Month: October 2024

Séduire: Delayed but Upgraded

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2 more days until Séduire is here!

Front and Back E-Book Only Covers for Séduire: Serial Tales & Flash Fiction. Created by Tremaine L. Loadholt with Canva

October 30, 2024, is the targeted date for Séduire: Serial Tales & Flash Fiction, my first fiction book. However, I ran into a roadblock when trying to add the front cover you see above for the paperback version. That said, another front cover had to be created for the paperback version. As it stands, October 30, 2024, is still the targeted date for the E-Book version of Séduire ONLY.

Implementing a new front cover for the paperback version has delayed its publishing date, however, the front cover has been upgraded. For those of you who are old-school like me and prefer to hold a book in your hands, you will get Séduire: Serial Tales & Flash Fiction in an upgraded form as it pertains to the front cover, which is below:

Séduire: Serial Tales & Flash Fiction paperback version front cover. Created by Tremaine L. Loadholt

The photograph used for the background image is one of my own (taken in the Western NC mountains earlier this year). This should be no surprise to those of you who have read my other books. Almost all of them have my photography as the book’s cover image. What I do not like about this situation is running into this roadblock so close to the publishing date. However, for the paperback version, I actually think this cover is more suitable. But I am biased.

Upgrading the front cover for the paperback version has now pushed its date for availability for purchase to at least November 04, 2024, to November 06, 2024. I will keep you updated and make a separate announcement for the paperback version when it is available and ready for purchase.

I have ordered my proof copy and I am simply awaiting its arrival to give it a once-over before I approve its release.

I appreciate your comments, love, encouragement, and willingness to come along with me on this journey. I have fallen in love with this book so far, and it is my hope and prayer that many, if not all of you, will do the same, too.

Below is the official description for Séduire: Serial Tales & Flash Fiction and what you can expect from the book:

Séduire is a collection of serial fiction tales and flash fiction standalone stories written over a period of three years. Dive into the world of a little girl whose family uproots and moves to “The Deep South” because of a new opportunity presented to her father. Transport yourself to the life of a little girl who becomes a mother and a sister to her child at the hands of her sadistic and evil father. Walk with a grieving sister and her mother as they remember a woman who was brutally murdered by her partner. Her young boys live out her legacy as they mourn her.

Experience parenthood as you enter the world of soon-to-be young parents and their ups and downs in life change them significantly while they journey along their new path. Make a brief cameo into the hearts of a dedicated aunt and a rebellious teenage niece whose father has lost his grip on his child.

There are so many more characters with which to connect. As you thumb through each page, the author wants you to feel something; with these stories, you will.

Are you interested in reading my previously published books? You can do so here.

Stay Tuned. 2 More Days!

Liar, Liar . . . Pants On Fire

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A Book Review

The Little Liar by Mitch Albom. Photo Credit: Tremaine L. Loadholt

The most recent book I’ve read is by the great words-worker himself, Mitch Albom, The Little Liar. This is the seventh book I’ve read by the author, so I am sure there’s no need to say how much I love his work.

But The Little Liar will stay with me for decades, just like Tuesdays with Morrie.

Below is the review I shared for it via Amazon:

“This Is Such A Poignant Work of Art!

I had no doubt that I would relish every word in this book, for I am a hardcore fan of Mitch Albom’s writing. To say that I flitted through so many emotions while reading The Little Liar is an understatement.

I laughed. I cried. I got angry. I sighed.

Every part in this book feels like truth being carried to the forefront; put on display for all to see. For this to be a work of fiction is almost unbelievable. It feels real. It seems real. I thought it was real. I had to remember several times throughout my reading, it is not.

However, it isn’t far from the truth. The Holocaust and the horrible tragedies many families endured in the 1940s can be found in these pages; only embellished or Houdini’d in a way that is digestible on a smaller level.

I became attached to Nico and Fannie. I rooted for Gisella to live a longer life, and I was sad when this did not occur. I prayed for Sebastian to find it in his heart to forgive his brother.

Every event happened in a way to shift the story full circle and allowed it to come back to what was most important, “The Truth.”

If you’re looking for the next fiction book you should read, look no further. It’s right here!”

If you do not have anything of interest on your reading list as of right now, add this book to it. You will not regret it.

October’s Blindside on a Sunday Night

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The night sky winks
At the purple moon.
October is almost in
The rearview and November
Waits with bated breath.

The dog stretches in her bed.
She kicks her back leg out,
Wiggles her creaking body,
And turns over to another set
Of dreams.

The TV is background noise
While I give birth to
Two poems, microfiction,
And a lamentation that’s been
Trapped in my heart for a week.

Monday is around the corner,
Shaking its head at the job
Ahead of it–it loathes us just
As much as we do it.

Sunday kicks its feet up,
Positions itself comfortably
On my couch, and kisses the
Night goodbye.

Tomorrow, I’ll be drowning
In headaches of the pre-meditated
Kind–they’ve been
Waiting for me to clock in.

Hello, God. How Are You?

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Remember me?

WordPress AI-Generated image of an African-American couple in deep thought, anguish, and regret.

I know you do. I ask
Not for a response, but
Rhetorically.
I received news that has
Broken me–torn my heart
Into thousands of pieces, so
I’m coming to you.

I always come to you–in
Sickness, health, during times
Of Sadness, and of joy.
This time, though . . . this
Time is different.

A feeling of worthlessness
Washes over me. I have
Been abandoned, neglected,
Rejected, and looked over for
Second bests and thriving
Environments are rising over
These selections.

Am I not worthy of coupleship?
Am I not worthy of a legacy?

Oh, God, the dog sleeps and
The tortoise has buried itself
Under its bedding in its cave.
They do not hear my cries.
The dog is deaf and the tortoise
Could care less, so I come
To you.

Four months later, he tells
Me of a baby girl he hasn’t been
Able to share . . . hasn’t been
Able to whisper to me of her
Name. Who we were stopped him.
We didn’t want marriage. We
Didn’t want children, but we
Loved them.
He married. He now has a child,
And four months later, he speaks.

About her . . . about the beauty
Behind her eyes.
My phone floods with pictures
Of this sweet and precious soul,
And I see him in her, his mother,
And his father, and then he says,
“We need to talk, but I’ll have
To find time to do so freely,
I didn’t want to
Tell you like this.”

And I break down.
Not from sadness about the
News. Not because I am
Not “The One.” But because he
Felt like he couldn’t tell me.
But because he felt like our
History–our trauma from our
Upbringings would crush his
Words.

How do you tell the
One you didn’t marry, you didn’t
Have children with because you
Both were afraid that you now
Have crossed off the second
Thing y’all never wanted to do?

I put on his shoes.
I take a walk in them.
I try to understand.
I take long, deep breaths, and
Then, I cry.

God, we are where we are
Because of the decisions
WE made. We ran. We felt
Like we would mess up
Just as our parents did.
We didn’t want to fuck up
Children–break the cycle,
Shift the curse . . .

Fear will make you miss out
On life. And it did. With us.
Keep him safe. His wife, too.
And now, his baby girl.
Please, God. I know you will.
I know you can.

And the pain I feel now
Will not be with me next year.
I will be free. I will accept
What is and what will be.
I know that my life as it is
Now will not be what it is
In the future.

Whatever you do, God,
While you’re remembering my
Prayers for him and his family,

Please remember me.

Setting Up Zumi’s Home Space (Again)

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Saturday night was meant for change

A photo collage of the new coconut-scented substrate bedding, Zumi in its portable terrarium, and finally back in its main terrarium after a thorough cleansing. Photo Collage Credit: Tremaine L. Loadholt

It had been nearly seven months since Zumi’s terrarium had been cleaned from top to bottom. It was time to do just that and discard the old wood chips and dirt.

I ordered two bags of coconut substrate bedding. The brand is ReptiChip. I used one bag, and I have another bag for the next time I do this which will be in May of next year.

Per the Zoologist, I should thoroughly clean the terrarium and replace the substrate every 6-8 months. I got ZuZu on March 23, 2024, so it was under seven months last night when I took on the challenge.

Let me tell you, beautiful human beings, this is not a task for the faint of heart! Once I transferred Zuse to its portable terrarium, I carried its main terrarium to my kitchen where I used the sink hose to rinse and clean the space. I used Dawn dishwashing liquid, Fabuloso, and hot water. I made sure it was rinsed, and free of film and soap and then, I hand-dried the terrarium with a cleaning cloth.

I set up the terrarium with the new substrate bedding, all of Zumi’s fake plants, food and water, the favorite hidey-hole/cave, and then I put Zuse back in its home.

While ZuZu was in the portable terrarium, it pooped. I said to it as I lifted it to transfer it back to where it should be, “Aww, Zuse! You weren’t even in here for thirty minutes!” It just looked at me as if to say, “You’re the one who bought this comfy and sweet-scented bedding, Mom. Now, clean up my mess!”

Zumi Tye walks around the terrarium, getting a feel for the new bedding. Photo Credit: Tremaine L. Loadholt

I live in a building that does fire drills to test the alarms. The fire department comes out every few months, runs the drills, and then leaves after 30-45 minutes. The last time this happened, I gathered up Jernee and ran out of my apartment.

I totally forgot about Zuse! But even if I remembered, I had no portable terrarium for my baby, so I couldn’t take it with me anyway. After that drill, I made it a point to remedy the problem.

We are to treat the drills as if they were actual fire alerts. So the next time one takes place, I’ll be prepared for Zumi. And this fact makes me feel a lot better about all of our safety.

Some days, it still boggles my mind that I am Mommy to a 16-year-old Chorkie and a Red-Footed Tortoise. A comfortable home is what I want for all of us, and that is what I aim to give us every single day. Zumi’s new portable home and its clean terrarium with new substrate bedding are pieces to our overall comfort.

Saturday night was meant for change, and I am glad I made time for it.