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2010-04-01T07:19:00.005-04:00

Welcome to the world of Paranormal Romance writer Terri Grimes. What better way to immortalize a lifetime of fascination with the Paranormal than to write about it? Chock full of toothy Vampires, snarling Werewolves, the odd Undine here or there, a plethora of spectral entities and even a Demon or two and there you have my world.

Pull up a chair and stay a while. Don’t mind the Aswang hanging from the trees; they only bite at night. Follow my journey as I explore the world of the paranormal one being at a time.

News and Events

2010-03-31T22:41:00.011-04:00

June 2010: View details and pictures of my May 2010 Savannah GA paranormal experience on author Beth Dolgner’s website. Author of Georgia Spirits and Specters, a collection of Georgia ghost stories, and Everyday Voodoo Beth is a freelance writer, having written everything from motorcycle reviews to ghost stories and everything in between.

http://www.bethdolgner.com/432abercorn/432abercornstories/

November 2, 2010: Now I Lay Me Down To Die, my newest Paranormal Mystery, is now availble in print and ebook. See my Books page on how to purchase.

November 3, 2010: Read my interview on Marissa's Sizzling Hot Book Reviews site in which I discuss Now I Lay Me Down To Die, my newest Paranormal Mystery. In addition, Marissa is running a contest through November 7, 2010 with the prize being an e-book of Now I Lay Me Down To Die.

Books

2010-03-31T22:30:00.029-04:00

Now I Lay Me Down To Die
As Hunters Hollow's newest resident, Abby Morgan has an uncanny ability to hear the dead, whether she wants to or not. Little did she know when she moved into the stately Victorian, it came complete with it’s own built-in ghost, the former owner, Duke Rivers. Having died thirty years prior under suspicious circumstances Duke needs Abby’s assistance in resolving his final affairs so he can cross over into the light. Teaming up with his hunky nephew, Owen, finding Duke’s killer seemed like a good plan at the time until they uncover some of the local town secrets that could blow Hunters Hollow wide apart.

Click here to purchase a print copy of Now I Lay Me Down To Die!

Click here to purchase an ebook copy of Now I Lay Me Down To Die!

ISBN: 1456309986 (Paperback)
EAN-13: 9781456309985 (Electronic)

The Morons Guide to Waking up Dead
What's a working gal to do when a crazed lunatic bearing a wooden stake attacks her when she goes to her new clients home? Yup, it's all fun and games till someone wakes up dead.

Shake Rattle and Haunt
Gertie Sugarbaker can no longer live in the same house with the inappropriate ghost that has been menacing her for the last two months. After being groped one time too many by the errant entity, she finally does it. She makes the call and hires Sam Valentine,owner and lead investigation of Indy's premier ghost hunting group, Urban Ghost Hunters aka UGH. It might have been helpful to Sam to know that the "ghost" was actually a third level demon, intent on dragging Gertie back to hell with him and making her his demon princess.

Ring Around the Rosary
Sequel to Shake Rattle and Haunt, Ring Around the Rosary continues the story of Gertie Sugarbaker and Sam Valentine as they travel with Gertie's BFF, Timmy Phillips, to Louisville Kentucky and the famed Waverly Hills Sanatorium. Together, with the help of self proclaimed Waverly Hills expert, Stanley Moon, and Lilly, the spirit of an 8-year-old girl, they learn what's hiding on the 4th floor preventing more than 60,000 souls from crossing over into the light.

Tips

2010-03-31T22:29:00.004-04:00

Tips on Dealing with Paranormal Beings

It’s best to announce the fact that you are not a vampire when knocking at a paranormal beings front door. Just on the off chance that there may be a Van Helsing descendant lurking in the bushes with a cross crudely fashioned out of particleboard.

Even though it’s a well known fact that the best place to chat with your deceased relatives is in your bathroom in the middle of night, it’s perfectly acceptable to ask them not to appear on the occasions that your boyfriend is spending the night.

Keep in mind that even though a demon can morph themselves to look like Brad Pitt, he is still a goat faced, two horned, snarling beast from Hell (just like Brad Pitt).

How convenient for you that zombie’s body parts frequently fall off. Holding the odd finger or nose hostage can make for an excellent bartering tool when trying to get a zombie to put a halt to subsequent zombie invasions.

Every newly turned female vampire needs a light in the loafers BFF by their side, for if nothing more than to keep them from committing a fashion faux pas.

There is a great deal of power in a name. You can’t send a demon to the abyss of hell unless you have his name. Obtaining the date and hour of its damnation is also helpful.

Dealing with paranormal beings is similar to setting the clock on your VCR or DVD player. It can’t be done successfully without a manual. Hopefully any manuals you come across on how to deal with paranormal beings will not be written in Japanese, (unlike every VCR or DVD manual I’ve ever seen).

Bio

2010-03-31T22:26:00.003-04:00

Writer extraordinaire, Terri started out with a locally acclaimed cookbook. Moving on to co-writing a children’s book with her granddaughter, she then found her niche with the wondrous genre of paranormal romance. Writing in a unique fashion somewhere between chick-lit and urban fantasy, Terri’s works have been described as Sex in the City meets Twilight.

Formerly a financial software support and implementation professional, Terri now spends her days playing with vampires, ghosts and the occasional zombie, all while still managing to find time to flirt with the UPS man.

Represented by Maureen Walters, Senior Vice President of the illustrious Curtis Brown Ltd agency, Terri is currently working on her third paranormal romance.

Contact

2010-03-30T22:43:00.001-04:00

To contact Terri please use the following email address.

daisy8972(at)gmail(dot)com

Reviews

2010-03-29T22:46:00.009-04:00

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT NOW I LAY ME DOWN TO DIE

Pam Renshaw Bradshaw via Facebook

Now I Lay Me Down To Die is one of the best books I've read in a long time. Both myself and my boyfriend LOVED it! Way to go Terri. This is a MUST read!!

Lita Harris via Amazon.com

I loved this book. There are few books that hold my interest from beginning to end and this one did just that. I had tossed the book in my travel bag, hoping that I would find at least a few minutes to skim through it during stolen moments of my busy weekend. The book won. I finished the entire novel within a day and did not get anything done that I had planned to do. I liked it that much. The author's style is fun and light-hearted. The sassy self-appointed detective in training, who is constantly harassed by an oversexed ghost, is a joy to follow. I hope that Abby Morgan finds a few more mysteries to solve.

Terri Dryden via her Wordpress Blog

Darn, where have I been??? I’ll tell you. READING! There are so many things I need to get done for Christmas and what do I find myself doing but reading… Terri Grimes, it’s all your fault! Your book, “NOW I LAY ME DOWN TO DIE” is the best! I just can’t believe how it ‘grabbed’ me right from the start! See, that’s what I want to do when I grow up! Be able to write like that! I know this can’t be the end… I have got to go and order more of your books! Abby is wonderful, and I really didn’t know, quite honestly, if I would enjoy this type of book. You see, I was skeptical at first. BUT, (and the butt here is me!) it was fantastic!!! I love the mystery, romance and of course the actions of Duke! He’s a pip!!!

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT COOKING WITH FRIENDS

Carmel Magazine
You’ll love eating her words Click on article link to read the rest of the two pagfge article.

Julie Brown via Amazon.com

I just finished purchasing Cooking with Friends and I can't decide which recipe to try first!! This is a great cook book whether you are just learning how to cook or an accomplished chef. She adds little tips and commentary with each recipe which is very unusual and helpful. This cookbook not only has downhome recipes, but new weight watcher recipes. What more could a person want?? I am just hoping she will have a Cooking with Friends 2!!!

Rosemary Lalama via Amazon.com

I absolutely love this book! I am not a cook but found the recipes in this book easy to follow. I am buying copies for all my friends as gifts. Especially wedding gifts! This is a beautiful book! The food I have made from it's recipes so far were delicious!

chincoteague-island.net
Hometown article Click on link to read full article.

FAQs

2010-03-28T15:06:00.003-04:00

How did you get published?
Luck of the draw. LOL. Seriously, after I wrote my manuscript I proofed it and proofed it until it was perfect. Then I went back and proofed it some more. Once I was certain it was the best it could be I submitted it to agents and publishers. First two publishers accepted it and offered me a contract. I wasn’t comfortable negotiating contracts so fortunately two separate agents offered me representation. The rest was the divine magic of my agent.

How can I get published?
Each agent and publisher has different requirements for submission. They are so overwhelmed with piles and piles of manuscripts that they will use any reason to reject your manuscript, so make sure that you follow every rule of their submission process to the letter.

Would you read my chapter/short story/synopsis/etc.?
I would love to read each and every persons material. Unfortunately I really suck at time management and am always under a looming deadline these days. My recommendation, however, would be to join an online writing group that does critiques. There are several types out there so just surf around until you find one that is right for you. In addition, your community might have a local writers group like mine does. Many of them also offer critique services to their members.

Would you introduce me to your agent?
I could but it wouldn’t do any good. In fact, it might hurt your career rather than help it. LOL. Actually my agent rarely takes on new clients. As Senior Vice President of a large literary agency she barely has time for me. My best recommendation is to make sure your query letter, synopsis and manuscript are the best it can be. Then send it around to the list of agents you’d most like to work with. If those reject you, take their advice to heart, redo what they recommend for you to change and submit to another group of agents. If your work is good, and I’m sure it is, you will eventually find the agent that is right for you.

Where do you get your ideas?
From YOU! Seriously, I do. Every real life situation is a potential storyline to me. If I get cut off in traffic and the jerk that got his drivers license out of a gumball machine at the Dollar Store winks at me, he’s likely to be in a subsequent book. Of course my heroine will probably kick him in the golf balls and make mince meat out of him, but hey, isn’t that what heroines are for?

What if I have another question?
If you have a question you would like to see answered on my FAQ page, email me at daisy8972(at)gmail(dot)com and if I’m in a good mood and no one has cut me off in traffic that day I'll post an answer. Actually (I do say actually a lot, don’t I) I’ll probably shoot you an email with the answer AND post it, but that’s just the over achiever in me coming out. (Or the anal retentive or possibly the obsessive compulsive, but actually, you get the point).

The Title-less Book

2009-05-19T14:37:00.002-04:00

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I have a new book coming out in a few months. I can tell you what the book is about but I can’t tell you the title. No, it’s not one of those “I could tell you but I’d have to kill you” deals. Actually the reason is because it’s currently title-less. Makes it a bit difficult to promote your book when it has no title.

It didn’t start off title-less. I had a really cool working title, or so I thought. However, It seems I overstepped the bounds of creativity and tried to snag a copyrited title – or at least part of a copyrited title. My new book, a paranormal romance about a woman who wakes up dead and hungry for blood, was going to be titled “The Complete Idiots Guide to Waking up Dead.” For some reason, the folks who publish the Complete Idiot books don’t like the idea of my stealing part of their title. It’s a shame really, because I even stole their book jacket design as a possible design cover for my book. And no, that didn’t fly either.

When my new book comes out I do hope you’ll buy a copy. Just look for the book without a title.

The Belleview Biltmore

2009-04-13T19:21:00.009-04:00

Possibe orbs from the Belleview Biltmore near Clearwater Florida. The Biltmore is the largest occupied wooden structure in the world accordign to the tour guide that lead us through the hotel. There are several ghosts that are rumored to haunt the Biltmore. I can personally vouch for that having spent 8 days there during Spring break recently. Click on images to see an enlarged version.

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This is my husband and granddaughter walking through the mail hallway of the oldest part of the hotel. We had no clue that there were possible orbs until I looked at the pictures after we returned home on April 12, 2009. We did have experiences in this hallway that night when I took these pictures. My husband and I both heard a funny electronic snap perhaps, or crackle of a radio and then we heard faint voices. You could tell the voices did not belong there. My husband does not believe in paranormal experiences although he does believe in ghosts. Weird, I know. So when he heard that and turned to me with eyes as wide as saucers, he became a believer.

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Here is another picture of the same hallway, just after we heard the voices.

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Above is a picture that was taken when we were in the tunnels underneath the hotel. This was an area where servants and children had to walk to get from one area of the hotel to another as servants and children should not be seen or heard, apparently in the Victorian age.

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This is another picture taken in the tunnels.

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In the above picture when we were walking down that hallway to our room (our room was in the supposed haunted hallway, as I have mentioned) there was no one in the hallway except my husband, granddaughter and myself. But when I downloaded the picture on my laptop I noticed a figure a little ways past my husband. It looks like a man to me. anyway, I would swear that man was not here when I took the picture. At least not in human form.

The Belleview Biltmore is due to close June 1, 2009 for two years to undergo rennovations. I for one can not wait for her to reopen so I can stay there again.

A Bridge to Nowhere

2008-09-09T13:11:00.008-04:00

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The suburb we live in is a trendy sort of suburb with trendy yuppies who like to walk, bike and roller blade. They enjoy those activities so much that the city of Indianapolis (and the suburb we live in) created a walking trail through-out the city and Carmel, called the Monon Trail. We call it the "Moron Trail" and with good reason. They even built a bridge off the moron trail, in the heart of Central Park, which is near our home. It's the bridge to no-where in particular, it's just there. Well what's the saying? If you can't beat 'em, join 'em? That's just what the hubster and I have been doing; joining them - on the bridge to no-where.

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Under the bridge to no-where. (Hey, that sounds like a song, eh?)

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A Happy Dog

2008-09-01T13:07:00.005-04:00

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My son's two year old doggie obviously is enjoying her stay with us, judging from the smile on her face. You might say that's one happy dog.

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Of course, the smile might be due to all the treats I've been giving her.

Writers Block

2007-12-06T16:30:00.000-05:00

What kind of a writer has a blog that they don’t write in? Most likely a writer that has writers block. It’s odd really, because the last time I wrote anything of sustenance was at a writers workshop on writers block. I didn’t have it at the time, or so I thought. I obviously thought wrong. But we are forgetting the one sure cure for writers block. A snowy day. Yes, you read that right, a snowy day. What more inspiration do you need than a cold winters day with big fat snow flakes plopping out of the sky as you sit in your den, with the fireplace blazing of course, as you tap-tap-tap away on your laptop, waiting for the next great American novel to appear on the computer screen. Add a ratty sweater or a tweed jacket into the mix and you have a great American classic, sure to delight the minions for eons to come.

As luck would have it, just such a day occurred yesterday. The big fat snowflakes flew furiously from the sky, joining the 3 inches of snow that had fallen in the night. I had my coffee ready, extra paper stacked in the printer, and a roaring fire going in the fireplace. Life was good. Then the phone rang. It was my eldest son. He had a shoulder operation the day before and thus was confined to the four walls (aka four wall syndrome). He needed me to drive downtown and pick up his paycheck. That whistling sound I heard was my perfect day flying out the window.

Being a good mother (abet a stupid one) I complied with his wishes and drove downtown, picking up his check and then depositing it in his bank account. What more could one want? I had to ask that didn’t I? Next he wanted me to drive around town paying his bills for him. And then there was general Tso’s chicken, which everyone knows is the only thing you can eat after a shoulder operation. By the time I finished running his errands in the late afternoon, I was so tired that the only thing I could write was my name on the credit card receipt for the pizza I ordered for dinner. But at least I wrote.

A Hometown Article

2007-09-30T13:56:00.000-04:00

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You know you’ve made it when you get hometown recognition. While Chincoteague isn’t actually my hometown, Delmarva and the Chincoteague area are certainly the area I grew up around. I can’t begin to tell you the countless times I hunted for shells (and found hundreds of them) on both Maryland and Virginias Assateague Island. And allow me to assure you, I’ve eaten more than my weight in Chincoteague oysters. They don’t come any finer than Chincoteague oysters. I could go for a few dozen of them now come to think of it. Sigh…

Check out chincoteague-island.net to read their article on my cookbook, Cooking With Friends. The folks at chincoteague-island.net did a fine job capturing the true essence of Cooking With Friends.

In addition they have also provided an easy, one click link on their site for patrons to purchase the book. Being originally from the Eastern Shore of Delmarva, where chincoteague-island.net is located, I am especially honored to have Cooking With Friends reviewed on their site. In fact, in one of the recipes in Cooking With Friends states that only fresh oysters from Chincoteague should be used in the dish. Their sister site, http://www.fresh-seafood.net/ also includes a one click link to purchase Cooking With Friends.

So head on over to http://www.chincoteague-island.net/ and http://www.fresh-seafood.net/ to not only read the article but also to check out what an awesome site they have.

Carmel Magazine

2007-09-29T13:03:00.000-04:00

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Carmel Magazine’s October issue is finally out. I’ve been waiting since August for this issue! The following article ran in the October 2007 issue of Carmel Magazine on pages 44 and 45. Ashley did a wonderful job with the article and I am so pleased with it. And Perry’s pictures were great, although he didn’t airbrush my double chin out like I asked him to. Oh well.

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Friendly Fare
You’ll love eating her words

Terri Grimes has an unusually deep understanding of food cravings. The Carmel Indiana writer once survived for a month on clear liquids while battling pancreatitis.

Even through the discomfort she couldn’t stop thinking about chocolate cake, her grandmothers biscuits and other favorite foods. Because she couldn’t taste such delights, she chose the next best thing. “I decided if I can’t eat, I’m going to write about it,” she said, so she compiled her best recipes and asked her loved ones for submissions. She had only one submission requirement; each recipe had to be one of that person’s true favorites.

The result is “Cooking With Friends,” a new cookbook of more than 200 recipes geared toward the everyday cook. The book includes traditional dishes, such as hash brown casserole and shortbread cookies, as well as recipes for non-edible items, such as weed killer and Play-doh.

Grimes’ seven year old granddaughter even submitted a Goulash recipe, with such ingredients as “vinegar sauce” and “the curled up kind of macaroni.” Cooking is a family tradition for Grimes’ and many of her recipes are borrowed from her late grandmother, Lottie Smith.

“She never measured anything – a pinch of this and a palm full of that – and she never wrote down her recipes,” Grimes said. “In her later years, I sat down an watched her cook and wrote everything down.” “Cooking With Friends” is available at amazon.com and many local bookstores.

Up next for Grimes is another cookbook, “Cooking With Hoosiers.” Scheduled for publication in November, “Cooking With Hoosiers” will feature hearty Hoosier recipes and include a chapter of favorite foods from the Indiana State Fair.