In June, the young adult anthology Perilous Princesses was published -- including my short story "Cold Bargain". I submitted this fantasy short story more times than any other I have ever written - but it also got more personal rejections than any of my other stories. Many "we loved it, but it isn't quite right for what we need now" responses. I never gave up on it.

It was Madeline Smoot of CBAY Books, the same editor who gave me my first short story sale, who had just the right project waiting to give "Cold Bargain" a home.

Here are the opening paragraphs of "Cold Bargain", to give you a taste and perhaps lure you to seek out the full story:

A soft rustle pulled Cress’s gaze up to the moonlit sky. A large shape hurtled down, a dark smudge against the moon-silvered branches. Cress braced her feet on the uneven frozen path and drew her sword. She cut the creature out of the air before it could peck out her eyes, rending head from body, and stepped aside to avoid most of the gore. The crow’s feathers and blood painted the snow black.

One feather shifted. Cress felt no breeze against her face, yet the feather flipped and spun. She stepped back, raising her sword. More feathers were moving now, dancing back to the crow’s body. Dark blood streamed back into its neck. Its head and body reconnected like some strange child’s toy with detachable pieces. The creature hopped onto its feet, feathers smoothed back in place, and looked at her.

If you want to check out that first story that Madeline bought from me back in 2014, look for a copy of Stepmothers and the Big Bad Wolf and look for the story "In Her Arms". Madeline's clever idea was that if you gave the same prompt to a group of fiction writers - you would end up with a wild range of different stories. For this anthology, she asked for either "Stepmother" stories or "Big Bad Wolf" stories. Mine is a funny little stepmother story. I hope you enjoy it!
 

Photography

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After weeks of summer-like heat and too much rain, we finally have been getting cooler, more autumnal days. 

I'm continuing to enjoy taking photos of the ground. These are my most recent shots. If you think you might enjoy them, follow me over on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/serendipity9000/

Thank you for your interest in my creative ventures!

Jeanne
http://www.jeannekramersmyth.com
https://www.instagram.com/serendipity9000/