Monday, August 22, 2011

Taking Mothering Too Far?

by Julia Buckley
My friend Lydia (the same one with the birthday clusters theory), once told me, during a philosophical discussion about death, that she would, if given the choice, "haunt a few people." She said this not with any vengefulness, but with more of a cheerful tone. If haunting is a possibility, she's going to go for it. :)

I explored this idea further in a story called "Motherly Intuition," which appears in Anne Frasier's just-released Halloween Anthology, Deadly Treats. In the story, a young woman named Daphne, still grieving the recent loss of her mother, is annoyed to find a voice in her head that is not her own. She consults a psychiatrist, who fears schizophrenia, but Daphne comes to realize that she is somehow talking with her mother, and although she is thrilled about this new avenue of communication, she also realizes that--even as a disembodied thought--her mother has retained the power to annoy her.

Still, Daphne is glad that her mother is watching over her when danger comes calling on Halloween night . . . .

Anne Frasier has put together a fun group of tales, a delicious variety of mystery, suspense and horror, many of them darkly funny. Anne herself claims Halloween as her favorite holiday, and she wanted to make this book for people who love All Hallows Eve and its traditions as much as she does.

So here I offer you the first taste of fall (unless your stores are already putting Halloween stuff on the shelves) in the form of some fun holiday reading.

Bill Cameron, who has been interviewed on this blog, contributed a terrific short story about his retired Portland detective Skin Kadish. Other contributors include Crimespace creator Daniel Hatadi, Editor Anne Frasier, Theresa Weir, Heather Dearly, Patricia Abbott, Pat Dennis, David Housewright, Stephen Blackmoore, Mark Hull, Leandra Logan, Marilyn Victor, Lance Zarimba, L.K.Rigel, Jason Evans, Paula L. Fleming, Shirley Damsgaard, Paul D. Brazill, and Michael Allan Mallory.

As they say in the ad world, Get your copy today!!








5 comments:

Diane said...

Sounds like a lot of fun reading. Thanks for passing the info along.

Diane said...

PS, I'm a mother and will soon turn 65. I am so looking forward to the time when I can haunt my kids.....:)

Julia Buckley said...

Diane, it seems to me like it will be a whole new opportunity in the mother/child relationship. :)

One thing Daphne notices in the story is that it's less stressful to communicate without distracting facial expression and gesture, which can so often be misunderstood, and which can lead to hard feelings.

Sandra Parshall said...

Julia, perhaps while mothers are still alive they should stand behind a curtain while talking to their kids.

Julia Buckley said...

Not a bad idea--but of course there would still be tone of voice. :)