Grant Eagar's Blog, page 6

Short Story - Alien in Central Park - Grant Eagar

This is the first chapter in my upcoming novel Alien in Central Park


The Pod
Melba felt a gentle caress of her cheek and opened her eyes. There stood her android mother. The likeness of Melba’s biological mother smiled and brushed a wisp of blue hair from Melba’s emerald eyes. “Welcome to a new day precious.”Melba sat up and stretched. “Salutations dear mother, what is the occasion?”Her mother forced a pensive smile. “Today is your day to board the pod. We’ve arrived at the earth colony's solar system.” Melba scratched her ear with her lions tail then scowled. “I don’t feel up to it today; maybe tomorrow.” She then lay back down and covered her head with her blanket. Her mother’s eyes narrowed. “Girl, we have arrived! There is no tomorrow. We just have a thirty minute window to launch the pod.”Melba peered out of the covers. “Perhaps we could wait until we reach the next colony?” “There is another child being prepared for that colony. You really don’t want to leave this way do you? It’s your destiny to visit the planet and report back on its progress.”Melba considered the robot and offered a wide smile. “Why don’t you go in my place and I’ll stay here. I’m sure you’ll do a much better job. I appreciate the gift of life and all, but going down to a hostile planet is more than I can deal with today.”The robot sighed and left the room, a minute later she returned with Melba’s robotic father and her robotic brother and sister. Melba tossed the pillows at them and sprinted to the door she was caught by her brother and sister and dragged kicking and screaming and tossed into the pod. “I’m sorry we have to part like this,” said her father blocking several punches and kicks then he slammed the hatch closed. She stared out the hatch at her robotic family with a look of pure hate then her face softened and she placed her hand against the portal and wiped a tear from her eye. The robots all touched the glass opposite to hers and she wept. A minute later her mother touched the eject button and the pod was sent on its way.  She watched the mother ship disappear in the distance.I hate you, I hate you all . . . Melba girl, there is no use mourning what is lost. They aren’t coming back. There is only one way and that is through this hell; you just as well fulfill the bloody mission. A month later after releasing the last of her long range satellites the pod slowed and intersected the planet’s orbit. After establishing a low earth orbit she began her mission of mapping the planet and finding a landing spot.  She sat at the controls wide eyed. She watched the blue orb approach her and she wept for the wonder of it. She floated over to a large portal and pressed her face against the window. Have I died and gone to Elysian. The planet is glorious to behold. The girl gently pushed off the wall and floated back to her seat. She strapped herself in and grasped the controls. Using the onboard computer she put the ship into a predetermined orbit fifty miles above Antarctica. 

Holiday Sale

Hi All

My Anthologies: GEARS OF BRASS, UNDER A BRASS MOON, and CAST NO SHADOWS will be on sale for 99 cents December 17-24 on Amazon.



  

Short Story - What Waits at the Top of the Stairs - Grant Eagar

This is a reading from Thursday Writers in San Diego that I did a few years ago.


What waits at the top of the stairs
By Grant Eagar                        What waits at the top of the stairs; four eyes twitching, three nostrils sniffing, and 121 sharp teeth chomping with hunger? (Picture of funny looking eyes, nostrils and teeth)Gerald reaches up and scratches one of his three antennas. Why? Why must it take so long? When was the boy going to come?  He had never been a patient monster, get in, chomp, chomp, get out, but he must follow the rules of proper monster etiquette.Gerald steps backward and his foot finds an old skateboard that had been stored in the attic and he quickly lands on his head. Standing up and rubbing his bent antennae. Doesn’t the kid know better than to leave skateboards around for monsters to trip over?              What’s that? All of Gerald’s ears stood at attention, was the child waking up? Monster dinner is served. Someone is walking down the hall. His mouth starts to water, drool flows down his three chins.  Now someone is climbing the stairs, thud, thud, thud. The door handle slowly turns, Gerald is shaking with anticipation. The door opens, a click of the light switch and “AArgh-Fredrico?! Fredrico? What’re you doing here? I thought you were the boy; I was so looking forward to a snack. Why aren’t you under the bed where you belong?”            Fredrico rubbed one of his three eye stems with his tentacle and said, “I got bored, the boy never looks under his bed, I get tired of waiting to eat him night after night.” He then balled his four tentacles into fists and snarled, “Why can’t I just-just munch him now?!”Gerald straightened up on all three legs and in his most lawyerly monster voice said, “You are familiar with bylaw 42: the child must find the monster by opening the closet door, looking under the bed or venturing to the attic at the top of the stairs, before the feeding can begin.              Fredrico rolled his eyes and said, “When in Godzilla’s green earth, do you think a child is going to look under his bed in the middle of the night?! Oh the inhumonsterity of it all! That brat jumps on his bed every cursed night. Do you see these lumps on my heads? That’s where they came from? The little devil brags that his bed is extra bouncy, that’s me he’s bouncing on. And do you see these bruised tentacles that’s from the little demon jumping off the bed and landing on them before I can pull them back under the bed. “I quit! I’m through! I’m going to apply for the monster in the basement job, I heard it was open and there is no little humans jumping on the bed. The basement is where a monster can sleep in peace.”  
            Downstairs, there was a rustle of covers and, “There you are snoopy, right under my bed all along, why’d I wait so long to find you.” 

Monster Story Reading

This is a reading from Thursday Writers in San Diego that I did a few years ago.

What waits at the top of the stairs

RELEASE PARTY - CAST NO SHADOWS - GRANT EAGAR

Hurrah! Today is the release of my new anthology - Cast No Shadows. This is a collection of 26 ghost stories just in time for Halloween. My Contribution is The Ghost of Shadmoor Park. 






     How I became a ghost story writer:

     Three years ago my writing buddy Jordan Mierek wanted to put together an anthology of ghost stories set in New York state. I had never written a ghost story before so I decided to try something new. I racked my brain for my experiences in New York and I thought back in 2005 when I had spent a few days in Montauk New York waiting for my job at Northrop to open up. Montauk is a small community on the eastern tip of Long Island that I thought would be fun to use as a backdrop for a ghost story. It has an old military base and a light house.
     When I first started writing the story it was cliche since I had never written anything in this genre before. It was a bit of every ghost story I had ever heard, but after fighting with the story for a while it become my own. I hope as you read The Ghost of Shadmoor Park you will see a fresh take on ghosts. I enjoy writing from the perspective of the monster, the ghost in this case. Which is more engaging to me. It is about Katie a ghost who died a hundred years earlier ago as a seventeen-year-old girl. The story is about her experiences with Sheila, a medium, Jeffrey her love interest, and a group of ghost hunters who are trying to capture her.


Much thanks to Jordan Mierek who manged the anthology and put it together.

The contributing Authors are:
by Jordan Elizabeth Mierek, Lorna MacDonald Czarnota, Grace M. DeLeesie, Joan O. Scharf, Lisa Oaks, Heather Talty, Kae P. Quinn, C.K. Raggio, Derek McFadden, Grant Eagar, Nicole Green, Clare Weze, Ashley Pasco, Amy Gale, Al Dorantes, Tracina Cozza, James McNally, A.F. Plant, W.K. Pomeroy, Jeremy Mortis, Christine Baker, Misha Murphy, Gloria Slade, Rachel Pond, A. Elizabeth Zumchak, Molly Jauregui 

To purchase the book go to: 
https://curiosityquills.com/books/cas...

https://www.amazon.com/Curiosity-Quil... 

COVER REVEAL - CAST NO SHADOW - GRANT EAGAR

Here is the cover reveal for my new book, CAST NO SHADOW. The anthology is coming out in October, just in time for Halloween: My story in the Anthology is The Ghost of Shadmoor Park, a story from the perspective of Katie the ghost, living on Long Island.




Welcome to the shadowed woods, where the trees breathe with ghosts and the wind whispers of the past.

Twenty-six authors take you through haunted houses and cemeteries with tales that will chill.

Beware of the dark, for the spirits await you.

The contributing Authors are:
by Jordan Elizabeth Mierek, Lorna MacDonald Czarnota, Grace M. DeLeesie, Joan O. Scharf, Lisa Oaks, Heather Talty, Kae P. Quinn, C.K. Raggio, Derek McFadden, Grant Eagar, Nicole Green, Clare Weze, Ashley Pasco, Amy Gale, Al Dorantes, Tracina Cozza, James McNally, A.F. Plant, W.K. Pomeroy, Jeremy Mortis, Christine Baker, Misha Murphy, Gloria Slade, Rachel Pond, A. Elizabeth Zumchak, Molly Jauregui 

Devil's Playground - Heather Eagar - Review

Review of Devil's playground

Synopsis:
Sixteen-year-old Elizabeth Winters may be a witch, but she doesn’t know the first thing about magic.

Her father, a wizard himself, has forbidden the use of her powers for her own protection. But when accusations of witchcraft start flying through Salem Village, Elizabeth wishes she was more prepared.

Despite her lack of magical knowledge, Elizabeth appoints herself to save innocent women from the untimely demise the village has in store for them. Elizabeth finds, however, that she is not the hero Salem needs her to be. When Elizabeth is betrayed by someone she trusts, she loses control of her emotions and unintentionally curses the village with the ten plagues of Egypt. Now, Elizabeth must figure out how to break the curse before the morning of the tenth plague—the plague of death.

If she fails, Salem will cease to exist

My Review

     Elizabeth, a teenage witch during the Salem witch trials. I like the view point of an actual witch. I enjoyed the whimsical voice used to portray terrifying things in a way that was not heavy handed or preachy. I like the drama with her sister Anna and the romance with Sebastian. 
      You know the witch trial are coming so there is underlying tension to this book. 
      A fantasy novel based on historical events is a different sort of beast. Normally in a fantasy novel when characters act this way your editor complains that it is not realistic, but Devil's playground is loosely following the actual events. These people did act in a monstrous way even though they claimed to be god fearing.

Under a Brass Moon - Release July 28th - Grant Eagar

Under a Brass Moon - Release July 16th - Grant Eagar

COVER REVEAL - UNDER A BRASS MOON - GRANT EAGAR

    Thanks Eugene Teplistsy! Isn't this cover awesome, I think this is the coolest cover in the history of the world, well the coolest since Gears of Brass. I feel covers are Curiosity Quills specialty.     My short story in this collection is Henry the Tailor. I have also completed a novel titled Henry and Sophie which is being prepared for submittal. 

UNDER A BRASS MOONA Steampunk and Science Fiction AnthologyThis anthology includes twenty-seven short stories intended to enchant and consume.  Enjoy the works of Jordan Elizabeth, G. Miki Hayden, Benjamin Sperduto, D. J. Butler, Christine Baker, Lorna MacDonald Czarnota, Jessica Gunn, Lorna Marie Larson, Quinn Southwick, James Wymore, Terri Karsten, W. K. Pomeroy, Ashley Pasco, Jeremy Mortis, Grant Eagar, Amberle Husbands, Nick Lofthouse, and S.A. Larsen.We are thrilled to present this dazzling cover by Eugene Teplitsky.   
UNDER A BRASS MOON releases on July 28th, but in the meantime, check it out on GoodReads.  Many of the short stories are continuations from GEARS OF BRASS.  The anthology is now on sale for 99 cents!Help us celebrate the cover reveal with the chance to win a $30 Amazon gift card.  All winners will be notified after verification of entry at the end of this promotion.  Prizes have been supplied by and the responsibility of delivery are solely that of the author and/or their representatives. Blogs are not liable for non-delivery on the part of the author. No purchase necessary.


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