Short Stories

January 14, 2023

Midlife Ghostwalker Series 87 Short Form Episodes Available

Short Form Serialization on Medium

150 Words or Less for each episode. There are 82 episodes in the short form outline. Book one expanded and revised version is currently in production. Plus five episodes of a short story outline in the same world. Coming in 2023.

Katje Storm

This was an experiment on Medium where I outline my first book in the Midlife series in short form, 150 words posts. I created 82 episodes. I am currently writing the first draft expanding and revising. I also have a short story in this world that outline on Medium–Midlife Mayhem. This is complete list of the episodes for reading for convenience. You can find all on Medium on my profile and in my lists on the right side of my profile under the name of series.

Want To Support My Writing Enabling Me To Get More Stories Out?
If you are not a Medium member you can read the first three episodes for free. You can subscribe for $5 a month and become a member. I am in the Medium Partnership Program which means I earn money depending on how many minutes a reader spends reading, which depends on how long my stories are. Theses shorts are under 1 minute in read time, so I don’t earn much, but if you subscribe and use my affiliated link, I will get a small portion of the monthly fee for as long as you are a member. Thank you in advance for supporting my work. Here is my Medium Affiliate Link.

Midlife Crisis Trope
Genre: Paranormal Women’s Fiction

(Minu Blurb)

I turned 40, filed for divorce from my cheating soon-to-be ex-husband, if that is not bad enough, he MURDERED me. I didn’t stay dead. I’m magical with a destiny. Who knew? Not me!

Premise:

I have seen ghosts all my life, mostly I ignored them. I thought everyone one saw them, but I live in a magical world I could not see before I died. Now I can’t unsee it. I am a ghostwalker. I have no idea what a ghostwalk is or does, but the dead and the magical do. The dead gave me a guide and teacher to help me figure it out, and the magical community just wants to hire me or use me.

In the human world I am an orphan, a procrastinator, and just can’t get my shit together. I have stayed in a marriage for ten years despite the fact I should have left after the first year. He comes from a big family. I so wanted to be part of that so I hung on. I should have faced the fact they will never love and accept me.

When I caught my husband in bed with another woman — in our house! Well, I was done. Ok I admit, I had suspected he cheated over the years, but in my face? I finally had enough and left filing for divorce.

I am not even sure it was the cheating that did it, but it was the last straw of disrespect I was willing to accept.

I’m tired of being seen as a doormat, people pleaser, the needy orphan in need of love and acceptance, and taken for granted — by everyone! It is time I demanded some respect, and apparently the universe decided to help me with that, along with Shamus, my cheating husband.

This short form experiment was an outline for a novel, which is currently in production expanding, revising, and editing for book length. Read the outline of the experiment that started the series all 87 links on one page for convenience of access.

All 82 link to the Short Form on Medium on one page. Plus five more links to the outline for the short story.

MIDLIFE MAYHEM a short story outlined in short form. This will be a giveaway to my newsletter subscribers.

Want to know more, stay up to date and be the first to hear when Midlife Ghostwalker is released?

Sign up for the Newsletter here!

November 29, 2022

I Believe In Fairies By Vanessa Wells Storytime Quarterly Blog Hop

I wasn’t what anyone would call a nice person. I was grumpy, sarcastic, and I’d earned every scar on my body in ways that would make most people have a nervous breakdown.

But nice or not, there were some things you didn’t ignore – not if you saw them and had the power to act. And the hint of power I could feel from the woods demanded action.

“I do believe in fairies, I do, I do…”

I pinched my nose when I heard that half-whispered chant on the breeze.

Damn Peter Pan to hell. The whole play was pure fey propaganda.

I could feel a trickle of power coming from the woods, surprising in the sheer uncontrolled strength but also in the desperation behind it.

Whoever this kid was, they’d managed to crack open the edge of reality like an egg.

Not an easy thing to do.

The whispered chant slipped though the woods, thinning the barrier betwixt and between. I tried to hurry, but my cane was sinking into the soft earth, which was giving my hip hell.

“I do believe in fairies, I do, I do.”

I grimaced. Yeah, I believed in them too, which was why I had a ziplock bag full of salt and mixed with iron oxide in my pocket.

The thing about fairies is that sometimes you ended up calling a unicorn. And sometimes you encountered a redcap. Even the Seelie court was fairly dangerous if you didn’t know what you were doing, and a completely disproportionate number of fey creatures would just eat you if you were in their way. No muss, no fuss.

I arrived and saw a rumpled child in a jacket that was far too light for the weather. Skinny. Frail.

Faintly glowing with power.

She?

I think it was a she.

I glanced at the kid, with very little to indicate whether it was a boy or a girl…not that I knew much about kids, but even with the short hair and clearly mismatched secondhand clothing, there was something delicate.

Pretty.

I clinched my jaw.

They fey liked pretty things.

The sickly-sweet smell of farie power burned my nose as I ran toward the child, casting shields and recklessly spending as much power as I dared.

I dove between the child and something reaching for her, handful of salt and iron making a quick circle.

I pulled the child to me. “Be still.”

“She called us.” The hissing sibilants wound their way from the shadows. I saw the child’s eyes widen.

My lips twisted as I stared into the undulating darkness. “I doubt it was you that she had in mind.”

The darkness inside the shadows laughed. “She didn’t specify.”

I didn’t comment on that. The foolish child hadn’t – an oversight which had once led to any number of children disappearing and never being seen again.

My hands trembled. “Called or not, you can’t cross the circle.” If I could keep them busy until the power faded, they’d have to leave – they couldn’t survive in this magically dry area without power – a lot of power. I looked down at the child.

She didn’t look like much.

Whatever was sitting in the shadows wasn’t fooled by her scrubby appearance. The kid had some serious magical firepower – and all the hallmarks of being completely untrained.

I had a pretty good idea of what was waiting in the shadows, and it wasn’t interested in raising the little girl as a changeling.

It would probably just eat her.

Probably.

The child was completely terrified and clung to me like she hadn’t been the one calling the thrice-damned things in the first place.

I felt pressure behind me, the hair on the back of my neck raising. I tossed a pinch of salt and iron over my shoulder instead of looking – more than one type of fairy could use the faith of the action against you – the act of looking back lent it power it didn’t ordinarily have. Tossing salt over the shoulder was just good luck – and probably where the superstition came from.

I heard a hiss from behind as the iron fillings and salt hit it.

The child pulled on my sleeve. “What is that thing?”

I kept my eyes on the formless mass. “Hush. Stay still. I will explain later – if there is a later.”

Have I mentioned that I wasn’t good at dealing with small, unfinished humans?

Because I am not.

I felt the power began to dissipate and fed what little power I had left into the shields – it would cost me in a few moments, but I had a terrible feeling that – yep. I felt a jarring attack on the shield as the fey thing in the shadows clawed at the shields with brute force in a desperate attempt to finish what he’d started.

My eyesight dimmed as my hip gave out and I sunk to the forest floor, clutching the child to my side as the shield compressed around us. The rift in between healed- and the fey – realizing that his chance to return was ebbing, fled as the rift sputtered out of existence.

I looked at the child from my seat on the ground. “That was a very foolish thing to do.”

Then I promptly passed out.

I woke up hours later. A cheery fire was burning to one side and the child was poking at it with a stick.

“You should have gone home.”

“No home to go to. And besides, if I had left you, the gators would have eaten you.” She offered me a suspicious-looking bottle of water. I took a quick sip, then another.

“Someone is going to be worried about you.”

“Won’t.” I’m not much for mind-reading, but the word was packed with images that made me think the child was right.

I used a tree to haul myself up. “Put out the fire and let’s go home then.”

The kid looked up at me.

Sometime very soon, when my powers were topped off, the people from her memories would be receiving a visit from me. They would not enjoy it.

I would.

I wasn’t what anyone would call a nice person.

Storytime Quarterly Blog Hop November 2022

Wednesday, November 30th, 2022

Welcome to Storytime Quarterly Blog Hop. Speculative Flash Fiction from authors around the globe. We love comments so stop by and say hello.

Midnight At Christmas by Juneta Key

I Do Believe In Faeries by Vanessa Wells <–YOU ARE HERE

Summoning Spell by Jacquilyn Walker

Passing The Buck by Bill Bush

Ark-Ship One by Katharina Gerlach

A Halloween Costume by Jodie Nahornoff

November 29, 2022

Midnight At Christmas by Juneta Key Storytime Quarterly Blog Hop

Every Christmas Eve we gather at my aunt’s house to exchange gag gifts.
Unfortunately, I had to work on Christmas Day so could not stay the night. I had gotten
to my aunt’s house late, so I was making the long three-hour drive home just before
midnight.

My aunt lived in the country where neighbors were not visible to the eye. Mostly
because she was surrounded by trees with a field or two poked in between.

The radio was still playing Christmas music, so I plugged in my iPod to listen to my
cruising track. My headlights bounced off the whites lines, marking the edges of the ink
black highway.

The night was so black and clear the stars peeked out like a million tiny pinholes across
a deep never ending black velvety night sky.

Nights like these made me sure there so much more out there in the universe. I felt
small under that dome yet connected to something bigger and more wondrous than I
could ever imagine.

I flipped my car heater on low to knock the chill. The whoosh of warm arm felt nice on
my arm and legs. I enjoyed the freedom of driving even at night. The time alone in the
car allowed my mind to settle, think- and yes -imagine all kinds of wonderful stories I
could write.

Winters in Texas were unpredictable. I left home this morning without my jacket with
temperatures in the upper seventies. Tonight, there was a distinct chill in the air at fifty-
two degrees.

My tires hummed, eating up the asphalt road snaking for miles through rolling black dirt
farmland, fields of barley and oat, longhorn cows, and yes, some sheep.
The houses set so far back off the road you could not see them unless they had lights
on.

Some were just single trailers in vast fields of crop. Many had fence lined or tree lined
driveways that went straight back for a mile or more.

My favorite was about half-way to my aunt’s house. It was an old house that had been
around since the 1800’s and set off the road about half a mile. They decorated for
Christmas, and you could see it a mile before you arrive across the open fields.
I was on the last leg of my drive home.

There were no other cars. This late at night and on a holiday, the cars on these long
highways were few and far between.

I heard a rackety-clack sound, followed by a loud knock. My little white Kia jerked as if
something fell out from under the car.

The engine sputtered.

Died.

I coasted to the roadside. Turning the key trying to restart. I heard a couple of clicks
than nothing.

I was grateful I always kept a flashlight in the car. I popped the hood. The engine looked
intact. I shone the light on the dark road behind me. I saw nothing that looked like it
had fallen out, but I guess it could have rolled of the road out of sight.

The night loomed darker and a little ominous despite the starry sky on the country
roadside. There were no houses in sight from where I had rolled to a stop.

I fiddled with the battery and checked the water. I inspected my tires, which looked fine,
despite the loud noise I had heard.

I went back to my car and tried to call for help using my cell phone. It didn’t work. No
service. I walked a little ways from the car trying to get some bars, but did not want to
go too far away.

It was then I realized I had forgotten to charge it before I left my aunt’s.
I got back in the car to charge it. My car charger was missing. I always kept it in the
car. Did someone take it? I searched the car, even checked the trunk.

Nothing. I guess I was walking if a car didn’t come by soon.
I got out and looked up and down an empty highway and started to get back in the car
to wait.

I froze.

Held my breath.

The night lit like day, as I was pinned pointed by a oval light brighter than daylight.
My mind screamed don’t look as I forced my eyes skyward despite the brightness.
I expected it to blind.

It didn’t.

The light fluctuated. I could just make out a saucer-shaped craft hovering above me. It’s
radius at least a block wide. Multi-colored strobe lights danced in a circle around its
circumference.

It was the beam from its center that created the illusion of daylight. A sharp piercing
sound made me cover my ears. My stomach rolled, the room begin to spin, and then
nothing.

No sound.

I couldn’t move.

Was I dead?

How much time had passed? I had to blink a few times. I was staring up at bug-eyed-
like lights, making think of a honeycomb. I felt cold to the bone.

My arms, legs, body were all free, yet I couldn’t move. I could see nothing holding me
down. I lay on some metal bed-table.

Had they given me some kind of drug? My heart hammered. I caught movement to my
right through my peripheral vision.

I must be dreaming. Tallish, steeple-like, white big-eyed bipeds were milling around the
room carrying royal rainbow colored geometric-shaped boxes. I counted three, taking
several deep breaths.

Okay.

Yeah, I was afraid, but THINK!

I was a 911 Dispatcher, a first responder, for goodness sake. I’ve listened to horrible
things and kept my cool. I could do this.

Another deep breath. Exhale.

I tried my voice and sounded like a raspy frog.

“Hey, I need some help. Can someone help me?

No response.

“Hey, I need to pee.”

That didn’t phase them either.

They probably couldn’t understand English. I was able to turn my head a little now.

I wasn’t the only human in the room. I could see other beds with small people in green
and red costumes, also not moving. Children? The faces looked too old.

On my left lay a large deer with huge 5-point horns.

A jolly voice said, “I am afraid Juneta that Christmas has been abducted this year.”

“You know my name?” The sound of the other voice relaxed me a bit.

“I know everyone’s name. Including the aliens.” He chuckled. “Ho, Ho, Ho, Merry Alien
Christmas!”

“Santa Claus? You’re not real.” Yet there he lay, prone like me in red suite, white hair and beard, and yes beer belly.

His blue eyes dance and his belly jiggled despite his prone state, as he tried to get his
breath, and control his deep laughter.

I didn’t think it was that funny.

“That so? Neither are aliens.”

Storytime Quarterly Blog Hop November 2022

Wednesday, November 30th, 2022

Welcome to Storytime Quarterly Blog Hop. Speculative Flash Fiction from authors around the globe. We love comments so stop by and say hello.

Midnight At Christmas by Juneta Key <–YOU ARE HERE

I Do Believe In Faeries by Vanessa Wells

Summoning Spell by Jacquilyn Walker

Passing The Buck by Bill Bush

Ark-Ship One by Katharina Gerlach

A Halloween Costume by Jodie Nahornoff

August 25, 2022

What Is the Difference Between Fiction and Nonfiction?

How to use short story to take your reader on an adventure no matter what genre you write.

How to use short story to take your reader on an adventure no matter what genre you write.

I’m in love with reading. It’s the reason I write.

My mother taught me to read before I started Kindergarten. She would take me to the library weekly. Mama allowed me to read whatever I wanted within reason. I read Gone With The Wind at age seven.

I remember sitting in my mother’s deep walk-in closet with a flashlight. I sat on this old-timey sewing machine at the very back of her closet that had a rocking footplate to operate it instead of a motor. I loved disappearing into my cave to read for as long as I could until mama started looking for me.

Reading gave me freedom and taught me many things. Having no siblings, books were the friend I spent most of my time with since I was a child. I was never bored. It was the beginning of my lifelong love affair with stories and words, especially fiction.

I traveled the world. I learned about life and love. I had great adventures.

What is the difference between fiction and other types of story?

The thing that makes fiction, fiction, is that it’s made up. It is not real. Life elements, principles, and situations can all be used to tell the story and presented as reality, but it is still all made up.

For one example, you see this in adult fairy tales and fables. Over the last five years, the retelling of fairy tales for adults has been a fad, and still extremely popular. The author uses real-life to present a life lesson or moral delivered as an entertaining story or a vehicle to capture real life in an immersive way, but it is all fictional. The twist is the use of modern times and conventions.

Here are some of my favorite fictional short reads:

A favorite short story duo, Heroes Wanted by Katharina Gerlach.
Short Stories: A favorite fairy-tale retelling, In this series, The King’s Mechanic, is one of my favorites, but all retellings are great fun.
Kindle Short Reads on Amazon is a place to find popular short stories to read.

Story form through the character point of view in nonfiction.

Nonfiction is facts and often includes references. In the story form, nonfiction includes essays, memoirs, biographies, and autobiographies. These story forms are often told in the storytelling format you find in fiction.

The difference is, these stories are based on actual events even though some facts may be exaggerated for story effect and entertainment. It is possible to present reality as a short story.

What is a short story?

It is a small slice of a character’s life, a moment in time, an incident.

The limited word counts limits word choice, so there is no room for a lot of embellishment, character building, or description. You must pick only one or two active verbs and adjectives to create your impressions.

The trick is turning it into a tale that entertains with the other points woven in, so it flows like a story told from a character point of view. You have a character, a setting, and a conflict in which the character must use their own wits and resources to escape or avoid. It will have a beginning, middle, and end.

The thing to remember is that a personal essay or an informative blog post is not a short story.

You are speaking in your own voice, not the characters. Yes, you are telling a story to capture your reader, but it is not presented from a character point of view. You are telling it as if you are speaking directly to your audience.

Whether you are telling a fictional or nonfictional story many of the elements, viewpoints, conflict, and story arcs all work the same. Learning to tell a good fictional story can also help you tell a better nonfiction story.

A short story tells a story that hooks your reader, engages them, takes them on a journey, away from the here and now into the story world.

Use story format to pull your reader into the story world. Show the character arc whether it’s you or a fictional character, describe your setting, use the conflict to move your story forward to its ending.

Invite the reader on an adventure that takes them away from their mundane world.

A few nonfiction short stories I have enjoyed. (These are not affiliate links.)

The Greatest Gambling Story Ever Told by Mark Paul based on true historical events.
Brady Silverwood 9 For Nine, present in first person. He tells the story of how running saved him.
The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi. This is nonfiction and a personal manifesto.
A memoir told in first person, a novel. The Yellow House by Sarah M. Broom. This is not a short story, but compelling in the reading.
Memoirs of a Geisha, a novel. This one was made into a movie. It is not a short story, but it is a memoir in story form.

Here are my tips to help improve your short stories.

Juneta Key is the fiction columnist and editor of The Ninja Writers Pub. She manages accountability for Ninja Writers LLC. She founded and hosts the Write-In Saloons. She offers coaching in story development, short story, world building, and Scrivener, Scapple-mind mapping your ideas via Writer’s Gambit Fiction Consultations. Juneta is an admin and moderator for Insecure Writer’s Support Group, (IWSG) Facebook & Goodreads Book Club. She’s co-founder of Storytime Quarterly Blog Hop, and co-owner of Stormdance Publications which publishes themed anthologies. Her WIP is Ghost Pirate, a space opera, from the Starlight Galaxy series.

May 16, 2022

Midlife Ghostwalker: Katje Storm: A Serialized Short Form on Medium.

Midlife Ghostwalker: Katje Storm

150 Word Short Form Serialization on Medium.
An Experiment in outlining and storytelling.
Midlife Crisis Trope
Genre: Paranormal Women’s Fiction

BLURB:
I just turned forty, plus I just filed for divorce from my cheating soon-to-be ex-husband, but if that is not bad enough, he murdered me. I didn’t stay dead. Turns out I’m magical, a ghostwalker with a destiny I had no clue about.

Read my serialized story on Medium.

I recently learned if you are reading short form stories you do not need a friend link you can read as many short forms behind the payway as you want to without subscribing. Just click the linK above and start reading. As of June 10th, 2022 I am up to episode thirty. E1-30.

An Experiment In Short Form: What is Medium Short Form?

Medium has introduce a new format. 150 word stories for readers who want bite-size reads. Those 150 words include title, subtitle, photo credits, and link words.

The challenge for me is to tell a novel size story in episodes 150 words a pop. I invite you to come on the journey with me and read, comment, tell me how I am doing. Are you engaged? Does the story excite you? Are you having fun? The experience for me is to create rough draft (outline) of a novel, world build, in bites bits for a short form serialization. Its experiment to later be enlarged into a novel.

Here is what Medium says about their short form requirements.
About my Midlife Ghostwalker on Medium.

My Publishing Timeline

My goal is to publish an episode a week on Medium, but more often if I can manage it in my schedule.

Would you like to support me on Medium?

If you use my Medium Referral link I will get $2.27 of the $5.00 monthly subscription fee you pay to Medium. I earn money when subscribers read my stories on the Medium site, unfortunately reading via email subscription or mobile app, or not clicking into the full story to read does not count. This info provide for your FYI, and thank you for reading me in any shape, form, or platform.

Not A Member of Medium? You can still read.

If you are not a member of Medium, I don’t earn money, but you can still read my serialization short form stories free by using my Friend Links down below. If you use the friend link you do not have to sign up for Medium to read or subscribe. I recently learned that you do not need friend link to read short form, those or unlimited reads whether you subscribe or not.

If you have a free account, you can read 3 stories behind the paywall every month free. If the story is not behind the paywall you can read free by signing up for their free account, which means you can read any story not behind the paywall and up to three each month behind the paywall. (FYI my stories are all behind the paywall.)

If you decide to subscribe, the $5.00 a month allow you unlimited and unrestricted reading on Medium.

Read Some Of My Other Fiction Free On My Website

Fiction you can read free on my website here. Some of these stories are also on Medium behind the paywall but you can read total free here on junetakey.com. If you have a problem shoot me an email.