Special Features

Petrol Fumes: Friday Fictioneers 100 Word Story Challenge

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‘‘RUN’’ came a voice from the next room.

I was dizzy from the petrol fumes and didn’t react in time.

Within what felt like seconds the whole room I was standing in was alight.

I hadn’t let on to the local boys that I thought it was wrong.

I wanted to be one of them.

I wanted to fit in.

It was stupid and I will probably always have scars from the third degree burns I suffered.

I’m just glad I’m alive, some of the boys weren’t so lucky.

I’ve never felt the need to fit in ever again.

Friday Fictioneers is a weekly challenge set by Rochelle Fields where writers around the world create 100 word stories inspired by the one image.

PHOTO PROMPT © Roger Bultot

This week’s PHOTO PROMPT © Roger Bultot

For more information see Rochelle’s website >>

https://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/2015/04/15/17-april-2015/

Or to view the other Friday Fictioneers stories from this week >>

http://new.inlinkz.com/luwpview.php?id=515239

COVER REVEAL **The Last King** by Millicent Nankivell

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Series: Anastasia Avignon #1

COVER REVEAL

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Title: The Last King

Author: Millicent Nankivell

Genre: Fantasy

Cover Design: Jemina Venter at #BookNerdFanGirl

Release Date: Late 2015

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Synopsis mk3

Anastasia Avignon has always known she was a witch.

It’s only now that mysterious shadows have begun chasing her that things have started getting weird. Yes, weird even for a witch.

For the sake of her safety, Anastasia has been taken to the Blackthorne Estate, run by Lady Mirabelle Brackens, a friend of her mother’s who she’s never heard of before. There, she meets Warren Brackens and Dara Robbins.

But there’s something curious about them. They seem to have access to more power than is normal for any witch…and she’s burning to find out why.

When Anastasia begins displaying unnatural powers of her own, it only fuels her desire to find out more. As a long forgotten curse is revealed, Anastasia finds herself in a tangled web of whispers from the past.

Like many other events in history, fear and shame have concealed the truth behind the fate of the last royal family. So why is it that now, centuries after their defeat, Anastasia is seeing their history everywhere? Why has she suddenly become the target of the one who destroyed them all those years ago?

Anastasia is convinced that Warren and Dara have the answers to her questions, but is the price of their knowledge worth paying?

Now she is being hunted, Anastasia must learn to trust in her own abilities and follow her instincts. But is Anastasia on a path predestined for her, or does she have the power to shape her own?

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The-Last-King-Full-SpreadThe-Last-King-Teaser-2Author Bio

Most days, Millicent Nankivell believes she is a unicorn. Please don’t ever shatter her illusion.

As far back as she can remember, she has been creating stories that usually involved magic, mythical beasts, and creatures of her own invention. Not much has changed over the years. Well, except for also becoming a hopeless romantic as she got older.

If Millicent isn’t curled up in a dark corner with her laptop, sketch book, or reading a novel, you’ll probably find her out roaming local parks and gardens with her camera. She lives in Melbourne, Australia, and will argue that it is the best Australian city until she’s blue in the face!

Author’s Links mk3

Blog http://www.millicentnankivell.com/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/millicentnankivelldotcom

Twitter https://twitter.com/millienankivell

Google+ https://plus.google.com/+MillicentNankivelldotcom/posts

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13766624.Millicent_Nankivell

Newsletter http://eepurl.com/bf5npn

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Push Bikes + Men = Evil

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 Yesterday (Easter Monday) my husband Shane decided we’d go for a lovely family bike ride as the rain had finally let up and the sun was out.

Today I am really regretting it. I feared I’d wake up with sore knees as they were aching as I rode, but no they’ve held up alright. My back is burning and biting, although it’s like that 80% of the time so I doubt much of that is the bikes fault – what is the bike fault however is how painful I’m finding it to sit down.

Because of the shape of the frame Riley’s child capsule doesn’t fit on Shane’s ridiculously-expensive-fancy-pants push bike. The capsule however fits on my fitted-with-a-wide-padded-seat push bike. I won’t ride with Riley attached to the bike. I’m too uncoordinated and the entire time I’m freaking out that I’m going crash and hurt him. So Shane rode my bike. I’ve tried to ride Shane’s, but the frame is too long and too tall. So I went and nicked my dad’s pushy, his is nice and short, just like him.

We took off and shortly we had to stop so I could raise the seat as my legs were all squashed up. I then continued with on the bike with it in too high a gear and near killed myself going up a SMALL hill, more my lack of fitness to blame than the gearing through. I pumped my fat little legs as hard and fast as I could. The last time I’d ridden from home to Fassifern I was about twenty kilos lighter and going to the gym three times a week. Oops. I had to stop when it felt like my heart was going to burst out of my chest. I pulled up and tried to hop off the bike. My legs were jelly. There was a ball of pain in my chest. My vision started to dull and spot with the light coming at me in intense waves – did I mention I hadn’t eaten breakfast, dumb ass I am. So I sat down for a while, had some water and decided I needed to take it a bit easier if I was going to make it to Fassifern and back.

I survived, obviously as I’m here having a whinge. I didn’t get any of those happy energy buzzing hormones you’re supposed to get after excising. 😦 No I spent the rest of the day trying to stay awake, lying on the couch watching movies while Riley destroyed the lounge room with crayons.

Today it hurts to sit. Damn male bike seats. Damn push bikes altogether. My butt barely touched the seat on the return trip as I was standing on the pedals so I could straighten my knees. Bikes are evil.

My son enjoyed the trip. Each time Shane would stop to let me catch up, Riley would be calling out “More, More, More”. Men are evil :-P.

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Ready Riley (Edited & Original): Riley inspecting the bikes while we get ready to go for a ride.

The Doctor: Friday Fictioneers 100 Word Story Challenge

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Sorry guy’s I’ve been watching a lot of Dr Who lately, David Tennant style. I love that man, or should I say I love that Doctor. This flew out of my hands at 167 words and as I always make it exactly 100 words, it was hard to cut down – but TADA! I did it. I can totally see myself running across a field like a lunatic chasing after a blue police box Mwahahaha.

*  *  *

I didn’t see the stump hidden in the long grass. I didn’t have time to register the pain radiating from my left shin bone. I got right back up and kept running.

I could see the old school blue police box in front me. Adventure and freedom so close I could feel it.

I was about 200 meters away when the box shimmered, I heard a grinding noise and it disappeared.

So close.

I broke down and cried.

I’m still looking for that blue box and hopefully one day I will get my chance to travel time with the Doctor.

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Friday Fictioneers is a challenge set by Rochelle Fields where writers around the world create 100 word stories inspired by the one image.

This week’s PHOTO PROMPT Copyright Sandra Crook

Frost on a stump. Sandra Crook.

For more information see:

https://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/2015/03/11/13-march-2015/

Sunday is cleaning day

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43346_set_of_rubber_gloves-30182317_std I used to enjoying cleaning my parents’ house for pocket money as a teenager. Money meant red skins, CDs and cigarettes (sorry mum). But now I have to do it for free, ok I do love a clean house and yes the mould and fungi won’t kill us if I kill it first, but that’s just not enough – I still hate it. I feel like I’m wasting my time. Damn baby and husband are just going to mess the place up again. Life is too short for cleaning dishes, scrubbing toilets and hanging out washing on the line. I’d much rather spend my Sundays reading. Maybe one day I’ll be rich enough to hire a cleaner. That’s the dream. For the time being I am slowly training my son to help me; he will pick up and put away his toys, he will pick up his dad’s dirty clothes and put them in the washing basket, he will pick up his dads shoes and put them back in the wardrobe. If you give him a cloth he’ll wipe over table tops and bench tops, not that he can apply enough pressure to actually do much and he has very short arms, but he seems to enjoy it (and currently I only have to pay him in hugs).

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The Drunk: Friday Fictioneers 100 word story challenge

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Friday Fictioneers is a challenge set by Rochelle Fields where writers around the world create 100 word stories inspired by the one image.

* * *

I stare across our front lawn. The drunk is passed out next to his poorly parked shit heap.

So he did make it home last night.

It’s only a matter of time before the cops get him, or the Berley boys, I just hope it’s before he kills someone.

I decide I better attempt to drag him in the house.

I approach him and see blood, a lot of blood. I check his pulse. I grin wickedly to myself as I walk inside to call 000.

I am yet to know who or how, but someone has set me free.

 * * *

**NOTE** ‘000’ is the Aussie equivalent to ‘911’.

This week’s PHOTO PROMPT -Copyright Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

PHOTO PROMPT -Copyright Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

For more information see:

https://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/2015/02/11/13-february-2015/

Harry Potter Book Night

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HPblogbuttonFor Harry Potter Book Night I’m re-reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I won’t get it all finished tonight, so I thought I’d quickly share a little bit of Potter Love.

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“Don’t forget to give Neville our love!’ Ginny told James as she hugged him.

‘Mum! I can’t give a professor love!’

‘But you know Neville-‘

James rolled his eyes.

‘Outside, yeah, but at school he’s Professor Longbottom, isn’t he? Ican’t walk into Herbology and give him love….”

During the ‘deciding on a name process’ when I was pregnant with my son, once we found out he was going to be a he, I wanted to name him Edmund or Neville. Edmund after Edmund Pevensie of C. S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia series and Neville (I’m sure you guessed it) after the blundering, brilliant, loveable, kind hearted, strong willed force that is Neville Longbottom. My husband wouldn’t have a bar of either names and my son ended up as Riley, not named after anything with a deeper meaning, just a name my husband liked. The compromise was that I got to choose his second name and I did – It is Paul after my father, another brilliant, loveable, strong willed force. To be honest I’ve grown to love the name Riley Paul and wouldn’t change it, but if we do go down the baby road a second time and it appears it’s going to be a boy, I’ll be pushing for a Nev or Eddy again.

“But this is touching, Severus,” said Dumbledore seriously. “Have you grown to care for the boy, after all?”

“For him?” shouted Snape. “Expecto Patronum!”

From the tip of his wand burst the silver doe. She landed on the office floor, bounded once across the office, and soared out of the window. Dumbledore watched her fly away, and as her silvery glow faded he turned back to Snape, and his eyes were full of tears.

“After all this time?”

“Always,” said Snape.”            

I can’t read that without getting chills.

“Albus Severus,” Harry said quietly, so that nobody but Ginny could hear, and she was tactful enough to pretend to be waving to Rose, who was now on the train, “you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew.”

We start off hating, fearing and suspecting Snape along with Harry, all the time not knowing that under Snape’s nastiness he is always looking out for harry out of love for Lilly.

Oh Snape, Snape, Shape. In this, the last book, your character cemented itself in my heart. Always!

Crying Babies

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“Why is it that I am always the only one who hears our son crying in the night?” I ask for the millionth time.

I wake even when my son makes the slightest carry on, but my husband sleeps soundly on. Well he sleeps soundly on unless it’s the second time my son’s woken up during the night and I elbow my husband in the ribs until he wakes up, then inform him it’s his turn to check on the baby (I say baby even though he’s eighteen months old now and I’m not sure if he’s technically still a baby). To my husband’s credit, if I wake him and tell him to go check on our son, he normally does it with minimal grumbling.

It used to be that my son would wake up and just want a hug or bottle then be happy to go back to sleep, but in the last 6 months or so it’s been more like he’s having nightmares. You go in to check on him and he’s still asleep. It is rather disturbing seeing my baby boy tossing and turning, screaming with tears rolling out of closed eyes. Thankfully just picking him up or patting his back or tummy does the trick and he goes back in a calm sleep.

I remember reading somewhere that it’s hardwired into a woman’s brain to register those high pitched distressed tones of one’s offspring. But dang it, I tell you I’d like a night where I sleep through and my husband wakes up.

^ Riley awake and happy In his cot ^

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^ Shane, Riley and I ^

Phillip: Friday Fictioneers 100 word story challenge

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Phillip was staring at a Route 66 sign and he was feeling rather sorry for himself.

He had just convinced the lady behind the counter to give him a cup of tea, when he felt the room shake; his vision twisted and blacked out.

His ears popped and his vision returned. He was standing in what appeared to be a dirt hut.

“Not again” he moaned to himself “I’d only just figured out where I was, again”.

Furious with the fate he had been given, he stomped out the door to try and discover where he’d ended up this time.

 PHOTO PROMPT – © Copyright Jean L. Hays

Begin the Route

Friday Fictioneers is a challenge set by Rochelle Fields where writers around the world create 100 word stories inspired by the one image. For more information see:

http://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/2015/01/07/2-january-2015/

Hello 2015

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So 2014 is about to come to an end and I have no idea where it went. Crazy fast. I had a baby in 2013 and then BOOM it’s 2015.

The first eight months of 2014 were wonderful, watching my bubba boy grow and develop into a really cheeky little smarty pants who amazes me every day.
But alas September was a bittersweet month; we bought our own home only two houses up from my parents :-), but we lost our beloved fifteen year old wolfhound cross Buster :-(.

2014 was full on; I went back at work four days a week and was going to TAFE at night two times a week. I managed to publish two poetry eBooks and one tree book, but we won’t talk about how behind I am in my TAFE work. Riley has been attending day care when I’m at work and other then a little tantrum at drop off time, seems to be enjoying it.

We are down to four; Shane and I, Riley now seventeen months old and Ellie our four year old rather small wolfhound cross. We’ve all settled into our new forever home and are looking forward to celebrating Riley’s second Christmas and all that 2015 has to offer. I really hate the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, but love catching up with my family.

I am determined in 2015 to (A) not miss a Friday Fictioneers (B) Finish my Cert 4 in Work Health & Safety (C) make some serious progress on my fiction works (D) as always, lose weight and get fit – this one I’m not as determined about as the others, obviously because I find it the hardest, damn Crispy M&M you will be the death of me (E) I’m going to up my Goodreads Reading Challenge for 2015 to 80 books! that will be a record for me if I achieve it and (F) I’m going to sign up for the >>Debut Author Challenge ButtonI’ve read some debut authors this year and really enjoyed them. I see this challenge as a great way to find out about the other Debuts that other challenges may come across. It is easy to pick up the same author or one of the well publicized top ten best seller at your local supermarket to read, but in 2015 I’d like to focus on helping the new guys starting out. **AND** (G) I’m also signing up for the >>

 For my first Diverse Books I’m going to start off with the three that “Reading Wishes” recommends – The Last Leaves Falling by Sarah Benwell – Jasper Jones by Criag Silvey – To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han.

**AND** (F) I’m also also signing up for the >>

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Where I’m going to try and read as many books by Aussie Authors as possible.

Anyway I’m going to go get some reading in 🙂 Until Next Time – Happy Reading.