Split City Waltz

Goodness, it’s been a while. Do pardon the dust in here, but I thought I’d stop by to make a quick post about a story of mine that’s being released tomorrow.

Split City Waltz is a short LGBTQ novella starring the rather conflicted private investigator Allyn Morgan. Capable, curious, flirtatious and practical, she’s a really fun character to write about, and hopefully to read about too!

She’s been hanging around inside my head for a while now, but to be honest, I just couldn’t find a world to put her in. Thankfully, an anthology call over at Less Than Three Press helped solve that problem.

Living in London was always fun, and I miss it in a lot of ways – the fast flow and constant noise. And one of the things that always struck me about being there was how divided it was between the waking hours and the darker ones. It was incredible watching as one part of society headed indoors while another slipped out into the evening light.

It was as though the whole vibe of the city changed, as the tourists made their way back to their temporary beds and the locals came out to play after a hard day’s graft.

This novella was very much inspired by the idea that a single city can have two very different sides. In this world, London is inhabited by two very different societies – one basking in the new technological advances being used above ground, and another taking refuge from it in the former underground network below.

There are two types of people in the world these days; ones who feel safe knowing someone’s watching them, and those who don’t.

Allyn couldn’t imagine a world without the chip that rests just underneath the skin of her right wrist, while a mysterious hacker named Terminal couldn’t think of anything worse. This story is about what happens when they’re forced to work together.

The London of tomorrow is a city that couldn’t care less what you do – as long as everyone can see you doing it.

It’s available from tomorrow from Less Than Three Press, Smashwords, All Romance and more!

Click here for an excerpt and links to reviews!

Slumland Symphony

Under a Rock, by Jonone (click-through for full size!)

Garrett watched the sunrise from behind an old beaten up carrier that had been gutted decades ago. All that was left was the shell, a blistered, broken mass of metal that once knew how to fly. Sad, he thought, tipping back his hat and squinting into the wind. Time was he’d have maybe been a pilot himself. Sat behind a board full of pretty blinking lights and taken off, broken atmo with a smile and a purpose and money in the bank.

There was a creak followed by a muffled snap, distant and quiet, off to his left. Someone was trying to get closer. Garrett sniffed the air, and settled his hat back firmly on his head, down over his eyes. His back was aching, pressing into the ship’s old carcass, heating up with the sun as it rose.

Another creak, light footfalls skittering over the ruins of the graveyard. Woman maybe, or a boy. Young either way, starving like the weeds that sprouted up from between the cracked dirt just to wither. Whoever they were, they were getting closer and moving faster. Figured him for an easy mark, sleeping under the sky, miles from anyone who might give a fig about justice or the proper way of settling things…

It was a Dark, Stormy Morning…

INT. A SMALL HOME OFFICE/STUDY – DAWN

The room is long with a high ceiling, the walls are littered with bookshelves stacked between an old IKEA a style desk. There’s a blackout blind covering the only window.

INSERT: DESKTOP

The screen on the computer monitor reads BLOGGING 101. Today’s Task: Introduce yourself to the world!

BACK TO SCENE

ADA sits slumped over in front of it, chin resting on her arms.

ADA
Oh dear, I really should have thought this through.

Arrival

Late for the Train by alexiuss (for Romantically Apocalyptic)

They arrived at a brightly lit, mismatched station. Millie ignored the hushed whimpering of her fellow passengers as the train came to a stop. She clambered up onto one of the seats to get a better look. She pressed her hands against the window.

Tall brick columns stretched up into nowhere, as though at some point there had been a ceiling to hold up. There wasn’t one now, and if Millie tilted her head back far enough she could see the gloomy sky above. The platform they had come to a halt in front of was one of many, cut into several rows, with different tracks running between them. Rusted pipelines, some glowing hot, snaked along the outline of the station, spewing steam into the open air…

Hope everyone had a lovely Sunday! As per, a new chapter of Underground is up over on JukePop Serials, you should totally go read it and let me know what you think. :D

Carriages

The train eased into the station on silent tracks and Aidan looked up to watch the doors slide open. A crowd had gathered along the length of the platform, their silent figures bent solemn against the shadows. They made no move to board, but there was no great hurry.

Above them, suspended by twisting metal was a clock with only one hand. Aidan watched it tick slowly round and wondered, certainly not for the first time, when it had come into being. Perhaps it had always been there, and he’d simply neglected to look at it. Or maybe enough people had come through believing that the station should have one, that the clock had barged into existence the same way the train had after the rivers had run dry…

Hi everyone! Here’s a post to let you know the third chapter of Underground is up over on JukePop and you can read it by clicking here! Yay!

Departure

Classroom by GIANTSTUDIO

Today Millie was an apostle. The Quiet Room carpet was rough under her knees and her hair tickled the back of her neck as she bent her head, pretending to pray.

Mrs Andrews had started the lesson by telling them a story about the Holy Spirit visiting those chosen men and that they had all ran away at the sight of it. Now the class was acting it out, and while Millie could see the logic behind running from a bright shining light, the figure stumbling towards her didn’t exactly inspire fear…

Hey guys, just a quick post to let you know the second chapter of Underground is up over on JukePop and you can read it by clicking here!

White Spaces

Click through to read the story over on JukePop!

The bus was a green line RCL model routemaster, beautifully preserved. The seats were clean and comfortable, the patterns on the fabric the bright and nauseating sort you tended to find on public transport. It looked as though no one had ever sat on them. The metal bars on the backs were polished to a shine and free of fingerprints. Were it not for the lingering whiff of old tobacco in the air, you’d have thought the bus fresh off the production line…

Well, the lovely team over at JukePop Serials accepted my submission, so the first chapter of Underground is now live for you to read! If you fancy a little more dark fantasy in your life, please check it out and let me know what you think. And if you have an account over there already, voting and commenting would be fantastic too!

For those who have read my previous post, you know that Millie’s story has been ten years in the making and I’m really excited about finally sharing it with you all. And also terrified. Maybe a little coffee addled…

I should probably go lie down.

Ten Years in the Making

As any well weathered traveler will tell you, it’s usually best to abide by the rules of the places you find yourself in. But when the first rule is that no one living should be there, abandoning all hope may be the least of your concerns.

When eleven year old Millie finds herself stepping through the dark and onto a strange-looking train, there’s not an awful lot she can do. Without her parents and the comfort of familiar surroundings, Millie is left to ask strangers for help. But the other passengers are silent and sorrowful, looking anywhere but at her – and they won’t tell her the name of the next stop…

It’s hard to believe really, but this novel (my first, completed, honest to god finished novel) has taken me over a decade to write. It started life as short story in my first semester at university and by the end of the term I was pretty damn sure the bloody thing was cursed.