Six Sentence Sunday #21: Reflections upon a mother's overreaction

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For today's Six Sentence Sunday, I'm returning to my Regency paranormal romance, A Woman of Proper Accomplishments. Here, we see the protagonist's mother reacting after an incident that, while serious in nature overall, only resulted in a sprained ankle:

"You are not free of distress," Helena's mother said. "You are a cripple now. Oh, Mr. Preston, our daughter is a cripple! She cannot even be a governess if she is a cripple. Sophia, you must take your sister in when you marry. She injured herself to protect you.”

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #12: Superhero fashion

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday -  a chance to post snippets from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

This snippet is from a middle-grade superhero WIP, Woodland Girl and the Mechanic:

Here, the main character, Jared, has just offered his newly super-powered friend, Maria, some comic books to give her costume ideas.

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"Most of these women are almost naked.” Maria rolled her eyes. "You’re such a pervert, Jared. I 'd prefer something like they wear in Venusian Princess Himiko.”

I snatched the stack out of her hands. “Give me a break. Venusian Princess Himiko? Don’t they fight in dresses? How can you fight in a dress? That’s just stupid.”

“They’re magic dresses,” she said, a pout on her face. She shrugged. “It’s no more stupid than fighting in a bikini. I’m not going to wear anything like those slutty girls in your comics.”

Six Sentence Sunday #20: There's something in the water

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For today's Six Sentence Sunday, I'm remaining with my YA urban fantasy WIP, Osland. Here, the protagonist runs into a rather odd new restriction at her new school:

After we passed a few fountains, I said, “This school is f. . .this school is f. . .this school is messed up.” The f-bomb wouldn’t come out—more than a little weird. While I’d like to think I wasn’t super-foul-mouthed, on occasion, I did let a few colorful words slip out. Sure, I’ll admit after Mom and Dad died, the f-bombs started dropping a bit more often, but I never had trouble pushing the words out. Now I could barely even think of them. Did the teachers drug the water or something? 

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #11: Magic User's Guide to Educational Reform

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday - a chance to post snippets from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

In honor of completing the draft of my fantasy WIP, Mind Crafter, I'm putting up a snippet from that work that gives some insight into the protagonist, Shala. She's a scholar-mage who doesn't quite understand why everyone doesn't value knowledge and access to knowledge as much as she does (btw, a crafter is a type of magic user and silja is an abstract strategy board game kind of like a cross of chess and go):

     Ansa looked down at her hands, an uncomfortable expression on her face. “Mistress, I don't know how to read. I can write and read the characters for my name, but no more. I am sorry. You shouldn’t have been sent such a foolish girl.”

    “A mind that can grasp silja with such ease is never one I would call foolish,” Shala said, keeping her voice neutral. “Well, I suppose I must teach you how to read. You will find it a useful skill. With a quick mind like yours, I am sure I can teach you many of the most common characters in a rather short time.”

     The ways of the palace befuddled Shala. Not cultivating basic reading in the servants of the important officials seemed absurd. At House Lran, none of her fellow crafters would tolerate an illiterate servant.

Six Sentence Sunday #19: A Very Tortured View of Labor and Frontier History

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For today's Six Sentence Sunday, I'm flipping back to my YA urban fantasy WIP, Osland. Here, we see the oft-confused Lydia Wray offer her rather fanciful theory to the main character, Gail, on why cell phones don't work on their Seattle boarding school campus:


“But there’s a rumor that a hundred years ago some Indians killed these striking union guys, so now the union guys are ghosts and haunt the school blocking cell phones.” Lydia blinked. “Not Indians. I mean not like Leandra. I mean Native Americans.”

How do you even respond to something like that? 

Six Sentence Sunday #18: Choices, choices

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For today's Six Sentence Sunday, I continue with my Regency paranormal romance WIP, A Woman of Proper Accomplishments. For reference, a soul breather is a person with the rare ability to literally breathe life into inanimate objects:

Appreciating the handsome face of her rescuer was far preferable to letting her thoughts return to the disturbing memory of the masked criminal.

She could not help but compare Captain Southward to Mr. Morgan. The clean-shaven captain possessed darker hair and lighter eyes but presented less height. Her nose detected no hint of any eau de cologne unlike during her encounters with the more broad-shouldered Mr. Morgan. The militia officer's movements lacked the inherent grace and dignity of the soul breather but exuded a certain raw presence lacking in the gentleman. Though unclear if it was an artifact of his current profession or a more inherent aspect of the captain’s character, she could not deny the appeal.

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #9: Not Quite Hero Material

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday -  a chance to post six sentences from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

This Saturday, I'm going to take a break from Mind Crafter to offer a snippet from a temporarily shelved (but still fun) project, Woodland Girl and the Mechanic, a middle-grade superhero story:

 "Jersey Devil fights crime without powers,” I said.

Maria rolled her eyes. I wished she made a mask where I couldn’t see her eyes.


She rose from the ground surrounded by a faint blue haze. "Jersey Devil isn’t even real. Second of all, Jersey Devil, even in the comics, spent seven years training with kung fu masters in China and three years with acrobats from the Cirque de Lune.” She sighed. “Jared, you have trouble just running the track in gym."

Six Sentence Sunday #17: Marriage Priorities in 1811 England

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For today's Six Sentence Sunday, I return to my Regency paranormal romance WIP, A Woman of Proper Accomplishments. Here, the protagonist's mother is making it clear what she considers important in a potential husband:

“Do not be such a silly girl,” her mother said. She waved a hand and then pointed toward the door. “Men exist to trouble women. If you seek perfection from a husband, you should put yourself on the shelf. There is not a perfect husband in the world, but there is a handsome one downstairs worth two thousand pounds a year.” She smiled.

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Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #8: This is what we call a tongue lashing

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday -  a chance to post six sentences from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

This six is from my fantasy WIP, Mind Crafter:

The protagonist has just angered her empress during a conversation about the protagonist's place in story's society. I'm cutting into the center of her tirade:

". . .I will rip off my chains, and I will rip off the chains of millions if I have my way. You acquiesce to yours and act as if being bound makes you superior. It is disgusting and unbecoming an intelligent woman. Your arrogance is laughable and your delusion pathetic. A barbarian child is your superior. At least they understand a slave’s life is no true life."

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #7: What is life?

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday -  a chance to post six sentences from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

This six is from my fantasy WIP Mind Crafter. 

Fouang cleared his throat, obvious irritation in his face--no doubt angry over being made to wait.

Tua resisted a snort. She would make him learn his place. 

“Do you know what living is, Vice Minister?” she said.

“I am no philosopher. I would say living is not being dead.”

Six Sentence Sunday #16: On Consideration of the Bronte Sisters and Utah

If you're unfamiliar with Six Sentence Sunday, the idea is simple. Writers post six sentences from one of their works (published or unpublished, WIP or complete).

Today, I'm sticking with my YA urban fantasy, Osland, but I'm not continuing off last week's scene. Instead, this follows a scene in which the protagonist Gail Dorjee has just politely turned down the offer of joining her friend Lydia's Horticulture and Flowering Arranging Club:

Lydia stuck out her lip and nodded. “Like Charlotte Bronte said, ‘I try to avoid looking forward or backward and try to keep looking in Utah.'”

“Lydia, I don’t think Charlotte Bronte said that.” I wasn’t much for classics, but I did like Jane Eyre. I don’t know what that said about my taste in romance, but at least it was better than liking the other Bronte and Wuthering Heights. “Well, maybe she said something like that, but I doubt it was about Utah.”

For other snippets from a variety of wonderful authors writing in many genres, or if you want to get involved yourself, please visit http://www.sixsunday.com/

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #6: Feasting Upon Vengeful Rage

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday -  a chance to post six sentences from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

This six is from my fantasy WIP Mind Crafter. The protagonist has been summoned to a clandestine meeting with her empress when she realizes the decor of the room she's in is a bit disturbing:

Shala’s breath caught. The paintings were not simple battle scenes. A young soldier in gleaming armor, his face contorted in pain, hoisted an imperial standard aloft while everyone burned around him. Everyone in the empire would recognize the face of Prince Daro, the greatest casualty of the Battle of the Golden Valley. Others lands might forever downplay such an inglorious defeat, but the empire feasted on the Golden Valley to feed their rage even ten years later. The recognition of the prince refocused her attention on the other paintings and their titles: “The Treachery of the wicked General Narakeen”, “The Final Stand at the Golden Valley”, and “The Cowardly Tiger burns the Noble Hawk.” 

Six Sentence Sunday #15: Melting Pot

If you're unfamiliar with Six Sentence Sunday, the idea is simple. You post six sentences from one of your works (published or unpublished, WIP or complete).

Today, I'm going back to my YA urban fantasy, Osland. I present this six without context or comment.

Lydia peered at me for a long moment. “Are you an alien?” She furrowed her brow. “Not that I discriminate. I welcome you as a Martian-American to Earth. If you need like someone to talk to immigration for you, I’m sure my dad can find some good lawyers.”

For other snippets from a variety of wonderful authors writing in many genres, or if you want to get involved yourself, please visit sixsunday.blogspot.com.

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #5: No trespassing means no trespassing

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday -  a chance to post six sentences from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

This six is from my fantasy WIP Mind Crafter:

Frigid air knifed at his skin. Howling winds whipped through the mountains. Flurries of white flakes filled the entire area rendering any attempts to see beyond the immediate vicinity futile. A clawed hand gripped his shoulder. His blood pounded in his ears. The Vali had finally come.

Six Sentence Sunday #14: The Blood of Kings

This week, I'm going to stay again with my Regency paranormal romance WIP, A Woman of Proper Accomplishments. Last week, a bit of a social scuffle broke out in the middle of an archery contest when a local VIP, Lady Johnstone interrupted with an announcement. I'm skipping ahead a bit to get to the meat of her announcement.

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“The target has been placed 200 yards away," Lady Johnstone said. "King Henry the Eighth was said to be able to place his arrows well into the center at 240 yards.” 

Helena managed to contain her gasp. John Sutton, however, did not contain his laugh. “200 yards, Lady Johnstone? Perhaps one does need to be a king to manage such a feat."

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For other snippets from a variety of wonderful authors writing in a variety of genres, please visit sixsunday.blogspot.com.

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #4: Always find the positive in a given situation

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday -  a chance to post six sentences from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

This six is from my fantasy WIP Mind Crafter.

In this six, the protagonist (Shala) finds herself having a most curious nightmare in which she's a foreign woman on a doomed ship. For reference, in this book, a crafter is a type of magic user with specialized abilities. Shala is, when she's awake at least, a mind crafter.

Through the sheets of rain and flying debris, she spied a golden-haired woman yelling into the storm. Why hadn’t the damn Caranian air crafter protected them? Despite all the silver they'd given her, they were still going to die. A fellow Dassian would have done more for them. Jalisia cackled into the wind. A fellow Dassian also would have wanted double the silver.

Six Sentence Sunday #13: True Glory

This week, I'm going to actually stay with my Regency paranormal romance WIP, A Woman of Proper Accomplishments. Last week, the a friend of Helena (the protagonist) had butted heads with another woman who had just insulted her after the end of a archery competition. Only the word of an important announcement ended their encounter.

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Helena stepped away from Jane Thornton to focus on Lady Johnstone through the gathered throng of people. Mr. Morgan stood beside her, a jolly smile on his face visible even at a distance. The continued din of excited conversation from the crowd made any conversation more than a few yards away difficult to hear.

Lady Johnstone held up a hand and waited until the crowd again fell into silence. “The contest is not yet complete. I offer a chance at even greater glory to those who would embody the true spirit of archery.”

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For other snippets from a variety of wonderful authors writing in many genres, or if you want to get involved yourself, please visit sixsunday.blogspot.com.

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #3: We're already measuring your coffin

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday -  a chance to post six sentences from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

This six is from my fantasy WIP Mind Crafter.

In this six, the protagonist (Shala) finds herself talking to the Vice Minister of Harmony (basically a government internal security/secret police type ministry). The Vice Minister proceeds to gleefully describe the process of "Clouding", a procedure that strips the magical power away from errant crafters (the term for magic users in this setting):

"First, you see the panic settle over their face," Vice Minister Fouang said. "Then, the pain. Oh, how she writhed.” He stepped toward Shala, his face almost mirthful. “Then I saw it in her eyes, the exact moment they carved her soul. The screams would haunt your nightmares, Fifth Shala."

Six Sentence Sunday #12: Sun Tzu Teaches The First Principle of Social Warfare: Always Bring a Friend

This week, I return to my Regency paranormal romance WIP, A Woman of Proper Accomplishments. Rather than jumping around, I'm continuing shortly after the last AWOPA snippet, in which rich snob Jane Thornton, has insulted the heroine, Helena. Helena's friend, Cassandra, decides she's not going to stand by and let her friend get dissed so decides to bust some caps . . . oh well, maybe not quite that:

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“That is most presumptuous, Jane Thornton," Cassandra said, her face scarlet.

 “As are you, Cassandra Mitchell,” Jane said with a sneer.

Helena’s mother stepped forward, but at the sound of Lord Johnstone's shouting, turned her attention to the distant baron rather than the rude Jane.

“Let us quiet down.," Lord Johnston called out. "Lady Johnstone has an announcement.”

Jane smiled, curtsied once, and looked toward Lord Johnstone.

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For other snippets from a variety of wonderful authors writing in many genres, or if you want to get involved yourself, please visit sixsunday.blogspot.com.

Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday #2: Chilling With the Empress

Welcome to #SFFSat – Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday -  a chance to post six sentences from a piece of speculative fiction. Want to join in? Check out the site and links to other great speculative fiction authors at Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday and follow the hashtag #SFFSat on Twitter.

This six is from my fantasy WIP Mind Crafter.

In this six, the protagonist finds herself summoned to the imperial palace after an act of heroism. Instead of a small private meeting, she instead has meet the empress in a formal audience with hundreds of people watching.

With her heart threatening to break into a sprint, Shala forced her face into practiced neutrality. She walked forward with her head down until she stood before the stairs to the throne dais. After she lowered herself to her knees, she placed her forehead and hands on the carpet. Whatever respect and deference a member of the Fifth Circle of House Lran might expect from common citizens, she knelt now before the Empress of the Larangian Empire and would pay proper respect.

“You are before Empress Tua of the Van,” a man’s voice announced. “She who sits on the Silver Throne. Defender of the land, protector of the people, head of Larang and heart of the empire.”