Anklecast 90 - Digital Wizards (Part 5)

Okay, folks! We've finally made it! This is part five of "Digital Wizards." This is the final part, the end of the story! The whole thing is now finally available. I hope you've enjoyed following it like a new school version of a Dickens serial. It's time to find out how this all ends. Keith has to head into the building and fight off all the nightmares that he created accidentally using the AI to save his old friend Darin. Will he succeed? Or will that pesky Big Anklevich feed you another one of his patented tragic endings? You know you're scared about how it will go. I dare you to go in and find out. And enjoy yourself while you're there, too!

As always, special thanks to Kevin MacLeod of Incompetech.com for the music.

To listen to the show, you can find it on the Anklecast podcast feed, download it HERE, or click the start button on the player below. Enjoy!

Anklecast 89 - Digital Wizards (Part 4)

It's time for the April installment of Digital Wizards! Keith has become hopelessly addicted to the AI art generator that he's been using, but he just got some bad news from his old friend, Darin. The AI is broken. Keith has to stop using it. What will he do? How will he pass the time? How will this thing go? We're almost there, folks. We're leading up to the climax. Only two episodes left in this crazy Novella. I hope you enjoy it while it lasts!

As always, special thanks to Kevin MacLeod of Incompetech.com for the music.

To listen to the show, you can find it on the Anklecast podcast feed, download it HERE, or click the start button on the player below. Enjoy!

Anklecast 88 - Digital Wizards (Part 3)

Well, it's finally here! It's part three of Digital Wizards. Keith has been using the AI art generator that was developed by his old, but unreliable, friend Darin. He quickly became obsessed and addicted, and it's only getting worse, because Darin is adding more features. What will happen to Keith? Find out in today's exhilarating new installment of "Digital Wizards."

As always, special thanks to Kevin MacLeod of Incompetech.com for the music.

To listen to the show, you can find it on the Anklecast podcast feed, download it HERE or  just press the button on the player below. Enjoy!

Anklecast 87 - Digital Wizards (Part 2)

It's time for another Anklecast, folks!

It's February, and so it's time for another segment of Digital Wizards. Keith, against his better judgement, has gone in on an AI art company with his old, but unreliable, friend Darin. This month, he ventures into the AI world. What will he find, and what will happen to him? Find out in this exciting new installment of the award ignored novella, "Digital Wizards."

As always, special thanks to Kevin MacLeod of Incompetech.com for the music.

To listen to the show, you can find it on the Anklecast podcast feed, download it HERE or  just press the button on the player below. Enjoy!

 

Anklecast 86 - Digital Wizards (Part 1)

Okay, folks, it's time for this month's episode of The Anklecast!

Keith and Darin have been friends since childhood, but their lives diverged largely after high school. Keith came into money and became an angel investor in venture capital pursuits, while Darin became a bit of an untrustworthy sort that even went to prison for fraud a few years back. Now, they've come back together, and there's a possibility that their futures might be entwined...

As always, special thanks to Kevin MacLeod of Incompetech.com for the music.

To listen to the show, you can find it on the Anklecast podcast feed, download it HERE or  just press the button on the player below. Enjoy! 

Anklecast 85 - Artificial Christmas

When Chris and Jessie became empty-nesters, they were finally able to take that big vacation they'd never tried when the kids were still around. On a beach in Tahiti on Christmas Eve, they saw a very famous person, and couldn't understand what he could be doing here instead of harnessing his team and setting out on his annual journey. Little did they know that this was just the beginning...

Afterward, Rish and I talk about the story and the possibilities that artificial intelligence may bring to all of our lives.

As usual, special thanks to Kevin MacLeod for the music.

You can find the story on the podcast feed or download by right-clicking HERE. Or, you can just hit the play button down below and listen here and now!

 

Anklecast 84 - Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) Part 2

It's part two of Separate Ways (World's Apart)! Something weird is going on for Kurt. He was blindsided by his wife, who announced she wanted a divorce. She then ran out the door when their daughter, Corley, came down the stairs asking what was going on. Corley didn't take the abandonment well. She lost all control, and Kurt had to intervene to keep her from getting run over as she chased her mother's car down the street...but something weird happened. The next morning, his wife was back, and more pleasant than ever. It didn't make sense, but what could Kurt do?

Afterward, Rish and I talk about the story, and just what to do with the conundrum of splitting long stories into pieces. You know, your comments on the matter would be greatly appreciated!

As usual, special thanks to Kevin MacLeod for the music.

You can find the story on the podcast feed or download by right-clicking HERE. Or, you can just hit the play button down below and listen here and now!

 

Anklecast 83 - Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) Part 1

Kurt's life has been going downhill, but he wasn't even quite aware of it...that is, until his wife came home from work one day, packed a suitcase, and said she wanted a divorce. His daughter didn't take the abandonment well, and, well, things got weird...

Afterward, Rish and I talk about the story, why I made some of the decisions that I did, and whether this one counts as a Christmas story or not...

As usual, special thanks to Kevin MacLeod for the music.

You can find the story on the podcast feed or download by right-clicking HERE. Or, you can just hit the play button down below and listen here and now!

Anklecast 82 - Pre-Owned (Part 2)

It's the September episode of The Anklecast! Today we have the conclusion to my story called "Pre-Owned." Clint is trying to sell his old car off...except something keeps going wrong...he can't seem to figure out what it is, so he makes sure to come along on the test drive...and that's when the craziness begins!

Afterwards, Rish and I talk about the story, including a lot of the stuff that wasn't recorded last time around. Hopefully this episode is a little more satisfactory.

As always, thanks to Kevin McCleod at incompetech.com for the music.

You can find the story on the podcast feed or download by right-clicking HERE. Or, you can just hit the play button down below and listen here and now!

Anklecast 81 - Pre-Owned (Part 1)

It's the August episode of The Anklecast! Today's story is called "Pre-Owned." It's about a guy named Clint who is still driving the old beater that his parents got for him when he turned sixteen. It's having a pretty deleterious effect on his love life, however, because the car is the ultimate turn off. He's saved up for years, and now he's ready to upgrade. He just has to sell his old car off...except something keeps going wrong...

Afterwards, Rish and I talk a little about the story...it would have been more, except somebody messed up when hitting record the first time around. That guy ought to be smacked. That's all I've got to say.

As always, thanks to Kevin McCleod at incompetech.com for the music.

You can find the story on the podcast feed or download by right-clicking HERE. Or, you can just hit the play button down below and listen here and now! 

Anklecast 80 - Dr. Claw

Whoops! I just realized that I never posted my latest episode of the podcast to the regular podcast feed. The Patreon subscribers have been enjoying it for a while, but the rest of y'all just had to wait, I guess. 

So, today, I have a story that I wrote back in 2014 as part of a live-blogging story event. It's called Dr. Claw, and it comes from the premise "Despite being warned about them, someone plays a claw vending machine game...and wins big." We get to hear the story of Brody, what the claw machine game had for him, and what he did with his winnings. Afterward, Rish and I talk about the story, and how hard it is to share your work as a writer and not take comments too much to heart. 

As always, thanks to Kevin McCleod at incompetech.com for the music.

You can find the episode on the podcast feed, download it by right-clicking HERE, or just hit the play button on the player below.

Anklecast 79 - Black Angel

New episode of The Anklecast up!

It's time for an all-new story. In this one, Pete comes upon some misfortune. His girlfriend, Cindy, in an effort to cheer him up, buys him a revenge crystal from a local shop. But then the revenge crystal turns out to work all too well...

Afterward, Rish and I talk about the creation of this story, how it came to be and how it holds up all of these years later.

You can find the story on the podcast feed or download by right-clicking HERE. Or you can just click the play button below.

As always, thanks to Kevin McCleod at incompetech.com for the music.

 

Anklecast 78 - The Elephant in the Room (Part 5 - The End)

New Anklecast available!

The egg that Louis discovered in his room turned his life upside down. He fell into a deep well of intrigue and danger. Now, it's time to put his final plan into action. I hope you're ready for the exciting conclusion of the story in April's episode of "The Elephant in the Room."

Afterwards, Rish and I discuss the story and what led to its creation.

You can find the story on the podcast feed or download by right-clicking HERE. Or you can just click the play button below.

As always, thanks to Kevin McCleod at incompetech.com for the music.

Anklecast 77 - The Elephant in the Room (Part 4)

Part four of The Elephant in the Room is here!

The egg that Louis discovered in his room turned out to be just the tip of the iceberg. Since disposing of it, the mystery has only grown deeper. Louis was on the verge of giving up on everything, but now, instead, he is determined to take the fight to the aliens. But there's more he doesn't know...find out just what further dark secrets await in this month's episode of "The Elephant in the Room."

As always, thanks to Kevin McCleod at incompetech.com for the music.

Find it on the podcast feed now. To download the episode, right click HERE. Or just click the play button below.

Anklecast 76 - The Elephant in the Room (Part 3)

And now for part three of "The Elephant in the Room."

Louis found an alien egg hiding in plain sight in his room. Then the girl of his dreams suddenly started coming on to him. He ran from her like she was radioactive. How will she react the next day at school? What is going on? Why are these things happening? Find out more in this month's episode.

Afterward, Rish is back. Big and Rish now have something in common. They both spent some time in Venice, and they both loved it. They talk all about it in the post show. Hope you enjoy it.

As always, thanks to Kevin McCleod at incompetech.com for the music.

Find it on the podcast feed now. To download the episode, right click HERE. Or just click the play button below.

Anklecast 75 - The Elephant in the Room (Part 2)

It's part two of "The Elephant in the Room" this month. 

The story deepens and becomes even more confusing and sinister. Louis thought he had things under control after he and his friend, Collin, figured out the egg a little, but now there's a further wrinkle. Listen and find out where it goes.

Not much in the way of post-show chat in this one. I was horribly sick, and it was all I could do to even get the show put together for y'all, but I'll never let you down, so at least there's that. Hope you enjoy it.

As always, thanks to Kevin McCleod at incompetech.com for the music.

Find it on the podcast feed now. To download the episode, right click HERE. Or just click the play button below.

Anklecast 74 - The Elephant in the Room (Part 1)

I present to you "The Elephant in the Room." 

Louis trips and falls while trying to get ready for school in the morning. Instead of just hitting the carpet, he lands on something that until that moment was invisible to his eyes. It's an alien egg. Where did it come from? What is it doing here? Why can't anyone else see it? The answers will change his life forever.

As always, thanks to Kevin McCleod at incompetech.com for the music.

Find it on the podcast feed now. To download the episode, right click HERE. Or just click the play button below.

And, here are the links to the Amazon listings that I mentioned that I would post in the show notes:

Sunny - Sunny & Gray, Book One

Kingdom of Flies and Fireflies: The Short Fiction Collection, Volume One

A Battalion of Ideas: The Short Fiction Collection, Volume Two

Three Vampire Weekend: The Short Fiction Collection, Volume Three (the collection that contains "The Elephant in the Room").

Wizards and Angels: The Short Fiction Collection, Volume Four

Christmas Creatures: A Twisted Christmas Story Collection

The Elephant in the Room short story version

The Elephant In The Room (Part One)

Just to let you know, my story "The Elephant in the Room" is beginning to run over on The Anklecast. The first part of it was just posted on Patreon at a couple minutes before midnight last night. I managed to get it in just before the month came to an end. December can be crazy.

This is the story of a kid named Louis. Louis trips and falls while trying to get ready for school in the morning. Instead of just hitting the carpet, he lands on something that until that moment was invisible to his eyes. It's an alien egg. Where did it come from? What is it doing here? Why can't anybody else see it? The answers will change his life forever.

If you want to start listening right away, you can find it on Patreon. To become a member of the Patreon group, just follow this link over. Or any of the other links. I try to make sure you have plenty of links to click on. I wouldn't want you to have to hunt for too long to find one. I'll see you over there!

A Little Too Late

I was filled with the Christmas spirit this month, I guess, and I thought it would be cool to put together a new collection of Christmas stories like my already released Christmas Creatures. I do like to write Christmas tales during December, so I didn't have to be cajoled into it. The trouble is that, because it was already December, I couldn't get all the stories out in time for folks to read them during the season. 

Today's post is the case in point. I just published three stories yesterday. All Christmas stories. All published after Christmas. Whoops! I'll tell you about them anyway. The first one is called "Eve of the Living Dead." 

Here's what I wrote to tantalize the reader without giving away the plot too much:

The zombie holocaust has descended on the world and Gage is on his own, all his friends and family gone, looking for a reason to go on with the necessary struggle to survive in this harsh situation. Winter has come to Wyoming, where he'd fled in hopes of finding a place with less of the shambling undead, and Gage finds a farmhouse where he can shelter from the weather. Inside, there is a big surprise waiting for him. He also learns that Christmas is here again, and jolly old St. Nicholas is still making his rounds even in this world of never-ending horror.

That probably needs some work. Just because I can write doesn't mean that I can write ad copy. That's a different skill, and I think I need to learn a lot more about it if I want to be a self-published author.

That one is a big, full-sized story, 13,984 words, and I think it's pretty good. I really like that one, and I bet you will too.

Next story I published was "Frosty Force."

Here's what I wrote to tantalize a reader about "Frosty Force" without totally giving it away again.

When Dixon inadvertently offended an unhinged and aggressive kid at school, the boy shows up at his house with his two brothers to get revenge. This kid and his family are into witchcraft. Dixon and his father assumed they were crazy, but are they...

This one is shorter. It's a flash fiction story that only runs 1,557 words. I forced myself to write something much smaller just to prove that I could still do it since everything I write comes in around 15,000 words these days. I priced it down at 99 cents, although, I wonder if a shorty like this is supposed to be even cheaper. Pricing of eBooks seems a little crazy to me sometimes. I guess if you sell a lot, it might be worth it to lower your price to fifty cents or twenty-five cents.

The last story I published today was "Artificial Christmas."

Here's what I wrote about it to entice you to check it out:

When I met Santa on a beach in Tahiti, I knew something was wrong. Christmas had changed forever. Things would never be the same. Oh, did I mention, Santa wasn't in Tahiti for his post-Christmas retreat, oh no. He was there on Christmas Eve, the very day he should be out in his sleigh delivering presents...

This one is also shorter, but not flash fiction levels. It's 3,252 words. I really like this one too. It's about AI, robotics, and what the future has in store for humanity, and it's something that I think about a lot. Hopefully, you'll find it interesting too.

The worst part about all of this is that I'm still not done. I have one more Christmas story that I'm writing now. I'm 7,500 words into a tale called "Unmaking Memories" that I should hopefully finish by New Year's Eve. My plan is to start into a novel on New Year's Day, and begin my new push for 2025, so I need to get there. Of course, that means that I have one more Christmas story to put out after Christmas has passed us by. Oh well, I guess you do what you gotta do.

Last Christmas

Okay, day three of publishing this year's Christmas stories on Amazon.

I was talking with Rish on the phone the other day, and if I remember right, I quoted that goofy line from The Beach Boys "Little Saint Nick" song.

"Christmas comes this time each year," I said.

"Yeah, about that...we need to put a stop to that. I'm going to declare it right now. This is the last Christmas. No more of this coming back again and again, year after year," Rish said.

It was a throwaway joke in the middle of our conversation, but something about that really interested me. What if Christmas wasn't coming back next year. What if this was the last Christmas ever? What would that be like? And how could that happen? (And of course, the story had a built in title because of that hit Wham! song).

I was in need of a new story idea, because I was about to finish the story I was working on, so I put some thought in, and after skipping past the first few obvious answers, I found an idea that I liked. I started writing, and just a few days ago, I finished it up. Now it's ready for you to enjoy on this fine holiday season.

It's the story of Adrian who has a friend who has a strange talent. Every now and then, the guy stares off into space. Then his eyes roll up in his head and he pronounces some kind of prediction of the future. He's been doing it since he was in middle school, and the predictions always come true. Always.

Today, Adrian's friend performed that routine and said that this would be Adrian's last Christmas. Adrian's eyes bulged. Did he hear that right? Did his friend just predict his imminent death? What could he do? What would you do?

If that sounds like a good story to you, you can check it out over at Amazon. It's now available. I hope you enjoy it.