Perceptions and Illusions

Okay, you Jupiterians. I know you're out there. Why don't you pick on someone your own size?

What do you mean, you are tiny compared to humans? Did I ever say you were bigger than humans? Or even than my dog, Pepper? Do you think that your small size makes it okay to not play fair?

Besides, where did you get the idea that "pick on someone your own size" only applies if the tormentor is bigger than the victim. Germs are tiny, and most humans would prefer if germs picked on someone their own size, like maybe other germs.

What? Of course I know it was you! Don't be silly.

Prove it? No, I can't prove it, but I know your style. You like to be sneaky.

Why do I believe you are the culprit? Come on! Why else would Pepper come running and screaming through the door like she did. I looked outside, and there was nothing out there that could have scared her, and she didn't have a scratch on her.

Ah ha! So you admit it, do you? That's good. That's a start.

But let's get this straight. If you want to slow down my writing, pick on me. Leave my dog alone!

Labels: family, frivolity, Jupiterians, myth or reality, writing

Viridia now has a front cover!

Did anyone guess that it would be green?

Labels: Behold the Eye, book cover, publishing, Viridia

The following is the press release put out by the publisher.


A moving story of love and friendship

Seattle, WA: Cerulea, the newly released second installment of Veronica Tabares’ Behold the Eye trilogy, takes readers into ever more fantastic depths, daring to lift the veils between reality and illusion.

“Cerulea’s overwhelming message is clear – that hope is never lost,” says Tabares. “As with the first book of this trilogy, Braumaru, Cerulea is fantasy adventure that will appeal to readers of every age.”

Awaking in a strange world, Vickie struggles to understand what has happened to the world she once knew. Confused and lost, she is befriended by three companions who journey with her to the land of Cerulea, to find the secrets to help her return home.

Meanwhile, in the normal world, Vickie's friends slowly piece together the evidence pointing to her vanishing and to the strange characters that may have some hand in her disappearance. But the power-hungry Roland, bent on using Vickie for his own sinister purposes, has other plans. Vickie must race to find her answers before Roland can realize his sinister scheme.

"Though the haze of sleep, dreams and imagination blur the boundaries between worlds, those with the ability to dream travel, armed with the secret knowledge, can move within those worlds," says Tabares. "But they may often get lost – or worse. Cerulea is a chronicle of that amazing journey. "

About Veronica Tabares

Raised in Memphis, Veronica Tabares has traveled across many states and career fields. She has sold artwork to businesses, produced web content for a tech company, performed story time as a children’s librarian, and taught 6th graders how to be safe on the Internet. Tabares has a Bachelor’s in Anthropology and a Master’s in Library and Information Science from the University of Washington. She currently lives in Seattle with her husband and four lovely daughters.

Labels: Behold the Eye, Cerulea, publishing

Writers are often asked what process they go through when writing.

Me, I rely on multiple rewrites, which each change the text quite a bit.

For example, this morning these paragraphs:

     I opened my eyes and looked at my husband lying beside me. Memories of wonderful times we have had together flooded my mind, and tears began to stream down my face.
     What in the world had happened to me yesterday? What tragic event had occurred to make me forget the most important people in my life? There were no humans on this earth who were more valuable to me than my family.
     And I forgot their existence for an entire day.

Became these paragraphs:

     As the light of morning sun hits my eyelids I decide it must be time to leave the land of slumber and start a new day.
     If I could convince my eyes to open, that is. They really don’t like that transition period when they are forced to leave the relaxing darkness of night to be assaulted by that bright orb which sometimes shows itself in the morning sky.
     My eyes tell me that they find the whole process extremely unfair!
     I convince them to open a slit, and both my eyes and I (or should I say the three of us?) are pleased to discover that there is no pain waiting to sneak in with the sun’s rays.
     A little at a time I persuade my eyes to open, until they are finally fully open and ready for a new day. Now all I have to do is roll over, sit up, and get out of bed.
     But my movements are arrested as my eyes decide to focus on the man sleeping beside me.
     As if someone had started playing 20 different movies in my head at the same time, memories flooded my brain, engulfing me with a kaleidoscope of images made up of the wonderful times I’ve shared with this man. Interspersed among the picnics, movies, berry picking and long walks were discussions about everything under the sun. Discussions I have enjoyed very much.
     My heart swells with love as the realization hits me that I truly enjoy being with this man who is my husband. It swells even more as I think about how amazing it is that I can talk to him about absolutely everything.
     Tears pour down my cheeks as my heart becomes overfull with emotion. This man is not simply my husband—he is my best friend!
     I’m such a sap.
     What in the world had happened to me yesterday? What tragic event had occurred to make me forget the most important people in my life? There were no humans on this earth who were more valuable to me than my family.
And I forgot their existence for an entire day.

And who knows what the final text will be after a few more rewrites!

By the way, it feels really good to be writing again. I've been so busy that I've barely written for about a month and a half. I think I was having withdrawal pains.

I told you those Jupiterians would find a way to slow me down!

Labels: DTA, writing