ShadeWriteThe story The Last Storyteller is now ready to read.
Stories are outlawed and commoners are not allowed to speak. Joan, the King’s scribe, has never heard a story and wonders why the royal household is so afraid of them. Wanting to know more, she takes a perilous midnight journey to find the last storyteller.
This story is an adaptation of chapters from the novel No One Named Tim.
Happy reading.
To leave a comment on this story, click the comments link at the top of this post.
An excerpt from the novel No One Named Tim is ready to read.
Tim is a shy Black student from the city who transfers into the predominantly white suburban high school for sophomore year. To avoid classroom chaos, he escapes into the fantasy world of his stories. It is the only place he has any control; however, there is one story Tim has no control over, and it hides a dark secret. His new friendship with Joan stirs up this troubled past and drags him into the painful gauntlet of teenage life.
High school troubles become the conflicts for Tim’s stories. In the world of his imagination, Joan transforms into “Princess Joan” and must confront rogue wolves, giant cats, deadly dragons, evil sorcerers, murderous tyrants and the end of humanity. Each story he writes is a gift for Joan. Unfortunately, the real world doesn’t follow Tim’s storylines. Chaz, Joan’s very jealous boyfriend, finds the stories and decides to turn Tim’s life upside-down. This dispute upsets the precarious balance of friendships. If Tim is to fight back, he’ll have to do it with the only weapons at his command: a pencil and a notebook.
Happy Reading.
To leave a comment on this excerpt, click the comments link at the top of this post.
An excerpt from the novel Past Light is ready to read.
No matter how deep into space you may flee, your troubles will find you.
Putting his career and his marriage at risk, the space pilot hatches a plan that could land him in jail for thirty years. After finding a habitable world, he is halfway to success, but he sees something on the planet surface that ruins everything—a human face. The improbable vision disappears quickly. Confused and disoriented, he loses his way back to his ship.
In the following months, the surveyor finds himself in a struggle for survival against an unforgiving environment, and as hard as he looks, he never sees any sign of other humans. His extreme isolation causes unwanted memories of his troubled youth to come alive, blurring the past with the present. Doubting his sanity, he must solve the mystery of his missing ship.
Happy Reading.
To leave a comment on this excerpt, click the comments link at the top of this post.
The novella First Contract is revised, published and ready for reading.
Something wants them dead. The landing crew must discover the reason for the horrific attacks before they can flee back into orbit. But will space be any safer?
Sent to establish trade relations with the indigenous population of the unnamed planet, the landing crew has no idea what they are stepping into. Every time a field team leaves the lander, some of them don’t make it back. In order to get her ship out, Flex tech Anja Schuler must first solve the alien puzzle.
To leave a comment on this novella, click the comments link at the top of this post.
The story Desert Rat is now ready to read.
Desert wastelands have covered the Earth, and nothing is ever as easy as it should be. The youngest member of the team of roving opportunists is sent out to barter his mechanical talents to a stranded cargo transport. Unfortunately, a rival gang is also interested in whatever the transport carries, but they have no intention of making deals.
Adapted from a chapter of the novel Past Light.
Happy Reading.
To leave a comment on this story, click the comments link at the top of this post.
The story In a Time Far Away is now ready to read.
Joan, daughter of the elf king, brings a rare guest into the kingdom, but Tim the Wood Sprite unwittingly possesses a chaotic and dangerous type of magic. Forgetting their caution, the elves become addicted to Tim’s innocent abilities as he grants their repeated wishes for more wealth and power. Their greed turns deadly and threatens to ruin the entire kingdom. It is up to Joan to put things right.
First published in FrostFire Worlds under a different title. Adapted from material cut from the novel No One Named Tim.
Happy reading.
To leave a comment on this story, click the comments link at the top of this post.
The Internet Home for Steve Schade
To leave a comment, click the comments link at the top of the post. Please be kind to each other. I have young adult material on this site, so there are young readers. Please make your comments appropriate for all audiences.
To return to this page, click the logo at the top of any page.
Thanks.