My first ever completed novel is now up! Print version of Eyes of the Wolf coming soon.

I am an author, a teller of stories both long & short, both real & imagined. So for the sheer sake of my own amusement, here’s a bit of information about me, written in the form of a short story. Whatever information you can gleam from these words is what you are worthy of knowing about it's creator.

Hazel green eyes stared out across the lake, studying the serene surface. Not even the ripple of a fish dared disturb the water, & the sun’s reflection painted it a glistening white, allowing the watcher’s imagination to turn the lake into a great pane of delicate glass, lightly frosted with the reflected beams of the sun.
Silently, a small bird, possibly a duck coming to rest after it's yearly migration, swooped down & landed in the middle of the calm lake, resting there several seconds before beginning to preen it’s shimmering feathers. Still, there seemed not even a single ripple to evidence any disturbance from the bird's presence, though likely this was simply an illusion due to the distance.
As if offended by the uninvited guest, a soft wind sprang up, blowing strands of auburn hair across the watcher’s vision & fracturing the fragile glass, transforming it into a myriad of sharp, roiling waves. A soft lapping sound began to fill the prior silence as the waves struck against the muddy shore.
Smiling in amusement, the young woman looked down at her companion, a black & white dog who rested calmly at her feet. “Hey Jackalope.” She said in a high tone that was reserved for speech directed to animals. “Want a cookie?”
The dog looked up at hearing his name, then sprang excitedly to his feet at offering of a treat. Giving several excited yaps, Jackalope spun in a tight circle, then looked to her adoringly, his body quivering with excitement, hind end shaking with the force of his curled tail’s wagging.
Laughing, she pulled a small bag from the pocket of her worn jeans & gave the excited aussie mix one of it’s contents. Not for any special reason, just simply because he was there & was behaving himself. She took great pleasure in spoiling him.
Pleased with his unexpected goodie, the dog swallowed it & wriggled against her legs, hoping for another, but only receiving a few affectionate scratches & a kiss to the muzzle once the bag was put away. After a few minutes he once more settled at her bare feet, occasionally biting at an itch on one of his forelegs. For several long moments, he was watched enviously, his slender, elegant legs & sleek, colorful coat, even his short, folded ears were all things she would have loved to possess herself.
The young woman finally turned her attention back to the lake. The duck was still there, floating serenely. She could almost imagine it was napping, being warmed by the sun to counteract the year-round chill of the spring fed lake. ‘I should buy a duck next time I’m at Wal-Mart.’ She thought to herself fondly. 'It’s been over a year since I’ve had some.’ But then a new idea sprang up, unwanted & unwelcome. The imagined taste of roast duck soured in her mouth as a single word floated up from the dark recesses of repressed memory. ‘Lakeland.’
“Ugh, felk the duck.” She spat in annoyance, replacing the expletive with one of her own creation. “And felk that bastage at the duck lake as well. Felk all those bastages.” While not offended by such language, the use of replacement curses was a habit left over from several years back, when she had worked in an inbound call center. Thus, the commandment given, the unpleasant memories of the city Lakeland & those who she had once interacted with there so many long years ago were once more forgotten.
The thoughts were quickly replaced by much more pleasant ones. “I should work on one of my stories today.” She spoke aloud, another old habit from time beyond her memory. Jackalope, well used to such habits, mostly ignored her speech unless he felt it was directed at him. “Hm, I should work on Taiyra’s story. But I almost feel like writing about Nadirah.” Both names belonged to characters from the game World of Warcraft that had long ago taken life of their own & had several short stories written about their various adventures in the game’s digital world.
As the breeze came again, this time from the opposite direction, the young woman closed her eyes & tilted back her head, enjoying the cool caress of the wind against her face. Despite it being winter, she knew her skin would have it’s customary darkness. She had no use for tanning beds or laying in the sun, her lineage itself provided her with skin that tanned easily but rarely burned. Her sun worshiping mother’s jealousy over it was a source of great amusement.
The sudden slamming of a faraway door & angry shouts finally shattered the peace of the morning. An argument, full of cursing & words of hatred, drifted into the young woman’s ears & she sighed, shaking her head. “Thank Naomha that’s not my family.” She muttered softly while attempting to ignore the fighting from across the street. Naomha, another of her replacements, was the name of her deity, which she regarded with little more reverence than she did anything else.
“Naomha,” she had explained once to an eager listener. “Is not the christian god. She is not all vengeance & wrath & rules. She guides with a gentle hand & suggestions. You’re free to ignore her suggestions & do your own thing without fear of making her upset & being punished, you simply deal with the consequences of your decisions, good or bad. Naomha simply says that life will be easier & more pleasant if you go a certain way or don’t do certain things, but ultimately, it’s up to you. Thankfully, she never says I told you so.”
The young woman sighed sadly & turned away from the lake. The argument across the street sounded like it was just getting started, the pleasant stillness & calm of the lake irrevocably lost. It was time to go home. Rising eagerly to his feet, the Jackalope followed closely beside, pausing only to pee on some interesting patch of grass before returning to his place at her left.
Looking down at the dog, the young woman once more smiled. She owned her own home, she had a well mannered dog, & she lived just a few feet down the road from the lake. The neighborhood itself was often a quiet, peaceful place, surrounded by woods & the various wildlife that inhabited them. Despite the lack of a few minor luxuries & occasional, though brief, pangs of longing for the company of other people, she was happy.
“Life is good.” She said cheerfully to the dog, pulling out the bag of treats from her pocket to reward him once more for nothing. “And today is a good day.”

"I looked heavenward for angels, while beautiful demons showed me the way." - Shannon Nacyl

(If you are a follower of my LiveJournal, I am also known as Nadirah Wolfcaller)

Blog: http://rabidwolfie.tumblr.com/

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Amanda Leonard
Latest book: Cwn Annwfn: The Gabriel Hounds. Published on March 2, 2012. (5.00 from 1 review)

Christopher Blankley
Latest book: The Bobbies of Bailiwick. Published on March 7, 2012.

Don Katnik
Latest book: Tidewater Moon. Published on March 25, 2012. (4.00 from 1 review)

Fiona Veitch Smith
Latest book: Different Tracks. Published on March 2, 2012. (5.00 from 2 reviews)
Visit their website.
View their blog. Latest post: "New review for Peace Garden"

Gord Oxley
Latest book: Tales of the Absurdid. Published on March 3, 2012. (4.75 from 4 reviews)

• Starting Over on Feb. 23, 2012
  (no rating)
  This was a fairly cute story. It got a little confusing at times, but overall, rather enjoyable, despite the rather copious amounts of black blood.
  
• Where the Cloud Meets the Mountain and the Mountain Disappears on Feb. 23, 2012
  
  I LOVED this collection! All of the stories had engaging characters, & the descriptive scene-setting drew me in almost from the first word. My favorite was the guide for the end of the world, but all of them were spectacular. I loved that I never knew what to expect from any given story when I started reading it, it kept me on an emotional edge as I waited to find out if the story was a horror, a comedy, a drama, & what could possibly happen next! Thank you so much for sharing this epic collection!
  
• Zombpunk: STEM on Feb. 24, 2012
  
  I LOVE this book! From the very first sentence it drew me in to a futuristic world filled with engaging, believable characters. Elder Tull was my favorite. Even in the midst of chaos and violence, he was like a comic relief with his absent-minded bumbling. Like the part where he disappears in the bar full of paniced Pukes, only to pop back up, safe and sound, still clutching his precious plate of food, or how he accidentally blows up the busiest hub of the city. I also love how the "Pukes" aka unstemmed minority, are painted as more noble than the "stems", who gave in to peer pressure & gave up so much. And yet, even knowing the ultimate fate of both sides, the entire time I read I kept asking myself "Which side would I be on? Would I submit to being stemmed?" I still haven't come up with an honest answer. I plan to reccommend this book to my freinds.
  
• Sweet Revenge on Feb. 24, 2012
  
  Epic short story! But there's a problem.... Now I'm craving chocolate cake!!
  
• The Short Straw on Feb. 25, 2012
  
  Ok, I am about the biggest dog lover I know.... but I could not help laughing hysterically at this short. For one, because I KNOW a few dogs like the story's Bella, but also because the wording was very well done. Although the dog's death was regretable, it was not described in a gruesome manner, nor was the act done out of cruelty. Also the thought of a bunch of men sitting around selecting colorful straws with cartoon heads on them is hilarious. I only regret that it's not longer! Wonderful job! Even as an animal advocate and lover of dogs of any shape, size, & behavior, I thoroughly enjoyed this story.
  
• Easy Come, Easy Go on Feb. 27, 2012
  
  Poor Jo. Life is harsh when the world insists that you're something you feel that you're not, and when the truth is beyond their grasp of understanding, it only makes it that much harder. Disturbing and harsh, but well worth reading.
  
• Howling for the Vampire: MM Paranormal Erotica on Feb. 27, 2012
  
  I suppose it's completely my fault for not paying closer attention. I was expecting an actual storyline in there somewhere among the sex. Instead there was about 3 paragraphs worth of anything even remotely resembling a plot, then came a short, fairly poorly written porn, and then the other 5 pages were self advertisements for other stories that I had not the slightest inclination to read. Although it wasn't all bad. This one line made it all worth it. ""If you don't mind, I'm going to fuck you now," I announced." Well, at least the big, savage, face-licking mongrel has manners. I suppose if what you want is a very quick cheap thrill with no words over 5 letters, it MIGHT be worth a look, but personally, I was less than unimpressed.
  
• Welcome Wagon on Feb. 28, 2012
  
  Adorable short story! Very witty and I dare say fairly unique! Thank you so much for sharing it! It signifigantly improved my mood after a bad day. I wish I had such helpful neighbors. I have a few people I would LOVE to introduce them to.
  
• Wolves Abound: A Short Story on Feb. 28, 2012
  
  A cute little short. Some interesting twists to the old legends, but often felt a little too vague for me. Almost felt like certain situations or descriptions were skipped to hurry along with the story, leaving it with a very shallow feel. But maybe that was just me. Cute overall.
  
• Zombies Don't Jingle: A FREE Living Dead Christmas Poem by Rusty Fischer on Feb. 29, 2012
  
  "At least until I came to the very last song" The poor caroler says. I loved this poem until I came to the very last page! Wonderful job!
  
• A Murder of Crows on March 01, 2012
  
  A very well done story and a good read. A nice and fairly fresh twist on an old theme.
  
• That Day on March 01, 2012
  
  Was this story based on/inspired by real events? While easy enough to believe as pure fiction, the story itself is well within the realm of possibility, and in fact, not unknown. The characters felt a little shallow and it had a bit of a dreamy feel. I kept expecting to see a version of "And then I woke up and found that everything was perfectly normal!" Depressing but not terribly written.
  
• Cats, Dogs, Ninjas and Fire-Hydrants. Twitter-Sized Jokes, Oneliners, Punchlines and Observations. With a Foreword by a Random Dude who wanted $10 for it but settled on $5 and a Taco. on March 02, 2012
  
  Maybe it's just that I'm not familiar enough with twitter and it's uses, but I thought the funniest thing in this collection was the guy with the taco. At least he got a breif smirk of amusement.
  
• Different Tracks on March 02, 2012
  
  What an excellent collection of stories! I confess to being envious of this author's ability to write in such a way that I feel like I'm there in all three of them, sharing a confused moment with the woman writing the article, staring out the window with the soldier at the girl, and even tapping my foot in the jazz club with "Billy". I greatly enjoyed reading this short story collection and will not hesitate to recommend it to others.
  
• Cwn Annwfn: The Gabriel Hounds on March 03, 2012
  
  I greatly enjoyed this story. The vivid details and the glimpse of small town life and what lies beyond the often cheerful, innocent facade. The ending was particularly clever.
  
• Salvation on March 03, 2012
  
  This was an excellent read and the end about threw me right out of my chair. The other reviews don't lie, this was thoroughly enjoyable and hilarious even in it's darkest moments.
  
• Tales of the Absurdid on March 03, 2012
  
  "Any fool can build a house of cards and knock it down again, but it takes a genius to make a person laugh." I have no idea who said that, but I was laughing before I even got to the first story in this collection. By the third I could not even see the screen through the blur of tears, I was laughing so hard. But thankfully the world is safe from those deadly, planet-eating bugs! I needed a good laugh and this ebook delivered from the very beginning. Definitely going on my "To Be Reccomended" list.
  
• After the Bang on March 05, 2012
  
  As much as I want to say that I really enjoyed this book, it is tempered by the fact that I can't recommend it to others. The book has some good messages about the early beliefs and development of the three major Judaic religions (and their offshoots) and it is indeed told in a very forthright, sometimes amusing manner, but not comical. More than anything the tone is very bitter and arrogant. The language feels heavy handed beyond necessity, almost to the point of degrading into nothing more than a personal attack. And often there are missed discrepancies that would have been well to add rather than the snide remarks that replaced them. While I personally thought the book was well worth reading, I will not be recommending it to anyone else.
  
• The Shower on March 05, 2012
  
  Wow. I lack the ability to say why I like this little short so much, but it is a very powerful story in so few words. Even though the reason for the shower or it's barren landscape is never really explained, it doesn't need to be for the short story itself to really hit home.
  
• Charlotte's Feathers on March 11, 2012
  
  This was a terribly depressing story, but overall, I liked it. There were a few errors, mostly cases of missing or mispelled words, but no one reads as much as I do and let's that stop them. Loved how "Benji" was shown the consequences of his actions even though he wasn't there. My only real problem was the ending. It felt incomplete somehow. Something was missing. Overall, however, a good story with an interesting moral.
  
• Bone Soup on March 18, 2012
  
  This short story is GREAT! Caught me COMPLETELY by surprise. I plan to pass this one along.
  
• A Madness of Kentaurs on May 28, 2012
  
  I really rather liked this book. A very fresh and unique look at centaurs/Kentaurs. I especially loved the "adoption", both as a kentaur and as a shaman. Very good book and well written.
  
• A Fresh of Breath Air on May 28, 2012
  
  I thoroughly enjoyed this story and I just wish more places were like this, including the crazies. Wonderful story and I enjoyed reading it. The place does sound like a little slice of eden, even with the goat.
  
• A Witch Shall Be Born Once More on May 28, 2012
  
  I was terribly disappointed with this story. I loved that it was a world dominated by women, however, the story itself felt clumsy and confusing, and it felt like the author couldn't remember who was who nor what gender they were supposed to be. Not to mention the final segment went partly unexplained.
  
• Cemetery Tree on May 28, 2012
  
  I will forever be haunted by the sentence "It sounded like chewing."
  
• Once More, From the Beginning on May 28, 2012
  
  Since everything I could think to mention has already been said, I'm simply going to add that I also loved this book. The wit and humor was well done. I've already begun recommending this e-book to several family members.
  
• Circe's Pool on June 02, 2012
  
  A very cute short story with a great moral to it. I love the myth also woven in to tell this story. A very enjoyable short read.