Sorchia’s Universe–The Blog

515 posts

Blue Moon

Blue Moon–It May Not Mean What You Think it Means

The Moon is Center Stage in January and March! The phrase “Blue Moon” has been used for over 500 years to indicate something unlikely or downright false. In 1528 a group of surly friars used the phrase  in a pamphlet criticizing Cardinal Thomas Wolsey-. “O churche men are wyly foxes… Yf they say the mone is blewe, We must beleve that it is true.“ That’s the first written record and, given the times, I’m assuming those friars were burnt at the […]

The Mortal Fires by Anna Durand

Welcome to the Vortex–The Tourist Trap that Inspired a Paranormal Romance

Novel Magic guest and Paranormal romance author, Anna Durand, lets us peek inside her mind as she shares a source of inspiration for her latest book-The Mortal Fires. The Tourist Trap that Inspired a Paranormal Romance A common question every writer gets asked is where story ideas originate. The simplistic answer is “in my imagination.” The more complicated truth involves sexy stuff like research. I’ve had a long-time fascination with the paranormal, ancient history, mythology, and science. These may sound […]

7 Wicked Witches of Winter

My Saturday 7 this week is  near and dear to my shriveled, blackened heart!  If you visit Sorchia’s Universe regularly, you knew this was coming. We love witches here. Long and Short Reviews started this madness and now I can’t seem to stop! Be sure to visit the center of this vortex at Long and Short Reviews to find a list of lists–links to a scintillating selection of Saturday Sevens. At a tender age, I developed an abiding distaste for the Disneyfied heroines who […]

Dead of Winter Bundle: A Curated Collection of Curious Content

Winter! As a writer, I am required by law to get seasonal depression. Over the years, I’ve written a number of posts showing the struggle to maintain sanity during this time of year. Sometimes I make promises to be “healthy.” I explore healthy herbs and make salads. This is a temporary phase which always ends with Scotch. Protect against Vampires and Viruses with Garlic Boost Immunities with Magical Echinacea Holy Guacamole: A Scotch and Salad Diet Recipe Looking out on […]

Cover Image for Spellcasters by Kitka Buchanan and K. Ries on http://sorchiadubois.com

What does Evil Mean? Can Evil Characters be Redeemed? Novel Magic Visits the Dark Side

Does Evil Really Exist? That’s one question my Novel Magic guests pose.  After all, in the immortal words of Morticia Addams, “What’s good for the spider means chaos for the fly.” So isn’t Evil–with a capital E–a myth since the concept seems relative to the observer? Natasha, in Spellcasters by Kitka Buchanan and K. Ries, may be a flawed character, but is she redeemable? Check out this excerpt and Kitka’s discussion below–and then tell us what Evil means to you. […]

Brownie

Brownies–Pesky Fairies of Castle Logan in Zoraida Grey and the Pictish Runes

The Brownies who infest Castle Logan are anything but sweet. In my Zoraida Grey Gothic romance series, Castle Logan rises from the craggy hillside in northern Scotland, just a few degrees of latitude south of the Arctic Circle. In midsummer, the sun remains above the horizon for nearly 24 hours but in winter, the reverse is true. Sometimes strange things crawl from their hiding places deep in the caverns beneath the mountains during the long, dark winters. As I was […]