My short story “Over a Narrow Sea” has gone live at Beneath Ceaseless Skies magazine:

This is how I choose to remember it….

 The night was a rousing success. I swept down the main staircase just before the twelfth hour’s first strike on the great hall clock as my uncle proposed his toast to the infamous Warlord of Mekk and twelve hundred other guests. I’d dressed as my uncle ordered—in my best gown with its torturous collar digging into my neck, the tight-laced boots which hid my deformity, and that inane sash dangling from my left shoulder announcing my agecoming and my position as heir to the House of Toth. If I wore also a sharp knife strapped to my thigh and the glitter of rebellion in my eyes, well…there were no such orders for those. Those were all mine. . . .

My very short piece “A Proposal for Perspective” kicks off the December 2010 issue of Semaphore Magazine, which is gorgeous and free and from New Zealand, so it could hardly be more awesome.  A teaser:

“ waxers wax lyrical of slipping into sleep,
of dipping into dreams
as though to be unconscious
for no certain duration and
with no certainty of waking
is somehow a welcome thing

how like death!
breathing, yes, but senseless . . . “

Full issue includes “A Proposal for Perspective,” by Camille Alexa; “My Dad, the Tuatara,” by A. J. Fitzwater; “Dot Come,” by Alexandra Seidel; “Passport Revoked,” by Campbell Taylor; “Prometheus (revisited),” by Alexandra Seidel; “The Minotaur’s Wife,” by Megan Arkenberg; “Ms Brellin,” by Therese Arkenberg; and “Sounds After We Were Gone,” by H. Edgar Hix.

I’m up in a short interview over at The Red Penny Papers, recent host to my serialized novella, “Particular Friends.”  Go check out our discussion of dream analysis, non-human characters, the slippery slope of inspiration, and the frailties of the weaker sex.

Those so inclined might also seize the opportunity to win a free copy of PUSH OF THE SKY via RPP‘s Serial Fiction Contest.

Lifted from RPP‘s site:

Particular Friends Contest

The Booty:
A personalized bookplate-signed copy of Camille Alexa’s Endeavor Award finalist collection, Push of the Sky.
To enter:
1. Read Particular Friends by Camille Alexa.
2. Comment before December 31 ends! Leave a comment on one–or all–of the PF episodes. Each comment counts as an entry, so up your chances of winning by commenting on all five episodes. Only one comment per episode per reader counts.

I’ll be on the road for the next few weeks, so connectedness may be spotty at best.  I’ll view it as a welcome opportunity to Write More.

Thought I’d best mention that my serialized novella “Particular Friends” will continue with its penultimate installment this weekend. A sneak peek at Episode 4 below:

Could it be so late? I sat on the edge of my bed and pulled on my boots, hastily fumbling at their buckles. A washbasin stood in one corner with a small mirror mounted on the wall above, and though the water was like ice I splashed a little upon my face and ran my fingers through my hair, hoping I looked presentable. Grabbing the only coat I owned, I raced downstairs, arriving breathless at the front desk. The porter there, a small, straight-backed, good-looking woman with three braids looped across her head, put down her book at my approach and raised one shapely brow.  

“Good Madam,” I panted, placing a hand across my chest to still my beating heart and catch my breath. “Forgive me, but what is the hour?” 

She didn’t have time to answer before a flurry of ice flakes and a blast of cold gusted into the room. I spun to see a massive shrouded figure, all motley fur and ivory claws like raking daggers, lumbering through the front door. My chest seized up and my knees turned liquid.

 . . . Read Episode 4 of “Particular Friends“ up at The Red Penny Papers this weekend. If you haven’t read the first installments,  Episode 1 here   / Episode 2 here /Episode 3 here .