The Mound

Whorl Books - Selected titles

2011-12-27T14:42:00.000-08:00

REVIEW OF THE NOVEL BY AUTHOR CHRISTY ELKINS

2011-12-18T16:17:00.000-08:00

The Mound is an exciting tale about the renovation of an old hotel, which holds many secrets. This haunting story draws you in to each dark corridor, as the spooky building literally comes alive. There were times during my read I found myself holding my breath, fearful of what might jump out around the next corner.

The Hudsons’ have a stimulating writing style, full of thrilling energy and cleverly spun history. Though there were times I found I needed a dictionary for a few of the words, this is only a reflection of my own limited education. This book is brilliantly constructed for those who love a fast paced, chilling story, with exhilarating action.

The Mound has it all, engaging characters, goose bumps, a battle scene and the satisfying sigh that comes at the end of a long journey. The high intensity of this story was impossible to walk away from and when the voyage was over, just like a few of the main characters, I felt changed somehow; victorious and extraordinarily invigorated.

---Author Christy Elkins

2011-12-18T16:15:00.001-08:00

The Mound has it all, engaging characters, goose bumps, a battle scene and the satisfying sigh that comes at the end of a long journey. The high intensity of this story was impossible to walk away from and when the voyage was over, just like a few of the main characters, I felt changed somehow; victorious and extraordinarily invigorated.

---Author Christy Elkins

Co-Author Signing at Full Circle Bookstore, OKC

2011-12-18T16:06:00.000-08:00

Cullan Hudson, co-author of The Mound Interview

2011-11-09T04:56:00.000-08:00

Catch a great interview of the author Cullan Hudson, Strange State: Mysteries and Legends of Oklahoma and The Mound, at Ghost Hunting Theories. Hudson is currently hard at work on several other projects which are taking him here and there. Catch him on his popular blog, Strange State.

BOOK SIGNING OKC OCT. 7 - UPDATED

2011-10-02T08:13:00.000-07:00

Join co-author Marilyn A. Hudson on Friday, Oct. 7 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Carriage House at the Overholser Mansion, NW 15th and Hudson, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Autographs, book sales, drawings, dramatic readings, and photo opportunities are on tap for the event.

See write up about book in local news outlet here.

NEW LOW PRICE FOR THE HALLOWEEN SEASON

2011-10-02T05:33:00.001-07:00

As the nights grow longer and the darkness yields our deepest fears, you'll be glad to know you can revel in all the chills this season has to offer between the covers of this haunting supernatural thriller--all at a special LOW LOW price!!

NEW LOWER PRICE!!

2011-08-29T10:50:00.001-07:00

ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY AT A NEW LOWER PRICE. GET IN THE MOOD FOR HALLOWEEN WITH SOME PARAFICTION AS A GROUP OF GHOST HUNTERS STUMBLES AROUND AN ABANDONED HOTEL WHILE AN ANCIENT EVIL IS AWAKENING!!

You can also preview the book by clicking the "Look Inside" link at Amazon!

Chapter Thirty-Two

2011-08-10T12:53:00.000-07:00

     “Okay, Cookie, we’ll be running a camera over here,” Skyler pointed to where a bored Alex stood holding a camera over his shoulder. “As you begin to sense the rooms, we’ll just tag along. Don’t let us bother you.”
     “Oh, dear, you won’t bother me. Once I begin to read a location, I notice nothing but what the spirits and angels wish to communicate through me.”
     Skyler glanced sideways at Alex, “Well, perhaps we should begin then.”
     Cookie walked out into the middle of the hallway and placed a hand to her temple, “I’m sensing…a sadness here. It’s important that we all project positive energy. Then we can welcome the dear lost souls with love and light. We will guide them to crossing over, to complete their journey.”
     God, my head is splitting! I should never have had that third martini on that layover in Dallas. I need food! Just let me get through this…just get me through this….
     “Yes…there is a lot of energy here. Spirits! Speak to us! We are your friends.”
     Cookie began walking down the hall as Skyler and Alex trailed behind. She stopped at a room that had once held supplies for the maids on this floor. However, it was recently designated the catchall for old nursery furniture bound for an antique auction. Whimsical cribs, emblazoned with fairy tale paintings, now filled the small room.
     “What are you sensing, Mrs. Daniels?” Skyler noticed that Cookie had fixated on the far corner.
     Alex trained the camera on Cookie, as tears welled up in her eyes and her countenance became grief-stricken. “So much loneliness…so young….”
     Composing herself, she continued, “I’m sensing the pitiful soul of a child that has lost his way. Perhaps our love and energy will guide him home.” Cookie looked imploringly at Skyler, one performer to another, “Skyler, will you assist me?”
     Skyler quickly crossed over to Cookie, making sure her best side always faced the camera. The two stood face to face, holding hands as the camera zoomed in on their awkward clasp.
     After a few moments, Cookie lifted her head upward and called out, “My precious lost soul, we are here in peace. Listen to the comfort and love in my voice. Follow it. Let it guide you to whatever warmth and solace you seek. Relinquish your earthbound ties and soar free through the sky, following the sound of love homeward.”
     The floor shifted beneath them, sending the tiny rocker in Motion while a shower of dust and plaster rained from the ceiling above.
     Skyler cried out to Alex as she shook the dust from herself. “Did you get that!?”
    “Yeah, I got it,” he said, coughing up the plaster dust. “But I don’t know what the hell I got!”
     “Keep it rolling, Alex. We’ll edit later,” Skyler commanded before turning back to Cookie. “Mrs. Daniels, you’re the expert in these matters. What happened? What did we just witness?”
     Cookie, completely confused by what had transpired, could only stare around her at the fallen plaster. She glanced up to the ceiling where tiny spider cracks branched out from the light fixture. This had never happened in the old days when she and her late husband worked the medium circuit. She stammered slowly while her mind raced, seeking something to say.
    “Yes. Well. That was certainly interesting. Some-sometimes, spirits become…attached to a place.”
     “You mean it views this as its home? Does that mean it lived here once?”
     “Perhaps. Or it simply became lost, in a manner of speaking. Any familiar place can become a wayward spirit’s home. And just as we wouldn’t want to be kicked out of ours, these spirits can grow fiercely attached.” Cookie was actually rather proud of herself for coming up with that one. “Yes, I think that’s what we witnessed. The spirit was angry, fearing we were trying to get rid of it.”
     “Thank you, Cookie. That was…interesting.”
     Switching off her mic, she turned to Alex. “Let’s wrap it there. I think that was a great shot.” She brushed away the plaster that seemed to coat her whole body.
     The room suddenly reverberated with a metallic moan that had them covering their ears. Like a giant bellows, the ceiling expanded outward, belching a fresh shower of plaster and dust down on the trio.
      As they rushed to the door, a ceiling joist fell free, slamming Alex into the wall and knocking the camera from his grip.
      “My God!” Skyler screamed. “The video!”
     Cookie staggered to where Alex had fallen. Blood gushed down one side of his face and he was unmoving. She bent over him and listened, relieved to hear a heartbeat.
     “Get help!” She called to the reporter.
     “What?” Skyler snapped as she bent over to pick up another piece of the ruined camera. “We have to have that film! I gotta have it!”
     Cookie was astonished. It seemed the stories about Skyler were true: she was a careerist bitch!
     But to be so cold….
     “He’s hurt badly!” Cookie screamed. “My God, call for help!”

AVAILABLE NOW ON AMAZON

2011-08-01T09:01:00.001-07:00

CLICK HERE

PURCHASE NOW

2011-07-29T07:45:00.001-07:00

You can purchase your copy today, directly from createspace.com. Shortly, it will be listed on amazon.com for even greater ease of purchase.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE ON AMAZON

PRESS RELEASE

2011-07-29T07:43:00.000-07:00

To view a media release for this title, click HERE

THE MOUND GOES TO PRINT

2011-07-18T08:12:00.000-07:00

The long-awaited novel finally goes to print this week. Look for ordering details soon.

It has been a long road getting here, but we both hope you find it worth the wait--at least, an enjoyable summer read.

YouTube Promo Video

2011-02-27T05:10:00.001-08:00

TULSA TV REPORTER WRITES CONTROVERSIAL BOOK

2008-03-06T07:13:00.000-08:00

By Emily Laurel, Staff Writer Tulsa World

Emmy-nominated KCFB Channel 6 reporter, Skyler Dunworth-Michaels, has stirred up a mound of controversy with her book, Murder at the Mound, due out later this month. The work chronicles Dunworth-Michael’s sojourn through the now-infamous events that took place at the Montford Arms Hotel in the sleepy Oklahoma hamlet of Corvus Mound.

The work, however, is not without its critics. Matt Wolf, President of Renewal Concepts, the Chicago-based firm contracted to renovate the hotel, has already filed an injunction, alleging misrepresentation. The real estate wunderkind, Rick Donaldson, has also told Hollywood Reporters that he, too, is considering a libel suit based upon his portrayal by Dunworth-Michaels. Jason Williams, of the Lousiana State Police, has also filed charges against the reporter for false representation and intent to defraud.

"I was there," Williams told this reporter, "[Dunworth-Michaels] paints herself in a very favorable light and the rest of us look like idiots. I can’t let her get away with that."

Dunworth-Michaels alleges that those injured during the incident were intentionally and callously placed in harm's way to help the fading careers of noted Television psychic, Cookie Daniels, and to protect the financial interests of both Renovations, Inc. and Richard Donaldson. Dunworth-Michaels intimates that it was Donaldson's paranoid use of impregnable glass and unproven automated security locks that trapped them inside and led to several deaths.

The attorney representing Mr. Wolf stated, "She is free to make all the allegations she wants, but she will have to back up those claims. I feel confident that it is her own fading career, and now her book sales, that are at the root of these stories."

Dunworth-Michaels will be in Tulsa later this summer to sign copies of her book.

New Talent Sends Local Firm to New Heights

2007-12-14T15:45:00.000-08:00

Chicago Business Daily

March 21, 2008

"Renewal Concepts, a Chicago-based firm specializing in historic restorations, announces that Matt Wolf will be joining the firm with the New Year. Wolf, winner of Restored Magazine's prestigious Silver Award for creative use of original materials has been a junior architect with Chicago's Walton, Smith & Donatti for the last five years. Prior to that, Wolf had been working with the Portal Foundation in New York where he quickly gained a name for himself with innovative plans that turned once derelict office buildings into economical apartments. Nancy Rand, Renovations Inc's well known CEO, indicated that gaining the award-winning young architect has already brought dividends with the offer of restoring a multi-story bank in New York...."

DISCOVER DELIGHTFUL CORVUS MOUND

2007-11-21T10:01:00.000-08:00

Oklahoma Tourism Agency (2011) -- Corvus Mound is another historic gem hidden among the rolling hills of Eastern Oklahoma. A booming mining town before statehood, Corvus Mound all but shut down when tragic events halted work at the largest operation, O'Malley Mining. However, the reopening of the Montford Arms hotel aims to jumpstart the local economy once more. After being closed for 20 years, the hotel has reinvented itself as a high-end retreat and condominium. The nearby Corvus Mounds (the eponymous earthworks built by Native Americans nearly 1,000 years ago) have become an important historical site and tourist destination thanks to the University of Oklahoma's Dr. Karen Houston. Houston has spent the past few years turning this sleepy archaeological site into a first-rate scientific center. The Corvus Mound Archaeological Center boasts a museum chronicling the history of Eastern Oklahoma as well as historical and genealogical libraries.

SCIENTISTS HALT DIGGING DIRT TO THROW IT

2007-11-20T19:35:00.000-08:00

Chicago (AP) - - The annual meeting of the American Federation of Archaeologists was shocked by a presentation from one of its members, and reaction to it by another. During the opening days of the group's annual meeting in Chicago, Dr. Karen Houston, Oklahoma University, presented a collection of striking artifacts that severely challenged theories of exactly who were the earliest occupants of North America. The finds, recently excavated from Oklahoma's Corvus Mounds, unleashed a firestorm from Dr. Stan Jefferies who challenged her research in a mid-presentation outburst.

VEGAS BIDS FAREWELL TO RETIRING SEER

2007-11-20T19:28:00.000-08:00

Las Vegas (AP) - - The Las Vegas Tourism Department honored Cookie Daniels, the 56 year-old famed "psychic to the stars," during a special taped segment of the upcoming Vegas Live! special, airing on CBS later this month. Daniels, a veteran of late night television shows and the Vegas strip for over 20 years, told reporters it was “just time to retire.” Although hanging up her crystal ball will be hard. She admits the death of her husband and manager last year has left her frequently grief-stricken and unable to fulfill the commitments of her profession. Daniels had cut several performances from her schedule and canceled her appearance on The Tonight Show. Friends noted the famed prophetess had been deeply impacted by the loss. Henry Belford, long-time friend and noted fashion designer explained that she took her husband's death "very hard," quelling rumors that the couple had long-since drifted apart. When asked what she saw for her own future, the psychic in her signature pink blouse and well groomed snowy white hair simply smiled. "The future is a little unclear right now."