PHANTASM FRIDAY

Tomorrow is Halloween. My eight year old is excited, I’m not sure if it’s the appeal of getting free candy—he’s a candy junkie—or becoming Rey Mysterio—his Halloween costume and his real life hero! If you’re unfamiliar with Rey Mysterio he’s a 5’3” WWE wrestler that my son worships. He cut his hair a couple of months back like Rey Mysterio—unmasked Rey, of course. LOL Here’s a photo of Rey Mysterio, so you’ll have some idea who’s going trick or treating with me tomorrow night!

I bit the bullet today and decided to participate in NanoWrimo. After all those edits for Elfin Blood, I’ve been a bit burned out and have had no motivation to write. So, I’m hoping Nano kicks my booty into writing action. I need something to kick my booty into writing mode. Are any of you participating in Nano this year?

But, in honor of Halloween, I’m going to talk about Haunted Houses…

*insert evil laugh*

Bwhahahaha….

We’ve all grown up with stories of haunted houses or haunted dormitories or haunted areas—something haunted anyway. The city I grew up in had a local legend about a bridge. If one went to it at night, the ghosts of those that had driven off the bridge would haunt the place. Personally, I went necking down there with my boyfriend and I didn’t see anything. Nope, nothing! So much for a legend, huh? Or maybe I was too consumed with kissing the boyfriend to notice any ghosts had they been haunting the place. =)

The term “haunted houses” brings to mind my personal experiences though. I grew up in a house that, while not necessarily haunted, it had a spirit of some sort living with us in perfect harmony. I often felt protected and loved by that spirit. I mentioned last week in my paranormal interview of seeing my great-grandfather. I do believe my great-grandfather haunts my father’s house, as I’ve seen his spirit more than once. The comparison between my great-grandfather and the spirit I grew up with startling. When I saw my great-grandfather the feeling was so intense, so vile and aggressive, and he wanted us gone. Or that was the way I interpreted it.



I have a girlfriend, Nicole, who bought a home with her husband. It was a beautiful piece of property, twenty-five acres, with an older fixer-up home. The home was so old it had a well built on the corner of the front porch. It was cool, a neat little piece of history. I can’t even imagine having to draw my water out of it just to meet the basic necessary needs. But after having kids I see the danger in it too. The place had oodles of potential and best of all it was away from the big city. It was so quiet and peaceful.

My first visit there, I came home telling my husband the place had a ghost. Everywhere I went, I felt like I was being watched. I never felt any hostility, but more curiosity. Daytime or nighttime, it didn’t matter, some unseen presence was watching. From inside the home to the shed in the backyard, something was always watching. The only time I could truly get away from the presence was when we would ride the four-wheelers across the back part of the property and woods.

I didn’t realize until we visited for a Halloween party a couple of months later that Nicole had purchased the home from an estate after the previous owner, an elderly woman, had passed away in it. It was like the light-bulb went off in my head—a smack my forehead V8 moment!—where I thought ‘that is why I’m feeling those hidden eyes’.

Another weekend I was there goofing off with Nicole and her mother, Jill, when Jill started talking about her conversations with the spirit of the woman who once owned the house! I got chills!! My eyes even watered! To have my feelings and thoughts confirmed was exciting. The only thing that would have made this haunted house perfect would have been for it to have a cemetery sitting on the property! LOL


I went home that night and told my husband about Jill knowing there was a ghost there too and couldn’t resist saying, “I told you so!” His reply was that I wasn’t the only crazy person in the world. ;-)

I’d love to hear your comments. And we’d love for you to come by the Moonlight, Lace & Mayhem Yahoo Group and tell us about your own "haunted house" experiences and stories! =)

Scary photo of the week…


I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! And a safe Halloween!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

All photos were taken from Photobucket and no copyright infringement was intended!

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Sheila Deeth gave me the following review on my new book, Elfin Blood:

"An elf thief and vampire elf-kin, brooding mansions replete with gargoyles, and a snooty twenty-thousand-year-old king who thinks he calls the shots; Gracen Miller creates an interesting cast of characters in Elfin Blood, and fills their world with delightfully intriguing surprises.

The vampire leader’s more sex-lost than sex-addicted at the start, and Landau’s reawakening with Julija is portrayed in powerful detail. From dance-floor kiss to coffee-shop chaos, to… well, you get the picture… these two are surely “going to be a problem.”

Tortured alike by their bodies’ betrayal and lustful imaginings, the two protagonists simultaneously spend the first part of the book avoiding each other and seeking each other out. But all is revealed, in history, forest and bedroom, and elvish soul-blends demand far more than the locking of lips and eyes.

The writing rises above the occasional typo, pulling the reader into a perfect pooling of passion and desire. Very nicely done Gracen, and definitely not your granny’s or granddaughter’s romance."