Contest Winner!

To Be Eternal

Rachel Moulton

The figure turned his face away, toward the wall, and she resumed her work. She knew that he could sense every tremor, not only in her body, but in her mind. It was in these moments, only once every few hundred years, that she felt more helpless than she did at any other point in her life.

She worked for hours. It may have been days, in fact, but she didn’t keep track of things like that when she was wrapping the body. Everything was suffocatingly silent, murderously muffled, painfully peaceful.

Contest Winner!

Bait

Mette Angerhofer

“Hey Spencer! Look at that weird girl! She’s been sitting on that park bench across the street all night,” Claire called to her twin between mouthfuls of candy.

“Is she crying? She looks like she’s crying!” Spencer shoved Claire aside to peek out the small window beside their door.

“No, I think she’s just cold. That weird white dress of hers is lacking in material.”

“She looks like a babe. I think I’ll talk to her and maybe even invite her in.”

Spencer raised his caterpillar eyebrows a couple of times at Claire with an impish look in his eye. He withdrew his hand from the orange candy bowl and opened the door. A cool gust of wind brushed his cheek. “While you’re at it, ask if she’s seen any trick-or-treaters. There haven’t been any all night!”

“People are getting so worked up about sending their kids trick-or-treating these days. I wouldn’t be surprised if none of them came this far. I mean, here’s a dense forest right on the edge of the park. It’s a perfect place for kidnappers to wait. Or maybe your smell is just keeping the kiddies away.”

“Spencer! Claire! Dinner’s ready!” their mother called.

Child Of Fear

William St.Romain

She wanted to see their nest better. She spotted an old pine nearby which would give her a better position relative to the hole. It was a dead tree, half tilted over the edge. In her eagerness, she failed to use the careful skills of observation her parents had instilled in her. She moved to an advantageous branch, failing to note it was chewed through by worms, not to mention too thin to hold her weight in any event. She stood upon it, steadying herself against the trunk. A moment passed. She heard a crack and realized what had happened. By then it was too late. She started falling and made a desperate attempt to grab hold of the trunk. The bark was just as worm eaten as the branch and came off in her hands.

Contest Winner!

The Beast Sinister - Part #3

Gerald Ryan

One of the candles on the desk flickered and blew out, the now dim light of the remaining one matching my dark mood. I put a stick of ceremonial incense into a holder and placed it next to the lonely candle and centered the Crystal in the middle of the desk. The gift dagger lay in front of it.

“It’s time to pay you a visit, Count, and look into your dark heart.”

I concentrated on the Sighting Crystal as Fescher had taught me and pushed the incense into the dancing flame. The pungent smoke tickled my nostrils with its sweet peppery smell and wafted about my head. The Crystal glowed and pulsed in its ornate golden base and I grew weary. The room became vague at the edge of my vision. A fog descended. Only the crystal burned brightly.

Contest Winner!

Tales of the Witch Clan - Part #3 (Matriarchal Mayhem)

John Stormm

The twins, Gareth and Callum, were three months old, and still on breast milk. For James, their father, this meant toting baby baggage filled with innumerable gadgets like bottles, breast pumps, binkies, disposable diapers, extra blankets, throwing knives and a semiautomatic Ruger Blackhawk.

“Mel, there’s two knives and a gun in this diaper bag!” James called out.

Editorial - Part #4 (Storyteller)

Catherine Balachowski

Welcome, Summer Adventurer it is good to see you again browsing the pages of magic and imagination. As we enter our first summer with our readers and authors we would like to thank those who support us in subscription, creative writing and surfers. It is a rough world we live in with gas prices soaring and polar caps melting, but somehow we manage to continue to embrace the vast vision of the storyteller.

The amazing thing about the storyteller is that we, as a human race, have always had one. The Elder, the Healer, the Old One and the Learned One are just some of the names humans have given to the storyteller. The Elder would gather the tribe around a fire as the day grew to a close and they would recite great feats of battle, hunting or the creation of the world. It is from these stories that writers fashion the current stories we have come to know – good vs. evil, life vs. death. As always, we, “the tribe” applaud the teller of tales and dream the story images they gave us; therefore becoming one with the adventure.

Contest Information June 2008

Catherine Balachowski

The Fantasy Gazetteer Short Story Contest for the October 2008 edition the contest begins on June 14, 2008 and ends midnight of August 2, 2008. To be entered in the Short Story category, your story must be between 500-5000 words. First Prize winners will receive $100 and Second Prize winners will receive $50. Both winners will be printed in the respective issue.

The Fantasy Gazetteer Novelette Contest for the October 2008 issue. This contest begins on April 12, 2008 and will end midnight of July 5, 2008. To be entered in Novelette category, your story must be between 10,000 and 30,000 words. First Prize winners will receive $250 and Second Prize winners will receive $200 both winners will be printed in the October 2008 issue.