Z is for Zen World

The Paisley series is something I am very passionate about and it many times is my little Zen World. There is nothing better in this world than escaping to some place where everything is calm, good and right, The Eternals is that place for me.

I started thinking her life back in 2009 after I wrote that first short story about her purple flames. Somewhere along the way, I was sidetracked. I had to back pedal awhile until I got back on solid footing. Well, hopefully I am on solid footing these days with her, but only time will tell.

To me, my Paisley series represents many things, but above all, it represents the love of family and close friends. Many family members and close friends are mentioned with Paisley’s World, they bring me comfort in this world and my fantasy world.  

I do share some of my Paisley short stories with my oldest grand daughter who is almost nine. I plan to write each of the Paisley novels so people of all ages can read them and enjoy them as well. 

Y is for Yearning

The yearning for the man in the mirror is something that Paisley cannot deny. Sure, it might take her awhile to admit it to herself, but it is unmistakable.  To her Joe, the man in the mirror represents much more than a casual observer might see. He represents freedom in many forms; they are things that Paisley wishes for herself.

The crush that began with the boy in the mirror quickly goes full blown once she meets the mortal boy. The yearning for him goes unquenched for decades in the mortal world until she realizes that fate is ready to deliver a fatal blow. What she years for the most does take place, they share a night of unbridled passion that goes beyond her wildest dreams.

X is for Xenophobia

While Paisley does not have true Xenophobia, she does dislike the ogres, and other troublemakers who choose to live in the forbidden woods. She knows if she stays out of the forbidden woods she has less of a chance at dealing with them but sometimes temptation gets the best of her.

She also does not like the peasants who live outside the castle walls who do nothing all day but sit and drink the mead. Paisley would rather see all the peasants working together for the greater good. She does reward the peasants who follow her creed in hopes that the lazy ones will seek her good favor. 

V is for Victory

Victory is hard-earned prize no matter the realm in which the battle is fought. Though the battles of Paisley are fought hard on either side of the portal, each teaches her lessons she will never forget. These are lessons everyone can learn from, no matter if they are immortal or mortal.

Victory is the success of any battle that one undertakes. One of the biggest battles she undertakes is her freedom from the Eternals. While she understands her father’s rules and tries to be the good princess, she silently plots  to win his approval for her portal jumps. When she finally succeeds, she remains solid and true to her heritage even though for the most part it is the hardest thing she will ever have to do. 

U is for Understanding

While Paisley may be a princess, she can still be brave, strong and quite calculating when it is called for. That is because she is understanding of her world. She understands that magic is not to be used lightly against others as it can have bad effects. Even in the Eternals Karma is a bus that plows one over.

Willard and Queen Milano both use magic against her often but she withholds the use of her brand of magic until it become necessary. When she does unleash her magic on the both of them, their lives are forever changed and their skills become obsolete. Once they both are harmless to her, she shows them off as prized possessions. 

T is for Trickster

In the mortal world, she does a little faux magic because the magic of the Eternals does not transfer to the mortal world. She loves the attention magic gets her in many situations. For instance in the Mortal world when she does her tarot card readings she tosses little duct tape packages into the fireplace to create purple flames.

As a child when Willard pushed her to far she made him levitate skyward to the tanglewood trees that grabbed him and held him prisoner. He deserved getting tangles up, you see he the prank he pulled on her shortly before she levitated him was simply the last straw for her. 

R is for being Royal and Rude People

Being a princess sometimes, bites as Paisley would tell you. All the fancy dresses she must wear to the endless royal balls in the realm leave her feeling as if she is always on display. She hates the pomp and circumstance that comes with them. She has been known to sneak away to visit with the servants in the kitchen during the fancy balls.

She cannot stand rude people such as the evil future king of Chrystal Cavern. He is the one she is to marry on the eve of her sixteenth year. When his family comes to visit her family at the castle keep, he plays evil tricks on her. Paisley loathes the boy and wishes gargoyles would carry him away to places unknown. Somehow or other, she will get out of that one come hell or high water. 

E is for Eternals

The Eternals is a kingdom where peace reigns most of the time, but chaos happens once in a blue moon. The moon is blue in color except for the time when it gets that purplish hue. The fields are full of flowers of every type and color and fruit grows plentiful on the trees. The air is always clear, as are the lakes that dot the land.

Magic is the normal way of life for some in the Eternals, but there are plenty of people with no magic. There are no food shortages, and Queen Milano and her henchmen perpetuate the only crime that happens within the realm. 

C is for Cadence and Carissa

Cadence is one of Paisley’s older sisters. Being that Cadence is just three years older, the two grow up together. The girls share many talents, such as being able to turn themselves invisible, flight clairvoyance and a few more they will discover as they grow.

Paisley finds the trouble and talks Cadence into going with her. More often than not, the girls find more trouble than they bargain for.

Carissa is a princess from the neighboring Red Cat kingdom. She is the same age as Paisley and the two princesses’ strike up a friendship during the royal gatherings. Paisley enjoys going to Carissa’s kingdom to gaze upon the felines, cows, and other animals that are reddish in nature. 

B is for Brightness

When Paisley was born, she brought the light to her kingdom. That which was once dark and filled with gloom slowly grew lighter.

Those who did evil magic or sacrificed the innocent were rendered incapable of such things. Except for Paisley’s aunt Milano who was one of the most evil queens, the land had ever now. Milano wanted Paisley’s magic from the very start by kidnapping the princess and hiding her away in the gloomy castle. The dynamite trio of Kia, Max, and Tucker saved the day.

She is the chosen one, the one the Elders had talked about for generations. She is also the seventh born of the seventh born which adds even more magic to the mix. In other words, she is not your typical princess. 

A is for Assembling of Paisley Short Stories

I have created a series of short stories about Paisley from the Eternals who is happy go lucky princess. She is the seventh born of the seventh born which brings many things according to the legend.

When she is born life changes within the realm she is born, as well as the world where the humans live. Chaos ensues for some but for others their lives in the realm settles down finally.

Some inhabitants of the realm get magic skills that change the realm in unexpected ways. When those inhabitants of Paisley’s realm cross through the newly opened portals into the human worlds everything changes for everyone.

The first Paisley story I wrote was for a contest in a writer’s group I belonged to back in 2009. It was titled ‘Paisley’s Purple Flames’, and was about an old white witch who made a bit of magic in the human world. Little did I know when I began that short story that it would spur a whole bunch of short stories that I consider glimpses into her life.

When I began writing with the Circle 8 Writer’s group, my Paisley Stories became a staple with the third book published in December 2010. Paisley finally seen the light of day and she began amassing fans and she continues to gather fans with each passing story.  

Paisley's Purple Flames became The Sacrifice

The first Paisley Story I wrote was “Paisley’s Purple Flames’. It was written back in the summer of 2009 as a contest entry. It told the story of an old white witch and the mortal man she loved. It was my first attempt at a contest and I was crushed when it did not even place. It was the grammar and other technical issues rather not the plot that pushed my story into the void.

It was changed and edited before it was accepted as a short story in the “Roses and Thorns’ short story anthology for the Circle 8 writers Group. It was actually the second short story of the Paisley series to be published.

In 2012 I self published it as the middle part of a 3-story series about Paisley over on Smashwords. All three of these are setting in a period when she is elderly. 

They are among my favorite parts of the series as they show the real Princess Paisley of the Eternals. The love between her and the mortal man is clearly visible, yet she knows it is taboo to act upon that love. Such as dilemma for sure, it is like having a piece of a rich chocolate cake in front of you and not being able to touch it.