Stories

Published/To Be Published:

“Longtime Gone” - Winner of the 13th Annual Chizine/Leisure Books Short Story Contest

 The only guidelines for the story were it had to be “DARK”, so I wrote about the worst thing I could imagine.  
    Read it here – CHIZINE

   “Ezekiel Remembers” - Sold to T.M. Wright and Matt Cardin's upcoming Holy Horrors Anthology

This story shows just how easily religious nuts can screw up their kids. 

   “Natural Remedies” - Sold to Jeff Cerone's Down in the Cellar

My first sale!  New agers creep me out with their natural foods, soothing voices, aura readings, and damn dream 
   catchers. 
   Read it here – Down In The Cellar

   Submitted and Awaiting Judgment:

 “As Advertised”

Written to be read aloud at the Borderlands Bootcamp, this story is about a purchase from eBay that turns a man’s life
    upside down.  At Elizabeth Monteleone’s request, I submitted this to the upcoming Borderlands Anthology.

   
   Stories in Progress:  (I'm a piss-poor submitter.  I write 'em, then let 'em sit for a
    few months before I rewrite them.  At least that's what I try to do.  Usually I get so caught up in the new
    stuff that the old stuff sits.)

“Milton’s Whispered Bullet”

The first short story I ever wrote.  It addresses the question - how do you live with yourself when your actions have
    inadvertently caused great suffering? This story is stored away waiting for a better ending to hit me.

   “Night Removal/Ashes of the Dead”

A story that began as a exercise in dialogue writing and turned into a tale of a mysterious find in a corn field.  I  
   workshopped this at the Borderlands where it was pretty well received, but I’ve never been happy with the story’s 
   resolution.

   “The Resurrection of Anne Bonny”

Rejected by two pirate-based anthologies.  My first real rejection for a story I still am happy with.  If you’re looking for 
   historical fiction based on a real life pirate, I’ve got just the story for you!

   “A Tale of Christmas”

I never knew what to name this damn story.  I wrote it for an anthology based on hookers that was never published.  It 
   started off as a poor-ass Joe Lansdale copy, but morphed into this sorta sweet story about redemption.  Nothing says
   Christmas more to me than a truck stop hooker finding a baby in the snow.

  “The Monsters of Alpha Colony”

My first science fiction story suffers from an ending bearing a striking resemblance to a famous Twilight Zone episode. 
   Thanks for pointing that out, John Mantooth.  Asshole.  I’ll fix this one up some day.

   “Knox in L.A.”

A Texan's adventures in L.A.  Fun, light, and written with a smile on my face. 

   “Independence Day in Zane’s Leap”

My first western.  Wrestling bears, escaped outlaws, and a lonely kid.  Needs a hard rewrite and a stronger finish, but a
   good tale nonetheless.