Like There’s Always A Choice, the short story I put out a few weeks ago, this new story began life as part of a novel. In this case, I wanted to see if I could write a kind-of sequel to my Shadows series, and while the book didn’t really work out as another Shadows book (it was too different in tone), the story has potential. But, as with many first drafts, there were unrequired scenes.

This new story (Just Doing My Job) came from one such scene. It shows Deva (who previously appeared in Stowaway) once more showing how she copes when others look down on her‌—‌and that was the problem. We already know this, and so there was no need to spend time in the novel reiterating her tough spirit. But as a short story, I think it works.

You can read Just Doing My Job here, and, as always, I’d love to know what you think.

It’s often said that editing involves cutting at least ten percent of the words, and while this isn’t strictly true, may words written in a first draft never reach the final product. Sometimes, whole chapters get discarded.

That is how this new short story, There’s Always A Choice, came about. It was originally part of an early draft for Dominions V, but I decided to cut it fairly early on. I liked it too much to let it be ignored, though, so I reworked it. Maybe it’s a deleted scene from an as-yet unpublished book, or maybe it’s a short story in its own right.

You can read There’s Always A Choice here. And if you like this one, you might like to compare it to A Lesson In Death, a far earlier story focusing on Rodin. I think they mirror each other fairly well.

And, as always, I’d love to know what you think of the story.

I’m going to warn you up-front that this is another dark story.

In the fourth Dominions novel (Riled Dogs), there’s a particularly nasty character called Garrick‌—‌the type of villain who enjoys torture, and who uses pain to get what he wants. He’s ruthless, and any who go up against him must have a certain kind of strength‌—‌not physical, but deeper. They would need their own kind of ruthlessness, or brutal practicality.

This story, Stronger Than Death, is based around this idea, and you can read it here. But don’t expect a pleasant ending.

Two weeks since the last short story, so it must be time for another.

This one is an alien invasion tale called Watch And Learn, and like all the others it’s under 1000 words (so about five minutes of reading). You can find it here, and as always I’d love to hear what you think of it.

Another short story for you.

This one wrote itself pretty fast, and although the story’s fiction, the setting is real (with a bit of artistic license). St Tanwg’s Church, in the North Wales village of Llandanwg, sits amongst the sand dunes (I was told that it had been buried at one point, although a bit of research leads me to believe this is a bit of an exaggeration‌—‌about 150 years ago the church was in disrepair, part of the roof fell in, and the building filled with sand). Like many church sites, there’s a lot of hidden history here‌—‌so it seemed an opportune setting for a story about ancient power.

You can read Power here, or visit this page for a full list of my short stories (all under 1000 words, so ideal for a quick coffee break).

It’s a couple of weeks since the last story, so it must be time for a new one. Not going to say too much about this, except that it’s a science fiction story, it’s called New Eden, and you can read it here.

And as always, I’d love to hear your thoughts on it.

I first heard the word ‘endling’ a few weeks ago, on a podcast called Everything Is Alive (interviews with everyday objects‌—‌well worth a listen). I believe the word was used in episode 14, an interview with Petey, a baseball cap, and ‘endling’ was used to mean the very last of something‌—‌the end of the line.

Sometimes, all it takes is a word to trigger a story, and this one came together pretty quickly.

You can read The Endling here‌—‌and I’d love to know what you think of it.

Another short for you. This one’s called Opportunity, and it’s not so much dark as depressing (thought I should warn you of that straight off). You can read it here.

And if this is too much of a downer, there are always the other short stories (see the full list here).

Some years ago, I spent a few months working at a holiday centre on the Isle of Wight (a small island by the south coast of England, for those of you unfamiliar with it). I enjoyed my time there, but the place was very dated. I could easily picture pre-war holiday-makers resting in deckchairs, or taking part in organised activities. In fact, much of the island felt like that, as if the ferry across took passengers not only a couple of miles in distance but also back thirty years as well.

This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, though. Yes, it provided its own source of amusement, but there was also something relaxing about it. The pace of life felt slower. Yes, the island has many beaches, and is in the warmer part of England, but I think it’s a popular holiday destination in part because of the feel of the place.

I was thinking of that time of my life recently (no idea why), and I started getting ideas for a story. I worked on this, and Time Away developed.

You can read Time Away here. If you’ve got a moment, I’d love to hear what you thought of it‌—‌simply comment under the story, or on this post.