Writing for the Love

Space Stations, Moon Colonies, A Space Bridge, & A Lone Survivor Valla Hale is trapped aboard Earth S-1 Station where an unexplained mass casualty event has left her devastated and alone. But everything is on lock-down and she's running out of time to escape. LISTEN NOW Click HERE for the Free Podcast Episode Fullcast Production = voice actors, sound effects, & music ME: Mind Blown! via GIPHY Winner of the Journey Into Writing Contest About two and a half years ago, I wrote a speculative fiction story for a podcast contest. The contest rules were simple: the title must include "Journey Into," the genre should be spec fic (science fiction, fantasy, and/or horror), and there had to be a journey of some kind within the story. For the contest, I wanted to write a science fiction story involving isolation either on or near the moon. I brainstormed ways to incorporate a moon colony. Eventually, I decided to set the story on a space s...

Listen to " A Dream Within A Dream ," my first audio production which is featured on the Journey Into... podcast. I narrated the story and freesound.org provided the sound effects, including the music. It's free to listen to the short story on your computer, smartphone, tablet, or any device that links to the web. More detailed instructions at the end of this post. PODCASTING: HOW I ENDED UP PRODUCING A STORY I've been a fan of the Journey Into... podcast for several years now. The host, Marshal Latham, presents narrated fiction stories, sometimes full cast readings, along with Old Time Radio Shows (think Orson Welles, classic Hitchcock adaptations, The Shadow, The Lone Ranger, X-Minus One science fiction, etc). A couple of years ago, Marshal hosted an Edgar Allan Poe writing contest. Stories had to be titled after a work of Poe's, but the rest was up to the author. I wrote "A Dream Within A Dream," but my submission got lost in cyber space. ...

Another short story published! And this one, anyone can read. " Ticket to Heaven " is now available online at Faith Hope and Fiction . I wrote this piece in 2005, a year or so out of college. It sat in my computer files getting digitally dusty, but I've always had a difficult time figuring out what I should do with it. The story is about a college-aged drug addict in-denial who encounters an old man handing out tickets to heaven. After she accepts the ticket, a miracle happens and leads her on a path to redemption. The story includes, among other things, drug use, a Bible-quoting drug dealer, and the Gospel message. Why has it been so difficult for me to find a place to submit the story? It's not because of the drug use or real-world scenarios, but because most of the magazines accepting spiritual/inspirational/Christian themes want non-fiction. I've had a really hard time finding places that accept Christian fiction. The word count was a litt...

Readers can still download a free Kindle copy of " On Both Sides " now through Friday. On the Amazon Best Seller list, "On Both Sides" hit #2 in the Top Free Historical Fiction Short Stories. The story, a blend of historical and science fiction, is told from the perspective of two young people with opposing views of the American Revolution. Young Robby Freeman believes that independence is the answer for the colonists, and the only way they will ever truly be free. Miss Olivia Wilton hopes that the war will not spoil her social calendar, and can't wait for the British army to overpower the colonial militants so that she can continue enjoying her balls and parties. Tying them both together is a mysterious woman named Lady Maryanne Carrington. Her disappearance leads them both down a path they could never have imagined. Here's an excerpt from the short story: When her father and Colonel Denton returned, a strange relief flooded through Olivia. “Well,...

For the next thirteen weeks, I'm hosting author interviews from The Prometheus Saga on my blog. Look for them each Monday. AUTHOR KEN PELHAM Our featured author today is Ken Pelham , author of " First World War ", a short story in The Prometheus Saga . " First World War " is available for FREE on Kindle today, 2/9 - 2/13, so be sure to download your copy! Welcome, Ken. Tell us, what inspired you to launch / join the Alvarium Experiment? For years, writers have been hearing, “Avoid the short story! There’s no money and no future in it! Write only novels, dammit!” But there’s been a sea change, caused by online publishing. Short is GOOD again. I’ve always loved short stories and have always wanted to be included in an anthology, so over the last year or two I’d been thinking about submitting work to an anthology somewhere. I’d been following some of the cool things authors like Hugh Howey were espousing, taking advantage of the amazing flexibility of th...

 Welcome to the Future anthology Includes my short story, "In Line at the DMYV" Amazon Kindle Edition (ebook) Paperback (link pending) Story Description: Katelin has to decide whether or not to kill someone during her mandatory visit to the DMYV. Either way, she might not make it out alive. I'm thrilled to have this science fiction piece published. The paperback is coming soon. Stay tuned.

I'm overjoyed to present to you the cover for "On Both Sides," my short story contribution to The Prometheus Saga. I hope you're as impressed as I am. As you may guess from the cover, my story is set during the American Revolution. The cover artist, Charles A. Cornell, is also a contributor to the saga. He did an excellent job on all fourteen covers for this unique short story collection. We have a Facebook Page where you can preview all the covers. Please click the link and LIKE the page! Each of the short stories in The Prometheus Saga will be published individually in the Kindle Store, hence a different cover for each story. This is just one of the unique concepts for the collection. Next up: the release date will be announced soon. Stay tuned!

The question was posed: What is the Alvarium Experiment? Finally, the big reveal. The Alvarium Experiment is not so much a what, but a whom. Twelve award-winning authors are collaborating on a new kind of short story collection. I feel so very humbled to have been asked to join this experiment. That begs another question. What is the collection called? Answer: The Prometheus Saga The Prometheus Saga will be released in mid-to-late January 2015. The authors are...drumroll please... Charles A. Cornell (founder) Ken Pelham (founder) Bard Constantine Kay Kendall Parker Franci s Jade Kerrion Daco M.J. Carlson Elle Andrews Patt Doug Dandridge Antonio Simon, Jr. Bria Burton (me!) The experimental aspect involves the method by which readers will experience this new collection. Each author was given a general premise for one central character that must be incorporated into each story. The premise boundaries (within the science fiction genre) prov...

"The Darkness Below" appears in The Colored Lens #13 Autumn 2014 issue. The speculative fiction magazine is $2.99 in the Kindle Store. Prime members and Kindle Unlimited subscribers read for free.  It's like a dream come true. Almost in the literal sense. This sci-fi story was based on a vivid dream I had fifteen years ago. The journey to publication was a long one, but worth the wait. About the story: Captain Erin Waite and her team descend into the depths of a cave in search of an alien, but what they discover is beyond anything they could've imagined. This is my first paid publication. See my name down there? On the cover? Right side? That's me! It's official. Also visit the magazine's website http://thecoloredlens.com . I've decided to give the concise version for this story's publication journey. For full details, click HERE and you'll be directed to the complete explanation. "The Darkness Below" is about 9...

"Switching," a fantasy short story, appeared on the Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine podcast on August 29, 2014. Click the image above or click  H ERE  to listen (it's free). Or see my handy dandy instructions below for listening on iTunes. Subscribe to the podcast while you're there (also free) if you enjoy listening to speculative fiction stories performed with voice actors and special effects (note the explicit warning, episodes are not rated and may not be suitable for children). A brief description of my story from their website: When Crystal awakens in another woman’s body, she thinks she knows what she’s there for, but this switch is different than her past experiences. The hosts of the show, Rish Outfield and Big Anklevich, ran a contest last year called the Triple Word Score Contest. My story was selected as one of the winners. After signing up for the contest, the hosts drew three words out of a hat for every contestant. My three words we...

"Ligeia," a science fiction short story, appeared on the Journey Into... podcast today. Click the image above or click  H ERE  to listen (it's free). Or see my handy dandy instructions below for listening on iTunes. Subscribe to the podcast while you're there (also free) if you love stories of mystery, fantasy, science, old time radio, adventure, horror, and the unknown. I really liked the brief description of my story on the website: Kraykor is driven to the edge of space, and the only way to escape death is by entering into Ligeia. The host of the show, Marshal Latham, ran a contest last year called the Edgar Allan Poe Writing Contest. My story was selected as one of the winners. The story had to be titled after any EAP work (short story or poem). Otherwise, the only requirement was a Poe "vibe." I'm thrilled with the final product. Marshal even asked me to read lines and included my reading in the story. I'm the voice of Mirka, the wi...

Because I'm spending most of my time writing Lance & Ringo Tails and editing Livinity , I haven't devoted any time to my blogs lately (this one or Anti-Running Runner , but Lance & Ringo Tails blog is updated regularly). I do give updates on Twitter @briaburton for anyone who wants to follow my feed. So here's a brief update. I attended the FWA Conference in October, and it was a wonderful time as always. The sessions were extremely informative and I love seeing friends from previous conferences and hearing about their writing progress. My short story, "The Price of Integrity" was published in FWA Collection #5 It's a Crime . I've decided to take all of my short stories from Lance & Ringo Tails and put them into a collection that will be available as a print and e-book to be released Dec 15th. Tail Ten will be exclusively featured in this collection. The other nine "tails" are currently available in the Kindle Store . Abo...

One of my first short stories, "The Mute Girl," was published in eFantasy March 2013 issue. This is my first e-mag short story publication. About four years ago, I wrote the story and decided that I wanted to have it published. I'd been working on my novel, Livinity , epic fantasy, for quite a while. Publishing a fantasy short story seemed like a good idea to get my name out there. I had no idea it would take this long, and even now I praise God that it wasn't published any sooner. Since that time, I've learned a lot in the submission process. Perseverance. Thankfulness to Jesus even in the disappointment of repeated rejection. I lost count of how many the piece received. I learned not to take rejection to heart. If I received feedback, I tried it out. Maybe not following exact recommendations, but I played around with whatever issues the person had with the story. The last piece of valuable advice I received was an editor disappointed in the ending. T...

After the FWA Conference, there is so much that I'm eager to share. Unfortunately, life hasn't paused to allow me to take much breath since the conference ended. The day after, I immediately returned to the day job. I wish I could have spent the day processing the wealth of information I received at the conference, but such is the life of a writer with a day job. Sadly, we discovered a leak in our bathroom that has led to unplanned house renovations of three bedrooms and our hallway. Luckily, I have an extremely handy hubby who is doing most of the work himself. I've also done two half marathons since the conference. That has taken up lots of time due to training. The training did pay off, and I did well at both races and had an awesome time. I'll be posting about the conference soon, but wanted to take a moment to announce that My Wheels , the FWA collection that just came out with my latest short story publication, is now available for purchase onlin...

I'm very excited for the upcoming FWA Conference. It starts this Friday, and I'm carpooling and rooming with my dear friend, Rachel. She and I met at the conference last year, and she ended up joining my critique group shortly after. One of the other reasons I'm excited is that I made it into the FWA short story collection for the third year in a row. PTL! My science fiction short story, "The Wheels Must Turn," will appear in FWA Collection #4  My Wheels . The book debuts at the conference, and I get to join the other fifty-nine authors in a group book signing. The story is about a young narrator who comes to grips with the death of her father aboard a spaceship. This is my fourth year attending the FWA Conference. It's strange, I know, that I won First Place in the Royal Palm Literary Awards at last year's conference in the Unpublished Fantasy novel category...and I'm still re-editing Livinity . I received a rejection from an agent a few mont...

I'm happy to announce that my short story, "The Wheels Must Turn," made it into this year's FWA Collection #4- My Wheels . Praise the Lord! This is the third year in a row that I've gotten a story into the colletion and I'm still excited about it. Publication doesn't really get old. The sci-fi story is about a young narrator coming to grips with the death of her father. On to other topics that have been on my mind. For some reason, I can't seem to write about my writing more than once a month. I'm not sure if it matters or not. I write on my running blog, The Anti-Running Runner , more. I write on my fiction novels and short stories WAY more. Which is probably the reason why. I listen to podcasts a lot (another reason why?), and I was introduced to The Roundtable Podcast from the guys over at The Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine . If you are a writer, published or not, I highly recommend adding Roundtable to your iTunes subscriptions (it...

If I do nothing, the most predictable thing will happen. Nothing. I can write in my journals, at my computer, create stories and novels all day long. But only when I send them out into the world will anything happen with them. Otherwise, they are just for me. It makes me happy to write, and maybe that is enough. I don't have to have validation through other people to be satisfied about my writing. However, my goal has always been to write books that other people can read. I've got a start. I have two short stories published in FWA collections. I have my first paid short story publication coming out in March 2013. I have two completed novels, and lots of completed short stories. I realize that I have been letting the rejections come in without sending the stories back out as quickly. It's hitting me how behind I am in the submitting process. I believe it takes hard work to be a published writer. Technically, I am a published wr...

In the midst of rejections, it's so nice to have good news sprinkled in. I'm so grateful for the gift of writing, and I truly believe it comes from God. I have to praise him for these moments. My short story, "Ma Says," was accepted into the FWA Collection #3 called Let's Talk coming out in October. This is my second short story ever to come out in print. I'm a semi-finalist in the Able Muse Fiction Write Prize contest! I've never been a semi-finalist in a writing contest before, and I'm thrilled to have made it this far. I don't have any expectations, and I'm happy just to have that good news emailed to me today. Praise Jesus for good news!

“I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13, NAS) YES. That blessed word. After three rejections, I finally got to hear it. Reading the FWA email (“Your piece has been selected”) caused the yes to resound in my mind with the accompaniment of bells ringing and trumpets bleating. I had to leap from my seat to let out the yes, raise my hands in victory with the family members present, and we celebrated my first short story publication. As for the three rejections, I mentioned the poetry one in the last entry. Then my fantasy short story came back with a note: “This piece didn’t grab my attention.” Thanks to some friendly advice (Hea!), I’m reworking that piece and will try submitting again. Lastly, a flash fiction piece I entered in a contest did not win. The yes email came from the Florida Writers Association (FWA). I am an active member, and only members could submit to their latest publication. Last year, they put out a collection of sixty short sto...

My short story, "The Mute Girl," is on its way to The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction . I am to expect a reply no sooner than eight weeks. One week has passed since I mailed the story, but I’m not sure what date it would have arrived to the editor’s desk. I am praying for them to accept the piece for publication, but it feels like a long shot. I have my dad and others praying as well. If you know my dad (you probably do), you know he is the type of prayer warrior that moves mountains. While I enjoy writing novels and short stories the most, I have penned a few poems as well. In college, my creative writing minor required I take a poetry class. It’s not my strong point, but I took my three best poems and submitted them to Rosebud Magazine a few weeks ago with no expectations. I may or may not bother again since I don’t plan to proliferate poetry. We’ll see. I received a pleasant email response from the poetry editor. It was encouraging to hear that he enjoyed readi...