Cia

Did you catch Monday's blog featuring Duncan Ryder's short story, Sorry Mom, from the 2010 Anthology "I'd Never Do That"? Maybe you read it before, or maybe it was a new to you story. Or maybe I wasn't able to convince you to read it yet... maybe this excerpt will do the trick! I picked this part of the story first because I didn't want to give away the whole story and second because I wanted something that shows the poignancy of this story and Duncan's writing. Enjoy! Want to read more? Click here!

November is here, and with it a story that many readers enjoyed back in 2010 during the Spring Anthology. With a theme like "I'd Never Do That" and a title of Sorry, Mom the story could have gone anywhere. Well, I'm not going to tell you! I'll feature a reader's thoughts below, but then you'll just have to check out the story yourself to find out. Sorry, Mom by Duncan Ryder Length: 2,042 Description: When you find your future, you shouldn’t have to give up your past. A Reader said: The nervous anxiety is brilliantly portrayed, you can feel the relief at the end. ~ cognac69 If you want to spread the word about Duncan Ryder's story, download the graphic below and add it to your signature! Make sure you come back on Wednesday to see the excerpt I chose to share!

Hide Josh from the site? Would I do that???? Noooooo! And we're up to Kujo aka Deus, Mittens and Sam, Mushu, and Soju. (Half-Doberman/German Shepherd, Rescue Catx2, Leopard Gecko, and a Ball Python) I only claim the dog. The other animals belong to the children, who I also don't claim, who have one of each (Xander = Mittens, Mushu-gecko, Annika = Sam, Soju-python).

“She’s a buxom wench, with hair on her chest, and a dwarvish gold mine if I swive her!” The shriek and resulting laughter was so loud Londe’s ears twitched back, and I wanted to cover mine. ‘You have to be kidding me,’ Londe said. ‘You can hear her out here! She’s drunk already.’ “Not likely. She gets the hiccups when she’s drunk, and there wasn’t a single hic in that whole verse.” I slid off Londe’s back in front of the Bleating Banshee. The ramshackle building stood on the edge o

Oh, I'm just getting started!!

Well, you get an extra dose of me this week, since it's a US holiday and I had some time to spare to help out with the blog this morning. Speaking of, thank you to any and every veteran who has ever served to protect the freedom and security of their country! And, without further ado... please enjoy Aditus' review of @comicfan's story, A Vampire to the Rescue! A Vampire to the Rescue Comicfan Reviewer: Aditus Status: Complete Word Count: 3,949 Halloween is over, and all the creepy folk are back behind the veil for one year with the help of fireworks and Jack-o’-lanterns. Except for one vampire. Him we still want around because he is a hero. Terry is out to get some food when he overhears a heated conversation between two men in a darkened street. Just when he is about to turn away, he hears something that reminds him of how cruel humanity can be to a child. How cruel it has been to him. This is why there is no way Terry will allow what is about to happen. While he is still considering what to do the argument turns into a fight, and one of the men kills the other. When the survivor pulls a frightened kid out of the trunk of a car, Terry sees his suspicions confirmed. He can’t wait any longer to intervene. An epic fight enfolds, and Terry finds out he’s battling an old enemy. In the end, Terry is still hungry, but the kid has the perfect idea of how they could change that. The story has some nice twists and surprises I really liked. There might be some parts where I want to know even more, but that’s because I’m greedy. And now I have that damn song in my head: Oh..someone’s in the kitchen with Dinah. Category: Fiction Genres: Fantasy, Horror, Sci-Fi Tags: teen, mature adult, were-creatures, vampire, modern Rating: Everyone

@Zombie No, unfortunately, because these things aren't GA specific, they're general photo/internet/computer questions and really are far too complex to address with a single FAQ topic because of the many different ways a member might find, store, edit, and add images to posts. 1. Copying the url depends on device, where you have the image found, where you want it stored and how you plan to share the image url. The variety of options are basically endless. 2. Again, image size depends on if you are uploading it and how you have it saved. If you have the image saved as a file (typically a jpg), then you can simply right click on it and click on properties in the menu. File size is in the general tab and if you want to see the image size, that's viewable through details tab of the pop up window that appears to show all the image properties. Again, this depends on where you have the image stored (that's usually on a Windows device/program with locally stored jpg files, not an online storage site like Google Drive). Additionally, editing an image can be done in any sort of editing program on a phone, tablet, or computer to resize the image as a whole to compress the image, or to crop it, etc... 3. 20kb per image, but you have a maximum amount of uploads you can have on the site before you will have to go into your account and remove old attachments from file uploads, which is why most members do like @Thorn Wilde mentioned and just copy from an online url so they aren't adding a local file that they attached. Hope that at least helps you with a direction on some google searching for your specific devices, files, etc...

Thanks, DrP! I wrote the beginnings of this for a contest a while back but it was rejected. I did a quick convert to past tense and added a lot of details. I've got a lot of ideas for this storyline, and fantasy is a fun genre to play with too. Thank you, Chris! I hope you will continue to like it!

Alone among the humans with only whispered rumors to guide me, I longed for the cool meadows of my homeland, but I was on a mission. Humans plagued me. They sought me out for the magic I could weave into metal, never divining my true purpose searching among their stables.

“Blacksmith!” I ignored Duke Pravolo’s strident call. Ringing blows rained down on the glowing silver, completing the rosette I’d attach to a decorative bridle. I wiped my arm across my sweaty brow. My throat was parched, so I disregarded the arrogant popinjay in favor of guzzling lukewarm water from the bucket. Alone among the humans with only whispered rumors to guide me, I longed for the cool meadows of my homeland, but I was on a mission. “Blacksmith!” Humans like him pla

Happy November! Just 2 months left until 2019 comes to a close, and I thought I'd feature a story that just came to a close as well, Those Cerulean Eyes by Arran. Long-time member of the site, this is one of a few stories Arran posted this year. Did you read it? If not, here's your chance before the Discussion day at the end of the month! Also, I'm still looking for ideas on how to feature site stories and authors to change up the first/last Monday of the month blog. The CSR format has been going on for about 7 years now, since we first started doing weekly staff blogs again, and I'd love to ensure we're keeping things fresh and fun to encourage member participation. Do you have an idea of a blog format? A new type of feature? Share it with me via PM! Those Cerulean Eyes by Arran Length: 32,605 Description: Mickey is a rather shy twenty-year-old first-year college student majoring in interior design and Mark is a more worldly twenty-two-year-old first-year law student. Mark has an eye for Mickey from the moment that he sees him and strikes up a conversation with him as soon as Mickey seats himself at the table next to him in Starbucks. As fortune would have it, Mickey moves to Mark's table and they forge a friendship. But sensing that there is more to this enigmatic young man than meets the eye, Mark sets out to confirm it, hoping that he and Mickey can become more than just friends. A Reader Said: This is a tale about two college students Mark and Mickey. Mickey is a rather shy guy whilst Mark is a more worldly guy. We follow them as they meet in a coffee shop and forge a friendship which develops into more. What follows is the wonderful tale of there time together and the problems that they overcome. A truly wonderful tale that I recommend as a fantastic read. ~ Chris191070 Don't forget to come back and share your thoughts on Monday, November 25th!

Hey, some unnamed admin didn't get the short stories all approved/live prior to the blog posting announcing them going live on Wednesday... so yeah. It was a week of fun flubs and blog blunders. We'll chalk it up to some gremlin 👾 getting in some Halloween fun.

@Fae Briona Umm... how about you use the "Content I haven't read" and "Only content I follow" option, don't follow any of the author's other series and BOOM! You should only get notifications for new updates to the series story you follow for the author. The only time that would be a problem would be when the author finishes a story and starts a new one, but if you're actively following that, you should notice a story ending. If they're an author worth their snuff, at least. I mean, me personally, I'd do content items, just follow the author as a default, and use the content I haven't read since my last visit option with expanded view so I can see what the author I like posted since I was there last and be able to tell at a single glance what series it came from since details would be visible in the stream. But I like to see lots of info in one go, not have a lot of steams that are separate, if I like someone's writing.

You can in a way, @Fae Briona. If you use the Activities drop menu and set up a new Activity Stream and use the variety of options to customize your new stream to follow a series/author. You can set the options to a series (under Content Types) by the particular author by using the Ownership option to select "Content by specific members" and then fill in the author name in the author field that appears. You can set the other options to your preferences, then you will get a stream and notifications based on your notifications for activity streams (notifications, emails, etc...).

Sorry for the late publish on these stories, authors and readers, my boss had a meeting paperwork emergency and I got called in early to work before this publish time. It completely slipped my mind when I would have ordinarily been home to ensure it all went live on time!

It's the Halloween Hunt Short Story Reveal Day on All Hallow's Eve eve! Which story will scare you the most? The rule was for authors to check their comments, then write a story being chased by their story creation. A criminal cyborg, a vengeful spirit... Who did they get? Read the following and find out. Don't forget to share your appreciation via some likes, comments, and reviews!

“You can’t leave,” I declared. I clenched my jaw, narrowing my eyes. “That’s final.” “Oh stop. He’ll be fine,” Deke drawled. “Totally safe. I’ll be with him.” I slowly panned my head to the side, blinking slowly. “Did you just suggest that you would be a safe traveling partner for my Chomper?” Half the time Deke still tried to shoot him because Chomper had blasted him with fire or hooked him with a wing and lifted him just far enough off the ground to knock him on his ass from abov

I love some of the comments about what people think positively/constructively or why they might use the stats to learn something new. Pros and Cons, questions about the hows and whys, those are great. Discussion is great. Comments about how useless they are to members or else they should be completely changed... not so helpful. I'll say it, as I've said it before, every time Myr has asked the programmer to come up with a new feature or data point, it's meant to be helpful to authors for extremely thoughtful and planned reasons. And saying "It'd be cool if we could see this" might come across better as a suggestion than "This isn't helpful, the only thing I want to know is this instead" criticism/complaint which might not actually be a possibility for our programmer due to capabilities or cost. Remember, stories are marketed to readers using the meta data on the story detail page. Categories, tags, description, etc... are all settings that can be used or changed to feature the story to readers based on what authors think readers will want the most. How many people actually track sales/reading trends and use elements geared to gain readers by including those? Quite a few actually. Stats like these views can help show which stories on GA might have elements in common or are the most popular with readers (GA readers tend to like Coming of Age/Coming Out fiction, and, yes, sex sells). Or, as Myr said that fits right in with that, what chapters are more popular (and why?) based on the number of views as well can help authors decide on content they might like to explore writing. And, above all, these stats aren't something that are forced on authors as a new setting that changes the system, or feedback received, or adds steps to submission process, or even is a Stories element you have to use. It's just one more way we're trying to help those authors who care to find out what readers view, make some inferences, do some testing and stretch their writing skills while maybe gaining some new readers. We want to help those who want it and not bother those who don't. So just don't use it if it's not for you and enjoy it if it is. We hope you will get the insight you want/need.

So begins the week of Halloween short stories!! We featured several stories this month and welcomed members to decide why they liked them to share with other readers. What drew you in? Title? Description? Type of monster-riffic plot to enjoy? Well... I can't wait to hear it! Share your thoughts and comments below. me Zombie Tired of the same old zombie thing? Looking for different? Well drop in to visit with Stephen and family. Nice twist on this well-worn genre. Great job, tim! ~ MichaelS36 June 30, 2018 Shepherd's Crook I have been waiting for this story to be posted in full in order to read it, and as the number of reviews grew I figured it must be a good one! You write very realistic dialogue, K.C., which I admire. So easy to be taken out of the story when the dialogue is stilted. There were a number of surprises in here, definitely an original tale. They kept me turning the pages...or scrolling down in this case. Engaging characters throughout though I would have liked a little more insight into the foundation of Amanda's cruelty and lack of remorse. Pure mental illness or were there other factors? Well done K.C. And I look forward to your next. ~ Percy September 30, 2012 Z is For Zombie It may say "Z is For Zombie," in the title, but don't let that fool you into thinking this is just another Walking Dead clone. It's not. Geron creates a world that feels alive in the post-apocalyptic sense of what happened during the Changes. It follows a brief period in the lives of a group of survivors who after two years, are more family than just a collection of people. And they are all under the age of 18. Five stars for this terrific tale. ~ Brayon September 29, 2018 Purpose "To borrow a famous quote, this story is "a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma" with deadly and frightening consequences. The two main characters are bonded by forces outside themselves and it takes luck, persistence and danger to tease out the meaning of it all. It is wrapped in a love story between two men. So those who are repelled by homoerotic love should be warned, but love scenes are not explicit. Their journey to self-awareness and knowledge of the forces that bind them is tense and dramatic. I heartily recommend this story for everyone with a sense of danger and adventure." ~ Daddydavek August 8, 2017 Don't forget to share your thoughts about these stories in the comments below. And on Wednesday, we have even more coming with the Halloween Hunt short stories! And Thursday's the Anthology Haunted look back.

There has been some great advice given here. I will add just one more thing that I've shared with many authors who've asked over the years. You get out of GA what you put into it. If you want feedback, you have to be give feedback. The more you interact on the site, the more the site (and other members) interact with you. Yes, we have a lot of dedicated readers, but I've found a lot of the commenters tend to be authors as well. Unlike publishers who tell authors not to interact, we encourage it. You learn more that way, and you definitely encourage others to interact with you. Think of it this way: If you put your book on a shelf in a bookstore and just leave it there, what are the odds it will be picked up by readers? But if you hang signs up about it, stand around and talk to readers who are looking at other stories and send them to check out your story, ask about what they like and why they liked that in your story (and/or get some information on how to improve your writing from other authors so more readers will enjoy your work...) and all of the above, you are far more likely to gain readers and fans who pick out your book (or story) from the rest.

If I hadn’t had Chomper, would I have still known I could bond again? The pain as the venom coursed through the fried circuits in my head pushed me to the brink. I bowed my head over Captain’s, the synthgar slipping from my neck to his. Sweat was pebbling my brow, and yet I was chilled. Fire and ice warred inside me. Pain threatened to consume my focus away from that still, silent form I plastered my chest against. I could feel the slight rise and fall, reassurance that he was still with

Did you see Monday's blog post featuring this month's Classic Author story and ad? This month's selection is a short story, so I don't want to share too much of it with you because that might spoil too much before you read it. Andy has a real knack with writing one shots that draw you in and make you want to know (and force him to write) more, and The Leanai Scath is no exception. So much of this story seems like it's just a normal tale, but then there are nuances that let you know that something is very, very different about the characters... and you wished you knew more. This section gives you a taste of that along with insight into the characters. Want to read more? Click here.

This month we have a one shot story competition, and it's the last full month before your short story is due for the Fall anthology, so I went with a Classic Author One Shot story that features something from beyond the normal... aliens! Or are they? Well... let's see what Andy78 came up with in The Leanai Scath. The Leanai Scath by Andy78 Length: 1,774 Description: The Leanai Scáth appeared on Earth two centuries ago. They have been herded into colonies on the outskirts of cities, and are subject to the most punitive of laws. Michael violates the laws he sees as unjust, and risks everything for a race seen as nothing better than vermin. A reader said: The cultural mores this story shares are so interesting... and the reader could imagine the plot going in so many directions. I'd love to see it expanded. ~ Cia If you want to spread the word about Andy78's story, download the graphic below and add it to your signature! Make sure you come back on Wednesday to see the excerpt I chose to share!

I thought the idea of leaving my cell was the hardest thing I’d face. That being free, having choices, not being a number… the very necessity of learning who “Kohen” was and learning to fit that shape. It’d been hard. The being who’d helped me in the end had also shattered me. Both of them. It wasn’t just Lakshou’s actions to take my mind and body from me with embedded conditioning. Captain had gotten his hits in too, keeping his secrets, not being honest. It broke the bond inside me, the

A hissing roar drowned out the shouts in the distance, and there was a flurry of activity around me. I still couldn’t see, couldn’t move, didn’t really want to. I was tired, so tired. In my short life, I’d lived lifetimes of pain and suffering, and I was done. Regret pushed at the corners of my brain but not enough to want to stop it. “Aparoe? He’s not breathing!” “I’m trying. Stay calm, he needs you calm.” “He’s not breathing! I can’t feel him! No! Get off me! Deke!