Author: Marje @ Kyrosmagica

Hi. Welcome to my blog: M J Mallon - Kyrosmagica Publishing. A blog about magic, books, writing, laughter, and much more! I'm a YA fantasy author, poet and reviewer. My first YA fantasy novel The Curse of Time - Book 1 - Bloodstone is set in Cambridge and Book 2 - Golden Healer is now out too. As well as this, I have contributed to several anthologies, created my own with some amazing international writers, bloggers and creatives during the pandemic: This Is Lockdown and written two poetry collections: Lockdown Innit Poems About Absurdity & Mr. Sagittarius Poetry and Prose. I write book reviews on my blog and on Goodreads, book bub and on my bookstagram. I have a penchant for travel and have relatives in far flung places, Australia, Malaysia, and Singapore, (my birthplace.) I grew up in in Bonnie Scotland, in Edinburgh, and now live in Cambridge. I love sunny, hot places, particularly Rome, Venice, Portugal, Barcelona, and I forgot to mention the sun drenched beaches of the Caribbean, how could I? I am lucky to have been blessed with two lovely daughters and a husband who I fondly refer to in this blog as my black sheep. Family joke! With my passion for travel, culture, beautiful beaches, good food, books, theatre, writing, and humour, I hope to keep you entertained. I'm loving every minute of this creative journey, please join me.

A Free Mockup Book Cover Maker

Thank you to Nicholas Rossis for this free book mock up cover.

Nicholas C. Rossis's avatarNicholas C. Rossis

I recently discovered DIY Book Design (thank you, Krystallia!) and just had to share the news.

DIY Book Design has a number of useful tools and tutorials, all aimed at helping you produce the perfect image for your book. From a number of tutorials helping with the design of your book cover to taking that cover and transforming it into a great-looking 3D mockup, DIY Book Design has got you covered.

It’s this last feature that caught my eye. You get to choose between a Single and Composite look for your books. The Single look lets you display your book as a Kindle/tablet/mobile/paper standalone image:

DIY Book Covers | From the blog of Nicholas C. Rossis, author of science fiction, the Pearseus epic fantasy series and children's books

The Composite view lets you design a combination featuring various formats:

DIY Book Covers | From the blog of Nicholas C. Rossis, author of science fiction, the Pearseus epic fantasy series and children's books

Generating the mockup is as simple as 1-2-3, as the interface guides you through the entire process. You get the option of creating a white or transparent background for your books. The whole process…

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Forgive Me I am A Writer’s Muse: #BloggersBash #BlogPostCompetition

 

Who am I?

A curious cat muse. Each day is a discovery. I am five again, and my nine lives are creeping away…

Time is ticking and I yowl to tell stories, so dear MJ grasps her keyboard and pounds the keys, stealing seconds, minutes and moments.

No wonder MJ writes about time: time is precious, each day offers vast adventures. Writing has taught her to embrace and explore every moment.

So on her way to work she prowls, stalking victims. We imagine stories, we marvel, or rage at the inequality in our society. Memories invade our consciousness: a homeless person standing up, swaying in his sleeping bag like a ghost in motion, a lady in a red hat glaring at us.

MJ is an addict: a nosy parker, an eavesdropper. People notice and give her evil looks. What they don’t know is that evil look is her’s. It just became a character in her new story.

MJ spent her teenage years in 5 Craigcrook Park, Scotland. Such a strange sounding address. No wonder she possesses a cat-like curiosity, a criminal intention to steal words.

And a love of trees. Trees have oodles of energy and some have grumpy faces!

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And… a zest for the beauty of the natural world: rocks and crystals.

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Creep into our crystal grotto in Juniper Artland, Scotland.

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Or explore five crystal beauties in The Curse of Time Book 1 Bloodstone: Merlinite, Red Jade, Quartz, Black Obsidian, Bloodstone.

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 Witness a grasshopper sculptural clock in Cambridge, England, The Corpus Christi  Chronophage Clock.

http://johnctaylor.com
Copyright J C Taylor
Copyright Dr John C Taylor OBE

It became….

 

Bloodstone Book 1 Curse of Time M.J. Mallon

MJ is no Mathematician. She isn’t obsessed with the number five. She is much older than that but a writer has an advantage many don’t. MJ has the power to create worlds, perhaps long into old age.

We have everything to live for, writing fantasy is our life. We are blessed.

PURRR…

 

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Hope you enjoyed my strange entry!

The above is my entry to the #BloggersBash Blog Post competition which you can enter here:

https://annualbloggersbash.com/2019/02/11/the-2019-bloggers-bash-blog-post-competition/

Image of the Corpus Christi Chronophage clock is courtesy of Dr J C Taylor – inventor. http://www.johnctaylor.com/

Images of Lily the cat (modelling as my character Shadow in The Curse of Time Book 1 Bloodstone via https://samanthamurdochblog.wordpress.com/

Tree image is my own.

 

A magical blog of books, writing and inspiration

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What recognized qualifications do I need to become a published writer?

I read this post from Jack Eason with great interest. I agree. Reading, writing dedication and enthusiasm is needed in abundance. Also life experience, observational skills and a tendency to be curious helps! It is such hard work and not for the faint-hearted. The reward is the joy of knowing we have created and that is worth more than the meagre royalties!

Jack Eason's avatarHave We Had Help?

Millais_Boyhood_of_Raleigh

This is a long post aimed at all current writers and those waiting in the wings, so please bear with me.

***

A couple of days ago while perusing the latest posts on Facebook, I came across one that my friend and fellow writer, Stuart Aken, had found on a question and answer site called Quora (Google it if you want to find it’s location). Along with a couple of others in the game, Stuart and I added our comments to a query put forth by someone, on the subject of which qualifications were needed to be able to become a writer and to break into the publishing world – Click here to read it.

Together with Stuart’s initial comment on Quora, the ones John Yeoman, Karen Wolfe Whitchurch and myself added on Facebook, hopefully helped to back up Stuart’s views, and to quash the ridiculous notion once and…

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The Day The Moon Began To Disappear – Speculative Fiction – March Edition

I love this from my friend Ritu. #speculativefiction #mustread #writingprompt

Sharing Options from WordPress.com to Facebook Are Changing

Some well-known bloggers are having problems sharing to Facebook. Check out this Post for help via

Sharing Options from WordPress.com to Facebook Are Changing

teardrops

Beautiful poetry from The Lonely Author Blog. #recommended

thelonelyauthorblog's avatarThe Lonely Author

teardrops

her words are teardrops
preserved in my eyes
like liquid diamonds
of inspiration
cascading in my heart
seeping bone deep

should you find any beauty
in the verses I spill
it is her reflection
always swimming
in the poetry I weep

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Links I’ve Enjoyed This Week – 03/03/19

via The Secret Library site a huge bunch of bookish links. Bookworm enjoy!

Links I’ve Enjoyed This Week – 03/03/19

The Night-Time Routine That Actually Improved My Sleep

I’ve had terrible problems with insomnia most of my adult life until I discovered tai chi. I sleep pretty well now. But I know how horrendous it can be and how sleep deprivation often goes hand in hand with anxiety problems. So glad you found a routine that works for you Jenny. A great share 🙂

Jenny in Neverland's avatarJenny in Neverland

I’ve never been one for “routines”. Morning, night, work, whatever. Despite being an incredibly organised person, I always just tend to do things the quickest and most productive way. I’ve probably watched hundreds of night-time routines on YouTube and can help but think, “what… EVERY night?” I just couldn’t fathom someone doing the same things, in the same order, every single night and finding any joy in that. I just wanna get my make up off and get into bed, pronto.

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Colleen’s 2019 Weekly #Tanka Tuesday #Poetry Challenge No. 125#SynonymsOnly

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Who better to write about than my lovely dad, Ronald?

He has always been my inspiration. I doubt I would ever have become a writer if it hadn’t been for him. Both of my parents  are much loved and have had an extraordinary life  with many stories to tell. My dad is quite the raconteur! He has been fortunate to have travelled to, and lived in, many exotic countries in his life: Hong Kong, Singapore,  Malaysia (where he met my mum,) Africa, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, British Virgin Islands, Fiji, Anguilla, Abu Dhabi… etc.

 

So this is for my dad, who isn’t Russian but learnt Russian as a young man. I find it quite extraordinary that he still remembers how to speak and sing in Russian after all these years.  Like his grandfather, who lived a long life (and walked miles when he was ninety,) he has a zest for life which I admire enormously. And the ladies seem to love dad – apparently he received many birthday wishes from the female golfers in his club! Which mum took very good-naturedly… He is so like his grandfather, (who he loved.)

Apparently his grandfather was also a big hit with the ladies too!

Dad,

Is great,

From his birth,

One of a kind,

He likes a challenge,

A dapper gentleman,

Whose impeccable taste shines,

I’d describe him to impress you,

Just like his grandfather before him,

He dazzles all those he meets with his charm.

 

From the beginning

He was so adventurous,

Now ninety he sings,

Russian songs to our waitress,

For the record – he’s handsome!

 

 

I hope you enjoyed my tanka and etheree. Do join in with Colleen’s poetry challenge.

Here is the link:

https://colleenchesebro.com/2019/02/26/colleens-2019-weekly-tanka-tuesday-poetry-challenge-no-xx-synonymsonly/

And in case you’d like to see how to write an Etheree:

https://colleenchesebro.com/how-to-write-an-etheree-poem/

 

To see my latest review pop over to Beaton’s blog: https://becomingthemuse.net/2019/02/26/of-the-curse-of-time-book-review/

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Buy Book: myBook.to/TheCurseofTime

Social Media Links

Authors Website: https://atomic-temporary-67364188.wpcomstaging.com
Collaborative Blog: https://sistersofthefey.wordpress.com
Twitter: @Marjorie_Mallon and @curseof_time
#ABRSC: Authors Bloggers Rainbow Support Club on Facebook
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17064826.M_J_Mallon

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mjmallonauthor/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mjmallonauthor/