Unfortunate and Fortunate Writing News

Since Friday, things have not been the best on the writing front. It turns out that Mystic Moon Press was most likely a scam. The VP and acting CEO resigned on Thursday evening. No one had been able to contact the CEO of the epublishing company. We authors had been busy though. The Mystic Moon Press website is down. Mobipocket and Fictionwise have taken everything off their sites from Mystic Moon Press. We only need to get our work down from Amazon.com, and the worst of this mess will be over. I sent my certified letter on July 20, 2009 at 11:00 AM claiming a breach in contract and requesting any money due to me. I doubt I'll receive a dime from them though. Once my certified letter is received, I will at least have the rights to my two stories back: "The Case of the Tom Cat" and "Once Upon a December Nightmare." Thankfully, "The Case of the Tom Cat" was only available for six weeks. "Once Upon a December Nightmare" was due to come out today, but it didn't. I'm so glad that it never came out. I'm going to fix it up some more and then find a new place to submit it. For those that did buy "The Case of the Tom Cat," I appreciate you reading it. For those who didn't get a chance, it is okay. I have plans for that short story, and I hope you'll get a chance to read it again.

On other writing news, I submitted two stories today. "Eclipse" is a fantasy/dark fantasy short story I originally submitted for The Way of the Wizard anthology. It was rejected, so I have now submitted it to Beneath Ceaseless Skies. Their response time is generally three-five weeks, but it can be up to seven to eight weeks before I will hear back from them. I also submitted "Soul Survivor" to Emerald Tales for their themed volume one, number two edition: Masks and Appearances are deceiving. I should hear back from them within a month's time.

As for writing plans, I've been rather slow with writing lately between work and the mess with MMP. I do hope to finish writing chapter thirty in The Phoenix Prophetess and chapter thirty-one this week.

I will keep updating. Also, please do visit my website: http://cheriereich.webs.com. I do update it several times a week.

Moonlight Murders

I've started writing another story today. I have been wanting to write something else lately besides just The Phoenix Prophetess. Typically, I can finish my chapter a week with it on Monday. Unfortunately, that leaves the other four days of work for me to have little to do at times. I've been tossing around various ideas, but I've been so tired and lethargic about it that I hadn't gotten any other writing started. I think I might be a little depressed now that I don't have The Case of the Tom Cat still coming out. I was so excited about it, and then it came out, and there was nothing else to get excited about, if that makes any sense. So, I finally thought about some things, and I decided to begin writing off and on Moonlight Murders. I suppose you would call it a sequel to The Case of the Tom Cat, but it is not exactly a short story. True, I don't know how long it will turn out to be, but I'm writing it in chapters, and my goal is that it is over 20,000 words. I figure I'll just write it as I have time and it comes to me. When it is finished, it is finished. Today I began chapter one as well as research on various things. I didn't do any research last time when I wrote The Case of the Tom Cat, but Moonlight Murders requires it.

Here is what the basic storyline is about:
The past three months on the full moon, three people have been brutally murdered. The first one was Julie Page, a former gal from Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show in London. The second was Michael Weatherby, who was a witness to the destructive fire at Theatre Royal that killed 186 people. The third was George Halloway, who was laid off from his textile working job. On the body of Michael Weatherby, an article about textile factory closings was discovered. On the body of George Halloway was an article on prostitution. All three people were interviewed by Charlotte Parker in 1887. All three were dead, and it looked like someone involved with her prosititution article would be next. Could Madame Marie of the Tom Cat be the next victim? Charlotte has come once again to Liam O'Hare and Matthew Johnson to ask their assistance on solving these murders before the next full moon arises.

There will be new characters and more background on Liam O'Hare, Matthew Johnson, and Charlotte Parker in this upcoming story. I am writing it a little different as well. There are times when Dr. Johnson won't be around, so I've opted to write the story in third person to make it flow more easily. I will have to see how that works, and I might change it in the end back to first person and having Dr. Johnson tell the story, but we'll have to see. It'll be fun to have a side project to work on besides The Phoenix Prophetess.

Review - The Case of the Tom Cat

My friend and fellow co-worker read my story and put up a little review as well for The Case of the Tom Cat. Here it is:

Great story! I love a good mystery. And anything that involves brothels, cats, and detectives has to be good! ;-)

Date Added: 05/29/2009 by Jessica Yopp

Review - The Case of the Tom Cat

This is the second review that I received for my e-book short story The Case of the Tom Cat. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing it!

The Case of the Tom Cat by Cherie Reich

The Case of the Tom Cat is a curious mystery written in a Sherlock Holmes style. Told from the assistant’s perspective, Dr. Johnson, we see the world through his eyes as he admires the Detective O'Hare's keen observation and deductive reasoning. We are not aware of the full extent of his friend’s plan until the story unfolds, creating a sense of suspense throughout.

The character motivations were well thought out, and all the pieces fall together in the end. As a reader, I particularly liked Charlotte Parker’s character. She is a strong and intelligent journalist that writes under a male pen name to be taken seriously. This historical reference shows how difficult it was for women to become writers, and how far the world has come today.

Overall, Reich has written an entertaining period piece.

Aubrie Dionne, author for Mystic Moon Press and SynergEbooks
http://www.authoraubrie.com
http://authoraubrie.blogspot.com

Please check out my fellow author and new friend Aubrie Dionne's works at her website listed above.

Review - The Case of the Tom Cat

Here is one of two reviews I've already received for my e-book short story The Case of the Tom Cat.

"The Case of the Tom Cat" by Cherie Reich
Charlotte Parker is a compassionate and talented young journalist in a time that women aren't respected as well as men. So she writes under a pseudonym and is one of the most popular journalists with the city's newspaper. Her newest case involving the stories of prostitutes at a local brothel has caused someone to threaten her life. She comes to a pair of famous investigators, Liam O'Hare and Dr. Johnson, for help in finding out who wants her dead. Only a very select few know her true identity. Through clever thinking and a bit of investigating, O'Hare believes he knows who the prospective murderer is and they set up an ambush in Charlotte's apartment. She is terrified because the person has already killed her beloved cat, but she puts her trust in the investigators and they do not fail her.
"The Case of the Tom Cat" is a wonderful short story in the style of the old Sherlock Holmes tales. Cherie Reich writes a compelling mystery in a crisp and clean manner. It is written in first person through the perspective of Dr. Johnson and the reader is quickly caught up in the urgency of the case. His companion, O'Hare, has a brilliant and mysterious aura that is fascinating to read about. Charlotte's plight draws out the emotion of not only the characters, but the reader as well. It is easy to get caught up in the story and try to discover for yourself who the culprit may be. That's what makes a good mystery and Cherie has done that expertly.
This is Cherie Reich's first published story and I'm eagerly hoping to read more in the future.

Christine Rains
http://christinerains.net/


Please check out Christine Rains's works. She is a brilliant writer and my good friend.

Everyone, it is finally here! The Case of the Tom Cat is finally available for purchase through Mystic Moon Press. I'm so excited about it, and according to the Mystic Moon Press bookstore, it is already number one on their best sellers list. I hope everyone who buys it enjoys it. I would like to hear what people think about it as well. It is my first story ever published. I am very excited about it, which I already mentioned. I also wish to thank everyone who buys it. You people are the greatest!

Here is what The Case of the Tom Cat is about:

The Case Of The Tom Cat

Starting at: $1.29

Author/s: Cherie Reich

Cover Artist: Brightling Spur

Length: Teaser (12 pages, 3622 word count)

ISBN: None

Genres: Crime, Mystery

Charlotte Parker is a brilliant journalist who writes under the pen name Charles P. Barker for the Pall Mall Gazette. After finding a bloody message to stop writing or else is left on her bedroom wall, she seeks Detective Liam O'Hare's assistance in solving the case. He immediately takes the case, and along with his trusty sidekick Dr. Johnson, they are led to the back alleys of the brothel known as the Tom Cat, where Charlotte is working on an unofficial story. Liam O'Hare must solve this case soon before the fiend's threat is carried out.

There is also an excerpt where you can read a small part of the story. You can find out how to buy it at Mystic Moon Press - Cherie Reich

The Case of the Tom Cat

A couple years ago, I wrote a short story titled The Case of the Tom Cat. At the end of March 2009, I submitted it to Mystic Moon Press, which is primarily an e-book publisher. On April 4, 2009, Mystic Moon Press contracted the story. Originally, it involved Sherlock Holmes, but because of copy right, I had to change the names of certain people. It is a teaser mystery story. It is over 3,000 words long.

On May 28, 2009, it was supposed to be released to the public, so they could buy it. Because of terrible thunderstorms off and on at Kris's home, she was unable to update the website. Today, The Case of the Tom Cat should be available for sale. It is the first story that I have ever submitted anywhere, and I'm so excited that people will be able to read my work.

Here is what The Case of the Tom Cat is about:

Charlotte Parker is a brilliant journalist who writes under the pen name Charles P. Barker for the Pall Mall Gazette. After finding a bloody message to stop writing or else is left on her bedroom wall, she seeks Detective Liam O’Hare’s assistance in solving the case. He immediately takes the case, and along with his trusty sidekick Dr. Johnson, they are led to the back alleys of the brothel known as the Tom Cat, where Charlotte is working on an unofficial story. Liam O’Hare must solve this case soon before the fiend’s threat is carried out.

You will be able to find this story at Mystic Moon Press - Cherie Reich.