M. Allman's Blog

 Crisp multicolored leaves,

Dancing in the autumn breeze.

Floating gently to the ground,

Then hastily raked into a mound.

Children run, taking a leap,

Safely landing in the heap.

Giggles permeate the air,

as leaves scatter everywhere.

Reds, yellows, oranges, obscure green,

Painting a picturesque scene.

Happy Fall! And Happy Reading!

 No classic move today! I've been MIA lately, but I've been working on getting my new mystery ready for release. I'm also working on other projects, and with my work hours being a bit different lately, I get behind on my blog. 

The Bindlestiff Mystery will be available on Kindle later this month. I'm still working on getting it uploaded for other stores, too! 

A compassionate teenager, Caleb, forms an unlikely bond with an amnesiac homeless man. Caleb sets out on a quest to reunite the mystery man with his long-lost family. 

As the story unfolds, prepare to be captivated by unexpected twists and turns.

You'll find this book on Amazon Kindle October 28th for $2.99.

I'll post other links as they become available. When I upload for other stores, it takes a bit longer for other sites to publish the e-book. 

Happy Reading!

 

Stinky Ol' Pig is a story about Percy, a curious little piglet who overhears a private conversation between some of the other farm animals. 

One farm animal, Mr. Lamb, has some unpleasant things to say about pigs and how dirty pigs are. Percy decides he doesn't want to be a stinky old pig, so he finds some sweet-smelling honeysuckle to wallow in.

Mom takes Percy aside and explains that all animals are different and pigs are made to wallow in the mud and cool off. 

So, where'd this idea come from? I'm not 100% sure why I chose pigs. I wanted to write a different type of animal story for children, so when pigs came to mind I came up with a pig who wants to smell nice.

Now, working off that, I had to decide why he didn't want to stink, and how he and Mama Pig would deal with the issue. I think writing it this way teaches children a few concepts: 

You shouldn't care what others say about you.Everyone should be free to be themselves.Compromise can be beneficial.Not all beings are made to be the same, and that's ok.Acceptance for those who are different than you.The story underwent years of revisions until I felt it was ready for publication. Also, I couldn't draw pigs; I'm not great at illustrations. Luckily, I found Canva.com and the perfect image for the story. 
Stinkly Ol'Pig is available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. You can read for free on Kindle Unlimited! 

 

Stories to Wrap Your Mind Around: Volume 5 is on sale today through October 15,2024. 

Here is the link to all the stores where you can buy. Buy Here!

Explore tales of the unusual, the peculiar, and themysterious. Enter a realm where logic defies reason yet somehow feels entirelysensible. Stories that will intrigue and captivate your imagination. Thesetruly are stories to wrap your mind around.

Stories include:

Existence: Dr. Pence sees his patients daily, but is hethe only one?

The Stalker: Emily's stalker is not your ordinary psycho.

Time: Does fate control our lives, or do we have somecontrol?

Come Back, Doug: Doug gets lost in dry desert for alcoholicsonly

Deja Vu: Alicia learns it's not so much what you wish for,but how you word it.

I'd appreciate it if you read it and would like to leave a review! 

Happy Reading!

 Joan Crawford is one of my all-time favorite actresses. She is as dramatic as a woman can be in her movies, and I love it!

In Sudden Fear Crawford plays, Myra Hudson, a wealthy playwright who falls in love with the wrong man. 

Myra meets her future husband, Lester Blaine (played by Jack Palance), when he is cast as the leading man in one of her new plays. She doesn't think he's right for the role and is fired from the production. However, the play ends up being a hit!

Before leaving, he does have a few choice words for her, but nothing hateful. Lester and Myra later meet up while traveling by train, and the two fall in love. Watching the scenes of the two on the train together, you might suspect Lester to be anything but genuine, but you'd be wrong. 

Myra marries Lester, and everything seems fine until his ex-girlfriend Irene shows up. It's only then that viewers realize how deceitful Lester truly is.

The movie takes a terrifying turn when Myra unknowingly leaves the recording machine on in her study. When she plays back her recording from the following evening, she hears Lester and Irene discussing her murder.

Myra is frightened but remains calm and devises a plan for revenge against the two. Although the plan doesn't go as expected, I believe it ultimately benefits Myra.

I don't want to spoil the movie for anyone who hasn't seen it. There's so much more to it than what I've written. I've watched it multiple times, but the suspense is best experienced the first time.

My take on it is this. Lester wanted revenge on Myra because she had him fired, so he set out to marry her and take everything she had. 

I love how suspenseful this movie is. Old movies have the best camera angles and music to thrill the audience. Joan Crawford's facial expressions and dramatic acting are at their finest!

New movies lack those amazing camera angles!

They also lack the music that builds suspense.

The classic actresses such as Crawford, Davis, Fontaine, and Stanwyck were masters at conveying suspense, fear, or sadness through their facial expressions. You rarely see that level of dramatic acting in movies nowadays, and that's why I love classic films.

The director, David Miller, did an excellent job. I'd say this film is comparable to one directed by Alfred Hitchcock. 

The frantic vibes you get from the characters along with the music keep you at the edge of your seat.

Sudden Fear is an exceptional film if you enjoy suspense/thrillers. And the ending, in my opinion, was the perfect outcome for Myra! 

Happy Reading!

 

Big Sis told me it was a pill

I swallowed it while I was ill

Later she admitted with glee

It was a seed planted inside me.

 

My heart raced, I had to know

Would this seed inside me grow?

I felt my belly begin to rise

I imagined myself made into pies.

 

I screamed, I cried, I went frantic

I hollered for Momma in a dreadful panic

She raced to see what the fuss was about

I hollered, “Momma get it out!”

 

Momma  sat at the edgeof my bed

And calmed me down by rubbing my head.

What is it that has you filled with such fear

I pointed at my belly, “A seed in here.”

 

Momma laughed and said you’ll be fine.

A seed won’t grow without soil and sunshine.

I looked up at her and asked, “Is this true?”

She smiled and asked, “Would I lie to you?”

 

She was right about Momma’s not lyin’

I wiped my tears and stopped my cryin’

I’d get even with Sis for her little trick

Just wait til’ next time she gets sick.

Happy Reading!

 I'm back! And feeling a bit better. 💪

Today's story is "One Man's Trash." The story is in my Ebook, Stories to Wrap Your Mind Around: Volume 3

You can also find the book at this link

The stories in this volume include:

Grandma's Scrapbook: Grandma’s bags are packed, and she isready for a death vacation.

Destination...3009: Jim finishes building his time machine and is ready to see what advances the future has to offer, but he is stunnedby what he doesn't find.

My Friend, Clarence: Jeremy knows intimate details about themurders of several young girls. He claims his friend, Clarence, is the perp.The only problem--Clarence is Jeremy’s imaginary friend,

The Weed Whisperer: Simon is a gardening guru. Weeds neverdare to grow in his garden or flowerbeds, but Simon learns that weeds willattack if provoked.

One Man's Trash: Sometimes a good deal isn't always what itseems.

I wrote this for a contest on Writing.com. The prompt was a horror story involving a hat. So, I'm not great at straight-out, scary, spine-chilling horror, but If I can sprinkle in a little dark humor, I'm in. ❤😊

The story revolves around two friends, Ryan and Dan, who find an interesting old hat left behind in their new rental apartment. The duo soon find out the hat is evil, and once it's on your head... Well, you have to read the story to find out!

Sometimes, people leave things behind or throw them out for a reason. So, the old adage about one man's trash being someone else's treasure may not always be true! And that's where the idea for this story originated in the interworking of my brain.

The story is light horror, sprinkled with some dark comedy. 

Here's an excerpt: 

“The last tenants left some stuff. Mr. Lang said he’dcome by and get it later this week,” Ryan yelled from the bedroom.

“It’s got little pieces of masking tape on everything.Twenty-five cents...a dime...this stuff came from a garage sale or something.”Dan rummaged through the boxes.

Ryan came running back down the hall. “Don’t touchthat stuff. It’s not ours.”

“Look at this cool hat. Twenty- five cents.” Dan putit on his head. “Look at me, I'm Frosty the snowman.”

“Cut it out, Dan. Put that stuff back.”

 “Abracadabra,alakazaam!”

“You’re not funny, put it back.”

 “I can’t, itwon’t come off my head.” Dan pulled at the hat. “I said cut it out.”

“Ryan, dude, I’m not joking, and it’s squeezing myhead.”

Ryan turned when he heard Dan screaming in pain. Hesprinted over to Dan and tried pulling on the hat, but it had formed a strongseal around his head.

Dan fell to the floor writhing in pain.“GET...IT...OFF!”

Ryan pulled at thehat again. A dusty, cloud of steam began to rise from under the hat. He backedup, gagging as the stench of burnt hair and flesh filled his nostrils

####

Happy Reading!

No post yesterday, and none today. I've been dealing with a lot of pain since Saturday. Hopefully, I can get a post up for Where'd You Come Up With That? Wednesdays! tomorrow.

 

You still have 5 more days to get Stories to Wrap Your Mind Around: Volume 6 for free through Smashwords!

 The loss of a loved one is never easy. And just recently our family lost another brother. 

We lost both our parents to cancer. Mom died in  July 2013 and Dad in September 2014. I'd like to share a couple of poems for my parents who are gone from this earth but loved and thought of every day. 

Writing helps me cope and also knowing our creator has plans for us all beyond the here and now. I'll see them again! 💞

Daddy Did You Know?

Daddy, did you know you are stronger than superman

 more intelligent than Einstein, and funnier than Carson?

Your stories, more captivating than Shakespeare's.

A beautiful Mozart symphony can’t compare to your laughter.  

In this daughter’s eyes, you’re perfection.

A Mother's Love

A mother doesn't have to say, "I love you." 

It’s felt with every

Kiss on the forehead to check for a fever,

late-night trek to the bedroom to check for monsters under the bed,

bandage lovingly placed on a boo-boo,

and the proud look in her eyes with each new milestone achieved.

And one for my big brother we recently lost. 💔

God Saw Your Pain

God saw that your pain and sorrow 

was too much for you to carry on.

He knew you needed comfort that only the Father could give His son. 

So, as you closed your eyes and drifted off to rest, 

God embraced you as you drew your final breath.

We mourn our loss, 

but find comfort in knowing you are set free.

And wish you could have stayed longer

but understand that it wasn’t meant to be.

Happy Sunday! 

 Before I started working for  Bazaarvoice, I was a full-time freelancer. My favorite niche was, and is, gardening. I wrote for Demand Studies and SF Gate for a few years. It was not the greatest company to work for, and I quickly found out I was not alone dissatisfied with it.

However, other writers have taken over my old articles from 10+ years ago. I do still have a few lingering online. 

Like this one, and it's now on a site called Week&. I found I have a handful left on the site. I do miss the gardening articles! 

I did some ghostwriting about yachts a few years back, too. I have no idea where they ended up! 😃

Freelancing is okay, but I'd rather spend my time writing fiction. And, as a freelancer you work on a project basis or for a content mill that underpays, so the money is not great unless you have a good gig lined up at all times.

 The freelance life isn't for everyone, I guess. I'd rather have the job I have now. I just jump online and do my work with no hassles. 

I'd like to eventually make enough money from my fiction books to do that full-time, but who knows if that will ever come to fruition. 

So for now, I read my product reviews for my day job and work on my books as much as possible. I still sometimes pick up some ghostwriting, but not as often as I used to. 

I leave you today with this little humorous little poem I wrote about eating holiday meals at the in-laws!

Prehistoric turkeycovered in an icebergof freezer burn. Who knows howlong it's been in that freezer? I'm frightened.I don't want food poisoning again!I pray for away out.
Slimy pieSmells like baked beansOh, dear God! What is it?What in the heck is mincemeat anyway?Can I have some water, please?My stomach is callingAlka Seltzer!

Happy Reading!