Hello all, this a quick message to let you know Santa's Shorts Christmas short stories and poems is FREE for the next several days until 1.2.15 across all markets. I am really hoping for reviews on this book. I ran Nickolaus free and I got 2 very good reviews, one was a 5 star and the other was a 4 star review.
At the end of January, Moonswallow Gates will be free and I am hoping for reviews that are good as well.
That's about it. Till next time.
Sunday, December 28, 2014
Wednesday, December 24, 2014
For Santa, From the Cat
Merry Christmas... enjoy this freshly written poem with artwork made by daughter.
Friday, December 19, 2014
Cacophony of my Nightly Deluge
Get on the bus.
Up in the air-
she said to go
Which way?
Get on the bus.
From here to there
did you see it?
see the water?
Get on the bus.
All day long
we like to write
how many words?
Get on the bus.
Did you see it?
the first word
into the water?
Get on the bus.
She said to go
to come and get it
but not for me.
This was created using a poetry prompt from Found Poetry Review This poem was created from a list of phrases. I did something like this in my poetry class at school but I won't share that poem with you because I want to send it away for publishing. Anyway I hope you all enjoy this little poem.
Starting the first week of January I will be making poetry collages where I find words and phrases from magazines and then I will make a collage out of them. It is my 2015 poetry project for the year. I plan on making one poem a week. I already ordered dozens of travel brochures and I have a bunch of magazines to get me started. I just need acid free paper and acid free glue. It should be a fun project.
Up in the air-
she said to go
Which way?
Get on the bus.
From here to there
did you see it?
see the water?
Get on the bus.
All day long
we like to write
how many words?
Get on the bus.
Did you see it?
the first word
into the water?
Get on the bus.
She said to go
to come and get it
but not for me.
This was created using a poetry prompt from Found Poetry Review This poem was created from a list of phrases. I did something like this in my poetry class at school but I won't share that poem with you because I want to send it away for publishing. Anyway I hope you all enjoy this little poem.
Starting the first week of January I will be making poetry collages where I find words and phrases from magazines and then I will make a collage out of them. It is my 2015 poetry project for the year. I plan on making one poem a week. I already ordered dozens of travel brochures and I have a bunch of magazines to get me started. I just need acid free paper and acid free glue. It should be a fun project.
Monday, December 15, 2014
Yeah it Almost Christmas
Yes, Christmas is my favorite holiday right up there with my birthday and July 4th. Though I am not fully in the Christmas spirit but soon I will be especially when I bake cookies and buy our tree. We are going to get a live one this year. Of course, I wait so long to get a tree, I won't take it down until middle of January or later. I would keep a live tree as long as possible but for some reason that doesn't seem possible.
I did finish Nanowrimo, but I still need to finish the novel. Okay I don't want to toot my own horn but I think this novel is going to be awesome. Not that I don't like my first one because I do but I think Gone Before Dawn is so much better. I can't wait to finish it so I can start revising (and that is going to be a huge undertaking). The story took a supernatural/science fiction turn which means the beginning does not match where I am but it's all good. That is why we revise, is it not? It will take months before completion but I want to make YOU excited about it because it will be freaking awesome.
Gone Before Dawn is science fiction (more like the show Fringe, as in alternate time lines and string theory and less like Jules Verne) it is a thriller and I put 10 teenagers from ages 16-18 in peril in alternate timeline. This is how it starts, a bunch of really smart kids who belong to the STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) club at Glenwild High School go on a field trip to an amusement park for a behind the scenes tour of rollercoaster design. There are 3 chaperones and the bus driver. One chaperone has to drive herself because her flight gets in late. The bus disappears through a portal and they find themselves 200 years in the future but it is future no one expects. n our timeline there is a physic who can talk to one of the missing kids. Awesome right? One thing I will mention...the bad guys in the alternate timeline are called the Puritans.
I do have plans for another ebook but I probably won't have that ready until late January or early February. It will be a collection of mystery short stories called Blood on the Carpet.
The term is almost done and I already turned in the advertising portfolio. I will be making a copywriting portfolio in the near future so you all can see my work and who knows maybe I will get some decent jobs. I really love writing scripts. I wrote some for a client and I wrote a bunch for the project and I love writing scripts. I plan on looking for more jobs on Odesk in advertising, copywriting and script writing because I truly believe it is something I can be good at.
Chances are I won't write again before Christmas and I find highly unlikely I will write before the new year so Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy Kwanzaa, and Happy Yule. And for everyone: have a wonderful New Year and I am looking forward to having you join me once again for the ride of my life.
I did finish Nanowrimo, but I still need to finish the novel. Okay I don't want to toot my own horn but I think this novel is going to be awesome. Not that I don't like my first one because I do but I think Gone Before Dawn is so much better. I can't wait to finish it so I can start revising (and that is going to be a huge undertaking). The story took a supernatural/science fiction turn which means the beginning does not match where I am but it's all good. That is why we revise, is it not? It will take months before completion but I want to make YOU excited about it because it will be freaking awesome.
Gone Before Dawn is science fiction (more like the show Fringe, as in alternate time lines and string theory and less like Jules Verne) it is a thriller and I put 10 teenagers from ages 16-18 in peril in alternate timeline. This is how it starts, a bunch of really smart kids who belong to the STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) club at Glenwild High School go on a field trip to an amusement park for a behind the scenes tour of rollercoaster design. There are 3 chaperones and the bus driver. One chaperone has to drive herself because her flight gets in late. The bus disappears through a portal and they find themselves 200 years in the future but it is future no one expects. n our timeline there is a physic who can talk to one of the missing kids. Awesome right? One thing I will mention...the bad guys in the alternate timeline are called the Puritans.
I do have plans for another ebook but I probably won't have that ready until late January or early February. It will be a collection of mystery short stories called Blood on the Carpet.
The term is almost done and I already turned in the advertising portfolio. I will be making a copywriting portfolio in the near future so you all can see my work and who knows maybe I will get some decent jobs. I really love writing scripts. I wrote some for a client and I wrote a bunch for the project and I love writing scripts. I plan on looking for more jobs on Odesk in advertising, copywriting and script writing because I truly believe it is something I can be good at.
Chances are I won't write again before Christmas and I find highly unlikely I will write before the new year so Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy Kwanzaa, and Happy Yule. And for everyone: have a wonderful New Year and I am looking forward to having you join me once again for the ride of my life.
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Susan Doesn't Wash Her Underwear
I like the Found Poetry Review on Facebook and today they posted a poetry prompt which I found very inspiring because I could use the OULIPO style of poetry. I learned about this while I was poetry class last term.
OULIPO is when you take any written work be it an article, book, or even another poem and then you take all the nouns and change them by putting a constraint on it. The most common is n+7. You look the word up in the dictionary and go seven words from the word (make sure you stick with nouns). If you do this, use a real dictionary, the online generators do not work as well. You can read more about OULIPO at poets.org.
Okay now, the poetry lesson is over. Here is how I created the poem.
The original text came from page 32 from the book Susan, Be Smooth by Nell Giles. I used the 1969 The Random House Dictionary of the English Language (I really need an updated dictionary). I used the constraint of n+7ish. I ignored all words that had the same word in a compound word such as bath salts, all proper nouns, all words that were different parts of speech, and all archaic words.
Here is the original text:
While you let your bath water run, wash your underwear in a fluff of soap flakes. You’ll find it very easy to keep your "chores" down to a minimum if you follow this simple routine.
In fresh, soapy water rinse out your stockings ... then swish everything through several clear waters and there they are, ready to be hung to dry on coat hangers on the shower rod. (This is what happens to Susans who live in city apartments, of course. Country Susans have whole back porches of cool, dark breezes.) In town or country, we still believe that Susan should wash her own underwear and should do it night by night rather than in a lump. In this way you stay clean as you go along... you won’t spend a Saturday afternoon washing your underwear, when you’d rather have a date.
Here is the OULIPO poem called Susan Doesn't Wash Her Underwear
While you let
your batman wave run,
wash your undine
in a fluke of sobriety flamingos.
You’ll find it very easy to keep your “chorus”
down to a ministration-
if you follow this simple row.
In fresh, soapy wave
rinse out your stoicism...
then swish through several clear waves
and there they are, ready to be hung
to dry on cobble hangnails on the show-off roe.
(This is what happens to Susans who live in civics, of course.
Coupler Susans have whole back porks of cool, dark brews.)
In toxin or coupler,
we still believe that Susan
should wash her own undine
and should do it nil by nil rather than in a lunatic.
In this weakfish, you stay clean as you go along...
you won’t spend a Saturday age washing your undines,
when you’d rather have a dawn.
OULIPO is when you take any written work be it an article, book, or even another poem and then you take all the nouns and change them by putting a constraint on it. The most common is n+7. You look the word up in the dictionary and go seven words from the word (make sure you stick with nouns). If you do this, use a real dictionary, the online generators do not work as well. You can read more about OULIPO at poets.org.
Okay now, the poetry lesson is over. Here is how I created the poem.
The original text came from page 32 from the book Susan, Be Smooth by Nell Giles. I used the 1969 The Random House Dictionary of the English Language (I really need an updated dictionary). I used the constraint of n+7ish. I ignored all words that had the same word in a compound word such as bath salts, all proper nouns, all words that were different parts of speech, and all archaic words.
Here is the original text:
While you let your bath water run, wash your underwear in a fluff of soap flakes. You’ll find it very easy to keep your "chores" down to a minimum if you follow this simple routine.
In fresh, soapy water rinse out your stockings ... then swish everything through several clear waters and there they are, ready to be hung to dry on coat hangers on the shower rod. (This is what happens to Susans who live in city apartments, of course. Country Susans have whole back porches of cool, dark breezes.) In town or country, we still believe that Susan should wash her own underwear and should do it night by night rather than in a lump. In this way you stay clean as you go along... you won’t spend a Saturday afternoon washing your underwear, when you’d rather have a date.
Here is the OULIPO poem called Susan Doesn't Wash Her Underwear
While you let
your batman wave run,
wash your undine
in a fluke of sobriety flamingos.
You’ll find it very easy to keep your “chorus”
down to a ministration-
if you follow this simple row.
In fresh, soapy wave
rinse out your stoicism...
then swish through several clear waves
and there they are, ready to be hung
to dry on cobble hangnails on the show-off roe.
(This is what happens to Susans who live in civics, of course.
Coupler Susans have whole back porks of cool, dark brews.)
In toxin or coupler,
we still believe that Susan
should wash her own undine
and should do it nil by nil rather than in a lunatic.
In this weakfish, you stay clean as you go along...
you won’t spend a Saturday age washing your undines,
when you’d rather have a dawn.
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Week 1.5 of Nanowrimo 14 and Other Less Important Stuff
Well I am working on my next novel, I have 17,900 words. Oh I know I am behind but I have not been slacking. I have been doing a ton of stuff. Last year, I wasn't in school and I didn't have much freelance work but this year I am in school and I have a lot of freelance work. I am making the time to write which is the most important thing. Because this is something I don't normally do- make an honest effort to write. I am doing it and I am hoping this weekend I will catch up. Fingers crossed...
I am in advertising class and part two of humanities. I really like my advertising class. Copywriting- count me in. Not going to switch majors because I would not like the actual business of advertising. It is pretty cut throat. Hell I don't always bid on jobs on Odesk for whatever reason. In advertising we are working on group project which is PITA (pain in the ass) because juggling so many people and getting stuff done deadline is three steps short of a nightmare but what are you going to do.
We had our first snow of the season. It started light this afternoon and we got a dusting. It feels like winter which in my opinion is too early for me. I would rather winter to start in December. Lately, it hasn't been very sunny. Many days are overcast with that look of rain or snow or something unpleasant.
That is about it. Short sweet and right to the point. Always would appreciate cheer leaders as I race to finish the 50,000 words on time.
Till we meet again
I am in advertising class and part two of humanities. I really like my advertising class. Copywriting- count me in. Not going to switch majors because I would not like the actual business of advertising. It is pretty cut throat. Hell I don't always bid on jobs on Odesk for whatever reason. In advertising we are working on group project which is PITA (pain in the ass) because juggling so many people and getting stuff done deadline is three steps short of a nightmare but what are you going to do.
We had our first snow of the season. It started light this afternoon and we got a dusting. It feels like winter which in my opinion is too early for me. I would rather winter to start in December. Lately, it hasn't been very sunny. Many days are overcast with that look of rain or snow or something unpleasant.
That is about it. Short sweet and right to the point. Always would appreciate cheer leaders as I race to finish the 50,000 words on time.
Till we meet again
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
Nanowrimo- New Novel and Other Going Ons
I decided to participate again in Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month for those who don't know). This year I had not one but two story ideas. So far with three days in, I am maintaining word count barely but it's there.
The novel is called Gone Before Dawn and this is what its about in a nutshell. A bus with teenagers disappear (more than likely through a worm hole or other dimension portal) on their way to a field trip at an amusement park. While they are there, the one mother on our side is trying to find them when a psychic named Moira Ponds tries to help. This is more a thriller novel. I suppose there are some scary things but it is not horror, or at least not horror in my mind. I am still getting to know my characters and my direction is not all there so I am struggling with the writing but somehow I keep plugging away. Somewhere in the middle, I get a lot more written in a day.
I have been rather busy working on freelancing and school. The term ended two weeks ago and I still have a 4.0. I got an "A" in my poetry class and an "A" in my Communications class. I am taking the second part of Humanities and Advertising. I am looking forward to really getting down to business in Advertising. We are supposed to work in groups. So I am busy but I still spend a little too much time playing Candy Crush (I only played once yesterday)
So what else has been going on? That's about it. The weather has been on a rollercoaster for the last two weeks. I did not get enough candy Trick or Treating on Friday, could have used more Resee's and more chocolate bars. We had a whole week of leaf peeping. Snow fell somewhere in Pennsylvania and it's a matter of time before I get snow. This month we have Thanksgiving and the one thing I can't wait for is pumpkin pie. MMMM pumpkin pie. I entered a short story contest for the Boston Review.
And there you go, if notice no empty promises of what I am posting in the future. We know I work on a different time. Till next time...
The novel is called Gone Before Dawn and this is what its about in a nutshell. A bus with teenagers disappear (more than likely through a worm hole or other dimension portal) on their way to a field trip at an amusement park. While they are there, the one mother on our side is trying to find them when a psychic named Moira Ponds tries to help. This is more a thriller novel. I suppose there are some scary things but it is not horror, or at least not horror in my mind. I am still getting to know my characters and my direction is not all there so I am struggling with the writing but somehow I keep plugging away. Somewhere in the middle, I get a lot more written in a day.
I have been rather busy working on freelancing and school. The term ended two weeks ago and I still have a 4.0. I got an "A" in my poetry class and an "A" in my Communications class. I am taking the second part of Humanities and Advertising. I am looking forward to really getting down to business in Advertising. We are supposed to work in groups. So I am busy but I still spend a little too much time playing Candy Crush (I only played once yesterday)
So what else has been going on? That's about it. The weather has been on a rollercoaster for the last two weeks. I did not get enough candy Trick or Treating on Friday, could have used more Resee's and more chocolate bars. We had a whole week of leaf peeping. Snow fell somewhere in Pennsylvania and it's a matter of time before I get snow. This month we have Thanksgiving and the one thing I can't wait for is pumpkin pie. MMMM pumpkin pie. I entered a short story contest for the Boston Review.
And there you go, if notice no empty promises of what I am posting in the future. We know I work on a different time. Till next time...
Monday, November 3, 2014
Santa's Shorts on Sale Now
Sorry for a late posting on this. I have been busy (okay not as busy I should be) I will be writing more later. I just wanted to let you know my Christmas Short Story and Poetry collection,Santa's Shorts is ON SALE NOW (November 3, 2015). You still have a couple of days to get it at the cheaper. That is the link for the US market and it is on sale in the UK market as well.
Well now that it is November, it is definitely time to think about Christmas.
Till next time, pet the random neighborhood dog and pee on a fire extinguisher.
Well now that it is November, it is definitely time to think about Christmas.
Till next time, pet the random neighborhood dog and pee on a fire extinguisher.
Tuesday, October 21, 2014
Softly, Quietly, Calmly
According to dictionary.com an adverb is " a word that modifies verbs, clauses, and in English and Latin modifies other adverbs and adjectives." Most of us know them as the "-ly" words with some other ones like well, very, rather, more, etc.
There is a quote by Stephen King that is plastered everywhere, "The road to hell is paved in adverbs"
But if you read Under the Dome (and this is another whole blog post) there are a lot of adverbs. There tends to be this school of thought among the literati that adverbs are bad and if you use them then you are bad.
Am I really concerned about what the literati think of me? I know I am not part of that snobby class. Here's a quick side note on my place in the literature- I once joined an online writing group and it was open season for the new girl. Basically (adverb), I was mainstream and I had no place in the group. There were some to defend me. Needless to say, I quit the group. Back to adverbs...
We learn adverbs in school. If good writing doesn't use adverbs (might want to tell Dan Brown because he used "quietly" a lot in in the DaVinci Code) Then what is the sense of learning adverbs? So we as writers know to delete them right away? Or is it so we can play "Mad Libs" effectively(adverb)? Are adverbs really all that bad? No, they are not. And I highly doubt the road to hell is paved with them, really the road to hell is paved in Nazi skeletons, blood, murder, and the hands of serial killers.
But, you say, doesn't the quote mean to show not tell? An adverb tells and doesn't show us anything... That is true but sometimes an adverb is the right word. It adds ambiguity. Which the literati just love ripping apart creative writing looking for the why- why did the writer do this or do that? My question, as a writer, why do I have to show you everything? Can't you come up with your thoughts and use your imagination? Using adverbs makes the reader the judgment for himself on the motive of the sentence.
And when it comes to poetry an adverb, sometimes, is just to nice to say, it glides off the tongue.
I don't know who makes up the rules for writing and who says what is in and what is not in. You know what I don't give a crap about the rules. I don't give a crap about the mysterious literati. I if I want to use adverbs, then fuck I will, sparingly of course...
Till we meet again.
There is a quote by Stephen King that is plastered everywhere, "The road to hell is paved in adverbs"
But if you read Under the Dome (and this is another whole blog post) there are a lot of adverbs. There tends to be this school of thought among the literati that adverbs are bad and if you use them then you are bad.
Am I really concerned about what the literati think of me? I know I am not part of that snobby class. Here's a quick side note on my place in the literature- I once joined an online writing group and it was open season for the new girl. Basically (adverb), I was mainstream and I had no place in the group. There were some to defend me. Needless to say, I quit the group. Back to adverbs...
We learn adverbs in school. If good writing doesn't use adverbs (might want to tell Dan Brown because he used "quietly" a lot in in the DaVinci Code) Then what is the sense of learning adverbs? So we as writers know to delete them right away? Or is it so we can play "Mad Libs" effectively(adverb)? Are adverbs really all that bad? No, they are not. And I highly doubt the road to hell is paved with them, really the road to hell is paved in Nazi skeletons, blood, murder, and the hands of serial killers.
But, you say, doesn't the quote mean to show not tell? An adverb tells and doesn't show us anything... That is true but sometimes an adverb is the right word. It adds ambiguity. Which the literati just love ripping apart creative writing looking for the why- why did the writer do this or do that? My question, as a writer, why do I have to show you everything? Can't you come up with your thoughts and use your imagination? Using adverbs makes the reader the judgment for himself on the motive of the sentence.
And when it comes to poetry an adverb, sometimes, is just to nice to say, it glides off the tongue.
I don't know who makes up the rules for writing and who says what is in and what is not in. You know what I don't give a crap about the rules. I don't give a crap about the mysterious literati. I if I want to use adverbs, then fuck I will, sparingly of course...
Till we meet again.
Saturday, October 11, 2014
Mickayla Margarella on Sale Now
Hey all, This is a quick post just to let you know my ROMANCE novelette is one sale now through Kindle countdown deals. It is called Mickayla Margarella and it is about a woman who leaves her family for the seductive high life of Hollywood but does she find true love in the end? That is the question you will answer when you read the book. It is one sale through 10.16.2014 and right now on this day it is a 99 cents but will rise in price as the days go on.
On a side note, I just want to know your opinion, why am I ignored? Why don't I get reviews on my books although I know people buy them or borrow them so I am guessing they read them? Am I boring? Do I not incite any thoughts at all?
I am tired of being ignored. And the thing is, I don't know how to encourage anyone to talk about my work. I've tried begging and then reverse phycology but nothing is working. Any thoughts on how to encourage reviews. What makes a person take that step and write a few words?
Until next time...
On a side note, I just want to know your opinion, why am I ignored? Why don't I get reviews on my books although I know people buy them or borrow them so I am guessing they read them? Am I boring? Do I not incite any thoughts at all?
I am tired of being ignored. And the thing is, I don't know how to encourage anyone to talk about my work. I've tried begging and then reverse phycology but nothing is working. Any thoughts on how to encourage reviews. What makes a person take that step and write a few words?
Until next time...
Friday, October 3, 2014
Santa's Shorts- Christmas Short Stories and Poems by JM Scott
Yes, I love things that go bump in the night, blood, guts, gore, zombies, vamps, werewolves, witches and Christmas. I've always loved Christmas, the good will toward men, the cookies, the presents, being Santa Claus, the Christmas movies, and all that happy horseshit. I've had plans for this book for a couple of years now and it is come to fruition (I really like the word fruition so I plan on using it a lot.) Anyway, two of the stories you may have read before because there were on here. Were is the operative word because I only left samples of the stories this way you would buy the book.
So what in tar nation is Sannta's Shorts? It is a collection of short stories and poems that center around that red and green, silver and gold holiday- Christmas. Every year, for the last couple of years I wrote a Christmas themed poem and every year for the last three, I wrote a Christmas short story. (Yes, Nikolaus is a Christmas story in some demented way) and I wanted to put them all together. If you look at the sample the first poem is a sonnet. Yes, a sonnet. I wrote it for my poetry class at school and I think it turned out really nice.
Here's what's included in the book:
Christmas Memories, sonnet
Welcome Christmas, renku (linked haiku)
And He Gave Them Christmas a short story that takes place in the Great Depression where a boy learns the meaning of Christmas and family
Christmas Spirit, acrostic poem
Holly and Ivy, short story about twins who find each other and had no idea the other existed and learn how important family is
Every Christmas After the Last, free verse with rhyming
Christmas with Gramma, brand new short story about a woman who lives with her elderly grandmother and she has to pay her cousins to come for one last Christmas but in the end they discover what Christmas and family is all about
Yule Greetings, acrostic poem
About the cover- my husband really rescued this cover. You should have seen the one I made, it wasn't so good. In fact it was B-O-R-I-N-G. He really did a nice job with because he made the background come alive and that is exactly what I wanted.
Santa's Shorts is $5.99 now but will go on sale at the end of October. I wanted to release at the end of September so people would be more willing to buy it since it will be on sale and close to the holidays.
One last thing....
I don't know why I am a writer, I guess I've always been a writer even when I wasn't writing. I was always thinking of stories. I publish my work, I write in my blog because I want to be read. I can write all day long and it doesn't mean much unless I have people to read it. I want to be read, I want to entertain you. You want to be entertained, don't you? I can't do this (whatever this is, the word is just so dramatic) without you.
Until next time....
So what in tar nation is Sannta's Shorts? It is a collection of short stories and poems that center around that red and green, silver and gold holiday- Christmas. Every year, for the last couple of years I wrote a Christmas themed poem and every year for the last three, I wrote a Christmas short story. (Yes, Nikolaus is a Christmas story in some demented way) and I wanted to put them all together. If you look at the sample the first poem is a sonnet. Yes, a sonnet. I wrote it for my poetry class at school and I think it turned out really nice. Here's what's included in the book:
Christmas Memories, sonnet
Welcome Christmas, renku (linked haiku)
And He Gave Them Christmas a short story that takes place in the Great Depression where a boy learns the meaning of Christmas and family
Christmas Spirit, acrostic poem
Holly and Ivy, short story about twins who find each other and had no idea the other existed and learn how important family is
Every Christmas After the Last, free verse with rhyming
Christmas with Gramma, brand new short story about a woman who lives with her elderly grandmother and she has to pay her cousins to come for one last Christmas but in the end they discover what Christmas and family is all about
Yule Greetings, acrostic poem
About the cover- my husband really rescued this cover. You should have seen the one I made, it wasn't so good. In fact it was B-O-R-I-N-G. He really did a nice job with because he made the background come alive and that is exactly what I wanted.
Santa's Shorts is $5.99 now but will go on sale at the end of October. I wanted to release at the end of September so people would be more willing to buy it since it will be on sale and close to the holidays.
One last thing....
I don't know why I am a writer, I guess I've always been a writer even when I wasn't writing. I was always thinking of stories. I publish my work, I write in my blog because I want to be read. I can write all day long and it doesn't mean much unless I have people to read it. I want to be read, I want to entertain you. You want to be entertained, don't you? I can't do this (whatever this is, the word is just so dramatic) without you.
Until next time....
Saturday, September 6, 2014
Blood Road to Vegas
This is zombie short story. Violence, gore, and bad language.
Once, I was a writer. Once, I could go to the grocery store and buy whatever I wanted. Once, life was simple and I wasn’t afraid of anything. But when the virus began to spread through the United States, I knew there was only one safe place I could hide until this thing blew over because these always did. I left Cheyenne in early January just as the hospitals had their first case admitted and went to my grandfather’s cabin in Eagle’s Knee. I really thought I could be safe there and life would return to normal.
The wind blew wildly as I maneuvered the Jeep up the windy path to the cabin. I called Jasper earlier in the day and told him I was on my way up and he didn’t need to take care of the horses. My grandfather raised Appaloosa horses, when he was alive, and since I didn’t live there all year, my oldest friend Jasper took care of them. Eagle’s Knee is west of Yellowstone and it is a town of about 200 and we knew each other and took care of each other. The cabin loomed in the distance, faded by the blinding snow.
Once inside, I lit the fire and the cabin warmed up. The wind shrieked and slammed against the cabin yet even over the wind, I heard something. Wrapping up in my parka, I braved the storm and went to the barn. A horse shrieked. I never heard a horse shriek but that is what it sounded like. The barn door was closed and I didn’t see any smoke so I knew it wasn’t on fire.
I opened the door and went inside. Other horses whinnied and kicked at their stall doors. The shrieking reverberated from the back. Slowly, I walked to the back of the stalls. Minestrone, my blue ribbon stud was in the pen next to his. The other horse was down on the ground underneath the mighty hooves of Minestrone. The stud looked at me. His eyes were vacant. Blood oozed out of his mouth and I could make the shape out of a small foal dangling from his teeth.
Minestrone chewed on the fetus as he watched me. He snarled and stamped his feet on the mare and blood sprung up. Wanting to run, I stood there and watched him eat the unborn horse. He swallowed the baby horse and dove back into stomach of the other horse and surfaced with intestines out of his mouth. I ran. The other horses tried to break free from their stalls. Once inside the cabin, I grabbed my grandfather’s 12 gauge and went back down to the barn.
When I came back to the barn, Minestrone was out in the barn, I raised the gun and shot him in the head. The horse collapsed onto the floor and continued to twitch. I shot him again and again in the head until there was nothing left. The other horses calmed down. I sank to the ground, blood scent filled the air and I puked all over that crazy horse. Could it be the virus? I had to get rid of both horses. I dragged Minestrone out of the barn, rusty blood stained the dirt floor and followed me out in the snow. Then I dragged the other horse and laid her on top of him. In the shed, I had gasoline. Soaking the dead horses with gas, I lit them up. Burnt animal hair and burning flesh overtook the snow.
Once the fire slowed, I went in and tried to raise someone on the CB. There was no cell service up here. No one answered the CB. I made sure I reloaded the gun and waited for the storm to die down.
At sometime in the middle of the night, the storm stopped and I heard more horses whinnying. Forgetting the coat this time because it smelled like death, I went out with the gun. Man footprints were in the snow going to the barn.
“Jasper!” I yelled. He knew I was coming home so maybe he came to check on me. “Jasper, come out.”
No response, I went into the barn and there was a man. Not any man, but my grandfather’s oldest friend. He was like an uncle to me.
“John,” I called. I neared him. He smelled like road kill in the July sun. He turned and stared at him. Instead of the horse he was eying up, he came after me. “John!” I yelled again and again. I aimed my gun and shot him right in the heart. Rancid blood rained on me but he still moved, I shot him again in the head and he fell to the ground.
“Fuck, John. What the hell happened to you?” I said to the dead body. I wondered if I should burn him like I did with the horses. I didn’t have any gloves on so I went to the shed and got on the small tractor. I hooked a chain around John and dragged him out in the snow. I didn’t want the horses to get sick. Maybe they already were. I left the body out in the yard. I was going to town as soon as the sun would rise. I needed answers and help.
Drinking pot after pot of coffee, I tried to call someone, anyone on the CB. At first light, I cleaned off the Jeep and went down to Eagle’s Knee with my gun. The world went to hell real quick and it seemed like the only thing I needed right now was my gun and plenty of ammo.
Eagle’s Knee has a tidy little main street which seemed unusually quiet. There was a general store, a gas station and a bunch of homes. I parked by the police station. The odd silence settled over me, something didn’t seem right, no was out shoveling or plowing the road. I checked the door to the police station and it was locked. Weird.
I went across the street to the general store. The door was open so I went in. “Sam, Carly,” I called. They owned the store. Something rustled in the back. I went closer, “Sam, Carly.”
Something snarled and I whipped around. Sam stood in front of me, dried blood was smeared around his mouth like demented clown makeup. He reached for me but I dodged his grasp. I tripped over Carly and slipped in her blood. Her body was ripped open with most of the organs gone. I left the gun in the Jeep. Sam continued after me. I stood up and he grabbed the back of my pants and had me back down.
He was on top; his breath was hot and rotten. Screaming and struggling under his weight, I kicked him hard and he recoiled enough for me to get away. Gun shots rattled through the darkened store. More blood sprayed over me and in my mouth. Sam collapsed on top of me.
“Pestilence, is that you?” a man called.
“Jasper, it’s me.”
He heaved the body off of me. There was no other person I was glad to see. He held out his hand and helped me up. He also was covered in blood.
I peered into his eyes. “Are you like them?”
“Are you?”
I hugged him hard, “what’s going on?”
“I don’t really know. I spent all night answering calls about sick people turning into zombies. And by the time I get there, I had to shoot that person,” Jasper said.
“Zombies aren’t real,” I said.
“What do you call it, Pestilence? This is real life. Last I knew the virus is responsible. I went to Dubois yesterday and there were so many people just sick. And then I came home and there were so many sick people. Then all of a sudden people went crazy and started eating people.”
“Minestrone feasted on a pregnant mare. And then I killed John.”
“Don’t think of it as killing. They are pretty much dead, their soul is anyway, you are putting them out of misery,” Jasper continued. “It’s not safe here. We have to get out of town.”
“ Are there any other people not sick? We have to find them Jasper.”
“I know Pestilence. I’m trying. You have a gun?”
“In the Jeep.”
“Well get it.”
We stepped out together when something at the gas station moved in the shadows. Jasper grabbed my arm and led me to the Jeep. With gun in hand, we went to the gas station. We heard grunts and snarls, I turned and looked there were several townspeople walking down the street. I called to them. Jasper put his hand over my mouth.
He whispered in my ear, “I don’t think they are themselves anymore. Look at how they are walking. Shoot them Pestilence, don’t think twice about it either because they are hungry and we are fresh meat.”
“I don’t know if I can.”
They neared and Jasper raised his gun and shot. One by one they fell, the others stopped and stared at bodies on the ground. One, who I think was Peggy the postmaster reached into the carcass and pulled out a bunch of insides. She shoved as much as she could in her mouth then spit it all out. The group continued toward us.
Jasper shot once more and needed to reload, “Pestilence. Shoot the fuckers.”
I raised my gun and shot. Blood splattered over the snow. Soon the street stood quiet. Jasper handed me shells and reloaded.
“Come on, let’s get inside.”
I followed him as went inside the gas station. He put his finger to his lip and we walked as if we had feathers on our feet. A noise came from the back. We neared it. Jasper opened the door. And on the floor in footed once pink pajamas was Sara. She heard us and whipped around, her mother’s blood over her face. Jasper raised his gun and shot her right in the head. She fell on top of her mother. I couldn’t take it anymore and I puked again. Jasper led me to the police station.
“We should be safe in here at least for a little while. I haven’t seen the chief yet but we need to come up with a plan.”
“Jasper you can stay with me. We can protect each other.”
“Pestilence, you and I both know that is a bad idea. You don’t know what the government is planning. They could bomb every state or some state near by but if they know where survivors are, maybe they won’t.”
“It seems like you already know what is going on,” I replied.
“Come on, you have seen movies before. Survivors do better in groups. I think we should go to Vegas.”
“I want to stay.”
“Pestilence, I will bring you back. You know when you we were younger all you talked about is getting out Eagle’s Knee and now it’s the end of the world and you want to stay. I need you to come with me. I can’t do this without you.”
“Okay, we will go to Vegas but as soon as we can, I want to come home. What about the horses?” I asked.
“We let them go. We can’t save them all. And at least they have a fighting chance. We need survive, we need to be other people because there are more of them then there is of us.”
I slumped back in the chair, “okay we what about the survivors?”
“By my count, all of them are dead. It’s just us. I think we should get what we need from town and then we will go back to your cabin and get a couple of horses in the trailer because we may need to ride them,” Jasper suggested.
I nodded. With guns in hand, we went back to the general store. He grabbed a cart and loaded with bullets and canned food. I grabbed another coat.
“Jasper, why aren’t we sick?” I asked.
“I don’t know but I’m glad I’m not the only one.”
“I have a couple of cans of gas at the cabin,” I said. He nodded and pushed the cart out into the sunshine. Someone staggered out of the house. We stopped. It came closer.
“It’s me, Jasper, are you okay?” Jasper called.
We waited and then the person charged toward us. Jasper wasted no time and pulled the trigger. We loaded the Jeep up and went back to the cabin. Once there, we showered and dressed. I chose two horses and he hooked the trailer up to the Jeep. He loaded the horses onto the trailer and I set the rest all free. Tears crawled down my cheeks as each one ran from the barn. With everything we could possibly carry in the Jeep, Jasper got in the driver’s side and we were off. Outside of town, there is a large wooden sign that says “Welcome to Eagle’s Knee. Funny town name, friendly people.”
Jasper pulled off the road and took a can of spray paint and wrote over the sign, “Pestilence Eagle-River Jasper Kennedy to Vegas. All others dead”
“Jasper, I have to go to Cheyenne first. I need something at my apartment and at the bank.”
“Come on Pestilence.”
I touched his arm, “please Jasper, I wouldn’t ask if it weren’t important. If this is the end of the world then I want to get a couple of things.”
“Okay, we will go. We’re going through Dubois and the reservation and look for others. I don’t think I would feel right, if we left good people.”
He drove in silence and smiled some.
“What are you smiling about?” I asked.
“Remember our senior prom, you remember the song you slow danced with me?”
“I’ll stop the world and melt with you,” I answered. Jasper was my best friend and he wanted more- always did. We grew up together and I was pretty sure the town already had our wedding banner made but then I moved to Cheyenne didn’t come back to Eagle’s Knee as often. Jasper seemed happy even without a special someone. Maybe I had some bad relationships and damn if I didn’t know what love was, but the only thing I was sure of was- I wouldn’t want to be with anyone else but Jasper.
“Funny, in a way all these years later, it’s you and I against all of them.”
Up ahead, smoke rose above the trees. Jasper slowed down and continued onto to Dubois. About 5 miles outside of town limits, fire roared.
“Well I guess we don’t have to worry about Dubois. If someone was here, they are not because they set the town on fire,” Jasper said. He turned off the main road and traveled down a snow-covered road.
It was late afternoon when we pulled into Wind River Reservation. The casino shimmered in the setting sun. Driving slow, Jasper took the main road to the casino. Bodies lined the road, there were no other cars on the road. He parked in front of the casino. We grabbed our guns and opened the door. Sick, dead meat invaded our senses. I wanted to puke but held it back.
Slot machines blinked off and on. We walked cautiously. Jasper tripped over a body and his gun went off. I helped him up and we looked around. He went over to a machine and popped in a quarter. The lights and bells went off.
“Pestilence, I just won the jackpot,” he said. “Wouldn’t you know I win now when money is really no good. Still, wouldn’t mind cashing this in.”
“Well if we find someone maybe, they have some money left over.” I smiled at him.
He slipped his winning paper in his pocket and we continued. Walking over body over body, we went up stairs.
I opened the door to the chief’s office, “Well if it isn’t little Pestilence Eagle-River,” he said.
“Chief White Feather.”
“I am not surprised you are alive. If Lucas was alive, he’d still be up at his place.”
“We are going to Vegas, come with us,” I said.
“You know your grandfather and I had arguments about this place. He was against it of course, he was against a lot of things you know. But he was right where would I be when it’s the end of the world,” Chief White Feather said.
“Chief, Jasper and I are going to Vegas, it should be safer there. You should come with us.”
“This is my land and your land. I’m not running. You understand that. It’s not the money; my wife is buried here, my parents and grandparents. I am staying. I watched our people turn against one another, rip out their hearts and eat them. I watched other people try to run. Some of them did, I hope so anyway. Everything changed so fast. So many dead. Come here, Pestilence.”
I went to his desk and knelt beside him and he held my hand, “I know you are half Shoshone but you know all the stories, you know all about our heritage. Make it to Vegas and start a better world.” He opened his desk drawer and gave me an arrow head. “This is an artifact from the Shoshone tribe. It is thousands of years old. Take it with you. May the spirits guide you.”
Jasper coughed. “I hate to ask you but Jasper wants to cash in,” I said only as a joke.
“Of course.” He stood up and opened the safe and gave Jasper a large stack of bills. “Keep her safe. Go both of you, if there is gas you better get it because soon there will be no power. Leave as soon as you can.” The Chief eyes were distant and sad. He turned his back on us and watched the setting sun from his large office window.
Back outside, I drove us to the gas station. I stood at the pump as Jasper went to turn it on. He fired one shot and came back out. We started our way to Cheyenne. The world darkened around us as I turned onto the main road. Hoards of people walked in our way. I stepped on the gas and shifted through the gears and ran them over. Jasper opened the window and shot at them. Their bones crunched under my tires and the horses stamped against the trailer. Blood splattered over the windshield. I drove fast out of the reservation.
“Jasper, do you think we should go to Cheyenne?”
“There must be something very important if you want to go there so bad. Why?”
“I don’t know if we should go. I really want those things but it’s probably dangerous.”
“Probably. Pestilence you and I both know anywhere we go, we are in danger. You make the choice, if you want to go there or not.”
“It’s just a couple of things. My dad’s 38 is in the bank and my mom’s journal is in at my apartment. I would have taken them with me but I thought this thing would blow over like everything else does. I didn’t know things would get this bad.”
Close to Cheyenne, headlights appeared in front of us. Jasper pulled off the road. The other vehicle stopped. A man stepped out.
“Jasper, you think they can drive?”
“They as in the zombies. No, I don’t think so,” he answered.
We grabbed our guns and got out of the Jeep.
“Matt, is that you?” I asked when I saw him better in the headlights. He came closer.
“Pestilence, you’re okay,” he said.
We hugged briefly, “this is my friend Jasper from Eagle’s Knee. Are you alone?”
“For right now. I had to kill her, Pestilence. My wife, she came at me and I bashed her head in. I didn’t know what to do,” Matt said.
“I’m sorry, Matt, really I am.”
“Are there any others that are like us?” Jasper asked.
“I don’t know man, there are people some are looting and others I just don’t know. I got in my car and I left. Why are you guys heading there?” Matt asked.
“Pestilence needs some things.”
He looked at me square in the eyes, “you will die if you go back there. There are too many of them. It’s not like you can’t come back later on. The highlight of my day was killing that good-for-nothing governor.”
“Come with us to Vegas,” Jasper said.
“What? Leave one big city to go to another one. Are you crazy? Are you trying to kill us all?” Matt asked.
“Because I know, it will be safe there.”
“How do you know, Jasper?” I asked. “You seem so god-damned sure that we will be safe if we get there.”
“Because there is a group of people that were preparing for something like this. The owner of the Pot of Gold Casino has been preparing for some kind of apocalypse. I know that we will be safe there. Please you have to trust me.”
“Jasper, I never realized you were so paranoid.”
“Paranoid? Pestilence it is called preparation. I don’t know what world you fucking live in but something was bound to happen one way or another,” Jasper said.
“Jasper.”
“Whatever. So what are you doing Pestilence, are going to Cheyenne and die or leave now for Vegas with a chance. Because if you just want to die, I’ll shoot you right here because at least I know it would be quick and painless. I can only imagine being gobbled by zombies is not fun,” Jasper snarled.
“Well take your chances. I’m heading to Yellowstone. I have a cabin up there. I think I can wait it out and if not well then I will already be in heaven,” Matt said. He hugged and wished me good luck.
Once he drove away, Jasper asked me, “What’s it going to be Pestilence? Don’t you think we both lost enough? I need you and you need me right now. Come with me to Vegas we will be safe once we get there.”
Grabbing onto his arm, I looked into his eyes, “Let’s go Jasper. I’m not ready to die. That stuff is only stuff, it’s not going to bring them back.”
He moved my dark hair from eyes, “I’m glad you said that.”
Jasper stuck to the back roads as we made our way out of Wyoming. Sometimes, a radio station would come in with someone asking for help or tell people to stay inside because it is too dangerous. We drove and drove as the rising sun pierced the horizon. Hard to believe it’s only been a little more than a day the world went to hell but it felt like much more. It wasn’t enough that I had to kill people I knew all my life but there was no information. When the power grids began to collapse, I never felt more alone, an alien in my own world.
I put the rest of the gas in the Jeep, while Jasper walked the horses. We were somewhere near the Utah border.
“Pestilence, I need to tell you something very important. If something happens to me and I don’t make it to Vegas . . . ”
“Jasper, why won’t you make it?”
“We don’t know what it’s like. We are heading right near Salt Lake City. I don’t know how much further we can drive before we pull out the horses. If I could, I would drive all the way there. Listen and this is very important. There is a secret entrance to the Pot of Gold. When you enter the city limits, make sure you find the red telephone booth, you know the kind they used to have in England anyway. Go in the booth and dial 911 hang up the phone and walk fifty paces into the alley. There is a red door. It should be unlocked. Make sure no one follows you and go in the door. Just follow the path and I am guessing someone should be there to help you out.”
“How do you know you this is true?”
“Because I got a text message with the directions the other day before you even came home,” Jasper replied.
“Why didn’t you go then?” I asked.
“I don’t know maybe I didn’t want to believe that this was really happening. Maybe, I was just like you and thought that Eagle’s Knee would the safest place to be because we are so far removed from the rest of the world. Maybe I couldn’t leave. My mom sure wouldn’t go. She was already sick and I didn’t know what was going to happen. I had to say my goodbyes. I did and then I killed her. I killed my own mother,” Jasper said and fell into my arms and cried into my chest. I stroked his hair.
“Let me drive. How do you want to go?”
“Take the highway. I don’t want to get lost in Utah while trying to get to Vegas.”
I got behind the wheel and drove right to Salt Lake. The land stretched calmly before us but as we neared Salt Lake, cars were parked alongside the road. I slowed down and Jasper got the gun ready.
“Just take it easy, Pestilence. Don’t drive too fast. There may be survivors in these cars.”
“It’s going to be a bitch getting through with the horse trailer.”
He nodded. The late morning sun began baking everything in sight. The rancid smell corrupted the air around us. We saw a group of them up ahead. They staggered in the sunshine.
“Slow it down. We need as many bullets as we can. I’m going to shoot for the gas tanks.”
I did what he asked and we came up on them. Something hit the horse trailer and the horses whinnied. More pounding. I looked in the mirror and they were attacking the horses.
“Jasper, they’re getting the horses,” I said.
“Let them go. It may be our only chance.”
My hands shook against the wheel and watched a couple of them pull the head off one of the horses. The other horse was pulled out of the trailer. The group in front of us stopped and turned around. The smell of fresh meat was too much for them. The group devoured the horse, pulling the intestines out and shoving the bloody innards in their mouths like fresh-cut spaghetti.
“You’re doing fine just keep going.”
But the group in front of us wanted their meat too. And attacked. They clawed at the Jeep’s soft top and beat the windows. I kept straight ahead with my foot on the pedal a little harder each time. Jasper opened his window and beat some of them with the butt of his gun and shot at a car. Nothing. He shot again and the car exploded. More of them came from other cars.
“Go, Pestilence just go.”
I stepped on the gas. They clawed at my windows. One of them broke it, glass shattered all over the inside. One of them reached for me, their claws tore at my skin. Jasper shot the gun right into my attacker’s head. Blood splattered all over. I screamed but my voice sounded so far away. I wished I had my dad’s gun. Jasper continued to shoot at them and I drove over what I could. More blood showers spilled over the Jeep. There were so many of them when would it end. The road ahead was swarming with them. He reloaded and spent the bullets and reloaded some more. Up ahead there was an opening that took off the highway into the flat lands. I sped up. More of them tried to reach but soon they were grabbed by the tires and smashed against the road.
The Jeep bounced as I careened off the highway.
“We have to get rid of the trailer,” Jasper said finally being able to breathe. They were still coming after us but they were still far behind. I stopped and Jasper got out and unhooked the trailer. Once he was back inside. I sped away.
“Jasper, we are almost out of gas.”
“Just go until we can’t go anymore.”
The group shrank in the mirror and finally the Jeep sputtered on the last of the gas. We grabbed our packs and the guns and started walking.
“Lets keep going this way as along as the highway is to our left we should be okay.”
We walked in the hot sun and found ourselves in Red River, Utah. Sweet little houses lined the streets which were littered with bodies, baking in the hot sun. I stopped and puked.
“Come on, let’s get inside somewhere,” Jasper suggested.
He tried a house and entered. I followed. The house was dark and there was broken glass and furniture scattered about. Jasper held my hand as we went through the house. When out of the shadows someone cocked a gun.
“Who the fuck are you? Are you one of them?”
“I’m Jasper Kennedy and this Pestilence Eagle-River from Eagle’s Knee, Wyoming. We are on our way to Vegas.”
The man stepped out of the shadows. He was built like a grizzly bear, but with a soft, trusting face with tender blue eyes.
“I’m sorry. I’m not like this. Name is Teddy. Sorry about the mess but my kids they were here for the weekend. And my girl she attacked my boy. When I came in, she had gutted him clean. I grabbed my gun and killed my little girl. Then the other fuckers tried to come in but I got rid of them. At least for right now.”
“Well we don’t normally come into other people’s houses. We’re sorry,” I said.
“This is a different time, Miss Eagle-River. So what’s in Vegas?” Teddy asked.
“The Pot of Gold Casino. It is a safe place. I know it is. Come with us,” Jasper replied.
“How do you know?”
“Because there is this group in Vegas who was prepared for the end of the world. I know it’s a long shot but I got a text the other day with instructions on how to get into the secret entrance of the casino.”
Teddy sat down, “well I don’t see why not. I’ve been watching them. They are more active in the daylight then in the night. It’s almost like they are still need some kind of sleep. I watch them, they are so still and just stand in little groups like they are protecting each other from us. Like we are the enemy.”
“Maybe, we are. We don’t know what it is going on in their mind,” I said.
“Okay if we do this, what do we need?” Teddy asked.
“Got a car or something?”
“A pick-up, I know you’ll all be cramped but it’s something. I just got gas in it the other day. It should have a full tank,” Teddy replied.
“We need ammo and lots of it. And maybe some more gas just in case. Vegas is still quite a bit a distance away,” Jasper said.
“Okay well, a lot of my neighbors probably got some gas in the sheds we can take that. Got no power anymore. I know my next door neighbor hunts so we can we see if he has something or not.”
We continued to plan as the sun began to set. We started out on a supply hunt at dusk. Just with our guns, the three of us walked through the backyards looking for gas. Several had at least 5 gallons of gas in a can. His hunter neighbor only had a little ammo. The group milled around on the main street grunting and drooling.
“So there is a Wal-Mart at the south end of town. We’ll go right past it. We can pick up the ammo there and then get on our way to Vegas,” Teddy said.
We nodded and quietly loaded the truck. Twilight sparkled over the group. They grew more and more still. Jasper pushed the car out of the garage and down the road. Teddy started it and Jasper got in. The hoard moved toward us. Teddy stepped on the gas. He parked at Wal-Mart and cut the engine.
“Should we all go together?” He asked.
“No, You can stay. Pestilence and I will go in.”
The parking lot was empty as far as we could see. Jasper and I walked into the darkened store. The emergency lights were fading and the slight light barely illuminated the store. We crept in the shadows to the sporting good section. Grunts and grumbles came from all around of us. I wanted to run back to the truck, fuck the ammo and just get ourselves to Vegas. Jasper squeezed my hand and pulled me closer to him. Right before the ammo counter, a worker approached us. A very hungry worker.
He came at us. His name was Andy. His name tag was stained with blood. Not wanting to draw attention to us, Jasper swung at Andy’s head and he fell to the ground, grumbling and snarling. Jasper took a piece of broken glass and cut his throat. Blood oozed over Jasper’s hands.
He opened his bag and we filled it with what we could. Jasper grabbed a couple of hunting knives. We tried to creep back out of the store but we were surrounded. Andy’s grunts must have alerted the others anyway. We cut down another aisle. They were closing in us. There were probably about eight of them and they moved quicker then the others.
Jasper grabbed kerosene and drenched the small group. Without much thought, I lit a match and tossed it on them. With a whoosh they went up in flames. They growled in screamed in the flames. We ran. More of them came from all over the store. Outside, others came for the pick up. Teddy started the engine and we got in the back. Jasper and I shot at them as Teddy took off into the night. We drove all night on back roads through the barren world of Utah.
Sometime in the middle of night, Teddy stopped the truck to fill the tank with gas.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“Almost to the Nevada border,” Teddy said.
“Thank god, I hope you are right about all of this Jasper,” I said.
“The information is right, but who knows what will be walking into when we get there,” Jasper replied.
“It seems quiet here, why don’t we stop for a while longer for a rest,” I suggested.
“That’s a good idea. I’ll get a small fire started,” Jasper said.
He took a flashlight to gather wood for the fire. I sat with Teddy on the ground beside the truck. From somewhere in the dark, the flashlight bounced. Gunshots resounded and Jasper screamed. Wasting no time, I went after Jasper with Teddy on my heels. There were three of them. One of them held Jasper down by the shoulders. The other ripped the flesh from Jasper’s leg. And the small boy made a weird alarming noise. They looked at us. Jasper screamed more and more. Quickly, I shot the one holding down Jasper. The body fell on top of Jasper. The other two moved toward us. Teddy shot the child and I shot the other one.
Kneeling beside Jasper, Teddy looked at his wound on his leg.
“Is he gonna be sick?” Teddy asked.
Jasper grabbed my hands, “Leave me Pestilence just shoot me now. Go to Vegas. You’ll take care of her won’t you, Teddy.”
“You are not a fucking rabid animal, Jasper.” I looked at Teddy, “let’s take him back to the truck.”
Teddy lifted him and carried him.
“Shine the light on his leg,” I told Teddy. The gashes were deep. One of them managed to eat down to his shin bone. “I have an idea. If this like a snake bite, we might be able to stop Jasper from turning like them.”
“How Pestilence?”
“Build a fire, Teddy but not too big.”
As Teddy started the fire, I went in my bag and took the bottle of whiskey, some clothes and the knives we got at Wal-Mart. I poured the whiskey into Jasper’s mouth.
“I love you Pestilence, you know that right. I don’t want to ever hurt you. Just kill me now,” Jasper said. “Please do this favor. I want you to do it.”
“Jasper, do you have the urge to eat me?”
He smiled “not in that way anyway.”
I laughed a little, “you seem okay to me. Trust me on this, Jasper.”
“I should, the granddaughter of a Shoshone shaman,” Jasper drifted as his body went into shock. It was now or never. And what if it didn’t work, I would have to kill him. Jasper wanted me to kill him. How could I kill him? Teddy would have to do it. Jasper would understand, I knew he would if I couldn’t blow his brains out across the desert. The fire roared and I heated the blades in the flame.
“Teddy, I need you to hold him down. I don’t think he is drunk enough to stay out.”
Teddy held him down. I took the belt off of Jasper’s pants and wrapped it around his leg as tight as I could. Pouring more of the whiskey over Jasper’s leg, I began to saw his leg off right above the knee. Blood oozed over my hands as I cut.
“Teddy, tighten the belt as much as you can.” He followed my directions. The knife ripped away at his flesh. Jasper shrieked. Teddy poured more whiskey down his throat but it didn’t help as much. I put the current knife in the fire and used the other one. Blood gushed out of his stump.
“Help me Teddy. I need to cauterize the stump.” Teddy dragged him over to the fire. Gently, I shoved the stump into the fire. Jasper screamed into the rising sun. And I could see them coming from all around us. I took the leg out and put it back in. With every scream, they moved closer. They smelled his sweet, living blood.
“Pestilence, we have to go,” Teddy said and cocked his gun. I dressed Jasper’s fresh new stump as fast as I could. Jasper cried and muffled his screams as bit into his hand.
“I know, help me put him in the truck.” Teddy laid him in the bed. They started running for us. I tossed our supplies into the bed and Teddy started up and floored the gas pedal. Jasper was in and out of consciousness. I laid his head in my lap and stroked his blood-soaked face. Vegas was in sight and I just wanted to get to that casino. Someone there had to be able save Jasper. I couldn’t lose him. He was the only thing I had left it in this blood-saturated world.
The streets were quiet. Some casinos still blinked and offered high jackpot pay outs. More and more bodies were scattered on the roads. Teddy drove slow as we looked for the telephone booth. In the distance an alarm sounded just as we found the booth. Teddy carried Jasper and I called on the phone.
I led them into the alley. One of them came from the shadows like an Olympic sprinter. I shot at her and shot at her again. There was the red door. More of them began to close in on the alley. Teddy hustled with Jasper over his broad football player shoulder, into the passageway as I continued to shoot what I had in the gun and shut the door.
There was a passageway made from concrete lit with orange tunnel lights. A mechanism barricaded the red door. We walked along the path. At the end were two men with very large guns.
“Is he hurt?” They asked about Jasper.
“He was attacked. I cut his leg off above the knee,” I said. I didn’t know how long it took turn but Jasper was still Jasper.
One called on the radio and then talked to us, “this is a safe place. There is a doctor who can look at your friend. We can’t make any promises though. What are your names and where are you from, so we have record.”
“Theodore Thayer from Red River Utah.”
“I am Pestilence Eagle-River and the injured is Jasper Kennedy we are from Eagle’s Knee, Wyoming. There were no other survivors in Eagle’s Knee.”
They opened another door, “Welcome to the Pot of Gold.”
How long would be safe here? Could all of us start a new world? There were just so many questions but I bent down and kissed the plush shamrock green carpet. At least we had today and we were safe.
Once, I was a writer. Once, I could go to the grocery store and buy whatever I wanted. Once, life was simple and I wasn’t afraid of anything. But when the virus began to spread through the United States, I knew there was only one safe place I could hide until this thing blew over because these always did. I left Cheyenne in early January just as the hospitals had their first case admitted and went to my grandfather’s cabin in Eagle’s Knee. I really thought I could be safe there and life would return to normal.
The wind blew wildly as I maneuvered the Jeep up the windy path to the cabin. I called Jasper earlier in the day and told him I was on my way up and he didn’t need to take care of the horses. My grandfather raised Appaloosa horses, when he was alive, and since I didn’t live there all year, my oldest friend Jasper took care of them. Eagle’s Knee is west of Yellowstone and it is a town of about 200 and we knew each other and took care of each other. The cabin loomed in the distance, faded by the blinding snow.
Once inside, I lit the fire and the cabin warmed up. The wind shrieked and slammed against the cabin yet even over the wind, I heard something. Wrapping up in my parka, I braved the storm and went to the barn. A horse shrieked. I never heard a horse shriek but that is what it sounded like. The barn door was closed and I didn’t see any smoke so I knew it wasn’t on fire.
I opened the door and went inside. Other horses whinnied and kicked at their stall doors. The shrieking reverberated from the back. Slowly, I walked to the back of the stalls. Minestrone, my blue ribbon stud was in the pen next to his. The other horse was down on the ground underneath the mighty hooves of Minestrone. The stud looked at me. His eyes were vacant. Blood oozed out of his mouth and I could make the shape out of a small foal dangling from his teeth.
Minestrone chewed on the fetus as he watched me. He snarled and stamped his feet on the mare and blood sprung up. Wanting to run, I stood there and watched him eat the unborn horse. He swallowed the baby horse and dove back into stomach of the other horse and surfaced with intestines out of his mouth. I ran. The other horses tried to break free from their stalls. Once inside the cabin, I grabbed my grandfather’s 12 gauge and went back down to the barn.
When I came back to the barn, Minestrone was out in the barn, I raised the gun and shot him in the head. The horse collapsed onto the floor and continued to twitch. I shot him again and again in the head until there was nothing left. The other horses calmed down. I sank to the ground, blood scent filled the air and I puked all over that crazy horse. Could it be the virus? I had to get rid of both horses. I dragged Minestrone out of the barn, rusty blood stained the dirt floor and followed me out in the snow. Then I dragged the other horse and laid her on top of him. In the shed, I had gasoline. Soaking the dead horses with gas, I lit them up. Burnt animal hair and burning flesh overtook the snow.
Once the fire slowed, I went in and tried to raise someone on the CB. There was no cell service up here. No one answered the CB. I made sure I reloaded the gun and waited for the storm to die down.
At sometime in the middle of the night, the storm stopped and I heard more horses whinnying. Forgetting the coat this time because it smelled like death, I went out with the gun. Man footprints were in the snow going to the barn.
“Jasper!” I yelled. He knew I was coming home so maybe he came to check on me. “Jasper, come out.”
No response, I went into the barn and there was a man. Not any man, but my grandfather’s oldest friend. He was like an uncle to me.
“John,” I called. I neared him. He smelled like road kill in the July sun. He turned and stared at him. Instead of the horse he was eying up, he came after me. “John!” I yelled again and again. I aimed my gun and shot him right in the heart. Rancid blood rained on me but he still moved, I shot him again in the head and he fell to the ground.
“Fuck, John. What the hell happened to you?” I said to the dead body. I wondered if I should burn him like I did with the horses. I didn’t have any gloves on so I went to the shed and got on the small tractor. I hooked a chain around John and dragged him out in the snow. I didn’t want the horses to get sick. Maybe they already were. I left the body out in the yard. I was going to town as soon as the sun would rise. I needed answers and help.
Drinking pot after pot of coffee, I tried to call someone, anyone on the CB. At first light, I cleaned off the Jeep and went down to Eagle’s Knee with my gun. The world went to hell real quick and it seemed like the only thing I needed right now was my gun and plenty of ammo.
Eagle’s Knee has a tidy little main street which seemed unusually quiet. There was a general store, a gas station and a bunch of homes. I parked by the police station. The odd silence settled over me, something didn’t seem right, no was out shoveling or plowing the road. I checked the door to the police station and it was locked. Weird.
I went across the street to the general store. The door was open so I went in. “Sam, Carly,” I called. They owned the store. Something rustled in the back. I went closer, “Sam, Carly.”
Something snarled and I whipped around. Sam stood in front of me, dried blood was smeared around his mouth like demented clown makeup. He reached for me but I dodged his grasp. I tripped over Carly and slipped in her blood. Her body was ripped open with most of the organs gone. I left the gun in the Jeep. Sam continued after me. I stood up and he grabbed the back of my pants and had me back down.
He was on top; his breath was hot and rotten. Screaming and struggling under his weight, I kicked him hard and he recoiled enough for me to get away. Gun shots rattled through the darkened store. More blood sprayed over me and in my mouth. Sam collapsed on top of me.
“Pestilence, is that you?” a man called.
“Jasper, it’s me.”
He heaved the body off of me. There was no other person I was glad to see. He held out his hand and helped me up. He also was covered in blood.
I peered into his eyes. “Are you like them?”
“Are you?”
I hugged him hard, “what’s going on?”
“I don’t really know. I spent all night answering calls about sick people turning into zombies. And by the time I get there, I had to shoot that person,” Jasper said.
“Zombies aren’t real,” I said.
“What do you call it, Pestilence? This is real life. Last I knew the virus is responsible. I went to Dubois yesterday and there were so many people just sick. And then I came home and there were so many sick people. Then all of a sudden people went crazy and started eating people.”
“Minestrone feasted on a pregnant mare. And then I killed John.”
“Don’t think of it as killing. They are pretty much dead, their soul is anyway, you are putting them out of misery,” Jasper continued. “It’s not safe here. We have to get out of town.”
“ Are there any other people not sick? We have to find them Jasper.”
“I know Pestilence. I’m trying. You have a gun?”
“In the Jeep.”
“Well get it.”
We stepped out together when something at the gas station moved in the shadows. Jasper grabbed my arm and led me to the Jeep. With gun in hand, we went to the gas station. We heard grunts and snarls, I turned and looked there were several townspeople walking down the street. I called to them. Jasper put his hand over my mouth.
He whispered in my ear, “I don’t think they are themselves anymore. Look at how they are walking. Shoot them Pestilence, don’t think twice about it either because they are hungry and we are fresh meat.”
“I don’t know if I can.”
They neared and Jasper raised his gun and shot. One by one they fell, the others stopped and stared at bodies on the ground. One, who I think was Peggy the postmaster reached into the carcass and pulled out a bunch of insides. She shoved as much as she could in her mouth then spit it all out. The group continued toward us.
Jasper shot once more and needed to reload, “Pestilence. Shoot the fuckers.”
I raised my gun and shot. Blood splattered over the snow. Soon the street stood quiet. Jasper handed me shells and reloaded.
“Come on, let’s get inside.”
I followed him as went inside the gas station. He put his finger to his lip and we walked as if we had feathers on our feet. A noise came from the back. We neared it. Jasper opened the door. And on the floor in footed once pink pajamas was Sara. She heard us and whipped around, her mother’s blood over her face. Jasper raised his gun and shot her right in the head. She fell on top of her mother. I couldn’t take it anymore and I puked again. Jasper led me to the police station.
“We should be safe in here at least for a little while. I haven’t seen the chief yet but we need to come up with a plan.”
“Jasper you can stay with me. We can protect each other.”
“Pestilence, you and I both know that is a bad idea. You don’t know what the government is planning. They could bomb every state or some state near by but if they know where survivors are, maybe they won’t.”
“It seems like you already know what is going on,” I replied.
“Come on, you have seen movies before. Survivors do better in groups. I think we should go to Vegas.”
“I want to stay.”
“Pestilence, I will bring you back. You know when you we were younger all you talked about is getting out Eagle’s Knee and now it’s the end of the world and you want to stay. I need you to come with me. I can’t do this without you.”
“Okay, we will go to Vegas but as soon as we can, I want to come home. What about the horses?” I asked.
“We let them go. We can’t save them all. And at least they have a fighting chance. We need survive, we need to be other people because there are more of them then there is of us.”
I slumped back in the chair, “okay we what about the survivors?”
“By my count, all of them are dead. It’s just us. I think we should get what we need from town and then we will go back to your cabin and get a couple of horses in the trailer because we may need to ride them,” Jasper suggested.
I nodded. With guns in hand, we went back to the general store. He grabbed a cart and loaded with bullets and canned food. I grabbed another coat.
“Jasper, why aren’t we sick?” I asked.
“I don’t know but I’m glad I’m not the only one.”
“I have a couple of cans of gas at the cabin,” I said. He nodded and pushed the cart out into the sunshine. Someone staggered out of the house. We stopped. It came closer.
“It’s me, Jasper, are you okay?” Jasper called.
We waited and then the person charged toward us. Jasper wasted no time and pulled the trigger. We loaded the Jeep up and went back to the cabin. Once there, we showered and dressed. I chose two horses and he hooked the trailer up to the Jeep. He loaded the horses onto the trailer and I set the rest all free. Tears crawled down my cheeks as each one ran from the barn. With everything we could possibly carry in the Jeep, Jasper got in the driver’s side and we were off. Outside of town, there is a large wooden sign that says “Welcome to Eagle’s Knee. Funny town name, friendly people.”
Jasper pulled off the road and took a can of spray paint and wrote over the sign, “Pestilence Eagle-River Jasper Kennedy to Vegas. All others dead”
“Jasper, I have to go to Cheyenne first. I need something at my apartment and at the bank.”
“Come on Pestilence.”
I touched his arm, “please Jasper, I wouldn’t ask if it weren’t important. If this is the end of the world then I want to get a couple of things.”
“Okay, we will go. We’re going through Dubois and the reservation and look for others. I don’t think I would feel right, if we left good people.”
He drove in silence and smiled some.
“What are you smiling about?” I asked.
“Remember our senior prom, you remember the song you slow danced with me?”
“I’ll stop the world and melt with you,” I answered. Jasper was my best friend and he wanted more- always did. We grew up together and I was pretty sure the town already had our wedding banner made but then I moved to Cheyenne didn’t come back to Eagle’s Knee as often. Jasper seemed happy even without a special someone. Maybe I had some bad relationships and damn if I didn’t know what love was, but the only thing I was sure of was- I wouldn’t want to be with anyone else but Jasper.
“Funny, in a way all these years later, it’s you and I against all of them.”
Up ahead, smoke rose above the trees. Jasper slowed down and continued onto to Dubois. About 5 miles outside of town limits, fire roared.
“Well I guess we don’t have to worry about Dubois. If someone was here, they are not because they set the town on fire,” Jasper said. He turned off the main road and traveled down a snow-covered road.
It was late afternoon when we pulled into Wind River Reservation. The casino shimmered in the setting sun. Driving slow, Jasper took the main road to the casino. Bodies lined the road, there were no other cars on the road. He parked in front of the casino. We grabbed our guns and opened the door. Sick, dead meat invaded our senses. I wanted to puke but held it back.
Slot machines blinked off and on. We walked cautiously. Jasper tripped over a body and his gun went off. I helped him up and we looked around. He went over to a machine and popped in a quarter. The lights and bells went off.
“Pestilence, I just won the jackpot,” he said. “Wouldn’t you know I win now when money is really no good. Still, wouldn’t mind cashing this in.”
“Well if we find someone maybe, they have some money left over.” I smiled at him.
He slipped his winning paper in his pocket and we continued. Walking over body over body, we went up stairs.
I opened the door to the chief’s office, “Well if it isn’t little Pestilence Eagle-River,” he said.
“Chief White Feather.”
“I am not surprised you are alive. If Lucas was alive, he’d still be up at his place.”
“We are going to Vegas, come with us,” I said.
“You know your grandfather and I had arguments about this place. He was against it of course, he was against a lot of things you know. But he was right where would I be when it’s the end of the world,” Chief White Feather said.
“Chief, Jasper and I are going to Vegas, it should be safer there. You should come with us.”
“This is my land and your land. I’m not running. You understand that. It’s not the money; my wife is buried here, my parents and grandparents. I am staying. I watched our people turn against one another, rip out their hearts and eat them. I watched other people try to run. Some of them did, I hope so anyway. Everything changed so fast. So many dead. Come here, Pestilence.”
I went to his desk and knelt beside him and he held my hand, “I know you are half Shoshone but you know all the stories, you know all about our heritage. Make it to Vegas and start a better world.” He opened his desk drawer and gave me an arrow head. “This is an artifact from the Shoshone tribe. It is thousands of years old. Take it with you. May the spirits guide you.”
Jasper coughed. “I hate to ask you but Jasper wants to cash in,” I said only as a joke.
“Of course.” He stood up and opened the safe and gave Jasper a large stack of bills. “Keep her safe. Go both of you, if there is gas you better get it because soon there will be no power. Leave as soon as you can.” The Chief eyes were distant and sad. He turned his back on us and watched the setting sun from his large office window.
Back outside, I drove us to the gas station. I stood at the pump as Jasper went to turn it on. He fired one shot and came back out. We started our way to Cheyenne. The world darkened around us as I turned onto the main road. Hoards of people walked in our way. I stepped on the gas and shifted through the gears and ran them over. Jasper opened the window and shot at them. Their bones crunched under my tires and the horses stamped against the trailer. Blood splattered over the windshield. I drove fast out of the reservation.
“Jasper, do you think we should go to Cheyenne?”
“There must be something very important if you want to go there so bad. Why?”
“I don’t know if we should go. I really want those things but it’s probably dangerous.”
“Probably. Pestilence you and I both know anywhere we go, we are in danger. You make the choice, if you want to go there or not.”
“It’s just a couple of things. My dad’s 38 is in the bank and my mom’s journal is in at my apartment. I would have taken them with me but I thought this thing would blow over like everything else does. I didn’t know things would get this bad.”
Close to Cheyenne, headlights appeared in front of us. Jasper pulled off the road. The other vehicle stopped. A man stepped out.
“Jasper, you think they can drive?”
“They as in the zombies. No, I don’t think so,” he answered.
We grabbed our guns and got out of the Jeep.
“Matt, is that you?” I asked when I saw him better in the headlights. He came closer.
“Pestilence, you’re okay,” he said.
We hugged briefly, “this is my friend Jasper from Eagle’s Knee. Are you alone?”
“For right now. I had to kill her, Pestilence. My wife, she came at me and I bashed her head in. I didn’t know what to do,” Matt said.
“I’m sorry, Matt, really I am.”
“Are there any others that are like us?” Jasper asked.
“I don’t know man, there are people some are looting and others I just don’t know. I got in my car and I left. Why are you guys heading there?” Matt asked.
“Pestilence needs some things.”
He looked at me square in the eyes, “you will die if you go back there. There are too many of them. It’s not like you can’t come back later on. The highlight of my day was killing that good-for-nothing governor.”
“Come with us to Vegas,” Jasper said.
“What? Leave one big city to go to another one. Are you crazy? Are you trying to kill us all?” Matt asked.
“Because I know, it will be safe there.”
“How do you know, Jasper?” I asked. “You seem so god-damned sure that we will be safe if we get there.”
“Because there is a group of people that were preparing for something like this. The owner of the Pot of Gold Casino has been preparing for some kind of apocalypse. I know that we will be safe there. Please you have to trust me.”
“Jasper, I never realized you were so paranoid.”
“Paranoid? Pestilence it is called preparation. I don’t know what world you fucking live in but something was bound to happen one way or another,” Jasper said.
“Jasper.”
“Whatever. So what are you doing Pestilence, are going to Cheyenne and die or leave now for Vegas with a chance. Because if you just want to die, I’ll shoot you right here because at least I know it would be quick and painless. I can only imagine being gobbled by zombies is not fun,” Jasper snarled.
“Well take your chances. I’m heading to Yellowstone. I have a cabin up there. I think I can wait it out and if not well then I will already be in heaven,” Matt said. He hugged and wished me good luck.
Once he drove away, Jasper asked me, “What’s it going to be Pestilence? Don’t you think we both lost enough? I need you and you need me right now. Come with me to Vegas we will be safe once we get there.”
Grabbing onto his arm, I looked into his eyes, “Let’s go Jasper. I’m not ready to die. That stuff is only stuff, it’s not going to bring them back.”
He moved my dark hair from eyes, “I’m glad you said that.”
Jasper stuck to the back roads as we made our way out of Wyoming. Sometimes, a radio station would come in with someone asking for help or tell people to stay inside because it is too dangerous. We drove and drove as the rising sun pierced the horizon. Hard to believe it’s only been a little more than a day the world went to hell but it felt like much more. It wasn’t enough that I had to kill people I knew all my life but there was no information. When the power grids began to collapse, I never felt more alone, an alien in my own world.
I put the rest of the gas in the Jeep, while Jasper walked the horses. We were somewhere near the Utah border.
“Pestilence, I need to tell you something very important. If something happens to me and I don’t make it to Vegas . . . ”
“Jasper, why won’t you make it?”
“We don’t know what it’s like. We are heading right near Salt Lake City. I don’t know how much further we can drive before we pull out the horses. If I could, I would drive all the way there. Listen and this is very important. There is a secret entrance to the Pot of Gold. When you enter the city limits, make sure you find the red telephone booth, you know the kind they used to have in England anyway. Go in the booth and dial 911 hang up the phone and walk fifty paces into the alley. There is a red door. It should be unlocked. Make sure no one follows you and go in the door. Just follow the path and I am guessing someone should be there to help you out.”
“How do you know you this is true?”
“Because I got a text message with the directions the other day before you even came home,” Jasper replied.
“Why didn’t you go then?” I asked.
“I don’t know maybe I didn’t want to believe that this was really happening. Maybe, I was just like you and thought that Eagle’s Knee would the safest place to be because we are so far removed from the rest of the world. Maybe I couldn’t leave. My mom sure wouldn’t go. She was already sick and I didn’t know what was going to happen. I had to say my goodbyes. I did and then I killed her. I killed my own mother,” Jasper said and fell into my arms and cried into my chest. I stroked his hair.
“Let me drive. How do you want to go?”
“Take the highway. I don’t want to get lost in Utah while trying to get to Vegas.”
I got behind the wheel and drove right to Salt Lake. The land stretched calmly before us but as we neared Salt Lake, cars were parked alongside the road. I slowed down and Jasper got the gun ready.
“Just take it easy, Pestilence. Don’t drive too fast. There may be survivors in these cars.”
“It’s going to be a bitch getting through with the horse trailer.”
He nodded. The late morning sun began baking everything in sight. The rancid smell corrupted the air around us. We saw a group of them up ahead. They staggered in the sunshine.
“Slow it down. We need as many bullets as we can. I’m going to shoot for the gas tanks.”
I did what he asked and we came up on them. Something hit the horse trailer and the horses whinnied. More pounding. I looked in the mirror and they were attacking the horses.
“Jasper, they’re getting the horses,” I said.
“Let them go. It may be our only chance.”
My hands shook against the wheel and watched a couple of them pull the head off one of the horses. The other horse was pulled out of the trailer. The group in front of us stopped and turned around. The smell of fresh meat was too much for them. The group devoured the horse, pulling the intestines out and shoving the bloody innards in their mouths like fresh-cut spaghetti.
“You’re doing fine just keep going.”
But the group in front of us wanted their meat too. And attacked. They clawed at the Jeep’s soft top and beat the windows. I kept straight ahead with my foot on the pedal a little harder each time. Jasper opened his window and beat some of them with the butt of his gun and shot at a car. Nothing. He shot again and the car exploded. More of them came from other cars.
“Go, Pestilence just go.”
I stepped on the gas. They clawed at my windows. One of them broke it, glass shattered all over the inside. One of them reached for me, their claws tore at my skin. Jasper shot the gun right into my attacker’s head. Blood splattered all over. I screamed but my voice sounded so far away. I wished I had my dad’s gun. Jasper continued to shoot at them and I drove over what I could. More blood showers spilled over the Jeep. There were so many of them when would it end. The road ahead was swarming with them. He reloaded and spent the bullets and reloaded some more. Up ahead there was an opening that took off the highway into the flat lands. I sped up. More of them tried to reach but soon they were grabbed by the tires and smashed against the road.
The Jeep bounced as I careened off the highway.
“We have to get rid of the trailer,” Jasper said finally being able to breathe. They were still coming after us but they were still far behind. I stopped and Jasper got out and unhooked the trailer. Once he was back inside. I sped away.
“Jasper, we are almost out of gas.”
“Just go until we can’t go anymore.”
The group shrank in the mirror and finally the Jeep sputtered on the last of the gas. We grabbed our packs and the guns and started walking.
“Lets keep going this way as along as the highway is to our left we should be okay.”
We walked in the hot sun and found ourselves in Red River, Utah. Sweet little houses lined the streets which were littered with bodies, baking in the hot sun. I stopped and puked.
“Come on, let’s get inside somewhere,” Jasper suggested.
He tried a house and entered. I followed. The house was dark and there was broken glass and furniture scattered about. Jasper held my hand as we went through the house. When out of the shadows someone cocked a gun.
“Who the fuck are you? Are you one of them?”
“I’m Jasper Kennedy and this Pestilence Eagle-River from Eagle’s Knee, Wyoming. We are on our way to Vegas.”
The man stepped out of the shadows. He was built like a grizzly bear, but with a soft, trusting face with tender blue eyes.
“I’m sorry. I’m not like this. Name is Teddy. Sorry about the mess but my kids they were here for the weekend. And my girl she attacked my boy. When I came in, she had gutted him clean. I grabbed my gun and killed my little girl. Then the other fuckers tried to come in but I got rid of them. At least for right now.”
“Well we don’t normally come into other people’s houses. We’re sorry,” I said.
“This is a different time, Miss Eagle-River. So what’s in Vegas?” Teddy asked.
“The Pot of Gold Casino. It is a safe place. I know it is. Come with us,” Jasper replied.
“How do you know?”
“Because there is this group in Vegas who was prepared for the end of the world. I know it’s a long shot but I got a text the other day with instructions on how to get into the secret entrance of the casino.”
Teddy sat down, “well I don’t see why not. I’ve been watching them. They are more active in the daylight then in the night. It’s almost like they are still need some kind of sleep. I watch them, they are so still and just stand in little groups like they are protecting each other from us. Like we are the enemy.”
“Maybe, we are. We don’t know what it is going on in their mind,” I said.
“Okay if we do this, what do we need?” Teddy asked.
“Got a car or something?”
“A pick-up, I know you’ll all be cramped but it’s something. I just got gas in it the other day. It should have a full tank,” Teddy replied.
“We need ammo and lots of it. And maybe some more gas just in case. Vegas is still quite a bit a distance away,” Jasper said.
“Okay well, a lot of my neighbors probably got some gas in the sheds we can take that. Got no power anymore. I know my next door neighbor hunts so we can we see if he has something or not.”
We continued to plan as the sun began to set. We started out on a supply hunt at dusk. Just with our guns, the three of us walked through the backyards looking for gas. Several had at least 5 gallons of gas in a can. His hunter neighbor only had a little ammo. The group milled around on the main street grunting and drooling.
“So there is a Wal-Mart at the south end of town. We’ll go right past it. We can pick up the ammo there and then get on our way to Vegas,” Teddy said.
We nodded and quietly loaded the truck. Twilight sparkled over the group. They grew more and more still. Jasper pushed the car out of the garage and down the road. Teddy started it and Jasper got in. The hoard moved toward us. Teddy stepped on the gas. He parked at Wal-Mart and cut the engine.
“Should we all go together?” He asked.
“No, You can stay. Pestilence and I will go in.”
The parking lot was empty as far as we could see. Jasper and I walked into the darkened store. The emergency lights were fading and the slight light barely illuminated the store. We crept in the shadows to the sporting good section. Grunts and grumbles came from all around of us. I wanted to run back to the truck, fuck the ammo and just get ourselves to Vegas. Jasper squeezed my hand and pulled me closer to him. Right before the ammo counter, a worker approached us. A very hungry worker.
He came at us. His name was Andy. His name tag was stained with blood. Not wanting to draw attention to us, Jasper swung at Andy’s head and he fell to the ground, grumbling and snarling. Jasper took a piece of broken glass and cut his throat. Blood oozed over Jasper’s hands.
He opened his bag and we filled it with what we could. Jasper grabbed a couple of hunting knives. We tried to creep back out of the store but we were surrounded. Andy’s grunts must have alerted the others anyway. We cut down another aisle. They were closing in us. There were probably about eight of them and they moved quicker then the others.
Jasper grabbed kerosene and drenched the small group. Without much thought, I lit a match and tossed it on them. With a whoosh they went up in flames. They growled in screamed in the flames. We ran. More of them came from all over the store. Outside, others came for the pick up. Teddy started the engine and we got in the back. Jasper and I shot at them as Teddy took off into the night. We drove all night on back roads through the barren world of Utah.
Sometime in the middle of night, Teddy stopped the truck to fill the tank with gas.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“Almost to the Nevada border,” Teddy said.
“Thank god, I hope you are right about all of this Jasper,” I said.
“The information is right, but who knows what will be walking into when we get there,” Jasper replied.
“It seems quiet here, why don’t we stop for a while longer for a rest,” I suggested.
“That’s a good idea. I’ll get a small fire started,” Jasper said.
He took a flashlight to gather wood for the fire. I sat with Teddy on the ground beside the truck. From somewhere in the dark, the flashlight bounced. Gunshots resounded and Jasper screamed. Wasting no time, I went after Jasper with Teddy on my heels. There were three of them. One of them held Jasper down by the shoulders. The other ripped the flesh from Jasper’s leg. And the small boy made a weird alarming noise. They looked at us. Jasper screamed more and more. Quickly, I shot the one holding down Jasper. The body fell on top of Jasper. The other two moved toward us. Teddy shot the child and I shot the other one.
Kneeling beside Jasper, Teddy looked at his wound on his leg.
“Is he gonna be sick?” Teddy asked.
Jasper grabbed my hands, “Leave me Pestilence just shoot me now. Go to Vegas. You’ll take care of her won’t you, Teddy.”
“You are not a fucking rabid animal, Jasper.” I looked at Teddy, “let’s take him back to the truck.”
Teddy lifted him and carried him.
“Shine the light on his leg,” I told Teddy. The gashes were deep. One of them managed to eat down to his shin bone. “I have an idea. If this like a snake bite, we might be able to stop Jasper from turning like them.”
“How Pestilence?”
“Build a fire, Teddy but not too big.”
As Teddy started the fire, I went in my bag and took the bottle of whiskey, some clothes and the knives we got at Wal-Mart. I poured the whiskey into Jasper’s mouth.
“I love you Pestilence, you know that right. I don’t want to ever hurt you. Just kill me now,” Jasper said. “Please do this favor. I want you to do it.”
“Jasper, do you have the urge to eat me?”
He smiled “not in that way anyway.”
I laughed a little, “you seem okay to me. Trust me on this, Jasper.”
“I should, the granddaughter of a Shoshone shaman,” Jasper drifted as his body went into shock. It was now or never. And what if it didn’t work, I would have to kill him. Jasper wanted me to kill him. How could I kill him? Teddy would have to do it. Jasper would understand, I knew he would if I couldn’t blow his brains out across the desert. The fire roared and I heated the blades in the flame.
“Teddy, I need you to hold him down. I don’t think he is drunk enough to stay out.”
Teddy held him down. I took the belt off of Jasper’s pants and wrapped it around his leg as tight as I could. Pouring more of the whiskey over Jasper’s leg, I began to saw his leg off right above the knee. Blood oozed over my hands as I cut.
“Teddy, tighten the belt as much as you can.” He followed my directions. The knife ripped away at his flesh. Jasper shrieked. Teddy poured more whiskey down his throat but it didn’t help as much. I put the current knife in the fire and used the other one. Blood gushed out of his stump.
“Help me Teddy. I need to cauterize the stump.” Teddy dragged him over to the fire. Gently, I shoved the stump into the fire. Jasper screamed into the rising sun. And I could see them coming from all around us. I took the leg out and put it back in. With every scream, they moved closer. They smelled his sweet, living blood.
“Pestilence, we have to go,” Teddy said and cocked his gun. I dressed Jasper’s fresh new stump as fast as I could. Jasper cried and muffled his screams as bit into his hand.
“I know, help me put him in the truck.” Teddy laid him in the bed. They started running for us. I tossed our supplies into the bed and Teddy started up and floored the gas pedal. Jasper was in and out of consciousness. I laid his head in my lap and stroked his blood-soaked face. Vegas was in sight and I just wanted to get to that casino. Someone there had to be able save Jasper. I couldn’t lose him. He was the only thing I had left it in this blood-saturated world.
The streets were quiet. Some casinos still blinked and offered high jackpot pay outs. More and more bodies were scattered on the roads. Teddy drove slow as we looked for the telephone booth. In the distance an alarm sounded just as we found the booth. Teddy carried Jasper and I called on the phone.
I led them into the alley. One of them came from the shadows like an Olympic sprinter. I shot at her and shot at her again. There was the red door. More of them began to close in on the alley. Teddy hustled with Jasper over his broad football player shoulder, into the passageway as I continued to shoot what I had in the gun and shut the door.
There was a passageway made from concrete lit with orange tunnel lights. A mechanism barricaded the red door. We walked along the path. At the end were two men with very large guns.
“Is he hurt?” They asked about Jasper.
“He was attacked. I cut his leg off above the knee,” I said. I didn’t know how long it took turn but Jasper was still Jasper.
One called on the radio and then talked to us, “this is a safe place. There is a doctor who can look at your friend. We can’t make any promises though. What are your names and where are you from, so we have record.”
“Theodore Thayer from Red River Utah.”
“I am Pestilence Eagle-River and the injured is Jasper Kennedy we are from Eagle’s Knee, Wyoming. There were no other survivors in Eagle’s Knee.”
They opened another door, “Welcome to the Pot of Gold.”
How long would be safe here? Could all of us start a new world? There were just so many questions but I bent down and kissed the plush shamrock green carpet. At least we had today and we were safe.
Thursday, September 4, 2014
Moonswallow Gates ON SALE NOW!!
I know it's been awhile since I wrote, hasn't it always been awhile? I always have some excuse or another. I probably do but today this is a quick post to let you know my first novel Moonswallow Gates is now on sale in both the US and the UK markets. For the US it is $.99 right now, September 4, 2014 and will continue to rise in price for the next week. I hope you buy it and read it and leave a review (I promise I won't shame you) as far as the review that is there, make your own decision by reading the sample.
This book has MAGIC WITCHES BLOOD and all sorts of things. It will make your skin crawl or it would make your stomach turn (in a good way) that is. Now, I am begging you to read the book. I think it's a great book (of course, I do, I wrote it.) I don't like begging so maybe pretty please <insert puppy dog eyes here> read my book.
Have a wonderful day!
This book has MAGIC WITCHES BLOOD and all sorts of things. It will make your skin crawl or it would make your stomach turn (in a good way) that is. Now, I am begging you to read the book. I think it's a great book (of course, I do, I wrote it.) I don't like begging so maybe pretty please <insert puppy dog eyes here> read my book.
Have a wonderful day!
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Coming Soon Moonswallow Gates
I've been up in the air about Moonswallow Gates. One part of me thinks I should try sending it out to traditional publishers and there is another part of me that is screaming THE TIME IS NOW. I shouldn't wait to publish but do it now. The time is now, it's about as good as any I suppose. I finished the book cover the other day and now I preparing the manuscript first for Kindle and then for print. I have already went through 107 pages. When it is printed there will be about 300 or so pages which isn't too bad for a 6x9 book.
Do you want to know a secret? I am scared to publish it. The novel is seen as this pinnacle to writing. To write the novel. To publish the novel. This novel could one of three things:
1. It could make me
2. It could break me
3. It would neither make or break me and it will just one of thousands of titles on Kindle.
See what I mean? It's like I am jumping into a deep ass sea with no clothes on and I see the hungry sharks coming my way. This novel, my novel, is nothing like the novelettes and short stories I published before. I admit, I enjoyed my own book. I want to share my book with you because I don't think it should be locked away on the hard drive of computer for all eternity. I want to share this with you and I hope you don't think different of me when I do.
I have to push those fears aside because maybe those sharks are tiger sharks and they won't bite or maybe I will plunge into the water and find myself lifted out of danger in a shiny bubble. Who knows. I don't want to wait. What will happen will happen, right? Isn't that the saying?
Maybe there is nothing to fear. Maybe I am over reacting. Maybe imagination is too wild. Just maybe I should shut the hell up and let the world pass judgment.
I am working on the Kindle version which I want to have done in the next week. Within the week of the Kindle release, I will have it available for print. Remember Moonswallow Gates by me JM Scott. A novel filled with MAGIC, WITHCES, SEX AND BLOOD. Awesome right? I should be able to sell 50 copies with that alone.
When we meet again, I will have a novel published. Until then, keep your feet warm and your ice cream in your underwear.
Do you want to know a secret? I am scared to publish it. The novel is seen as this pinnacle to writing. To write the novel. To publish the novel. This novel could one of three things:
1. It could make me
2. It could break me
3. It would neither make or break me and it will just one of thousands of titles on Kindle.
See what I mean? It's like I am jumping into a deep ass sea with no clothes on and I see the hungry sharks coming my way. This novel, my novel, is nothing like the novelettes and short stories I published before. I admit, I enjoyed my own book. I want to share my book with you because I don't think it should be locked away on the hard drive of computer for all eternity. I want to share this with you and I hope you don't think different of me when I do.
I have to push those fears aside because maybe those sharks are tiger sharks and they won't bite or maybe I will plunge into the water and find myself lifted out of danger in a shiny bubble. Who knows. I don't want to wait. What will happen will happen, right? Isn't that the saying?
Maybe there is nothing to fear. Maybe I am over reacting. Maybe imagination is too wild. Just maybe I should shut the hell up and let the world pass judgment.
I am working on the Kindle version which I want to have done in the next week. Within the week of the Kindle release, I will have it available for print. Remember Moonswallow Gates by me JM Scott. A novel filled with MAGIC, WITHCES, SEX AND BLOOD. Awesome right? I should be able to sell 50 copies with that alone.
When we meet again, I will have a novel published. Until then, keep your feet warm and your ice cream in your underwear.
Sunday, July 13, 2014
Energy and all the Writing that Goes With It
More reading about writing, I do it every Sunday to keep ahead of my school work. But this week, this week made me panic. One of the textbooks in class is The Practice of Creative Writing by Heather Sellers. It's a fine book and I had to read a few chapters one of them about tension and energy and then it hit me... do I have the energy? Am I boring? Shit, I can't do this or I can do this but it won't be any good because it is flat and boring and lifeless. I often wondered if my work was boring.
I sent my parents a copy of my novel to read over before I put in on Kindle. Honestly, I love it, my novel that is. It is twisted and demented and crazy and just everything. It is the right time to publish this book. It has to be now and not two years from now. And guess what both have said they have not finished reading it. Horse shit. They didn't finish a short novel which my first thought was it so boring they couldn't finish it. Let me tell you that really sucks.
I read my work and I read it fast, it moves fast. But I am too close to the work, I am always too close to the work. Even when I put an editor hat on, the work is still close to me. I think about my novel everyday. Not about the story because I think the story is fine. I think about getting it ready without anyone's thoughts on it. I have to rely on myself and I really wanted feedback on the novel. Now, I am back to the self doubt again, maybe I am not a good writer.
Sure, I can write a grammatically proper sentence. I can make proper paragraphs and cohesive papers but that's not enough. Sometimes, reading books about writing is a damper. I never think about tension but I know it exists. I don't create triangle diagrams or other diagram to display the action sequences. If any of this exists in my work, I would have no idea because writing just comes to me.
I don't think about stanza or line breaks, what ever comes out comes out. It varies. Where does this leave me? Who knows? So, I am going to toot my own horn I am special and different and that is reflected in my writing. This has to be true, right?
To me, energy is transposed from the writer to the page to the reader. If I am excited and energized what I am working on, then it's going to show without me knowing about. That is your job as a reader to discern.
This Tuesday is my birthday and I will be 34 and I know that there is something amazing for me just around the corner (in addition to the camping trip we are taking in the middle of the week). Have a wonderful week.
I sent my parents a copy of my novel to read over before I put in on Kindle. Honestly, I love it, my novel that is. It is twisted and demented and crazy and just everything. It is the right time to publish this book. It has to be now and not two years from now. And guess what both have said they have not finished reading it. Horse shit. They didn't finish a short novel which my first thought was it so boring they couldn't finish it. Let me tell you that really sucks.
I read my work and I read it fast, it moves fast. But I am too close to the work, I am always too close to the work. Even when I put an editor hat on, the work is still close to me. I think about my novel everyday. Not about the story because I think the story is fine. I think about getting it ready without anyone's thoughts on it. I have to rely on myself and I really wanted feedback on the novel. Now, I am back to the self doubt again, maybe I am not a good writer.
Sure, I can write a grammatically proper sentence. I can make proper paragraphs and cohesive papers but that's not enough. Sometimes, reading books about writing is a damper. I never think about tension but I know it exists. I don't create triangle diagrams or other diagram to display the action sequences. If any of this exists in my work, I would have no idea because writing just comes to me.
I don't think about stanza or line breaks, what ever comes out comes out. It varies. Where does this leave me? Who knows? So, I am going to toot my own horn I am special and different and that is reflected in my writing. This has to be true, right?
To me, energy is transposed from the writer to the page to the reader. If I am excited and energized what I am working on, then it's going to show without me knowing about. That is your job as a reader to discern.
This Tuesday is my birthday and I will be 34 and I know that there is something amazing for me just around the corner (in addition to the camping trip we are taking in the middle of the week). Have a wonderful week.
Sunday, June 29, 2014
Books on Writing
This term in school I am taking creative writing and of course, we have these writing books we have to read. I've read a lot of writing books, I am not sure why because I really don't learn anything new. I don't learn anything at all but there is something about those books. The one I read to was Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg and I like it. She writes like she is writing a letter to me her friend...
I am old enough to have actually written letters to my friends. One in particular, I used to write long letters to. I don't know if she kept them or not and I don't even remember what I wrote. She used to write back to me, there was a lot of joy in going to the mailbox and getting a letter or a postcard. Now with Facebook there are no need for postcards or long letters or even birthday cards. Diatribe over.
Back to these writing books, I love them and there is one thing that is common in all of them. They all talk about the joy of writing. The actual physical process of writing and makes me remember physically writing because there is still that joy when I am writing so much and so fast that the clack clack of the keyboard is almost like music. I remember those joys of writing and especially right now where my writing is slowed down so much. There is the same message in every one of these books, just write and write. Write without excuses and just write.
I turned in a poem for the writing class and I am terrified everyone would hate it. I am also afraid that I won't get an "A" on my poem or any other writings I turned in because you know that "A" is like the pinnacle right? You know that, I know that. Of course, I have rejected A worthy poems in my day as a literary magazine editor, so what is an A really worth? I don't know. I like my poems, I know other people like my poems. SO where does that leave me? Who knows? Maybe that is all part of being a writer.
Okay I am thinking about heading outside for a little bit. Until next time...
I am old enough to have actually written letters to my friends. One in particular, I used to write long letters to. I don't know if she kept them or not and I don't even remember what I wrote. She used to write back to me, there was a lot of joy in going to the mailbox and getting a letter or a postcard. Now with Facebook there are no need for postcards or long letters or even birthday cards. Diatribe over.
Back to these writing books, I love them and there is one thing that is common in all of them. They all talk about the joy of writing. The actual physical process of writing and makes me remember physically writing because there is still that joy when I am writing so much and so fast that the clack clack of the keyboard is almost like music. I remember those joys of writing and especially right now where my writing is slowed down so much. There is the same message in every one of these books, just write and write. Write without excuses and just write.
I turned in a poem for the writing class and I am terrified everyone would hate it. I am also afraid that I won't get an "A" on my poem or any other writings I turned in because you know that "A" is like the pinnacle right? You know that, I know that. Of course, I have rejected A worthy poems in my day as a literary magazine editor, so what is an A really worth? I don't know. I like my poems, I know other people like my poems. SO where does that leave me? Who knows? Maybe that is all part of being a writer.
Okay I am thinking about heading outside for a little bit. Until next time...
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Has it Been a Month?
Hell, I've been slacking on the posting. A whole month has went by and I didn't write anything. First I want to say, how much I hate Math. Thank God, this is the only math class I have to take for my degree program. Nothing makes me feel like a moron when it comes to the math class. I used to be good at math. Well good news, I only have one more week of Math and I am done. My other class I am doing real well. It's Humanities and I like art and I like talking about art. Next term I am taking creative writing, (I hoping I get my creative juices flowing plus I should be able to post some of my work on here unless it is really excellent than I might send it away) and Intro to Critical Thinking. I am not sure how the thinking class will go but there does seem to be exams which I do pretty well at except for math.
Honestly, I've just been working on school for the past month and spending too much time on games on my computer. I really should get my priorities straight and spend more time writing. Perhaps I am on vacation. Funny thing too is I have a bunch of story ideas but not a lot of drive to put those stories to paper. Enough about that.
I am so glad summer is here. We've already went swimming several times at the state parks but those super hot days aren't here yet. Still would like to get a pool but maybe I will wait until they go on clearance. I am not talking about a large pool, but one of the ones that are taken down every year. I have a small pool already but I need a filter pump which for some reason are quite high even though the one I need is discontinued. I can buy a new pool with a filter pump for a little bit more at Big Lots. So it doesn't seem like a good idea to spend so much on a pump.
I signed up for Amazon's affiliate program but they are going to drop me because I haven't had any clicks. I only signed up to use their advertising banners for my books and ebooks. Now I have to think of something else to do. That is on the list. Really though, I am used to being ignored. Speaking of Amazon, I did sell my poetry book for full price which was freaking awesome. I just checked today and no one reviewed it which sucks because I would love to know what other people think of it . In the last month, I also have added two additional print books. The only one left is Nickolaus but I am going to leave it as an ebook since it is a Christmas story.
I will be releasing a collection of Christmas stories and poems through Kindle. I will start working on it probably in the next month so it will be 100% ready for Christmas. It's weird to think of Christmas now but in the world of retail, Christmas goodies will be coming too soon for my taste.
And there you go, that's what I been up to. Once I become famous, I am so glad I will have enough money to hire an accountant because Math is for the birds. Until next time, wear plenty of sunscreen and be sure to give libations for the lost homies.
Honestly, I've just been working on school for the past month and spending too much time on games on my computer. I really should get my priorities straight and spend more time writing. Perhaps I am on vacation. Funny thing too is I have a bunch of story ideas but not a lot of drive to put those stories to paper. Enough about that.
I am so glad summer is here. We've already went swimming several times at the state parks but those super hot days aren't here yet. Still would like to get a pool but maybe I will wait until they go on clearance. I am not talking about a large pool, but one of the ones that are taken down every year. I have a small pool already but I need a filter pump which for some reason are quite high even though the one I need is discontinued. I can buy a new pool with a filter pump for a little bit more at Big Lots. So it doesn't seem like a good idea to spend so much on a pump.
I signed up for Amazon's affiliate program but they are going to drop me because I haven't had any clicks. I only signed up to use their advertising banners for my books and ebooks. Now I have to think of something else to do. That is on the list. Really though, I am used to being ignored. Speaking of Amazon, I did sell my poetry book for full price which was freaking awesome. I just checked today and no one reviewed it which sucks because I would love to know what other people think of it . In the last month, I also have added two additional print books. The only one left is Nickolaus but I am going to leave it as an ebook since it is a Christmas story.
I will be releasing a collection of Christmas stories and poems through Kindle. I will start working on it probably in the next month so it will be 100% ready for Christmas. It's weird to think of Christmas now but in the world of retail, Christmas goodies will be coming too soon for my taste.
And there you go, that's what I been up to. Once I become famous, I am so glad I will have enough money to hire an accountant because Math is for the birds. Until next time, wear plenty of sunscreen and be sure to give libations for the lost homies.
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Hoodoo
A witch doctor
not in the Cajun south
or a palm lined island
waits for me in her
neat home filled with glass animals.
She sits in her black glory.
You come here for answers she says.
I just need to know.
Yours is a life of pain but
with it great things will blossom
Its kismet baby.
Why me? Why can’t I have a gilded life?
It is gilded in time anyway.
Se destine ou mete wout
la long, men tout kontantman
ini ak yon pri
Your destiny is set, the path long
but all happiness comes with a price.
No smoke, no fiery magic
she shows me out and closes
the door.
As I stand on the smooth and perfect
cement, the berry wreath sways.
I wait for some life changing,
radiating light there is nothing
as rain trickles from above.
***
I wrote this poem a little more than a year ago. I still really like it. Anyway that mumbo jumbo is creole. Now, it's probably not perfect since I used an online translator but I think it sounds cool nonetheless. I can't remember what inspired this and I don't think it really matters but I wanted to share a poem with the world. I haven't written poetry in a long while and I really should start working on poetry. I miss writing poetry. My next term I will be taking intro to creative writing so I should be writing at least one poem. Today is a stormy day, a very stormy day. I love nature's raw appeal. Thunder was so deep and loud this morning, it actually rattled the house. Enjoy the poem and if you hate it, please tell me. I want to know.
not in the Cajun south
or a palm lined island
waits for me in her
neat home filled with glass animals.
She sits in her black glory.
You come here for answers she says.
I just need to know.
Yours is a life of pain but
with it great things will blossom
Its kismet baby.
Why me? Why can’t I have a gilded life?
It is gilded in time anyway.
Se destine ou mete wout
la long, men tout kontantman
ini ak yon pri
Your destiny is set, the path long
but all happiness comes with a price.
No smoke, no fiery magic
she shows me out and closes
the door.
As I stand on the smooth and perfect
cement, the berry wreath sways.
I wait for some life changing,
radiating light there is nothing
as rain trickles from above.
***
I wrote this poem a little more than a year ago. I still really like it. Anyway that mumbo jumbo is creole. Now, it's probably not perfect since I used an online translator but I think it sounds cool nonetheless. I can't remember what inspired this and I don't think it really matters but I wanted to share a poem with the world. I haven't written poetry in a long while and I really should start working on poetry. I miss writing poetry. My next term I will be taking intro to creative writing so I should be writing at least one poem. Today is a stormy day, a very stormy day. I love nature's raw appeal. Thunder was so deep and loud this morning, it actually rattled the house. Enjoy the poem and if you hate it, please tell me. I want to know.
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Is that Sunhine or Just my Imagination
Here we are in beginning of May and finally it feels like spring. Fuck it feels more like summer today. As if Mother Nature just turned on the tanning bed. In one week, my yard went from growing grass to a yard full of dandelions and now it needs mowed. Times like this I wish I had a goat. Anyway so I am working hard in school this term I am taking Math and part one of Humanities. I hate Math but on the flipside, I am already doing well in the class. One of the nice things about Math is there are no discussion boards, I hate waiting around for other people to make posts so I can respond to them. In Humanities, the people seem to make their posts early on which means I can get my work done earlier in the week. Hey that's great JM but what about your writing?
Hmmm, here's where I could make a clever excuse but there is none. I haven't been motivated to write. Although I started a short story while we were camping last weekend. I plan to keep the short story as a short story and send it away. It has been forever since I sent anything away. Because I find looking for a publisher very tedious. Yes, I know that is an excuse because if I worked harder on publishing eventually I will be published the odds are in my favor, the more work I send out the better chance I have to be published. Supposedly, sometime this year I am supposed to have a poem published in Ardent! That magazine had some issues so they pushed their publishing timeline back but I suppose that is the life.
Writing is more than writing, and I wish it was just only the writing. The self-promotion is killing me because I am trying my best I still can't the word out, I can't get book sales and worst of all and I can not get reviews on Amazon if my life depended on it. I can give free copies away and there is silence. It is annoying but then I think about myself and how I don't review books either (it's not just books I don't review anything on Amazon. Okay that's not true I did write one review for my tablet case only because I wanted to share with other people this particular case fits a certain tablet). Perhaps it is the universe telling me in a karmic way to make reviews and you will get them. Just like the line in the movie, Field of Dreams, "if you build it, they will come." On the other hand, I have physical copies of my books and I plan on selling them at flea markets alongside my jewelry and try to drum up business and fans by doing it old fashioned way. Sometimes, I need some kind of feedback. Okay enough about that.
And that's about all right now. I am going to outside fix my grill, get a sunburn and do some yard work. Sounds like fun. Till the next time, wear sunscreen and dance in the storm.
Hmmm, here's where I could make a clever excuse but there is none. I haven't been motivated to write. Although I started a short story while we were camping last weekend. I plan to keep the short story as a short story and send it away. It has been forever since I sent anything away. Because I find looking for a publisher very tedious. Yes, I know that is an excuse because if I worked harder on publishing eventually I will be published the odds are in my favor, the more work I send out the better chance I have to be published. Supposedly, sometime this year I am supposed to have a poem published in Ardent! That magazine had some issues so they pushed their publishing timeline back but I suppose that is the life.
Writing is more than writing, and I wish it was just only the writing. The self-promotion is killing me because I am trying my best I still can't the word out, I can't get book sales and worst of all and I can not get reviews on Amazon if my life depended on it. I can give free copies away and there is silence. It is annoying but then I think about myself and how I don't review books either (it's not just books I don't review anything on Amazon. Okay that's not true I did write one review for my tablet case only because I wanted to share with other people this particular case fits a certain tablet). Perhaps it is the universe telling me in a karmic way to make reviews and you will get them. Just like the line in the movie, Field of Dreams, "if you build it, they will come." On the other hand, I have physical copies of my books and I plan on selling them at flea markets alongside my jewelry and try to drum up business and fans by doing it old fashioned way. Sometimes, I need some kind of feedback. Okay enough about that.
And that's about all right now. I am going to outside fix my grill, get a sunburn and do some yard work. Sounds like fun. Till the next time, wear sunscreen and dance in the storm.
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Mickayla Margarella by JM Scott
Hey all, I really should get on the ball about posting at least once a week or so. I used to be a hardcore blogger back in the day but I find myself doing other things including school work. Okay. A couple of weeks ago, I published my latest novelette Mickayla Margarella. It is a romance. I wrote this story years ago and I still think this is a good story. I spent a lot of time rewriting this story as I seemed to mature as a writer. I couldn't believe that I thought the story was good enough to send away when I first wrote it. And this is what it is about...
Mary-Anne is a small town girl with Hollywood dreams. She is a young wife and mother who does the occasional commercial in New York City, as fate would have it an agent is at her latest commercial shoot. He takes her to a fancy party to meet a producer. And the stars are really shining for Mary-Anne as she is offered a job in Hollywood. This is her dream and she doesn't think twice and takes the job offer. At the same time she begins an affair with her agent. Mary-Anne changes her name to Mickayla and goes to Hollywood. This novelette follows Mickayla for 30 years, her ups and downs, the men she loves and the men she hurts.
I like this book cover (uh duh, right, I did make it). It started with a picture of Hollywood and then I did some editing such as playing with the saturation and brightness and then I faded it out. I wanted to make the title sparkle but when I put the sparkle effect in, there was no sparkle. The best I could do was to make the lettering gold (well as far as RGB coding is concerned). Sure it's a romance but I didn't have two people just laying around willing to do a smooch scene for the book cover except for the Barbies and the headless Ken doll. And I am a writer on a budget, so I am not paying for a picture either.
If you like a romance Hollywood type of story then check out Mickayla Margarella it's $2.99 in the US market and will be on Kindle Countdown Deals at the beginning of the coming month. So you can wait until then. Also, if you are an Amazon Prime member you can read it for FREE!
In case you haven't noticed, I am slowly working on taking my Kindle books and making them into print books. There are three of them available right now and they are The Wolf's Red Rose, The Afterlife of Tanya Madera and Heart of Goddess. The next ones I will be working on will be the poetry book and the Mickayla story. I am going to leave the Santa story as a Kindle book for the time being.
One last thing before I go... I am slowly working on a brand new ebook. ETA and title are unknown at this point but it is a new story and it will be HORROR. All right that is enough for one day.
Mary-Anne is a small town girl with Hollywood dreams. She is a young wife and mother who does the occasional commercial in New York City, as fate would have it an agent is at her latest commercial shoot. He takes her to a fancy party to meet a producer. And the stars are really shining for Mary-Anne as she is offered a job in Hollywood. This is her dream and she doesn't think twice and takes the job offer. At the same time she begins an affair with her agent. Mary-Anne changes her name to Mickayla and goes to Hollywood. This novelette follows Mickayla for 30 years, her ups and downs, the men she loves and the men she hurts. I like this book cover (uh duh, right, I did make it). It started with a picture of Hollywood and then I did some editing such as playing with the saturation and brightness and then I faded it out. I wanted to make the title sparkle but when I put the sparkle effect in, there was no sparkle. The best I could do was to make the lettering gold (well as far as RGB coding is concerned). Sure it's a romance but I didn't have two people just laying around willing to do a smooch scene for the book cover except for the Barbies and the headless Ken doll. And I am a writer on a budget, so I am not paying for a picture either.
If you like a romance Hollywood type of story then check out Mickayla Margarella it's $2.99 in the US market and will be on Kindle Countdown Deals at the beginning of the coming month. So you can wait until then. Also, if you are an Amazon Prime member you can read it for FREE!
In case you haven't noticed, I am slowly working on taking my Kindle books and making them into print books. There are three of them available right now and they are The Wolf's Red Rose, The Afterlife of Tanya Madera and Heart of Goddess. The next ones I will be working on will be the poetry book and the Mickayla story. I am going to leave the Santa story as a Kindle book for the time being.
One last thing before I go... I am slowly working on a brand new ebook. ETA and title are unknown at this point but it is a new story and it will be HORROR. All right that is enough for one day.
Wednesday, April 9, 2014
Hanging in Washington DC
Hey there, I know I have been horrible at posting lately. Sometimes I am lazy and other times well I am busy doing other things. Two weeks ago the family and I packed our bags and went to Washington DC. I lived on the east coast my entire life and this was the first time I was actually in DC. I was on the beltway once as my parents drove to Florida. We stayed outside of DC in College Park, MD and when we got off the Metro at L'Enfant Plaza, it was one word- overwhelming. Everything around me was white and massive. Unlike in New York City where I felt tiny among skyscrapers, in DC I was just mesmerized. One could just go there and stand on the street and just take in every building, of course I am talking down by the National Mall. However, our adventure started before boarding the metro.
We left home right after my husband finished work for the night and the drive itself was decent just boring as it was late at night and there was nothing but trees to look at. We made it into Rockville, MD just about 2:30 a.m. I had a coupon for a hotel but the catch was we couldn't make reservations which sucked balls. And wouldn't you know, the hotel was full for the night. Not a problem, I had another coupon and my computer. And this what really started our adventure, finding a 24 hours McDonald's so I can use their wifi. We wound up driving around the suburbs of DC for hours looking for either McDonald's or a hotel that had rooms. We stopped for gas and the police were at the gas station searching some guy's car. The guy was cuffed and he didn't seem to be a threat but there were tons of cops. At least a dozen cruisers and officers yet two detained the suspect and two searched the car. The others were chatting. The gas station remained open. The attendant was too busy and I am not sure he charged me enough for the coffee but who cares. Also he didn't have a phone book, I suppose that is the sign of the times. Once we left the gas station, we drove from Seven 11 to Seven 11 looking for directions to anywhere by now we were in Silver Spring, MD. Finally, I found a McDonald's and I called a hotel in College Park. They had rooms. Great because we were coming there. We got the directions and went on our way. We don't have smart phones but I tell you, this was the night I wished I got my husband a smart phone for his birthday. We checked into the hotel and we went downstairs for a quick breakfast and then we were off to buy Metro Smart cards. And our DC adventure begins...
The first museum we went to was the American Indian Museum and there were a lot of artifacts in there and information about the various tribes. There was also some cool Native art. These museums are huge and there are so many to choose from. The next one we went through was the National Air and Space Museum which is freaking awesome. It was one of my favorites. Unfortunately, I did not see the space shuttle because that is at the Air and Space museum near Dulles Airport.
The one we went to had a lot of stuff from the Apollo missions which I loved. There is just so much to see there. I know we spent a couple of hours in there and I am sure we did not see everything. Of course, the museums are free to visit so we plan on going back again in the future. This was the first day we were there we went to the zoo to see Pandas but missed them and we were also at the Natural History Museum but not for long as the place was packed and we couldn't see very much. We also went and saw one of my friends who lives in the DC area. We came back to the hotel and just crashed. We were up for over 24 hours at this time and we were beat.
On Sunday, we started with the National Archives because we wanted to see the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
Unfortunately, we couldn't take pictures of the documents but I was surprised by them. For the longest time, I always thought they were on sheets of paper (think 8.5x11 or 11x 14) but that is not true. They are wide and just massive sheets of parchment. It was incredible to finally see those in person. I am glad that I did. Of course, it is a bitch to see them because you have these jack holes who have to read them. News flash, you can't barely read them because the ink is fading. There are some phrases that can be read but for the most part they are unreadable. It was nice to see them but it was also nice to get the hell out of the building and get some fresh air. We went back to the zoo later in the day and missed the damn pandas again but we did see some other critters and such. Lucky for us some of the Smithsonian museums were open until 7 pm so we went back to the National Museum of Natural History.
Finally, I saw dinosaurs and other bones from critters long gone. This was one of the highlights of my trip because I really wanted to see dino bones. I think dinosaurs are really fascinating. Hell I would still watch Dinosaur Train on PBS but my kid makes fun of me. Anyway in addition to the dinosaurs there is the Hope Diamond. I thought the Hope Diamond would be this massive raw rock but it is not. It is a cut and polished rock that was made into a necklace. There was also some other large gemstones there as well. This is also my favorite museum. I loved it. The bonus was it was pretty empty when we were there so we could finally look at everything we wanted to. Next on the list was to visit monuments since they are open 24 hours. The first one we went to was the Washington Monument.
I asked a policeman for directions and I am not sure why we didn't follow them. We wanted to see all the monuments, well that was the plan anyway. We made it to the Washington Monument and then we decided to go to the Jefferson Memorial. There probably was an easier way, in fact I am sure there was but that is not how we roll. We were in the park by the Washington Monument and then we crossed the street. We could see the Jefferson Memorial far off in the distance. By now night has set in and it was chilly. We walked around the tidal basin by the Potomac River, it was breezy. A helicopter kept making low passes over the tidal basin. The cherry blossom tree branches were low and it was dark because there was barely any light. I really thought there would be light. We finally made it to the Jefferson Memorial. It was one hell of a walk.
After doing some tourist stuff and taking a piss, we decided to head back to the hotel. We all were tired, hungry and cold. According to the Metro bus there was a stop a couple of blocks away. The park ranger didn't know but gave us directions to the main part of DC. I was about three minutes away from hailing a taxi because it seemed like so many were driving by looking for customers. We made it to the money making building and just two wonderful blocks was Metro. Hurray. It didn't matter if we had to transfer trains or not it was the Metro. We finally made it back to MD around 11 that night and got some food. Monday would be our last day there. We looked at a map and if we would have listened to the Police man, we would have been able to see all the monuments, we just took the scenic route in the dark, that's all. The zoo was the first stop and finally I got to see my pandas.
I freaking love pandas. I think they are the cutest. I was so happy to see them in person. The one in the photograph is mother panda, they were feeding her bamboo. The baby was there as well. We didn't spend too much time at the zoo because we pretty much saw everything over the last couple of days before and since it is free to get into, why not. After seeing the pandas we went back to the National Mall and went to the National Museum of American History. By the time we left DC it was rush hour traffic and we had to take Metro back to Silver Spring, MD to get our car and head home. Lucky for us, the Metro crowd thinned out by the time we got to Silver Spring. Of course, our adventure was not quite over yet. Not sure how to get back on the highway, we used a map and went another way with rush hour traffic all the way. Finally, we made our way onto 270 by the time we reached Germantown, traffic disappeared.
It was an awesome time and I can't wait to go back again because there is so much we didn't see.
 |
| College Park, MD |
 |
| National Museum of the American Indian |
The first museum we went to was the American Indian Museum and there were a lot of artifacts in there and information about the various tribes. There was also some cool Native art. These museums are huge and there are so many to choose from. The next one we went through was the National Air and Space Museum which is freaking awesome. It was one of my favorites. Unfortunately, I did not see the space shuttle because that is at the Air and Space museum near Dulles Airport.
 |
| National Air and Space Museum |
 |
| National Archives Building |
Unfortunately, we couldn't take pictures of the documents but I was surprised by them. For the longest time, I always thought they were on sheets of paper (think 8.5x11 or 11x 14) but that is not true. They are wide and just massive sheets of parchment. It was incredible to finally see those in person. I am glad that I did. Of course, it is a bitch to see them because you have these jack holes who have to read them. News flash, you can't barely read them because the ink is fading. There are some phrases that can be read but for the most part they are unreadable. It was nice to see them but it was also nice to get the hell out of the building and get some fresh air. We went back to the zoo later in the day and missed the damn pandas again but we did see some other critters and such. Lucky for us some of the Smithsonian museums were open until 7 pm so we went back to the National Museum of Natural History.
 |
| National Museum of Natural History |
 |
| Washington Monument at Night |
I asked a policeman for directions and I am not sure why we didn't follow them. We wanted to see all the monuments, well that was the plan anyway. We made it to the Washington Monument and then we decided to go to the Jefferson Memorial. There probably was an easier way, in fact I am sure there was but that is not how we roll. We were in the park by the Washington Monument and then we crossed the street. We could see the Jefferson Memorial far off in the distance. By now night has set in and it was chilly. We walked around the tidal basin by the Potomac River, it was breezy. A helicopter kept making low passes over the tidal basin. The cherry blossom tree branches were low and it was dark because there was barely any light. I really thought there would be light. We finally made it to the Jefferson Memorial. It was one hell of a walk.
 |
| Jefferson Memorial |
.jpg) |
| Pandas at the National Zoo |
It was an awesome time and I can't wait to go back again because there is so much we didn't see.
Friday, March 14, 2014
The Afterlife of Tanya Madera by JM Scott On Sale Now
Sorry this is late but the latest ebook I wrote, The Afterlife of Tanya Madera, is on sale through Amazon Kindle Countdown Deals. This is only for sale in the US market for another 3 days. To make it on sale through the UK market I would need to raise the price and I don't want to do that.
So here is the one liner: Jackie and Bill Crocker go hiking in the woods and find the remains of teenaged girl who then takes Jackie hostage in a ghost coma. Bill and a parapsychologist rush to find out who she is before time runs out and Jackie is lost forever. Right now it is $1.99 for this book. It is a mystery/thriller/ supernatural horror/ coming of age story that is perfect for reading right now!
If you get the book I thank you in advance.
Here are some other tidbits of info:
Nickolaus a short story available on Kindle is free for a limited time in all markets. I am just not making a big hoopy do who because it is a Christmas story.
I am still working on the romance novelette. School has me real busy right now but once I get the two papers written, I will have more time for working on the ebook. It does have a title and it is called Mickayla Margarella.
Until next time when we shall meet under the fiery rains and the ocean turns to acid, I will be the streak in the sky.
If you get the book I thank you in advance.
Here are some other tidbits of info:
Nickolaus a short story available on Kindle is free for a limited time in all markets. I am just not making a big hoopy do who because it is a Christmas story.
I am still working on the romance novelette. School has me real busy right now but once I get the two papers written, I will have more time for working on the ebook. It does have a title and it is called Mickayla Margarella.
Until next time when we shall meet under the fiery rains and the ocean turns to acid, I will be the streak in the sky.
Sunday, March 9, 2014
Heart of a Goddess byJM Scott FREE
Hello all. Tomorrow is the one year anniversary for my first self-published ebook on Kindle, Heart of a Goddess and I decided to celebrate by offering the book for FREE!!!! This book is free on all markets and will be free until March 14, 2014. For the US market just click here to get your free copy. All other markets just search for the title or you can find it by searching for my name JM Scott.
I am proud of this book and the book cover. Originally, it was supposed to be sold to a third party where they would put my name on it but they kept the rights but it was rejected because adult content. There is blood, gore, sex and a break from reality. I drew everything on the cover including the lettering. My husband put it all together and colored it in and voila it's a pretty awesome book cover.
What it's about: Leonard is a lonely copywriter who stumbles upon a poorly dressed woman in a snow storm. It is a whirlwind romance (I use this term loosely) and she tells him everything he wants to hear from a beautiful woman that she loves him. In fact, he will do anything and does by bringing her beating human hearts for her to consume. But there is much more to the story. SO check it out today.
And now let's pretend I am talking to you, this is where I am begging.... please read this book and then review this book on Amazon. Your reviews will mean the world to me. Please just make them honest. An honest review will do one of two things- If there is something wrong, I will fix it and become a better writer or if you love the book I will sell more books. Either way, you are helping me out.
My thoughts on KDP: I have been with KDP for a year now and I think it is one of the best decisions I have made to advance my writing career. At first it was daunting and scary with creating a book cover and formatting the book but now after I have self-published several, I love doing it. I actually plan what my next ebook is going to be and start planning the cover. I am a writer that needs a kick in the ass sometimes and now with KDP I have a goal: I am going to make sure I have a boat load of ebooks on Kindle so I can not be ignored. I have faith that eventually, the reviews will come in. Actually I have a very positive review for one of my other books in the UK Market.
As always, I thank you for your continued support.
What it's about: Leonard is a lonely copywriter who stumbles upon a poorly dressed woman in a snow storm. It is a whirlwind romance (I use this term loosely) and she tells him everything he wants to hear from a beautiful woman that she loves him. In fact, he will do anything and does by bringing her beating human hearts for her to consume. But there is much more to the story. SO check it out today.
And now let's pretend I am talking to you, this is where I am begging.... please read this book and then review this book on Amazon. Your reviews will mean the world to me. Please just make them honest. An honest review will do one of two things- If there is something wrong, I will fix it and become a better writer or if you love the book I will sell more books. Either way, you are helping me out.
My thoughts on KDP: I have been with KDP for a year now and I think it is one of the best decisions I have made to advance my writing career. At first it was daunting and scary with creating a book cover and formatting the book but now after I have self-published several, I love doing it. I actually plan what my next ebook is going to be and start planning the cover. I am a writer that needs a kick in the ass sometimes and now with KDP I have a goal: I am going to make sure I have a boat load of ebooks on Kindle so I can not be ignored. I have faith that eventually, the reviews will come in. Actually I have a very positive review for one of my other books in the UK Market.
As always, I thank you for your continued support.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Hey It's March
And it's about time for March as well. To me this seemed like an extra long winter with too much snow. Today, is the day for winter storm Tritan and I am thinking that it won't be as bad here as it will for other places. Enough about the weather, I am looking forward to spring.
My first term at college ended and I am happy to report that I have very good grades. More than likely straight A's. I took English Composition 1 and an online success class. I was dreading taking the English class because I didn't have the best luck with English. I probably should explain that more. I love writing and the work isn't hard but I hard time getting good grades because I had no idea what was wrong. This school has an online writing lab which I used extensively. This gave my essays more eyes and the people pointed out what was wrong. Even my English teacher said she could see a difference in my writing from the beginning until now and we are only talking eight weeks. I am one of those kinds of people that need to be shown what's wrong and not told.
On other news, I am working a on a new ebook. This is a romance story that follows the life of a young woman who becomes an actress and who she hurts in the process. In true romance fashion, there is a happy ending. I wrote the story several years ago and I actually thought it was worthy of publishing since I sent it to a bunch of places. Of course it was rejected every single time. It is a good story and I wanted to make an ebook since it is already over 10,000 words. WOW the first time I read this story in awhile and I can't believe I thought it was good enough to send away. I found so many mistakes: grammar, story, and just everything. My style has improved over the years and I've already started working on this story and I am spending a lot of time editing the story, fixing the grammar issues and making the story more smooth, adding more details (more in depth sex scenes). I have no idea when it will be done. I also have to think of a title but I think I have one. This will be another novelette because it's over 13,000 words right now.
I have other writing projects to work on such as a kid's book series that has a magical pen, finish typing up the haiku from my project from two years ago plus writing and more writing. I haven't written very much poetry lately so that is also on my to do list as well.
Okay folks, enough for right now. Take a joke and light a smoke, I'll be back soon enough.
My first term at college ended and I am happy to report that I have very good grades. More than likely straight A's. I took English Composition 1 and an online success class. I was dreading taking the English class because I didn't have the best luck with English. I probably should explain that more. I love writing and the work isn't hard but I hard time getting good grades because I had no idea what was wrong. This school has an online writing lab which I used extensively. This gave my essays more eyes and the people pointed out what was wrong. Even my English teacher said she could see a difference in my writing from the beginning until now and we are only talking eight weeks. I am one of those kinds of people that need to be shown what's wrong and not told.
On other news, I am working a on a new ebook. This is a romance story that follows the life of a young woman who becomes an actress and who she hurts in the process. In true romance fashion, there is a happy ending. I wrote the story several years ago and I actually thought it was worthy of publishing since I sent it to a bunch of places. Of course it was rejected every single time. It is a good story and I wanted to make an ebook since it is already over 10,000 words. WOW the first time I read this story in awhile and I can't believe I thought it was good enough to send away. I found so many mistakes: grammar, story, and just everything. My style has improved over the years and I've already started working on this story and I am spending a lot of time editing the story, fixing the grammar issues and making the story more smooth, adding more details (more in depth sex scenes). I have no idea when it will be done. I also have to think of a title but I think I have one. This will be another novelette because it's over 13,000 words right now.
I have other writing projects to work on such as a kid's book series that has a magical pen, finish typing up the haiku from my project from two years ago plus writing and more writing. I haven't written very much poetry lately so that is also on my to do list as well.
Okay folks, enough for right now. Take a joke and light a smoke, I'll be back soon enough.
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