Hello dear friends,

I had intended to share a video with you that would reveal some of my favorite methods for beating writer's block. Unfortunately, my computer has been in the shop for a few weeks at this point, and my laptop is quite ancient in computer years and incapable of rendering the footage without crashing.

And after the fifth crash, I decided I'd just offer My Top Ten Tips for Preventing or Reducing Carpal Tunnel Symptoms after the Snippet.

If the video does manage to be completed before this post date, I'll see if I can include it, and I'll certainly send out an announcement from my profile. My apologies though for the delay.

Now then, I am absolutely delighted to announce that I am a contributor in the anthology, Snow. This is an exciting collection of stories from a number of Wattpad authors whom our own hostess, Kelly Anne Blount, has gathered together.

My tale is Through the Paintings Dimly, a sort of romantic Phantastes meets Pan's Labyrinth. This novella was a delight to write, and it is quite dear to me. It was difficult to keep matters quiet on this while working on it because I so wanted to share the characters and the world I created here. And now, at long last, I can share a little bit of Through the Paintings Dimly.

Blurb:

Heartbroken over the death of her dearest friend Desmond, Iscah accepts an invitation to a cabin. All expenses paid, everything provided. The cabin itself initially offers all that Claudia promises, including a number of strangers all going through similar emotional struggles to Iscah. But things soon turn strange when Iscah discovers a mysterious tree growing in the cabin, more rooms than can be explained, and a trapped fae who warns her that the cabin is home to a monster that feeds on grief. She must escape the cabin before the full moon passes, elude the monster, and...perhaps, if there's time, find some way to mend her bleeding heart.

Snippet:

A library.

My breath catches in my throat.

It's magnificent. Like something out of an old movie. The walls are lined from front to back with massive bookshelves. Many of the shelves bow under the weight of hard covered and leather bound books, each one with elaborate title lettering. The room has an almost stifling quality to it, as if no one is supposed to be in here.

The air smells like old books, wood, and wool carpet. This carpet here is a heavy crimson wool, and it scrunches ever so slightly with each step.

This library is easily the size of my entire downstairs, and the ceiling is far higher than the hall's. It's almost as if the library doesn't belong here at all. Comfortable red arm chairs and high-backed sofas are arranged to form convenient seating nooks. A brass bar cart sits at the back with glistening goblets and six cut-glass decanters with dark liquid. A few of the wine glasses sit on one of the ornate round tables. There is no liquid nor any rings beneath the feet of the glasses. It is as if someone set them out and forgot about them.

But what draws my attention most is the secretary desk in the back corner. It is almost out of place. A decorative Greek key design of brass inlay lines the black wood, and the knobs and pulls of the various drawers and cubbies are brass as well. Like most secretary desks, the front can be pulled down to reveal further cubbies and a working space. But there is no stool or chair.

What could be inside?

As soon as I place my hand upon the lid, an odd surge of excitement passes through me. It sounds silly, but I know that whatever is in this secretary desk will change my life.

All the sadness falls away and only curiosity remains.

The desk slides open. Unlike everything else in this library, the inside is layered with dust, and a scent like rotting leaves and branches wafts out. But then...a small man springs out.

He is no more than three inches tall with purple and green wings shaped like a dragonfly's. His wild mass of chestnut brown hair is further ruffled by a band of dark green fabric tied about his forehead. When he sees me, he tilts his head and leans back as if surprised. "Well now, what are you doing here? You certainly don't belong, now do you? Of all that I was expecting, you are certainly the last."

Leaping back, I stare in shock. "What in...how?" Is this some sort of computer trick? A holographic projection? Am I hallucinating? Maybe this is a side effect.

The little man crosses his arms. His features are remarkably delicate, but his vivid violet eyes sparkle with a brilliant energy. "You don't belong here, human." His voice is loud in my ears even though he is tiny. "Get yourself together and go. This place is the anthu's feeding ground, and its paths are closing even as we speak."

His words make no sense. They aren't even connecting with my mind. I stare, my eyes wide, hands shaking. "You're...you're..."

"Oh, you aren't going to do well here if you don't get that under control, mon cher. Let me make it easier." He jumps forward, but as soon as he clears the desk, he becomes a man almost six feet tall.

A sharp gasp tears from my mouth. I feel sick to my stomach. "Wha..."

He grasps me by the shoulders, the wool of his fingerless gloves scratching my skin. "Hear me now, human child. You saved me, and for that, I'm grateful. I was to be trapped in there for the rest of my days if the king had had anything to do with it. And now I'm returning the favor and fulfilling my duty."

"Who are you?" I stammer.

"We fae are sent to close the traps and turn back visitors before anyone is caught, but we were too late this time. The rulers of this realm cannot kill us, but they can ensnare us, and that they did. I must find and free my brethren or else countless more will die. But as for you, you must go. The trap is sliding shut even as we speak. You have minutes before you are ensnared like all the other wretches. Get out now. All right?" He marches me toward the door.

His words still aren't registering. It's like so much noise and chaos. What on Earth is happening? I stumble, my foot catching on the carpet.

"Hey, hey!" He snaps his fingers in my face. "Sweet night, mortal children are dense." He grabs me by the arms and lifts me off the ground. "You don't understand a word I'm saying, do you? The minutes are falling, dear girl! When the clock strikes midnight, you'll be trapped here and the anthu will feed on your sorrow, your grief, and your soul. Do you hear me?"

The tightness in his grasp pinches me back to reality, and an ungodly panic stirs in my soul.

He plops me down in front of the door. "Do you understand?" he asks again, leaning closer. He smells like spruce and mountain air.

"Who are you?" I whisper faintly.

"Someone you will hopefully never see again because you will be too far from this cabin to ever look back. Once you escape, go and warn everyone you meet to stay away from this place." The fae points toward the door. "If you don't tarry, you can make it. Just keep turning to the right every time there is a hall, and you will wind up at the foyer. So long as you leave before midnight, no harm will come to you."

"What about the others?" I grab hold of his arm. "If the others aren't warned -"

"We'll get to them if we have time. But right now, you go. You look after you and leave the rest to me. If there's time, I'll get them out."

None of this makes much sense, but an even deeper fear sets in. If he's telling the truth, then that means I'll be the only survivor.

No! I can't leave everyone behind. There's still time. There was one man outside the door, and the grandfather clock in the corner reads only 4:15. The sun is still shining! Of course, there's time. There is enough time for everyone to get out.

Turning, I bolt back out into the hall. If there is even a chance that this is true, I'm not going to risk leaving them behind. "Hey!" I shout toward the scar-cheeked man with the glass-eye who was sitting on the floor by the door.

Except he isn't there anymore. Everything suddenly seems far darker now. "Hello!" I call out. "Is anyone out here? We've got to get out of here. Come on! Keep to the right."

"What are you doing?" The fae bounds out behind me, letting the library door slam shut. He glares at me fiercely. His purple eyes almost glow. "Just go! Don't waste time looking for the others."

"I can't leave them behind!"

"You don't even know them."

"That doesn't matter." Turning, I cup my hands around my mouth. "Hello! People in the cabin, we've got to get out of here!"

"I said go. There's just enough time for you to escape. It's almost midnight!" The fae shoves me down the hall.

"What are you talking about?" I whip out my phone and thrust it in his face. "It's 4:16 on a Tuesday. The full moon isn't until -"

"Look at the date." The fae grabs my phone and jabs his finger at the screen.

My eyes widen, and my knees buckle. It says February 24. But I came up here on the 21.

"You ate the food. It makes things happen first. There's no time to explain." He flings it against the wall. With a loud crack, the glass breaks, and the components fall apart. "The boundaries of our worlds are colliding, the portal is opening, and you are falling into the anthu's realm even as we speak. These are the paths of the fae and all our kind. Your laws of time, space, and matter do not apply, and if you do not go, you will be trapped. Now go!" With that, he gives me another firm shove and vanishes.

For a moment, I stare dumbfounded. Some small part of my mind insists this must be a dream. But if it's a dream, that means it's about to become terrible. Whether real or imagined, I don't want more people to die. At least I can start running the way he said and warn everyone I see.

Starting forward, I bang on the doors. "Everybody, run! We're going to be attacked. Everybody, get out of here! We're going to be trapped!"

My feet are heavy. It's getting darker. I'm moving slower. It's harder to breathe.

I knock on another door, my heart pounding from exertion. "Hello! Anyone in there? We've got to get out."

One of the doors opens, and an old woman with tortoiseshell spectacles hobbles out. "What is going on?" she demands.

I run up to her. My feet are sliding and slushing across the floor as if I have sunk into quicksand. "Come on," I gasp. "Something is happening. We have to get out of here!"

"Are you quite all right?" The woman scowls at me. "I have had quite a difficult day already, and I -"

"There's no time. Come on!" I seize her by the arm and drag her along with me. Though she gapes and protests, I refuse to let go. If I'm going to make it, so is she. 

The light fades. Suddenly a clock I cannot see begins to chime. It's so loud it deafens me and feels like an earthquake all at once, a sound so strong I feel it right in the center of my body, reverberating through me and all around.

One...

The entire cabin jolts to the left. I crash into the wall, losing my grip on the woman.

Two...

The cabin rights itself, but the cobalt rug is now grass.

Three...

Another terrifying upset, this time as if we are dropping. Everything goes black.

Four...

Moonlight streams into the hall in thick silver swathes, but I can't see the moon through the ceiling. The old woman is screaming too now.

Five...

Another sickening lurch to the left and a fall. More screams now. Children. Men. Women. Even a dog howling. The din surrounds me.

Six...

The cabin shudders. Ivy and greenery spread across the walls, devouring the wallpaper, the end tables, and picture frames but leaving the pictures.

Seven...

Another horrifying drop. My stomach lurches with the movement. My head is spinning.

Eight...

The screams continue. But then a deep, blood-freezing, soul-piercing roar rises above it all.

Nine...

There's a shadow at the end of the hall. I can see - the cabin drops again and grates to the right.

Ten...

More screams. The cabin is becoming a forest! I fall against an ivy-covered wall, my limbs tangling in the thick wet greenery. Beetles and spiders skuttle about. I can't see the shadow!

Eleven...

Another violent drop with more screams and a roar. The roar is closer now. But where is the shadow? It's coming for us. I know it!

Twelve...

Everything settles, the entire cabin groaning and settling into place. I roll to the ground and struggle to free myself.

Whimpers and cries flow from all around me. I can't place any of them though except the old woman.

Horror still courses through me. I know what I saw. That shadow is evil, and it's coming for us now. Where is it? Is it the anthu?

I'm whimpering too, my breath twisting and lurching from my lungs in ragged gulps.

"What's happening?" someone calls out. I don't recognize the voice.

"Hello?" another voice cries, far more distant this time.

A guttural growl sounds up ahead.

No.

Slowly I turn my head.

The shadow has returned. Except it isn't a shadow this time. It's large and black with a form that is like smoke and silk floating in the air. Part of its form is vague, but the body...the body looks like a drenched sloth. A sloth as big as a Kodiak. It has three long claws on each of its distended paws, and its head is too small for its body. Beady red eyes shine in sunken sockets. The aura floats around it.

The old woman struggles to her feet as I fight to disentangle myself.

The creature slips closer. The floor creaks beneath its paws.

My mouth goes dry. My limbs flail. I try to point behind the woman, but only unintelligible syllables come from my mouth.

The old woman reaches for her cane. Her thinning blue-grey hair is mussed, and her dark floral dress is torn. She isn't listening to me! She isn't looking!

The creature slides up onto the wall. Gravity is irrelevant. The aura swirls about it. It's almost directly overhead.

Up. Look up! It isn't that hard of a phrase, but I can't say it. I can't force it out. My hands shake as I point.

The old woman is still muttering, smoothing down her dress, pushing at her hair, acting as if this is all one big bother in her day.

The creature arcs over her. It's even taller now that it's closer. More than nine feet in height.

"L-l-look!" I scream.

The old woman stares at me.

The creature slams its massive paw down on her and roars.

Someone's screaming. It's me I think. But I don't know. All I do is run.

It's a nightmare. The halls slant and twist at all angles. And with every step the creature gains on me. The floor shudders and cracks beneath it. With every step, I'm falling closer to its slavering maw. But I can't run faster. My legs feel like noodles.

All I can do is will myself to run faster.

*****

I hope that you enjoyed this. And you'll get a chance to read the rest when this anthology is released in the next couple months!

Now, I know that most of you reading this are also writers, and if there is one thing that plagues writers, it's carpal tunnel. So let's go over a few things that may help you keep those carpal tunnel syndromes at bay or prevent them all together.

1)     Good posture is a must. You've heard this before, but it truly makes a huge difference. You will find that you type slower at first, and you may even feel more tension and discomfort, particularly in your shoulders and back. But that's because you are engaging new muscles. You'll get used to it after a time.

2)     Stretch and massage your fingers, palms, wrists, and forearms before and after writing. Also if you are going to be writing for a significant period of time, do this throughout. It takes anywhere from one minute to five to warm up, and it makes a significant difference.

3)     Shake your hands out after you finish writing. Literally just shake your hands. It gets the blood flowing,  and while you may look a tad spastic, it feels great.

4)     Take regular breaks. I know that this might seem counterintuitive, particularly since there's nothing like "the zone." But, if you aren't careful, your posture will slip and soon, if you're like me, you'll be hunched over the keyboard with your wrists crunched against the edge, hammering it out with no care for your own health and well being.

5)     Drink lots of water. I've got to recommend water over just about any other beverage, including my own beloved tea. Hydration is crucial in maintaining your health, and it can help reduce symptoms from carpal tunnel.

6)     Avoid those sugary beverages and snacks. I know. I know. There's nothing like a hot cup of cocoa and a good writing session, and on occasion, that's fine. However, for some people, consumption of sugary beverages, particularly products with high fructose corn syrup, causes inflammation, which worsens carpal tunnel. So check that out and see how it works for you.

7)     If you can't maintain good posture at all times, at least make sure that your wrists are not pinched or leaning too heavily against the computer or your desk. Carpal tunnel is caused both from repetitive movement and from pinching or creasing the veins and muscles.

8)     Strengthen your wrists and forearms. Kneading tension balls and using hand weights to build up your fingers and hands are both good options. It's also a good idea to do basic upper body exercises with free weights. Nothing too heavy if you don't want to. A water bottle or a five pound weight can work wonders. Really just get moving.

9)     Keep your hands and wrists warm. The Mayo Clinic has found that people with cold hands often suffer more from carpal tunnel symptoms as well as develop additional symptoms of pain and stiffness. If you can't turn up the heat or you really struggle with poor circulation, a good pair of fingerless gloves might be a good item for you.

10)     Learn how to use a voice to text translator. It's obviously not typing, but it can help to reduce the amount of time you spend typing, which can help reduce the likelihood of your developing carpal tunnel. And if you have it, it can be a life saver. Personally, I like Dragon, but there are lots of other programs out there that do this. Bear in mind it takes time to train the program, and for fantasy and sci fi writers, this can get particularly tricky. But it's a really useful tool, particularly for things written in a standard language.

There you go! These are some of my top tips for avoiding carpal tunnel or dealing with the symptoms. What else do you do to take care of your hands and keep writing?

Thank you again for stopping by. It's a pleasure to see you here, and I can't wait to talk to you all again soon. Have a wonderful day. Be blessed!

***********

P.S. Don't forget to enter the 130+ #WattpadBlockParty Giveaways! Clickable links are at the top of my Wattpad profile! :)

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