The New Curio Killed the Cat Site

Head on over to www.curiokilledthecat.com to view the new website.

I. Love. It.

After a painfully long hiatus, we're back--I have new chapters written (five of them), and I'm winding down the current arc. This weekend, I'm going to do some final cleaning of the site and add a character blog for Briar, and then start getting the store sorted out. And what will we sell at the store? Well, you'll see. ;-)

So why do I think you need to check out this serial? I mean, besides the fact that it's written by me...

Well, it's funny. Probably. If you're into my humour, you'll find it funny.

I got the idea because I was really sick of angsty urban fantasy. And I say this as someone who WRITES her fair share of angsty urban fantasy with ass-kicking babes and melodrama. But...sometimes I just think it's way too serious.

One of my favourite shows ever is The Office. I like that it's a bunch of people working together who, often, really don't want to be. I like that very little happens, and that it's very real. So, naturally, in my brain I thought, "Well, I should write some urban fantasy that's less Anita Blake, and more like The Office. A bunch of supernatural characters in an occult store."

Voila. Curio Killed the Cat was born.

The first character to enter my brain was Lilith Mare (right). Lilith is a succubus. She has seductive powers over men.

But she's also a feminist. She thinks it would be totally nifty if people would just love her for her brain rather than her smokin' hot bod and succubus powers...so she very rarely has a date. She's also an organizational nut, a little bossy, and has issues with her mother.

Then we have Briar (left). It kinda bugs me that all the mainstream versions of African Diasporic Religions and practices are very distorted. Usually, they're spooky and evil. I very much think it's based in racism.

Briar practices hoodoo. She's not some scary woman sacrificing chickens. Okay, I grant you, she curses people, but usually they really deserve it. Briar and I share the same dislike of working in the service industry and having to deal with customers. (I luckily don't have to work those kinds of jobs right now.)

While doing research for Briar's character, I came across some interesting stories about hoodoo practitioners having a hard time dealing with Wiccan run occult stores, because the Wiccans turned their noses up at the "dark" stuff. My immediate thought was...perfect! So I threw a Wiccan Priest, Liam, into the mix.

Other characters include a Goth kid named Alastair Nightshade who is in love with Liam, Briar's first dependable paying client, the employees at a rival occult shop (specifically a witch with it in for Briar), and the frequently drunk, totally out of it boss of the curio store. Oh, and a bunch of religious protesters who picket in front of the store, including my favourite character evah: Sara Gosling.

So anyways, you can now easily catch up with the thirteen short chapters currently available, and be allll ready for Monday's installment, "Legba and the King of Cups."