Happy New Year

Well 2013 is over, and it's been a great year.  A big thank you to all the fans who made this year so amazing.  I've had several stories published, started this blog, and was selected as one of the Wordhaus Best Of 2013.  Congratulations to Kathie Green who was the first big winner of what I hope will become an annual ebook giveaway.  Keep checking back in here through the coming year as there will be lots more to come!

Cheers, and a happy new year.

Sebastian

Time Is Running Out To Win

The time is running out to win!  To celebrate my story "Worth Your Weight In Gold?" being selected as one of Wordhaus' best of 2013 I will be giving away one copy of the best of collection ebook.  The Best Of Wordhaus 2013 is available from Smashwords.com for $2.99 USD.  For that low price you get the 10 of the best stories from 2013 as voted by the Wordhaus readers.  Now how do you get your free copy you ask?  Simple, just follow me online.  You can follow me on Google+, enter your email to follow this blog, like me on Facebook, or follow me on Twitter.  Each way you follow me counts as one entry, so the more ways you sign up, the more likely you are to win!  If you already follow me, don't worry, you've already been entered to win.  The winner will be drawn on December 23rd, so you will have the book for the holidays.

Good luck everyone.

Best Of Wordhaus 2013 Contest

To celebrate my story "Worth Your Weight In Gold?" being selected as one of Wordhaus' best of 2013 I will be giving away one copy of the best of collection ebook.  The Best Of Wordhaus 2013 is available from Smashwords.com for $2.99 USD.  For that low price you get the 10 of the best stories from 2013 as voted by the Wordhaus readers.  Now how do you get your free copy you ask?  Simple, just follow me on the internet.  You can join me on Google+, enter your email to follow this blog, like me on Facebook, or follow me on Twitter.  Each way you follow me counts as one entry, so the more ways you sign up, the more likely you are to win!  If you already follow me, don't worry, you've already been entered to win.  The winner will be contacted on December 23rd, so you will have the book for the holidays.

Good luck everyone.

Best Of Wordhaus 2013

It's here!  The Best Of Wordhaus 2013 ebook is available here.  It's only $2.99 USD, so will make a great gift.  The book compiles the 10 best stories of 2013, from Science Fiction, Romance and Mystery/Thriller.  This includes my story "Worth Your Weight In Gold?"  I'm very proud to have been selected for this great compilation.

"Worth Your Weight In Gold?" Selected One Of Wordhaus.com Best Of 2013

I'm excited to announce that "Worth Your Weight In Gold?" has been selected as one of the Best Of Wordhaus.com 2013.  Thanks to everyone who voted.  The story will be included in a best of collection coming soon.  Keep posted for the release date.

You can check out the original story here.

You should also give the other stories a read.  Unless of course you want to wait for the ebook release.

Thanks

A big thank you to all who voted for my story, "Worth Your Weight In Gold?" for Best Of Wordhaus 2013.  Results are being compiled now.  I'll let you know if it was selected or not in the coming weeks.  In the mean time if you haven't read this story, you can find it here:  http://www.wordhaus.com/2013/01/02/sci-fifantasy-worth-your-weight-in-gold/.  You can also find my last story "Lady Of Grey" in my previous post.  Again, thanks for everyone's support.

Lady of Grey

Happy Halloween!  Here's a horror story just in time for my favorite holiday:

Lady of Grey

By Sebastian Tolhurst

                The world explodes, flashes and goes black.  Everything stays black.  Where am I, what happened to me?  The only sound in the blackness is a gentle ringing. 

My eyes are squeezed tightly shut.  I gently pry my eyes open, and the black is washed out in a painful flare.  The landscape is momentarily washed out by the bright sun, slowly taking shape around me.  I’m on my knees in the middle of a wide field.  Around me the long glass stands perfectly still.  A red mist hangs in the air in front of me, giving the scene the monochromatic appearance of a cheap horror movie.  I peer around the mist, trying to get a better view of my surroundings.  The field is broad, the golden blades of grass glowing in the bright sunlight.  There’s something odd about the light, a wall of shadow cloaks everything beyond the limits of the field.  My eyes must be deceiving me; it’s summer in the field, but the surrounding country appears to be locked in the grey of winter.  Gnarled, dead trees mark the edge of the clearing.

                How did I get here?  Last I remembered I was in the city.  I remember fear, but nothing more.  Who am I?  Even that’s gone.

                I try to move, but my arms are pinned behind my back.  I strain, but all I do is hurt my wrists.  My legs are numb, and refuse to listen to my demands.

                A flicker of movement at the edge of the clearing breaks my focus.  I stop my efforts, gazing intensely where the shadows have begun to dance.  Slowly a figure steps from the dark.  It’s an old woman.  She’s wrapped head to toe in coarse dirty cloth, a black shawl wrapped tightly around her head, her long grey hair trailing behind.

                “Help me, help me!” I yell.

                She doesn’t respond, continuing to move slowly in my direction.  Her hair is flows behind her, moving in slow motion, like it’s suspended in water.  As she moves the shadowy curtain is pulled along behind her, like it’s affixed to her back.

                I’m starting to panic.  I scream at my legs to move, but they remain as deaf as ever.

                As the figure moves on, wild flowers wilt and die around her.  As the pedals drop they become great grey moths in mid-air.  The moths flit around her, landing only to tear holes in the ragged cloth draped over her body.  The skin beneath is grey and loose, like a corpse that’s been underwater for weeks.  Beneath the shawl all that shows of her face are two eyes that seem to be all black pupil.  Those eyes never leave me, never blinking.

                I’m straining at my body, desperate to get something moving.  My heart should be pounding in my chest, but I can’t feel it beat at all.  I throw my head back and scream until my lungs are empty.  When I bring my head forward again she’s looming over me.  Hundreds of moths flit around us, blotting out the sun.  Never taking her unblinking stare off me, she slowly unwraps the shawl from her head.  As she does her mouth falls open.  It drops half way down her chest, her jaw not connected to her face.  The skin stretches around the great gaping black hole of her toothless mouth.  She begins to inhale, making a horrible rasping sound.  I feel a pressure building in my head.  She keeps inhaling, her lungs should surely burst.  The pressure keeps building, I feel like my brain is being pulled through my skull.  The world is starting to distort, curving into that gaping maw.  I can feel myself being drawn closer……closer…….

                Two men leave a field, where three had entered.

Time's Running Out!

Time's running out to vote for my story "Worth Your Weight In Gold?" for best of 2013 on Wordhaus.  Voting ends November 1st, so get on your twitter feeds now, and give a poor guy hunched over his keyboard a hand.  If you already voted, my eternal thanks (also there's no limit to the number of times you can vote, so piss off your followers and vote again!)  If you don't have a Twitter account, you can vote by tagging #bestofwordhaus in the comments section at the bottom.  Also, every vote you make gives you a chance to win the final ebook of the best of Wordhaus from 2013, so vote to your hearts content.  You can vote by following the link at the top of the story here:  http://www.wordhaus.com/2013/01/02/sci-fifantasy-worth-your-weight-in-gold/.

Thanks

Sebastian

Worth Your Weight In Gold? up for best of the year at Wordhaus.com

My story Worth Your Weight In Gold? is up for best of 2013 on Wordhaus.com.  If you have twitter, and like the story, you will earn my eternal gratitude by voting for the story here:  http://www.wordhaus.com/2013/01/02/sci-fifantasy-worth-your-weight-in-gold/.  If my gratitude isn't enough, you will automatically be entered to win a free copy of the best of 2013 ebook when it comes out.

Thanks

Sebastian

The Love Letter

My Dearest Love

                It’s been just a month since we parted, but I miss you with an ache that grows stronger each day.  I have been unable to focus on my duties, as my days are filled with day dreams of you.  Every time I let my mind wander, it travels directly to the time we spent at the cottage.

               I vividly remember our nightly walks to the bluff over the great lava lake.  How we would stand hand in hand, watching the waves beat against the rocks, sending glowing shards of glass up into the cool night sky.  Do you remember how I climbed down as low as I dared to collect still warm glass shards for you?  Do you still wear the necklace I made with them for you?

                As I write this, I twirl the fire blossom you picked me from the cliff side.  It doesn’t glow in this unnatural light, the way it did the night you gave it to me.  It hasn’t lost its smell though, the cooling odour which sends a shiver down my spine.  When I smell it I can still picture you handing it to me.  It sparkled bright pink in your cupped hands, while your pale eyes glowed in the red light of the lava lake.  It was such a rare gift, such a perfect symbol of our love.

                I’ve secretly rotated the ship so my cabin looks out on the same stars we did all those nights by the lake.  I lay in bed, looking out my port and imagine I am back lying next to you.  Your slender body tucked into my arms as we gazed on the heavens.  I remember how we would lie for hours in complete silence, just happy to be close.  Gradually the passion of the scene would build in us, until we could deny each other no longer.  How we would kiss urgently, crushing our mouths together.  How your forked tongue danced across my mouth like electricity.

                I confess my dreams are dominated by the nights we spent in the cottage by the lake.  They are so vivid I awake with my throat burning, as though I was still breathing deep the sulphurous air.  I dream of our coupling.  My pale hands where like ghosts, as they caressed your black skin in the dark.  They would grab tightly onto the ridges of your back, while you raked my smooth back with your claws.  You would wrap your tails lovingly around my neck, pulling me closer as we joined.  After we would collapse exhausted together.  You would tuck your body into my warm mass, pulling your long limbs close.  I miss the sighs you made as would gently rub your cool silky skin, sending you slowly to sleep.

                We still have another month to go before we reach Earth; and then I will have to endure another month before I finally start back toward your embrace.  I’m going to try and shorten our time on Earth as much as possible.  It will cause friction with the crew, to leave their homes early.  But I don’t think any of them will ever know how it is to miss someone the way I miss you.

               Write me soon, I long to hear a kind word from your hands.

               Until I see you next, know that you will be lighting my dreams.  I love you with every inch of my being.

Captain Scott Cooke

Life Of The Pawn

My story "Life Of The Pawn" has been posted on Wordhaus.com.  You can find it here:  http://www.wordhaus.com/2013/09/18/life-of-the-pawn/ .  Hope you all enjoy!

One Day As A Lamb

*Previously published in Canadian Stories magazine, December 2012/January 2013 issue.

This is my only foray into non-fiction published thus far.

I’ve always enjoyed working alone in the bush.  A lot of people prefer the safety of working with a partner, which is alright if you end up with a like minded individual who’s happy to walk in silence.  You don’t always get to choose your partner however, and this can lead to an entire day of forced small talk and awkward silences.  When you work alone, you are free to wander the landscape at peace with your surroundings, with only your thoughts to keep you company.  It also allows you to walk silently through the woods, leading to close encounters with many animals, which I find almost spiritual.  I’ll never forget sitting, eating my lunch while a cow moose stood eating reeds at the mouth of a creek not 50 paces away.  Or wandering into a clearing, startling a Lynx who’d been relaxing in the sun.  Or all the times I just sat watching whiskey jacks flit from tree to tree.  I’d encountered my fair share of bears in the past, and have continued to since, but these meetings have always been resolved through mutual respect, both of us going our separate ways.  It’s always the one exception that sticks in your mind.

I was working in a small town near Thunder Bay, just off the Trans Canada Highway.  As usual I’d chosen to work alone.  We were mapping grids cut through the forest, prospecting the rocks for copper.  I’d arrived at a small, but steep valley.  I clambered down into the valley, the sun beating down on.  By the time I’d reached the floor I was covered in dirt and sweat.  As I started climbing the gentle slope on the other side, I was happy to find a small outcrop in the shade of a stand of tall pines.  I’d dropped my pack and been diligently hammering away at the rocks when I heard a sound that raised the hairs on my neck.  Those of you who have spent time in the wilderness will already know every animal sounds different when they walk.  A moose will pick each step carefully, and so will be heard to carefully make it’s through the woods in 4:4 time.  A squirrel will move in a series of short, quick bursts of speed.  A bear will roll when it walks, it’s back legs quickly trying to catch up with its front.  As I’m bent over this rock, focused on my work, I hear slowly coming up the valley “whump, whump, whump”.  I stand up and turn around just in time to see a big black bear come wandering through the valley, about 25 paces away.  He turned and looked up the line at me, then very stealthily slipped behind a boulder, never taking his eyes off of me. I didn’t like this, he was behaving far too predatory for my comfort.  I didn’t panic though; I reached into my bag for my handy bear deterrents; bear spray and bear bangers.  Bear spray is a big nasty can of mace, which is best left as a final deterrent, as the bear must be close, and it’s almost impossible not to spray yourself at the same time.  Many a person has spent a few panicked moments blind, wondering if the bear has run off to dunk its face in the nearest lake, or if they’re standing waiting to feel the massive claws rake across their body.  Bear bangers are small explosive flares that can be fired from handheld launchers about the size of a large pen.  I loaded a flare into the launcher and shot a bear banger straight into the air.  It flew up, leaving a trail of sulphurous smoke behind it, but no bang.  The bear continued to stare at me, sniffing the air.  I quickly reloaded the launcher, and held it above my head, sending another flare into the air between us.  This one turned out to be faulty as well, as it began cart wheeling in the air as soon as it left the launcher, before finally shooting straight back at me, to explode next to my left ear.  I looked at the bear again, with my heart beating a mile a minute, and a loud ringing in my ear.  The bear was unmoved by all this drama, he just continued staring at me.  I finally decided to abandon the rock for today, and move on a bit.  I shouldered by bag, and began backing slowly away.  The bear began following me, moving from the boulder to a closer tree.  I began to pick up my pace, with the bear slowly following behind me.  He didn’t look like he was sure if I was competition or prey.  Fortunately the way out of the valley became a steep slope of loose talus leading to a small, but steep cliff.  I climbed up the talus slope as quickly as I could, careful not to lose my balance and go sliding down to land at the feet of the bear like a ham wrapped in ribbon.  Finally I reached the base of the cliff.  I turned and looked at the bear below me.  To this day I swear he shrugged before wandering back down into the valley, and continuing on his way.

I climbed up the cliff and continued by work up along the rest of the line.  At lunch we all met to see how we were progressing.  I was sure to stick with the others for the rest of the afternoon.  Despite this close encounter I still prefer to work alone, and have managed to maintain a healthy working relationship with the bears of Canada.

The Limelight (An acrostic horror)

Audiences are as fickle as spoilt children.

Beat them down, break them, batter them, it makes no difference.

Criss-crossing before the gathered I orate, gesturing broadly, pouring out my soul.

Doesn’t matter though; try as I may, the audience’s eyes drift from me to the minutiae of their surroundings.

Even with their lives on the line, you can’t hold people’s attention for more than a few minutes.

Forget them, for they are not the true audience, I must focus where my attention is most needed.

Gathering myself I resume my oration into the glare of the cameras.

“How can decent people stand by while a government unjustly imprisons its own citizens for the crime of belief?”

“I can no longer stand idle, and neither should you.”

“Just five minutes left for the government to release my brothers, or I will execute all the hostages you see behind me.”

Killing, how did it ever come to this?

Love, love for all mankind is what we preach, but they have forced me to this.

“Make up your mind people; will you stand for a government that would allow innocents to die in order to suppress what they consider dangerous thinking?”

Nervous looks are coming from my brothers at arms.

Once we had set upon this course, I don’t think anybody seriously thought it would come this far.

Pragmatic thinking would suggest any sane person would release a few dozen non-violent prisoners rather than allow innocent citizens to suffer.

Quickly I puff out my chest, and nod to each of them in turn to show my resolve has not faltered.

“Reality will soon set in across this country; your government does not care about you.”

“Some of you are probably thinking, why should you care about a small group with some strange ideas?”

“Time will come when you will be next on their list, and who will step up when they come for you?”

“Unless you all rally together soon, it will be too late.”

Very slowly the second hand crawls around the clock, but still the cell phone in my hand remains silent.

With time almost run down I turn my weapon on the crowd, but nobody is paying attention, nobody sees me.

Xenophobic morons the lot of them anyway, I don’t feel the least bit of sympathy.

“Your government does this, not I.”

Zero hour and I know what must be done.

Christmas With Grandpa

A little blast from the past.  This is actually my first published story, published in the Cobden Sun when I was a young country boy.  Hope you enjoy my first stumbling attempt at prose.

Worth Your Weight In Gold?

I've had another sci-fi story published online.  It's called "Worth Your Weight In Gold?" about deep space mining.  Enjoy!
http://www.wordhaus.com/2013/01/02/sci-fifantasy-worth-your-weight-in-gold/

The Garden Blooms In Silver

My first story has been published on Devilfish Review.  It's called "The Garden Blooms In Silver."  I hope you enjoy it:  http://devilfishreview.com/archives/issues/issue-three/the-garden-blooms-in-silver-by-sebastian-tolhurst/