Night Writer - M. L. Bullock

Cue the ghosts! 👻 Today, I have the pleasure of bringing you my Q&A with Author M. L. Bullock who knows a thing or two about spinning a great haunting tale. I know you'll enjoy her insights as much as I do. But Beware, there are goosebumps ahead. You've been warned. 😉

About M. L. Bullock

Author of the best-selling Seven Sisters series, M.L. Bullock has been storytelling since she was a child. Born in Antigua, British West Indies, she has had a lifelong love affair with beaches and island life. She currently lives on the Gulf Coast and regularly haunts her favorite hangout, Dauphin Island. A visit to Historic Oakleigh House in Mobile, Alabama inspired her successful supernatural suspense Seven Sisters series. 

Books she's written: Here are a few!

Seven Sisters

Historian Carrie Jo Dreams About the Past!

Will the ghosts of Seven Sisters allow her to tell their secrets?

Carrie Jo has a secret--she dreams about the past. The handsome and wealthy Ashland Stuart has hired her to uncover the history and the secrets of Seven Sisters, an aging antebellum mansion in sultry downtown Mobile, Alabama. A series of dreams, an untimely death and the betrayal of someone she loves lead her back in time to uncover the truth about a missing young heiress and a web of secrets. Will Carrie Jo slip into the shadows of Seven Sisters, following in the ghostly footsteps of the lost young woman, or can she solve this tragic mystery and find her own happiness?

The Ghosts of Kali Oka Road

On the Gulf Coast, Things Don’t Just Go Bump in the Night

They Terrorize You and Sometimes You Disappear!

The paranormal investigators at Gulf Coast Paranormal thought they knew what they were doing. Midas, Sierra, Sara, Josh and Peter had over twenty combined years of experience investigating supernatural activity on the Gulf Coast. But when they meet Cassidy, a young artist with a strange gift, they realize there’s more to learn. And time is running out for Cassidy.

When Gulf Coast Paranormal begins investigating the ghosts of Kali Oka Road, they find an entity far scarier than a few ghosts. Add in the deserted Oak Grove Plantation, and you have a recipe for a night of terror.

My Q & A with M. L. Bullock

Was there anything specific that drew you to this genre?

My own experience! Growing up, my father was in the military so we traveled. A lot. And we never stayed on base. My parents preferred off base housing so we always ended up in these kooky houses. Not all of them were haunted but at least two were, and one disturbingly son. My parents discovered a hidden door under the stairs and when they opened it it was like opening a paranormal door because things happened non-stop. Many of those experiences ended up in my books.


What is your favorite Paranormal/Dark/Gothic novel?

Gosh. One favorite? It's always the one I am reading, I think. I love Henry James' Turn of the Screw, that made an impression. Bram Stoker's Dracula, and I loved the movie and so many!

What is your favorite Gothic motif/theme/element? Any particular reason why?

Probably the Lady in White. I love that whole haunted imagery. Seeing her flutter through a tree line or walking up the stairs. She's an iconic gothic image. And she represents so much.

Which resource/s helped you the most in researching for or writing your novels?

My own experiences, I recently photographed something interesting in my pasture. It was totally weird and I didn't see it when I took the picture. I watch a lot of paranormal television shows but to be honest, I steer clear of anything that has to do with possession. It's a big turn off for me. Also, when I was kid I read a lot of books about ghosts. Legends, true stories. I read everything I could. I think that helped me prepare for my current career.

 

What’s next for you? Is there anything you can tell us about it? 

I write a lot. So yeah, I have a few things up my sleeve. The third book in my Lost Camelot is coming out in a few months, that's Guinevere Ascending. (Queen Guinevere as a vampire. Cool, huh?) And I'm continuing my Gulf Coast Paranormal series. The weather has warmed up a lot so I do plan on going on some day trips to local haunted places. That's always fun. 

Do you have any advice or insights for other Dark or Gothic writers?

My advice to up and coming writers is DO THE THING. The minute you to do it, you are a writer. So go write something now. Start with a short story if the idea of a long book paralyzes you for goodness sake, write. The key to success, I think is to write what YOU want to read. Sure, I think about my readers but I write to please myself first and foremost. As far as groups go, know ahead of time that writing can be a lonely pastime. Yeah, there are a lot of groups out there. I love the 20Booksto50k Facebook group but it's not perfect. Kboards will provide you with a lot of information. My advice for those going to those places is read a lot of posts before weighing in. And never let anyone tell you that you can't do it.

Please let us know where we can stalk you.

I'm on my Facebook Fan Page almost every day. 

My neglected website is http://www.mlbullock.com 

Thank you so much, M. L.! I've got the chills now!

Night Writers, as always stay Beautifully Haunted!

♥ Shadow.

ShadowLeitner.com

A Naughty Victorian Primer for Dark Fiction

The Dark and Gothic genres have always dealt with human depravity and included themes of taboo relations and sexual deviance. In the Victorian Gothic this was especially sensational, though in an age that appeared prudish they were anything but.

According to this post by Professor Calamity and Margaret Killjoy for Tor.com, there were approximately 23 patents on fully mechanical dildos in the 19th century, some steam powered. Ouch. Strap-ons, dildos, and a sundry of other devices were available, along with all manners of kink, fetish and BDSM. Also, here is a list provided by Listverse of kinky books written by Victorians, that should give you an idea of just how not prudish they really were.

While I will not be going all Marquis de Sade here, I thought I'd share with you some bawdy terms, as well as a few other resources to assist you in your research. Though if you want to delve into the darkest of dark, reading Marquis de Sade would certainly assist you. He was not a Victorian nor is his work erotic, but both he and his writing are one hundred percent human depravity and sexual deviance.

A Short List of Bawdy Victorian Terms

Abbess - a Madame
Abbot - a Madame's favorite client
Bordello - brothel
Backgammoner - anal sex
Bagpiping - blowjob
Ballocks -  man's testicles
Bawbles -  man's testicles
Cooler - arse
Dollymop - a part-time prostitute
Dugs - breasts
French Envelope - condom
Fruitful Vine - vulva
Harlot - a whore
Knee Trembler - sexual intercourse standing up
Left-Handed Wife - a mistress
Mary-Anne - a male sex worker; homosexual

Night Flower - a prostitute

Prigging - sexual intercourse

Quail-pipe - a woman's tongue

Quim - vulva
Sheath - condom
Tart - an immoral woman
Tip the Velvet - going down on a woman
Toffer - a high-class prostitute
Tool - penis
Tom - a masculine lesbian


For more Victorian slang, I recommend checking out this post by quailbellmagazine.com and the Dictionary of Victorian Slang. There is also the Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue which dates back to before the Victorian Era, but still a great resource.

Recommended Blogs, Websites and Books

TheWhoresofYore.com

ListVerse: 10 Fascinating Facts about Prostitution in the Victorian Era

The Pearl: An almost complete collection of the Victorian Erotic Newspaper (1879-1881)

HistoryUndressed.com

The Dictionary of Victorian London

The Victorian Guide to Sex: Desire and Deviance in the 19th Century by Fern Riddell

Unmentionable: The Victorian Lady's guide to Sex, Marriage, and Manners by Therese Oneill


What other helpful resources have you come across in your writing research? Let me know in the comments and I'll make sure to add it to my list.

Stay Beautifully Haunted, Night Writers,

♥ Shadow.

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The Ultimate Cheat Sheet for Dark Fiction.

Dark Fiction, let's define. Fiction that is dark in both setting and themes which explore the more grim side of humanity. It may contain elements of Horror, but it isn't written with the sole purpose of scaring the reader. Since Dark refers more to a story's mood and themes it can be applied to a variety of different genres. Herein lies the confusion, for me anyway.

So, if you write Dark Fiction and have a difficult time deciding which genre your story falls into, know you are not alone. Several genres have similar elements, and then there are like a bajillion sub-genres and sub-sub-genres that it is hard to decipher. Okay, I might be over-exaggerating, but still, there is a ton to wade through, and why does it matter?

Well, besides telling booksellers where to shelf your book, genres are also about readers expectations. Each genre has its own set of conventions that a reader expects to find when they pick up that book and if it doesn't meet those expectations, then you can expect some scathing reviews and a myriad of other unfavorable things could happen. Needless to say, it behooves an author to do their research and pick a suitable genre for their work. A good place to start researching genres, in general, is at Book-Genres.com. They also have examples of books for each category which is very useful.

To help decipher the different Dark Fiction genres, I created this cheat sheet which focuses on the main element/s that drives a particular story. While it by no means covers every possible genre and sub-genre it focuses on those which tend to cross elements and can be the most confusing.

What do you think, Night Writers, are there other Dark Fiction genres that have crossover elements you find hard to determine? Are there any other unique identifiers that should be added to these genres? Let me know what think in the comments.

As always, Night Writers, stay beautifully haunted!

❤ Shadow.