Who Listened to Dragons, Three Stories

By Tom Kepler

Set in the same reality as the fantasy novel The Stone Dragon, these three short stories (of over 12,000 words) continue the magic of the novel.

"Who Listened to Dragons": "I was a young man who thought I knew the world and owned it—right up to the moment I opened my fist and found it empty." Two brothers live in the city of sands--one is the strange one, the other the brother of the strange one. Who can tell where magic ends and mystery begins when one can lose the world in a grain of sand or find wisdom in the whisperings of the wyrm?

"River's Daughter": Those are three kinds of fish: those to throw back, those to keep, and those to toss on the river bank for the foxes. Is the same true for men? When a man comes to the cottage by the river, a sprig of columbine in his hat, how will the river's daughter choose?

"T 'Uk's Dilemma": Kill Corinth: the job was simple. But who is the lady who meets him at the door? Who is he who stands before her—boy or man, soldier or assassin, retribution or abomination? And is it true that everyone deserves a second chance?

Visit a land where magic makes all things are possible.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tom Kepler
• Release date: Feb 3, 2012
• ISBN: 9781466074774

Tom Kepler

Tom Kepler lives a minimum of three lives in one: his life as a writer, his life as a school teacher, and his life as a publisher of Wise Moon Books. These enterprises are chronicled on his blog at tomkeplerswritingblog.com. Tom Kepler Writing Tom has published three books, a fantasy novel, The Stone Dragon; a young adult novel, Love Ya Like a Sister; and a small book of poetry, Bare Ruined Choirs. Besides publishing on paper, he is also focusing on publishing online, including poetry at Every Day Poets and flash fiction at Metazen, Every Day Fiction, and 365tomorrows. Tom Kepler, Classroom Teacher Having taught in the classroom for over thirty years, grades 7-12, his writing reflects much of what he has observed: young people raising themselves, struggling to make the right choices, helping one another, and usually finding a way to get through to the place and person they want to be. "I've learned as much as a teacher as I've given my students. Growing up is truly a heroic journey." Wise Moon Books Tom "authenticated" his poetry by publishing in literary little magazines prior to publishing Bare Ruined Choirs via Wise Moon Books. He also publishes in online zines to establish himself as an author accepted by the gatekeepers of the industry. His novels are a tougher task, though, and as he seeks publication in the traditional publishing world, he is also learning and using the new technologies to make his books available, not only to the general reading public but also to his students. "There are two things I can pass to my students. I can hand them one of my published books, and I can also give them the knowledge of how they can publish their own writing. The book may impress them, but the knowledge empowers them." Find Tom Kepler also on Facebook at Tom Kepler Writing/Wise Moon Books. Links are available at his blog, tomkeplerswritingblog.com. Click "like" or "follow" to keep current with his writing adventures.

Book preview

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