Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Without Warning

December 15, 2018 by Alexis Duran

Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors. Before we get down to business, I have a word of wisdom for those of you who might know this: December is not the best time to take in a semi-feral kitten. Especially a semi-feral kitten who has a personal vendetta against paper of any kind. No presents under the tree for us this year!

On to the snippet. I’m sharing from my current work-in-progress, a revisited fairy tale titled Snow. Last week, as Prince Gabriel and his servant Webster were riding through the woods toward home, a mysterious shape began to form in the fog, accompanied by ominous sounds.

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Without warning, a large deer burst from the mist right beside them. The stag veered sharply to avoid Tempest, hooves digging into the dirt, nostrils flared and eyes wild as it sprang past them and crashed into a narrow gap in the woody thicket on the other side of the road.

Gabriel rode up to the gap and peered along a nearly invisible tunnel through the brambles. This well-worn animal track was the only way for something as large as a deer to penetrate the woods.

Webster squeaked in alarm and Gabriel shifted his gaze in time to see the deer’s pursuers emerge from the fog. Several large black hunting dogs charged him, focused only on pursuit.

“Halt!” Gabriel shouted. The pack broke ranks. Only one dog ran past Tempest into the gap. The others loped up and down the road, still baying, panting and milling in an agitated swarm.

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Ivan Bilibin (1876-1942) Image in Public Domain

Blurb-in-progress:

Following the death of his mother the Queen, Prince Gabriel is called home by his brother, now King. Gabriel hopes for a reconciliation with his estranged brother, but all is not well at Castle Rosenthal. King Tristan has fallen under the sway of a scheming alchemist, the magical denizens of the bordering Black Forest are on the move, and Gabriel begins to fear for his life. Is the handsome huntsman in on a plot to assassinate him, or is there an even darker, more evil force afoot? A forced flight into the Black Forest may expose ancient powers at work, if only Gabriel can survive long enough to uncover them.

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Weekend Writing Warriors is a blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less. Click the link to check out the other writers participating today. It’s a great way to discover your next favorite book!

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Death by Bee

December 1, 2018 by Alexis Duran

Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, a blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less. A literary smorgasbord, to be sure.

I’ve been sharing from my current work-in-progress and will continue to do so until I run out of words or another project captures my fevered imagination. Snow is a re-imagined fairy tale with a prince in the title role. In this scene, Prince Gabriel and his manservant Webster are traveling home to Castle Rosenthal after a long absence. Webster, neither horseman nor outdoorsman, has been stung by a bee. He’s the first to speak. (You can read last week’s snippet here.)

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“Are bees poisonous? I feel a little faint.”

“Not usually, though some people puff up and find they can’t breathe after being stung.”

“I, ah, my breathing is a little…” Webster patted his chest and wheezed.

“Nothing to worry about, I suspect.” Gabriel turned to look down the road again. The fog had thickened. Only a flapping black and white flag on top of the tower was visible now. “Though some people do die from bee stings.”

“Rare, though, isn’t it? Death by bee?”

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I like bees. It was probably a wasp that stung Webster.

Blurb-in-progress:

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Weekend Writing Warriors ~ No Demands

November 17, 2018 by Alexis Duran

Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where you can sample a great selection of stories in excerpts of ten sentences or less.

I’m sharing from my work-in-progress, a reimagined fairy tale. There’s a pretty big clue at the end of this excerpt as to which fairy tale it is. In this scene, Prince Gabriel and his man servant Webster are returning to Gabriel’s home through less travelled forest roads. You can read last week’s snippet here.

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Gabriel calmly observed as a buzzing bee distracted his servant. Webster waved one hand frantically in front of his face, angering the bee and confusing the horse, who turned in an agitated circle. Webster was twenty, the same age as Gabriel. Taller and thinner to the point of being gangly, he had dark brown hair, a peppering of hairs on his pointy chin that might one day knit themselves into a beard, and pale blue eyes that found fault with everything they shrewdly took in.

He’d only served Gabriel a short while. Lord Craigmoor, Gabriel’s uncle, had assigned Webster to him because it wasn’t proper, nor safe, for a prince to travel the forest roads alone. Not that Webster was any protection, but he was company, and had learned to set up camp fairly well, though he complained endlessly about the bugs, the dirt, the thieving jackdaws and squirrels, his disobedient horse, the weather, trees that dripped pine sap, flowers that emitted irritating pollens, and rivers that ran too swift and were too cold.

Gabriel, in contrast, was never happier than when he was out in nature. He preferred to be by himself with only the woodland creatures for company, but he’d quickly become accustomed to Webster, whose constant stream of words merged into the background noises of the forest like the chatter of a chickadee. He made no demands on Gabriel’s attention and, knowing nothing of Gabriel’s history or family, didn’t judge, gossip or look sidelong at Gabriel’s near-white hair.

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Into the woods…

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Next week I’ll post a blurb and maybe even a title! For those of you wondering what happened to Jacqui the Cat, Book 4, well, I’m sooooo close. The story became longer and more complicated than I’d originally intended, as stories do, but I think I’m in the home stretch. Wish me luck!

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Weekend Writing Warriors ~ A Commanding Presence

November 10, 2018 by Alexis Duran

Hello there, and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors. WWW is a blog hop where a bunch of writers share excerpts of ten sentences or less from a wide variety of genres. It’s like the sampler option at your local brew pub; you get to try a little taste of everything.

I’ve been sharing from my current work-in-progress, which is a reimagined fairy tale. In the first chapter, Prince Gabriel and his manservant Webster are returning to Gabriel’s home along a forest road. Webster, castle born and bred, is having some trouble with his mount. You can read last week’s snippet here.

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“You there,” Gabriel pointed at Webster’s horse in his most princely manner, “You must always stay three yards behind Tempest here, who is your superior. Do you understand?”

The horse, a rather skittish young chestnut, tossed its head, snorted, and took three steps back.

Webster shook his head. “I swear they do understand you, my lord.”

“They understand a commanding presence,” Gabriel said, and looked at man and horse sternly. “You must not be so polite to your mount.”

“I’ve actually been quite short with him on occasion, but it makes no difference. I’m not cut out to be a horseman, your lordship.”

“That much is clear.”

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Well, this is much fancier than anything Gabriel would be caught dead in, but I love the artist. Ivan Bilibin. Image in public domain.

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Weekend Writing Warriors ~ You Know You Want It

July 23, 2017 by Alexis Duran

Hey, look! It exists!

Cover by April Martinez

Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors. Death by Starlight released on Tuesday, and it has a cover and pages and everything. Sometimes we authors get a little nervous, but then magic happens and there’s this book.

So, on to the snippet. I’ve been sharing from the scene where Zeke and Alistair go out on Alistair’s little motor boat in search of the mermaid Melissa, who Alistair has been crushing on most of his long life. This picks up a little bit after last week’s snippet.

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“C’mon, Mellosa,” Zeke muttered. “You know you want it. Why else have you been hanging out in these human-infested waters, baiting and teasing this sorry excuse for a shaman?”

“What’s the rush?” Alistair asked, leaning over the other side.

“Ian’s about to get himself in trouble.”

“So what else is new?”

They rode the tide in silence, the slap of waves against the boat and the rush of wind the only sound. The clouds parted slightly, allowing a bit of moonlight to lighten the sky and outline the dark bulk of the Olympic mountain range and the landmasses to either side of them. The lights of Port Angeles peppered the distant shore.

The mermaid lure was now a mere pinprick, a remote star in an upside-down sky.

***

Edge of Night 2: Death by Starlight

Ian and Zeke fought a battle against the queen of the dark realm in order to be together, but just when they think they might settle into as normal a life as elves living among humans might be able to expect, a new enemy threatens to tear them apart. While Zeke helps the shaman Alistair in his hunt for an elusive mermaid, Ian is called to confront a wicked nymph preying on tourists along Seattle’s waterfront. Zeke and Ian soon discover that the defeated Queen Ysolde has spread her evil into the sea realms, and danger lurks beneath every wave, but it is too late to stop an escalating series of confrontations that lead to disappearances, death and the possible end of light in this world.

As Ysolde plots revenge and a mysterious prince seeks to win Ian for himself, the ancient war between light and dark sweeps Ian and Zeke into its maelstrom of hate, testing their trust of each other to the utmost.

Amazon

Loose ID

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Betwixt and Between: Book 1 is available at these retailers: Amazon Kobo Barnes & Noble Books2Read

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This post is part of an ongoing blog hop hosted by Weekend Writing Warriors. Every Sunday, participating authors post eight to ten sentences from a published work or perhaps their current work in progress. Then we hop to our fellow warriors’ blogs and check out all the fabulous fiction that’s happening! I heartily invite you to participate as a reader, writer, or both. It’s a great way to discover your next favorite book. Click here or use the address: http://www.wewriwa.com

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Mermaid Psychology

July 15, 2017 by Alexis Duran

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors! Well, it’s two days to the release of Death by Starlight and I’m super excited. I had so much fun writing this novel and as I read through it searching for excerpts to share, I can’t help giggling and dreaming up new magical encounters for Ian, Zeke and their pals to endure. Book 3, here I come!

In this snippet, Zeke and Alistair are out in the Salish Sea around the San Juan Islands. Zeke is helping Alistair fish for the love of his life, Mellosa the Possibly Murderous Mermaid. Zeke has crafted a mermaid lure from a blue agate, which he just tossed over the side of their boat. (Ysolde is the evil queen of the svarta, recently deposed)

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“How is it you know so much about mermaid psychology?” Alistair asked, eyes narrowing.

“When Ysolde first sent me into the other realms in search of light energy, I encountered a rather interesting merman and made all the same stupid mistakes human males usually make when it comes to creatures of the sea. Barely escaped with my life.” Zeke smiled at the memory. That had been an affair to remember.

“We need to get drunk together some day and have a nice long chat,” Alistair said.

“Assuming you survive your current folly.”

Alistair cackled and fumbled for another of his wretched cigarettes. Zeke leaned over the side of the boat, elbows on the wet gunwale, and watched the glowing blue stone sink into the depths. It left a faint silvery trail, illuminating the surrounding water.

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Edge of Night 2: Death by Starlight Release date July 18, 2017