Monday, February 20, 2012

Creature of the Week - Aliens and Their Creatures - Guest Blog with Cherie Reich


Hello, everyone! Nicole has a great creature feature on her blog, and I’ve decided to talk about the creatures from Medusa and Persea in my space fantasy romance Defying Gravity.
 I suppose the first and main creatures are the aliens.

Perseans are from Persea. They have varying shades of blue skin, yellow eyes, and blond hair. On top of their head, they have antennae that detect their moods and can even blush. All Perseans wear a collar with a blue gemstone that regulates their electrical energy. Linia, the female lead, is a Persean.

Medusans are from Medusa. Their flesh is more normal in colors to most humans. Their hair appears like dreadlocks that writhe like snakes around their heads. They usually have thinner facial features (nose and lips), and their eyes are always green. They have a secret third eyelid over their eyes that protects creatures from their infamous Medusan stare. Oh, and we can’t forget their forked tongues. They also heal very quickly. Alezandros, the male lead, is a Medusan.

Persea is a vibrant and verdant planet and has many unusual creatures. These creatures include:

Pegasifly – a small winged horse-like insect known for its sharp bite.
Trorc – an ugly, rather stupid creature that is half-troll and half-orc.
Draken – A feather-coated dragon that can fly and breathe fire.
Fluffter – A furball of an animal, about the size of a small dog. They are often used as pets, but wild fluffters do exist.
Rabbix – This creature has the body form of a rabbit, but its tail is fox-like, and it has a fox’s sharp teeth. Rabbixes are very wild and often vicious and sneaky creatures.
Slithering – The Persean word for “snake.” They come in various colors, like black. One of the more venomous ones is the red and white electric slithering.

Medusa is a dying planet. Very few creatures still exist, except for the few that live underground or hibernate for long times. Their creatures include:
Giant Bulltoad – A toad-like creature about the size of a small dog.
Slog – Half-sloth, half-slug, it is a furry creature that uses its belly to get around. They are slow creatures known for hibernating for many years.

It’s always fun to create new creatures. If you’re a writer, have you ever created a new creature? As readers, what are some of your favorite creatures?

We’re also giving away a copy of Defying Gravity and a first chapter critique (I’ve been a freelance editor since 2010). Nicole will fill you in on the details.

Thanks for having me!

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Defying Gravity by Cherie Reich

Book Description: Homesick upon the SS Perseid, Linia, a young linguist, thinks she signed up for a mission of peace, but her crew members have another plan: attack the planet Medusa.

Bored with his dying planet, Alezandros, a space cruiser pilot, joins the Medusan Army in his quest for adventure.

When the SS Perseid clashes with the Medusans’ space cruisers, Alezandros and Linia’s lives intertwine. Sucked through a wormhole, they crash upon a post-apocalyptic Earth and are captured by cannibals. In adjacent cells, Alezandros and Linia cast their differences aside for a common bond: escape. But when romantic feelings emerge between them, they might do the unthinkable because for a Medusan and a Persean to fall in love, it would defy gravity.

Book Links: 




Author Bio: Cherie Reich is a writer, freelance editor and library assistant. She enjoys writing horror, fantasy, and mysteries, but she doesn’t let that stop her from trying other genres. Her short stories have appeared in magazines and anthologies, and her e-books include Once Upon a December Nightmare, The Best of Raven and the Writing Desk, and Defying Gravity. She is a member of the Virginia Writers Club and Valley Writers and placed third in Roanoke Valley’s BIG READ writing contest.

Author Links:   

           
           
           
Twitter @bookworm0753 
           

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To enter Cherie's contest, follow Cherie's blog or twitter account and leave a comment stating which prize you would rather win - it's ok to say both!

19 comments:

Natalie Aguirre said...

Sounds like an awesome book with the combination of sci-fi and fantasy. Cherie did a great job creating her new creatures.

Aubrie said...

I love Cherie's aliens! This is a great book.

Colene Murphy said...

Wow, that sounds like a really cool book! Very neat critters Cherie has made!

Johanna Garth said...

Such a great description of all those mystical creatures! Sounds fascinating Cherie!

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Cherie put a lot into her races, creatures, and world building.
Don't need to win the book!

Unknown said...

So cute that their antennae can blush!

Christine Rains said...

Those are fabulous creatures! I love Cherie's little references to them in her book. My weirdest creature creation is a race of aliens that are huge, slimy, and bloated. They have three sexes and reproduce with what humans consider their feet.

(I don't need to be entered in the giveaway either! ;) )

Cherie Reich said...

@Natalie Aguirre - Thank you! It was a lot of fun to create them. :)

@Aubrie - Thank you!

@Colene Murphy - Thank you!

@johanna Garth - Thank you!

@Alex J. Cavanaugh - Thanks, Alex. It was hard to come up with some of them. I think it was the last few drafts that had some of the creatures like "slogs" and "fluffters."

@Rachel Morgan - I think that's cute too. :)

@Christine Rains - Boy, that does sound like a weird creature. Is that from the Toe Sucker book?

Nicole, thank you for having me on your blog!

Leigh Covington said...

How fun! It must be amazing to create such awesome "creatures"/aliens, and their worlds. This sounds fabulous. Love the differences between the two. :)

ali cross said...

Your creatures sound SO COOL Cherie! Science fiction/fantasy #FTW

I'm already a follower of Cherie's blog and Twitter and I'd love to win anything! Woot!

Angela Brown said...

Wow, Cherie. You've created some wonderful and intersting creatures.

Cherie Reich said...

@Leigh Covington - Thank you! It was a lot of fun to create them.

@Ali Cross - Thank you, Ali! :D

@Angela Brown - Thank you! It was fun creating them. Now I get to create more for books two and three. :)

Alice said...

I read the Monstromologist and found the creatures in that story terrifying. I'm writing a story about a Wendigo.

Carol Kilgore said...

Your worlds and all their creatures sound great. The closest I've come to creating a new creature was trying to decide if a dog that was half poodle and half Chihuahua was a poohuahua or a chidoodle.

Golden Eagle said...

They sound like unique types of aliens; it's always interesting to find a book whose MCs aren't exactly human.

Cherie Reich said...

@Alice - Ooo, wendigos are interesting creatures. I haven't read the Monstromologist yet.

@Carol Kilgore - Thank you! That's a good question about the poodle/Chihuahua. I like the chidoodle. Which one did you use?

@The Golden Eagle - Thank you! Yeah, humans are so overrated. LOL!

DonnaGalanti said...

Super fun! Love made up creatures and the Draken and Trorc sound wicked. A world of fantastic imagination.Dont know about the bulltoad - could that thing "hop" you down? Slimey... :)

Cherie Reich said...

@DonnaGalanti - Thank you! It was a lot of fun to create the fantasy creatures, even if they aren't featured much. :)

Mary Preston said...

I'd love to read DEFYING GRAVITY thank you.

I always love Angels & Demons.

marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com