SFFS Snippet - 11/3/12

Note: This is rough draft material from the short stories I am working on during NaNoWriMo.

After nibbling on some hard cheese and stale bread from his pack, Darney pulled the cards out of his pocket and spread them in front of him, far enough away from the fire that no sparks would jump on them, but close enough so he could see part of the images on their faces.

Per usual, the Magus card stalked him at the center of the heap, reversed, staring up at him, accusing him of not being who he was supposed to be--labeling him a charlatan. The confidence of the mage on the card was wiped when reversed, like something had drained the vibrant colors surrounding him. Blue cat eyes glinted in the backdrop, but they looked miserable upside down.

The mage had escaped the fire, and it seemed to call the damaged cards to it, so it could protect them. What Darney should have done.

He scooped the cards up and stuffed them back in his pocket. His own guilt was enough--he didn't need it from that card too.

Darney shut his eyes, yearning for sleep, to forget what had happened. But the screams wouldn't let him.

From "The Magus" (placeholder title) in the Fate series (rough draft)

About the Fate series:

A story for every Tarot card. A connection to the world of Fate for every story. The three world-hopping cat sisters find themselves at home in the purples of Fate, yet still drawn to the greens of Earth, sticking their noses in the stories of inhabitants of both worlds.

"The Magus" follows Darney on his quest to heal his damaged deck of Tarot cards--cards that have their own heartbeats.

Please visit Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) to read more great snippets!

NEXT UP: NaNoWriMo Update #1

SFFS Snippet - 10/27/12

The barn doors lay open, welcoming the night, but the sky outside was black. No hint of stars or moon. Close to the door, a nail pierced one of the beams that held up the roof. And on that nail hung the silver shoes.

Click, click, click. Tap, tap, tap.

The wind and its tricks made the shoes dance. First they knocked against the beam three times, followed by tapping together another three. A long pause, and then the dance started again. The consistency was eerie.

Excerpt from "Dancing in the Wind".

About "Dancing in the Wind":

The Wizard of Oz is a timeless story that nearly everyone knows about. So what happens when that timeless story is turned on its head? Dorothy is a bully who is thrown into the world of Oz. She gets a taste of her own medicine from a crazy trio of munchkins and the Wizard of Oz himself.

This story received an Honorable Mention in the L. Ron Hubbard's Writers of the Future Contest for the 4th Quarter of 2009.

You can purchase this short story from Amazon, B&N, Smashwords and Kobo!

Please visit Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) to read more great snippets!

NEXT UP: Magic is Reality, Reality is Magic - Samhain

SFFS Snippet - 9/15/12

Time for Lazarus to dance. "Do you wish the aid of a spirit seeker?"

The chief pushed his spectacles up the bridge of his nose. "There are restless spirits that refuse to leave their old home for their new one."

The dialogue was the same every time. A changed word here and there, but Lazarus knew all his lines. "When they see me, they will go home and leave you in peace."

"We wish them honor, not harm. They are souls that are dear to us. We welcome a gentle hand, Spirit Seeker."

From Dead As Dreams, Chapter 3 (novel currently in the revision process)

About Dead As Dreams:

Dreams are in danger and souls are chained to the earth. Aysa, the Shepherd of Dreams, and Lazarus, a spirit seeker, join forces to restore the balance between dreams and nightmares and life and death. They face a rogue spirit seeker and a manipulator of nightmares--both intent on unhinging the world, but there is yet another pulling the strings.

Please visit Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) to read more great snippets!

NEXT UP: Classic Voltron: Defender of the Universe-- Episode Two! Change of plans - Writing Blues!

SFFS Snippet - 8/25/12

He returns to the door and feels a tickle between his shoulder blades. The sense of eyes watching him, many eyes, overwhelms him, and he leans on the door. The eyes listen, but there are no mouths for them to speak.

A bird bolts out of the eaves of a shuttered tower, and a feather drifts past the Traveler and settles on the doorstep at his feet. It shimmers in the light of a moonbeam. A wind picks it up and takes it away--a ghost's soft, silent exhale.

Excerpt from "A Little Bit of Magic", which can be found in the anthology Hazard Yet Forward.

Does anyone know the poem "The Listeners" by Walter de la Mere? That poem inspired this story. Read my speculations as to why no one answered the Traveller's knock.

All proceeds from sales of Hazard Yet Forward go to a wonderful friend and writer to help with her expenses during her fight with breast cancer. There are over 70 stories (that's over 700 pages to read), some by award winners (Contributors), spanning numerous genres. It can only be purchased as e-book via Amazon.com. It's well worth the read!

Please visit Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) to read more great snippets!

NEXT UP: Magic is Reality, Reality is Magic - The Element of Air

SFFS Snippet - 7/28/12

The Shepherd sensed a shift in the nightmare, an undercurrent nonexistent the other times she'd been here.

She uncurled from her fetal position and rose up on her arms, the stones slick under her palms. The water dripped, and dark shadows of buildings surrounded her, but nothing else. She sniffed the air.

There it was, a soft scent of blooming flowers, with an edge of decay and death to the perfume. A vase of lilies that had sat out for too long, the stems rotting in the moisture.

Nothing had frozen her more than the sound of the whimpering babe, until now. Fear gripped her, and for a moment she thought she was awake instead of in a nightmare.

From Dead As Dreams, Chapter 2 (novel currently in the revision process)

About Dead As Dreams:

Dreams are in danger and souls are chained to the earth. Aysa, the Shepherd of Dreams, and Lazarus, a spirit seeker, join forces to restore the balance between dreams and nightmares and life and death. They face a rogue spirit seeker and a manipulator of nightmares--both intent on unhinging the world, but there is yet another pulling the strings.

Please visit Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) to read more great snippets!

NEXT UP: Monthly Update!

SFFS Snippet - 7/7/12

A wave of dizziness interrupted the surge of excitement and desire he felt when he thought of the wench. He crawled back into bed and closed his eyes. The image of blue eyes flickered behind his lids, followed by feathers. And tinkling silver leaves.

Then Lazarus remembered her. A dream, he was sure, but the woman in it had seemed so real. If he reached out to grab her, he could pull her right out of the fantasy and into his room.

And the slight warmth that emanated from her--his dreams were always cold, like real life, like the souls he sent off. Everything was cold. Except sex and this strange woman.

From Dead As Dreams, Chapter 2 (novel currently in the revision process)

About Dead As Dreams:

Dreams are in danger and souls are chained to the earth. Aysa, the Shepherd of Dreams, and Lazarus, a spirit seeker, join forces to restore the balance between dreams and nightmares and life and death. They face a rogue spirit seeker and a manipulator of nightmares--both intent on unhinging the world, but there is yet another pulling the strings.

Please visit Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) to read more great snippets!

NEXT UP: Magic is Reality, Reality is Magic - The Element of Fire

SFFS Snippet - 6/16/12

A scent invaded the Shepherd of Dream's nose--rotting foliage, wrongness--right before she slipped from the Nexus and into a dream, where another stench kicked the first one to the back of her mind. Ale. Not the sweet smell of it when it was freshly poured, but the nose-wrinkling fumes floating off the breath of someone who was drinking too much.

She reeled, covering her mouth with her arm, hesitant to venture further into the dream. She had to, though. This was why she existed, to improve others' dreams, in hopes of affecting their waking lives. At least that's what she thought. She'd never had a guide, no instructions on what to do when she first realized she could live in dreams and manipulate them. She was surely the will of Muska, Mother of Dreams. It was the only explanation.

From Dead As Dreams, Chapter 1 (novel currently in the revision process)

About Dead As Dreams:

Dreams are in danger and souls are chained to the earth. Aysa, the Shepherd of Dreams, and Lazarus, a spirit seeker, join forces to restore the balance between dreams and nightmares and life and death. They face a rogue spirit seeker and a manipulator of nightmares--both intent on unhinging the world, but there is yet another pulling the strings.

Please visit Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) to read more great snippets!

NEXT UP: Traveling to Writing Residency with a Preschooler - 11 Hours in a Car!

Update from the MFA Trenches

Aside from my couple SFFS posts, I know I've been on the silent end, but as mentioned at the beginning of the year, I have a lot on my plate, and I am attempting to plan and restructure things for when I finally graduate.

I figured I was at least due for an update, though. =)

My classes are as crazy as I thought they would be. Between my toddler and all the class work, I am exhausted! I'm not even halfway through the term and I am burned out.

So, where does this leave me with my writing? I'm still making progress on Dead As Dreams - I estimate about 5-6 chapters left to write in the rough draft. I have yet to get a handle on the Write Every Day goal, but I'll get there, I'm sure. Baby Steps. ;)

I did make the time to participate in two things this month, which were great experiences!

I was part of a podcast for Broad Universe's monthly podcasts, Broadly Speaking. February's is about romance in speculative fiction, so feel free to have a listen if you're interested.

Then I guest blogged at Heidi Ruby Miller's blog for her Secret Writers series. That was great fun as well!

The couple times I participated in Science Fiction and Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) was a blast too - I hope everyone liked the snippets I posted.

Also I have a couple reminders before I wrap up this post.

Writing Quest - March starts tomorrow, and the event is already posted on Facebook, so feel free to join us and tell us what your writing goals are for the month.

And I can't forget to mention the In Your Write Mind Workshop that's coming up in June. I'll be at the residency this year, but since they coincide, I'll be around. In Your Write Mind is a great retreat run by the alums of Seton Hill's Writing Popular Fiction Program!

That should do it for now. It's time to convince myself to work on more class work instead of giving into the desire to take a nap. Happy writing, all!

SFFS Snippet - 2/25/12

Drawn to her, [Bastian] couldn't stop from turning his head, watch her place a loose hair behind her ear and smooth her dress, her bags now at her feet. If Simon's worries ended up nothing more than paranoia, perhaps this wouldn't be a wasted trip. A hum sounded in his mind, reaching its vibration through his entire body. A little fun never hurt.

From The Mind Behind the Mind, Chapter 2

Leera is a world where the bloody sun is said to be the head of the witch that was killed by the first witch hunter. To prove the good intentions of her people, Tessa pursues a murderer, joins forces with Bastian, a witch hunter, and puts her life and the lives of her fellow witches at risk.

Please visit Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) to read more great snippets!

SFFS Snippet - 2/11/12

Tessa imagined what the orchards would look like if the irrigation failed. Twining fruitless branches stretching upward, imploring the sky to open and bring forth rain. She regarded the trees, envisioning their lifeless husks, and noticed a tree with two shadows. One of the shadows shifted. Cold tendrils wove into her mind. The shadow shouldn't have been there; it was wrong.

From The Mind Behind the Mind, Chapter 1

Leera is a world where the bloody sun is said to be the head of the witch that was killed by the first witch hunter. Tessa is a witch and Bastian is a witch hunter, with witchblood. They're drawn together, caught between others struggling for power, and trying to discover who they are and what they are to each other.

Please visit Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday (SFFS) to read more great snippets!

There And Back Again

OK, so I have The Hobbit on the brain, but I DID just have to read that book again, so that's a good enough reason for me. =)

I usually write up my yearly post closer to January 1, but this year I have been a bit delayed. I've been thinking a lot about 2011 and how fast it flew by. It zoomed by so fast that I hardly got anything done that I had intended. To me, this means I'm doing something wrong.

Perhaps I'm expecting too much of myself, perhaps I have too much on my to do lists and when I falter even just a little it drags me down and I feel like any of it is impossible. Or maybe I just need to find the right motivation to propel me forward. Even with raising a toddler, dealing with sickness, and managing my M.F.A. classes, I know I should be able to progress with my writing at a better rate than I have been.

And because of all these thoughts, I think I need to take a lesson from FlyLady.net I am a fluttering FlyBaby attempting to get my house in order as well as my writing. One of the big things FlyLady encourages is Baby Steps. Don't pile it all on, do a little at a time, and slowly add things in until they become habits.

I need to make my writing time into a habit, and to do that I need to start small. My main goal for my Writing Term project in my M.F.A. program is getting on a consistent writing schedule. THAT is my SINGLE goal for the year. This means writing every day, even if it is just 100 words.

And since I definitely need to take Baby Steps, I need to work on one habit at a time, and cut back on other things. This includes blogging.

I have made the decision to cut down (for now) on how often I blog. The writing has to come first - I need to start producing more instead of having novels linger for nearly a decade before a rough draft is done. I'm not going to set a blogging schedule for at least the first six months of the year. I'll blog when I find slivers of time, when I have a link or two to share, when I possibly have some essays from my classes to post, and if anyone decides they want to do a guest blog.

I do hope to start taking part in SFFS (Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday) some time soon (not this week yet, though), but I don't know how often I will participate.

I do hope that those of you who have enjoyed visiting my blog will still hang in there with me, even though there won't be as much content as there was in 2011.

So, I am ditching all the disappointments of 2011, and I am taking Baby Steps in 2012:

WRITE EVERY DAY

Eventually I'll get back to blogging every week, but I'm not going to rush myself or set a date.

Good luck to everyone with their goals and resolutions for 2012. Happy writing!

And don't forget to visit my Facebook Page and join in on Writing Quest if you dare - I will still be running it each month. There's an ambitious list of goals from many people for Writing Quest - January already!