February's Theme

Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no; it is an ever-fixed mark,
That looks on tempests, and is never shaken…

-Shakespeare Sonnet 116

Hello! Welcome to Lightning Quick Reads, where each month our awesome authors bring you stories, in a flash! We each have our own day, so be sure to check back often.

Last month our theme was GOALS, where we each wrote many and varied tales on the subject. Can you guess what the theme is for this month? Hint: It's the month of roses and candy and hearts and first kisses. Yes! It's LOVE, in the glorious and sometimes hurtful guises of first love, unrequited love, or star-crossed love.

While my story will be the tale of unrequited love between a wizard and his apprentice, there's no knowing what our talented authors will come up with. It might be a contemporary or mystery story of star-crossed lovers. An epic sci/fi of unrequited love between aliens. Or maybe a sweet fantasy of first love between the fairy prince and the girl he rescues from the ogre.  It could even be a non-fiction. It's hard to say! With the many twists and turns love can take, who knows where our imagination will go?

But one thing you can count on with my stories is that there will always be a happy ending. Sometimes there's an unexpected turn or my characters move in a direction you might not want, but they always end up content with their lot. Love is an intense, scary, wild, heart wrenching, beautiful emotion that doesn't always bring us the joy we imagine. But when I'm writing, I figure, I'm the one creating this story and these people are darn well going to get their happily ever after.

Which reminds me. Start thinking of a story of love you'd like to tell. Later this month on February 25th. we'll open the blog up for our readers to share their own flash fiction pieces. Will yours be a fantasy? Contemporary love story? You chose! I love to write flash fiction and am really looking forward to reading yours.

Okay, I have to ask, what is your favorite Valentine's Day gift, even if it's one you're saving for the future? Is it candy and flowers? Jewelry? A nice dinner out? Being a floral designer, the best gift from my sweetie is dinner ready and maybe chocolate and wine by the fire afterwards.

So glad you stopped in! To keep track of all the great stories and fun happenings this month, you can follow this blog. And if you like, follow us on FACEBOOK, a great way to keep up with what’s going on with our authors, which story is up for your enjoyment, and join in our lively discussions. I'll see you back here soon!

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”  -Lao Tzu

Artwork by Marcel Stevahn  -One Good Eye Photography