At sixteen, there are a lot of things about life Alaia knows. Her heritage is one she would rather forget. When faced with a choice that could change everything, what will be her new path?'My mother is really dead, I guess, because she cared so much about what she used to call ‘our culture’. She referred to me and her as if I was Ojibwe like she and not a half-blood with a dad that left us both one night when I was four. She went to the pow-wows every year, long after I stopped going. When I started the sixth grade some boy I liked said he wouldn’t date me because all Indians grew up to be drunks. After that, I decided I didn’t want to be Ojibwe. She respected my decision, I guess. But she kept trying to tell me things about being native, things I still don’t understand. Like how she knew for certain that the underwater panther chose my name.'At sixteen, there are a lot of things about life Alaia knows. Her heritage is one she would rather forget. When faced with a choice that could change everything, what will be her new path?

There’s no such thing as a heroic act without a price to pay. Elena learns this first hand, the hard way. She must decide how far she will go and what she is willing to sacrifice to save the people she loves. What would you be willing to sacrifice?Origially published in Allegory eZine in Fall of 2009, Ms. Sonnier brings a heart-wrenching fantasy tale about the hardest decision of a woman's life.There’s no such thing as a heroic act without a price to pay. Elena learns this first hand, the hard way. She must decide how far she will go and what she is willing to sacrifice to save the people she loves. What would you be willing to sacrifice?

'An Absence of Light' is a short two-act play. It is a drama set in London at the outbreak of the Second World War. The free play captures the tension and bleak anticipation of another cataclysmic conflict - the second in a quarter of a century - that again threatens to engulf Europe in upheaval and horror.This free play is essentially a melodrama. 'An Absence of Light' is a human drama, showcasing the horrors of impending war - and the fear of its inevitable consequences - as seen through the lives of four characters.This eBook is given to readers by the author, William Andrews, free of charge, in the hope that they will visit his web page and download more works.Happy reading!

Three stories tied to a single place of pain. The trailer that symbolizes one man's dashed hopes; the trailer that embodies the torture of one man's abuse; and the trailer that transports a man through time, giving him a most unusual chance to change his destiny. Beware the prowler. It will change your life.The Music Box is a story about a boy's adventure in a music store. The various sounds of different instruments captured his imagination. Tim's love for music grew stronger after hearing the various sounds in the music store. He was able to play a variety of instruments in the store. The Music Box turned out to be his favorite place to be.

This is a story about a woman who seems to discover that all of her devotion to her husband is scattered like thin air. That is to say, the seemingly idyllic relationship is shattered, because she finds out that the man is cheating on her. How will she deal with this suspicion? How will she regain herself from this monster of a man?The Music Box is a story about a boy's adventure in a music store. The various sounds of different instruments captured his imagination. Tim's love for music grew stronger after hearing the various sounds in the music store. He was able to play a variety of instruments in the store. The Music Box turned out to be his favorite place to be.

The Fabulous Spawlszoff Brothers is Fiction based on actual events that took place during the past 40 years.This story is fiction, however it is based on a collection of funny events and jokes that actual happened. The Fabulous Spawlszoff Brothers Rock n Roll band takes you along to several of their gigs so you might enjoy the fun, comedy and tricks they get up to. All of which are actual events that I was involved in during the past 40 years, while playing with different bands performing in the UK, Germany, New Zealand and Australia.

What if terrorists used American children as weapons of mass destruction? It has already started! Several Somali boys have disappeared from Minneapolis, until one returns and is murdered. Lawyer, Zehra Henning, defends the accused killer. As Zehra investigates the case, she discovers a plot that threatens the entire community and she races to solve the mystery before the terrorists can act.What if terrorists used American children as weapons of mass destruction? It has already started! When several Somali boys disappear from Minneapolis, law enforcement suspects a terrorist plot but can't solve the mystery Then, one of the boys returns and is murdered. A suspect is arrested and charged with the crime. Police and the FBI think they can crack-open the case. A defense lawyer, Zehra Henning, is appointed to represent the killer---who tells her he's guilty but wants a trial. She doubts his guilt and begins to investigate in preparation for trial. What Zehra discovers shakes her confidence. When she becomes the target of the terrorists, Zehra must fight not only the prosecutor and her client but also the unknown forces that threaten her. She races to discover the truth before the entire community is exposed to the deadly plot.

A collection of 100 poems by Eric Chase. They are raw, gritty, unique and compelling.Teresa D. Patterson, author of Project Queen, delivers a gritty, gripping tale of urban life with no sugarcoating.How far would you go to clean up your 'hood?Tired of constantly reading headlines about the violence being committed in his community, Xavier Brunswick decides to form Brothers Takin’ Over (BTO) with three of his childhood friends. BTO’s original intention is to help clean up the ‘hood, but large egos and clashing personalities causes them to lose focus of their main goal. In addition to dealing with BTO, Xavier ‘s problems at home continue to fester. He’s angry at his father who is “passing” for white and vows to never become like him. Just when he thinks things can get no worse, his dope-fiend brother, Woodrow, returns from the streets and throws the family into chaos. Having to deal with back-stabbing friends, an alcoholic father, and a crack-head brother is almost more than Xavier can bear. How much can he endure before he finally snaps?

Anna has lost her mother, father, and the home she grew up in, but at last she is making steps forward. Russell is interested, and eager in her, until the snow begins to fall.The elohim have arrived, those creatures with teeth, and with them is a young red boy with a very large knife. The time of the decimation is at hand, and no one, not even Anna, is guaranteed survival.Teresa D. Patterson, author of Project Queen, delivers a gritty, gripping tale of urban life with no sugarcoating.How far would you go to clean up your 'hood?Tired of constantly reading headlines about the violence being committed in his community, Xavier Brunswick decides to form Brothers Takin’ Over (BTO) with three of his childhood friends. BTO’s original intention is to help clean up the ‘hood, but large egos and clashing personalities causes them to lose focus of their main goal. In addition to dealing with BTO, Xavier ‘s problems at home continue to fester. He’s angry at his father who is “passing” for white and vows to never become like him. Just when he thinks things can get no worse, his dope-fiend brother, Woodrow, returns from the streets and throws the family into chaos. Having to deal with back-stabbing friends, an alcoholic father, and a crack-head brother is almost more than Xavier can bear. How much can he endure before he finally snaps?

The third in the Chris Calhoun series of mysteries set in middle Georgia has Mark and Chris trying to figure out what happened to young Ryan Burton on a strange night. Digging into Ryan's strange service call to a welding job in the middle of nowhere when he was not allowed to see the route - could they retrace his steps? What would they find?Teresa D. Patterson, author of Project Queen, delivers a gritty, gripping tale of urban life with no sugarcoating.How far would you go to clean up your 'hood?Tired of constantly reading headlines about the violence being committed in his community, Xavier Brunswick decides to form Brothers Takin’ Over (BTO) with three of his childhood friends. BTO’s original intention is to help clean up the ‘hood, but large egos and clashing personalities causes them to lose focus of their main goal. In addition to dealing with BTO, Xavier ‘s problems at home continue to fester. He’s angry at his father who is “passing” for white and vows to never become like him. Just when he thinks things can get no worse, his dope-fiend brother, Woodrow, returns from the streets and throws the family into chaos. Having to deal with back-stabbing friends, an alcoholic father, and a crack-head brother is almost more than Xavier can bear. How much can he endure before he finally snaps?

This a story for older kids about social bullying and the impact it can have for the victim...and the bully.This is a short story about social bullying. Although the main character is a first grader, the story itself targets older children. I wrote this story as part of a bully-proofing curriculum for my sixth-grade students. It would, however, be appropriate for high school students, too. The story is true. Included with the story are thought provoking written response questions that can be used as-is in your classroom or altered to fit your specific need. Again, this is a serious and perhaps slightly disturbing story about social bullying. It illustrates that not all bullying is intentional, and that social ostracism can sometimes be more damaging than a physical assault.Generally, I write suspense/thrillers, so this story is very different from my usual genre. If you would like to use this story in your classroom, you could easily display it using your classroom computer. If you would rather, I would be happy to send you the word file so that you could more easily print it and the written response questions for your students. If you would like to have a word file, please visit my website at www.sdexter.com and use my contact form for your request.

Norman Babbit is the smartest kid in Petaluma. He is also the youngest kid in junior high and his teachers, his little sister and the school bully are driving him crazy. If only his science project qualifies for the Nationals in Washington DC...The smartest kid in Petaluma never thought seventh grade would be like this! When Norman Babbit skipped a grade and entered junior high a year early he thought his life would be great. But the school bully forces Norman to do his homework, his younger sister is a brat, his English teacher hates him, his older brother is trying to fill in for their deceased father, and his mother thinks all Norman's problems are dietary. If it weren't for his best friend Chris and his pet owl Luigi, Norman would go crazy. With the deadline for his science project approaching as fast as a showdown with the bully, Norman simply has too many problems and no solutions.

Overpopulation has ruined the Earth. Housing stacks dot the landscape, surrounded by piles of discarded rubble. Yet the newly discovered, habitable planets in the cosmos provide hope, and the lottery offices provide a chance for those in the housing stacks to ascend into the stars. Only, the game is rigged, and all the treasure found in the stars will be wasted so long as the lottery entertains.Becky Chen works with a broken heart. She wears a surveyor’s uniform, sent by the lottery offices to scout for habitable planets capable of providing a new home for Earth’s masses. It’s a job she does not love, for she knows that the settlers who follow in her trail will trample whatever splendor she discovers in those stars.Winston Clayton prays for a chance to ascend into the heavens. He calls the stale and stinking air of a housing stack home, and he anxiously waits each month to hear if the lottery chooses his apartment tower as the next winning stack to be transported to a new world of fresh air and uncluttered fields.Mary Lopez rides a shuddering settler’s rig down through the atmosphere of Wildberry. She knows she is a prosperous person, and that the planets are reserved for independent and strong characters such as herself. The lottery has supplied her with shelter and with tools, and Mary is confident that the weapon she smuggles into the contest will give her the advantage needed to survive and thrive.The pulsating creatures native to an alien world will become swept up in the schemes of the affluent and the fights of the desperate. Their wings can supply any desired scene to those settlers arriving upon Wildberry, if only the men and women who chase to that new, alien world can recognize the grace already occupying their new home.

Jesse Ownsman has survived boot camp and made it to his first assignment. No sooner does he arrive though and the planet's observatory discovers an intruder attempting to sneak up on them. With no hope of reinforcements before this stranger descends upon them, the very survival of Jesse and his compatriots rests solely on their shoulders.Jesse Ownsman has survived boot camp and made it to his first assignment, the bleak planet of Aridia on the outskirts on inhabited space. No sooner does he arrive though and the planet's observatory discovers an intruder attempting to sneak up on them. With no hope of reinforcements before this stranger descends upon them, the very survival of Jesse and his compatriots rests solely on their shoulders.

Meoldy Grayson as lived a semi-normal life until the day she's cheated on. So she leaves her life only to discover Ryne Owens, the leader of something bigger than them both. As Melody learns the extent of her powers, she faces twists and turns she never thought she could manage. Can she learn who she really is and save the other porters?Short Stories of Madness. In Terror, moms were no longer carrying babies in their expensive strollers, they were hauling monsters. And the rest of the citizens were probably too sick and deteriorated to figure out the tragedy ahead. A state of emergency would have been ideal under such circumstances, but government officials were intoxicated by the mayhem and unable to find consensus for the next move―so, they did nothing. It was one of the most sophisticated operations of techno terrorism to date. Fundamentalism was dead; the trend was a new science of people decimation without weapons. Nebbia was the brainchild of a young British banker and part time physicist, who recruited a quorum of well-fed scientists to set up shop in the capital of the south and carry the annihilation. Why did they end up here in the first place? Disease control is a big business, and a big responsibility. It requires a tremendous amount of money, skills, and state of the art facilities. An adequate hub maybe? Sure, PDK was just the perfect stead, and here in the capital of the south, was where it all began. In Signorina, Greta is a kidnapper, she's ruthless, she has no identity, and she's terribly good at writing computer code. Her plan is smart and undetectable. Just follow her on Twitter and you will disappear within 72 hours. The only caveat: the code needs to be embedded to be effective. She finds the man who can help her, but when the whole thing starts to smell bad, she has to go back to the drawing board and confront the same man who is now unwilling to be part of the imbroglio. In Faceless, a panhandler, an alcoholic mother, a lawyer behind the wheel of a bucket truck, a state trooper who despises women, a presidential candidate fond on social media, a coroner with a new set of scalpels, and a star maker with the latest technology are all together in a mosaic, or better an orgy of life stories taped and narrated by the author himself. In Manstat, a man is bored with the conventions of life, and was committed to create the ultimate companion, Manstat. He hired the best man in the business. He paid him a small fortune. He gave him carte blanche and praised the creation of such a marvel. Nothing will ever come close. Manstat was finally in his hands, but he was warned: use it wisely, or it shall work against you. What was he going to do with such a dangerous gadget?