Tag: Fantasy

Fantasy, poem, poetry, Sonnet8 Comments

Storm Tamer – One Word Photo Challenge: Winter

Melinda Kucsera

Storm Tamer A snowy road he took cross bridge to isle in the sound. No crunch of snow heard he this deaf traveler, this storm tamer, not while wind-weaving, cloud reading, snowshoeing his way home. For Serensalia he’s bound. He writes ice messages that melt come spring. He’s snow dancing, weather tracking around the mount’n paths. Through gales he leads with daring traders heading north past storms in safety kept by magic shields that hold cold that kills at bay. He channels lightning with piety down paths inked on his skin, yes he’s got skills. He’s your best bet if north your travels tend. With him, you’ll  live to reach your journey’s end. ~ ~ … Continue reading Storm Tamer – One Word Photo Challenge: Winter

Fantasy, Mount Eredren, poem, poetry, Sarn, Shayari, Sonnet2 Comments

Talk – A Writing Rehab Prompt Sonnet

Melinda Kucsera

Talk “Talk, tell me why you’re here. Will you just talk? Open that mouth of yours and talk, say some- thing, anything. Don’t just stand there mute, talk to me, spit out words about any thing…” Sarn stayed silent, kept the truth penned in where it couldn’t hurt him, prisoned behind teeth set ‘gainst speech, caging words that want to tear free, expose a secret with eyes and teeth… A secret he’d rather die to protect, a secret life he longed to return to but the Ranger facing him might detect the boy his silence protected, who through it all crouched behind a … Continue reading Talk – A Writing Rehab Prompt Sonnet

Fantasy, poem, poetry, Shayari, Sonnet2 Comments

Spring Send Off – A One Word Photo Challenge Sonnet

Melinda Kucsera

Spring Send Off Everywhere he looked spring had sprung green, gold and clear running streams no longer ice-choked. Nights still froze his balls off, but leave the wold he would to see Shayari ‘fore he croaked. Nothing tied him here now that his wife had gone. His children grown no longer wanted him around, an inconvenience he’d become. He set off that morn adjusting his brim, to hide the tear tracing his grizzled cheek. He put his home of five decades behind and headed for the last time to that creek which marked the end of home, no time to whine about loss, giving … Continue reading Spring Send Off – A One Word Photo Challenge Sonnet

Guardians, poem, poetry, Shayari, Sonnet6 Comments

Avengers’ Masque – A Stomp Prompt Sonnet

Melinda Kucsera

Avengers’ Masque Her costume, a gown of fine wine, her mask set with pearls clasped to her face by ribbons woven into her tresses for the task of concealing sharp toothed combs. Those ribbons doubled as garrotes to choke betrayer’s throats if she could lure the king’s killers out to the veranda. Did the betrayer see circling near that his doom had turned out? The whisper silk of her dress gave notice of her progress across the ballroom, booze kept all but one, and not her accomplice, from watching the killer, that one guest whose sword belt held not a copy tied for peace, but a Guardian’s blade wanting … Continue reading Avengers’ Masque – A Stomp Prompt Sonnet

Fantasy, poem, poetry, Sarn, Shayari, Sonnet8 Comments

The Scribe – A Prompt Sonnet

Melinda Kucsera

The Scribe: Miren The quill scratches, making marks that record the deeds of Sarn, his beloved brother, who can’t see his worth. That task never bores Miren as he sits writing of his brother by lumir light every night. How many words must spill on journal pages before he finds the spark for an epiphany? Every day his brother fetches food for orphans then works to earn his bed, his bread and his brother’s education so that Miren won’t have to work until he’s dead. Sarn sacrificed freedom to an autocrat. Miren’s still writing, recording the deeds of a life sacrificed in love and need. ~ ~ ~ Mired was feeling left … Continue reading The Scribe – A Prompt Sonnet

Fantasy, poem, poetry, Sarn, Sonnet

A Dream Out of Reach – A Daily Post Sonnet #2

Melinda Kucsera

A Dream Out of Reach On the field of glory, his armor bright, the knight sat his white steed ready to ride. He extended his hand, asked if Sarn might: “Ride for truth. Ride for one and for all. Ride for justice and peace. Ride out now with me.” The sun gilded the knight, made him too bright. He shined with all Sarn had wanted to be. Take that hand and his life would be so right… A tug on his pant leg, a whispered word, “Papa,” interrupted the dream, breaking the dream on his son‘s face, that had captured … Continue reading A Dream Out of Reach – A Daily Post Sonnet #2

poem, poetry, Shayari, Sonnet2 Comments

Rumble in the Enchanted Forest – A Photo-Fiction Prompt Sonnet

Melinda Kucsera

Rumble in the Enchanted Forest Changing skin, trading fur for red jacket slim, hands in pockets cold, the enchanted forest’s always watching, got no hatchet wouldn’t hack it even those slanted magicked weeds wouldn’t know. Wolves confront me, glare at my red jacket wanting action. Dropping my jacket, I attack with glee. My claws tear them into bloody fractions. Fight’s done, I grab my jacket put it back on as the trees shiver, shaking loose bark projectiles, silent splinters shot that dive bomb, aimed to kill; I zigzag through the dark ’round giant trees spewing darts, must survive… Ahead I hear shouts, Rangers … Continue reading Rumble in the Enchanted Forest – A Photo-Fiction Prompt Sonnet

Curse Breaker, poem, poetry, Sarn, Sonnet2 Comments

Out of Reach – A Daily Prompt Sonnet

Melinda Kucsera

Out of Reach ‘Twas no toy upon  high shelf that caught his eye, no bright ball rolling down a hole either, not some child’s toy that could be bought, nothing so droll as that for this boy’s goal. His little fingers strained to touch the magic rising around him in concentric spheres. Shimmering green, translucent–a magic bubble cast by his father sleeping near. Light created it, light dribbling out his father’s closed eyes, made by fear of loss for his precious son, a child who without that shield would be visible to the boss. The bad man walking by scanning the dark for … Continue reading Out of Reach – A Daily Prompt Sonnet

poem, poetry, Sonnet8 Comments

To Live and Die in Starlight

Melinda Kucsera

To Live and Die in Starlight To live and die in starlight—my dark tomb I await as my last breath space swallows. Static–no rescue from this chill’d, stark womb. No shining rebirth as stars do follows this silent end of asphyxiation. No state funeral, no six gun salute– No alien felled me for my nation. No blanket of flags to warm my spacesuit. My ship, my headstone, one more asteroid, ablaze amid earth’s atmosphere, streaming ash from astronaut Lloyd, dead in the void. He lived and died in starlight bleak and cold, No warmth of flesh, no smile to behold. … Continue reading To Live and Die in Starlight

Curse Breaker, Fantasy, poem, poetry, Sonnet4 Comments

Hands of Flame – Photo-Fiction Challenge #9

Melinda Kucsera

Hands of Flame: Gevret* Fire burned cold in his eyes, a corona of red that coated the world, blotting out other colors, showing no nirvana just a holocaust snap shot to call out the future and leave him holding firelight. Flames that crack and curl everything except him because he’s got that firelight under his skin. It’s his kin, and throwing it takes no skill, just a snap of the wrist and flames shoot to kill the man menacing his adopted brother. The boy’s head kissed; He’s unharmed; his relieved smile disarms, quenches fire with a hug, such is his charm. – – – … Continue reading Hands of Flame – Photo-Fiction Challenge #9

Audiobooks, book review

Swashbucklers, Rogues and Assassins: The Bad Boys of Fantasy

Melinda Kucsera

100_0067smaller

The bad boys of Fantasy, like the buddy cop flicks we all love, are full of friendship, ribald comments, one-upmanship and enough jokes to lighten up the darkest story. Set in places that range from the epic to the intriguing, their exploits run the gamut from world-ending to a simple heist gone hilariously wrong. Whatever these guys get up to for their clients, you can be certain of one thing: you’re in for a fun ride.  Without further ado, I bring you the bad boys of fantasy.

Royce & Hadrian

riyria

Royce and Hadrian’s exploits are penned by Michael J. Sullivan in his Riyria Chronicles series and in the Riyria Revelations series. The Riyria Chronicles series covers the twenty year period between the boys’ founding their unique partnership and the events in the Riyria Revelation series. Mr. Sullivan will keep writing those prequels as long as fans request them and I will keep requesting more. I love these guys!
Continue reading “Swashbucklers, Rogues and Assassins: The Bad Boys of Fantasy”

Curse Breaker, Fantasy, Shayari

Tales of Shayari: Death of a King

Melinda Kucsera

Death of a King & Drigorem’s Curse (A revised version of this story appears in Chasing Dragons, book 11 of the Curse Breaker series.) Blood pooled, weeping from a gash in his chest  and soaking into Drigorem’s clothes. He shivered. The chill stone sucked up his warmth. Boots thudded on stone. Screams and bellows competed with the metal on metal clang of a fight. How had it come to this vile betrayal, this victory via wicked trickery? Lady Shayari stood in her alcove, her marble face catching the light falling through the slit window. She held her torch topped with … Continue reading Tales of Shayari: Death of a King

Audiobooks, CoS Book 1, Curse Breaker, Fantasy, Mount Eredren, Sarn, Shayari, writing

Who Will Narrate: Listen and Cast Your Vote

Melinda Kucsera

100_0063smaller

Okay, we’ve talked these last two days about audio books both the professionally produced variety and the self-narrated too. If you need a refresher, pop by this post here for a discussion of professional voice acted audio books and here for the DIY option.

You are armed with knowledge and ready to cast your vote an a very important issue. Who should narrate?

With the above posts in mind, I come to you, wonderful followers and one time visitors alike, to ask your opinion on the matter. Below I submit to you two scenes from my novella narrated by me, the author. Worry not, neither one is longer than 7 minutes. Together they comprise the first two scenes from my forthcoming audio book. It will be available for sale in 2016.

Continue reading “Who Will Narrate: Listen and Cast Your Vote”

Audiobooks, book review

Candy for Your Ears: Urban Fantasy

Melinda Kucsera

Me in a leather corset and boots

Urban fantasy audio books are like candy. You can’t consume just one. The first one always leads to the next and the next. It’s the gateway drug of audio books.

They’re the first person shooters of the fantasy genre. What makes these stories so addictive? Let’s toss them onto the operating table and dissect them to see what makes ’em tick.

Continue reading “Candy for Your Ears: Urban Fantasy”

CoS Book 1, Curse Breaker, Fantasy, Mount Eredren, Sarn, Shayari

Breaking Curses

Melinda Kucsera

Sarn has a problem. His eyes glow green all the time due to a magic that’s slowly chewing away at his sanity. Sarn indentured himself to pay for his younger brother’s education and was assigned to the Rangers at sixteen. In the four years since then, he has built a tenuous and often strained relationship with his fellow Rangers. It doesn’t help that odd things happen around him all the time. Odd things that begin to add up into a terrifying whole… Continue reading Breaking Curses