Uncommon Ally, other writing news

I’m pleased to announce that the May 2013 issue of Penumbra Magazine is out. They put together a fantastic ocean-themed issue. Included in the shimmering depths is my story “Uncommon Ally”. I’ll be sharing a TOC with authors such as Beth Cato, Lane Robins, Lindsey Duncan, Elizabeth Porter Birdsall, B. Morris Allen, and Helen Jackson. Also, there’s outstanding poetry in the issue courtesy of Wilda Morris, Rie Sheridan Rose, and John Deakins.

“Uncommon Ally” is sort of a Jaws-in-reverse piece. If you like sharks, or they interest you, give it a spin.

As always with Penumbra, the artwork is fantastic:

May13Cover-500

In other writing news, I’m working with my agent on edits for the novel. Hopefully it will be out the door soon.

First Impressions

First impressions are everything.

You’ve heard the saying. It could apply to numerous things: personality, hygiene, fashion sense (low on the pole), or leadership. Even more important is consistency of impressions. That person or place that can shock and awe you time and time again. The place you never get sick of, the person you never grow tired of. Perhaps it’s your favorite CD or book. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly is my favorite film of all time. I could keep it on the background all day. Between the quasi-psychedelic soundtrack, exceptional cinematography, and strong characterization, I simply never tire of it. It doesn’t hurt that I like the scenery, either.

I used to know a girl who, when walking into a room, could hush the crowd with her presence. She wasn’t a swimsuit model, but had a beautiful smile and a certain energy that others gravitated to. She had more than her fair share of admirers and suitors, which she turned away with charm and class.

Then there are the places. Some making amazing impressions, some not so much. Like Midway Airport versus a national park.

Each year, I travel to the places that blow me away with consistency. The Gallatin National Forest. Glacier National Park. Grand Teton National Park. I remember traveling with an ex-girlfriend (she’s still a very good friend) back in 2001. Our goal was to see the Northern Rockies. We’d traveled a long way across Wyoming, through high desert,and counted four cars in three hours. We passed the Hoback River, and made our way into Jackson, Wyoming. We kept asking ourselves where the Tetons were, because we had heard so much about them. The hype was immense. Top ten national park immense. We drove north on highway 26 towards the park, but still could not see the much-hyped Tetons. It didn’t help that East Gros Ventre Butte loomed to our left, blocking our view. But when the butte gave way to the land beyond, the Teton appeared at once, screaming to the sky in cold, chiseled granite. We had cried out in shock, and then laughed just as hard. It turned out the hype was true. The range was stunning, far beyond anything we had imagined (and this was coming from a couple who had just been to Colorado).

Every year I try to go back there, and each time I’m no less impressed as East Gros Ventre Butte gives way to what it has always given way to.

Yet each year I search for more first impressions. From people I’d like to get to know better, to animals I may encounter to landscapes that will forever imprint upon my mind and spirit. I drive to them, I walk to them, compelled. Maybe, just maybe a few will live up to the hype.

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Sunset at Oxbow Bend in Grand Teton.

The eagle

Every winter, hundreds of bald eagles travel south down the Mississippi corridor to the open waters along the dams. Many of these dams are along the Iowa/Illinois border.

I’ve tried to put to words the things that make bald eagles majestic. Is it the golden beak? The contrast of head feathers with the chest and wing plumage? Or is it the seemingly effortless flight? In fiction, eagles have always been symbols of reverence, majesty, and spirituality. They are held above common things and places. So what makes them seem that way in real life, too?

Perhaps it is none of those things. Maybe it’s because when I see a bald eagle, it’s usually in clean, wild places.

soaring-bald-eagle

Lost Branch of the Silver – Bards and Sages Quarterly

My fantasy/horror tale “Lost Branch of the Silver” has been accepted for the October issue of Bards and Sages Quarterly.

This is probably one of the more Lovecraftian stories I have written. Lovecraft always did such an amazing job of body-snatching stories, and that influence is felt deeply in “Lost Branch of the Silver”.

Baird worked his way down the steep slope, going to all fours in order to reduce speed. The terrain was treacherous, and he was thankful for the numerous deadfalls and twisted trees which stopped his momentum. His father was right about one thing: Baird had never seen woods like these. It was as if each tree had been spun by brutal winds, each affected in its own space and set in ways that contradicted the other trees.

Krieger is up at Interstellar Fiction

Those of you interested in psychedelic mushrooms, protests, and corrupt governments may want to give it a read. Also, the fine folks at Interstellar Fiction fired a few questions at me.

The sun seared them, launching cavalcades of crooked and staggering pagan monsters down its shards, unfurling and unloading the energy upon the turbulent city. Rin heard faint moaning and elongated pronunciations in the wind, as if urging him on. He blinked, stopping the hallucination, which wasted no time in starting again. Or so he thought.