mothman mysteries – Author Bryna Butler

Stuff I know this week 2.27.20

It’s such an exciting time, my little mogdocs. My head is rushing with everything currently going on, and I want to share. So I am. I’m sharing like never before.

Expect a new post from me every week (if I forget, give me a nudge). In them, I will share tidbits about stuff I know, my work in progress, books/TV/movies that I’m currently fangirling over, and any other wonderfluff that wants to pour from my keyboard.

In today’s post, I’m gushing over Chris Wood and geeking out about Locke and Key, but first…

Here we go with the stuff I know…

Tomorrow, author Casey Bond will release the trailer for The Omen of Stones, the follow-up to When Wishes Bleed. I got an early peek today and it gave me serious chills. Omen drops March 13th.

Misty Provencher recently dropped paranormal romance Out Cold. Reading it now and completely absorbed. It’s one of those that gets into your head, and you think about it long after you’ve set the book down. Her next book, a middle grade monster novel called, Something Exquisite, is due out March 27th.

Our gal Misty has been super busy. In addition to the above two books, she and daughter, Sydney, collaborated as author and illustrator (respectively) on When I was Weird, a children’s book that helps little ones deal with bullying. So wish I had this for my boys when they were little.

Heather Hildenbrand and Bam Shepherd delighted everyone with the cover reveal for Girl Who Cried War. This is the third book in crazy cool Girl Who Cried Werewolf series. The covers are becoming known for the clever sayings on the protagonist’s t-shirts. This cover’s “Shift Happens” had me rolling. War releases March 3rd.

Kelly Martin‘s giddy video reveal of the What Rachel Did paperback had me doing a giddy dance too. Monster Ivy published the middle grade horror novel with beautiful artwork in the interior. Pick up Rachel at bookstores starting March 3rd.

This week, I quietly released new covers for the Midnight Guardian series. Pleased as punch (yes, I’m bringing that phrase back) with the new covers that better convey that they are clean YA novels suitable for pre-teen readers.

Works in progress update…

Wrong Side of the Song will be the third Mothman Mysteries book. When Eric trips over a corpse in the woods, Bridget guilts him into following a stolen clue that leads them to a siren in the school show choir! It’s young Harry Dresden meets Pitch Perfect in a hilarious, mystery thrill ride.

The sirens in the Mothverse (did I just coin a new word?) are not aliens like Mothman, but native to Earth with powers over water and song. Look for (finally) some serious heat between Eric and Bridget as the siren’s seductive influence brings our favorite book blogger out of her shell. Song is roughly 50% complete with release anticipated later this year.

Simultaneously with Song, I’m also working on a yet-to-be-named project. Super excited about this idea, but I’m only about 4% in, so it’s not far enough along to share too many details yet. I can tell you that it is YA paranormal suspense/romance and will likely be a duology.

Dark fairy academy … changelings … closet monsters.

To quote Forrest Gump, “That is all I’ve got to say about that” for now.

What I’m excited about on screen this week…

Locke and Key. Seriously, how did I not know this existed before? LOVED the first season on Netflix and have the graphic novels by Joe Hill (Stephen King’s son) on my TBR. Cause you know the book is gonna be even better.

After the murder of their father, the Locke family moves into the father’s ancestral home, Key House. The children, three of them in varying teen years, start discovering magical keys, each with a unique, single power. It isn’t long before something dark, lurking in the creepy well house on the property, plots to steal the keys and unleash very bad things.

I loved it for its creativity. And as crazy as it sounds, I also loved it for the keys. For whatever reason (OCD?), I get really into stories where I have to keep track of a set number of objects/people. With Harry Potter it was horcruxes. With Hunger Games it was tributes. With Umbrella Academy, it was siblings.

And speaking of siblings, it’s time to talk about my favorite evil twin. Since he first stepped on the screen as Kai in Vampire Diaries, I’ve become a total Chris Wood fan. What can I say? The guy knows how to play a villain.

It seems to me that it would be almost impossible to pull off that character. Think about it. You have to have perfect comedic timing in one second and deliver believable, psychopathic lines in the next. But Wood nails it every time with a perfect mix of charm and chaos.

Needless to say, I’ve been thrilled to see him reprise the role on Legacies this month. But, I was absolutely screaming and jumping up and down when he popped up on this week’s SuperGirl in a what-if episode that had him back as Mon-EL. Significant because I believe that his portrayal of this character has been some of the best performances in SG‘s run. Certainly the most dramatic, uplifting, and heart-wrenching. As much as he knows how to play the perfect villain, he has also demonstrated the skills to be the perfect hero. Never too much Chris! Welcome back to these shows. Your CW fans missed you.

That’s all I know for now. 😉 Let me know what you know in the comments.

Random Ramblings

Update

Here we are with the first quarter of 2015 already behind us. That was fast. Like really, really fast. So in case it all went by in a blurred flash of Facebook posts and indecipherable tweets, here’s an update on what’s been happening and what’s to come.

Wrong Side of the Grave

It’s out, and first reviews have been crazy good. I can use all the reviews I can get, so if you have not yet posted a review (especially to Amazon or Barnes & Noble) please do so. Pretty please, with whipped cream and a cherry one top!

If you haven’t had a chance to read it yet, you can pick it up at the usual online bookstores: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, BAM, Kobo, and Apple iBooks among others. I’m also offering signed paperback editions for sale through my website (see below). For those in the Huntington, WV, area, it should be available at Empire Books at Pullman Square by this weekend.

Will there be another? Yes, Wrong Side is just the first book of the Mothman Mysteries. These will be standalone mysteries with the same characters so you can read them in any order. I plan to write them until I run out of ideas. It is my hope to have the next one out by the time the Mothman Festival rolls around in September, although that might take a miracle or two to pull off.

Signed Books

Recently, my website was updated to include a Store area where you can buy signed paperback editions of your favorites. You can also “buy” (in quotes because it’s free) an e-version of the Midnight Guardian short story Siren’s Call, a short that was originally included in copies of Shadows Rising. Go directly to the store, here.

Appearances

Due to a family conflict, I have cancelled my scheduled talk and appearance at the Dayton Book Expo later this month. I also will not be at the Southeastern Ohio Tourism Expo which has been re-scheduled for the same day as the Dayton event. Sometimes you just need to step up and be a Mom. I found myself in that situation. Family will always come first for me. I hope you understand.

My next scheduled appearance will be at UtopYA Con in Nashville in June. So excited about that event. This year’s theme is time travel. YES!

House of Gammen

Everyone’s asking, so here’s the update. House of Gammen, the sixth and final installment of the Midnight Guardian series WILL come out in 2015. I promise. I do not have a date yet, as I’m still writing. However, I can tell you that it will be my next book published, and I am getting very close to starting editing. It’s the last one. I want it to be everything it can be for you and that takes time.

To help make it up to you, here’s a first look at the draft of the cover.

The Chosen Ones

I’ve been tossing around some ideas for providing rewards for my most loyal readers. If you fit this description and have some ideas of your own, please share! Also looking for a fun name for this very special group. You can comment on this post, drop me a line on Twitter or Facebook, or use the Contact form.

MM Behind the Scenes, Mothman Mysteries

Finding Mothman

Over the last couple of months, I’ve been busy wrapping my next book, Wrong Side of the Grave, which will be the first in a new series of standalone Mothman Mysteries. The series will be YA/teen and this time, kiddos, I’m delving into sci-fi. But you know me, this series has strong paranormal influences (think Doctor Who).

So what’s my YA Sci-fi Mystery about? Mothman.

In western West Virginia, Mothman is a creature of legend. In fact, there he is below with the big red eyes and gray wings nestled in the center between Nessie, Chupacabra, Bigfoot and the Yeti. He’s in good company.

Mothman is a winged humanoid creature. He stands on two legs, but his skin is gray and he has big red eyes that rest near his shoulders. The moth part comes from his giant wings that are reported to hum and glide on the air rather than flap. He doesn’t need a running start, witnesses say these great wings can straight up into the air like a helicopter.

Mothman caused the biggest stir in 1966 and 67 when according to journalist John A. Keel more than a hundred people sighted him in the area surrounding Point Pleasant, West Virginia. Some even blame Mothman for the tragic collapse of the Silver Bridge in which took forty-six lives just days before Christmas in 1967.

He’s been mentioned on the X-Files, been the star of movies, chased by reality show hillbillies, and has his own museum. There’s even an annual festival where the Men in Black trot him out for festival goers to catch a quick selfie!

Over the next few weeks we’ll explore the legend, the art, and the music behind this new series. Next week, I’ll share with you how I’m taking this legend and giving it a YA twist. Until then, check out the Mothman Mysteries page on my site for a description of the book and the official Spotify playlist. Only one legendary creature rocks out loud!