Retail sucks – Author/Journalist Jessica Samuels

Stuff that didn’t Make The Book!

A story by jessicasamuels25 on August 17, 2016August 17, 2016.

When writing a book there are things that won’t make it in the actual book, and stuff that you thought was a good idea doesn’t seem like a good idea in the end. I cut my RetailWriter entries out of the book since it was more designed for the blog anyway. RetailHell Underground is an awesome place for retail workers to tell about mean customers and vent. A lot of people work retail, and that is why people can relate to books dealing with the public. I’ve just decided to post all my posts to my blogs instead of putting it in the Tales From Behind the Counter book. I did add my funny Retail Problems Twitter Tweets as a bonus for people since there is so many of them, and they are meant to be funny and not taken seriously…..So here are the entries and I hope you enjoy it!
RetailWriter Stories Together:
Hi, my name is RetailWriter, and I’ve been working 3 years in retail as a sales associate in Hellmart. I didn’t know what to expect at first, and it has been a wild ride since I had to learn how to let things go. The customers there can sometimes be so awful I would come home in tears like this one lady who complained about me just because of a stupid box. This is what happened I was supposed to end my shift at 9 but the boss wanted me to stay till 10. I did an 15 minutes before I was supposed to go a lady came with her friend. I asked them, “Can I help you find anything?” Her friend said, “We’ll get you when we need you.” Like I was a dog. After she is done using that slow brain of hers she picks out earrings, and they already come in a box. She asks for another one. I tell her we don’t have one. She is a smartass, and says “I know you do.” I give it to her, and then stuffing. The thing that set her off was me sliding the box across the counter instead of handing it to her. She says, “That’s rude.” And goes to the manager like the rude bitch she is, and come on it wasn’t rude to me. I saw the same bitchy customer in a parking lot, and I ignored her because it isn’t worth yelling at her even though I could. I have two days off before I work 5 days straight. For the first time they are throwing me into the battle field of Thanksgiving sales.

I hope you all enjoy my stories I will do called Hellmart Diaries since I will be detailing what it is like to be working Black Friday and Thanksgiving at Hellmart.

RetailWriter over and out!
KYLE’S GENERAL STORE DIARIES DAY 1 THE DAY BEFORE THANKSGIVING

RetailWriter here and this is the first day out of five that I will be working for Black Friday weekend. I started my shift at 2pm. As soon as I got in the door before clocking in for my shift I saw the black dividers up near the jewelry counter and HBA section for the event lines. Yay! They were already blowing up the balloons in customers service to mark where the Black Friday items are. It was interesting seeing the blue and white balloons with the name of the items.
After clocking in I make my way to jewelry to find out what is going on, and a customer asks me, “Are you an Associate?” Really dumbass? I was wearing the stupid uniform and the fucking nametag and vest proclaiming I was one. Did you take a bowl of dumbass for breakfast? Can you read? I was tired thanks to staying up till 1 am finishing a school paper that was due the next day. All I had the energy for was giving him an Are you that stupid? Kind of look. I answered his question directing him to the shirts anyway. Then later a women asks, “Where is the women’s section?” I tell her right behind her, and she says, “I see the juniors and petite. I meant the one for bigger women.” I point her in the direction of the size she was looking for and all she had to do was keep going down the sections. Lazy bitch! We have signs that tell you where everything is, and that is like the asshole asking where the jewelry and watches are when it is right in the front of the store. 3oclock hit and we had to straighten items in grocery I don’t get why since they are messed up 5 minutes later by asshole customers. In the back when I was putting away the cardboard after the straighten up thing. I see the cherry red While Supplies Last Black Friday items on a pallet wrapped up in tape. Some are filled with clothes, house ware items, and electronics. The aisles are already starting to be cleared to make room for the lines. Stands in the middle are being removed so it wont get in the way of crowds. Another guy asks me if I work at the jewelry counter. I have the case open and the keys are in it….Really? Why the fuck would I be standing there if I didn’t work there? Stupid people shop there I swear. I work thanksgiving so I’ll have more funny stories then since that is when the action starts. It wasn’t too bad customer wise only dumbasses that day. I’ll have a story for you on Day 2 and 3 when most of the action happen. I hope you all have a nice Thanksgiving. Good Luck to all the people working on it!
This is RetailWriter signing off till next time.
KYLE’S GENERAL STORE DIARIES DAY 2: THANKSGIVING

RetailWriter here! Now it is time for the action!
My shift started at 3pm and lasted till 12am. Already when I first got there 4 cop cars are sitting in the parking lot. People have cleared the way for the lines, and the items for the sales are on the floor wrapped up till 6pm. I was nervous in a way, but more awake then the day before. They are giving out free food for the employees. Yellow tape is blocking various aisles for the line. People are already in line to get their items. The calm before the storm since not many people are shopping.
I’m in jewelry safe behind the counter and I’ve already had someone ask me where stuff is and I take a flyer to find out where the jewelry items are some watches in lingerie and some near crafts on pallet displays. Around 5:45 it got crazy and my coworker forgot to give me the keys so I was waiting for the manager to open the safe. Meanwhile, I was cleaning up a display that a customer ran into. I was cleaning it up while people were asking questions I thought it was in the case. It wasn’t but luckily they found out where the sale items are, and they were brought out. Yay! I got the keys and everything was good. It was crazy lines are all the way to apparel. Every register is open, and people are grabbing stuff left and right. I had to answer questions to people, and deal with rude assholes. A lady gave me shit about a necklace asking if it was fake, and I told her it was real since it did not say plated. Later her daughter made her apologize. It was crowded and people were being dicks when the prices came out wrong.
People were trying to cut lines and the employees wouldn’t allow it. The sales in toys was the worst with people pushing and shoving each other out of the way. They were grabbing items like it is out of style. They kept asking where the jewelry was and it was all lined in a row on one side of the counter. A lady was rude in saying, “Is there anyone there to help me?” I told her, “I work here.” Another asshole, “Do you work in jewelry?” Well no shit dipshit I’m wearing a fucking vest, nametag, and outfit… Lady on a mobile cart wanting to try on stuff and saying, “I wont waste your time.” Then she knocked over a display. Then later as I’m picking up a peg that has fallen, “Oh I didn’t do that I swear it wasn’t me.” I ignored it. Taking items to be put back to the displays a guy asks, “What do you have?” I tell him. No, I didn’t have his size. Did I have any more in the back? No’ all the items are already on the floor. What would you do if I cried because you didn’t have my size? I’d laugh.
It was crazy, busy, and too full of people. Once I got over the craziness I got used to it. The attitudes made me pissed being treated like a dog, but I got all my Black Friday shopping done. I have enough alcohol to be set for months when people piss me off enough to drink. 3 days to go!
Until the next day,
RetailWriter over and out.
KYLE’S GENERAL STORE DIARIES DAY 3 BLACK FRIDAY!

RetailWriter here and its time to tell you readers about day 3. Sorry about it being posted so late, but life has been crazy for me. I did get my sales though, and I went to the ABC store since they were having a sale if you spend over $50.00 then you get ten percent off your order. Let’s just say I bought enough to last through the holidays so I’m all set!
My shift did not start until 2pm, and the excitement last night has died down today! There are still items left over from last night in the little boxes they come in. The store is still a mess as people leave shit in all the wrong places. Its not as busy as yesterday which was fucking insane. My first dick of the day. Stands there at the counter: I’m ready. He sees the other watches he missed. Oh, I’m not done looks at more stands. I’m ready. Whatever. I ring his shit up, and he leaves.
Comes back and asks, “Can you put a battery in this?”
“Only if we carry them in the store.” I tell him quoting the policy like a robot.
“Okay, it’s not one.” He leaves.
Another person whose watch I can do. I try my hardest to get the back off but the latch is hammered on too much. Did assholes watch cause it turned out his wife did get it from here. He said it as if I was a dumbass, and he was right. They all do. I straighten up shoes and have to answer more questions for lazy customers. One woman wanted to know where the fitting room was and all she had to do was walk past shoes.
Another lady: Do you work here?
Me: I think I do…
I took over phones for an hour and had to search for a fancy desk that we stopped carrying. Nothing from the AD is left. Same lady calls back twice asking for shit in the ad and we are fucking out. Line 1 for the assistant got too impatient, hung up, and said he got disconnected. Asshole router called again because he was on hold and got disconnected. The next called goes into a story I don’t care about. I told her I can transfer her to customer service. And she said, “I imagine so.” Fuck you too.
Next Caller:
“Thank you for calling _________ how may I help you?”
“Is this___?” Duh. I just said it asshole. Lady called the fitting room when she was in the store because she needed help getting items on the top shelf and two employees walked by and said they couldn’t help her. One customer asked a cashier to fold her clothes for her. Last asshole of the day. I transfer him to electronics, and they don’t answer call comes back. Is there anybody working in electronics? I told him I can check. Well, if there isn’t anybody working there then I’m not going to worry about it. He yells, and that was day 3….
This is RetailWriter over and out.
KYLE’S GENERAL STORE DIARIES DAY 4 JUST YOUR NORMAL SATURDAY!

Its RetailWriter here. Finally back to my normal shifts for the weekend. The craziness died down today, and it’s a normal crazy Saturday. Nothing but straightening up since its still a mess from the past two days. I’m happy to say Day 5 is a short one. Thank god! I was on the phones for a break, and trying to find an item for a lady. She was rude though saying, “Well, can you look for it again because you don’t seem to know what you are talking about.” Thanks bitch and you’re the one who couldn’t even tell me the proper brand for that item. I really hope you suck a dick, and all I said was, “Thanks I will.” Not even bothering to be mean to her. Another woman complains about waiting for 30 minutes for someone in jewelry it was not that long. She asked about the system, and I told her they would have told me about it. They called and no one came she says. Sure, lying bitch. The customers were mainly nice except for a few people. It wasn’t too crazy either just straightening up. Nothing wild and crazy since the excitement lying down. There was a lady getting mad that I accidently hung up, and did not put her on hold. Oops! There was a lady trying to argue with me about a television in stock. Whatever. I also have super powers because when I touched a few of the watches the customers wanted me to repair they would magicaly start ticking. Interesting day! There are still some boxes left over from Black Friday still. That was my day, and I will be starting my last day of working five in a row tomorrow.
This is RetailWriter over and out.
SIGNATURE
KYLE’S GENERAL STORE DIARIES DAY 5 JUST A NORMAL SLOW SUNDAY!

RetailWriter here, and I’m happy to say it’s my last day of working five in a row. Thank god I’m looking forward to having the next two days off. Nothing really going on yet since its been slow. My shift started at 5:30 this time I’m only there for 4 ½ hours which is better then 8. I’ve had more good customers then bad ones. The customers today haven’t been bad at all. One lady getting a surprise present for her daughter. A customer was demanding when she said that one right there, and not even bothering to be more specific. Don’t just say that one, give me a description and a price I can’t read your mind bitch. A guy wanted to look at a watch. A customer had to direct another customer to a part of the store then said, “And I don’t even work here.” It was mainly just straightening up jewelry, shoes, and accessories. People are probably getting ready for the work day. At least they are not playing that dreaded Christmas music through the speakers. I’d rather strangle myself with my own lanyard then listen to it. I don’t celebrate Christmas either. A bunch of kids are getting a battery and the girl gives me a dirty look before getting her water. I ignore it. Told a guy that in front of jewelry is the only place we have the sunglasses. Didn’t believe me because his sunglasses were not there. Sunglasses asshole comes back to look again as if they will magically appear out of thin air, and he was at customer service to get a refund or exchange. It was overall a boring last day except for a lady that had to put an item on layaway then cancel since she didn’t have enough money.
This is RetailWriter over and out….At least until I have a good story to put together or rant about asshole customers more.

RETAILWRITER’S FUN DAY

Retail Writer here, and boy do I have a few stories for you. I work and go to school which is why I’ve been absent lately. I will write down crazy stories and tell you them more though. I was with a customer for layaway and then another customer says, “When you are done with her then can you get something out of the case for me?” I nod. She leaves and then I continue helping the layaway customer. She comes back some minutes later, “Do you have anyone else that can help me?” I tell her I’ll get help and I try to get items out of the case, but the layaway chick goes “I’m a customer too.” That was the end with that. The other jewelry person is there to help her out, but she is nowhere to be found even after waiting. Finally she comes back and tells her, “I’ve been waiting for someone for 20 minutes, and no one has helped me.”

She tells her, “I’ve been here twice and you were not around.”

The customer then apologizes to the other one for being such an impatient bitch. The funny thing is she never came to get the jewelry she was bitching about.

Another situation that pissed me the fuck off was a guy came in looking for insulated overalls. He was such an asshole saying that I could look it up in the system so I was arguing with him about the code. Can’t you look it up? I need the code though. He finally does and I run to get a machine that can tell me if we have it in stock. I run into another associate that might know the answer better than me. I ask her if we have it in stock she says no because it’s a seasonal item. I tell the guy as much even as I try to load the machine so I can look it up. He says, “I can’t believe she said that it’s a seasonal item since it’s still in season now. I drove 25 miles to this store and it says they have it here online.”

The whole time he was being a douche bag, and pacing around. He even has the gall to say, “No wonder why you work at Hellmart you have bad customer service skills.” She was being nice to him too, and he was coming off as a rude dick.

Finally he leaves because the machine didn’t register, and he says, “Oh so you’re not going to help me..” He was a huge dick and it wasn’t just to me. He was rude to the customer service people too, and it was a pain dealing with him since he couldn’t understand why we did not have it in stock. He even told them he should wear a vest, and that the people who used the machines should do their jobs better. It was a long day dealing with assholes, and I’m sure I’ll have more asshole stories for you guys in the future.

Until next time,

RetailWriter over and out.

RETAIL WRITER DIARY STORIES
RetailWriter Stories Re-edited….

RetailWriter here, and it has been a while since I have posted here. Below is a collection of some of my entires from a journal of mine. Sorry if it’s whiny with profanity but this is a place to rant about retail. I’m an author, and there for should have proofread before I posted so here is the edited version in the correct timeline….
6/9/15
I’ve been reading through all my old work journals since I bring small notebooks to write down everything that has happened to me at work. I noticed that the customers talk to us like we are stupid. They think we can magically pull a product out of our ass for them if we run out. They also think that just because we work there that we know every product in the entire store, and that we work everywhere. Meanwhile, we get pulled to the front if there are not enough cashiers and we have to work several different departments and run ragged. I have done jewelry, fitting room, shoes, and phones too. Is it any wonder why working retail just sucks ass. Oh, I love the dealing with the nice customers and putting up stock. But dealing with the mean customers just makes me want to drink especially when they yell at us over things we can’t control. Half the time they yell at us over things that we can’t control. We don’t order the products that come through our store we just put them up. We also don’t know when they come in due to it being out of our control.
9/20/15
I was the only one to cover apparel, shoes, the fitting room, jewelry, phones and accessories till 12 it was hard since there were a lot of questions I had to answer. It was only me in my area to do several different departments which means I had to constantly watch the counter, watch the phones and fitting room. Then to top it all off some asshole goes behind the counter. Said he was looking for a tool behind the counter, and I told him he could have called someone, and then said he was looking for a buzzer. What is wrong with people you can’t just ask?To top it all off the front end has crazy lines all the way to softness due to not having enough people, but the manager did say there is no one in our area to help out.
10/2/15
This morning was bullshit because I was put on the register since no one was at register 20 which is the smokeshop. What made it worse is I had a huge migraine. It was first thing in the morning, and I’m not a morning person enough as it is. It’s bullshit that I had to be on it for so long since I’m a sales associate. She said it would be an hour. I was on the register an hour and a half. I know they need help, but they could have put other people on the register besides me. There are people standing around and they could have sent one of the ones on it instead.
10/4/15
My last hour sucked dick so let me tell you what happened before I forget. This lady asked if we had anymore clear pink backpacks because it says we have it online at the store. I look for it and I told her we sold out of it. Then she said but it says you have it in the store. And she traveled far to get it, and I say fuck it and ask my coworkers if they have seen it. They say no, and I grab the telexon to see if we have any left. I know we don’t because I have not seen any, and the last time I did it was a few months ago. Meanwhile we get the managers to look in the steel to see if we have it because we have cleaned them all out so there might be one. Even the managers can’t find it. They looked too and could not find it either. I told her and all she said was I drove all the way for nothing. I’m sorry but sometimes the system says we have it when really we don’t because of the counts are not entered properly, or the managers put it away somewhere. It’s not my fault, and she did not have to treat me like that….
10/18/15
Customers have been such little assholes to me. There was the woman who was a bitch to me when I could not get her watch back on.
“Well you got it off shouldn’t you be able to get it on.” She replied.
“I told you that I couldn’t get it on.”
She got mad, but I tried one last time, and luckily it went on that time.
Next was a lady who wanted me to check every single fucking item then said can’t you check me out here? Sure, whatever. I do it, and I was happy when I got off.
10.21.15
Today was shit first comes the customer who smells like shit. Not only is he breathing all over me, he stinks. I was trying to get the watch back off, and I told him I could not do it. He said this must not be your department if you can’t get the watch back off. I told him it is my department, and what I wanted to say was suck a dick. The shithead tried to get it off like he could do any better he can’t. Then a lady that asked about flip flops and I told her we ran out. The bitch freaked what do you mean you ran out? We ran out a long time ago, and we are already in the next season. Bear in mind there were actually some in men she did not want to pay a lot of money for it. Fuck you too not my fault, and she was a bitch practically screaming at me about it. Then just as I’m about ready to leave an old bitch wanted to know if the necklaces come together or separate. They are separate for $48.00, and on the same display. According to her it’s misleading, no it’s not they are the same price, and no we don’t have the bracelet. We did have it at one point, but it got sold. Do you know when it will come in? No, because I don’t have any control over it, and they don’t tell me when it will. I really want a bracelet. I got that, but I can’t pull it out of my ass for you just because you want it.
I’ve dealt with some live ones lately, and because it’s going to be the holidays I will post more about it…
Until next time,
–RetailWriter

I’ve hoped you enjoy these entries, and if you work retail I’m sure you can relate to it.

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25 AKA RetailWriter!

New Ideas Abound….

A story by jessicasamuels25 on January 10, 2016.

The one good thing about publishing yourself is the ability of control. I know I’ve been bad lately over finishing projects I start them and stop them just as quickly. There is no deadline by a publisher, and sometimes it rocks since I can decide what I want to write, and when I want to finish it. The thing that has been going through my head lately is to write a few non fiction books, and one will be about my experiences working retail. I can write about what to expect, how to not treat people, the ways you can piss off a cashier, and even tell people some real life stories about what actually happened to me. There are a few complaints I’ve dealt with in the past 4 years. Not many since I try to be nice when I can. I’ve made the most screw ups the first year of retail. I didn’t know what to expect and I learned as I go. It’s something I want to do because not many people starting know what to expect, and it will be a fun guide too.
I also wanted to make a guide on self-publishing like I did and how I got my publisher too. I’m still learning though, and it was a fun process. You never realize how much work something is until you experience it yourself there are also a ton of books out there on it. I’ve read a lot and I will definitely review the best ones on my blog. I also have a ton of writing books to read, and I learn something new each time I read one. Reading books like that is good for the mind since it keeps you going. I’ve learned the importance of networking and how word of mouth happens. People are really more likely to buy your book if they know you. Networking with other authors works as well, and it helps if you have a team so they can guide you through the process. I’ve been on this road for 5 years, and I’m still learning more as I go along.

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Being a Vampire in Retail Sucks is out!

A story by jessicasamuels25 on July 19, 2014.

It has been a long road, and this particular project is finally done. I loved how it turned out, and I could not be happier since I have a new cover artist I look forward to working with! I have my school stuff straight, and things are picking up! I did write a post about my inspiration and why I wrote the story in the first place, since there is a story behind it:

Not many people know this, but the idea for the story did not come out of thin air. It came thanks to me coming across a book called Retail Hell: How I sold my soul to the store which is about a screen writer forced to get a job working at The Big Fancy, and I read the whole thing within a matter of days. It was funny, and I loved every minute of it. I loved his take on the different types of customers. I loved the fact that he ends up being the only male selling handbags. The humor in it is laugh out loud funny, and I love his comments regarding the customers he nailed it. I admit I have been working retail for two years I wont say where, but I have seen some of the stuff he talks about in his memoir.

My story is set in a supernatural store called Fiona’s Corner and Café. A retail store in the Luxor realm, and Scarlet who is a vampire has to go under cover to solve the case of the missing werewolf girls from the Moon Wolf pack. It has her put in situations people rarely get to see unless they are on the other side of the counter. I love how it turned out. I even threw in something extra for my readers since it mentions another ebook I’m working on. I will make book 1: Scarlets Beginning. Book 2: Retribution is Mine and Book 3: Redemption is mine.

Here are the links to purchase it:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Being-Vampire-Retail-Scarlet-Summers-ebook/dp/B00LXF6LU4/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1405773329&sr=1-1&keywords=Being+a+vampire

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/459255

That is all for updates I will let you know if I have another release, or my thoughts on things.

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Being a Vampire in Retail Sucks!

A story by jessicasamuels25 on February 24, 2014.

I am completely done with the Prologue, and Chapter 1 and I wanted to put it up early since it is coming out in March. I have not decided on a date yet, but it will be out next month. It has been a long journey, but I cannot believe it is almost done.

Here it is, and when I publish it I will put down the links after the chapter.

Being a Vampire in Retail Sucks

Prologue:

I killed my ex-boyfriend, but that was because he killed my lover. I also killed Kelsey. She deserved it for going after vampires who were harmless to society, and especially since she killed Dante’s family. Not that I go around ending lives for the hell of it. I worked for the Killer Contract Agency–hired to rid the Crystal Crest realm of society’s slugs. Like rapists, pedophiles, and hunters who go after innocent supernatural creatures. The weapon made me insane, and after an undercover case I decided to be a detective instead of an assassin. My name is Scarlet Summers, and I’ve been through hell.

The Moon Wolf Pack are the werewolves who helped me escape from the evil necromancer, Rick. A mystery is on my hands when some of the girls went missing. Oh, and the girls all had one more thing in common. They worked at Fiona’s Corner and Café, a retail store in the Luxor realm that allows creatures to buy items they need to survive. Here is my story of these events.

Chapter 1:

A fire is burning in the fire-place and it makes the living room warm to combat the cold air conditioning running through the rest of the house. I use this time off to banish the memories of my last case,and the previous ones when I was with the agency. I finally have a chance to try to get my mind off my past once and for all.

It started when Nathan killed Zion, my lover, since he was an abusive and jealous jerk. My grief led to me wanting retribution so fiercely I was hired by The Killer Contract Agency. I then went on a killing frenzy eliminating Nicole, Megan, Kelsey, Kyle, and Nathan. I got my revenge, but not without a price. My final step was to swallow Nathan’s soul. However it caused me to go crazy, and I ended up gunning down innocents. I was changed into a vampire to stop the rage from consuming me. Once I turned, the rage stopped and I became sane again. Then I got captured by a crazy necromancer, and he tried to turn humans into creatures by performing horrible experiments on them. I stopped Rick with help of the Moon Wolf pack. All the old case files go into the fireplace, and the bracelet I still have as a reminder of what I have been through. I turn away from the fire and the past.

I look around the house I love. We moved into after I became a vampire and we transferred to the Luxor realm. It is a big place with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and office, kitchen, and even a library piled high with books. The walls in the living room are charcoal black and the carpeting is the color of warm blood with a gothic theme throughout the house: cobweb wall papers with candelabras, and magical statues of wolves and dragons placed in the house to guard it from intruders.

Sitting down on the black leather sofa, I let the warm fire relax me. There is incense burning and the smell of apples and cinnamon take me to a place of comfort. The necromancer situation still haunts me, since I was tortured horribly. I don’t want to go into details, but I hate them. The asylum case was just as horrid. Especially seeing all those supernatural creatures hurt when they did not deserve it. I exhale and let it all go.I am on my vacation after all.

Dante, my lover, is rustling around papers in the office we share. Since I have nothing better to do I go see what he was doing in the office. And maybe play around a bit on the computer.

“Come in.” he replies after I knock on the door since he loves to keep the door closed to concentrate.

“What are you working on?” I ask as I walk into the room and stand behind him, peering at his screen. I know he hates it when I do that but I just can’t help but rile him a bit .He sighs and stretches, making me stare at the muscles flexing underneath his shirt.

“Shit loads thanks to the damn necromancer-werewolf-agency issues. I dislike Rick, and his bullshit about falsely helping people without powers. He just had to work in the Crystal Crest realm with the psychics to experiment on innocent creatures. At least the asylum is a black crater in the ground now. And all their data on us is destroyed. “

“Fun, I love paperwork. But at least we no longer have to worry about the Crystal Crest realm becoming like ours.”

He laughs and it lights up his entire face, making his soft silky black hair undulate around his handsome face. I stare at his muscles as they ripple with the simple gesture of him sweeping his hair out of his eyes. He turns his attention back to the screen in front of him and I sit down in a plush chair in the corner and watch him work.

I don’t pay attention to the time until I feel a gentle hand brush my long red hair behind my ear. My green eyes come back into focus after staring at nothing but remembering the experiments.

“Brooding again?” He asks concern in his brown eyes. He knows I dwell too much on the past, especially since it was a shock to my system.

“Yes,” I reply sheepishly, “I was just thinking about our latest mission. All of the things the necromancer said he would do to my friend’s dead body still haunt me.” I shudder, trying not to think about it, and try to block out the images that are flooding my mind.

“Thinking of it only makes it worse. He is dead. The Asylum is a graveyard. You are going to drive yourself bonkers if you keep thinking about it. I agree with how horrible the whole situation was, and I wish I could pass on my extra abilities on to you. then you would never have to fear. Do you think I like seeing you like this?” He asks.

“No, and I know it was hard on you as well. I’m sorry I still get lost in the past. At least the werewolves were able to save me.” I say with a smile trying to focus on the good side of my experiences.

“They did but it also means you owe them a favor. Werewolves always collect their favors and sometimes it is dangerous. I know I owed them once, and payback nearly made me tied to a member of their pack.”I sigh, not wanting to think about what they will want in return for saving my life.

“I want to check my email.” and I hop behind the desk across from Dante’s. My mind jumps to more essential everyday things like work and coupon shopping. I need some new clothes from Gothic Gear and Witch Cauldron and I hope that there are some money off coupons in my inbox.

I quickly get comfortable in the leather chair since it fits the shape of my body perfectly. I turn on my high-powered desktop and log into my personal email. I am disappointed when my inbox has nothing but Spam. No, I don’t want another vampire groupie, not after the last one died. Nope, I don’t want to meet single vampires in my area. Absolutely no to getting the biggest erection of my vampire life. All junk and no fun coupons for me. Frustrated, I decide to check my work email. Even though I am on vacation there might be something interesting is going on to take my attention.

“Hey, look at this,” I tell Dante and he moves behind my chair. He looks over my shoulders to read what is on my computer screen.

“Why does he want to see you? I thought you were on vacation. I was looking forward to relaxing with you.” He sighs, “Do you want me to go with you to the office?”

I nodded, “Special assignment sounds fun, but it also sounds like a handful. I just hope a necromancer isn’t involved in this one. I hate those guys.” I shudder again and push away the images from my past. Necromancers are notorious for getting zombies to do their dirty work. It is helpful to send one after someone you want dead because they are hard to kill. The only way to stop them is to cut off their head. “Let’s change, then we hit the road.”

A little bit later we slide into Dante’s Strider X, the fastest type of car in the realm. We quickly get to the store since Derrick is impatient. The sun is a horrid ball of heat frying everything in its path. The soft tank top I am wearing allows the cool leather from my seat to relieve my skin from the inferno. I don’t like the heat. I would rather it be an in-between temperature, not too hot or too cold.

Roger’s Video store is a front for the detective agency in the Luxor realm. King Alexander and Queen Diana Battle don’t want anyone to know about either Derrick’s Detective Agency or its partner the Killer Contract Agency. They work together to help solve crime and catch criminals for the crown.

Dante looks up at the sun. “At least the sun here is not toxic to us. I was a surfer before I changed into a vampire you know. I like still being able to surf, it is more fun with powers. And the donors and blood bags definitely make life easier. What about you Scarlet, do you love it?”

I consider my transition to being a vampire, “I love it, it is so much better being sane. Thank you for turning me. And I love still having my magical powers and guardian.

“Of course I remained after you changed. You need me to guide you and help in combat.” Nightshade speaks in her melodious voice in my head.

“I am happy to still have you too. You have saved my ass plenty of times. I always will be.” I commune back.

Nightshade has watched over me ever since I came into my power as a witch. I have been her charge to guide even before I received the bracelet. She became my permanent guardian when I put on the bracelet, and when I kept my powers during the transition she decided to stay with me. She is a spirit that stays by my left ear and is visible when she desires.

“It is amazing that you still remember when we first met,” She comments knowing I am brooding on the past again.

“I always will because you saved my ass more times than I can count.”

“I think we need to go into his office now,” Dante interrupts and I notice we have reached our destination. He knows about Nightshade and doesn’t mind when we talk, he talks to his guardians too. The hell hounds: Cloud and Enforcer. But Derrick is an impatient man and we both want to see what he wants.

“Sorry.” I reply sheepishly. “Nightshade was talking to me. ” Dante is standing over me holding the door to the car for me to get out. He is such a gentleman! He takes my hand and squeezed it gently, then smiles warmly.

“Would you like it if I was in your mind more, not just when you are in danger?” Because Dante is my sire we can talk telepathically. It comes in handy during battle or undercover cases when we need to speak privately. It also makes the romance between us so much better. I nod in response to his questions and we walk to the store to see what the boss wants.

Roger’s Videos store is a bright beige building with a black and white sign denoting the name on the front of the building. The bell tinkles as we go through the door. I look around the room with brightly lit shelves and neatly placed videos. We might need to rent one if the news sucks. Syron waves to us from behind the counter as we make our way to the back of the store. Past the public restrooms we go into the office to find out what the boss wants.

Derrick Sanders, the owner and head of the detective agency, sits at his desk wearing his favorite camouflage clothes. His constant self-imposed distractions tell me he has seen more horrors than he will admit to. I do not want to interrupt him so I wait until he stops typing and looks up at me before I speak.

“You wanted to see me sir?”

“Yup Scarlet,” he replied in his former army tone. He leans back in his chair and continues in the voice he used when he sent troops out for battle. “There is an issue that has come up involving Fiona’s corner and Café, the retail establishment. Some of the women from the Moon Wolf Pack have gone missing and all of them worked for Fiona’s. ”

My eyes widen, “The ones who helped me escape from the asylum?”

He nods, “Afraid so. The last place they were seen was their work place. Here are the files on the girls who are missing.” He hands me the files, and I take them with caution wondering who the unlucky girls are, and if I know them. Shania Wolfson, Sonya Simone, and Merica Laker. Phew, I never knew them personally. They are all very beautiful, and belong to Rex’s pack. Since they are part of the pack that rescued me from the necromancer the least I can do is try to find them. All three girls disappeared a few weeks after starting to work at the store.

Terrific, a retail store gone rancid, why am I not surprised? Honestly, it is not surprising to hear, especially since the boss is a 1,000 year old vampire who use to use the store as a front for hurting creatures through horrific experiments. Luckily it had stopped thanks to Derrick’s Detective Agency. Or at least I thought it had.

“Is this another find the missing women case or an undercover one?” I ask dreading the answer. I have a bad feeling I knew where this was going when his face changed to a look of sympathy.

“I want you to go undercover to find the missing girls. You will need to pose as an employee at the store. It is the best approach to get information on both the girls and the company. The werewolves have asked for you specifically, as payment for your debt.”

“I can’t wait to see you in an adorable little uniform!” Nightshade teases, he voice filled with mirth.

“Great,” I comment with feigned enthusiasm, “Just what I always wanted to do; work retail!” I sigh, and he gives me the rest of the paperwork that I need to go undercover. I have my new identity as a vampire named Lily Stone, as well as all of the legal documents to support the story.

Dante laughs, “At least there are no necromancers this time. This should be way easier than that was, and you don’t have to deal with crazy people.” His mirth is not concealed as he grins from ear to ear, “And it could be worse, you could be at Fang’s Fast Blood and have to deal with hungry vampires. Fast food would definitely be worse.”

“True.” I laugh, “I have been to one, and the vampires are way too picky about it what they want.”

Derrick joins our laughter, “No necromancers at all, unless they are customers buying their items. The only creatures you will have to deal with are a few vampires, witches and werewolves. There is also the sorceress owner and her vampire lover Ren.” He smiles at me and his next words change the mood in the room, “I am really happy to see you all in one piece. I know the last case was not easy for you. After this assignment, I want you to take a long far away vacation.” He pauses, “then you have to come back for another case.”

“No worries, I will come back to work,” I grin at him, “Honestly, I think a trip to the islands is in order. I want to learn to surf.” I look at Dante and he smiles.

Dante and I leave, walking side by side on our way to the car. I am hoping that the case is straightforward, but my history has taught me otherwise. I browse through the files Derrick gave me as Dante drives back to our home. Derrick’s note point to his suspicions he has about Fiona Stagea and my main purpose to spy on her. Werewolves never do well at her store, they either quit quickly or disappear. Ren, her lover, was the last person that was seen with Shania. The two had been seen fighting a week before and no one had seen her since.

As I think about what going undercover in retail means I begin to get angry. I won’t have weekends off anymore, not that I ever shop on weekends. I don’t like crowds so I tend to stay away from stores when they are crowded. I will have to deal with customers and I have seen how nasty some people are to retail workers. Many people take out their own problems on the employees, use them as verbal punching bags, which is not right and now I will have to deal with it. I used to work retail, and I hated it. I had to deal with all of the problems while I was trying to pay my way through witch school. I think about the amount of time it usually takes me to solve a case. The asylum took a few months, and that was after Nightshade woke me up from the drugs they were making me take.

“Thanks for that by the way,” I intone to Nightshade and I hear her laughter ringing through my head. At least I am never alone. I go back to my brooding and think about my time frame. There are only four months until Christmas, and even less before the shopping season ramps up. So I don’t lose my sanity again I decide I have to solve the case before then.

Many of the creatures in the Luxor realm used to live in the Crystal Crest realm, like me, and we tend to keep up the habits of our human lives. We celebrate the same holidays because it helps remind us of our humanity. The other downside to working the busiest season of the year in retail means that I will probably slip and bite someone. Blood bags and donors have helped me conquer the urge but when my temper is high I have been known to lose control.

Dante and I spend a magical weekend together before my new nightmare begins.

I hope you have enjoyed it until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Updates…

A story by jessicasamuels25 on October 13, 2013.

I am not going to be able to make the October 31^st publishing date because of all the work ahead of me. I should not have nailed a date at all until I know I am going to make it because I still have more editing to do. I am going to print the novella out, write down the beta reader feedback, and completely rewrite it. I am going to do it with Revenge against the Ex, and the Killer Contract Agency too. Readers deserve to know more about the Agency, and how the Luxor realm works. I have improved my writing more, and way more if I have more of an idea on how to make it better. I am getting slammed with midterms too, and it is part of the reason why I am not going to make it. VCU is harder than I expected, but at least I will have more time to work on my writing.

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Cut Scenes from Being a Vampire in Retail Sucks!

A story by jessicasamuels25 on June 25, 2013.

For one reason or another scenes are cut from the story because it slows down the plot, or in my case the character complains too much.

Here they are as deleted scenes:

After that I hope the rest of the shift is easy. The next person comes in line, and instead of the usual plastic bags the woman brings in her own bags. These are blue with handles, and I stare in horror at the damn demonic things. It looked like a cashier’s worst nightmare. I really cursed the lady since I try to put the bags on a sturdy belt, but the damn things keep falling.

“Oh, and I really don’t want these.”

The lady hands me a few items. “And what the hell do I do with them?”

She looks at me. “Put them back.”

“Why can’t you do it yourself are you lazy or something? Did your hands break, or are the products too far for you to put it back yourself.”

“Ma’am just stops arguing with me, and ring up my stuff. Stop giving me an attitude because I am old ok.”

“That is no excuse to make us do it.”

She glares at me, “Well…”

“Don’t even start with me you old bitch.” I rung up her stupid items, and put them in her stupid bad in her cart. She did not even offer to get her damn bags.

“Get your bags yourself. I am not your damn butler.”

“I am old.”

“No…you’re just lazy.”

She stared daggers at me meanwhile I let a smile creep up and I laughed. “Pick it up.”

She did as I asked and left. Leaving me to close the damn thing, and turn off the light. Some idiot tries to put their things on my aisle.

“I am not open sir.” And I walk away tired of the register screaming get me off this the whole time, and tired of getting yelled at by the spoiled customers.

A lady even told me to get off the register, and get her a bag that is not ripped then treated me like I was a dumbass, and told my handler “Can she understand me?” like I am a stupid child. Bitch! This is why I hate the register, and it is too fast one after the other after another.

“Now wait a minute this line was supposed to be open not closed.”

I stared straight at him, “It is closed because I said so.”

Shithead glares at me, “But your light is still on.” Oops I set it to flashing by accident which is used to signal I need help by the SCSM, and I turn it off.

“I am still closed asshole, and I want to get off the damned register because of jerks like you.” He leaves. As I was trying to get out another customer tries to walk through my line ignoring the fact that my light is fucking off. Jackass chimes in, “She is closed.” Fuck you asshole customer.

I walked away because I fucking hate the front registers after dealing with so many assholes. Fiona’s Corner and Cafe is a big company. It says that they treat every employee special. All lies since they treat you like a body instead of a person. It really should say every employee is expendable and easily replaceable. Once one employee is fired another one will take its place. I look at the time: 2:45. God I step outside to cool off. I am happy to be able to stay in the sunlight. A vampire like me can stay in the sun until I turn 1,000 years old.

Shoe Scene extras:

Yeah right like I would check for an asshole like him. Douche! Not to mention he called me in a rude way. And his wife is rude too acting like she is entitled to me serving her. I am a human being, or I was before I became a vampire, and I deserve to be respected not treated like a dog. And as I make my way to the rude couple I see a few customers run into another worker like they don’t see them.

They are seen when they need something though. Some of the employees are given looks of contempt and disdain when some of the customers meet their eyes. How sad. Please. “Get me someone in the shoe department.”

Ring guard bit:

Then he leaves. I said we did not have any, and he acts like we have a secret place just for him. I even had to direct a customer to the sunglasses when it was standing right in front of him! Really, does he now see it is standing in front of him?

The Necklace Dude:

I waited for my shift to be over, but before it was an old guy with spiky greyish white hair, blue eyes like a husky dog, with several necklaces around his neck wearing a camouflage shirt and shorts with sunglasses worn like a headband was looking at one of the cases. Let’s just call him Ted. He wanted to look at an attract an angel ring, so I opened up the case, and handed him one then he wanted to look at another. Then he went over to another case, and wanted to try on a weather controlling necklace and a lightning conjuring bracelet.

When one caught his eye I showed him it, and then he wanted to look at another one especially the ones with red tags because he is a cheap guy that loves to save money. After having me tell him about each one and naming the price sometimes having me repeat the bloody price twice because I am a servant to him, and am there for his personal service slave!! Then he was picky about the necklaces, and not only that he was getting mad I was not picking out the right one when he was just pointing and not being specific. I really hate impatient people.

After he finally chose the right set I rang him up for the ring and bracelet. Then I checked to make sure the necklace was 38 like I thought it said. It turned out it was 58, and the guy freaked pointing to one of the SCSM’s thinking he was a manager like the dumbass he is. I had to get him, and tell him what was going on with the douchebag and the necklace.

Finally after the bastard paid for his stuff, and the whole time he kept insinuating I hated my job when he was the jackass making me look like a screw up after reading the price wrong. I give him the boxes for his stuff with the junk he wants in it, and he is stupid enough to “show” me how to do it like the pompous asshole he is.

He says things like, “If you had more pride in your work then people will Respect you more. You hate customers, and customer service is everything.” And you’re probably an asshole that has not worked a day in retail in your life. I was pissed that I could not knock him on his ass, and the way he treated me was horrible. I have pride in my job, but not when it comes to dealing with assholes like him. I definitely will have to open a case for a contract on his head since he seemed like a sexist asshole.

I hope you enjoyed the deleted scenes!

Until next time,

wolfdreamer25

10 things that annoy me about working retail:

A story by jessicasamuels25 on December 5, 2012.

I have taken over Wolfdreamer25’s blog to talk about my time working retail. I had to in order to solve a case for the werewolves since I owe them. I am hoping my story will come out in January in the meantime I will take over to talk about my experiences in retail.

I have to work at a retail store as my under cover job part time at Fiona’s Corner and Café, and I have been there long enough to make a top ten list of things that annoy me especially things people do and say that make me annoyed when I worked for them. Here are my top 10:

Stop asking me if I work here. I wear the stupid nametag, and uniform how much evidence do you need in front of you that says I work there. I know I look like a kid, but come on stop being a moron and use your head. I feel like saying I don’t work there when people ask me that, or that no I don’t work here I just dress like this to confuse you.
People ask me if we have anything in the back when they cannot find what they are looking for. Everything you see is all that we have, and sometimes we do have it in the back but only when its overstock. Like a lady looking for an item she could not find, and I was trying to find it for her. I did not see it, and it is not in the back, and she took it out on me too. We don’t keep things hidden in a secret compartment either away from people. And don’t give us an attitude when we try to help you, but don’t find the item. Its not our fault you mean vampires, witches, werewolves, and any other creature shopping at the store.
If we cannot repair something since the company says we cannot don’t push us to do it anyway because our company has to pay out of pocket if something happens like the piece breaks and Fiona’s does not have one to replace it. I have many people get mad at me because of the company policies to not do something. The bosses will punish you if the rules are not followed, and I really don’t want to break something and have the customers get mad at me then ask the company to pay for it. The annoying red headed bitch at my job kept pushing me to repair her damn item saying, “The policy has not changed.” This and that trying to convince me to do it, and would say that she would not sue my company if something happens I know it is a lie they all lie. Some of them at least, and I love the ones understanding…
Stop staring at employees when you want help, you have a mouth use it, and don’t beckon us over with your finger we are not dogs. We are people treat us like it.
I really don’t care if you leave your clothes at the fitting room, but don’t leave a random item where it does not belong put it back like a good person and stop leaving a mess for the employees.
Stop talking on your cell phone in line at the counter, or when you need help its rude. I guess manners are too much to ask at the supermarket.
Stop telling me how to do my job especially if you have never worked retail before. Stop pointing out in a rude way if I have done something wrong people make mistakes, and pointing out that I made a mistake rudely makes me feel like punching you in the face or not helping you period. “You did it wrong.” A lady yells after I make a mistake with a check well I have never done it before, and getting mad at me then taking it out on me is not helping me.
If a machine has an error on it then stops assuming it is my fault. It is a card error, and getting mad at me about it is pointless. Then again some people are in such a hurry they want out of there, and they want to blame someone for it.
Stop leaving your carts in the area other then where the carts are like leaving one in jewelry or apparel when it is not supposed to be there is rude to the employees and other people. Especially in the aisles like people do thinking we can put it away for them since they are lazy.
Leave your attitude at the door, and stop bringing it at the store and taking it out on me. I hate it when people treat me badly by yelling at me, or giving me hell about doing my job just because they have a bad day. Like a guy was rude about me trying to save his money by getting him a two pack since it was cheaper instead of a one pack. It makes me mad if I try to be nice, and they are rude back. If I go out of my way to help you don’t be rude.

Those are just ten things that make me annoyed about working retail. If you work in retail then add a comment about what makes you mad about working in retail.

I might have more later on…That was a little tid bit about working at Fiona’s Corner and Cafe thanks to Scarlet Summers a character in the novel Vampires in Retail Sucks. I hope you enjoyed it!

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Writers and dealing with people..

A story by jessicasamuels25 on September 14, 2012.

I want to be a stay at home author and journalist in the future. I have to have a job though so I can make money to afford college. I thought I would end up staying at my first job, but it did not happen at all. I got let go thanks to not being funded anymore. No problem I will get a job somewhere in that field with no luck at the end of trying to find a job in another department.

I instead applied to jobs that deal with people since it was a better option to me then working in restaurants or fast food. I landed a job that deals with people not having any experience, and not knowing what I was really in for. It turns out after a year I found out there are lessons to learn there that I can use to make me a more successful writer.

How to deal with people. I have never dealt with the general public before, and authors have readers with all kinds of personalities, and they have to deal with agents, editors, and publishers too. It prepares you for getting used to their opinions, and sometimes how to deal when it clashes with your personality.
It teaches you certain business skills you will need for the future. Skills like counting money, and what people like and don’t like. What people can improve on, and sometimes what not to do when it comes to certain situations.
It teaches you how to solve problems and think critically. You have no idea how to solve an issue unless you face it head on. Like trying to solve a reader issue is one example, and people related jobs prepares you to solve issues when they arise. Sometimes you have to solve it on your own without help.
You get to see a side of people you have never seen unless you are on the other side.
It teaches you how to be patient. Writing can take a very long time in the process from idea for a book to published in the stores. Jobs that deal with people allow you to develop patience when dealing with certain customer or reader interactions.
It can teach you lessons like treating the ones behind the counter or ones that have to obey the companies rules. Considering people related jobs like retail, mall ones, and restaurant people take a lot of flack from the general public like being yelled at because of a little issue easily fixable if they would stop yelling at you and allow you to solve it. People complain about policies to you when there is nothing you can do about it, and they should take it up to the people in charge instead. I just wish the general public would stop treating people that work in stores better too.

Those are some of the lessons and what about you have you learned lessons to take away from the job that you work at? Ones that apply to real life?

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Moving Forward

A story by jessicasamuels25 on August 20, 2012.

I have officially started a new semester at Tyler, and it will be my second to last semester. I graduate that Spring in May with an Associates of Science. I am transferring to VCU to major in Journalism and Minor in Creative Writing. This semester I have a poetry and a novel writing class, and a math one which is not one of my favorite subjects. They are going to be my general electives as well as a math credit class. I will post my work from the novel and poetry classes to the blog.

I am hopefully going to blog twice a week more like on Mondays, Tuesdays, or Thursdays since I have those days for school and writing. I work in between writing and school which is why I don’t post as much as I should. It is not easy either.

Onto Writing news: I am having the cover for the first killer story redone, and boy did I love the beginnings of it. I am uploading the cover next Thursday after I meet with one of my cover artists. I am making the first story available for KOBO readers that day after I get the cover. Then to Amazon and Smashwords.

Currently I am working on rewriting the first retail novel, and changing the store from normal to supernatural. I love desigining the store too! I hope to be done in a month with the rewrites depending on how long I work on the story. Then after it is edited I give it to the beta readers, get the cover art, and then it will be available as an ebook for Amazon, Nook, Smashwords, Ibooks, and KOBO readers.

Speaking about writing projects or art projects what are you guys working on now?

Until next time,

Wolfdreamer25

Another Novel Done!!!

A story by jessicasamuels25 on June 20, 2012.

I just finished the first retail novel, and it was really fun to write. It took up a whole notebook, and some of my Writing Thoughts notebook. The only thing is I mainly wrote it by long hand, and now I have to type the entire thing up almost which is going to take some time. I love my Film and Literature online class, and the cool thing about it is I am doing a five page paper on the book Dracula, and the movie. I will be taking a Novel Writing class during the fall as well as a Poetry one. I cannot wait, but I am not excited about the math class.

I am going to be working on the second killer novel, and second retail one. I set the first book up for the second. It will have a new character this time dealing with witches, and angels. The main character is an empathy that can sense people’s emotions. I graduate from John Tyler in May, so I am pretty excited about that. Then I will be going into Mass Communications doing print journalism. I have been working a whole lot too, but that means I have been getting less writing done. I perfected my query letter a second time, and I am waiting on feedback for my first novel. I will let people know when the first retail novel will be out since it needs to be edited, and I need a cover for it too. That is really all that I have been doing, and I am taking a four day vacation in July to Dc then Maryland which I have been looking forward to all summer!!

I have been getting impatient with everything lately cause it is such a slow process in writing. Any tips on what to do when you get impatient?

Until Next Time,

Wolfdreamer25