Jean Marie Ward

Six Sentence Sunday: “Green Eyes”

Sunday, January 29th, 2012 | Author: jmward14 | green eyes, jean marie ward, short story, six sentence sunday | 14 Comments

For the regulars here, this story is old news. But it’s only six sentences long, and for Six Sentence Sunday, I couldn’t resist:

“He came in through the window,” the princess said. As if that explained everything.
Fortunately, for her father the sultan, it did. The sultan ordered the harem eunuchs to remove the corpse of the Byzantine ambassador’s brash young son, and the wedding went forward as planned.
Nine months to the day, the caliph’s beautiful new wife delivered to her aged husband a fine, lusty son. The boy’s eyes were the same shade of pale green as the caliph’s–well, close enough.

Six Sentence Sunday: “Lord Bai and the Magic Pirate”

Sunday, January 22nd, 2012 | Author: jmward14 | jean marie ward, short story, six sentence sunday | 8 Comments

This week’s Six Sentence Sunday feature is the opening of a story I just finished. It was timely when I started it, but even more so now.

“What do spells, copying and writing have to do with pirates?” Lord Bai, White Dragon of the West, whined—no, repined in a light baritone befitting his human form.
“Not ‘copying and writing’—copy rights,” hissed the sorcery student sitting next to him. “Like Professor Yeoh said: All magicians are endowed as creators with certain unalienable rights, among them the right to profit from all copies of their spells, amulets and charms.”
“Even if somebody else does the copying?”
“Exactly.”

Web love for The Modern Fae’s Guide

Saturday, January 21st, 2012 | Author: jmward14 | jean marie ward | No Comments

Hard to believe, but the release date for The Modern Fae’s Guide to Surviving Humanity is only six weeks away! Things are heating up on the promotional front, too. (Yes!)

Jessica at Waiting on Wednesday has listed The Modern Fae’s Guide as one of the books she wants to read, because it sounds like fun and offers stories from a lot of new-to-her authors. Hoping the book satisfies on all counts, Jessica.

Meanwhile, you can win a copy of your very own from Goodreads. A great book, for free! It simply doesn’t get better than that.

And while we’re on the subject of great reads, don’t forget Leaves of Flame, Benjamin Tate’s follow-up to his excellent Well of Sorrows. Benjamin, in case you don’t know, is who Modern Fae editor Joshua Palmatier is when he’s not at home. You won’t be disappointed!

Six Sentence Sunday: “Billy’s Monster”

Sunday, January 15th, 2012 | Author: jmward14 | Blog, anthology, jean marie ward, jeanmarieward.com, short story, six sentence sunday | 11 Comments

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This week’s Six Sentence Sunday offers offers the opening of a story you can read right now, “Billy’s Monster” from Hellfire Lounge 2: Rat Pack Redux. If you like your horror with a big helping of humor and fun, this is the book for you. I haven’t posted my usual information slug on the main page only because resizing the cover is giving me grief. The delay is killing me, too. In addition to great stories by C.J. Henderson, Danielle Ackley-McPhail, KT Pinto, Robert Waters and our fearless editor (and he has to be!) Rick Allen Leider, the book features a fabulous cover by Ben Fogletto and amazing interior art by Ed Coutts, Ben Fogletto, Denny Fincke, Jason Whitley and Paul London. (Face it, I’m all about the pictures. )

“Billy’s Monster”

Billy was six years old when he brought home a monster. It had sharp, pointed teeth all around its mouth like a possum. Two rows of three stubby horns each grew from its forehead. Its spotted feathers were as soft as bunny fur, and it churred when Billy rubbed its tummy and fingered the satiny leather of its wings.
Billy’s parents didn’t know what to make of it. But it wasn’t too big, and they never did see a creature better at catching the mice and other varmints around the farm.

Jean Marie’s Six Sentence Sunday: “Burning Down the House”

Sunday, January 8th, 2012 | Author: jmward14 | Blog | 6 Comments

Welcome to my first Six Sentence Sunday (you have no idea how many times I’ve written that “Six Second Sunday” lol) Today’s excerpt is from a little story called “Burning Down the House” commissioned for Hellfire Lounge 3: Jinn Rummy. Take a New York nightclub, combine with two feuding sorcerers and one large jinni–and get the hell out of the way.

“Look, Eddie, I wasn’t born yesterday, or yester-century, for that matter. You’ve got another bottle hidden in that bundle of fabric you’re holding. You want me to show you how I fit into a bottle ‘no bigger than…’ by turning myself into smoke and popping down in there so you can slap one of those extra Seals of Solomon you brought with you over the top. The beer bottle or whatever you scrounged on your way over here won’t hold me as well as a charmed number, but you figure it’ll last until you can get it enchanted. Like I’m gonna give you the chance.”
“But it always works in the stories.”