I asked fellow The Rabbit Hole Weird Stories Destination:Journey anthology contributors to share some things about themselves prior to publication and those generous enough to do so will be appearing here for the next week or so.
Each entry gives a taste of their contribution, a little about them, how to contact them, how their story came about, and definitely a link to The Rabbit Hole Weird Stories Destination:Journey (which you should purchase because it would make each and every one of us happy.
you do want to make us happy, don’t you?
i mean, considering what we wrote, you want us to know you’re a good person, right?).
Let’s start with an introduction to the anthology as a whole:
“Life is a journey, not a destination.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Emerson’s point has been echoed by many, but in the Land of the Weird the question arises, “A journey to what destination?” At the same time, you might ask, “Is the journey therefore the destination?” The journey may well be an individual’s destination, because it will define them physically, emotionally, and spiritually. And in the Land of the Weird, that journey can take twists and turns that amuse, sadden, or horrify.
This trip into the Land of the Weird offers you 39 unique trails to follow, assisted by 35 different guides, each leading you down their own singular paths, manifesting their own view of journey as destination, some laughing, some weeping, and some, eyes wide with fear, shaking as they point out the spectral footpath for you to follow on your way down The Rabbit Hole.A Writers Co-op Production
Stories by: Chere Taylor, Brian R. Quinn, Arthur M. Doweyko, Donna J. W. Munro, Tom Howard, Kayla Whittle, Leslie Muzingo, Pete Barnstrom, Emmie Christie, Thomas Nicholson, GD Deckard, Richard DeRobertis, M.C. Schmidt, James Dorr, Rosalind Goldsmith, Margaret Karmazin, J.W.Wood, James Rumpel, Bill McCormick, v.f. thompson, Fran Tabor, David K. Slay, Joseph Carrabis, Jane Frankel, Alice Baburek, Susan R. Morritt, Bobby Rollins, Lee Clark Zumpe, Denice Penrose, Stephen McQuiggan, H. Donovan Lyón, Anna Ross, Michael Pudney, Beth Gaydon, and Tom Wolosz.
Michael’s contribution is Artificiality. Here’s the opening:
“Where she is, she does not know. How she got here, ditto. Survive first, ask questions later.
She’s never had any real desire to climb snow-capped mountains, but she’s on top of one. On the few occasions the clouds ebb, she strains her eyes to count peak after peak, all lower than the one she stands on. Vast white jagged apexes for miles and miles. And then the cloud and the fog and the snow comes once more to consume her. Back to being a grain of sugar in a bag of salt.”
How the story came about:
Artificiality, was dreamed up…in a dream! I woke up one morning with a full arc, characters, twist, setting and every other ingredient required for a story. I grabbed my pen asap and turned it into a publishable piece. My ultimate goal in life is to do most of my creative work while I sleep.
About Michael Pudney:
Michael has been writing since 10 years old and his first story was terrible. He hopes that almost 30 years later his stories are slightly better than The Candle Wax Gang Get Lost in the Jungle. You can find more of his work at michaelpudney.com.
See all The Rabbit Hole Weird Stories Destination:Journey stories here.