There are never enough hours in a day but I caught up with everyone’s snippets and am here with one of my own. This is from my holiday steampunk story. We met Jacob last week and here’s his partner, Al who is waiting for him and his airship to come home.

Al tamped out the old dottle from his wooden pipe and replaced it with fresh tobacco. His favored blend of Turkish and Black Cavendish, the latter cased in rum and sugar, gave him a sweet and mild finish to enjoy. He rested his pipe in the bowl of the silver ashtray, atop the embossed men playing bocce ball. A fire crackled in the fireplace, the light dancing on the cherubs and lions carved into the mantle. Outside, a bitter wind howled, making Al regret lighting his pipe. Here he sat, tea with a nip of whiskey at his side, pipe in hand and book in his lap, all snug and toasty, and somewhere high in the winter winds, Jacob was sailing his way home. How cold he must be.

Blurb As Chief Tactician for the airship DeGrasse, Jacob Scarberry has spent the last six months on a wearying tour of duty. He’s missing home, and his prosthetic leg is conducting the December cold straight to his core. But with the holidays coming up, he’s looking forward to a well-earned leave, sharing some Christmas surprises with his lover, Dr. H. Alphus Troyer, and welcoming in the dawn of the 20th century.

A professor at Ohio University, Al is already on Christmas break, and his unconventional household is in a festive frenzy. Al is a bit less joyous, his anticipation of Jacob’s return warring with uncertainty over the special gift he had commissioned for him. Would Jacob appreciate it, or will it put a strain on their relationship?

Suddenly Al’s worries become trivial when the newspapers report an attack on the DeGrasse. With Jacob fighting for his life miles away, Al is left to wonder whether Jacob will return at all, or whether the planned festivities will become holiday heartbreak instead.

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The Rainbow Snippet group can be found on Facebook. It’s a fun low-pressure snippet sharing group for LGBTQ+ fiction. Come join us. https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets

I missed last week because I was at Galaxycon which was a lot of fun. Late this time because I traveled home for the holidays.

Speaking of which here’s a snippet from my steampunk christmas story from a while back. Jacob is an airman on an an air ship on his way home to his lover.

The icy night wind bit deep, like a dog gnawing down to the bone. Jacob Scarberry pulled his blue wool pea coat tighter as he shivered. The cold burned his fingers through his gloves, and he shoved his hands up under his arms. Thick charcoal clouds obscured the silvery light of the moon, making the night more forbidding. Jacob ignored the urge to yank out his pocket watch to test how much longer he’d be on the deck of the DeGrasse. It wouldn’t be much longer, but at this point, as the wind and the airship’s engines carried them lazily.

Blurb As Chief Tactician for the airship DeGrasse, Jacob Scarberry has spent the last six months on a wearying tour of duty. He’s missing home, and his prosthetic leg is conducting the December cold straight to his core. But with the holidays coming up, he’s looking forward to a well-earned leave, sharing some Christmas surprises with his lover, Dr. H. Alphus Troyer, and welcoming in the dawn of the 20th century.

A professor at Ohio University, Al is already on Christmas break, and his unconventional household is in a festive frenzy. Al is a bit less joyous, his anticipation of Jacob’s return warring with uncertainty over the special gift he had commissioned for him. Would Jacob appreciate it, or will it put a strain on their relationship?

Suddenly Al’s worries become trivial when the newspapers report an attack on the DeGrasse. With Jacob fighting for his life miles away, Al is left to wonder whether Jacob will return at all, or whether the planned festivities will become holiday heartbreak instead.

The Glow of Luminiferous Aether on Tinsel

The Rainbow Snippet group can be found on Facebook. It’s a fun low-pressure snippet sharing group for LGBTQ+ fiction. Come join us. https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets

Just too tired to form words. I did finish my 21st nano (though off their site after the whole AI commentary but then here comes Harper Collins making those statements look like nothing…)

Staying with These Haunted Hills (because I want people to love them and the Hocking Hills like I do)

Brendan eventually lost himself in the haunted world he was creating, not even hearing Josh’s approach until he was shockingly close. Josh waved, a bashful expression on his face as if he were sorry he’d startled Brendan. He wore jeans with the knees torn out and a T-shirt with a dragon sitting on a hoard of books with the words “book wyrm” on it. He had twigs in his blond hair and a smudge of dirt across the bridge of his nose.

“Hey. You’re back. I almost didn’t recognize you.” Josh scrubbed a hand over his chin, leaving behind more dirt.

shot of the full moon through barren trees Hocking Hills at night

Blurb: Young wildlife conservation professor, Joshua Zimmerman, adores foxes, steampunk, and paranormal investigation. As a geek of the first order, Josh is a collector of nerdy memorabilia and tattoos, and he’s an avid steampunk cosplayer. When his favorite author hires him for some ghost hunting for his new project, Josh can hardly believe his luck.

As an author of the wildly successful urban fantasy series, The Green Tablet, Brendan Halloran should have it all. And he did until his young son, Connor, died of cancer. Heartbroken and drowning in grief, Brendan stops writing, stops living his life. His marriage has disintegrated, leaving Brendan trapped in the moment Connor died.

When Brendan rents a cabin in Ohio’s Hocking Hills, it’s ostensibly to research his next book, an adult paranormal tale. Brendan hires a local professor who is an expert on the paranormal, thinking if he does pull out of his tail spin and makes good on his plan to write a new book, he might as well do it right. And the perfect place to investigate could be the remains of an old hotel constructed to suit the serial killer who built it.

Brendan finds himself swept away, completely unprepared for the joy and enthusiasm Josh brings to everything he does. Step by step, Brendan reenters life. His head might not be convinced he’s ready to love again, but his heart disagrees. Unfortunately for him, the ghost is every bit as vicious as the killer was in life, and he and Joshua have a target on their backs.

Buy Link https://www.amazon.com/These-Haunted-Hills-Jana-Denardo/dp/1648907407

The Rainbow Snippet group can be found on Facebook. It’s a fun low-pressure snippet sharing group for LGBTQ+ fiction. Come join us. https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets

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I had a nerve block put in my back which helped so that means they can progress onto the radiofrequency ablation (my back is terribly arthritis so they want to do something to decrease the pain).

I still haven’t gotten my crap together so have more of These Haunted Hills along with a picture of Old Man’s Cave (mentioned in the snippet) from two weeks ago.

Josh wrinkled his nose. “I’ll remind you that you left me standing at the hotel, and you were half a mile down the road before I knew it.”

“It wasn’t that bad.”

“That’s not what you told me,” Heather protested.

Brendan sighed. “Okay, it was bad. Believe me, Heather, if I took you out there, you’d be just as scared. Josh is made of sterner stuff. By the way, we haven’t gone for our walk yet, if you’re still interested in coming. I was telling them about how pretty Ash Cave was.”

“If you have time, I could take all three of you out to Old Man’s cave,” Josh offered. “It’s an easy hike, and it’s very pretty this time of year.”

Blurb: Young wildlife conservation professor, Joshua Zimmerman, adores foxes, steampunk, and paranormal investigation. As a geek of the first order, Josh is a collector of nerdy memorabilia and tattoos, and he’s an avid steampunk cosplayer. When his favorite author hires him for some ghost hunting for his new project, Josh can hardly believe his luck.

As an author of the wildly successful urban fantasy series, The Green Tablet, Brendan Halloran should have it all. And he did until his young son, Connor, died of cancer. Heartbroken and drowning in grief, Brendan stops writing, stops living his life. His marriage has disintegrated, leaving Brendan trapped in the moment Connor died.

When Brendan rents a cabin in Ohio’s Hocking Hills, it’s ostensibly to research his next book, an adult paranormal tale. Brendan hires a local professor who is an expert on the paranormal, thinking if he does pull out of his tail spin and makes good on his plan to write a new book, he might as well do it right. And the perfect place to investigate could be the remains of an old hotel constructed to suit the serial killer who built it.

Brendan finds himself swept away, completely unprepared for the joy and enthusiasm Josh brings to everything he does. Step by step, Brendan reenters life. His head might not be convinced he’s ready to love again, but his heart disagrees. Unfortunately for him, the ghost is every bit as vicious as the killer was in life, and he and Joshua have a target on their backs.

Buy Link https://www.amazon.com/These-Haunted-Hills-Jana-Denardo/dp/1648907407

The Rainbow Snippet group can be found on Facebook. It’s a fun low-pressure snippet sharing group for LGBTQ+ fiction. Come join us. https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets

I spent a few days in a cabin in the woods in the Hocking Hills (a lot like Brendan and Josh so I decided to stick with them this week). It was lovely and I’m very proud of myself. I walked the gorgeous Old Man’s Cave trail for the first time since my accident and except for two places I required no help. Also went to Ash Cave again so I thought I’d bring back the original meeting of Brendan and Josh

Josh already knew Halloran had one of those deep bass voices but hearing it here when it was just them and not in a crowd of fans made Josh’s knees go wobbly. He held out his hand. “Mr. Halloran, I’m glad you found your way out here.”

Brendan’s lips twitched slightly, almost smiling, as he shook hands. “The trail is well marked.” He turned, studying the water tumbling over the lip of the fall. “It’s quite beautiful. It’s hard to believe this much wilderness exists so close to Columbus. I mean, it’s little more than an hour from where I live, and yet I was barely aware this was here.”

“It’s a shame we’re Ohio’s best-kept secret.” Josh tapped his chest. “And you can call me Joshua or Josh if you’d prefer.”

Ash Cave 2024 (been a dry year, almost no waterfall left)

Blurb: Young wildlife conservation professor, Joshua Zimmerman, adores foxes, steampunk, and paranormal investigation. As a geek of the first order, Josh is a collector of nerdy memorabilia and tattoos, and he’s an avid steampunk cosplayer. When his favorite author hires him for some ghost hunting for his new project, Josh can hardly believe his luck.

As an author of the wildly successful urban fantasy series, The Green Tablet, Brendan Halloran should have it all. And he did until his young son, Connor, died of cancer. Heartbroken and drowning in grief, Brendan stops writing, stops living his life. His marriage has disintegrated, leaving Brendan trapped in the moment Connor died.

When Brendan rents a cabin in Ohio’s Hocking Hills, it’s ostensibly to research his next book, an adult paranormal tale. Brendan hires a local professor who is an expert on the paranormal, thinking if he does pull out of his tail spin and makes good on his plan to write a new book, he might as well do it right. And the perfect place to investigate could be the remains of an old hotel constructed to suit the serial killer who built it.

Brendan finds himself swept away, completely unprepared for the joy and enthusiasm Josh brings to everything he does. Step by step, Brendan reenters life. His head might not be convinced he’s ready to love again, but his heart disagrees. Unfortunately for him, the ghost is every bit as vicious as the killer was in life, and he and Joshua have a target on their backs.

Buy Link https://www.amazon.com/These-Haunted-Hills-Jana-Denardo/dp/1648907407

The Rainbow Snippet group can be found on Facebook. It’s a fun low-pressure snippet sharing group for LGBTQ+ fiction. Come join us. https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets