The Story’s the Thing!

I’m a writer.

I’m not super-famous like Grishim or King, but there’s a good chance you’ve seen one of my books in the paperback section. Based on my royalties, quite a few of you have bought one - “for a friend” maybe, because I’m not the kind of author people seem happy to admit they read.

I’ll take the money regardless.

Launuru hated herself for her cowardice as soon as she'd run away, but was too ashamed to go back. It was too late to fix things; she'd gambled her relationship with Verentsu, hoping to turn friendship into love, but now she'd made such a mess that there was probably no way they could go back to being friends.

In another part of the kingdom a woman gets up from a deep sleep. She moves to her writing table, sits down and using the sharp tip of the quill blade pokes her thumb. She then allows 5 drops of her blood to mix with the ink pad which she then grinds for some ink for the quill. Choosing a suitible square cut vellum she draws intricate circles and lines which magically disappear into the vellum. Next she carefully puts runes and letters all over which also disappear into the vellum. Putting aside that vellum she chooses a new vellum and writes a series of letters. When done the extra ink is washed away and the two parchments are rolled one over the other. She then moves to the door and opens it a few inches to hand out the parchment to an asleep page who takes the parchment and moves on his way. Thus done the woman returns to her bed unaware of what just happened.

For all this was done without both the woman, who is actually a priestess, and the page ever opening their eyes once.

I sat alone on the little park bench and contemplated the chance that had been offered to me. Slowly rolling the golden wish coin between my fingers. It had passed into my hands earlier that week but I really had nothing I wanted, I was pretty successful, and fairly wealthy... even in my advanced age.

The only thing I could have ever improved upon is my utter loneliness, up until about 10 years ago that too would have been far beyond my needs. The day that I lost my beautiful wife of 63 years was the day that I died as well. I frowned and looked at the remarkable coin, If only it would have come sooner... maybe I could have saved my dear wife.

Darn muses and their insistance on writing.. now if only they could keep their musing on one story at a time.. sigh

And so this little Ad Hoc tale continues. There won't be any more for at least two weeks, I'm afraid.

The name tag said Shirley. Underneath that, in smaller type, it said Foundation Fitter and underneath that again it said Supervisor.

"Dave? Dave Shepherd? You remember me, don't you? Shirley Boothroyd from school, only I'm Shirley Parsons now. What are you doing in here?"

The man standing in front of her reddened and looked extremely embarrassed, as well he might, since they were standing in the Ladies Underwear department of Maddens, a top department store. They had decided to travel to a nearby city so that he wouldn't meet anyone he knew, and as luck would have it...

Shirley decided that it was more than simple embarrassment that had upset an old school chum. There had been nothing between the two of them to cause any problem so why..? She looked briefly at the two young women with him, and then back to Dave, raising an eyebrow.

"I, um, need to be fitted for a bra."

If I felt uncomfortable before, once we passed the midway point... "Let me put it this way," I said to van Els, "If you look up the word uncomfortable in the dictionary, you'll see my picture next to it."

"I'm sure it would be a lovely picture," one of the doctors told me. It might have been a nice compliment if he hadn't had his hand inside me as he said it.
 

Encrypted 8

Chapter 8

I wake but I don’t wake. I mean I open my eyes and the world is changed again. I’m not lost but I’m here…or rather there again in this place that’s outside of myself. I look around and see myself and Brandy still intertwined it bed.

I hold my image self’s? Hands out in front of me and I seem to look like myself but there’s this blue-white shimmer around myself. I try to keep calm and just try and record all the strangeness.

I've never been the world's most masculine man- at 5' 5" and a slender 8 and a half stone- but this is just ridiculous.

When I went to bed last night, I was wearing my boxer shorts. When I wake up this morning, things are quite different.

Another Side of My Life
Chapter 4
by Julie D Cole
Then he turned to me and said ‘Since I told you this is my sister Debbie and not some girlfriend how about you tell me a bit about this fiancé of yours?’
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
He took me back a bit and I must have looked surprised. So he followed up and asked how long I’d been engaged. I just said the first thing that came into my head and told him ‘ 3 months.’

“What's your custom here in Niluri?” Kazmina asked. “Is a woman normally allowed to ask a man to marry her? It's hard to judge from Tsavila or you what women are normally expected to act like here; even in Setuaznu, enchantresses are allowed more privileges than mundane women, and as for you...”

This could be a treat or a trick. Your choice there. I'm glad I got it done on the day it was meant for. There was some doubt about that given how RL has been with me lately. *grin* But here it is, my offering for Halloween and for the very first time, posted on the actual day!

Maggie

Authors Notes:

Thank you all for being supportive and reading my stories and what not, I also appreciated all the comments left, and took into heart as I finished this chapter the biggest complaint you all had, so enjoy reading :)

Also I'd still like to thank Zoe for letting me write this and giving me a direction to go with this chapter :) *hugs*

Don’t Blame Me I’m a Martian-10

Chapter 10

It’s so good, I’m drifting in this haze that just is like this…I don’t know it’s that foggy place in dreams like you see on TV. I’m in this hotel room and it’s nice and it’s there’s some soft music playing and I’m in a silk teddy and I hear. “Hey beautiful…” it comes from Kaylee coming out of the bathroom in this skimpy sexy set of lingerie and that’s it.

Author's note: Consider this a teaser. No idea when more might come.

The Dead Kid Returns

Part One: Beth’s story

The dead kid didn’t show up for class again today, and nobody knew what that meant.

When the dead kid first missed a day, the debate went up and down the schoolyard as to what might have happened to it. But as days went by, and still no sign of it, people started to forget that the dead kid had ever been there.

Except one girl..

Switcheroo
Issue 10

By Melanie E.

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This is mostly just a good faith gesture letting people know I really AM still writing. I had originally intended this to be a "Special Double Length Tenth Issue Spectacular" but it's taking me too long to write, so here's a normal length episode instead. We'll save the double-length issue for 25 or so. Sound good?

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Rose learns about her host and his rivalry with her father's company. He asks for her help in a delicate matter, and she soon finds herself translating in another unpleasant business meeting. Why does everyone keep telling her she's too young to be paid?