Tag: I’m Published Here!

“Those Wings Which Tire, They Have Upheld Me” now in Best of Penumbric Speculative Fiction Mag, vol vi

It’s amazingly gratifying when editors and publishers consider one’s work worthy of “Best Of” status, and I’m quite proud of The Wings Which Tire, They Have Upheld Me for many reasons:

  • The haunted house I mention existed (never learned if it was haunted) about half a mile from where I grew up.
  • I knew Lenny in grade school. He was a gifted scholar who didn’t fit in because of family issues, parental and societal neglect, and what we now recognize as “learning difficulties.” (I so wish people were more aware…hell, even partially aware…of such challenges when I was a child).
  • Most people know I was legally blind most of my life (which means “needed glasses so thick if he didn’t have them he needed a dog and a cane”), and yes, much of the main character’s experiences are based on my own.
  • Lenny and I were voracious readers of books and on topics of which our teachers were unaware.
  • Kevin also existed and tormented me through most of my grade school years. The “I can’t SEE” chant is directly his.
  • My childhood safety existed in my imagination, and not knowing what I was suppose to see and not see, I envisioned the most amazing things (still do!).

Enjoy!

“Cymodoce” now in Shelter of Daylight

My story, Cymodoce, is in Shelter of Daylight July 2023.

What if the only man you’ve ever
given yourself to isn’t a man
at all?
And
what if you gave birth to
twins, the son wholly yours,
the daughter wholly his?
And
what if your daughter needs
to return to her father in
order to survive?
And
what if her survival means
never seeing her again, and
her brother losing his sister
forever?

 

 
Yeeha for me!

“Nothing Ever Dies of Old Age in The Wild” now on BizCatalyst360

The kind folks at BizCatalyst360 just published my Nothing Ever Dies of Old Age in The Wild, about recognizing and understanding how The Wild sees to itself and thereby sees to us.

Regular readers know my experiences of The Wild are documented under WildLife on this site’s menu.

 
Enjoy!

“DeathSong” now on BizCatalyst360

The kind folks at BizCatalyst360 just published my DeathSong, an excerpt from my forthcoming The Shaman and offered at the prodding of Mark O’Brien who found meaning in my The Paraclete.

The Shaman came about because a good number of people kept asking me about my background and training. I’d meant to write a book for years, and have a really poorly written manuscript dating from the late 1980s to prove it.

Several times I’d take that manuscript out and massage it. Into a different yet equally poorly written manuscript.

Finally, I took it out in late 2019 and asked myself, “What would make this an interesting story?”

That, and getting permission from one of my teachers (who spoke for all of them) was what I needed.

Originally entitled “Shaman Story,” the graphic artist who did the interior and exterior artwork mistakenly wrote “The Shaman” on the bookcover and Shaboom! it was done.

You can also get an idea of an earlier version of the story at DeathSong here on my blog.

For me, it’s always interesting to see how a story changes over time.

And in either case, enjoy.

 
Enjoy!