his back. He untwisted his arm from the legs of an overturned chair and pulled the damp tablecloth across his shoulders. His friend Chauncey lay nearby. Chauncey hazarded a glance but squeezed his eyes shut. Despite the ice-bucket stuck on his left foot, he curled himself into the fetal position. “That hideous light must mean it’s morning.” “What happened?” “Drinking […]
An incantation is a spell—a chant or rhyme meant to have magical effect. It comes from a Latin word meaning to sing or chant. As time passed, the word took on the more specific magical meaning. Partly for fun, partly to make this blog entry super easy for me, here is the best incantation of all time. From “the Scottish play” of course, and easily the freakiest thing you will see in the next fifteen minutes. You can’t really hear […]
I did this and it was (high-pitched voice) awesome. Hypnosis is really a deep state of meditation. If you meditate, you are practicing a kind of self-hypnosis. The only difference between self-hypnosis and being put into a trance by a hypnotist is the guided imagery of the latter. A good hypnotist will lead you on your journey, giving you just enough suggestion to keep you moving. I did a past life regression and my hypnotist was careful not to ask […]
In Just Like Gravity, ghosts flit around an old house. One of them tosses books at Anna’s head, but another one shares important information with her. You can’t write a Scottish story without ghosts. My ghosts always wind up being charming and funny since I am charming and funny, myself. But what about the tortured, scary, pull-you-out-the-top-floor-window-and-laugh-while-you-fall kind of ghosts? Do you believe in spooks? Yes, photos and recordings are touted as proof, but it’s awfully easy to fake a […]
Welcome to the first of several A-Z blogs which will serve as shameless promotions for Just Like Gravity, my paranormal romance due out in March/April. You have been warned!! The protagonist, Anna, is a fortuneteller. She’s skeptical, though, and doesn’t really believe in divination though her mother taught her all the ways to do it. Then the bad dreams start—dreams so intense they leave her shaken and terrified of what is to come. She uses tarot cards to tell her […]