Fiction

Short stories, flash fiction, and fictional humour published in magazines and anthologies:

Environmental theme
"Downpour," Mother's Revenge anthology, Scary Dairy Press, Spring 2017. Explores the effects of flooding and weather events become more severe due to climate change.

Animal protagonist stories
"A Dose of Humility," From a Cat's View II, Post to Print, 2019. AI-enhanced Galactic Space Services operative Quicksilver finds that sometimes, the dog is right.

"Cruising," NewMyths.com, Vol. 16, Issue 61, Winter 2022. Quicksilver manages to get himself in trouble--again.

"Escort Duty," NewMyths.com, Vol. 17, Issue 63, Escorting the Neighgal Ambassador to Theta Prime seems like an easy for Quicksilver and Pepper--until it isn't.

"Gone," New Myths, Issue 44; Twilight Worlds: Best of NewMyths Anthology Volume II. After an alien invasion, a border collie searches a changed world for signs of her missing master.

"Grounds for Questioning," The Daily Grind, Goal Publications. Border Collie cop Rally keeps her new boss on his toes as she navigates through her first day at work.

"Into the Ring," New Myths, Issue 34, March 2016. Also included in Neosapiens: Best of New Myths Vol III, November 2022. A canine undercover operative struggles to triumph against the odds.

“Last Dance,” Shelter of Daylight, Hiraeth Publishing, Winter 2022. Quicksilver develops a nose for trouble.

"Mission on Nemistat," Electric Spec, November 30, 2018. Star learns that sometimes, it's enough to know that you're making a difference.

"The Open Road," From A Cat's View anthology, Post to Print Publishers, 2018. Ship's cat Quicksilver learns that it's hard to outrun your past. Appeared as a reprint in JayHenge Publishing's Joining Forces anthology, 2021.

"Roxy," New Myths, Issue 32, September, 2015. Also included in New Myths' Passages anthology, 2018. The bitter-sweet fictional story of the first AI-enhanced police dogs.

"Roxy's Rule," New Myths, September, 2017 (sequel to "Roxy"). As St. Exupery said, we are responsible for what we create... Reprinted as "The Roxy Ruling" in Tails From the Front Lines 2: The Thin Blue Line, a charity anthology published by Wolfsinger Publishing, 2023

"The Switch," New Myths, Vol. 16, Issue 59, Summer 2022. Things get serious for Quicksilver when a prank has poor timing.

"War of Attrition," Dogs of War anthology, January 2017. Is the water dish half empty, or half full?

"Where the Hearth Is," Home for the Howlidays anthology, Tyche Books, November 2021. Former GSS canine operative Pepper learns that it's possible to accept retirement with good grace. Reprinted in Tails From the Front Lines 2: The Thin Blue Line, a charity anthology published by Wolfsinger Publishing, 2023

Space Opera
"The Altimus Mission," Outposts of Beyond, October 2016. Giant monarch butterflies, anyone?

"By Ox and Axe," The Quilliad, Issue 6, November 2015. 
Also published on Read Me A Story, Ink. Paul Bunyan meets the space age.

"The Chienchat Conundrum," The Martian Wave, 2018. Published as a reprint in Professor Feiff's Compleat Pocket Guide to Xenobiology for the Galactic Traveller, JayHenge Publishing, August 2022. On Arcadia, a planet settled by New Brunswick colonists, two biologists study a native species with some hidden capabilities.

"Duplicity," Outposts of Beyond, January 2020. On the planet Arcadia, the Rimbaut family makes a discovery that could shift the political landscape--if they live long enough to tell the right people.

"Flying by Instinct," The Martian Wave, Nomadic Delirium, 2017. Published as a reprint in Bards and Sages Quarterly, October 2019. An ancient artifact helps a young man navigate, both figuratively and literally.

"The Messenger's Mission," The Fifth Dimension, Nomadic Delirium, September 2018. In an alternate universe, three figures from Greek mythology become monster hunters--and put a different twist on an old story.

"Missing," Outposts of Beyond, January 2019, Alban Lake Publishing. Vincent and Kat Harris race the clock to must help solve a missing persons' case.

"The Price of Remembering," Shelter of Daylight, July 2023. Human settlers embark on a race against time on the planet Augusta.

"Road Trip," Visions VII: Universe, Lillicat Press, 2017. Cuteness can be over-rated.

"A Subtle Form of Combat," Yay! They're Here! Dead Fish Books, August 2023. Aliens discover Earth--and hockey.

"The Turning," Outposts of Beyond, Alban Lake Publishing, April, 2018. Another look at the legend of Gelert.

Teen/YA Protagonist Stories
"Andi's Birthday," Allegory, Issue 29/56. Also published on Read Me A Story, Ink. In a post-apocalyptic world, a road hockey game provides a way for old enemies to become friends.

"Changes," The Monsters Hiding in Your Closet, CBAY Books, 2017. 
Also published on Read Me A Story, Ink. A girl with hockey aspirations is faced with an unusual choice.

"In Other Words," CBAY Books' A Thousand Words for War anthology. Published as a reprint in WolfSinger Publications' US/THEM anthology, released October 2021. Also published on Read Me A Story, Ink. Humans and Galavians team up to uncover a plot to sabotage peace talks.

"Mission to Galavia," The Martian Wave, March 2022. Also published on Read Me A Story, Ink. A sequel to "In Other Words," when humans visit the Galavians on their home soil.

Earth-based sci-fi stories
"Almost Forgotten," Only the Lonely anthology, Alban Lake Publishing, January, 2018. An ex-cop ensconced in a retirement home stumbles across a dangerous secret.

"Blame It On the Zucchini," Thema, Spring 2017. Maybe there's no such thing as too much zucchini.

"Breakaway," Mundanities: the Zine of Mundane Science Fiction, Issue 1 (Nomadic Delirium)When a young athlete learns a shocking truth about the source of his hockey skills, the knowledge could threaten more than his career.

"The Caller," Future Days, a Science Fiction and Fantasy anthology published by Castrum Press, 2018. After her father makes a belated revelation, a woman questions her chosen line of work.

"Deja Vu," Third Flatiron Anthologies Book 15, January 2016. A bit of genetic tampering turns sour.

"The Disconnect," Third Flatiron Anthologies Book 28, Brain Games: Stories to Astonish, October 2020. Is the latest tech necessarily the greatest?

“Down Memory Lane,” Bicyclist’s Guide to the Galaxy, Microcosm Press, December 2023. A woman struggles to let go of the past.

“Fallback,” published in Yabblins: 2, Gypsum Sound Tales, September 24, 2024. A re-enactment of The Last Spike: What could possibly go wrong?

"A Fork in the River," Del Sol Review SFF, published online November, 2016. If we could choose to do it over again, would we? Also published in Jay Henge's The Chorochronos Archives, released in April, 2021.

"Heart of Gold," Cosmic Crime, March 2023, Hiraeth Publishing. A detective taps into a special talent to solve a case.

"Hidden Talents," Cosmic Crime, March 2024. Sometimes, Detective Karlee Braun wishes she couldn't see people's regrets manifested as visible phenomena. Then again, her ability does help her solve crimes . . . 

"Improvised Luck," Twelve Days, Patchwork Raven, February, 2017. A participant in a reality TV show revolving around the famous Christmas carol realizes things are not always what they seem.

"It's All Good," Enter the Rebirth anthology, TANSTAAFL, June, 2018. A softball player realizes that the first Olympics after the Pandemic aren't quite what they're made out to be.

"The Last Hurrah," Havok, Remember When, March, published March 5, 2024. Flash fiction. A coach worried about their star player must make a choice.

"The Mismatch," Acceptance: Stories at the Centre of Us, Engen Books, 2021. A female hockey player teams up with an unexpected ally to unearth some disturbing truths.

"The Price of Fame," The Lorelei Signal, April 2024. A futuristic look at women's professional football.

"A Requiem for the Fallen," CBAY Books' Witches and Ogres anthology, Spring 2016. Monster is as monster does.

"The Sleeper Agent," Mundanities: the Zine of Mundane Science Fiction, Issue 2 (Nomadic Delirium). Marcy Norvek opts to re-enlist with the Police Force part-time while awaiting her opportunity to return to hiber-sleep—until a missing persons case causes her to have second thoughts about the merits of sleeping your life away.

"Star Crossed," Shelter of Daylight, January 2024. Romeo and Juliet for hockey fans--with a twist, and a happy ending. 

"The Temptation Machine," Geek Out! The temptation to spend too much time chasing after what-might-have-beens can get out of control . . . 

"To Catch a Chameleon," The Were-Traveler, Women Destroy Science Fiction, February 2021. A newbie police officer has to think on her feet in order to thwart sinister aliens with designs on Earth.

"What Lies Beneath," Environmental Holocaust, Nomadic Delirium Press. When a patient in a Hamilton, Ontario hospital shows up with a deadly virus in his bloodstream, researchers find an unlikely ally in their race to develop a cure. 

“Wheels of Progress,” This Is Your Bike on Plants: Fantastical Feminist Stories of Bicycling, Gardens, and Growth, Microcosm Publishing, November 12, 2024. Bike racing and vegetable gardening.

Sci-Fi Short Humor
"Advice for the 2060s Birder," Third Flatiron, Galileo's Theme Park, June 2018

“The Art of Music Surfing,” Rhapsody of the Spheres, a Third Flatiron anthology, August 21, 2023.


"Etiquette for Dealing with the Ship's Cat," Third Flatiron, March 2017

"The Secret Lives of Gargoyles," Humour Me Magazine, Issue 19

Flash and Other
"Cerby's First Day." Havok, Wacky Wednesday, Legendary Events, November 1, 2023. A flash fiction re-imagining of Cerberus' first day in the Underworld.

"Curve Ball," Havok, Remember When: March, March 20, 2024. On opening day, the Galactic Baseball League's new baseball supplier has a big problem.

In the Eye of the Beholder,” Havok, Remember When: June, June 19, 2024. Cerby goes topside and learns something new.

“Just Fooling,” Electric Spec, Volume 19, Issue 4, November 30, 2024. Loki's April Fool's prank goes awry.

"The Last Hurrah," Havok, Remember When: March, March 5, 2024. That year, "March Madness" had a whole new dimension . . . 

“The Memory of Flowers,” Havok, Fantasy Friday, posted November 22, 2024. The Grey Cup, flowers, and the undead.

 
"The Queen's Request," Havok, Remember When: May, May 6, 2024. The Queen of Hearts asks Frank the Pig to investigate an old case.

“A Sticky Situation,” Havok Publishing, July 15, 2024. Papa Bear calls on Frank the Pig to solve the mystery of the missing honey.

“To Every Dog His Day,” To The Dogs: 31 Very Short Stories About Man's Best Friend, Altitude Press, published September 27, 2024. Hades discovers that having a dog can give you a different perspective on life.

“Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf,” Havok, Mystery Monday, posted November 11, 2024. Why did Mr. Wolf ask for the month of November off?