Free Stories – Scroll down to see the three current offerings.
Each series has either a short story or a novella available at no charge. All you need to do is email me at jellendaniels@gmail.com, give me your email address, subject line Free Stories and the name of the bonus book you are interested in and I’ll email you the short story or novella as PDF document.
Scroll down to see the three current offerings.
Final Four Fiasco – Book 1.5 Second and Other Chances.
I toyed with what to call this short story; my first choice
wasn’t Fiasco. Instead, I thought hoisted by your own
petard made a fine distillation of the idea of the story.
In case you aren’t familiar with what a petard is, allow
me to enlighten.
Petard [pi-tahrd] Noun:
1. an explosive device formerly used in warfare to blow in a door or gate, form a breach in a wall, etc.
2. a kind of firecracker.
3. Also called Flying Dustbin, a British spigot mortar of World War II that fired a 40-pound (18 kg) finned bomb, designed to destroy pillboxes and other concrete obstacles. And now you are saying to yourself, what does that have to do with anything? Good question. The rest of the definition is contained in the idiom,
4. Hoist by/with one’s own petard. Hurt, ruined, or
destroyed by the very device or plot one had intended for another.
That is, to my mind, the best description of trying to manipulate someone: the manipulator always ends up being the one manipulated; the actions of our all too human protagonist. It’s only that the idiom isn’t as common as the term fiasco. So, fiasco it is.
Mike Morrison hasn’t learned that lesson – not yet- but he will, and he will come to understand the fiasco he’s created. I hope you enjoy his lesson.
Play List
When you read each chapter of Final Four Fiasco, you’ll notice that the chapter title is also the title of a song. Download the songs you like or the entire playlist and listen along while you read. (Song titles are linked to Amazon Digital Music)
Beautiful Loser – Bob Seger
The Prophets Song – Queen
What Do You Mean – Justin Bieber
Set the Controls – Pink Floyd
Hey Stoopid – Alice Cooper
Shame, Shame, Shame – Shirley & Co
Adult Education – Hall & Oates
The Happening – The Supremes
It’s My Party – Leslie Gore
We’re not Gonna Take It – Twisted Sister
Off He Goes – Pearl Jam
One Step Closer – Linkin Park
Breakin’ all the Rules – Ozzy Osbourne
I’m Sorry – Brenda Lee
Daddy on Duty – Book 1.5 Paternity Series
I thought about calling this one Every Dad has his Day. But in the idea of duty, i.e., commitment and responsibility that selected the title for me.
In my experience there are two kinds of fathers, those that are intimated by their children and find it awkward to do almost anything child care related. And, those, like my husband and Ben Fausse, who are all in from day one and not only fully committed and on board to care for their children but also, enjoy their children. In either case, anyone who has minded the kids knows you may be up for the challenge, but it is still a challenge.
Ben’s day long experience includes those times when children do something that threatens their well being. I experience PTSD over the time my then six year old son was on the wrong side of the railing and had he fallen it would have been two stories on to concrete. That experience and the shuttering I do every time I think about it decades later provided the inspiration for one of Ben’s predicaments during his Sunday hang out with the boys and baby Bonnie. There are several through this story. Enjoy!
Play List
When you read each chapter of Daddy on Duty, you’ll notice that the chapter title is also the title of a song. Download the songs you like or the entire playlist and listen along while you read. (Song titles are linked to Amazon Digital Music)
Having My Baby – Paul Anka
Candy Man – Glee Cast
Baby, Where Did Our Love Go? – The Supremes
What a Wonderful World – Louie Armstrong
Restoration – Book 4 in the Straits of Detroit Series
This short story started off as an idea for a book. I decided against that because one of my beta readers (the readers who read and review my books before the books go through a final edit) sent a note to me about man bashing. Okay, got it, note taken. Another book about devoted to a dickhead husband wasn’t the best path. However, the idea for this story came from my dad and I still wanted to tell it.
Not to be too tough on my father, he was a product of his generation and my mom a product of that same lopsided division of labor. There are so many, too many, stories about my mother’s martyrdom and my dad’s narcissistic behavior. It took years and a divorce, but dear old dad finally had his light bulb moment. They were remarried and while he was never completely repentant he was chasten and he did do much better in final years of his life, a life that made him far happier and at peace with himself and his family.
This Story is the epilog to the Joe and Sherry part of the Finding Fidel book. Enjoy!
Play List
When you read each chapter of Restoration, you’ll notice that the chapter title is also the title of a song. Download the songs you like the entire playlist and listen along while you read. (Song titles are linked to Amazon Digital Music)
Everybody Wants to Rule the World – Tears for Fears
Broken Wings – Mr. Mister
Oh, Sherry – Steve Perry