When the call first went out for perspective authors to contribute to an MLR Press anthology RED, I admit to having passed on the invitation. At the time, I just didn’t see how I could possibly manage the time and effort to write something within parameters that needed each contribution to include within its story-line not only a reference to red (the color and emotion), but to a drink of ice-cold water, a cricket, a pebble, and the scent of blood oranges. While usually as up to a challenge as the next person, I had other things to do, and I moved on to do them.

Awhile ago, while chatting on-line with Deana Jamroz, the graphic artist genius who does all of the MLR Press covers, as well as a generous contributor to my ARTISTS “DO” author WILLIAM MALTESE art collection, she provided me with a peek of two of her favorite covers which hadn’t yet seen publication; one of which was initially meant to accompany the anthology RED by-passed by so many other authors, besides me, that it had been shelved. My comment to Deana was that had I only known that the cover was going to be so damned spectacular, I would have signed on as a contributor in a New York minute. Decidedly visually oriented, and having bought more than one book for its cover, I likely wouldn’t have passed up buying RED, just for its cover, if and when I’d ever spotted it on any book shelf.

Luck being the unpredictable lady she is, it was only a week or so later than MLR Press decided to attempt a resurrection of the RED anthology, and out went another call soliciting writers to try their hand. This time, as I’d told Deana I would, I jumped on the bandwagon and launched immediately into my writing of “Ludus Scaenicus Mortis Rubrae”, my take-off on and homage to Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Red Masque of Death.”

For those of you familiar with the Poe story, you know that it takes place in Prince Prospero’s castellated-abbey. This locale soon had my chief protagonists wandering through those candle-lit abbey halls, corridors, rooms, galleries, and chambers. This, in turn, immediately had me thinking of candle-artisan Jfay who I’ve called upon so often, recently, to whip up real candles to duplicate those I’ve fantasized in my fiction (See the SUCKS! FIRST OF THE DRAQUAL VAMPYRE CHRONICLES Candle and SNAKES Candle below).

Also, Jfay is my partner in the free twice-a-week serialization, on MySpace, pre-publication 2010, of my teen-angst vampire, werewolf, warlock, witch, demon, dragon, chimera, shape-shifter, tree spirit, shadow person, candle-reader novel FLICKER: TEEN-WARRIOR SAGA.

In fact, I’ve been so taken by her work that she’s devoted a whole MySpace site to a Maltese Candle Gallery.

The final result of Jfay’s latest artistic efforts, RED Candle, on my behalf, seen at the beginning of this blog, is so stunning in its pairing with Deana’s cover graphic for RED, the anthology,(likewise seen at the beginning of this blog), that Jfay and I came to the mutual conclusion that while the candle should specifically be used in promoting my individual story, it could, also, be used to promote the anthology as a whole. Whereupon, Jfay immediately launched the pre-publication promotional of RED on all of her web-sites, blogs, and message boards, as I did on mine.

As soon as RED officially hits the book stands, Jfay and I are prepared, to launch a similar post-publication blitzkrieg.

All of which proves that sometimes unconventional means can be used to get a book’s name out there and in front of the potential buying (often more-visually oriented than text-oriented) public. In this case by means of an eye-catching Jfay candle.