Krista Clark Grabowski's Blog, page 5

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"In the Trenches" Goodreads Giveaway!

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Giveaway ends August 23, 2015.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

Call for Novels, Novellas, and Short Story or Poetry Collections

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In the Trenches is Now Available!

In the Trenches can now be purchased from Amazon in both Kindle and paperback versions. Links below!

Kindle

Paperback

Meet the Authors - Eve Gaal, Matthew Wilson, and Jodie English

Eve Gaal Eve Gaal contributed a poem titled "Wife on the Front/PTSD" to In the Trenches. It's a look at the experience of the wife of a veteran - the rollercoaster of dealing with his wounds, both physical and mental, and how they manifest themselves in his life and thus in their marriage.

Eve Gaal, M.A.(Human Behavior) was born in Boston, but her parents saw the evils of war in Europe. Though brilliant engineers and proud American citizens, their memories were sad, their souls forever scarred. Her parents' stories and their unending pain led Eve to Steve, her husband of 23 years who came from the same war-torn nation as her parents. Except Steve was a tiny baby shuffled into bomb shelters who also grew up dreaming of peace—hoping to find love. Months after arriving in the States, Steve joined the U.S. Army. Eve was a toddler banging on her toy typewriter. Someday, the grief she heard from her parents and the agony described by Steve would manifest itself in her writing. “The title of this anthology describes my life,” said Eve from her home in California. “Even though I’ve never experienced the atrocities of conflict, I’ve heard so many horrific stories and dodged the effects of PTSD my entire life that I have a serious emotional connection with those who have suffered from war.” Find more about Eve at www.evegaal.com

Matthew Wilson Matthew Wilson contributed a poem titled "Waiting for the Dead" to In the Trenches. This poem is about the things soldiers do to hide their fear and the things they deal with on a daily basis that anywhere else would be considered anything but normal. 

Matthew Wilson has had over 150 appearances in such places as Horror Zine, Star*Line, Spellbound, Illumen, Apokrupha Press, Gaslight Press, Sorcerers Signal and many more. He is currently editing his first novel and can be contacted on twitter @matthew94544267.
Jodie English Jodie English contributed two poems to In the Trenches. "Psalm of Our Longing" is one person's thoughts as they go through the formalities of grieving a soldier. "Viet Nam Lottery" is a woman's memory of a time before the one she loves was drafted and her thoughts of him while he serves.

Jodie is an attorney in private practice in Indianapolis, handling serious felonies, including death penalty cases  - the latter at times as a trial defender, a mentor in post-conviction and, most recently, as a mitigation specialist and jury consultant.  Jodie has taught criminal defense lawyers in twenty-seven states and was part of a team invited to Moscow to facilitate the Russians’ transition from three-judge panels to juries. She completed her MFA at Butler University in 2014. In her spare time, Jodie writes poetry and creative nonfiction, jogs, kayaks, and reads. She is both a lover and a fighter and is enriched by her Quaker faith, her children and daily meditation and journaling.

Meet the Authors - G. L. Helm and Suzanne Rancourt

G. L. Helm G. L. Helm contributed two poems to In the Trenches - "Lucifer on Air Strikes" and "Lessons on War 22 May 2005." "Lucifer on Air Strikes" compares the sight of airplanes in battle with the flight of birds of destruction. "Lessons on War 22 May 2005" is a reminder of what remains once the glory of war passes.

G. L. Helm has been writing for forty years. He has traveled around the world with his long suffering Air Force wife. They raised two sons while living in Spain, Germany, and Italy, and in less exotic places like Virginia and Indiana. He now lives in Lancaster Ca.  Helm has written four novels. He has also written reams of short stories which have been published in anthologies around the world.   Suzanne Rancourt Suzanne Rancourt contributed three poems to In the Trenches - "Venom, Sweet Venom," a poem about the experience of the wife of a war veteran; "A Bridge of Social Renaissance," which contrasts the stated intent of war with the reality of its aftermath; and "The Dead Are Not Dead," in which the narrator describes her pre-war life, how it's changed, and what she carries with her now.

Suzanne S. Rancourt, MS, MFA, CASAC-T, and past Editor of Bluestreak: Journal of Military Poetry. She is a multi-modal Expressive Arts Therapist, Consultant, Educator. An armed services veteran with service time in both the Marine Corps and the Army, recipient of the Native Writers’ Circle of the Americas First Book Award, her work has been published in The Muddy River Review, Ginosko Journal, and The Journal of Military Experience vol 2 and vol 3, Chiron Review #98, and Four Winds Literary Magazine. Ms. Rancourt is Abenaki, (Northeast woodland) born and raised in the mountains of West Central Maine. Suzanne remains involved with Military Experience and Arts and was a presenter and MEA 1 and 2. She is an Amherst Writers’ & Artist affiliate and is an AWA Writing workshop facilitator. For more information on Ms. Rancourt’s Expressive Arts philosophy: www.expressive-arts.com

Meet the Authors - Tom D. Nolan and D. Thomas Minton

Tom D. Nolan Tom D. Nolan's contribution to In the Trenches is a short story titled "If A Picture." It was inspired by a real experience. Mr. Nolan walked into an exhibition of Johannes Mattheus Koelz's paintings on a rainy day in Leicester, England. It changed the way he thought about war and conflict in general. In "If A Picture," God comes to Koelz in a dream during his military service and grants him a wish that forever changes his life.

Mr. Nolan lives in Birmingham, UK. His writing to date has been primarily for performance with work produced on tv, radio and stage. He recently placed second in the 2014 Story Pros screenwriting contest.  D. Thomas Minton D. Thomas Minton's contribution to In the Trenches is a short story titled "Portraits from the Shadow." It's the story of a Vietnamese man who goes to America to search out an American photographer who snapped a picture of his North Vietnamese father during the war. Both the American photographer and the Vietnamese man in search of information about his father are haunted by the war, each in his own way.

Mr. Minton recently traded a warm tropical island for the Pacific Northwest of the continental USA, where he now lives a short walk from vineyards and an alpaca farm. When not writing, he gets paid to "play" in the ocean, travel to remote places, and help communities conserve coral reefs. His fiction has been published in Asimov's, Lightspeed, andDaily Science Fiction and his idle ramblings hold court at dthomasminton.com.

Meet the Authors - Angi Holden and Donald Jacob Uitvlugt

Angi Holden Angi Holden's contribution to In the Trenches is a poem titled "But in This Moment," in which someone grieves for one lost in war. 

Angi Holden is a freelance writer, whose work includes prize winning adult & children’s poetry, short stories & flash fictions, published in online and print anthologies. She brings a wide range of personal experience to her writing, from a nomadic Forces childhood, through university and subsequent qualification as an accountant, to later study in 3D design and creative writing. Her family are central to her life and her research into her family history has been a significant influence on her writing. 


A photo of Ms Holden was not available. Donald Jacob Uitvlugt Donald Jacob Uitvlugt's contribution to In the Trenches is a poem titled "Good Dog," in which we see combat through the eyes of a military dog. He experiences battle with a soldier then experiences that soldier's injury and watches him taken for treatment.

Donald Jacob Uitvlugt lives on neither coast of the United States, but mostly in a haunted memory palace of his own design. His short fiction has previously appeared in numerous print and online venues, including Necrotic Tissue and the Wily Writers podcast, as well as the anthologies A Fistful of Horrors and the charity anthology New Sun Rising: Stories for Japan. He strives to write what he calls "haiku fiction," stories that are small in scale but big in impact.If you enjoyed "Good Dog," you can let him know at his webpage http://haikufiction.blogspot.com or via Twitter @haikufictiondju.



A photo of Mr. Uitvlugt was not available.

Meet the Author - Stuart Keane

Stuart Keane Stuart Keane's contribution to In the Trenches is a short story titled "Casualty of War" in which one veteran struggles with his very existence. PTSD drives him to actions he commits on instinct, without thinking. Some of these leave him with great regret. These struggles along with his account of life with his father prior to his service make a compelling story.

Stuart Keane is rounding out his first year as a published author. Featuring numerous times in several horror anthologies during 2014, he is finishing some short story obligations before writing his second novel, Boys, in 2015. Currently, you can find Stuartpublished in a number of anthologies, including Dead Harvest, Cellar III: Animals/Hell II: Citizens, Terror Train, Floppy Shoes Apocalypse, Rejected for Content: Splattergore, and Journals of Horror: Found Fiction. He has also released novellas The Customer is Always... and Charlotte, as well as his debut novel, All or Nothing. All books are available on Amazon.com. Read more about the author at www.stuartkeane.com. He currently resides in Ipswich, UK, with his wife and an unhealthy caffeine addiction.   

Meet the Authors - David S. Pointer and Roger Cowin

David S. Pointer David S. Pointer's contribution to In theTrenches is a poem titled "Stratocruising the Turbocompound," a poetic look at the emotional depth of the war experience on its participants.

David S. Pointer has military or war-themed poems published around the horn. David's most recent military poetry publication is "The Childhood Psychology of Militaristic Assent" at "Military Experience & the Arts" online at Eastern Kentucky University. His work "MPs, Snipers and Crime" will be reissued by Writing Knights Press and sold on Amazon.com in the near future. Links to some of his other publications can be found below.

Beyond Shark Tag Bay 
Sundrenched Nanosilver
Backyard Sniper Training
Terror Train Roger Cowin Roger Cowin has two poems in In the Trenches - "Men at War" and "Units." "Men at War" is a look at the young men who serve, their sense of immortality, the things for which they long, and their efforts to justify their actions during service. "Units" examines the reasons some serve and their efforts to continue doing so in the midst of horrific experiences.

Roger Cowin currently lives in Centerville, IN. He has been writing and publishing poetry for three decades. Recently he has been branching out into fiction where he blends his love of horror with satire and humor.  He is the author of the poetry collections, “Passing Through Darkness & Other Poems” and “Succulent Flesh,” published by JWK Fiction.  His forthcoming collection of short stories “Old Scratch’s Book of Peculiar Tales” will be published by JWK Fiction later this year.