Candle and Quill Issue 03: January 2018
Candle and Quill issue 03 brings a conclusion to the three-part “Serpent’s Coil” series. In addition, this issue also starts a new series titled “Signals”, and includes a new short story titled “Eureka”. The third chapter of “A Boy Named Zephyr” and “Ten Nights” is also included.
Candle and Quill Issue 03 is currently available for purchase here, as well as from a variety of online retailers.
Forward
Great Stories Aren’t Just Found in Books: Ever since I held my first Nintendo NES controller, I have been a huge fan of video games. While games like Super Mario Brothers and the like were plenty fun to play, they didn’t really hook me enough to stay on my mind after I put down the controller.
Creative Writing
Signals, Part 01: Victor, though a boy of no more than eleven or twelve, began to tremble with a rage that made the old man wide-eyed with fear. He inhaled slowly, ratcheted his heads towards Bert, and unleashed a roar that would have been surprising coming out of someone double his age and twice his size.
Serpent’s Coil, Part 03: Cas’ expression changed to annoyance; Karen’s fluency in his gestures had begun to border on the realm of telepathy. He exhaled and took another bite of his sandwich, and his every chew was slow and deliberate as he stared back at her.
Eureka: “Protein and carbohydrate blend,” he read aloud from the labeling on the pouch, “but they didn’t even bother to list a flavor or anything, did they?” He squeezed the rest of the pouch into his mouth and then swallowed with a shudder.
Original Novel: Ten Nights
Chapter 03: The Sleepover: “He didn’t believe me.” Nick whimpered between sobs.
David laid on the ground and tried to catch his breath.
“Did you hear me?” Nick asked in a shrill, scratchy tone, “We could’ve been killed, and he doesn’t even care!”
Sample Novel: A Boy Named Zephyr
Chapter 03: Merchants of the Abyss: All eyes moved quickly to the hull where a series of four parallel gashes tore through the ship’s paneling from the front edge of the ship to nearly its mid point. The merchant’s forced bravado melted and the two men swallowed hard.
Writing Tips
Characters Sell Your World: When building a new world or setting for a story, I have the bad habit of obsessing too much over the insignificant details in an effort to make everything realistic and believable. Subsequently, this approach tends to take forever, and by the time I get to the point where I can start writing, I’ve started not to care. That is not a great way to start a book.
Extras
Gemsong Saga Legends and Lore: Abyssal Dragons. Beasts of legend that inhabit the murky depths of the abyss as well as those of every sailor’s nightmares. While the stuff of legend, surely tall tales are the only place these dragons exist, right?
Gemsong Saga Atlas: The Abyss. Rather than referring to a particular place, the term “Abyss” is used instead to identify the entire region of perpetually churning clouds, as well as the unknown expanse beneath them.