What Lurks Inside the Forest of Cannock Chase...

So, you might ask, "Where on earth have you been, Debbie? I mean you haven't posted a thing for well over a month now...and really...how boring is that?"

Well, the answer to that question is---I've been busy catching up with life, and working on my latest work in progress. What could be better than all that? However, I do want to take a minute and tell you all that we now have an audio version of my sweet fantasy Romance, Bound by Oath and Honour, narrated by the fabulous Andrew McDermott! Do you love that "warms you all the way to the bone, spine tingling in a most fabulous way Irish accent? Then this audio book is definitely for you!

Cover created by Debbie Taylor! What do you think?

Yep!

Anyway, since malevolent shifters are the antagonists in this book, I thought I'd share some of the crazy goings on in England--all purported to be true--that inspired the villains in my book.

In central England there is a lovely, but spooky forest known as Cannock Chase. There are those who will tell you encounters with enormous felines, ghostly canines, werewovles, and even creatures akin to Bigfoot have become a common thing for those who venture inside the woodland. We even have a newspaper report as recorded in the Stafford Post, April 26 in the year 2007 relating to this that states:

"A rash of sightings of a 'werewolf' type creature prowling around the outskirts of Stafford have prompted a respected Midlands paranormal group to investigate. West Midlands Ghost Club says they have been contacted by a number of shocked residents who saw what they claimed to be a `hairy wolf-type creature' walking on its hind legs around the German War Cemetery, just off Camp Road, in between Stafford and Cannock. Several of them claim the creature sprang up on its hind legs and ran into the nearby bushes when it was spotted."

Cannock Chase German war cemetery Staffordshire.

The story goes on:  ""Nick Duffy, of West Midlands Ghost Club, said the stories of werewolf sightings in Chase area were something that he had encountered before. He said: 'The first person to contact us was a postman, who told us he had seen what he thought was a werewolf on the German War Cemetery site. He said he was over there on a motorbike and saw what he believed was a large dog. When he got closer, the creature got on his hind legs and ran away.'"

What?  It stood UP and RAN? Fascinating to say the least, right? Maybe the postman had been drinking more than just tea? 

Except:  We also have a scout leader (a very credible one at that from all reports) who has witnessed this very same thing while he was out taking a walk in this same forest. At first he thought the creature was nothing more than a very large dog. However, right after he got into his car and slammed the door shut, the beast reared up on its hind legs and ran into the trees, just like the story in the newspaper.

Well, what do you think? Are you up for a little looksee inside the forest of Cannock Chase?