Dark Inspirations

By Debra Gaskill, John Finck, Sj Sims and 2 more

The Southern Ohio Writers' Collaborative, SOWriters for short, is a writers' critique group which, in true social media form, accepts members online through several different websites.

The group began meeting in 2013 at local restaurants, book stores, and the Ross County Library until SOWriters was approached in mid-2015 by volunteers at the Pump House Center for the Arts offering to hold their meetings there.

SOWriters draws its membership from several Southern Ohio counties. Members come from a number of different backgrounds and work in a number of different genres, including mystery, romance, science fiction, poetry, essays, fantasy and fan fiction. While some are published, both in traditional and independent ways, some write strictly for their own enjoyment.

The main thrust of the group, however, is for writers to receive actionable critiques for their work. No one is allowed to denigrate another's work; only positive critiques and methods of improving one's writing are allowed. At the same time, no one is allowed to just say, "Yeah, it was great. I liked it."

Members are encouraged to submit their manuscripts a week before the meeting date, and then encouraged to bring their critiques of those manuscripts to the meeting. Members are also and expected to check their ego at the door because no matter what someone's education level is or how often they have been published, we all can learn from each other.

We try to showcase our work in an annual anthology.

In 2015, SOWriters released a Christmas themed anthology called The Gift across several online platforms as a thank you to the community which has embraced and welcomed us. The next work, The Legacy We Leave, which centered on Earth Day, was released in 2016. In 2017, the group released Surviving Christmas and in 2019 released a Valentine's Day compilation titled Love Will Always Find You.

Dark Inspirations is the fifth anthology the group has compiled for 2020. just in time for Halloween. Inside, you'll find works that bring you laughs, shivers and even keep you up at night.

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Debra Gaskill
• Release date: Oct 8, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393323280

Debra Gaskill

Debra Gaskill is the former managing editor of the Washington Court House (Ohio) Record Herald, which earned two Associated Press General Excellence awards during her tenure. She was an award-winning journalist for 20 years, writing for a number of Ohio newspapers covering the cops and courts beat, and the Associated Press, covering any stories thrown her way. Gaskill brings her knowledge of newspapers to her Jubilant Falls series. The mysteries 'Barn Burner' (2009), 'The Major's Wife' (2010), 'Lethal Little Lies' (2013), 'Murder on the Lunatic Fringe' (2014) and 'Death of A High Maintenance Blonde' (2014) all center around crimes committed in the fictional small town Jubilant Falls, Ohio, and often center around the damage family secrets can do. 'The Major's Wife' received honorable mention in the 2011 Writer's Digest Self-Published Book Awards and 'Barn Burner' was a finalist for the Silver Falchion Award at Killer Nashville.. Her next series, featuring the private investigator Niccolo Fitzhugh, brings her cops and courts experience together in a mystery that "creates complex characters and places them in real settings" according to customer reviews. That series includes Call Fitz (2015), Holy Fitz (2016), Love Fitz (2016), and the 2018 Silver Falchion Award winner for Best Suspense, Kissing Fitz (2017). Gaskill has an associates degree in liberal arts from Thomas Nelson Community College in Hampton, Va., a bachelor's degree in English and journalism from Wittenberg University and a master of fine arts in creative writing from Antioch University, Yellow Springs. She and her husband Greg, a retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, have two children and three grandchildren. They raise llamas and alpacas on their farm in Enon, Ohio. Connect with her on her website, www.debragaskillnovels.com, as well as on Twitter and Facebook.

Book preview

Happy Hour And Hallows Eve, © 2020 by Stephanie McDonald

The Year Of Our Lord, 2070 © 2020 by Vicki Pritchard

Things Remembers And Dark Towers Come © 2020 by John Finck,

Containment © 2020 by Debra Gaskill

Safe Space  © 2020 by  S.J. Sims

The Fields ©2020 by Laura Pinnix

All rights reserved by the authors.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopied, recorded, or otherwise, without the express written consent of the authors.

Cover design © 2020 Debra Gaskill

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock

Published by D’Llama Publishing, Enon, Ohio

These compositions are works of fiction. The situations and scenes described, other than those of historical events, are all imaginary. With the exceptions of well-known historical figures and events, the events or the characters portrayed were created from the authors’ imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or persons living or dead is purely coincidental.

Introduction

THE SOUTHERN OHIO WRITERS’ Collaborative, SOWriters for short, is a writers’ critique group which, in true social media form, accepts members online through several different websites.

The group began meeting in 2013 at local restaurants, book stores, and the Ross County Library until SOWriters was approached in mid-2015 by volunteers at the Pump House Center for the Arts offering to hold their meetings there.

SOWriters, led by Debra Gaskill, a childhood Chillicothe resident and former newspaper editor, draws its membership from several Southern Ohio counties. Members come from a number of different backgrounds and work in a number of different genres, including mystery, romance, science fiction, poetry, essays, fantasy and fan fiction. While some are published, both in traditional and independent ways, some write strictly for their own enjoyment.

The main thrust of the group, however, is for writers to receive actionable critiques for their work. No one is allowed to denigrate another’s work; only positive critiques and methods of improving one’s writing are allowed. At the same time, no one is allowed to just say, Yeah, it was great. I liked it.

Members are encouraged to submit their manuscripts a week before the meeting date, and then encouraged to bring their critiques of those manuscripts to the meeting. Members are also and expected to check their ego at the door because no matter what someone’s education level is or how often they have been published, we all can learn from each other.

We try to showcase our work in an annual anthology.

In 2015, SOWriters released a Christmas themed anthology called The Gift across several online platforms as a thank you to the community which has embraced and welcomed us. The next work, The Legacy We Leave, which centered on Earth Day, was released in 2016. In 2017, the group released Surviving Christmas and in 2019 released a Valentine’s Day compilation titled Love Will Always Find You.

Dark Inspirations is the fifth anthology the group has compiled for 2020. just in time for Halloween. Inside, you’ll find works that bring you laughs, shivers and even keep you up at night.

You can find all of these anthologies for free through several online booksellers and on the group’s web site, https://dgaskill.wixsite.com/sowriters

S.J. Sims

S.J. SIMS IS A MARRIED stay-at-home mother of four in small town Ohio. She’s written poetry since she was young and has decided to open her journals and share them with whoever is paying attention. She loves reading and writing about things that go bump in the night, or things that pull the heartstrings.

She last performed one of her works of poetry for the Women of Appalachia, Women Speak event. Currently she’s working on a YA novel titled Inheritance.

She’s a member of SOwriters.

If you would like to get in touch with S.J. or like what you’ve read and want to read more please feel free to check out one of her haunts: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorS.J.Sims, https:// www.wattpad.com/user/SJSims or email directly at authorsjsims@gmailcom

Safe Space

By S.J. Sims

I DON’T WANNA DIE," I begged.

You won’t have to if you do what I say.

Two days earlier...

Hon, I know you aren’t used to these sorta things with the way you grew up but people like us need to protect our assets. Our old security system is outdated and needs to be trashed. This new one has everything we’ll need. It’s so cool, come here.

The way I grew up.

He held his phone out to me. I didn’t want to budge. Looking out the window at the squirrels wrestling in the oak tree was far more amusing and he wasn’t going to convince me otherwise. Their funny little back and forth play made me smile.

They were so carefree.

So. Free.

I don’t know why he always took jabs at me like that, wrapping them up like a joke or kindness. It’s true, my family and I had grown up poor and never had a computer in the house but it didn’t mean I was technologically inept. Not everyone had jet-setting parents like Ben. Not everyone was perfect like he was. Some of us had flaws and feelings.

I think I’d like to get a dog, Ben. It would be nice to have a little companion around here and some breeds are excellent watchdogs. I would take full responsibility for it.

Amy, we’ve gone over this a million times. Dogs smell, they make messes and they bark. I doubt that you could train a dog to defend our home. What about while you’re at the office? Who would take it out?

I wanted to talk to you about that.

I pulled myself away from the window and walked across the kitchen to him. I had rehearsed this a few hundred times in the shower in my head but I wasn’t expecting it to come up today. Shower debates never made it past the foggy room where I stood in a towel trying to prep my face for when Ben told me no. Ben always told me no.

His smile faded as he put his phone on the kitchen island. I knew he was preparing for the kill. If the past was any indicator for what was about to go down, this entire ordeal that I had built up in my head would last all of three minutes. His smile returned, this time, not one of amusement from his little cameras he had planted throughout the house. This smile was his go-to game face that he wore so well at work, right before he annihilated someone. I braced for impact.

Yes, let’s talk about that. I’m assuming you’re referring to work, right?

I beamed a smile back, trying to play along. He knew I was clinging to the hope that he hadn’t told me no