SPOOKY!

Apocryphilia, the 6th anthology offered by we of the Circle 8 Writers Group, is now available in both paperback and ebook. With this anthology, we herald the debut of two new Circle 8 authors: Derek Odom, from whose short storyApocryphilia the title of the complete anthology was given, and Mary Margaret McCurnin's  short story The Anonymous Ophthalmologist  is accented by three of her poems. And though all stories inApocryphilia are wonderful tales of the supernatural, Native Moon, by LL Darroch, recieved the Editor's Award for Best Story.

We define Apocryphilia as a person's Hell-bent drive toward self-destruction, which is so imaginatively portrayed in many of these stories.

Here is a peek under the covers of Apocryphilia at the authors and their works:

1) The Curse of Queen Milano, by Amy Browne:

Short (Paisley) story: A life-threatening curse has been put on Princess Paisley’s sister, Cadence, sending both princesses into the edge of evil Queen Milano’s kingdom for a cure.

2) Welcome to the Garden of Eden, by Andi Caldwell:

Short story: Two detectives, Moira Kelly and Ted Baines, persue the mystery of dozens of missing couples through a sinister door thatleads to a recreated Garden of Eden. Is the garden fake or very real?

3) April Fools, by Andi Caldwell:

Flash fiction: A warrior battles a demon and its familiar until dinnertime.

4) Apocryphilia, by Derek Odom:

Short story: A man returns to his childhood home and the creepy tree that wants him dead.

5) The Black Years, by Derek Odom:

Short story: A boy has one chance to escape his pedophileabductor, but it means leaving behind his love for the mystical unicorn that helped him endure.

6) The Anonymous Ophthalmologist, by Mary Margaret McCurnin:

Short story: Annie is drawn to a personal ad in Craigslist, hoping it offers a path to escape the men of her past, living and dead.

7) Dead or Alive?  by Robert L. Arend:

Short story: Michael is on the run after murdering an elderly woman for her purse, directed by a mysterious voice that only steers him into one mishap after another.

8) Twins, by Robert L. Arend:

Short story: Renee is an unemotional woman, unloved andunloving; an empty vessel for a soul who only wants to get the ‘life’ thing over with and reunite with the love she left behind on the day she was born.

9) Death Whispers, by Angel Sharum:

Short story: There’s a voice in Trevor’s head, telling him that, when it comes to Momma, he’d be better off dead.

10) The Reaper, by Angel Sharum:

Flash fiction: Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean you aren't being watched.

11) Mirror, Mirror, by Theresa Leschmann:

Short story: Alexis tires of waiting for the old man she married to die, so she decides to take matters into her own suddenly aginghands. But will she be able to look at herself in the mirror after?

12) Native Moon, by LL Darroch:

Short story: In her dream, her Native lover wanders the hot city night, watched closely by a wolf. She must fly on the back of an eagle to save him.

13) Johnny’s Balloons, by Amy Browne:

Flash fiction: Little Johnny wants more balloons that talk only to him.

14) Turbatio, by LL Darroch:

Flash fiction: Imprisoned in acloset, a struggle to escape.

15) Worms, by Robert L. Arend:

Flash fiction: Hell is a cheap coffin that leaks.

Poetry:

Bloodless, by Angel Sharum: vampires lurk on dark sidewalks...

Violent Love, by Angel Sharum: Divorce makes Daddy really, really sad….

The Haunting, by LL Darroch: On a stormy night,terror pounds on the door….

Dark Blue Dirt, by Mary Margaret McCurnin: Dreams ofmausoleums….

Forget the Dead, by Mary Margaret McCurnin: Hands soiled by ashes of death….

Smoke, by Mary Margaret McCurnin: Pets better remembered than lovers….

And, as always, all Circle 8 anthologies can be purchased in paperback or ebook at:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_at_ep_srch?_encoding=UTF8&sort=relevancerank&search-alias=books&field-author=Robert%20L.%20Arend#/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Angel+Sharum&rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3AAngel+Sharum

and Barnes & Noble at: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/amy-browne

Available at:  http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_at_ep_srch?_encoding=UTF8&sort=relevancerank&search-alias=books&field-author=Robert%20L.%20Arend#/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Angel+Sharum&rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3AAngel+Sharum

and Barnes & Noble at: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/amy-browne





An Interview with Circle 8 Writers Group Author Robert L. Arend

by Circle 8 Writers on Saturday, June 25, 2011 at 1:18am

C8: Robert—or should I call you Bob?

RA: No. But you may refer to me as ‘The Robert’.

C8: Um, how about Mr. Arend?

RA: Too formal. I’m a warm and friendly guy. Can I call you ‘C’?

C8: No.

RA: Okay.

C8: You’ve written stories in all Circle 8 anthologies except the first one, Consequences. Why didn’t you write for that one?

RA: Frankly, I was trying to choose between C8 and taking a job writing speeches for President Obama.

C8: The President asked you to be his speechwriter?

RA: Nope.

C8: Then why did you say—?

RA: I’m a fiction writer. Lying is what we do.

C8: (shakes head and thinks about knives) Okay. So, you gave up being a fake speechwriter and joined the Circle 8 Writers Group for our 2nd anthology Crime & Punishment.

RA: What a great title. I think somebody wrote a bestseller with that title back in the olden days.

C8: You had two stories in that: Switch and The Scam. Let’s talk about Switch. In that, you opened the story with a ghost kissing her own dead corpse. What message were you trying to convey by that?

RA: Um, I guess…a ghost woman kissing another woman who’s dead is kind of hot?

C8: (clears her throat) What about The Scam? In that you write of a waitress who can’t sing, who is willing to do anything to prove she can. Is what you were trying to explore the way women can become victims of their own hopes and dreams?

RA: (clearly puzzled) No. I just hate it when waitresses would rather sing than fetch me my meal.

C8: (imagines her hands squeezing RA’s throat) Let’s move on. In our 3rd anthology Dark Christmas, you wrote The Little Drummer Zombie Boy. Why?

RA: Um, guess I didn’t have anything better to do?

C8: (imagines RA naked, tied to the ground in 110 degree sun, fire ants crawling all over him) In our 4th anthology Roses & Thorns, you have three stories: The Poet, The Engagement Game and What’s for Dinner? Why so many?

RA: I wanted to reward the group for not firing me for The Little Drummer Zombie Boy.

C8: Yet What’s for Dinner is another disgusting zombie story.

RA: Yes, but zombie sex sells!

C8: (visualizes RA dangling off a cliff, and she steps on his fingers) So, then, Robert, what plans have you for our dear readers in our upcoming 5th anthology Mothers & Other Strangers?

RA: Got three stories in it: Under the Tree That Owns Itself, Just Talking, and The Butterfly.

C8: Oh, The Butterfly. How nice. I love pretty butterflies.

RA: Then you’ll love that story. It’s about a woman who thinks a butterfly she finds on her dead husband’s pillow is him reincarnated. The love scene will knock your socks off.

C8: Good day, Robert….

Buy Circle 8 Anthologies (print & ebooks) at:
http://www.amazon.com/s/re​f=nb_sb_noss?url=search-al​ias%3Ddigital-text&field-k​eywords=Angel+Sharum&x=9&y​=20