Stories that evoke our deepest pains, like our regret for withholding love from those closest to us, like a need to fill the void of their absence, or our inconsolable calls to their spirits—in the dark, in the shower, or … Continue reading Of Love and Regret
“A complex world of human creatures and fantasy creatures, all vividly drawn from deep wells of imagination and rendered in crisp and lucid prose. A fabulous tale spun from ordinary longings and desires,both benevolent and malevolent. Continue reading Draako Stars Online
I write more than fantasy fiction. Look for my short stories online: in After Hours (print), bewilderingstories.com, http://www.horrorseek.com/home/horror/darkfire/ficarch.html, http://www.fictitiousthejournal.org/, the Weird Reader, and the Fall Fantasy Anthology out of Cloaked Press in Autumn, 2017. Continue reading Not Only Dragons
“Always remember you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, smarter than you think and twice as beautiful as you’d ever imagined.”—Rumi In a fierce battle described in Malevir: Dragons Return, the narrative’s antagonist, called the Malevir, attacks … Continue reading As I Promised
Nnylf, one of the adolescent protagonists of the novel, has entered a ruined castle tower during a raging storm. His dragon, off to battle, has left him there, hoping his rider will find shelter.
With each cautious footstep, Nnylf felt the stair treads bounce and sag. He slid one hand along a gritty wall to steady himself. When he reached the bottom step, he stopped. He pressed one hand to his chest; his rapidly beating heart pounded in his ears. An arm’s length in front of him stretched a dark curtain. As Nnylf touched it with a shaking finger, it crumbled, and a coat of fine black dust covered the floor in front of him. Beyond lay a broad chamber.
The light that had guided him down the stairway began to fade. Nnylf held his breath. Deepening shadows in each corner of the chamber were moving. They glided toward him, and he felt enveloped by a growing chill penetrating his armor and seeping into his bones. Continue reading What I Write
Lately, I have been reading novels by science-fiction/speculative-fiction writers like Philip K. Dick, William Gibson, Kevin Brockmeier, and others, and am topping off this jag (unrestrained and compulsive) with Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s Good Omens. In every instance except … Continue reading Estranged in a Strange Land–9/11
I’ve been thinking about monsters and menace as I craft the last book of my fantasy genre trilogy. Because I have been working on this project for several years, my greatest challenge is writing a coherent and consistent series; but … Continue reading Birthing Monsters
“There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another which … Continue reading The Long, Dark Teatime of the Soul
“There are only two or three human stories, and they go on repeating themselves as fiercely as if they had never happened before.” Willa Cather Yes, Willa, but each re-telling wears a different face and leads us to another place, … Continue reading One of a Thousand Faces
Last weekend at a local book fair, one of my friends dropped by the writers’ tent where I was promoting my latest novel, Where Dragons Follow. She asked another writer sharing the tent to take a photo of the two … Continue reading It’s Not My Skin…Or is It?
