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Saturday, October 17, 2015

WQ 138 + The Final ! + #FREE Spectacular Tales II !!!

The Autumn Open Final is still on!
Who has the best 500 words out of the three of us? Me? Go see :-)
"There's Danger in that Arena"...
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-130-2015-autumn-equinox-open-final-round/

 AND "Spectacular Tales II" is out on Smashwords...for FREE...yes, free, all those yummy, scrummy, succulent short stories in one book! Plus a sci-fi from me :-)
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/585746




Also did my usual weekly Weekend Quickie, 200 words with 3 elements...nice one :-)
What do you think? Sometimes I get comments, you know :-)

...PLUS...Dani's Shorts 5 will be out soon :-) This time around, I didn't get round to doing every weekly challenge (missed about 15 or 16 of them, hell) but I had other things to write, really..."All For Love", some short stories for anthologies, editing books, thinking up "How to 2"...anyway...Weekend Quickie 138...





WQ 138 – image of person working in a laboratory, angst, occupational hazard

As a scientist, my long, suffering life is full of angst. It wouldn't be complete without it. I have the hope that I will eventually find what I am looking for, something which cannot be explained, something that cannot be disproved, something which will mystify the masses and endure the envy of my fellow peers. One day I may do all these things, but when, where, what, and how? The answers to those questions are beyond me. When this seemingly impossible task will be complete, then, and only then can I rest. As I deal with formulae, theories, experiments, chemicals, catalysts and observations, collecting all the information and data I can find, and cramming them into my calculating mind, watching them swish around together in my brain soup of conclusions until something occurs, forgetting normal things like eating, sleeping, remembering anniversaries, taking the trash out, and feeding the dog become occupational hazards. The mediocre of life is discarded for the inspiring, the intriguing thoughts which fill my mind as I work and...
"Hey, Bob! Have you finished with those urine samples yet?" asked Dave, my boss.
"Yeah, sure. The results are over there, on your desk."
Now, where was I...?
 

Thursday, October 15, 2015

Iron Writer Autumn Final! Votes, please!

Yes, it's on again! Another Iron Writer Autmn Open Final!
There are 3 of us in it this time, and my story, well, it uses all 4 elements to the best, so, hey, PLEASE go and READ and VOTE for me! :-)

"There's Danger in that Arena" by Dani J Caile

(4 elements: a hideous steampunk mask, a spider, a contract, a post-game media interview with a gladiator)

http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-130-2015-autumn-equinox-open-final-round/



Update: I'm up to 6500 words with my new book, I'm flying! :-)

Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Accepted! Short story in another anthology!

Yes!
I submitted a short story to a new publisher for me, Strange Musings Press, for the anthology 'One Star Reviews of the Afterlife 5'...5...wow, that means there were 4 before this...a funny story about the afterlife, and they rejected it. But this was different. The editor actually told me what he didn't like about my story. So, after a day or so of running around, getting upset, I sat down and thought 'hey, maybe I can fix this'. And that's what I did. I even added about 500 words which put me up into the second level of submissions (increasing any royalties). And you know what? They accepted it! Even with one typo (I sent them the correction just now).
So, I've got a story in another anthology! Coming out in the 2nd quarter of 2016. Watch this space...OK, watch it a bit later :-)

Extra news...today starts the Iron Writer Autumn Open Final, and I'm one of three writers who need votes! Link later.
Extra extra news...broke the 5000 word barrier with the new book :-) 10% done!

Monday, October 12, 2015

Two anthologies in one week!

This week I have two short stories in the 'Desert Bus'....one story is about a guy running from the authorities, another running from a past love...




And a sci-fi short story in 'Spectacular Tales II'...about a homesick astronaut stuck on an outpost...




Busy week :-)

I've also started the sequel to "How to Build a Castle in Seven Easy Steps"...
It's called "How to Sink a Ship in Eight Excruciatingly Tedious, Stinkingly Evil Nights"...
Getting back up with the old characters and moving them on :-) Watch this space.

Saturday, October 10, 2015

WQ137 +

Waiting...
...for my new novella 'All For Love' to appear in some message somewhere, telling me it's close to publication, because it was edited and the cover was ready 3 months ago...
...for the Iron Writer Autumn Open to begin next week and the crazy collection of votes can start...
...for the October Firefly Magazine to come out...
...for the chance to continue with my 'collaboration' book with DL Zwissler which might help me reach a larger audience...
...for ideas to finish the 2nd book in the 'How to' series.

But now...
...I've had a go at the WQ137...
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-weekend-quickie-137/#comment-244620

And just to help those with weary clicking fingers, here it is... :-)



137 – image of an empty rail track in the autumn, melancholy, nostalgia

Leaves fell as he lay there, strewn across the tracks.
"I remember when we came here, anytime we could. We sat beside this track, blanket down, basket out, holding cheese sandwiches and our glasses of Chardonnay, and we watched as the 3:20 from Bexhill whizzed by."
The tracks began to vibrate, upsetting those leaves resting on the smooth, worn steel rails.
"You'd laugh as I choked on my last gulp of wine, and I wouldn't mind. To be with you was...everything... Those were the days... and now, now that you have left... now there is an emptiness, a melancholy, a bottomless pit of despair. The blanket is down, the basket out, but there are no sandwiches for two, no glass of Chardonnay."
He took a last swig from his Jack Daniels bottle and threw it into the woods.
"I wish for those days again, to relive them, to breath them, to feel them... But it cannot be. Those days have gone forever."
The rumble of the train grew louder, the tracks coming alive.
"And so I say farewell. To you. To the memory of you."
The train's horn blew long and hard as it sped along the tracks.

 

Friday, October 9, 2015

Two stories in a NEW anthology! Desert Bus

Yes, today "Desert Bus" was published, and I have 2 short stories inside :-)
This is the paperback version, but the ebook will soon be out...
http://www.amazon.com/Desert-Bus-Line-Lion/dp/1940938597
It's a collection of stories about characters who need to escape, be somewhere else, or just experience a trip on a bus driving through the desert.

AND...
I got through to the Iron Writer Autumn Open Final, thanks to you!
Next week the Final will begin, and I'll need your vote :-)

AND...
I have a plan for the next book in the "How to" series...oh yes, be afraid, be very afraid...

Sunday, October 4, 2015

Manna-X #FREE ...and WQ136

Yes, Manna-X is #FREE again! I've gotta people to read my work and this is the way...if any of you pick it up, please read and review! Please!
http://www.amazon.com/Manna-X-Dani-J-Caile-ebook/dp/B00D94CWF0






I'm also doing quite well in the Iron Writer Autumn Open Prelims, 5 days to go...

http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-129-2015-autumn-equinox-open-homer-bracket/

And I did Weekend Quickie 136, a good one :-)

http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-weekend-quickie-136/

...but here it is, anyway :-) Hope you like it!




136 – image of Chinese baby in tub, Precocious, Nonplussed

When she opened the door, I was taken aback.
"Hua?" Her face was pale, her eyes like two black pools. She said nothing, only gesturing me inside. "Not getting enough sleep with the new one?" I hadn't been around since the birth of their daughter.
"You could say that," replied Hua, shuffling in her slippers. I followed her into the kitchen.
"Sorry, I couldn't come around earlier. How's the...?" I stopped in my tracks, and Hua moved past, towards the cooker. In the middle of the floor was a baby, resting in a small tub of water, with a towel over its head. It looked so... confident. Strange. I bent down to greet the girl. "Well, hello there..."
"Bow when you address me!"
I fell backwards in surprise, nonplussed. "Wha...?"
"I said bow when you address nobility!" The baby pointed her finger down forcefully.
"I...I..."
"I am Empress Jia, reincarnated! Bow, peasant!"
I looked over at Hua and she was already on the floor, bowing away. Empress Jia? I'd done my history, I knew who that was, but the baby? Incredible. The baby was speaking.
"Now, get me a towel! I believe I have bathed enough for now!" The baby stood up and turned around, her arms held horizontally, readying herself. Hua passed me a towel and I put it around the baby's shoulders.
"She's a bit... precocious, isn't she?" I whispered to Hua.
"Silence! Otherwise I will call the executioner!" Chang, Hua's husband, walked in holding a sword...

Thursday, October 1, 2015

Autumn Open Prelims 2015...Voting fingers!

I'm in the Iron Writer Autumn Open Prelims and as usual I've written a good ol' story about two losers called...
"Losers United!"
...original, huh...well, the story is, especially with those elements!
Please, go check out the elements, the stories, and vote for the best!
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-129-2015-autumn-equinox-open-homer-bracket/

If you're in need of a little more reading, there are also two other brackets, where some good ol' writer friends have their stories, for example, DL Zwissler, Mathew W Weaver...
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-129-2015-autumn-equinox-open-edward-abbey-bracket/
...and my mates Richard Russell, Mamie Pound...
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-129-2015-autumn-equinox-open-doug-adams-bracket-2/

AND...big news...the FIRST EDITION of the Firefly Magazine will be out very soon! Keep you posted...

Sunday, September 27, 2015

WQ135!

Here I go again :-) A new Iron Writer Weekend Quickie, 250 words, 3 elements...
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-weekend-quickie-135/

This Thursday starts one week of reading and voting in the Iron Writer Autumn Open Prelims! Please get your voting fingers ready!

Oh, I've copied my WQ135 here, too :-)


WQ135 - an image of a crowd in a busy town, altruism, ostracism

It had been a long time since he’d been ostracised. He remembered that horrendous day, those thousands of ostraka with his name sat there in a pile on the assembly floor. They said it was the largest amount ever collected, a record still held for all he knew. He was only trying to help them, the citizens of the place he once called home, from the plague of rats that had appeared almost overnight. He had worked selflessly with altruism to solve the problem, and that was exactly what he’d done. Pumping the toxic poison he had created into the sewers had ridden the town of rats, but unfortunately had also seeped into the ground and contaminated the local drinking water. It was then found that one of his chain of wholesale stores had drawn the rats to town with forgotten raw meat left in a backyard, rotting away.
Now, here he was on the threshold of returning, after many years of travelling, surviving, looking for a way to live after such a calamity. Stepping over the town border, he began to walk the streets. As he moved onwards, he felt that something had changed. It was no longer the place he once knew, no longer the quiet, peaceful community he loved and adored. Within a few minutes he found himself deep within the crowd, suffocating, being pushed from one shoulder to the next, unable to see where he was going.
“Oh my!” he cried out. “The vermin have returned!”



It had been a long time since he’d been ostracised. He remembered that horrendous day, those thousands of ostraka with his name sat there in a pile on the assembly floor. They said it was the largest amount ever collected, a record still held for all he knew. He was only trying to help them, the citizens of the place he once called home, from the plague of rats that had appeared almost overnight. He had worked selflessly with altruism to solve the problem, and that was exactly what he’d done. Pumping the toxic poison he had created into the sewers had ridden the town of rats, but unfortunately had also seeped into the ground and contaminated the local drinking water. It was then found that one of his chain of wholesale stores had drawn the rats to town with forgotten raw meat left in a backyard, rotting away.
Now, here he was on the threshold of returning, after many years of travelling, surviving, looking for a way to live after such a calamity. Stepping over the town border, he began to walk the streets. As he moved onwards, he felt that something had changed. It was no longer the place he once knew, no longer the quiet, peaceful community he loved and adored. Within a few minutes he found himself deep within the crowd, suffocating, being pushed from one shoulder to the next, unable to see where he was going.
“Oh my!” he cried out. “The vermin have returned!” - See more at: http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-weekend-quickie-135/#sthash.hkSBVk2J.dpuf

It had been a long time since he’d been ostracised. He remembered that horrendous day, those thousands of ostraka with his name sat there in a pile on the assembly floor. They said it was the largest amount ever collected, a record still held for all he knew. He was only trying to help them, the citizens of the place he once called home, from the plague of rats that had appeared almost overnight. He had worked selflessly with altruism to solve the problem, and that was exactly what he’d done. Pumping the toxic poison he had created into the sewers had ridden the town of rats, but unfortunately had also seeped into the ground and contaminated the local drinking water. It was then found that one of his chain of wholesale stores had drawn the rats to town with forgotten raw meat left in a backyard, rotting away.
Now, here he was on the threshold of returning, after many years of travelling, surviving, looking for a way to live after such a calamity. Stepping over the town border, he began to walk the streets. As he moved onwards, he felt that something had changed. It was no longer the place he once knew, no longer the quiet, peaceful community he loved and adored. Within a few minutes he found himself deep within the crowd, suffocating, being pushed from one shoulder to the next, unable to see where he was going.
“Oh my!” he cried out. “The vermin have returned!” - See more at: http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-weekend-quickie-135/#sthash.hkSBVk2J.dpuf
It had been a long time since he’d been ostracised. He remembered that horrendous day, those thousands of ostraka with his name sat there in a pile on the assembly floor. They said it was the largest amount ever collected, a record still held for all he knew. He was only trying to help them, the citizens of the place he once called home, from the plague of rats that had appeared almost overnight. He had worked selflessly with altruism to solve the problem, and that was exactly what he’d done. Pumping the toxic poison he had created into the sewers had ridden the town of rats, but unfortunately had also seeped into the ground and contaminated the local drinking water. It was then found that one of his chain of wholesale stores had drawn the rats to town with forgotten raw meat left in a backyard, rotting away.
Now, here he was on the threshold of returning, after many years of travelling, surviving, looking for a way to live after such a calamity. Stepping over the town border, he began to walk the streets. As he moved onwards, he felt that something had changed. It was no longer the place he once knew, no longer the quiet, peaceful community he loved and adored. Within a few minutes he found himself deep within the crowd, suffocating, being pushed from one shoulder to the next, unable to see where he was going.
“Oh my!” he cried out. “The vermin have returned!” - See more at: http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-weekend-quickie-135/#sthash.hkSBVk2J.dpuf

Friday, September 25, 2015

New Interview on Black Heart Magazine!

I have a new interview on Black Heart magazine, thanks to Laura Roberts! Thank you!
Click on the link below to have a look :-) I'm getting more personal here, why not, no one's getting any younger...
http://blackheartmagazine.com/2015/09/18/seven-easy-questions-an-interview-with-dani-j-caile/

I won Iron Writer Challenge 128, thank you to all who voted, your vote makes me win...literally. Thanks for your support!
I'm also in the Autumn Open Prelims (Challenge 129) and it's a pretty good story, if I say so myself!
I'll post the link as soon as I've got it.
Anything else? Hush, hush,  something big is happening...:-)

Friday, September 18, 2015

WQ 134...an elergy? Not a poem, but...

Had a go at the Iron Writer WQ 134, as did a lot of good people...
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-weekend-quickie-134

Oh, and if you haven't voted yet, Challenge 128 is up and I'm there :-) Please vote!
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-128/

 :-) Here's my...
WQ 134 - an image of a goldfish in a bowl, ambition, a compromise


"Today I will conquer the world! A pen, a pen! I need a pen! I'm gonna write the best novel EVER! It'll be a Bestseller for months!" He ran around the flat, pushing away empty cans and pizza boxes, opening cupboards and looking under the furniture.
"Here," she said, passing him a biro. "So, that's your 'big thing' now, huh?"
"What?"
"Nothing."
"I'm gonna write the best book ever, mark my words! I'll be rich, a fat cat among the pigeons, a big fish in the sea!"
"More like a goldfish in a bowl," she muttered.
"What?"
"Nothing. Well, I'm off to make some money, Those burgers won't get served by themselves." She closed the door behind her.
"Right." He sat down, pen in hand and started scribbling. He scrunched up the paper and took another...

A pile of crumpled paper covered the sofa. He'd tried a novel, novella, short story, Flash fiction piece...nothing.
"Okay, how about...a poem!" Off he went again. "A compromise I know, but I'm damned sure I can kick out some fantastically wicked poetry!" He started an ode, an elergy, some verse, a sonnet, a haiku - after looking on wiki to find out what that was. "Hell!" It all seemed... flat. "Ah-ha!" He took another piece of paper and wrote down his words. Beaming with pride, he stuck it to the fridge door. "You see! I can write!" He put on his jacket and left the flat. (Gone for a beer. Back at 6.)

Thursday, September 17, 2015

Don Kermione by Dani J Caile! Vote! Please!

Yes, I have another 500 word story up on the Iron Writer involving 'The Muppet Show', one of my favourites shows ever!
This time Kermit has... changed...
http://theironwriter.com/the-iron-writer-challenge-128/
Please come and read...AND VOTE... for which story you think deserves that finger-click of yours :-)
On another note, I submitted a 'funny' afterlife Flash Fiction story for an anthology...let's see if I can gain yet another rejection...yay!
So, where  was I? Oh yes, go, vote, spread the word :-)


Wednesday, September 16, 2015

New Review for "How to...Castle!"

Yes! Thanks, Christopher for reading my new book and reviewing it!
And such a cool review for a cool book...if I may say so myself...

http://www.amazon.com/Build-Castle-Seven-Easy-Steps/dp/1940938430



"How to Build a Castle in Seven Easy Steps"

This wasn't my first Dani J Caile read and it won't be my last. Witty, funny and full of the dry humor that I've come to expect from Dani. This is one of those books that, when read in public, people will wonder what the hell you're laughing about. In this case, I tell them. This is a damn good read!
PLUS...
I'm in the next Iron Writer Challenge, so get your voting fingers ready again :-) Challenge 128, with a "Muppet Show" feel :-) 

Oh, a picture? Yes, the book again :-)