Location: United States
Member Since: Aug. 25, 2012

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Crystal Carroll

Biography

Crystal Carroll has been writing for as long as she can remember.

Crystal has had a long fascination with mythology and folklore. Starting in fourth grade, when she read every book her local library had on Greek mythology, she has long been fascinated with the rhythm and beauty of religious traditions, mythology and folklore. During her years at the University of California at Santa Cruz, she dug deep into the field of literature with an emphasis on medieval literature with all it’s strange and quirky stories.

Crystal balances writing privacy and security documentation during her day job and writing fiction during her off hours. Crystal’s fiction writing focuses on lyrical prose from the point of view of specific characters with an aim of letting the reader know what the world feels like for those characters.

Smashwords Interview

What do you read for pleasure?
Fantasy and Science Fiction that focuses on characterization and world building. That's why I tend to write stories from third person limited since it gives me a chance to ride in a character's head, questionable view point and all, and build up the world from there.

I also love to read about myths and folklore from various areas around the world. This started in 4th grade when I read everything my library had to offer about Greek mythology. That led to looking at Norse mythology. I keep coming back to the Epic of Gilgamesh and finding some aspect of a story to tell. But this is why so much of my fiction blends various mythologies and folklore into a stew of story. I want to know what happens when Inanna and Cupid get together. I want to think about what happens when Wolf, Stag, Pig (some very minor characters from the Welsh Mabinogion) meet up with Circe.
What is your e-reading device of choice?
I read fiction on kindle. It's large enough that I can fit a decent amount of text on the screen and doesn't lose power as quickly as my phone. Also, I'm in the habit of downloading fiction and copying over directly onto the Kindle itself. So, books from Smashwords, A03 fanfic, it's all good and easy to read there.
Read more of this interview.

Where to find Crystal Carroll online

Website: https://sites.google.com/a/crystal-carroll.com/words-words-words/welcome

Where to buy in print

http://amazon.com

Books

Hero's Heart like Burning by
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 64,120. Language: English. Published: July 23, 2023 . Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Historical, Fiction » Romance » LGBTQ+ » Gay
Aeschylus, Captain of the City Guard of Aegina, knew prayer was as dangerous as poking a hydra with a stick. But after one failure as a guardsman after another, he asked Ares, the god of war, to send him an old hoplite weary of fighting. What he got was a young soldier on a divine mission. What he got was a mess of messy miracles casting a fog of war over some mysterious events.
1 Story Ticket: Under the Tall Trees by
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 17,990. Language: English. Published: October 17, 2021 . Categories: Fiction » Children’s books » Fairy tales & fables
Beneath the tall redwood trees, friends gather and children ask the storyteller for stories. Each child gets to decide who is in their story and the storyteller tells a story based on what they asked for. This book has been carefully packed with some of those stories.
The Twelve Blessings of the Two River Valley by
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 47,230. Language: English. Published: July 11, 2021 . Categories: Fiction » Fairy tales, Fiction » Fantasy » Historical
There once were twelve princesses, or blessings, who so frightened their father by wearing out the soles of their slippers each night in their locked room that he offered princes a kingdom for the secret and death for any prince, who failed to learn the truth. What those twelve blessings did, or how they loved, that’s a story that goes beyond the truth of tattered soles.
Sail the Comet Roads and Other Dreams by
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 18,410. Language: English. Published: July 22, 2019 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Short stories
Eight anthropomorphic stories of robots, comets, and planets. Based on the dramatic dream that had humans send Apollo 11 to the moon.
1 Story Ticket: After Dinner by
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 10,760. Language: English. Published: June 22, 2019 . Categories: Fiction » Children’s books » Fairy tales & fables
Children's stories based on stories where the characters were selected by children.
1 Story Ticket: Campfire Stories by
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 5,770. Language: English. Published: January 6, 2018 . Categories: Fiction » Children’s books » Fairy tales & fables
Gather round the campfire for fantastical stories about adventuring princesses, kids with rocket powered wheelchairs, low flying stars, and more.
Clay of Many Colors by
Price: Free! Words: 67,430. Language: English. Published: November 6, 2017 . Categories: Fiction » Inspirational
It's a divisive time with politicians playing on racist fears. This collection examines some of the roots of these fears through a mix of stories from various religious traditions and tales of people simply moving through their days. All of them looking for hope at the bottom of the jar. The sweet taste of the knowledge of good along with the bitter evil.
Lit Gloss: A Rose By Any Other Name by
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 76,730. Language: English. Published: February 16, 2017 . Categories: Fiction » Classics
Re imagine the plays of the Bard of Avon through stories that explore the what ifs off stage: Juliet's suicide, was Ophelia pregnant, or what happened after Shylock lost his court case.
The Corner of First and Myth by
Price: Free! Words: 81,140. Language: English. Published: September 28, 2013 . Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Urban, Fiction » Fantasy » Short stories
Take a walk on the mythological side of the street with fourteen stories that bend myths and jay walk from time to time. Just be careful not to look Medusa in the eyes
The Fifth Sun by
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 81,160. Language: English. Published: October 13, 2012 . Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Historical
(4.00 from 1 review)
In Alternative Europe, Queen Elizabeth I dreams of the end of the world. Dreams she shares with four people scattered across Europe: a psychic lost in the present, an undead Crusader, an Aztec priestess and a teenage vampire. Elizabeth struggles to understand how she can save a world that's shaking itself apart. The question for these strangers is that world worth saving.
Blood Maiden by
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 91,550. Language: English. Published: August 26, 2012 . Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Urban, Fiction » LGBTQ+ » Lesbian
(5.00 from 2 reviews)
Life's rough for a teenage, Mayan, death goddess. Blood Maiden's parents think that she'd be a real killer if she just had a little more self confidence. If Blood Maiden can figure out how to deal with Zeus perving on her girlfriend, all the tangled prophecies her friends are under, and her parent's expectations, she might survive graduation. Oh, whatever. She'll be a hero.

Crystal Carroll's tag cloud

adventure    alternative    alternative history    ancient greece    anthropomorphic    aztec mythology    disability    dragon    dragons    egyptian gods    elizabeth 1    elizabeth 1st    fairytale    fantasy    folklore    gay romance    genie bottle    historical fantasy    historical fic    history    history 1600s    history 16th century    hope    ison    lgbtq    lgbtq fantasy    lgbtqia    mayan    mermaid    muslim ban    mystery    mythological fiction    mythology    mythology gods    mythology sex    nonbinary gender    norse gods    person of color    planets    politics    popol vuh    princess    racism fiction    religion    robot    romance    science fiction    shakespeare    slavic fantasy    sumerian    transgender    tudors    urban fantasy    vampire    vampire adult fantasy    women issues    womens fantasy