Thursday Thirteen: Around town

First off, open this link in a new tab. I’m guest blogging over at Beth’s Book Review Blog. And yep, a lucky commenter will win a free digital download (that’s an e-book) from Smashwords.com.

If you’re an old-timer around here, you might recognize some of these places in my fictional city of Riverview, USA. I’ve had to create some new places of late for some bigger stuff I’ve been working on, so I thought I’d share.

1. Java Bird — this is Lyric’s favorite coffee shop. It’s in walking distance from her shop (which you should all know about by now!) and she’s hooked. Addicted.

2. Fit Riverview — the city’s best chain of exclusive, yuppie, snotty health clubs. A number of the Riverview Otters belong there. There are four around the city, and each one is host to the city’s best after-work basketball team.

3. Baked With Love — corny name, great croissants.

4. Riverview Central Municipal Library — created for our Thirteen friend Celtic Librarian. Wait until you hear the story behind this place… you’ll have to wait until it figures into a longer piece, sad to say. (for you. And me, who needs the time to create it!)

5. Arts Unlimited — the arts supply store near Lyric’s shop. Kerri often shops there; in fact, most of the students at the Riverview Art Academy shop there. Sergei, the owner, gives nice discounts to long-time shoppers.

6. The Old-Fashioned Dime Shop — Just what it’s name says it is. If you can’t find it here, it doesn’t exist. Or else it costs a fortune. Because of their proximity to Lyric’s shop (next door!), they do a hefty business in batteries.

7. The Rocket Theater — the former drag queen only club, it’s slowly being converted into a venue for live rock music. If you’ve been to The Fillmore in San Francisco, you get an idea of what the concert hall is like. Complete with chandeliers.

8. Vic’s Vinyl — a record store that Mitchell used to hang out in. Vic, the owner, is one cool chick: half her face has a tattoo of a butterfly on it. A black, purple, blue, and magenta butterfly that’s angry and evil. Vic is a punk through-and-through, but her store’s as diverse as the rest of Riverview. (I have yet to do anything with this place except create it, but won’t it be fun to play with?)

9. All Access — You know those clubs that are guaranteed to have the cops show up? The ones that smell so badly of every bodily fluid imaginable (and some you haven’t thought of), of smoke, of beer — yeah, All Access smells so bad, you can smell it outside. People die inside All Access. It only holds about 200 people — 250 on a good night — but playing a show there gets you all the bragging rights you could want.

10. Elite Threads — a designer men’s clothing store. Our ShapeShifter boys shop there. Sometimes. (They do NOT do Trevor’s leather pants) It’s a bit too business-oriented, a bit too yuppie. Eric often finds clothes to wear to his father’s church there. Since, you know. Dad doesn’t appreciate ShapeShifter t-shirts on a Sunday morning.

11. I can’t let the opportunity go by without mentioning one of my favorite places in Riverview: Big Buck’s Best Barbecue. His Bodacious Sauce is legendary.

12. Zuckerman’s Famous Pig — Yeah, I might get sued for that one, but c’mon. What ELSE would you call a kosher deli????

13. The Slaughterhouse. More on this one to come. Much, much more.