A String of Stories: From the Heart to the Future

A demon deer and a ghost cat. Sibling rivalry and sexual awakening. Self-image and self-confidence. The chance for an offworlder to breathe free at last on a new planet. Those are just some of the diverse themes of these remarkable stories. Some endings are happy, some are sad, and some are intriguingly open-ended. But once you step inside the author’s world, you cannot emerge unmoved.

Introduction

This collection, my most diverse to date, includes general fiction, science fiction, suspense, and paranormal pieces. Some, like “Lafayette 10,” are crossovers. Others, like “Bad Medicine,” stay true to the genre for which they were originally written. There is a romantic theme to some, and all are character driven. The three paranormal shorts are based on personal experiences.

I’d like to think there are stories here that will appeal to many different types of readers, and that there’s at least one story for each reader. Short stories challenge the writer as much as, if not more than, a full–length book. There is no room for the unnecessary or superfluous, and this is probably why I love the form.

I hope this collection appeals to you. Thanks for reading.

Ann Chiappetta, 2020