Writing Samples

I focus on novels, but occasionally I come up with a good short story. I don't want to sell them, so I'm offering them as a taste of my writing style. Enjoy!

Fantasy: Five

I got inspired to write a short story (or is it Chapter 1 of a novel I'll write someday?) set in the Iron Kingdoms world. It is a fantasy world with guns, magic, and steam powered fighting machines. When you read A Clockwork Murder, you'll understand why I like that game world.

Fantasy: Supply Raid

I posted Five on the Privateer Press forums and sparked a thread of sniper-based stories. Here is another one I wrote, though with a few name changes, it could be set in occupied France during WW II.

Thriller: Adrift

I wrote the rough draft during a 10 minute free writing exercise (topic: adrift with contraband). I later expanded it and polished it into the short piece you can read here.

Humor/Horror: Zombie Chicks

Another free writing exercise. This one was 5 minutes starting from the inspiration "It flew across the yard and landed in the geraniums."

Humor Column: Converse Turbo Ninjas

One of the pieces that got me started. I wrote it late one night while attending Haverford College after I'd read a bunch of old Dave Barry columns. And probably after a cheesesteak and 32 oz. cup of Mountain Dew from the local WaWa.

Humor/Superhero: Silent Justice

My friends and I used Converse Turbo Ninjas to help launch a campus humor magazine that we ran for a couple of years. In the next few issues, I wrote a series of Batman parodies. Rereading these is kinda eerie, because I see glints of my writing Voice showing through already.