She held my hand as the poison took hold, her eyes filled with the love we shared.
The castle was surrounded. The city had fallen.
In her final breath, she whispered, "I'll wait for you at the gates."
Though my heart knew there were no gates. There was no other side. Not for me, at least.
But still, I squeezed her hand and smiled. "See you soon, my love."
=======
^^ This is just one of 100+ micro-stories I wrote spanning fantasy, sci-fi, and a little horror that I am busy compiling into an e-book (and potentially an audiobook) named:
TINY EPICS
Vol 1.
(Yes, the ‘Vol. 1’ does foreshadow follow-up instalments. 😉)
For the uninitiated, micro-stories are tales distilled into a few hundred words or less. Sometimes they can take the form of two-sentence stories (included in Tiny Epics Vol. 1) or a slightly longer tale known as “flash fiction” (some also found inside).
It doesn’t discriminate.
I even have one weighing in at 642 words long, which I have since crudely dubbed “flash fiction of the fatty kind.”
(If that offends you, I do ponder how in Mordor you’ve survived my ramblings this long. Grow up or get out.)
Anyway, some of these stories were published on Twitter, while others haven’t seen the light of day…
UNTIL NOW.
Because later this week, you’ll be able to get your sticky fingers on my first-ever collection of micro-stories.
I’ve already got the cover designed, the intro written, and the blurb bubbling away in my head.
Tiny Epics Vol. 1 doesn’t just represent my first-ever foray into micro-fiction, but an ongoing commitment to learning the craft and writing a whole bunch mo’ stories in the future. So, whether you’re new to bite-sized tales or a veteran of them, I reckon this secret side project of mine will be worthy of a space on your e-reader.
Until then, you can enjoy my “not-as-short-short fantasy” novels here:
www.djjwatsonstore.com/products/tdr-bundle
DJJW