I’ve been sitting on this news for a while, but I think it’s finally time for me to share it. This year, my short stories will be featured in two awesome anthologies!

Gilded Glass

This anthology is really cool because it was created as part of a graduate student program about publishing. Author Kevin J. Anderson teaches a course where a group of student editors goes through the entire process of reading submissions, selecting stories, and then editing and publishing a finished anthology. The theme is modern myths about what lies behind the mirror, and the collection has some big names in it! It’s humbling to see my name in print next to authors I’ve looked up to for so long, including Alan Dean Foster and Kristine Kathryn Rusch. This anthology is releasing on July 19.

My short story is “Tips for a Baby Witch,” a new experiment for me as I returned to paranormal thrillers for the first time in over ten years. A witch has advice for those who are just starting to learn magic, including a safety tip for dealing with mirrors. But her well-meaning advice might be harder to follow than you first expect, and magic could be more dangerous if it’s not used correctly!

A mirror is far more than meets the eye. When you gaze into the gilded glass, what do you see—and what looks back at you?

A beautiful woman hiding an ugly secret?
A malevolent king who delivers a fate worse than death?
An urban legend who will becomes an unlikely ally?
An alien gladiator with reflective armor?
A monster to the rescue?
A goddess?
A distorted version of yourself?

Dare to gaze into these 24 original tales of sweet deceptions and cursed truths by Sherrilyn Kenyon, Jonathan Maberry, Alan Dean Foster, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Michaelbrent Collings, and more.

Edited by international bestseller Kevin J. Anderson and Allyson Longueira and their Publishing graduate students at Western Colorado University, Gilded Glass: Twisted Myths and Shattered Fairy Tales offers stories with diverse roots, characters, and cultures, from frightening to funny, from once upon a time to far-flung futures and back to the modern day.

Deals are made and wishes granted. Friendships forged and enemies vanquished. You’ll love this anthology of modern myths, lore, and fairy tales, because everyone enjoys a happily ever after…

…or do they?

Stare deep into the gilded glass.
What you find might haunt you.

Ink and Incantation

This collection of short stories is all about some of our favorite things: books and libraries. It’s curated by the Facebook group, YA Sci-fi and Fantasy Addicts, which means that you’ll get a mix of magic and technology in these stories. We have a beautiful cover that will be revealed this weekend, but it’s already available for pre-order. It will be available on August 4!

My short story is “Riwenne & the Haunted Bookstore,” which is a stand-alone adventure from the Divine Warriors series. Riwenne goes to the bookstore to buy a book for her fifteenth birthday, but strange things start happening. Could it be haunted? You’ll have to read the story to find out! I’ll share a teaser for Writing Wednesday this week.

Celebrate the magic of books with this limited-time collection of YA Sci-Fi and Fantasy stories.

What’s inside these enchanting pages?

• A fae war is brewing, and only an ancient book has the power to stop it. If only the pages weren’t blank!
• A bookstore set in a steampunk world. The lights are flickering and objects are moving. Could the bookstore really be haunted?
• A doomed love story set in the last known library. Can two teens preserve what really matters?
• Two brothers. A wandering library. How far will they be willing to go to access this forbidden knowledge?
• And many more stories!

Authors Featured in Ink & Incantation

E. V. Everest, Allison Rose, Ben Green, C.L. Cannon, Jamie Dalton, Jessa Lucas, Joy Lewis, K. R. S. McEntire, Kristen S. Walker, Maria Vermisoglou, Nicole Zoltack, R. L. Medina, R.L. Perez, S. R. Breaker, Sudha Kuruganti, Tricia Copeland