Search the Community

Okay, you've had two months to read Caz Pedroso's Unison Island series. Did you like it? Maybe leave a few comments? Well here's your chance to share your thoughts and talk about your favorite parts of the stories. First, enjoy this interview I did with Caz! What’s the hardest thing for you, as an author, and what do you love best about writing? The hardest thing is finding time. Trying to balance my volunteer work, my family, my housework, and my writing. Then, of course, I would like to find some time for myself in there somewhere 😊 What brought you to GA and made you decide to post stories here? You did, Cia. I read one of your stories on kindle (by recommendation after I finished another story) and then found the Wednesday Briefs group through your blog and decided to join in. That led me here. (Very cool, I actually didn't know that was the path!!) Unison Island is set in an ‘exotic’ locale, but is there a real place would you love to visit to research for a story? Maybe Discworld by Terry Pratchett. It's the first one to come to mind. That world is so fantastic, I could spend years exploring it. If you have thirty minutes of spare time, and you’re not writing, what do you like to do? Housework!!!! Not really LOL, I read. I always have a lot of books/stories on my To Be Read list. Okay, I have to ask this one… just how could the witches make just their island rotate different from the rest of the planet to get a constant equinox? A good friend said to me once, when I was moaning about something I wanted to write not being possible, ‘Anything, is possible if you make it magic’. I try to keep things at least slightly realistic, but I do like to use the magic angle to create the world I want. Including controlling the weather, think of it like a dome or force-field being over the island and inside the dome is weather controlled. Out of the creatures you created (witches, vampires, weres, etc…) for Unison island, which is your favorite? I really don’t have a favorite. I created each race as I wanted them. Taking the bits of myth and legend I wanted and making up the rest. So, they’re all my favorites. How did you plan out the series? Did you figure out all the information you share in Welcome to Unison Island before you started, or did that evolve as you wrote and you shared it with readers later? Book one was written as I went. And book two was written, finished and published, before book was one finished. The rest of the stories were planned out a bit better. But, the information I needed readers to know couldn’t really be incorporated so late in the series. So, that led to me writing the introduction so things would make a bit more sense. With witches and other creatures, how did you decide which holidays and other ‘special days’ of the year based on their alternate history? I didn’t. I just write different pieces when I have time, and if that time coincides with a holiday – Christmas, Easter, etc. Then that gets added in as well. Do you have a favorite character in the series? I love Jamie from book one. He loves to play pranks, but still takes his job very seriously. He’s also loyal and fiercely protective of his friends and family. Would you ever go back to the series, maybe write flash pieces for secondary characters readers really liked? There may be a few things on my To Be Written list…but, I’m not saying 😉 I am also trying to re-edit when I have time, but something always seems to come up.

This month's feature, Unison Island, is a series of short stories and novellas by Caz Pedroso. It starts with an introduction in... Welcome to Unison Island. What else is there to read? Well, a lot! Check them out below. Read one, or two, or all five, but be ready with your thoughts on the stories and series and any questions for Caz on Monday, April 24th! Unison Island Series by Caz Pedroso Book 1: Welcome to Unison Island 1,108 words This is an introduction to Unison Island, including how it started and how it is governed. This was prompted by the reviews I have received on my other stories. Some facts have of course been left out if they impact on current or future stories - Sorry but you'll have to wait for all the answers. Headstall said: Interesting premise and providing the background really helps. It all sounds quite civilized but that remains to be seen...Cheers...Gary Book 2: Andrew & Jamie 41,743 words Description: Andrew is a shy vampire, who is nervous around crowds. Jamie is an outgoing witch who always has people around him. Can a relationship work between them, especially when someone else has his eye on Andrew??? LadyDe said: Awwww!! Now that was the perfect ending. Book 3: Adam & Ben 19,235 words Adam is a vampire and is nearly two thousand years old. He has almost given up all hope of ever finding his mate.Ben is a witch who is working at the healing clinic. He is on the run from his ex and doesn't want anything to do with Vampires again. Can Adam get Ben to trust him? And will they get their happy ever after? Simonnomis said: Wonderful story! You create such interesting worlds, and write so well. Thanks :-) Book 4: Buried Treasure 20,426 words I have loved my best friend for a long time but he doesn't know I'm Gay. What do I do? Now he's living with me. Help!! Mikiesez1 said: This was cool...thanks ! Book 5: The Mouse That Roared 53,994 words Vash is rescued, but what is the cost of that freedom? Jackson and Casey are willing to anything to ensure Vash stays free. Puppilull said: Thank you for writing and sharing your imagination with us! Don't forget the Discussion day will be on Monday, April 24th!

Did you read Caz Pedroso's story, Here Kitty, Kitty? What did you think of it? Make sure you share your thoughts below in the comments, but first! Enjoy this interview with questions Caz graciously answered for me so you get the skinny on her! Are you a person who makes their bed in the morning, or do you not see much point? Not much point making my bed. When my daughter and husband are home, my bed is my office. If you were an animal, what would you be? A house cat, my food would be delivered to me, I’d get to curl up in the sun, and I could demand all the attention I wanted. If you had 30 minutes of free time, what would you do? Um…Read!!! What’s one location you’d love to go to research for a story? I’m torn between Egypt in the real world, or Discworld in the book world. If you had to only work on one project for the next year... what would it be? My medieval fantasy series that I am still trying to find time to devote to. I think the first book stands at roughly 20,000 words at the moment and has done for most of this current year so far. Was it harder to stay inspired writing 1k each week for this story versus longer chapters? Yes…In between chapters I would work on other projects and sometimes I wouldn’t want to put them down to write the weeks chapter on the current flash. Which do you prefer, vampires or shifters? Hmmm, depends are they single and straight? Joking aside I like both the same and try to include them both whenever I can in my writing. Was it hard to write a gender-neutral character like Angel? Yes. I had to do a fir bit of research and read others who have written similar characters. It is why they had only a small part this time, so I could ease into it slowly. Do you have a favorite part of Here, Kitty Kitty? As gruesome as it was, the part I liked was when Tristan stood up to his father and killed him. I like to think his father had a split moment to regret his actions and wish he’d runaway instead, before he died. Would you like to share anything about your current or upcoming work with readers? I’m afraid my readers are as much in the dark as me. I’m waiting to see what characters speak to me to see what unfinished story gets finished and posted next.

Welcome to June! It's a nice, long.......... month. Yay? Well, no matter what your circumstances, there's a great way to keep yourself occupied! Read Caz Pedroso's novel Here Kitty, Kitty. A paranormal tale that started off of one of my games (you're welcome, lol) she took is so far beyond that prompt and made an awesome tale for readers to enjoy. So... enjoy! Here Kitty, Kitty by @Caz Pedroso Length: 56,464 Description: This started as a story for the Grid Game and has gotten bigger. Simon is a newly turned vampire, he's made his home in a lovely cave on a mountain. Unfortunately, someone else has decided they like the cave too. My prompt was - A newly-made vampire (verb) deep forest on a mountain no one dares enter (conjunction/pairing word) the cat won't move. A Reader Said: This was the latest Wednesday Brief from Caz and it was fantastic it didn't let up in action and suspense from chapter one. ~chris191070 Don't forget to come back to comment on the discussion day on Monday, June 29th.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! My apologies for shouting to anyone recovering. Can you believe it’s already 2020? Weren’t we all recently concerned about Y2K trashing our computers? Wasn’t I trashed myself after a night of half-naked dancing at a Millenium party? I’m getting old; my memory plays tricks all the time. But one thing I remembered clearly was that Ask an Author would be the first blog entry this year. Thankfully, I had this ready early enough I didn’t have to cancel last night’s celebration. Have I babbled sufficiently? How about I shut up and share this month’s question and the responses? ◊ ◊ ◊ My question concerns those who produce a regular Wednesday 1000 word length chapter ie Cia, Mann, and Caz Pedroso. Why did you start writing a story like this? Does it change your writing? Do your readers enjoy it? Do you write chapter to chapter? If so, how obliged do you feel to keep up the frequency? ◊ ◊ ◊ @Caz Pedrozo Why did you start writing a story like this? I saw the Wednesday briefs group on Cia’s blog and decided to join them. It was my way of easing into writing again. Does it change your writing? It does and it doesn’t. The word limit of 500 - 1000 words makes you think more about what you’re writing and can help you to be more concise. However, my Wednesday briefs story is never planned, it is written by the seat of my pants and changes week by week depending on the characters and sometimes the comment left by readers. My longer stories are always planned out ahead of time (although, things can always change) and so have more structure to them. Do your readers enjoy it? Their comments say they do, even when they are begging me to write longer chapters. Do you write chapter to chapter? If so, how obliged do you feel to keep up the frequency? As i said above, yes, i write these stories as they come to me. I try my best to post each week, because i know as a reader that it is annoying to be enjoying a story and the author disappears after posting faithfully for several weeks. I also like the fact that even if my other writing is stalling I can have something to offer my readers so they know I haven’t disappeared and forgotten them. ◊ ◊ ◊ @Cia My Wednesday feature is actually part of a group from a blog I have off GA, and it used to be upwards of 20 authors or more posting each week. I've been participating for more than five years, and I rarely miss a week. Even when all my other writing dries up (like now) the weekly flash keeps me motivated to use my imagination and not let my skills get rusty. Eventually I start writing more on other stories as well since I didn't completely let writing fall by the wayside in my busy life. It's a big commitment for me, but one I enjoy. So, yes, I write each chapter week to week though I might have an overall story idea for the beginning/middle/end to reach, reader comments DEFINITELY influence how each chapter flows into the next with their thoughts, questions, and ideas of what they like/don't like, and it has changed my writing in many ways. Word choice matters when you need one word instead of ten because you're limited to 1,000, and I've found if I have too many chapters where nothing happens but background setting or building motivations and events up then readers get bored. The stories have to have a lot of action but I still need to maintain an ebb and flow of natural activity so it still feels "real" so I'm often challenged to think about how I can include small events with big and timeline jumps to make a story feel believable. I encourage all authors to try writing fiction in a variety of lengths. It's a challenge, and there's nothing more stimulating for authors than learning something new about their writing abilities and preferences! ◊ ◊ ◊ @Mann Ramblings I started writing with the Wednesday Briefers because my schedule became so overloaded, I was having trouble writing at a consistent pace. I have at least three WIPs that get sporadic attention at best. The flash fiction format of 1k per week gives me a deadline I can manage and keeps at least one story flowing constantly. It's been a nice exercise in being concise and getting as much as I need into the portion allotted. Maintaining pacing is a little tricky, but I'd like to think I've managed that fairly well. Reader reactions have been mixed. They’ve been loving the story, but they're also voracious that if I could promise more on a regular basis I would. Because of that, I've been religious about posting every Wednesday at 8am my time because if I can't give the readers as much as I'd like, I can at least be counted on to give them something for being so loyal and putting up with the extended format. If my life ever stabilizes, I'd like to post stories with more traditional sized chapters. Until then, I want to keep writing, and this makes sure it happens. ◊ ◊ ◊ That’s it folks. According to Word, this entry clocks in at just under a thousand words; that sounds very appropriate since it’s a Wednesday See you all next month. In the meantime, please don’t make me wait until I’m out of material to send me questions. Do it now, before you forget.

A love for smiles A love for walks A love for needy greedy times A love for all the Happy life. It's all I have It's just I left with LOVE Pure and Simple Love Love you Caz Happy Birthday