15 Days of Harveys Day 6 – Crysta Coburn’s “Smoke”

Smoke

by Crysta Coburn

 
“My father fought in Crimea. He built the beasts of the air that won it for us.”
Viktor pulled off his boots and tossed them across the floor of the little cafe alcove, then leaned back against the plush velvet settee, arms folded behind his pale, clammy neck. He watched for a moment as the young woman seated before him at the low, round table quietly went about her business of filling the brass base of the hookah with water, then inserting the shaft, and so on. A small fire burned in a brazier on the table to cook the small coals.

The above is from Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 8 (the famous “No Dragons” issue). You can read the rest of Crysta Coburn’s Smoke along with several other amazing stories between its captivating covers (and we both I hope you do!)

Have you been Harveyed?

The kind, wise, and wonderful folks at Sixth Element Publishing included four of my flash pieces in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 8 and I’m repaying that kindness by showcasing the opening from each author’s work for the next few weeks.

 
Read

Next up, a taste of Davia Sack’s The Curse of Beauty.

Enjoy!

Snowberry Clearwing moth, aka Hummingbird Moth (courtesy of Brother Joe Della Rosa)

Brother Joe Della Rosa and his daughter walked through their backyard and received a blessing for their time; a Snowberry Clearwing moth, sometimes known as “hummingbird” moths.

I shared a local hummingbird moth’s visit in Velda, the Hummingbird Moth just about this time two years back.

Snowberry Humming Clearwing Bird moth territory has increased largely over the past few years. Perhaps due to the reasons sited in Velda, the Hummingbird Moth, perhaps not.

One can never have enough beauty in one’s world.

And still, best be careful where beauty originates.

And why.

 

15 Days of Harveys Day 5 – Christine King’s “The Child, The Witch, and The Werewolf”

The Child, The Witch, and The Werewolf

by Christine King

 
Grandmother was a witch.
Not for her the traditional image of a witch. She was not old and bent, with a hooked nose and warts. She did not boil the ears of bats in a huge bubbling cauldron, nor did she wear black pointed hats or ride around on a broomstick. She did have a cat though.
This grandmother was tall and slim and she wore elegant clothes which showed off her neat figure. If she ever cast any spells on herself, they must have been for youth and beauty as she did not seem to age, and where most women of her age had at least a few wrinkles and grey hair, Grandmother the witch had smooth skin and a mane of thick, rich auburn red hair.
She kept her hair safely hidden under a respectable bonnet when she ventured out of her cottage, and tucked away under a mob cap at bedtime. It did not do to advertise her charms too publicly, and she did not wish to either attract or antagonise any of her neighbours with her looks. She was not feared by the locals however, rather the opposite, in fact. She was revered and respected, and her potions were much sought after. No one’s livestock ever sickened and died, no crops failed, no lovelorn maiden stayed single for long once one of her potions had been brewed, delivered and drunk. She was a wise woman, a healer, a teller of fortunes, a seer, a sage.

The above is from Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 8 (the famous “No Dragons” issue) and you can read the rest of Christine King’s The Child, The Witch, and The Werewolf along with several other amazing stories between its captivating covers (and we both I hope you do!).

Have you been Harveyed?

The kind, wise, and wonderful folks at Sixth Element Publishing included four of my flash pieces in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 8 and I’m repaying that kindness by showcasing the opening from each author’s work for the next few weeks.

 
Read

Next up, a taste of Chrysta Coburn’s .

Enjoy!

15 Days of Harveys Day 4 – Bruce Connelly’s “Hare Today, Gone…?”

Hare Today, Gone…?

by Bruce Connelly

 
Jack rolled out of bed at 6:30 on Easter Morning. “I can’t believe the kids aren’t up yet,” he muttered. “I’m getting the bathroom first!”
“Jack,” Nancy murmured, her face buried in the pillows. “Stay away from the baskets.”
“Do you think I’d steal candy from my own children?” he said, as he pulled on his robe.
“Yes, I do. Where did the Crunchy Crispy Candy Bars go out of their Trick or Treat bags?”
“Goblins. Where are my slippers?”
“And the Liquorice All Sorts out of their stockings?”
“Krampus. But you could make this a whole lot easier, you know.”
“How?”
“Give me my own Easter Basket!”

The above is from Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 8 (the famous “No Dragons” issue) and you can read the rest of Bruce Connelly’s Hare Today, Gone…? along with several other amazing stories between its captivating covers (and we both I hope you do!)

Have you been Harveyed?

The kind, wise, and wonderful folks at Sixth Element Publishing included four of my flash pieces in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 8 and I’m repaying that kindness by showcasing the opening from each author’s work for the next few weeks.

 
Read

Next up, a taste of Christine King’s The Child, The Witch, and The Werewolf.

Enjoy!

15 Days of Harveys Day 3 – Alexandrina Brant’s “Cartography, Creatures, & Craquelin (A Melina Short)”

Cartography, Creatures, & Craquelin (A Melina Short)

by Alexandrina Brant

 
Everyone was of the opinion that cartography was not a woman’s work. Quite frankly, everyone was wrong and had been for quite some time. The female brain – from what Melina West understood of it, though she understood a deal more about most other parts of the female anatomy – was exactly what cartography needed for transforming points of worldly data into artwork that informed as well as beautified.

The above is from Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 8 (the famous “No Dragons” issue) and you can read the rest of Alexandrina Brant’s Cartography, Creatures, & Craquelin (A Melina Short) along with several other amazing stories between its captivating covers (and we both I hope you do!)

Have you been Harveyed?

The kind, wise, and wonderful folks at Sixth Element Publishing included four of my flash pieces in Harvey Duckman Presents Volume 8 and I’m repaying that kindness by showcasing the opening from each author’s work for the next few weeks.

 
Read

Like what you read? Go get Harvey 8. In fact, get all the Harveys. We (the authors) won’t mind.

Next up, a taste of Bruce Connelly’s Hare Today, Gone…?.

Enjoy!