Shadows in the Mirror Available for Kindle

One of my older short stories is now available for purchase on Amazon. I personally performed the e-book conversion using the latest processes and tools available and it was quite the learning experience. I'll post more about that later.

Unfortunately it took me a lot longer than I wanted to ready the e-book, which was very frustrating because it has a stunningly cool cover. Here I must give a huge shout-out to Erin Dameron-Hill, who not only has a masterful touch when it comes to cover design, she's a mind reader too. In my particular case, a better reader of my mind than its actual owner. Really sorry it took this long for people to see the cover.

I should also mention the story, Shadows in the Mirror, is also available in my Dark Doses anthology. Though the standalone e-book I just posted has had some work done on formatting, the story itself is unchanged from the anthology and the original. Be advised.

Lastly, Shadows in the Mirror was first published on The Future Fire, a lovely site where you can discover all kinds of amazing tales to read and enjoy. Check them out sometime.

"Cravings" now posted on Every Day Fiction

Get your "Cravings" today on Every Day Fiction. Won't cost you a thing.

I'll have more about the genesis of this story in an upcoming blog post.

Jimmy Buffet causes "Cravings"

Now there's a blog title subject to muuuch interpretation.

I promised a short expose on how a certain Jimmy Buffet song led to me writing and selling "Cravings" to Every Day Fiction. Well here you go.

First thing you should know is the original title for my story was... (insert drum roll)... "Cheeseburger in Paradise." Which happens to be the title of yet another popular Jimmy Buffet song. And I don't think you have to be a full-fledged Parrothead to have heard and potentially enjoyed that hunger-inducing ditty. For those of you who only know Jimmy via his "Margaritaville", you might be surprised to learn how many more of his songs you're actually acquainted with. But I digress.

I forget the particular circumstances but there was a day some time ago when I had a long string of quiet and reflective moments on tap, which quite often prove to be fertile ground for new story ideas to take root. At least they do for me. Instead, though, like any good ear worm, this particular Buffet song came to mind and promptly took up residence in my forebrain. Normally, such an event would herald the utter demise of any quiet, reflective moments remaining. Vicious ear worms can be a real bitch.

Not this time.

Some twisted, macabre part of my brain went to work on Jimmy's little number. "Yeah, yeah," it said. "Anybody but a staunch vegetarian could delight in a decent cheeseburger consumed in some lush tropical setting. But what if that wasn't allowed? In fact, what if the darn things were illegal? Even better, what if...instead of killing off your body slowly year-by-year... one cheeseburger could make you drop dead right on the spot? And yet, faced with almost certain death, what if there were social misfits who would eagerly and wantonly make that sacrifice just for one fleeting moment of experiencing this contraband food?"

See what I mean? Twisted to the extreme.

Thus, a new flash piece was born.

Things didn't go well to start with. In fact, I made a classic writer blunder with the story. I rushed it out the door to prospective editors. Prematurely. More on that, including how it morphed from "Cheeseburger in Paradise" to "Cravings," in another blog post.

Look for "Cravings" to go live on the Every Day Fiction site the morning of July 27.

If you'll excuse me, it's time for some Buffet, a burger, and a Margarita.

Sale! "Cravings" to Every Day Fiction

With some much appreciated help from the editorial staff at Every Day Fiction, I've sold them another flash piece called "Cravings." It's a tale about a future Earth when eating has become nothing more than a prescription diet of nutrient gels. A medical implant monitors and rigidly enforces the prescription for each individual. But some kids have access to ancient, illegal documents that glorify the foods people used to enjoy and they can't resist experimenting with those contraband delicacies. Even though it kills them in the process.

I'll post more in the days ahead to share a bit of the background and journey that "Cravings" took. As a small teaser, let me just say that a certain Jimmy Buffet song was involved. Not "Margaritaville" either. Stay tuned for that.

Meanwhile, "Cravings" is scheduled to publish on Every Day Fiction on July 27.

A bit more insight into The Master's Voice

My story, "The Master's Voice," is scheduled for posting on The Colored Lens website at the end of August. Woot!

Or, rather than waiting 4 grueling months for gratification, why not enjoy it now by purchasing the Spring 2014 edition of The Colored Lens?

And now for a little story behind the story...

I went through a stretch there where I churned out a few tales that involved dogs in some way. Several didn't make it very far but one, called "Chaperone," was ultimately published in Fusion Fragment, which sadly can't be found on the web anymore but is still available via my short story collection, Dark Doses.

I'm going to make a comment about "Chaperone," but if you intend to read it, here's a SPOILER ALERT. Stop here and go read the story first.



Okay.

So in "Chaperone" things don't work out so well for ole Tiberius. The poor thing finds itself in a time when dogs are mere training tools and not part of the family. Tools can tend to suffer abuse at the hands of the tool wielder and that was certainly the case for Tiberius.

Which left me feeling absolutely crummy.

Being a dog owner, I needed to reverse that feeling and strike a balance. I wanted a story that turned the tables and put the dog back on top, in true, devoted fashion. The result was "The Master's Voice."

When I completed it, I raised a toast to Tiberius and thanked him. He helped me write two stories and now everybody will get to enjoy the second one.

My story is now available for Kindle in the Spring 2014 edition of The Colored Lens

"The Master's Voice" can be yours along with 11 other speculative fiction tales in The Colored Lens, Spring 2014 edition. If you own a Kindle, grab a copy and enjoy.

While you're at it, show the hard working folks at The Colored Lens some love by liking their Facebook page or following them on Twitter.

Nice cover for this edition. Sort of feels like you've splashed down right into a Terry Gilliam movie.

Sale! "The Master's Voice" to The Colored Lens

I'm a sucker for speculative fiction that involves animals or nature as a prominent element in the theme. All too often it can seem that technology hogs the spotlight, particularly in shorter pieces where there isn't much runway or time to make a strong impression. Do both beasts with a little beastly tech though, now I'm a happy reader.

Which is why my tale, "The Master's Voice", has just enough tech to make it a speculative piece but without losing sight of the fact it's a dog story at its core. With a murder mystery thrown in for good measure. Intrigued? You'll get to read it in The Colored Lens in a few months.

I'll have more to add about the story when it runs.

Sale! "Scents" to Every Day Fiction

Though it's a dark piece, "Scents" probably qualifies as one of my palest dark works. It's a 1,000 word spec-fic flash tale of love and devotion set in Earth's near-future, a time when it stinks so horribly people can no longer go outside.

I received some delightfully warm and encouraging comments about the story from the Every Day Fiction editorial team. More to come when it publishes on their website.

Sale: Desperate Measures - also a donation

Ever donate a story to help a cause?

I just did.

I expect you’ve heard of Cystic Fibrosis. It’s a cruel, killer disease that afflicts about 70,000 people worldwide with 1,000 new cases diagnosed each year. While advances in treatment have been made, the median age for survival of a CF sufferer is still only in the late 30s.

It’s less likely that you’ve heard of Erotic Anthology, which produces a grab-bag of themed story collections, all of which have an erotic tilt of some kind. Most of the collections are unified together under the main title of Coming Together, and each of the themes is then a subtitle within. The Coming Together anthologies are sold through the major digital outlets and in print format. All the profits from the sales are donated to various charitable causes. The motto of Erotic Anthology is: “doing good while being bad.”

Indeed.

Recently, a new science fiction theme was added to the Coming Together line called Off World. I happen to spot the call for submissions. While I can’t say I’m looking to branch out my writing generally into erotica, the mission of Coming Together appealed to me while also giving me a shot at writing outside of the box. It was something quite different.

Still, I dithered. Until a tragic, erotic, sci-fi story plot line smacked me between the eyes. Funny how that happens.

The result was a dark little tale called Desperate Measures, which is about what can happen between a woman and a man on a last-ditch, one-way mission that doesn’t quite go as planned. I’d classify the story as a sci-fi romance with an erotic thread. If you’re looking for something more gratuitous, titillating or explicit, this is not the story for you.

Here’s a teaser:

I dreamed.

Emma said I would. According to her, most people did though they didn't realize it.

She knew firsthand, having been a guinea pig for the initial suspension trials. Said she loved it, giddy and gushing like an eager teen in a clingy prom dress with grand expectations and even bigger desires. Said she couldn't wait for the real mission, the true motivation for suspension testing. The ultimate payoff.

Emma told me she'd dreamed of her first husband, Mack, and her second, Padraig, both killed in Zet raids not four months apart. Emma died too, weeks after Padraig, in another raid during our panicked retreat from Betelgeuse, our fleet hacked to one third the size of when we'd arrived.

Sorry, Emma. No mission for you. No prom. No climax in some glorious payoff that you ached for.

But I got to go. Emma had nailed it and more.

You can purchase Desperate Measures thusly (and it goes without saying that this is for adults only):

On Amazon

On Smashwords

On Omnilit

And here is the main page for Coming Together: Off World over on Erotic Anthology.

Your purchase results in a donation to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. So you can have a guilty pleasure while helping a worthy cause.

Doing good while being bad.

I think I’m going to enjoy it.

Good news on a story

But I'm going to be one of those mean bloggers and not reveal any details just yet. Don't you hate it when writers do that? Grrr.

What I can say about it is... I stepped somewhat out of the box. I had an interest in writing a certain type of story, set my mind to it and then did it. It was a good exercise of my creative mental muscle and I could have left it at that: an thought experiment not intended for further pursuit.

Except that I couldn't leave it alone.

I put the story through the honing and polish process, liked the final result and submitted it to a choice market. By now you've guessed that it got accepted, which thrills me to no end. It also raises some tough new questions for me and I'll have to expand on that when I finally reveal all the details.

So the point of this post is not really to tease you, just to encourage you to step out of your cozy writer's box every now and then. It's part of your overall journey and who knows what new destinations it could open up.