Christopher B. Wright's Blog, page 35

An Update on Curveball Issue 18

It's mid-October, NaNoWriMo is starting, and you're probably wondering where the next issue of Curveball is. The answer is: it's late. It's really late. It is at Hawkeye-levels of tardiness. I hope it will be out in October.

Here's what happened.

The August issue of Curveball (Issue 17) went over pretty well, I thought. It moved the story forward nicely, and it provided a nice place to pause the New York action so I could focus more on the mystery of the island. Issue 18, originally the Septemb...

Pen and Cape Society: The Super Choice Adventure Comes to an End

So the Pen and Cape Society website has posted the fourteenth and final chapter of the Super Choice Adventure. Jim Zoetewey, author of The Legion of Nothing, closes it out quite nicely I think.

It was fun to play with the other authors. I hope it was a fun read. If you're visiting for the first time because of it, welcome! Pull up a chair, page through the fiction (and comics, and podcasts), feel free to correct my grammar and spelling. :D

Pen and Cape Society: Super Choice Adventure, Chapter 11

The Pen and Cape Society has just released the eleventh chapter of the Super Choice Adventure, a group fiction project where you, the reader, gets to vote who writes the next chapter.

Chapter 11 was my turn, and things got a little out of hand.

By "a little out of hand" I mean "the average chapter has been around 1400-1500 words and my initial draft came in at 3600 FREAKING WORDS so I pared it down to 2750 FREAKING WORDS which is still too much but I ran out of time so there it is."

Anyway: The...

The Points Between Podcast - Chapter 29

ThePointsBetweenCh29.mp3

Absconditus: The morning after the dance. Matthew is on his own.

The Points Between - Chapter 29

Absconditus

Matthew woke from the sound of the rattling in this chest.

It was a long, drawn out rasp, the kind that old smokers have, and it ended in a fit of coughing so intense that his lungs burned as he drew breath. He instinctively covered his eyes with his arms, trying to keep out the sharp, piercing light of the sun. His eyes felt heavy and swollen. His eyelashes were crusty and felt glued shut.

He groaned softly, voice trailing off into a miserable croak as he quickly ran out of breath....

Enemies Within: Part Four

Unknown, Tropical Climate

David Bernard finds the fishing cottage right on the treeline. It’s old, but someone has lived there recently—the area around the house is clear of brush, the roof is in good shape, and the walls were painted within the last year. There doesn’t appear to be anyone around at the moment.

David should leave the place alone—it’s obviously still being used, and there’s too much of a risk, given the lack of any other information, that whoever uses it will come by today. But...

Enemies Within: Part Three

Scrapper Jack

The Tides is an upscale restaurant and nightclub with a downscale gimmick: it only looks seedy. The food, drink, and entertainment is top-notch, the service is exceptional, security is always on point. It’s the perfect place for rich people to go when they want to feel like they’re slumming without actually having to slum. It’s also open all night, making it a convenient spot for rich, all-night revelers.

It’s 3AM now, and it looks like business is good.

Jack Barrow stands outside...

Enemies Within: Part Two

Haruspex Analytics

Jason Kline shifts uncomfortably in his chair as he looks at the impassive faces staring back at him. His team has been using the situation room as their primary workspace, and they’re used to having it all to themselves. Seeing so many members of the board sitting at the long table is unnerving.

“This sucks.” Michelle Lawrence is a small woman who always dresses in sweats—her preferred uniform is gray sweat pants and a blue hoodie. Usually she has the hoodie up, with the dra...

Enemies Within: Part One

Sky Commando

Alishia Masters remembers her first week in the Sky Commando program as if it were yesterday. One of the first things she remembers noticing is the press. They were everywhere: any time David would go on day patrol there would always be a few media helicopters trailing him. Any time he set down, there would be a van or two somewhere nearby. They never approached, they never asked for interviews, they just… lurked.

At the end of the first week she remembers asking David why. His res...

Issue 17: Enemies Within

Story: Christopher Wright
Cover: Pascalle Lepas
Logo: Garth Graham