Cate: Please welcome Marva Dasef to
my special Halloween celebration. Marva, please tell us a little bit about
yourself.
Marva: My mother was lying in a
crypt one night, when her eyes beheld a frightening sight. What did her
wondering eyes see emerging from her body with a dreadful howl? Twas ME! I am
the Mash, the Monster Mash.
Just getting into the spirit of
things. In reality, I was delivered at the same time as the alien ship was
found near Roswell. Well, it would have been me if Roswell was in Oregon.
Cate: Ha, love it! What do you love
most about Halloween?
Marva: It’s a time when scary can
also be funny. I like funny scary, but scary scary scares me.
Cate: Me too. :) Do you have a favorite memory
of a Halloween past?
Marva: A friend and I dressed up
for work as vampire hookers. We went to a McDonalds giving out free Happy Meals
to people in costume. I think they just meant for kids. However, I still have
my plastic crocodile cup.
Cate: Too funny! Wish you'd shared pictures. :) Have you ever had an unusual
experience you couldn’t explain?
Marva: One time, the sidewalk
started oozing colors which swirled into a paisley pattern. Wait, I can explain
that. Hey, it was the 60’s! Everybody was doing that.
Cate: lol What frightens you the most?
Marva: Other than nuclear
holocaust? Definitely the Zombie Apocalypse.
Cate: Ever gone on a ghost tour? Or
ghost hunting on your own?
Marva: I’ve explored a few
graveyards late at night. I even tried a séance a couple of times, but so far,
no ghosts have shown themselves. I wish they would.
Cate: Any favorite Halloween
recipes you’d care to share?
Marva: Yes. Take a paper bag, go
next door, say Trick or Treat, eat candy. It’s not as easy as it sounds. So
many doors slammed in your face!
Cate: Good trick! Tell us about your latest
release, and where readers can find it online.
Marva: Now I’ll get serious.
“Setara’s Genie” came out in August from MuseItUp Publishing. It’s still only
in ebook format, but can be found on Amazon, B&N, Omnilit, and, of course,
the MuseItUp Bookstore.
It’s about a bored little rich girl
who a genie decides should be his Master, or Mistress if you please. The have
all sorts of adventures together meeting demons, flying horses, mermen,
pirates, and viziers. The logline is: A girl, a genie, a few demons. Would
could go wrong?
Here are a couple of the links:
MuseItUp http://tinyurl.com/SetarasGenie
Cate: Care to share a blurb or
excerpt?
Marva: Sure. Here’s the blurb.
Abu Nuwas sits in the bazaar on his
threadbare rug; a cup and sign proclaim him a teller of tales. For one small
coin, he bids passers by to listen. A poor girl, Najda, sells spices from a
tray. Would he, she asks, trade a tale for a packet of spice? Abu Nuwas agrees
and begins the epic adventures of a girl and her genie.
As did Scheherazade before him, Abu
leaves Najda hanging in the middle of each yarn to keep her coming back.
Between stories, he questions the girl about her life. He discovers that she’s
been promised in marriage to an old man whom she hates, but she must wed him to
save her sick mother’s life. The rich bridegroom will pay for the doctors the
mother needs. Meanwhile, Najda sells spices in the market to earn enough money
to keep her mother alive.
He relates the adventures of the
bored daughter of a rich merchant, Setara, and her genie, Basit, as they
encounter the creatures of legend and folklore: a lonely cave demon seeking a
home; a flying, fire-breathing horse who has lost his mate; a dragon searching
for his family; an evil genie hunting for the man who put him in a lamp; and a
merboy prince cast out of his undersea kingdom.
Cate: Love love love that cover. What inspired you to write
about the theme?
Marva: There’s a theme? Oh, right.
Um, friendship and love between street gangs of demons and monsters, just the
usual kid stuff.
Cate: Anything else you’d like to
share?
Marva: I’d love for people to see
my serious side (kidding, I don’t have one) by visiting my website and blog:
Cate: Marva has a treat for you!
Marva: I’d like to give someone who
comments on this post a free ebook of their choice. I’d like people to have a
choice. I’ll provide the details on the ten or so books I have available for
gifting.
Cate: Thanks so much for being part of the Halloween fun, Marva!
Yep, you knew it was coming. Everybody sing along to Monster Mash!
