Mystic Monday's

Hi All,

This week I have Ghost Stories or I should say a ghost story.

Saturday night I found myself driving to Wausau to meet a client. (location and photos at a later date after we meet with the client.)

The owner of a store met with me an hour before the team came in. This was a great time for me to not only connect with the owner but the building as well. As always I went into the building cold, meaning I knew nothing other than the owner thought there was a ghost in the building. I knew nothing of the history of the place or how many ghosts they thought they had.

My tour took about an hour. His energy hit me as soon as I walked in. I don't think I was in the door two minutes when I had a heavy feeling in my chest and it was hard to breath. We put my stuff in the office. I grabbed my notebook, mini mag light and voice recorder and off we went. Leaving the office and being on the sales floor I picked up a little girl who ran from the back of the store to the front and just left. She was maybe 6 with Piggy tails in her lighter colored hair. She also had a dress on.

We started in the basement of building 1. In this case the store was actually two neighboring buildings each with a separate basement. So basement 1 is where we started. Huge!  As we entered the basement from the stairway I heard, “You, Hey you need to leave this is my space.” said a Mickey Rooney old man, and then “poof” he was gone. I looked at the owner and asked who Mickey Rooney was and he was stunned I was picking up stuff already. We went into a few hallways and back to a room. I stepped in the room and got an instant headache and just the feeling of needing to be out of the room quick. I put the flashlight on and stood it up. I said to the room, “Ok the owner is here with me and he can't hear, see or feel you like I do, so I am getting the feeling you want me out of here and I'll go but, I want you to show him you are here and that you want me out of this room. Would you please turn the light off or tap on something to give me a sign that you want me to leave your space.”  The owner and I looked at the light for a second and out it went. I said “Ok thank you, I'll leave but please know a group of people I work with are on their way and they will be down here later.” The owner looked at me and was stunned because he had never seen anything happen like that. While talking with the owner he said most of the time he feels uneasy and he has had things move and boxes stack themselves perfectly while he was in the basement. We then walked to another part of the basement, a hallway with shelves on both sides of it. I heard the word “Bootlegging” and then “Johnny's Girl is here”. Ok there is my que for mobsters. So I looked at the owner and asked, “Does bootlegging mean anything to you?” and he chuckled as he asked “You got that already too?" Then I saw a man dressed in a very nice suit from the 1920's-1930's. The man pointed to the floor and said, “It's buried there.”  Now I have no clue what “it” is and I'm not sure if I want to know. But it's in the corner of the basement hallway. The owner then told me that in prohibition there was a tunnel for running alcohol from the building next door to the basement we were in. So ok, Bootlegging it is.

I didn't get anything on the main floor or up on the loft area so much except in the loft I did feel like someone was pushing on my chest again and it became hard to breathe. Upstairs we were in the hallway and I heard the word “women”. So I asked, "Hey, what does women mean?"  He looked at me and said the store used to be an old JC Penny back in the day and the women would be up here making change for the cashiers downstairs and they had tin cans and a string system to get the money up and down. Wow! Ok. So I went to a back room that had a few fuse boxes in it and when I turned I could see a woman pacing up and down the hallway. She had on a floor length dress that had a high collar on it. Her hair was darker and in a bun. I asked him if he heard pacing up here in this hall, He said they didn't have any reports of it.

Up to the attic was our next stop.

In the attic I picked up on another man who looked at me and said these rooms are the bosses. With that we left. Down to basement 2.

In basement 2, I didn't really pick up on much. When we were down there the team called and they had arrived. So up and out to the street to get the team.

We then toured with the team. Back to basement 1. We were in a room we called the “Man Cave” since there were girly pictures down there. J  I didn't feel welcome there at all so I went out. We took the team to the room where we did the flashlight and asked if it wanted me to leave. We put a flashlight on the floor and turned on. The team started asking questions like “are you with us… Can you turn the light off if you are here or tap to let us know you are here.” I heard, “You need to leave me alone again.” To which I looked at the owner and the team and said, “I have an idea, I'm going to leave the room and if you want me to stay out then when I leave please turn the light off.” I walked out and wasn't even turned around yet when the group was laughing because the light had gone off already. IT was crazy. Crabby old man didn't want to talk to me at all. But as it turns out he didn't like any of the girls along. We went into another small room that the owner said makes him feel creepy. Freddy and I stood in there with the owner and the flashlight and started to ask questions. I didn't say anything but I looked at Freddy and said “keep asking I'm going to step out.” As soon as I left the room the light started going on and off as requested by Freddy. So Val went in and she asked questions and it wouldn't respond to her. So then she said, “Do you want all the girls to leave? Turn the light on if you want all the girls to leave,” and of course the light went on. So out all of us girls went. Then the guys went in and started asking questions and had a great session with the flashlight and the ghost. The owner told us the janitor had passed away back in the day when the store was JC Penny and he loved work and he had a name other than ‘Mickey Rooney’ lol. And yes he was grumpy in life as well.

We then split into teams and went off. Girls upstairs and the guys had an amazing session down in the ‘Man Cave’. We had a little luck upstairs with a ghost who gave us the name Emily with the flashlight. The name popped into my head and I asked the flashlight to turn off if she was Emily. It turned off. We did not get a lot of activity after our tour. I did manage a few good pictures of a mystery light and some orbs. I have yet to listen to my voice recorder.

The girls went up to the attic and we didn’t get much activity there. So we went to the basement 1 and to the hallway where I saw a mobster. While we tried to get a session going, nothing happened. I did pick up on two names a Marcus and Anthony or Big Tony. lol. Val will do some research and see what she can come up with. I also caught some images on the camera so when I am able to post I will.

One of the team members asked me if there was a little girl running around. He said later that night after I had left, he was walking down the stairs and saw a small girl in a white dress. He thought by her clothes he was guessing 1960's. Something a girl would wear to church on Sunday. I wonder if she's the little girl that ran through the sales room earlier that night.

I had to leave the team early so I was only on site until Midnight.

Once we do a reveal with the owners I will be able to post pictures and share names.

Sunday I was at a private house. A woman had called the team to say that her daughter was being bothered in her room at night. The team had investigated before I had been out and found what they think were two ghosts…a man and woman. I came in during the day and didn't pick up much. We (the owner and I) did a clearing ritual and I hope it worked. I'm sure I'll hear this week from her if it did or didn't work then go from there.

So that was my ghost investigating weekend. It was fun to be out with Stevens Point Paranormal Club again. They're a great group of people.

If you think you have a ghost and are in WI don't be afraid to get ahold of me. The team will do free investigations. Business or residents. SPPC will then give you a very professional reveal with all the evidence that was collected.

 Blessings All,

Wendy

Wendy Jackson

Intuitive Healer/Reiki Master

www.intuitivewendy.com

Mystic Monday

Hi All,

I had a request for a blog about Reiki and what it can do for you. So I think we might split this up into a few blogs and talk about being a client vs practicing Reiki for yourself or on others.

Reiki is a simple energy healing system that is our birth right. Just like we can all be psychic we can all learn to do energy work. I always tell people it's like playing football. We can all learn to throw a football but not everyone can play like Aaron Rogers. What I mean is, we can all develop our healing skills and our psychic abilities but we all can't be Sylvia Browne. Everyone has some degree of these abilities. Intuition, being able to see earth bound spirits, an inner knowing. Some of us can only heal and not be psychic as well. Some may be psychic but no healing abilities what so ever. I just happen to have both.

So let's get started what can Reiki do for you?

Reiki is the Japanese word for Universal Life Force Energy. It's the energy that flows through every living thing. It comes from the Divine Source— whatever source you believe in. This Universal white light of Reiki is drawn down from the Universe by a practitioner. Reiki flows into the crown chakra of the practitioner and then to his or her hands, from there it flows into the client and out through their root chakra back to Mother Earth. Mother Earth being the great recycler then turns the negative energy that is wiped out of the client to positive and it all goes back into the Universe.

Practitioners can touch the body with traditional hand positions or do as I do and hover in the aura to feel the body's energy.

Your body, mind and spirit is connected. Your mind is connected to your body through your network of nerves. It is in every organ and tissue. Your spirit is you, your essence. Your energy is your mind, body and spirit together. Your aura is the body's energy radiating out into your space and environment.

Reiki works with you as an entire being—your mind, body and spirit. It can wipe out energy blocks and fill those holes left with the white light of your source to heal. If you are being treated for a chronic condition, Reiki can help with your condition, however it should never replace how your medical doctor is treating you. Reiki can help shorten the time it takes to heal from surgery or treatment. It will however enhance treatment and take away negative effects from treatment. Cancer patients can get relief from chemotherapy with Reiki. Depression can be managed and treated with Reiki. Sleep disorders and stress can be helped with Reiki energy.

When you have a Reiki session your job is to relax and let the practitioner do the work. Reiki will be channeled to you and the energy will become part of yours and go to the part of the body where it is needed. Your body, mind and spirit will use Reiki energy where it needs it most. After a few sessions you may feel you are getting better, after a few more you may experience a relaps of sorts, this is normal because all of the negative energy needs to be wiped out so that good energy can take its place. Reiki will work gently to release energy blocks and once the energy block is worked out the issue or symptom will clear up. With continued sessions you will improve and be better than when you started. The amount of sessions is different for everyone because everyone is different. Some are done in one or two sessions. Some have maybe two sessions and then none for months and then start up again. Again it's not wrong everyone is different.

So what do you need Reiki for?  I've used Reiki for depression, really bad baby blues for myself. I've helped a stroke patient and I've used it on my grandfather with his cancer. I've also treated my heart patient after surgery. At expos I use Reiki to help people with pain, from joints to head colds. So there is really no limit to what you can use Reiki for.

Reiki Level l

Level l Reiki introduces you to the energy. You will learn how energy feels and how to ground your energy and balance yourself. Self-treatments are huge for your Reiki l training. You are learning energy and how you turn on and off energy. You will learn the story of the discovery of Reiki and the Reiki Principles.

We will talk more about all of this next week.

Please feel free to ask any questions. I want to be able to talk and clear up anything you may need to know, I can't do that if you don't ask. J  Someone out there will always be wondering the same thing so ask, ask and ask!

To learn Reiki or Psychic Skills see a trained professional to take classes. If you need help getting pointed in the right direction shoot me an email.

Blessings All,

Wendy

 Wendy Jackson

Intuitive Healer/Reiki Master

www.intuitivewendy.com

Mystic Monday

Hi All,

First off, Happy Fourth of July! 

Second, tomorrow is the Full Moon. This month's full moon is called a Blessing Moon. What does that mean? Get out your homework. Start by making a list of all your dreams. What did you want to do with your life? Places you wanted to go?  Things you wanted to accomplish. Are you following the path you wanted to be on?  If not then make some changes and new goals to get you to where you want to be. Don't be afraid to ask others for help if you're not sure how to get to your goals.

Now let's get into what this week is about. Karma and Past Lives. What?  Oh yeah we're going there so we can clean it up and move forward.

Last week we talked about the other side. We've talked about in previous weeks about how you chart your lessons when you are on the other side before you come into this life to learn. Your guides are part of keeping you on your path to learn your lessons so that you can evolve.

What is Karma?  Ask anyone and you'll get Karma is what comes around goes around. What you put out will come back at you. What you do, good or bad will come back to you. Some believe that this is true and it can come back to you over life times since many times the people you are with in this life time can be people you were with in past life times.

Past Lives are simply that. Lives you've lived before this one. Karma can be created in a past life and carried over to your current one just as memories from past lives can surface in this life time. Now, that is a subject that I could go on and on about because it's so interesting. My idea here is to introduce you to the concept.

Past life regressions can help you figure out what karma you are working out or if karma is done(finished) with a particular person. I'm always amazed at how many people in this life played a part in my past lives. I had one friend go in and have a past life regression done only to call me to tell me that I was in a past life with her that she had worked on that day and had worked out some karma that I had no clue I had caused or was part of for her.

Past life regressions are one way to work out what is bugging you in this life. You can be regressed by a past life therapist. Reiki can also bring out past lives. I can look at a client's past lives by using Reiki and going back to the life which is causing pain in this life. It's pretty cool. I've gone back to a battle field where a client was wounded from a spear in the shoulder on a battle field. In her current life we were trying to figure out why she was having shoulder pain when there was no reason for it. I used Reiki on the battle field after removing the spear. After her Reiki session she called a week later to say that her shoulder was getting better and wasn't causing any pain.

Reiki has also helped me see past lives to help clients with relationship issues.

You can clear Karma yourself. First you have to figure out what it is you want cleared. You can do this in meditation. Ask the guides to show you want it is that needs to be worked on. If a person is attached to the karma, then ask that any vows with that person be severed across all space and time. Do so with love and forgiveness. Surround yourself and the person in white light when you are done. Write in your journal what you've learned. I have a CD by Doreen Virtue that I use to help me clear every now and then. But when it comes to relationship Karma I don't mess around and I get in with my healer so I can get it worked through.

Ok I know this was pretty brief so if you have questions or need some direction on where to take this please ask away.

I wanted to bring this up because Karma is something we all have and work through. But because this is a blog it's hard sometimes to "get into" something that could take a while.

More next Monday J

Blessings All,

Wendy

 Wendy Jackson

Intuitive Healer/Reiki Master

www.intuitivewendy.com

Mystic Monday

Hi All!

I have been thinking a lot today about what to write and I couldn't come up with one thing. I mean, I had so many that I wanted to write about I just have no clue where to take this one. So I'm just going to write and we'll see what happens.

I wanted to start talking about stones and tools you can use to help you heal. Then I got some news from a friend that a friend of his passed away this weekend. That did two things, it reminded me that a friend I had loved dearly was murdered 10 years ago and his birthday is coming up soon, which lead to the second thing of talking about the other side and crossed over loved ones and what they do. But then Sunday I did a card reading party and the overall issue that came forward was "power". Power meaning your power, your personal power. The power you have by saying “No” and how that power is given away to people in your life or by getting so wrapped up in something you feel like you can't do without it and guess what, yep your power is gone. With those ideas out there, here is this week's Mystic Monday.

What is the other side like? What happens when we die, natural or unnatural death?  Is it different if we die by our own hand or someone else? I want everyone reading this to understand what I am going to tell you is based on

1. My views

2. Research I've done and 

3. Experiences I've had with clients and their crossed over loved ones.

I never use to question what happens to us when we die. Being raised Catholic, I was taught bad people go to Hell, good people go to Heaven and those of us that live in the gray of good—but some bad whatever bad is—go to Purgatory to wait or atone and become worthy of Heaven. To take your own life is the worst sin possible and you damn your soul by doing so. That's what I was taught.

What I've learned since starting to practice Reiki, developing my childhood abilities of communicating with ghost and reading everything and anything on Wicca, spirituality and energy healing, along with networking with other healers and psychics is this. In a nutshell, I have learned that on the other side we contract to learn lessons on this planet to help our souls evolve. We have helpers with us in our spirit guides and guardian angels. God loves us and is all forgiving, but you have to ask to be forgiven and it's as simple as I am sorry I did...please help me forgive myself and please forgive me. I have also come to believe in a Mother God. The Goddess. For me I knew her as Mother Mary as a child. She answered my prayers for help to aid sick animals. She helped me become an energy healer. I have learned through the death of a friend that I loved dearly that love doesn't die and it can be taken with you. On the other side our loved ones have lives. Isn't that crazy? They are off doing all the things they loved to do over here with no limits. They are surrounded by the unconditional love of the Universe or the higher power you believe in. When I found out my friend was killed, I read a book by Sylvia Browne and in the book she talked about murder victims. She said that people who choose to leave and go back home to the other side by being murdered do so to teach the people around them lessons and that by being the victim they are actually a higher evolved soul then the ones they are teaching. That gave me some comfort. My Reiki Master also said something similar to this at a different time.

I once had a client ask what of her brother that committed suicide. Where was he and was he ok? I believe that just like any other person who crosses over a suicide person had to review their life but they do so with special care. We all have our spirit team and crossed over loved ones that wait to greet us on the other side. But when a suicide person arrives over there he or she is wrapped in a blanket and loved, and given time to heal from the trauma before the review starts and then guess what happens, because they checked out before their lesson was learned and they are sent back to fulfill their contract. Yep, suicide isn't the answer, you're damned in one way, you get to come back ASAP and do it all over again.

Now here is what I've been told of the other side from people who have crossed over that have visited clients during sessions. Pain or illness is gone, any deformation such as hands crippled by arthritis are normal again. On the other side everyone is young but can present themselves as you would know them in life. Crossed over loved ones, live on the other side. They enjoy things like fishing, the lake, cars, animals and what not. If grandma loved flowers and spent time out taking care of flowers in the yard, she might have an amazingly huge flower garden on the other side. The grandpa who loved to fish has that boat and lake to fish on as well.

That wraps up my snippet of what the other side is like for now. Again, this is my experiences and research and a bit of my opinion stated above. I'm not trying to start arguments or a debate with anyone. I'm just writing a little of what I'm being guided to write about this week.

Personal Power. The one big thing about personal power is do not give it away and if you have, take it back because it's yours! Stand in your power. Make your choices and live! That is the message I'm being told to give you all. Having to consult with your deck of cards over just about everything from, “do I buy shoes today or not” is giving away your power. Your guides and your tools are there to help not to lead you around like a puppy on a leash. It's ok to say “No” to people when you don't have time to do things for them. It's ok to take time for yourself to meditate or catch a nap you need badly. It's not being selfish it's taking care of you. You are like “whatever, I don't have time to take care of me”. I say “whatever” back at you, because you can make 5 minutes.

My challenge to you this week is to make 5 minutes for yourself to close your eyes take two deep breathes, and center yourself then connect with your guides or your higher self or higher power.

 We'll talk about tools and stones next week. : )

Again with this blog I don't mean to offend anyone so please do not seek to start an argument that I am not looking for. I was guided to write today's blog because someone out there needed to hear something that was written. I will say that the above is what I believe after having researched by reading and attending workshops and by experiences I have had through clients that I have given readings for and my personal experience with a crossed over loved one.

Blessings to you all!

Wendy

Wendy Jackson

Intuitive Healer/Reiki Master

www.intuitivewendy.com

Laugh It Up Tuesday

Whether you’re a parent or grandparent, who hasn’t walked in on a little one getting into trouble? Today I’m sharing a few pics of some little darlings getting into mischief. I’m sure many of you will have your memory jogged, recalling your very own special child or grandchild doing some of these very things! And if you’re a new parent…consider this a warning—it WILL happen to you!

Mystic Monday

Hi All,

We are going to continue with energy today now that you had a feel for your own last week.

You're going to need your journal or a notebook if you haven't started one.

Let's start with pushing and pulling energy. Remember our ball of energy that we created with our hands and working the ball of energy with our palms facing each other?  Ok now let’s work that ball. Start by stretching the ball that starts out about baseball or softball size to rubber ball dodge ball size. It's ok to have to sensitize your hands again. What do you feel when you stretch the ball to a bigger size?  Remember to keep your palms facing each other. Can you stretch your ball to exercise ball big?  Write down all your experiences for future references.

If you need to sensitize your hands and let's start with pulling your hands apart, keep the palms facing each other.  If it helps, pretend you are working with taffy. Slowly, stretch your hands horizontally. How far apart can you get them and still feel your energy buzzing between them?  Again it's ok to have to stop to sensitize your hands and start again from where you left off. Once you've gotten to your maximum stretch where you can feel the energy between your hands, slowly start to push them back together to make you ball once again in the size of a baseball or softball. Give it a positive intent and send it off to the universe. Write down your experiences in your journal and if you haven't made it to your maximum stretch continue to practice. The more you practice the stronger your energy will get.

Next we're going to stretch vertically. So start with your ball in a baseball or softball size. Remember to keep your palms facing each other and then slowly start stretching that ball into taffy. Can you stretch it by keeping one hand by your waste and the other to your head?  Again as before if you need to stop and sensitize your hands again then continue. Picking up where you left off your goal is to stretch your taffy (energy) as far apart as you can reach. When you have then slowly push your energy back to the baseball or softball size that you started with. Give it a positive intent and then send it on its way to the universe. Write down your experience and what you felt. Include how many times you had to sensitize your hands. How strong was your energy on a scale of 1 to 5?  Journal that as well. Practice, Practice and more practice! : )

Moving on to Meditation:

This week we are going to practice the Rainbow Meditation. I believe I introduced this once in a past blog but we're going to revisit it to help us with raising our vibrations and moving our energy and grounding our energy.

Get into your meditative state. Start your music, shut your phone off, light your candle.

Visualize the universal white light coming down from the universe into your crown chakra. Draw then white light down through all of your chakras. When you get to your feet, plant your roots and ground the energy of the white light into Mother Earth.

Now I want you to see a rainbow big and bright. Pull the down the Red color, energy from the rainbow the same way as you did the universal white light. Remember to ground the energy into Mother Earth through your feet like you did with the universal white light.

Do the same for all the colors of the rainbow. Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet. When you are done run White light again. If you are feeling like you need to ground, push your extra energy through your roots and let Mother Earth take it away. If that doesn't work hold on to some stones or go out and ask a tree to help you ground. Yes, this works as funny as it sounds. If you go to a tree and ask they will help you ground. Again write all this down so you have a record of how you feel and what you are feeling.

That's all for this week. Have fun practicing and don't be afraid to ask questions if you need to. Have a great week.

 Blessings All,

Wendy

Wendy Jackson

Intuitive Healer/Reiki Master

www.intuitivewendy.com

Meet Tonia Brown!

Hello everyone! Today I have the distinct pleasure to share an interview I did with the extremely talented author, Tonia Brown! I’m sure after reading the interview you will come to love her like I have and want to read her latest book.

Interview with Tonia Brown

Currently residing:

Shelby, NC, USA

Savannah: Hello Tonia and thank you so much for stopping by today!

Tonia: My pleasure. Thanks for having me. I brought brownies. They are sugar free, I hope that's not a problem.

Savannah: You brought BROWNIES?! Oh hellz no, sugar free or not, it’s not a problem!

**whispers to Tonia** We aren’t gonna share these are we? They’re pretty damn good!

Savannah: First of all, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Tonia: Me? Well, there isn't much to tell. I grew up as a military B.R.A.T. and as a result I spent some time abroad and all around the states. I have an identical twin sister, Tonie, who shares the same name as my father, my nephew, my oldest sister's first husband, my maiden name and my husband. Speaking of husbands, I've been married to the bestsest man in the world for about 15 years now. Oh, and I have cats. I would like to say brats, but technically they are cats.

Savannah: A little birdie told me that you have recently had a book released titled Skin Trade Can you tell us more about it?

Synopsis:

The Great Undead Uprising of 1870 devastated the western frontier and destroyed the Indian Nations. Though the Army was able to contain the menace before it could devour the entire country, the United States lost claim to her western territories as the survivors fled to the relative safety of the east coast.
Samantha Martin is among the rare folks traveling west, seeking asylum within the infected territories. Running from a past that threatens to consume her, the young Sam dons the mantle of a male and hides in an all boys’ workhouse that borders these Badlands. From there she is thrust into the service of the skin trade; the terrible deed of trapping and skinning zombies for profit. The work is grueling and perilous, but along the way she finds out what it takes to be a man, why she misses being a woman, but most of all she learns what it means to be human.
Can Sam keep her masquerade up long enough to flee the Badlands, or will the outlaws that rule the western frontier find out she’s female before she can escape?  

"Tonia Brown has crafted a chilling tale with Skin Trade. In a way, it's like True Grit with zombies. But don't let that fool you. This is no pastiche. In the span of just 150 pages, Tonia Brown has managed to do some richly compelling world building, told a harrowing coming of age story, and given us a complex and multifaceted exploration of the question of loyalty that reminded me of Steinbeck and Harper Lee at their best. Skin Trade belongs on the top shelf of zombie fiction. Pay attention folks. This is how it's done."- Joe McKinney, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Flesh Eaters and Dead City

Savannah: How did you come up with the title and the story?

Tonia: The title was a natural progression of the storyline. The story itself came about from some discussions with a friend of mine about trapping and skinning. I really enjoy writing weird westerns, and I've been in western mode thanks to my webserial, so I decided to make it a westernish book.

Savannah: What genre do you write? What made you choose that genre?

Tonia: I write a variety of genres, but humor, horror, erotica and steampunk are my faves. I tend to lean on those choices because they are the kinds of things I like to read. And if I don't want to read it, I can't write it.

Savannah: What made you want to become a writer?

Tonia: My instinctual answer is insanity! I've always written something, be it poetry or what have you. I've always been a voracious reader. Combining the two just seemed to make sense.

Savannah: Do you have any sort of ritual when it comes to writing? For me it’s a good, strong cup of coffee within reach, okay, really it’s more like a couple of pots! LOL Also having some quiet time helps a lot!

Tonia: Actually I am a fan of commotion. Be it music or the TV running in the background, I need noise. I find if it is absolutely silent, or if I am left on my own in the quiet for too long, my muse shuts down and that's that. But give me a houseful of folks and my fingers itch to get to work.

Savannah: Do you struggle with anything in particular when it comes to writing?

Tonia: Technical stuff. I worry all of the time that I don't know enough about what I am writing to fake it. I don't mean just writing from a male pov or a child's. I mean talking about guns or electronics or something like that. I research as much as I can before I start and all during the writing process, but I'm never sure if it sounds believable. 

Savannah: Do you have any contests, a give-away or blog hops going on right now or planned for the near future?

Tonia: I am giving away a print copy of Skin Trade and five e-books on my blog right now.

http://thebackseatwriter.blogspot.com/2012/05/creepy-contest.html

~ Now let’s get personal!

Savannah: Who is your favorite author?

Tonia: Neil Gaiman

Savannah: All-time favorite book?

Tonia: American Gods (see above for author)

Savannah: If you could ask any author a question, who would it be and what would you ask them?

Tonia: Neil Gaiman. The question would be: Will you marry me?

Seriously though, I would like to ask him what he finds harder to do, writing the book or letting it go?

Savannah: What kind of music do you like?

Tonia: Anything I can wiggle to.

Savannah: Any hobbies?

Tonia: I love to crochet and sew, but I don't have time for either now that I have this second job.

Savannah: Craziest thing you’ve ever done? Don’t worry, no one will find this out, it’s just between you and me, and the hundreds of people who will read it here 

Tonia: Oh, I don't know. I'm pretty boring. Probably the stupidest thing I ever did was walk the streets of Miami late night by myself. I was down there for a job when I was about 19 or so, and I used to go to the store and other places by myself. Just walking around downtown Miami, unprotected, totally alone. What can I say? I was young and naive. But I never got bothered or mugged or anything like that. I always thank my chunky stature for that one, because as we all know, fat girls are hard to kidnap.

To this day I picture two kidnappers driving down the road in an unmarked van.

One catches sight of me and asks the other one, "What do you think about her?"

The other one slows the van down to evaluate me and says, "Nah. My back is hurting tonight and I have that hernia. I can't lift anything over 150."

And they drive away, leaving me safe to walk the streets alone another day.

Savannah: Favorite food?

Tonia: Fried chicken. The gods themselves created fried chicken for our pleasure. And then they made it terribly unhealthy for us, so we wouldn't OD on it. (I would also like to thank fried chicken for my fat butt not getting kidnapped in Miami!)

Savannah: The food you dislike the most?

Tonia: I don't care for green peppers. Anything that is made with green peppers will put me right off. I also am not fond of German food in general. Which is a real shame because my husband loves it!

Savannah: What are you afraid of?

Tonia: Spontaneous combustion. Who ain't afraid of bursting into flames for no apparent reason?

Savannah: I said I was getting personal, LOL.

Tonia: Not a problem. If you have ever listened to Lori Titus and me on the Flashes in the Dark radio show (which airs on tmvcafe.com every Tuesday night) then you would know that I have no shame left. I traded my shame for a pack of Twinkies about five years ago. And you know what? Totally worth it!

Savannah: Now I’m giving you the opportunity to turn the tables and ask me anything you’d like…anything at all!

Tonia: Oh boy! *rubs hands together* Do you pee in the shower? I find you can tell a lot about a person by this question. What it tells me about you, I have no intention of sharing. But I will laugh maniacally at any answer you give.

Savannah:

Really? **looks around** Well, uhmmm…*cough*…*wiggles uncomfortably*

I really try not to J I'm not sure you can tell much by that answer, but that’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

** Mental note to self—stop letting writers ask me questions

  Tonia:

*laughs maniacally*

*coughs*

*tries to laugh again*

*coughs more*

Sorry, I have a frog in my throat. That is a weird expression. Why do people say that? No matter how you try to spin it, a cough doesn't sound like a frog. It should be, "I have a dog in my throat," because a cough is more of a bark. Maybe it's because a dog is too big. Unless it was a Chihuahua. But then again, it would sound pretty silly to say, "I have a Chihuahua in my throat."

Oh, I'm sorry. I got off track there. Where were we?

Savannah: Well Tonia you certainly have shared quite a bit of yourself with us. I wish you much success with your book Skin Trade. Any final words for us?

Tonia: Life has its ups and downs, but keep in mind that as long as you have your loved ones, your health and your dreams, then you are doing far better than most folks around you.

And remember if life gives you lemons, kick him in the balls, squirt the lemon in his eyes and run like hell.

You can find Tonia Brown at

www.thebackseatwriter.com

steampunktrain.blogspot.com

www.facebook.com/backseatwriter

Look for future visits from Tonia Brown right here on Hugs & Nightmares, she’s awesome and I will be inviting her back to hang out again!

Are you itching to read Tonia Brown’s ebook Skin Trade?

Well today is your lucky day!

Leave a comment for a chance to win a ebook copy of Skin Trade

2 Lucky winners will be chosen!

Winners will be announced right here on Hugs & Nightmares on Monday June 18^th!

Tell Tonia if you pee in the shower and your name will go in the drawing twice! J

Good Luck!