So I’ve somehow been transported to the Soul of New York City. How was your morning?
Continue reading “The Economancer – Chapter 3”The Economancer – Chapter 3
Tag: New York City
The Economancer – Chapter 2
I get off the train at 59th and Lexington and head up the stairs, stopping just long enough to give a young homeless girl a dollar bill infused with luck.
By noon, she’ll have enough money for a room with a hot shower, some new clothes, a real meal, and a bus ticket back to Georgia. And yes, that’s what she’ll use it for. I scribbled a little suggestion on the bill to make sure. Her eyes will never notice it, but her unconscious mind will. I usually don’t like to do stuff like that, but if I didn’t, she’d still be in the City next Wednesday, at which point she’ll be hit by the M60 bus. How do I know?
Because that’s what I do. Economancy. Money magic.
Continue reading “The Economancer – Chapter 2”The Economancer – Chapter 1
Hey all. I know I haven’t had a lot of material for you over the past few months. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been writing at all. One thing I’ve been writing is a piece of serial fiction for a private newsletter that I call The Economancer. Now, thanks to the generous permission of that newsletter, I’ll be able to share The Economancer with all of you in weekly serial format – my own little penny dreadful. Hope you enjoy.
You probably don’t think of New York City as a place for magic.
Or maybe you do. You’ve been primed by tv and movies where if anything weird happens, it happens in the Big Apple – Dr. Strange, Men In Black, The Avengers, Ghostbusters – everything from aliens to ghosts to giant lizards.
(Though I have to ask: who starts a whole business just to “bust” ghosts? Sure, some ghosts are trouble, but most are just minding their own business. I mean, you’ve been here all this time, and I bet you never even noticed Phil in elevator shaft A1! Are you gonna bust ghosts just for being ghosts? That’s vitalist!)
But I’m not talking about magic in movies or TV. I’m talking about the real stuff.
Continue reading “The Economancer – Chapter 1”Download Dreams of the Boardwalk For Free!
Hey All!
The shelter-in-place continues, and I have one more book to share for your entertainment: Dreams of the Boardwalk. This one is a story of hot summers, bright beaches, better worlds, and the dreams of the city. Maybe the best thing I have to offer for these troubled times, and it’s free to download now through Thursday, April 2.
Careful, though. This one is rated R.
And don’t forget, once you’re done with Dreams of the Boardwalk, ALL of my stories are available for free reading on Kindle Unlimited!
Take care and keep healthy everybody!
The Truth of Rock and Roll Is Available for Free Download!
Hey all!
Well, St. Patrick’s Day has passed, but even more of us than before are now trapped inside to avoid the Coronavirus.
So you all can have something to do until we can all go out again, my novella The Truth of Rock and Roll is now available for free download on Amazon. And remember, my entire library is always available for free reading on Kindle Unlimited.
Stay healthy! Or get well soon. Whichever applies to you.
How the Trumps Brought Death and Destruction to Coney Island
Charles Denson is a historian and former (current?) resident of Coney Island. He’s one of my primary sources for Dreams of the Boardwalk and my upcoming fantasy novel City of Dreams. He’s here today to talk about how Donald’s Trump’s father mutilated an iconic New York neighborhood; literally killed people with his greed and racism; destroyed a landmark in one of the most cruel, petty and vindictive manners possible; and raised his son to be just like himself.
New Book Trailer Up!
How could I forget to post this one for so long! The book trailer for Dreams of the Boardwalk is now up in the Book Trailers archive! But just in case you don’t want to go that far, here it is right here!
If that makes you interested in a copy of the book, just head on over to Amazon!
Excerpt from City of Dreams: George Fuller’s Last Day at Coney Island – Part 2
The picture above is he latest draft of my novel-in-progress, City of Dreams. What do you think? The young woman above is Aislin Rourke, heroine of City of Dreams, but I’m afraid you’re not going to meet her in today’s passage.
Today’s passage is the second half of the story of George Fuller and his accidental journey into the Dream of Coney Island, begun in this post last week.
George’s story is an illustration of the classic advice to writers: “Murder your darlings”. George’s story is intended to be an interlude in City of Dreams, but it’s more than forty pages long. You can’t have an “interlude” that’s 10% of the total length of the book. That means that you, the readers of this blog, are getting to read an uncut version of this story that will not and cannot make it to the final book.
So join me for the story George Fuller, Sally, and their last day at Coney Island.
Beware. NC-17.
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Continue reading “Excerpt from City of Dreams: George Fuller’s Last Day at Coney Island – Part 2″Excerpt from City of Dreams: George Fuller’s Last Day at Coney Island – Part 1
One of the classic pieces of advice for authors is “Murder your darlings”. You have to be willing to sacrifice any individual part of the story – any scene, any character – for the greater good of the story as a whole, no matter how much you love them.
This passage is a classic example. This story – and the second part, coming next week – are intended to be an interlude between chapters in my Novel-in-progress City of Dreams. They tell the story of an old man who accidentally crosses over into Dream when such a thing shouldn’t be possible, and illustrates that Dream can be just as dangerous in its way as Nightmare (though you do die happy). Between the two sections, this “interlude” is more than 40 double-spaced pages long. Clearly, some darlings need to be murdered and some serious trimming needs to be done before the final draft of the book. You can’t have an “interlude” that’s 10% of the total book. But I love the story of George Fuller, Sally, and their summers at Coney Island. So I’d like to share it with you in its uncut form for perhaps the one and only time.
Beware. NC-17.
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George Fuller sat on a bench on the Coney Island boardwalk and looked out at the ocean.
Continue reading “Excerpt from City of Dreams: George Fuller’s Last Day at Coney Island – Part 1″Neighborhood Witch Is Available For Free Download Now Through Thursday!
Celia Rivera is a well-respected citizen of the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York City. She runs her own little shop, and she’s respected by everyone from the old men playing dominoes on the corner to the young people who spend their days looking for trouble to get into. They respect her wisdom, her toughness…
Oh. And she’s a witch.
Celia Rivera’s shop sells more than candles and incense, and she keeps her little corner of the City safe for everyone. And when someone targets her family for magical retribution, it’s time for the kind of magical street fight that can only happen in the City.
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In honor of the passing of the woman who inspired Celia Rivera, I want this story to spread far and wide. So please head on over to Amazon and download a copy.
If you like it, check out the rest of the library…and please, do an author a favor and leave a review.