Witness and Attack, Part One

The Knights of Maenara Collective (2 of 10) The kitchen smelled wrong, not rot exactly, but something sharper underneath the citrus-bright disinfectant. Copper and sweetness, like blood cut with sugar, like someone had tried to scrub away evidence but only succeeded in making it more obvious. The kind of smell that gets into your sinuses and stays there, that you… Continue reading Witness and Attack, Part One

Haint Party, Chapter 6

Magic & Smut Dear Reader, I know, I know…I promised you this chapter ages ago, and here we are, fashionably late like Spencer showing up to literally everything. In my defense, I’ve been battling my own ghost witch (she’s called “Distraction” and she’s relentless), attempting spells that backfired spectacularly (much like Erin), and generally living that “I’ll do it tomorrow”… Continue reading Haint Party, Chapter 6

Homecoming, Part Two

The Knights of Maenara Collective (1 of 10) Her car sat in the side lot where she’d left it years ago, covered in dust and Spanish moss and time: a rebuilt Honda Del Sol she’d named Rougarou after the Cajun werewolf that ran through sugarcane fields and ate children who misbehaved. Compact, quick, painted midnight blue with rust patches she’d… Continue reading Homecoming, Part Two

Homecoming, Part One

The Knights of Maenara Collective (1 of 10) Detective Nicola Knight had come home the way ghosts do: quiet, uninvited, and carrying unfinished business. Her plane touched down at Louis Armstrong International at 6:13 p.m., wheels screeching like wounded birds, engines reversing with enough force to jolt her forward against the fraying seatbelt. Nicola didn’t flinch. She’d flown rougher rides… Continue reading Homecoming, Part One

Writing a Short Story Cycle

November’s Grand Saga As the last echoes of Halloween fade and the days grow shorter, I’ve decided to embrace November with an ambitious creative endeavor. Instead of tackling a massive novel, I’m launching a more focused, equally exciting project: a complete short story cycle. What is a Short Story Cycle? If you haven’t heard the term before, a short story… Continue reading Writing a Short Story Cycle

A Taste for Justice

13 of 13 Short Stories Before Halloween Well, that’s it. 13 stories. I hope you enjoyed this exercise. I may write another tomorrow…we shall see. It has been a busy week. Have a Happy Halloween! “What a wonderful thing humanity is: passionate, intelligent, inquisitive, generous, full of hope and joy, noble of spirit, and above all, delicious.” Delilah paused in… Continue reading A Taste for Justice

Graveyard Shift

12 of 13…I think October 31st, 2025 The new ghost materialized in the middle of the cemetery at 11:47 PM, which was exactly thirteen minutes before Frank Delaney’s scheduled rounds of the Victorian section. She was young, maybe twenty-five, wearing a security company polo shirt with a dark stain spreading across the collar. Her eyes were wild, panicked, darting around… Continue reading Graveyard Shift

The Last House on Gable Street

11 of 13 Short Stories Before Halloween The house squatted at the end of the cul-de-sac like a sulking child, all Gothic Revival gingerbread and peeling paint. Eleanor Crane, Nell to anyone who’d survived more than one conversation with her, pulled her car into the weed-choked driveway and killed the engine. Through the windshield, she counted the architectural red flags:… Continue reading The Last House on Gable Street

The Complimentary Curse

10 of 13 Short Stories Before Halloween Hey friends, I’ve been going through some health stuff lately, both the physical kind and the mental kind, and it’s been a little rough. The writing helps, though. Even when I don’t feel great, putting words down is a way to keep moving, to make sense of things. So I’m trying to write… Continue reading The Complimentary Curse