Cia

Many authors don't find writing organic. I don't. I'm always amazed by authors who say they cry or get emotional when they write. I don't get that. For me, every word chosen to elicit a visual or emotion is deliberate. From the very beginning I've focused too much on the words and scene to make an emotional attachment. Some people say you have to feel that organic connection, but I think a well written story can be just as pulling without it, if you write it well enough. It also makes people watching into research as I observe everyone around me to see how they look and talk in various situations. Even though I'm not an author who writes every day, I tend to always think about it. Practice does make perfect, after all. Gradually writing can become easier and flow for you on a first draft as you refine what works and what does not in the scenes you wish to create. That opens the floor to writing longer stories as well.

Oh, I have lots of plans for this story! I don't want to give anything away right now but yeah... lots of plans!

Thank you Suvitar!

Strain by Amelia C. Gormley My rating: 5 of 5 stars *COMING SOON* Feb. 17th! Many, many times I search for dystopian stories only to fail to find one that captures my attention. I want the sense of 'the world has ended' drama, the gritty and often dark reality that the comfortable has disappeared and survival takes a level of guts and bravery not everyone has. Strain fulfilled every single one of those dystopian desires. We have governmental mishandling, virus-releasing, politician tumbling, society crumbling and... and.... ZOMBIES! Well, kinda. We also have superhumans that are more human than the humans they're trying to save and protect. I'm not going to go over the plot, other to warn that there is a lot of sexual content and those who have issues with slight reluctant consent/shades of non-consent should be wary. I felt the sex, while frequent, was not gratuitous due to the integral nature of the plague/cure the plot required. There's some shades of D/s involved as well. The world building was a little lax. I'd have liked to see more of the society and overall picture, but the microcosm of the story from the character's POV made that lack not too bad. When the world has ended, there's not like any newspaper or TV to watch to see what's going on in other countries, or even in the same country or state. The author's writing was smooth. I was hooked from the dramatic beginning, where the main character was fighting for his life... and losing. I adored the main characters, disliked the villain and steadily grew to hate him as I was supposed to. The story wasn't exactly a surprise when it comes to events but I was forced to stay up half the night to finish it anyway. It was absolute torture... to end it! I wanted more. I will definitely be watching this author for more stories to come. View all my reviews

It was. Sometimes it's like that, just a normal day and then the shock of a lifetime strikes. The world is not always a nice place. Thanks for the review!

Aww, thanks! There is a lot to come with this story, and it will be sad. But at least you know there will be updates each week. Thanks for the review!

Awww thank you so much! That is a true compliment.

LOL... *cough* but let us not devolve into any discussion on the validity of any religious texts in the forums. *cough*

Me too! Benny's story has been floating in my head for a long time, and I thought it was the perfect start to get me moving on my writing again. Thanks for reading m.p.

Woo hoo! So I finally caught up. You know, out of all your contemporary pieces I'm really liking this one. The characters have a real balance to them, and they feel more 'real'. The 1k dynamic makes it hard to create a smooth plot arc, but I just read this whole thing to catch up again from where I left off and you're doing a great job of that. Now to wait for next week! *sighs* LOL

I like bing, myself, but tips and tricks for searching are always useful. The biggest thing to remember is that just because it shows up on google doesn't mean it is a reputable resource. Internet info is always a good start though. I'm still a big advocate of the library, myself.

If the word is meant to be pronounced 'Doh', it is spelled doe. As in a stag being a male deer then doe as in a female dear. That's the confusion.

Thanks belann! I really like these guys too. I'm trying to get back to my favorite series, and write new stories, and publish, and... well you get the picture. Benny was one of my favorite supporting characters too, and I always wanted to tell his story. So now I am.

Thanks! I dunno what I was thinking!

Benny dug his claws into the mud. He needed the anchor to stay in his spot hidden at the base of a pine tree. The fragrant needles helped hide his scent so he could get close to the eyrie. It was close, but not close enough. It was never close enough. Instinct drove Benny to race down the slope. The slender Carthera wouldn’t be able to stop him. He could be down there, amid the young rolling around on the ground, in seconds. He trembled with need. The memory of Yuril’s frantic screaming was t

Benny had his mate for a few short weeks. A moment in time that is slowly dragging him down. Yuri is alive, he's well... but he's not really there, not the Yuri Benny loved. His mate screamed at the sight of him. Jerret was happily mated; Davis had found his mate in a human. But Benny is all alone with his rage and pain slowly eating him up inside. Something had to change.

None for me. I went out for dinner with my sister in law one night and she tried to take me to an adult store to embarrass me... but yeah, big fail as I made her turn redder than a beet. Plus I was only 18 at the time and none of my friends lived within 2 hours of me, so it was pretty meh. By the time the wedding was almost there all I wanted was for it to be freaking over and hop on the plane to Maui.

When I was pregnant with my daughter I had a dream that instead of a baby inside me, I had a book. I could feel the spine and the corners and everything through my stomach. I kept wondering if this was a long book or a short one, and hoping it was a short one.

Yeah, he has reason to be closed off, but he slowly opens up. I'm glad you're enjoying the story!

There's plenty more to be read! Thank for reviewing.

I began this story as a flash piece with my blog group, The Wednesday Briefers. With a lot of polish, and over 14k in new content... it's now Protecting Bear. Today only, January 10th, you could win a copy on my off-site blog! Just comment, include your email, and you could win! Contest ends at 10 PM, PST. All comments also count toward my $10 Amazon gift card contest ending on my blog, January 20th. Visit my blog contest Protecting Bear is also available for purchase for only $2.99 Protecting Bear Synopsis: Bear has sworn off guys who try to pick him up at his second job working as a bartender. His ex, Vilem, damn near turned him off dating altogether. Jimmy would flip if he finds out Bear dated a drug dealer, as if Bear did it knowingly. His career as a cop only makes his brother more protective. But Kameron doesn’t try to pick him up at the bar. He doesn’t ask for a blow job or a back alley screw. He asks Bear out for coffee. That alone is rare enough to get Bear to say yes. They have an instant chemistry, even though he will cut the giant off at the knees if Kameron calls Bear “little guy” one more time. Kameron’s secrets grow harder to hide the longer he dates Bear. He wants to come clean, but he knows there’s a very good chance the fiery man will never speak to him again. Kameron wrestles with his conscience and his desire for Bear. Both men’s choices lead to a series of events neither see coming. Bear believes his judgment failed him once again when he learns exactly what Kameron was hiding. At the same time, Bear learns Vilem wasn't just a corner drug dealer, and some very scary guys are after him. Can both men survive their encounter with Vilem’s bosses? When Bear and Kameron land in a life or death situation, it's up to Bear to save himself … and Kameron, if he's lucky. Excerpt: "I don’t know man, that’s a lot.” “Can you get the stuff or not?” Kameron shifted his weight back and forth. The inside of the phone booth was filthy and something had died in the corner. The small space had a foul smell, but Kameron tried to pretend he didn’t notice. “Ben said you could get me ten grams. I need it.” He sniffed and wiped his nose. “I don’t usually—” “Look, I got two fifty. I’m looking for ten grams for a… a party I’m throwing. I need it now. You coming or not?” His heart raced during the silence as he urged Maks to agree. “Fifth and Inochs?” “Sweet,” Kameron said with relief. “Yeah, I’ll be by the statue. See you in twenty, right? You’ll be there with my stuff?” “I’ll be there.” Kameron heard Maks mutter about junkies under his breath. He managed to keep his response in check. He waited until he was almost to the bridge before he made the call so it only took him a few minutes to get in place. His palms were sweating, and he kept wiping them on his ratty jeans. Finally he stuffed them in his pockets to keep them still. His hoodie obscured his vision, but he didn’t want to lower it. It was cold under the bridge, and the wind sent icy fingers inside the holes exposing his knees. Kameron hunched over, slumping against smooth side of the abstract metal statue. Damn wind was making his nose run already. How much longer? He couldn’t help peering back and forth, checking the creeping shadows. The freeway overhead hummed with cars taking people home or out to whatever entertainment they craved on a Friday night. And here was his. Maks looked just like his picture. Kameron relaxed a little. He took his hands out of his pants pockets and fiddled with the strings to his hoodie. The cold made his fingertips burn. There was a lot more snow here than he was used to, and Kameron was fucking freezing. “Carson?” Kameron nodded. “You Maks?” “Yeah.” They both knew how this went down. Kameron twitched his strings again and sniffed. “You got my party supplies?” “Yeah, I brought them.” The drug dealer lifted a six-pack of beer. “You’re gonna pay me back for the beers, right?” “’Course.” Kameron dug around in his pocket and pulled out a small wad of crumpled bills. He stuffed the money back in his pocket after he flashed it to Maks. “I just need to make sure the beer’s my favorite kind.” Maks didn’t look happy, but he handed over the six-pack. “It’s all there.” Kameron picked up a bottle, peering at it, then tilted the carton. The orange glow from the streetlight shone on the white baggies tucked in the bottom, around the beer. “Looks good.” He put the beer back and then shoved his hood off his head. Kameron dug into his pocket, shivering as the wind blew sharply, scattering litter along the ground. He peered at Maks. “If I have another party, say in a couple of weeks, could you get me more of the same?” “Sure.” Maks looked eager to be gone, his eyes focused on the cash in Kameron’s hand. “Cool.” Maks grabbed the cash Kameron held out and kept walking. “Nice doing business with you,” he said over his shoulder. “Oh, it was. You can stop right there though.” Kameron tugged on the cord hanging around his neck, hidden under his sweatshirt. “What the fuck? You gonna try to rip me off? My bosses will—” Maks spun around and froze. “Not be any help to you.” Kameron pulled his gun from behind his back.

Too true Crazyfish. They have their time and place in stories, and I enjoy them when they are used well. I'm a bit of a contradiction myself. I was reading stories like Huck Finn by age 9. Some of my favorite stories growing up, and continue to still enjoy? The Lord of the Rings series, Dune series, Morgan's Run, The Scarlet Letter, Outlander series, Consolidated works of Shakespeare (with favorites like The Tempest and MacBeth), Clan of the Cave Bear series... all long-winded stories rich with a lot of detail... in some cases a LOT Of detail often in long, drawn out sentences. Hebert was slightly different from most earlier authors in that he used mostly concise sentences... he just wrote a huge universe into a story. I love stories rich in detail to read, if I can get into them. As a kid, I had limited access to new books, only 3 from the roaming book-mobile van ever 3 weeks that often didn't restock new books but every 3 months. I wanted substance, length, and complexity that I could read and enjoy many times. But for me reading is like watching a movie in my head. I don't remember even turning pages, I 'see' the words in my head. I can be captured in a story for hours, not realizing, if it's good enough. The problem is, if I don't know a word--especially if it is placed in a pivotal moment--I'm drawn out of my internal movie. I have a huge vocabulary so anymore that's rare, but occasionally it still happens. I'm not on par with any of my favorite authors, and I'm okay with that. I still think how an author chooses to write does depend a lot on the audience. For all the crap about 'write for yourself', to some extent we all write to be read. Today's readers are different from those 20 years ago, 50 years ago. As you can see with the trends of the authors over time to today, there are distinct changes in what is being published. Concise sentences, direct action, less setting and more plot progression are the editors' words to live by. I'm a simple author, not matter what my tastes are for reading. I believe in entertainment without complication, not because I think my readers can't understand something more complicated, but because what purpose does it serve? I know how many big words I know... doesn't mean I have to use them.

I am so sorry Jo Ann! I had it on my to do list to come back and answer all of the lovely reviews you left me and I didn't. I really do appreciate that you read my story. I hope you enjoy the finish now that it is done.

Thank you so much!

“Where did Sayer go?” Birch liked Lady Celeste, but he wanted Sayer. So much had happened in such a short time, his head was spinning. “He’s taking care of a few things,” she said casually. “I’m sure he will return shortly. Haverlseen will probably be back to badger both of us if I do not let you rest. I shall go.” “It was nice meeting you.” Birch didn’t stand up when she rose from her chair. It was probably more polite not to flash Sayer’s mom than to not get up. “Welcome to the family, Birc