Cia

The miniature Sparkles turned when her croon cut off. She rose from the water and nudged me with her nose. She chirped and I looked from her to the egg still in the water. The babies clawed their way up her snout to perch in small circles on her head. “Sparkles?” She hadn’t gone away from the water, still hovering beside me, but she wasn’t making the same sound she had for the other eggs. She wasn’t hovering over it or bathing it with water. “Is it okay?” I glanced at her, but she

Happy July! Can you believe the year is halfway over already? We've featured a lot of stories over the year, but here's one more you might not have read yet... Love is Blind! This story, inspired by a figure from the author's past, was also helped along by several other GA members. That's just what the site is here for! I can't wait to hear what @Nick Brady has to say in his interview this month, which will be on the last Monday of the month, July 29th. Love is Blind by Nick Brady Length: 39,873 Description: Andrew and Ian are college friends. One is sighted and one is blind. They have much to learn from each other. A Reader said: thank you for sharing your beautiful story with us. you have picked the perfect spot to end it though I am sad this is it and that no more chapters will be coming. ~ mayday Enjoy this month's CSR selection, but don't forget to be ready to come back and share your thoughts and comment on the Discussion day on Monday, July 29th!

“Hey kid, causing trouble again?” Deke showed up with a bunch of equipment and a grin. He wasn’t nearly as cranky as I expected. Captain stood to help him set down all the supplies he brought. “What took you so long?” I shoved his shoulder when he bent down to drop some of the bags he had slung over one shoulder but he didn’t even stumble. He swayed away with the force and then came back, grabbing my arm and putting me in a lock. “Ow!” I twisted my arm in the opposite direction, l

Well, the end is near! The end of June, that is! Did you check out this simple short story... or is it as simple as it seemed? Exit to Redemption introduced readers to characters who could be the driver in the next car, the man in the next office, or the jerk at the next table disturbing your dinner. Learning about Valkyrie is a lot more simple than the choices and changes faced by the characters in her story! Check out my interview with her and then share your thoughts about that or her story in the comments below! Do you eat your fruits and vegetables? No and yes. I don’t like a lot of fruit and it’s also too sugary for me. While there aren’t a ton of veggies I actually like, I do eat a lot of the ones I do like. I also sub cauliflower for a lot of starches, so I get my fill of veggies that way. If you were an animal, what would you be? Being a dragon would be pretty cool, but I’d probably be something more mundane like a cat. I could get into sleeping 90% of the time and eating and randomly spazzing out the other 10%. If you had 30 minutes of free time, what would you do? Probably play Candy Crush or watch something mindless on TV. Absolutely nothing productive. Has your writing evolved over the years and changed in any way? Yes, it’s definitely evolved. I’ve worked hard to hone my descriptions and convey the emotions of my characters. I think my stories have also grown in their complexity. Penguin is pretty straightforward, while The Hollow Hills is much more nuanced. Do you prefer to write short stories for a reason beyond time constraints? I like using short stories to explore questions I’ve asked myself. For example, I wondered about why people react differently to adversity and tragedy, and the result was my anthology story April’s Fool. I also asked myself what would happen if someone with a disability reached beyond the special ed classroom and tried to be friends with someone in mainstream education—like Peter from Downhearted. The flexibility of short stories allows me to capture a moment in time or create character sketches without following the traditional story format of beginning/middle/end. I’ve also used them to experiment with descriptions or writing in a different point of view. When I first started writing, I was more comfortable writing in first person, so I challenged myself to write some anthology stories in third person. Now I’m pretty comfortable using either. Sometimes I use short stories as jumping off points. For example Faeries Anonymous and Igneous are both slated to become longer works. Just how many of your stories interconnect? Good question! I had to go look because I wasn’t sure. A lot of my early prompt stories are based off peripheral characters from The Hollow Hills. There’s also a connection between THH and Alex’s Legacy. Quite a few of my prompt responses build off each other. One of the projects on my list is to take some of those multi-prompt serials and post them as their own stories, like I did with Thanksgiving Knight. And of course, there’s the Max and Elliot stories, with Exit to Redemption as a spin-off. Have you ever experienced a moment like Henry did with Pete at the start of the story or was that just made up? I’ve seen my share of rude jerks, but that scene was made up. Change… Redemption… is it possible, or more of a romance story construct? Yes, I do think it’s possible to change and redemption isn’t just a fictional construct. However, true change is difficult at best, and redemption is even harder to achieve. Sometimes we have to change habits to improve our health, which can be easy or not, based on motivation level or certain diagnoses. Changing things more ingrained to our nature is difficult, if not impossible. Learned behavior can be unlearned, but personality disorders such as sociopathy or narcissism can’t be changed. In your mental story after the story, are Henry and Pete living happily ever after now? I’d like to think they are. I can’t say Pete doesn’t still have his moments, but I’m guessing Henry’s influence is enough to keep him in check. How about sharing some of your upcoming writing adventures with readers… what’s in your pipeline?! I have a few exciting things in the works. I’m currently working on a novella/novel length story based in the Igneous universe. I’ve wanted to write this story for years and finally have a working outline and a couple of chapters in the first draft stage. I’m going to finish it before posting, so it will be a while before it’s done. In the meantime, I’ll have at least one story for the fall anthology. Right now, I’m planning on writing a story based on Taylor from my Pride and Premium story, Deal or No Deal. I guess I can’t resist interconnecting my stories! I’ll have some prompt stories and also an upcoming collaboration to tide my readers over. And my biggest news… drumroll… is the future release of my Premium novella A Leg to Stand On as an e-book.

Oh so many options with that, right? And how much fun could it be? Yes, yes I am. I do like adding in a whole twist to the existing world with these sorts of anthology stories. You think you know how the story is going... but really, the reality is way different. I have to admit, first contact isn't a new concept. And it's funny that he's sort of putting Leith in the same spot he doesn't want to be in, lol. Thanks for the heads up, I fixed it. Leith has a lot of information and a lot of curiosity, a lot like most scientific minds through the ages, yes. Whether or not he'd actually take aliens up on the opportunity--or if he'd truly be given a choice--is definitely another question. And maybe one I will come back to. You never know with anthologies. I've continued others before. Thank you guys for commenting!

“Twin stars, see?” He tapped the air above the stone tablet, and the magnified projection shimmered. “There is evidence that early people saw the reality of other galaxies, other solar systems, well before the first telescopes made it possible.” A student raised their hand. “Yes, go ahead,” Professor Trestan said. “But what about the Egyptians? They had pictures early on of supernovas, right?” “Yes, they did make the first recordings of those events. Those are observable phenomen

He discovered artifacts that no one can explain--twin stars and a solar system carved thousands upon thousands of years in the past--that are just now being photographed and sent back to Earth by a space probe that has gone farther than any other man-made object before. So how did those early people know? Professor Trestan has to go back, but is the grant offer too good to be true?

“I don’t think so,” said Aparoe. “I found her right before we left the other ship. I never told anyone I did scans, but I was just as wary as you about unknown life signs after what we’d been through. I didn’t want to have any more surprises. But no one has tried to find her, like you think would happen if she was going to be used against Kohen.” “You’d think telling your captain would have been on your agenda, at least,” Captain said. “How did you know this wasn’t part of the Elite’s plo

Did you catch Monday's blog featuring David McLeod's story, Pilots? This novella-length contemporary story has such a wide variety of characters and short stories within the storyline that you are learning new things about them all the time, which is a great way of catching the readers' interest when the theme is a newly started community GSA. Of course, it won't go smooth for them because when in life--or fiction--does that happen when such a varied group comes together? Case in point.... Want to read more? Click here!

Oh, so many interesting thoughts about where the story is going, traitors or no traitors actively working, who Sparkles is to Kohen, what might be inside the eggs.... And what's great is that while I have an overall arc and story theme/idea, because this story is part of the Wednesday Briefers (a group that does flash fiction each Wednesday and links to each other's blogs off GA) I'm locked into the format. It's a new chapter I literally write a 500 to 1k update for each week, no writing ahead, incorporating a prompt if those are sent out by the group leader, to be posted on Wednesday. It gets placed on my offsite blog, but because I'm dedicated to GA, I post 99% of my fiction here as well. To keep posting it as part of that, I have to follow the rules. Sorry! But you can be sure I'll keep posting each week until the story is complete. And since school is almost out for the year, I'll have other things to come soon with larger, more satisfying chunks. Thank you all for reading and commenting!!

Happy June and Pride Month! One of the big themes this month is always coming out, or being out and proud, or just being out and not having to be afraid. A big part of that in many places is the GSA, because it's not always easy. Pilots takes a look at how that might play out in a wider setting than just a high school or college, and there's a real cast of characters to get to know in each chapter who will draw you in. Check out this older story if you haven't read it before! Pilots by David McLeod Length: 37,674 Description: Jacksonville, WY isn't the first place you'd look for an LGBT Alliance. Will it work? Follow the lives of the boys and girls who try to promote tolerance, and of those who attempt to stop them A Reader said: Having read PILOTS, I hope to enjoy this story as much. ~ Gene63 (of Pilots II) If you want to spread the word about David McLeod'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!

“She?” “Well, bearing young does not have to mean a female gender in all species, but it is the most common expression of gender identity for bearing species. She seems to be using your DNA and hers to create them, and you are male. I scanned the eggs and they show your distinct genetic make-up as well as hers, which is quite unique, as you know.” Aparoe turned and sat on a pile of rocks not far from the pool. “You didn’t harm one of them to find that out, did you?” I asked, my stom

Talonriders suggestion is one way, or you can use the link at the bottom of your notifications to view them all, right click on the notification and open whatever one you want to view in a new tab so you can keep the list open in the original tab so the page doesn't refresh and change to show all the links as viewed. Just an fyi, we get the software for the majority of the site from IP Board. The only "customized" area (that we can control) of the site for features is our Stories Archive area which is totally original, custom designed, and something GA has to pay to update so it will work with IP Board's features when they change or update their forum software that we pay to use for the site. The rest we have to make work within their framework.

Sparkles shivered, the light dancing around the small clearing. It inched closer. “Come on, don’t be afraid. I’m not.” It was probably stupid, Captain might be right. Someone, or something, might have motives to hurt me with this beautiful creature—but if they did, then they were the dumb ones. Its scent enveloped me, that sweet odor tickling my nostrils. Its nostrils, a row of them going up its snout, flared. Then it shivered again. “What do you smell, huh? Is there something about me?”

Well, I have the summer "off" from working at the school day to day, but I am schlepping my kids and their friends around since I work in their district all my days off are their days off too. My son has a Track camp one week in mid-July, my daughter is still practicing driving (her driver's test is tomorrow but she won't be 16 for another 9 months!) and I have a week of full day Special Education training sessions at the end of July plus a whole lot of math and reading curriculum I'm still trying to re-learn for the K-5 kids I work with. Name a polygon with obtuse and acute angles, one set of parallel sides, and two lines of symmetry, anyone, anyone? Or how about when exactly do you spell words with c versus k? Or ck? It's all about the vowels! Plus I'm woefully unprepared on the phonemes and graphemes lesson plans I need to transition to next year with one of my kiddos. Yep, my summer vacation is less of a vacation and more like chauffer (or side seat supervisor), chef, bank to my own 2 kids and one long study session so I can be more than one lesson ahead of the kids I'm trying to teach next year. LOL

Welcome to June! Can you believe this month marks halfway through 2019? June is often a month of vacation, trips, and time off beginning for many! This month we're featuring a story by a well-known GA author and the past anthology, Road Trip, with the short story, Exit to Redemption by @Valkyrie And, with this being a short story, you should have plenty of time to read the story before the discussion day... of course, Valkyrie tends to connect a lot of her tales, so you might just get sucked in to reading more and more! Exit to Redemption by Valkyrie Length: 5,361 Description: Pete meets Henry at a conference and can't get him out of his mind. He doesn't understand why Henry won't give him the time of day. Pete needs to decide if Henry is worth changing his behavior for, and figure out if redemption is possible. Those of you familiar with my Max and Elliot stories will recognize Pete as Elliot's arrogant ex-boyfriend. It's not necessary to read those stories first, however. This story reads fine as a stand-alone piece. A reader said: In some ways, Pete is a more interesting character than Elliott. You want to dislike him and even kick his ass, but he almost seems lost... ~ Cole Matthews Enjoy this month's CSR selection, but don't forget to be ready to come back and share your thoughts and comment on the Discussion day on Monday, June 24th!

“I haven’t been this color since I was a kid.” I glanced at my arms and chest. The locals wore tight vests but I preferred to leave mine off whenever I wasn’t in the small town. The tight squeeze brought back bad memories, but they faded more and more. Danie put his arm next to mine. “I am still the same color. The locals look at me funny.” “That’s probably something to do with the nanotechnology they implanted in you, not your skin. And the locals look at you funny because that ki

Well, how has May treated you? Are you ready for Pride next month? This month we had a great double feature of @comicfan's story, The Strange Life of Jonas Marks, which included Coming Out, some fun fantasy, a romance, and so much more!! Did you read Puppilull's review or enjoy the story yourself? I hope you did! First, of course, is my interview with Comicfan, then you can share your thoughts on his story in the comments below! Are you a person who makes their bed in the morning, or do you not see much point? I usually like to make the bed. My mother was always one to say, “Wayne, god forbid you leave your bedroom door open, you don’t want people to think you’re a slob.” If people look into my room they’ll never think I’m a slob, just a book whore. If you were an animal, what would you be? I’d say a dog. Faithful to one family/person, loved, sleep a lot, belly rubs, taken for walks, and get to bark at those you don’t like … I’d say that works for me What’s something personal about you people might be surprised to know? I have a collection of Smurfs. What’s the best part of being an author? All those crazy ideas in my head, I get to put down on paper, then type up, and share with other people. The incredible part is some people actually like my crazy ideas. If you could give advice to yourself when you first started writing, what would it be? Write and be fearless. Never be afraid to make mistakes. Things can be edited later, but if you don’t write you can’t share. No idea should be abandoned until you attempt it. But the best thing I could tell myself is to remember not every story will be a hit with everyone, so keep your head up and keep trying. Is fantasy your preferred genre to read and write? Fantasy has always been a mainstay in my reading. Fantasy can take many forms and I’ve always been a voracious reader. The nickname name Comicfan isn’t because of anything other than I love comics as well. From newspaper comics like Peanuts, Cathy, and Garfield, or comic books like Superman and Wonder Woman I read and loved them all. My mother got me hooked on mysteries and I have all of Agatha Christie and Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes. Horror author Stephen King is well represented as is Edgar Allen Poe. Then again you’ll find all of Kalayna Price’s Grave Witch series, Neil Gaiman’s American Gods and more, Rick Riordan, Patricia Briggs, and JK Rowling to name but a few. I admit to being a book whore. You posted a new chapter to The Strange Life of Jonas Marks after a long break. Did something reinspire you? Can you consider major surgery inspiration? I feared if something happened to me, Jonas and other stories that I’d had to put aside while dealing with life would never be completed. I focused on completing everything I had so readers would never have to wonder what happened. How did you decide what kind of fantasy characters to have come through the door in Jonas’s office? As I admit willingly to, I have always read a lot. I never go anywhere without a book. When the time came to choose characters I had to do little more than glance at my library. Hobbits? Check. Fairies? Check. Orcs, Dryads, and more? Check. If I felt there could be someone who wanted to date an angel, well then it was safe to bring one in, because the only who could see through the glamours was Jonas. Do you plan to write more in this setting, either for the other characters or Jonas? When I finish a story, for me that is usually goodbye to that world. However, some characters like to come back. I’ve learned to never say I won’t go back, but just don’t expect it to be any time soon. How about any other projects you would like to share with readers? Seeon has a new story. Couldn’t quite get it done for the spring anthology, but with just a few tweaks it will fit one of the fall topics. I am also trying to finish two short pieces for other projects on site as well as a longer one I’m calling Next Chapter. Hopefully, it all gets done.

We all turned to Captain. He blinked, opened his mouth, then shut it. Aparoe snorted. “For someone so eloquent just a little bit ago, you sure lost it. Sir.” The sarcasm of that added sir wasn’t lost on anyone. “Let’s go find a planet that doesn’t have a ring of satellites and settle there. Eventually all this furor will settle down.” “They will hunt us.” “I have my recordings. Deke has his weapons and whatever he’ll come up with while you play at retirement. You’ll come up with a

Did you catch Monday's blog sharing the ad and feature of this month's Classic author story, The Confrontation by Adam Phillips? This was another story chosen to go along with the Coming Out theme to kick off our promotion of Pride month, which is often what so many LGBT community members are thinking about when this time of year rolls around. How did it go in this story? Well... I chose this excerpt because it shows that first crucial moment and then the second... but you're left wondering if the third time is the charm or the time the decision will be ripped out of his hands and everything the character might face is too little too late. Want to read more? Click here.

This week we've begun featuring the site's new Premium features, which are stories featuring coming out themes. I thought I'd keep that going with a twist that is kind of interesting. What happens when two people meet online, maybe through a site like... GA? And they're not out, or one of them isn't? The story plays out in fiction and real life all too often, but let's see how @Adam Phillips did it with his short story! The Confrontation by Adam Phillips Length: 4,219 Description: A couple of online friends have a falling-out; one of them caves and makes a drastic decision. A Reader Said: I love a story that leaves me wondering, especially one with dynamic characters embroiled in romantic angst. Nice job on both, thanks. ~ Miles Long If you want to spread the word about Adam Phillip'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!

Oh no, lack of the calendar can't hide it from me!! Happy Birthday to our very own @Myr!!

“You are to be interviewed as soon as possible.” “I see,” Captain said. He stood ramrod straight. The alien in front of us with the line of guards blocking the exit ramp of our ship was tall with a large head topped with a dome of purple scales, and all the swirling patches on his clothes made him look very important. “The prisoners?” he asked. His voice hissed on the end of the word, and the multiple nostrils on the end of his protruding snout snapped shut to cut off the sound.

“Where’s Deke?” I’d expected him to be in the meeting I’d interrupted, but as it broke up and everyone went to their respective parts of the ship, he’d been nowhere to be seen. “He insisted on overseeing the ship security after he locked up that Elite bastard. Said he didn’t trust them not to have put something on the ship or tricked the A.I. even though Freska said the ship confirmed we’re clear of any devices or anything.” I turned quickly from the viewscreen that showed the syst

The third person you are referring to I believe are Kohen's internal thoughts about Danie, or that was the intention. He's thinking about what Danie is saying and how he's been acting but since it is in first person, I can't say "I thought" or something similar to show it's his thoughts because you don't think you're thinking about something, you just think it. It's a hard line to walk sometimes with internal discourse/thought in first person mixed in with narration, but since I don't head hop to other characters or show scenes outside of Kohen's POV either (since, again, it's in first person so we can only see what he knows/sees) then you can assume that anything like that is his internal dialogue about another character, not third person narration about the character from the author POV. Sorry if that came across confusing though!