Other Stories

by on May 20, 2026 at 12:01 am
Posted In: Diaries

Even as House of Sand with Captain William Carter has been accepted for the Sand and Storm anthology, I am working on the Battle of Cypress Swamp for Raconteur’s Wyrd War 3 anthology. It is a story I have wanted to tell for years. I originally intended to do the Battle of San Juan Hill, but my meuse kept going back to the Cypress Swamp, so I gave my meuse the reins and I’m happy with my progress. The story is done. I just have to tune it up to publishing level. And while I’m writing that one, I’m thinking about a dogfight story with Captain Jack Hart. I’ve got the base starting scene done, and think I’ve got a good handle on the rest. Then I’ve got to brainstorm my magical cold war story. I’ve got an idea. I just have to see how it survives being thrown against the wall.

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Sand and Storm

by on May 19, 2026 at 12:01 am
Posted In: Diaries

Beneath the relentless sun, the desert lives.

Ancient powers stir beneath shifting dunes. Serpents coil in forgotten
ruins. Djinn bargain in the shadows of crumbling cities while monsters
from old legends stalk the sands beneath burning skies. Travelers,
treasure hunters, warriors, and wanderers discover that the desert does
not forgive the weak—and some creatures were never meant to be found.

From scorching wastelands and haunted tombs to and storm-wracked
caravans, Sand and Storm gathers a thrilling collection of fantasy tales
filled with deadly beasts, ancient magic, and the mysteries buried
beneath the sands.

Featuring stories of fiery serpents, cursed creatures, mythic horrors,
and the brave souls who dare to face them, this anthology invites you
into a world where every grain of sand may hide danger . . . and every
storm may awaken something ancient.

Enter the desert—if you dare.

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House of Sand – Mishipeshu

by on May 18, 2026 at 12:01 am
Posted In: Diaries

Mishipeshu is the spirit of the Great Lake Superior. The defender of the Great Sea and all its riches. The Great Water Lynx. A creature that loves and lives water, who can bend water to its will.

So what is it doing in the desert? Why did a spirit of water enter a House of Sand?

You’ll have to read “Sand and Storm” by Opal Kingdom Press to find out. Available soon at an amazon page near you.

And yes, this image was created in Grok Imagine. It is amazing what it can do with the proper prompting and ideas.

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Mishipeshu

by on May 17, 2026 at 12:01 am
Posted In: Diaries

Mishipeshu is the spirit of the Great Lake Superior. Her mission to defend what the local Indians called the Great Sea from any who disrespected the riches it harbored. The water lynx as many called her in times past. She was one of the spirits who never walked amongst humans in human form until Captain William Carter came to ask her to stop killing his people on the lake. To give his people a chance to show respect to the lake and everything in it. She chose to try walking amongst humanity that day, to pick a human form reflective of the people who believed in her.

She now travels the world in search of understanding both it and her place in it better. She guided Armenian priests seeking to survive the Ottoman purges into the Syrian desert, far enough away from the seat of Ottoman power in the final days of that crumbling empire that its soldiers could hopefully not find them. She took them to an old abandoned fortress on the Damascus Road and used her power over water to revitalize the ancient Roman waterworks powering its dormant fountains. She brought water to the desert, but the denizens of the House of Sand did not approve of a water spirit in their domain.

This art was created entirely in Grok Imagine, using abandoned Umayyad water fountains and Great Lakes Indians as a base to work from.

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House of Sand – Red

by on May 16, 2026 at 12:01 am
Posted In: Diaries

Red is a faery of the school of boom. If there is an explosion involved, she’s your woman. Being. Whatever. Automobiles. Firearms. Explosives. She’s in love if it involves a boom.

Red’s mission in life is to make everything faster, bigger, and more fun. Automobiles. Firearms. Explosives. She has inspected, taken apart, and rebuilt every firearm the team carries, and if a single component fails her inspection she will replace it with extreme prejudice. And when she gets her hands on an explosive, she will go to town in the same way.

But nothing made her happier than the humble horseless carriage. The automobile. She fell in love when humanity began building them and she could finally let her addiction for speed truly come out. The team’s Packard Twin Six is her personal fiefdom. She took it apart immediately after delivery. She put it back together again better, faster, and sturdier than it ever was. And when she drives it, it goes faster than anybody thought an automobile could drive.

Red came to the House of Sand to drive and blow things up. She got both wishes in spades.

This image was created by Grok Imagine using the plans of the abandoned fortress in question to build up the idea of the background and preexisting character art I created using Juggernaut XL9 at dezgo dot com. All prompts and directions come from my imagination.

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