The Rescue

book 4 They traveled to Kystra to put out the fire and rescue Clardeen, Primcella’s brother. They were too late. Clardeen and the other prisoners had already been loaded in Tralog’s spaceship. Primcella gasped as the spaceship rose in the air and disappeared in the dust surrounding Kystra. Pentil put his hand on Primcella’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. I know where they’ll take the prisoners. We can rescue them.” Pentil closed his eyes and imagined the inside of Tralog’s dungeon. He was the only one who ever escaped. Could he go back? He must. No one else knew the secret passageways or how to find the doorways that would take them in and then back out.

book 4 They traveled to Kystra to put out the fire and rescue Clardeen, Primcella’s brother. They were too late. Clardeen and the other prisoners had already been loaded in Tralog’s spaceship. Primcella gasped as the spaceship rose in the air and disappeared in the dust surrounding Kystra. Pentil put his hand on Primcella’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. I know where they’ll take the prisoners. We can rescue them.” Pentil closed his eyes and imagined the inside of Tralog’s dungeon. He was the only one who ever escaped. Could he go back? He must. No one else knew the secret passageways or how to find the doorways that would take them in and then back out.

CREATIVE PHILOSOPHY For me creativity is best when shared. One of my favorite examples is the first time I had the courage to read one of my short stories. Karleen Koen (Though a Glass Darkly and other historical novels) and Janean Thompson (an artist) started Women in Literary and Visual Arts – WILVA. They were tired of the loneliness of working in their studios. I joined the group shortly after it started for similar reasons. At one of our annual exhibit of members art and writing, I finally had the courage to read one of my written works. The group knew my art, but I was a closet writer. My knees shook as I read my short story. When I finished Karleen jumped out of her seat, took my hand and told me how wonderful the piece was. I call that incident, the five minutes that changed my life. Still glowing from my success, I petitioned my fellow artists at Archway Gallery to let me begin a reading series for creative writers. The Archway Reading Series began, with the help of my friend, Donna Perkins. I always made sure I had new material to read each month. In 1999 I selected three of the works I’d read at the Archway Readings, entered them in the Texas PEN Contest and won. Currently I’m part of the 35-year old Steamboat Springs Writing Group, an organization formed by Harriet Freiberger, a fellow local writer. The members read their new work and a short critique follows. Many of the members are published. Although I’ve been writing seriously for 20 plus years, I’ve chosen not to publish. Being a visual artist, I know that once your work is on display, the public expects a certain type of work. This limits the artist’s creativity. I didn’t want that to happen to my writing. Although I’ve written and completed novels, a series of young adult fantasies and short stories, I’ve kept them in the bowels of my computer, where I hope they’ll mold and ripen into something fabulous. So now, I’m opening this moldy private area and sharing the contents with the public.