450 Shelter

Original image source http://sxc.hu •
author Stephen J. Sullivan

Sorry, folks, I haven't really updated my blog lately – too many things going on in my life: work, troubles with the dog, then I've caught the flu. But now I'm back again and offer you this new lil' poem of mine. Hope you'll enjoy! PS: I missed you!

Shelter

 

Inky, molten asphalt
sticks to our burning soles,
all sirens have gone silent,
dead larks litter empty streets,
concrete crumbles as we pass,
two fermenting firebirds
who crave to pierce the mystery
of a new summer afternoon…

“Come”, you whisper, and I come
and sit with you on withered grass,
our feet float in the raven waters
of the canal, rusty wrecks
of whalers and torpedo boats
float on the other side,
but barely so. Our T-shirts fall,
hands glide over naked torsos,

lips touch undefined, new places
while corroded cranes avoid
their gaze, flustered and jealous,
and the world we knew lies in ruins,
and horses become cows. It's only us –
two lovers, effervescent,
so effervescent in our bliss,
a shelter for each other...

You can still buy my book "Small Portions":

• English version "Small Portions" on amazon.com (or any other local amazon-store)
• German version "Kleine Portionen" on amazon.de (or any other local amazon-store)
• French version "Petites portions" on amazon.fr (or any other local amazon-store)

449 My best wishes

Image source http://wikipedia.org

My dear friends and readers,

if you read this post, it means the world is still spinning as usual and someone has badly misinterpreted the Mayan calendar. It means I can express my best & sincerest wishes to all of you, too, and send some positive Christmas vibes in your direction.

Don't forget to dash over to amazon as well – you've only got less than a week to enjoy the amazing promotional price for my Kindle books – only 99 cents! If you wait till Dec. 32nd, it will be too late!

For your convenience, here's a list of my books as well as other good reads I warmly recommend:

Books by Dieter Moitzi:

• "Small Portions" (English Kindle edition) – $0.99
• "Kleine Portionen" (German Kindle edition) – $0.99
• "Petites portions" (French Kindle edition) – $0.99
• "Miss Otis regrets. And other short stories" (English Kindle edition) – $0.99
• "and somewhere under. poems" (English Kindle edition) – $0.99

Other good reads:

• "Summertime Blues – The Collection" by Phil Jones (English Kindle edition) – £1.93 
• "Maggie's Child" by Glynis Smy (English Kindle edition - paperback edition should be available soon, too) – $0.99
• "Ripper My Love" by Glynis Smy (English Kindle / paperback editions) – $1.99 / 10.99
• "The Best of Vine Leaves Literary Journal 2012" by Jessica Bell & Dawn Ius, editors (English paperback edition) – $11.50
• "Show & Tell in a Nutshell" by Jessica Bell (English Kindle / paperback editions) – $1.99 / $4.45

I hope you all have a wonderful time and enjoy these good reads!

448 Showcase #2: "Summertime Blues" by Phil Jones

Let me introduce you to Phil Jones. I wouldn't be so bold as to call him my friend – what I know of him makes me guess that he treasures friendship as much as I do and that the word “friend” still has a profound meaning that goes further than the one implied by Zuckerberg and Co. But let me call him a very friendly presence (which sounds way better than “a www-acquaintance”) in my writing life. I “met” him on the Literature Network Forums or LitNet, where we LitNetters (some would say “LitNutters”) know him better by his nick “hillwalker”. 

Only recently have I discovered that Phil has published a collection of short stories (for Kindle) on amazon: “Summertime Blues - TheCollection”. I immediately connected and purchased a copy. And didn't regret it for a moment.

The book:
It starts with the title story “Summertime Blues”, set in the sixties somewhere in the British countryside. It's summer, and 15-year-old Billy stays together with his younger sister at his granny's. One day, he stumbles upon Suzie, a glamorous, fickle young woman with a story, who seems to spend her days lounging in her front garden, drinking Vodka and mourning her wild past. As their friendship takes its course, Billy begins to fall in love with her. But every holiday has an end, and soon the boy has to leave. The next time he comes back to his granny's, he discovers things are not always what they seem… Let me tell you at once: I really enjoyed this story very much. There's a passage where Suzie and Billy get to “know” each other better (I won't give away more - you have to read it!) which is a pure gem, very intense and translating accurately how a teenage boy might got through such a scene. Of course, I didn't like the ending as often happens with good stories. Romantic me always hopes that everything'll turn out fine; even when reading Stefan Zweig's “Marie Antoinette” – and we all know how she ended up! –, I prayed the queen would survive. So I was gagging for Billy and Suzie to marry and be happy ever after, yet they… but hush! I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise!

The second story, “The Brocken Spectre”, relating Great War veteran Edwin's hiking accident in the Highlands, is somewhat more foreseeable as to how it'll end yet not an ounce less enjoyable. Great descriptions and dialogues make for a very good story. Phil knows how to apply "show not tell".

Now, the third story “Harry's Last Case” is my second-favourite after the title story. It made me giggle a lot. The tale of Private Investigator Harry Carson's improbable case entrusted by the randy widow Dolores Boyd (my, is she a character!) turns out a perfect example of Phil's wry humour and of his skills when it comes to writing funny dialogue. 

There are ten other stories to discover plus four pieces of flash fiction. Not only is this a wonderful read for your own Christmas holidays but a wonderful gift for your friends, too. Available on amazon.com (and all the other amazon outlets of course) for only $3.48 (including VAT).

About the author:
Ex-teacher and contracts manager, Phil Jones, was brought up in a tiny Welsh-speaking community. His guidebook to Snowdonia '80 Hills' was published in 2010. Since then he escaped to the North Western corner of Scotland where he divides his time between writing and wandering the hills. His novel 'DreamGirl' recently won the Red Telephone Young Adult novel of 2011 and is due for publication summer 2013.

447 Showcase #1: "Maggie's Child" by Glynis Smy

You've met her before in this space some months ago, and now she's back! Author of "Ripper, My Love", my dear friend Glynis Smy is celebrating the launch of her second novel today. "Maggie’s Child" has been born into the world of ebook and paperback.

When farmer’s wife Maggie Sawbury gives birth to her fifth child, the only one that has lived and the result of an extra-marital affair, she is heartbroken and desperate. Maggie knows her joyless life with a bully of a husband is not one a child should endure, and she leaves the baby at the roadside to be found by passers-by.

Her money-driven husband announces he has found her another job in the village of Redgrave, aside from the many tasks she has on Windtop farm. He is totally unaware the position comes with a secret. One that frightens and yet brings joy to Maggie. She is to become wet-nurse to her abandoned child.

Love, and the possibility of incest, threaten to open old wounds, and Maggie has several decisions to make. However, will they be the right ones? If she tells all she knows, it will bring about the destruction of three families. Equally, her silence could be just as destructive. She shares her secret with another, the result changes her life, and a death brings with it more secrets. Will Maggie stay or will she walk away and find the love she craves?

 The ebook will be available at a Christmas - New Year price of 99c via Amazon, (and other Amazon outlets around the world).

Want to win a paperback copy?

If you can tell Glynis the name of the prostitute friend in her novel, "Ripper, My Love", you will be put into a draw for a prize copy of "Maggie’s Child" in paperback format. The email address you need to send the answer to can be found in the sidebar of, NEW BOOK BLOGGER.

Glynis Smy, (nee Honeycombe), was born and raised in the coastal town of Dovercourt, near Harwich, in the county of Essex, England.

She married her school sweetheart, Peter, in 1979 and they produced three amazing children, Darren, Nicola, and Emma. The long hours of a nursing career, and running two pharmacies ended in 2005, when she and her husband moved from the UK to the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.

Glynis spends her time writing historical novels, poetry and various other projects. When she is not tapping at the keyboard she makes greeting cards to sell for charity, or enjoys a spot of cross-stitch on the back porch. Failing that, she and friends sit chewing the fat over a glass of village wine.

To purchase "Ripper, My Love" in various formats: Books by Glynis Smy

Meet and Tweet with Glynis ... Ghunibee
Facebook Page: Glynis Smy
Author Blog: Glynis Smy

In her book launch package, Glynis added, "Thanks go out to Talli Roland, Len Lambert, Jen Moon and Dieter Moitzi for their support with this novel. Also to all those who are hosting the launch event." You're welcome, dear Glynis, and I wish you the bestest of luck for this new "baby" of yours! I for one know already what I'm going to treat me to for Christmas…

446 Strawberries 'n' Fairy Tales

Image source http://wikipedia.org

A Short Story Part 1

“I want strawberries,” she declared airily. She was lounging on the huge, round bed, lazily staring at the vermilion baldachin, her head on a fluffy, pink pillow, her ebony hair spilling over alabaster shoulders. I was sitting at the edge smoking a cigarette.

“What do you mean – strawberries?” I asked, taken aback. It was seven in the morning, for Christ’s sake.

“Well,” she shrugged, still not looking at me. “Like, strawberries? You must’ve heard of’em?” She rolled over on her belly in a swift, catlike movement and fixed her hazelnut gaze on me. Her voice went all monotone, “Fragaria × ananassa, commonly known as the strawberry or garden strawberry, is a hybrid species that is cultivated worldwide for its fruit, the common strawberry. It is also called the pineapple strawberry, or ananas strawberry…”

I waved surrender, “Alright, alright, strawberries, got it.” I looked her up and down. She was only wearing an expensive, light negligee that let her regal, pale skin shine through. As she turned on her back again, the dark triangle of her secret garden stood out, and the blood red tips of her young breasts pointed at me like an invitation I preferred to ignore. A man could only take that much.

“Can you get me some?” she asked, idly licking her thick lips.

“I’ll ring James.” I stood up, snuffed out the cigarette and started to search for my robe.

“Who?”

“James. Short, puffy guy?” When I noticed her quizzical look, I added, “Like, your butler?” Jesus, she should at least know her butler’s name!

She sat up and shot me a sheepish look. “Oh, James. He’s… uhm not there.”

“Beg pardon?”

“Well,” she started strumming the golden bed cover with her long, red fingernails. “I’ve given him the day off.”

“I’ll ring someone else then,” I proposed.

“Sorry, hon, but there is no one else. It’s only you and me.”

“Come on! Out of – how many are there? Two hundred people? No one? How’s that possible?” I couldn’t believe it.

“Well, I wanted to be alone with you. It’s been our wedding night, after all. I was afraid we’d be overheard doing… you know, that.” She winked at me. “So I’ve sent them all away for the day.”

Why on earth would she do such a thing? Alright, she was a noisy girl. And almost insatiable – we had been at it all night long. I had imagined her shy and frightened, but good Lord, no, she hadn’t been! She wasn’t even a virgin as one would’ve thought, what with her young age, sheltered upbringing, and the fact that she’d virtually overslept the last few months. Last night, after our first, sticky melee I had discreetly pointed out that I had expected her to be a maiden. Not that I cared but certain things were implicit in a bargain such as this wedding. She had dodged by insinuating some teenage-fiddle-y-diddling with her first lady in waiting, the duchess of Darkwood.

That Darkwood chick must have been some skilled fiddle-y-diddler then, I had been thinking. Yet I wouldn’t complain. This had made things a lot easier. Uncapping beer for the first time could be such a messy business.

She caught me staring at her. “So?” she said.

“So what?” I asked back.

“So will you get me those strawberries?” she purred and stretched out on the kind size bed. She managed to create the image of an innocent young wife whose sudden whims a genuine love-struck husband would not only excuse, but heed without complaining.

Don’t get cross, John, don’t get cross, I tell myself. It’s too early into our relationship for that. How could I explain that it might be difficult to find strawberries right now, though? It was not the season at all. Anyway, this country only seemed to know two seasons: the cold season. And the freezing season.

“Okay,” I said demurely and kissed her on her forehead. “You want strawberries, I’ll bring you strawberries.” Daft girl. “Dear baby!”

(to be continued)

*******

"Small Portions" is available for the ludicrous price of $0.99 but only until Dec. 31st! Don't miss the deal!

• English version "Small Portions" on amazon.com (or any other local amazon-store)
• German version "Kleine Portionen" on amazon.de (or any other local amazon-store)
• French version "Petites portions" on amazon.fr (or any other local amazon-store)