Rebecca M. Douglass, Author

Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds! Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time - and return comments. This group is all about connecting! (Click on the badge above to see the whole story). Our question for the month is "What is your favorite aspect of being a writer?" I'll get to that in a minute. First, I have to unload my neurotic insecurities, as well as a few that are all-too-reasonable. I have a book coming out at t...

One more Halloween story from the archives, to celebrate the holiday. This one's from 2013, in 970 words. Be Careful What you Read on Halloween Don’t read fairy tales on Halloween.  Just don’t.  Trust me on this; I know what I’m talking about. My name is Cara, I’m ten years old, and I like fairy tales. Correction: I used to like fairy tales. Mom is always saying fairy tales are good clean, safe reading for a kid like me, and things half the books out there are too violent, and half are too mushy. I kind of agree about the mushy part. Yuck. But none of the books she rants about is half so violent as Grimm’s fairy tales, and Mom ought to try reading them sometime.  But not on Halloween. Let me tell you. It was while I was reading Cinderella that things began getting weird. I took a break to light my jack-o-lantern, and when I opened the lid a bunch of mice jumped out and took off, then sort of vanished. That was bad enough. I mean, mice are kind of cute, but not in my room,...

I missed it last month, but here it is, Flashback Friday AND time for my Halloween story. Which is cool, because I have some favorites that fit, and I'm happy to give one another airing! In fact, I found more than one, so I'll be  posting another Halloween re-run on Monday, since that's the actual day. For today, in just over 900 words, from Halloween 2012: Furballs It should have been just another day. Get up, get dressed, have breakfast and go to school. Malkina ran into the first snag as soon as she tried to pull on her underwear. Reaching behind herself, she felt the furry protuberance. Mystified, she moved to the mirror--a full-length mirror her mother insisted she have in her room, but which Malkina mostly ignored. Why should she even look, when she was so hopelessly ordinary? The most ordinary girl in the fifth grade. Kicking aside a modest pile of books and dirty laundry so she could stand in front of the mirror, Malkina twisted and turned until she saw herself. Saw...

  Title: Girl at War Author: Sara Novi ć Publisher: Random House, 2015. 316 pages Source: Library Publisher's Summary:  Zagreb, summer of 1991. Ten-year-old Ana Jurić is a carefree tomboy who runs the streets of Croatia's capital with her best friend, Luka, takes care of her baby sister, Rahela, and idolizes her father. But as civil war breaks out across Yugoslavia, soccer games and school lessons are supplanted by sniper fire and air raid drills. When tragedy suddenly strikes, Ana is lost to a world of guerilla warfare and child soldiers; a daring escape plan to America becomes her only chance for survival. Ten years later Ana is a college student in New York. She's been hiding her past from her boyfriend, her friends, and most especially herself. Haunted by the events that forever changed her family, she returns alone to Croatia, where she must rediscover the place that was once her home and search for the ghosts of those she's los...

Title: Body on the Bayou Author: Ellen Byron Publisher: Crooked Lane Books, 2016. 320 pages Source: Electronic ARC as part of the Great Escapes Tour ISBN-13: 978-1629537689 E-Book –  ASIN: B01H082DY Publisher's Summary: The Crozats feared that past murders at Crozat Plantation B&B might spell the death of their beloved estate, but they’ve managed to survive the scandal. Now there’s a très bigger story in Pelican, Louisiana: the upcoming nuptials between Maggie Crozat’s nemesis, Police Chief Rufus Durand, and her co-worker, Vanessa Fleer. When everyone else refuses the job of being Vanessa’s Maid of Honor, Maggie reluctantly takes up the title and finds herself tasked with a long list of duties–the most important of which is entertaining Vanessa’s cousin, Ginger Fleer-Starke. But just days before the wedding, Ginger’s lifeless body is found on the bayou and the Pelican PD, as well as the Crozats, have another murder mystery on their hands. There’s a gumbo-potful of su...

I have no stories in me today. So...how about some more pictures? In honor of the approach of Halloween, I'll toss out some themed shots. Where it all begins, perhaps? Being beamed down by the mother ship. Other nasty creatures come along: But the aliens look happy and normal under a blue sky. And why not? We all know that horror stories happen on dark and stormy nights, right? Just pretty pumpkins and innocent children in the sun. But soon the alien creatures are eviscerating innocent squash. And the next thing you know, your home is taken over by this: Or this: And it takes a sinister turn: Who knows what mayhem the aliens will wreak? And in the end, it all comes to this, as the aliens move on, leaving their mark behind them. ©Rebecca M. Douglass, 2016 As always, please ask permission to use any photos or text. Link-backs appreciated!

Title: Journey to Munich Author: Jacqueline Winspear Publisher: Harper Collins, 2016. 285 pages. Source: Library Publisher's Summary: It’s early 1938, and Maisie Dobbs is back in England. On a fine yet chilly morning, as she walks towards Fitzroy Square—a place of many memories—she is intercepted by Brian Huntley and Robert MacFarlane of the Secret Service. The German government has agreed to release a British subject from prison, but only if he is handed over to a family member. Because the man’s wife is bedridden and his daughter has been killed in an accident, the Secret Service wants Maisie—who bears a striking resemblance to the daughter—to retrieve the man from Dachau, on the outskirts of Munich. The British government is not alone in its interest in Maisie’s travel plans. Her nemesis—the man she holds responsible for her husband’s death—has learned of her journey, and is also desperate for her help. Traveling into the heart of Nazi Germany, Maisie encounters unex...