Tag: Bryna Butler

Spooky Rumors

I heard a rumor…

It is SO good to be back to my book tribe. As some of you already know, I took a little over a year off to be fully present during my youngest son’s senior year. I am pleased to report that he graduated and is off to college at Kent State University. While my oldest is finishing up his last year at The Ohio State University.

That means, I now have an empty nest, and I intend to take advantage of it!

First up, was the July release of my short story, Hidden on the Belt, included in Brave New Girls: Tales of Girls Who Engineer and Explore anthology. I love participating in this project because a portion of each sale goes to scholarships from the Society of Women Engineers for young women learning about careers STEM fields.

This is the second short I’ve written about Stella Purser, the youngest intern ever at the future First Intergalactic Bank and Trust, Lake Erie Branch. The clients are often not human, sometimes not even solid. And yes, Stella’s bank branch is actually under Lake Erie. May I suggest entering through the wet lobby. It’s quite the experience.

Stella has a gift for figuring advanced probabilities in seconds. That’s why novice security guard, Fox Aimsworth, nicknamed her “Chance.” Together, they get into the craziest situations.

In Hidden on the Belt, Stella and Fox tag along for a routine mining equipment check on Vesta in the asteroid belt. When the team stumbles on a major criminal cover up, the mission leader trusts the wrong person. Stella must use her unique talent to elude the bad guys and get the team off the rock spiraling through space.

And if you like, Hidden, be sure to check out the prior Chance & Fox short, Let the Numbers Show Truth, part of Brave New Girls: Adventures of Gals and Gizmos. It’s explosive.

Next up is the debut of my new middle grade horror series, Spooky Rumors. The first book, Some Thing Calls from the Dark, releases September 20, 2023, and as of this post is available for preorder.

The premise of Spooky Rumors is that Agatha Binx, preteen witch and self-proclaimed expert of all things that go bump in the night, collects rumors from her monstrous and ghostly friends to share with my readers.

These books are so much fun, creepy stories with corny humor thrown in, very much in the style of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps. Short chapters, easy readability, and high action make them perfect for reluctant middle grade readers.

Each book/rumor is a standalone and will feature a different set of characters and monster or ghost story based in small town folklore. The first book, Some Thing Calls from the Dark, centers on the Flatwoods Monster of West Virginia. A profile at the end of the book gives readers extra info on the documented sightings.

In Some Thing Calls… Kayla Murphy wakes to an odd call for help coming from the creepy woods beyond her backyard. The next thing she remembers is waking up on her bedroom floor under an open window. Kayla is forced into the woods in search of answers. Each dangerous step leads her closer to the monster of local folklore.

I’m pretty psyched about the team for this one. I was so lucky to connect with the amazing Diane Landolf, editor of Mary Pope Osborne’s Magic Tree House Fact Trackers and numerous other major publisher middle grade titles. She polished the manuscript as editor. The book also includes original artwork from the Doug LaRocca.

And there is more on the horizon. Works in progress include A Cloak of Crimson, a Little Red Riding Hood retelling with werewolves set in Alaska. It will be part of a fairy tale box set currently slated for late 2024. I’m also working on the third book in the Mothman Mysteries series, Wrong Side of the Song. And I will be releasing new Spooky Rumors as quickly as possible.

In addition to ramping up the writing, you will again see me at events. I’m just starting to get those scheduled. Check my Home page for the current list.

Lastly, I just wanted to say thank you for your patience while I took this family time. I’m excited about these new stories and hope you are too!

Book of the Lost

Easter Eggs for Wrong Side of the Grave

A few months after every new release, I love to share some of the hidden gems in my story. Past Easter Egg articles have included what went on behind the scenes, inspiration for settings, namesakes, and those fun little factoids that come with writing fiction.

And now it’s time to reveal the Easter Eggs for the first in the Mothman Mysteries, WRONG SIDE OF THE GRAVE!

B.R.A.N.D. 

The BRAND went through several generations before it became the Biometric Remodeling Apparatus with Necessity Duplicator. For a long time in my manuscript, I called it PRISM (Protective Remote Identification Simulator Mechanics). But the term seemed to confuse beta readers into thinking that it was just projecting an image, not physically changing Eric. It was also called PET, PM, MRU, ACT, and yes, even a BUTLER (Biotic Unilateral Transitioner & Limited Elemental Renderer). Gotta love acronyms!

Bridget’s Sister

In an early version, Bridget had an older, always-perfect-without-trying sister named Rayne. However, Rayne only served to dilute the story so in the end she had to go.

Kendall Mitchem aka Kendalla the Dreaded

When writing for Kendall, I picture Taylor Swift gone bad. Seriously.

Where have I read about Eric before?

Eric had cameo roles in the Midnight Guardian series. He appears in Shadows Rising as Mikey’s drummer friend and again in Book of the Lost as Mikey’s prom date. Keira notices the BRAND on his arm and refers to it as an eagle tattoo.

What’s the name of Eric’s band?

Though no one calls it by name in Wrong Side, his band’s name is Sweet Kick. It is the same band that appears from time to time in the Midnight Guardian series.

Lone Oak Cemetery & Tu-Endie-Wei

Both are very real places in the real Point Pleasant, WV. In Tu-endie-wei Park, the memorial that I describe is really there and there really is a plaque on the back of it with an oddly obvious tree with a fingerprint-sized knot hole. Although, I doubt that placing your finger on it will open a secret elevator to a spaceship…I think…maybe.

Duey’s heritage

Little clues indicate that Duey is French. The city of Gallipolis, located just across the Ohio River from Point Pleasant was originally settled by the French. In 1749, the French created Point Pleasant as a trading post. Although many of those first French settlers in the area died out or disappeared…

Agent Hisato Ikeda

During my research, I came across an account of a strange man who was spotted in Point Pleasant at the height of the Mothman sightings in the late 60s. The man was described as wearing a black suit, asking lots of questions, and exhibiting odd behavior and movements. My MIB Agent Ikeda is the sleeked out next generation version of this very odd little man.

Harbinger

There are many theories as to who/what Mothman is. One such theory is that he is a harbinger that precedes any major disaster. In my book, his Tokyo counterparts, Ren and Katsu, are considered Tengu, which are also mythical birdman-like creatures and have also been rumored to be harbingers of disaster. They’re kind of like the Mothman of the Far East. Thought it would be cool to tie together similar myths from different cultures.

What book was Bridget ranting about in chapter 1?

She had just read Book of the Lost.

More Easter Egg posts on my novels: Of Sun & Moon | Whispering Evil | Midnight Child | Shadows Rising | Book of the Lost

More Behind the Scenes for Mothman Mysteries: BRAND | Cover | Music

Mothman Mysteries

Kirkus Reviews Wrong Side of the Grave

WRONG SIDE OF THE GRAVE
Butler, Bryna
CreateSpace (264 pp.)
$11.99 paperback, $1.99 e-book
ISBN: 978-1507898079; February 21, 2015

BOOK REVIEW BY KIRKUS REVIEWS

An alien who feeds on vampires is stumped when the recently dead in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, are apparently no
longer dead in Butler’s (Book of the Lost, 2013, etc.) YA supernatural thriller.

Eric Jansen is just your typical teenager and drummer for a rock band. Except, when not in human form, he’s a red-eyed,
centuries-old alien who has spurred the local Mothman legend. His food source on Earth is vampires, allowing him to
work in cooperation with a secret government agency. But he becomes the men in black’s first suspect when bodies at
the funeral home start sitting up, walking, and talking. He and his human bestie, Bridget, initiate their own investigation,
while the city folk crowd the cemetery, convinced that subterranean loved ones will soon awaken. Eric, however, fears
that someone may be on to him when Bridget suddenly disappears. This entertaining novel navigates well-trod ground
with style. The vampires, for instance, seem like typical bloodsuckers but are actually aliens that Eric’s kind has
followed to Earth. Both Eric and Bridget are cynical but charmingly so, and endless alien-related puns never get old, like
Eric’s suggestion that “people who live in invisible spaceships shouldn’t throw stones.” Along with a grand plot and
vibrant characters, including the enigmatic Agent Hisato Ikeda whom Eric thinks might be an alien, Butler delivers a
notable mystery/thriller. Dramatic tension is wielded expertly; Eric and Bridget, for example, distrust a funeral director
and news reporter, who may have their own agendas. Butler dabbles into Eric’s background but doesn’t overdo the
flashbacks. The same is true for aliens in general; readers only glimpse the interior of Eric’s concealed spacecraft (and
hear what can only be presumed is alien profanity: “Slux!”). Romance between Eric and Bridget is wonderfully
understated, as everyone but the couple appears to recognize that they’re more than just friends. Limitless possibilities to
explore their relationship, as well as a lingering unconquered foe, give the next book of the proposed series a smashing
head start.

Butler revives the moribund with his fresh take on aliens, vampires, and the undead.

You can also check out the review on the Kirkus website, here.