Elle Klass – Guest Post

Elle Klass Bio:

 

My life is not one of pure excitement, although it’s had its moments. I was born in Redwood City, California, just outside San Francisco. I spent my entire childhood and beginnings of my adult life in the San Francisco Bay Area. I love the city and I love the Forty Niners. I currently reside on the east coast in a suburban area attached to an overwhelmingly large city, area wise, straddling the Atlantic. My hopes and dreams are to one day move further south or west on this peninsula and live beside the ocean, preferably the Gulf.

Eleven years ago I began a teaching career which I still am currently working at as well as writing and publishing on a part to full time basis. Straddling both worlds is a challenge, but I love challenges. Currently I’m finishing up my Baby Girl Series of short stories. Many people have asked if I’ll combine them into a full novel, so that may be in the future as well.

Books

As Snow Falls

It is the 20th century in California and the main character, a woman, has lived her life to the fullest. Nestled in her favorite spot during a snow storm she recalls the events of her life from her earliest memories of resisting birth and losing that futile battle to finding her true love and their beautiful family. There are monkey wrenches thrown in at every turn as she struggles to find her place; demonic teachers, cliquish students, her nightmare job, a love lost, and an earthquake that threatens her family. Life continues to dismay her until she can’t take it anymore and sets off on a journey. She is a lost soul with no destination, a wandering heart until something happens, something so incredible she could have never imagined it! Through her harrowing and dark story she finds light, justice and true love. She is a humble and lovable character who is quite ordinarily extraordinary. Her story is anyone’s story.

Excerpt:

The night before I left to go back to school I couldn’t sleep and found myself staring out the window, counting the stars in the sky. It was a perfectly clear night. Every star could be seen, and the moon was bright and full. The air was dry with a chill in it. There were so many stars in the sky that I quit counting after I reached ninety-six. I started to confuse myself, and thought it better to stop. Instead, I found all the constellations. The Little Dipper and Big Dipper were always the easiest to find. It was funny how all the stars formed pictures and images that resembled people and objects. They were all in clusters, but I knew if I were in space with them they would all seem so far away from each other. Looking out my window they appeared to be close neighbors. They would blink and twinkle at each other as if it were some secret message they would send throughout the universe to communicate. I must have sat by the window staring out for hours, mesmerized by the magic in the sky. Suddenly the stars seemed to rearrange themselves, attempting to give me an intergalactic message. The message appeared to be a face that materialized before my eyes. It was Cobie’s face. I fell asleep staring out the window at the stars.

 

Baby Girl Series:

Baby Girl Book 1: I the Beginning

Follow Cleo on her epic saga which begins when she abandoned by her mom at twelve. She has no other family which she is aware of, and in order to survive she leaves her home and lives on the streets. She meets some interesting characters and gets into some amusing predicaments all in the name of survival, such as jumping trains, being chased through the woods by a crazy man with a loaded shotgun and witnessing an unspeakable crime. After a few months on the streets she runs into another group of kids, Einstein is the oldest and a leader in the group, and they form a family of sorts. For survival and money they lean towards a life a crime which inevitably breaks up their family and sends Cleo and Einstein spiraling into their own adventure. Eventually they settle into a “normal” life however their pasts can’t be hushed forever …
Excerpt:

Once I reached the edge of town I sat and waited for the freight train. Hunkered beside a rusted out caboose I noticed how dark and eerily quiet the night was. My senses alerted to a rustling noise through the grass. My head bolted towards it and my heart skipped a few beats before an alley cat ran across the tracks. Relaxing, I heard the train pulsing through the night. It would make its usual stop and then be on its way again; whatever the destination, I would be on it.

As the slowly purring train passed, I grabbed hold of a side rail, and wielding all my energy, threw myself onto it. I took a minute to catch my breath and make sure all my parts were still present and accounted for. A slight sting festered at my heart for leaving the only home I’d ever known. Gently through the night the train roared forward. I had found a place inside one of the cars with just enough room for me to curl up.
Baby Girl Book 2: Moonlighting in Paris

Follow Cleo as she transforms into the glamorous Justine and falls into a life of unimaginable wealth when Didier the owner of a hotel empire is beguiled by her mysterious and naïve charms. Her life becomes one of luxury and fame beyond anything she could have ever imagined. Remnants of her past continue to haunt her and a new threat appears; is her latest peril related to her past or someone else’s, someone who has become a large part of her new life.

Excerpt:

I needed a quiet place to gather my thoughts, to collect myself, and not a cheap motel or abandoned building, but something grand like the hotel I had first napped in after leaving my original home. After all, I was now Justine, and that name commanded beauty and luxury beyond my wildest fantasies. Aimlessly, I ran smack into a beautiful, towering hotel that looked like a fairy tale palace. Inside glass chandeliers patched across the ceiling, and marble floors smoothed a path in front of me. Spinning in marvel, then floating in a slumber-like state I glided to the counter and asked for a room. “Do you have a reservation?” was the clerk’s response. My mind exploded. How stupid! I hadn’t even thought of that. I turned on my heels and walked towards the door without saying a word. My ego deflated while bits and pieces of Einstein flashed through my head. From somewhere behind me a hand reached out and gently cradled my hand. A young man with light brown hair and deep brown eyes that flowed like velvet was standing opposite me. I met his eyes and a peaceful feeling washed through my soul. He explained a room was available and apologized for any inconvenience from the staff. After taking my small bag and helping me through the check-in process, he escorted me to a room on the fourth floor.

 

Baby Girl 3 City by the Bay is in editing and should be out by mid summer.

Unedited Excerpt:

No sooner had I walked out the door than I heard footsteps from behind. Fear surfaced inside me as the terrors of my past came rushing back. I slipped around the corner and waited. Soon enough a form drew closer as I watched its shadow through the street lights glide across the pavement. I positioned myself and brought my leg out in front of me as the shadow person walked past. This caused him to trip and fall flat on his face. Familiar tufts of chestnut hair crashed forward, “Bub, oh, I’m so sorry. I thought maybe…nevermind. Why are you following me?” I asked as I offered my hand to help him up. His nose was bloody, it seemed myself defense skills had that effect on people, I thought, remembering when I threw Halette over my shoulder in Paris, twice. He took my hand and sheepishly said, “I just think you’re beautiful and wanted to know you better.” Ay yi yi, what was it with men. “Alright, look I feel bad and your nose is bleeding I’ll buy you a drink,” I offered. His face lit up and a huge smile creased his lips as blood slowly trickled down his chin, “that’d be nice.”

I bought him a drink while the bartender readied a rag and ice for his nose. “It might be broken,” I said, feeling pangs of guilt.

The bartender, a young dark haired woman with surreal emerald eyes, chuckled as she said, “He’ll be okay. At least once a week he incurs the wrath of one young lady or another.”

“So you’re a lady chaser and I was the menu for tonight?” I asked Bub.

He replied, his face now turning as red as a tomato, “Can’t we enjoy this drink before you run off again?” He stared fiercely into my eyes so much so that it made me uncomfortable than he drew closer and said, “You look a lot like that model. You know, the one who’s dating the really rich French guy, umm Jennifer… no Juniper… I got it,” He said as if he found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. “Justine!”

Was it ever going to end? Would I always be Justine to people? I answered, “Sure, yup, that’s me” His eyes grew wide and his mouth dropped from its jaw. I seriously thought I was going to have to catch it and glue it back on. “I’m joking. I haven’t properly introduced myself and since I bloodied your nose I suppose it’s the least I can do, “I’m Shanna.”

He picked his jaw off the ground and said, “Nice to meet you Shanna”.

Eye of The Storm Eilida’s Tragedy / NaNoWriMo 2013 Winning NovelFound at JukePopSerials. Don’t forget to vote after reading each chapter. All votes keep my serial alive http://www.jukepop.com/home/read/1819
Sunshine’s life is perfect nothing is ever out of whack. As a receptionist at a local paper she hears of a young woman who tragically takes a spill down Mt. Wilde during a rainstorm. After visiting her in the hospital Sunshine’s world becomes distorted and voices inside her head begin to control her thoughts and actions. Her dreams become haunted and she fears she is losing her mind.

Excerpt:
Thoughts raged through her brain churning and contorting. On auto pilot she continued to charge down the mountain. She had no thoughts as to where she was going. The horrific scene inside the house played relentlessly through her head. As she dashed across the mountain branches tore at her clothes and scratched at her flesh. Her mind so consumed she barely felt their stinging. Her arms, face and legs now covered with bleeding gashes. The branches grew gnarled arms in front of her eyes and the rain began to pour across her forehead leaving flowing rivulets that washed away her tears and blood and left chunks of hair plastered against her face. The water rushed hard under her feet and soaked the previously solid Earth. Her foot slipped. She reached her hand out for something to grab hold of but the trees curled in their disfigured arms. Her shoe hit a large rock and Eilida went flying head over heels. Her small body continued to roll down the mountain. Tree trunks and small rocks jostled her to and fro. A large boulder beside the river stopped her inertia. Her tiny frame lay motionless. A mess of blood curled and flowed from her head leaving tributaries along her cheek. The clothing she wore in shreds. The full light of the moon outlined her immobile and unconscious body.

Website- http://elleklass.weebly.com/

Blog– http://thetroubledoyster.blogspot.com

Twitter– https://twitter.com/ElleKlass

Facebook– https://www.facebook.com/ElleKlass

Goodreads– http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7216745.Elle_Klass

Amazon– http://www.amazon.com/Elle-Klass/e/B00F2Y48C0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1398623919&sr=8-1