Happy Halloween and Happy Book Release Day for Fairly Twisted Tales for a Horribly Ever After!
Blurb: When it comes to fairy tales, there are plenty of things that go bump in the night. Things so morbid and grotesque, so sinister and diabolical, they haunt your imagination; warnings from generations past that still manage to terrify.
In 2013, authors came together for the annual Project REUTSway writing competition, penning their own interpretive twists on stories we’re all familiar with. Seventeen were chosen, bringing twenty-five new versions to life. From The Brother’s Grimm, to Hans Christian Andersen and beyond, these tales are not the ones you grew up with. They are, however, Fairly Twisted Tales for a Horribly Ever After. Dare to find out what happens when “once upon a time” ends in the stuff of nightmares?
An exclusive hardcover will be available from REUTS Publications in the coming weeks, but you can devour these stories now for Kindle and Nook!
Two of my stories appear in the anthology:
The first is Deadman’s Ball, which is based on the Cinderella fairy tale, set in the American West, and features zombies.
The optional bonus challenge for that week of Project REUTSway was to use an unexpected location or time period. I knew right away my story would be a Western because I am a huge fan of the genre. The Victorian age saw some odd ways people dealt with death (i.e. mourning jewelry made from the hair of dead people and photographs taken of the dead dressed up and posed to look as if they were still alive). This included a fear of premature burial. I had long wanted to incorporate that into a story.
This is also the first time I have ever written a story in present tense. Just wanted to give myself the extra challenge.
Here’s a teaser:
The second is Earlobe, a sci-fi retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, set on a space station instead of the woods.
The title comes from a childhood memory. One summer when I attended camp, the word “earlobe” became a kind of code word for the campers. We would greet each other by saying “earlobe” and make the camp counselors crazy by chanting the word for no reason.
Why did we do that? I couldn’t tell you. For some reason, we thought it was hilarious.
During an overnight trip to a New Hampshire ski resort, I was waiting for my friends as their tram travelled up the mountain. As it approached the observation deck, they leaned out the window yelling, “Earlobe, earlobe, earlobe!” I thought it would be fun to change that to an elevator on the way to a space shuttle.
Here’s a teaser:
The other stories in the book are awesome and each one features a cool illustration.
Don’t forget that REUTS is having another competition this November!
This NaNoWriMo season, REUTS Publications is inviting you join us in creating the next talented collection. So brush up on your histories, legends, and cultural lore, because we’ll be looking for the most original, fantastic versions of tales that have braved the centuries. The globe-trotting of world mythology will make weekly theme stops to visit Egyptian, Celtic, and even more rich lore from other areas of the world. This all starts November 1st, so make sure to grab your pens and ready those typing muscles for the twists that will be revealed on the Project REUTSway Twitter account, or on their website.
MOON IN GEMINI 