EDIT: Sage: Tales from a Magical Kingdom is now available in multiple formats, including Sony formats, HTML, PDF and EPUB over at www.Smashwords.com. Here is a link to Sage. The price is still the same: $1.00

Also available via Barnes and Noble.

Sword and Sorcery meets Agatha Christie. Three novellas introduce the Kingdom of Sage and those who protect its boundaries.
Sometimes it takes a more experienced hand to save an entire Kingdom.

The first of these stories, Toil, Trouble and Rot, was published in Coyote Wild Magazine; the other two are all new, original stories. In Dungeons and Decay find out just how far a mother will go when her child is in danger–and how much magic it takes to keep him safe. In Call to Arms, its a family affair; every hand is needed when a ghost invades the kingdom demanding old wrongs be righted.

Kindle has just released Catch an Honest Thief (A Haven Mystery) for download to Kindles, iPhone or iPOD touch.

If you enjoy cozy mysteries, check it out:

An Indiana Jones-style caper across the desert of New Mexico; high-tech gadgets, a mystery and a romance.

Alexia is trying to protect the crystals that power the city of Haven. Going undercover and stealing the crystals seemed like a great idea–until a real thief showed up.

Bait and switch is suddenly cat and mouse–but who is the real thief? And why is the new security chief spending so much time looking into her background?

Confessing her secret plans to protect the crystals might help the security chief narrow in on the real culprit, but it would cost Alexia her job, her freedom, and her status. Of course, if she keeps standing in the way of the real thief, it will cost her a whole lot more.

Young adults may also enjoy this cozy mystery with a romantic subplot.

Pages: ~260 or 3900 locations (Kindle terminology).
Price: $1.99.

Edit: Catch an Honest Thief is now available in multiple online formats, including HTML, Sony Reader and .mobi over at Smashwords.

Also available via Barnes and Noble.

I’m thrilled! This is my first mystery sale that has no speculative (i.e. fantasy) element. The mystery market is a tough market. There are very few short story magazines just for mystery. Many of the markets are noir…and I don’t happen to read or write noir! So it’s a very big thrill to be a part of Over My Dead Body!

(It’s also a bargain: It’s a free read online!)

dunesteef.com has decided to produce Around the Bend in audio format! I say “produce” because more and more podcasts are not just reading stories–there’s music, acting, different voices–they are getting more complex and more professional. Dunesteef, in particular, wanted to involve authors more so asked me to read a blip on how the story came about.

Me????

I wasn’t too certain this was a good idea. Okay, I was completely against it. I’m basically quite lazy and can be a rather self-conscious creature. I’ve never liked my voice; I took singing lessons off and on for years thinking something might help it, but other than learning how to “breathe” right, nothing rubbed off.

Unfortunately, despite my reclusive nature and extreme laziness, I do believe in supporting the magazines that give authors like me an opportunity to spread stories. So I began recording. Who would think that one tiny paragraph would take so much time? First off, I sounded bored. I don’t mean a little bored, I mean a monotone that could compete with Alan Greenspan testimony, only a lot shorter and sounding more like your grandmother. Second off, who wrote all these extra words??? The more words in a single sentence, the more air that is required…and ups and down in tone so that I didn’t sound like a dead pickle.

I had no idea that so much acting was required to read aloud: Lilting. Pauses. Hints of lightness or intrigue. Emphasis. Pacing. And I wasn’t even reading the story.

After some practice I managed to sound like a moderately interested human, if not a talented one. Then came the technical part of recording. I forgot to turn the sound off on my machine, so incoming email pinged right at the beginning. Got rid of that only to have the stray cat show up in the back yard, which set off the birds–quite loudly–in the background. Husband opened the garage door. Air conditioner came on. Then…the perfect lilt, the perfect pacing…I had it!!!!! Only…the first word was strangely cutoff so “there” could have been “where” or just “ere” or perhaps not a word at all, but a gagging sound.

Hmm. I had no editing tools. I’m sure a professional could have recorded the one word and glued it on the front in place of the miscellaneous chopped noise. Barring that…I had to record it again. Only I had to sneeze in the middle of that one…and so on.

Oh bother.

At any rate, much to my complete surprise, I learned a few significant lessons. One: If I am ever to give a reading of a short story or excerpt, I had better practice. A lot. Two: I should probably avoid doing readings, but if I do, I need to think about whether I will do a single voice, many voices or just try not to sound like a dead pickle. Three: The job these readers do on the podcasts is hard. Adding background music, artwork, introductions, editing the scripts–all a lot of work. And more talent that I would have guessed.

So next time you hear a podcast or an audio book that you like, make note of the reader. If you enjoyed the book/work, it could have a lot to do with a reader making the work sound interesting, because even the most interesting work, read by a dead-pickle reader, is going to be a flop.

June 10, 2008  –  I’m very excited to announce that Coyote Wild Magazine has just released my short story, Toil, Trouble and Rot. This story is a little different from my other two published short stories…okay, it’s a lot different. It’s sort of like an Agatha Christie in medieval fantasy…or maybe it’s Agatha Christie meets Amelia Peabody (Elizabeth Peter’s Egyptian series) in a different time zone!

It’s a free read–enjoy!

Note: There seems to be a small formatting problem when viewed under Internet Explorer 6 and 7. It only interferes with the top paragraph and should be fixed soon. Coyote Wild recently redesigned their website and something was lost in the translation. The front page and stories look just fine under Firefox.

My most recent short story has just been published over at www.CoyoteWildMag.com: Around the Bend

In this story, look carefully into the shadows, but beware what lurks there.

Psst: It’s a free read–enjoy!

Around the Bend is also available at Dunesteef.com as a podcast production! At the end of the story, there is discussion from Rish and Big and three songs from Jonathan Coulton.

 
Around the Bend is also available over at www.AnthologyBuilder.com!!! I’ve created two different anthologies with this story in it–you can order the exact anthologies from their library or you can pick and choose your own stories. Check out the artwork on these two!!

I just love them both. The Dragon Wings cover art was done by Jacquelyne Drainville and the Escape cover art was done by Kevin Wasden. Both are just fabulous.

Here are links to the books along with cost and shipping information:

Dragon Wings
Escape

My short story Haunting Clues has been published at www.towndrunkmag.com!

In The Town Drunk’s first detective story a private investigator is hired to expel a ghost from a mansion. To deal with the dead, though, he must disentangle the secret vices of the living.

Haunting Clues is also available in audio over at www.Clonepod.org!!! Leslie Ann Moore (author of Griffin’s Daughter) did a great job recording the story, using a few voices, accents and good pacing–definitely a giggle or three.

More excellent news! Haunting Clues has been accepted over at www.AnthologyBuilder.com. Haunting Clues will be included in the Anthology Builder database for purchase by anyone that wants a print copy. Readers that want to include the story in a “build-an-anthology” can select it as part of a hand-picked short-story book. I think this site has some great ideas, and I’m very excited to have my story available! Hop on over there and check it out!

Here’s a link to a built anthology that includes Haunting Clues: Escape

Here’s a link to the forum–if you have questions or just want to follow progress:
AnthologyBuilder Journal