J.M. Topp

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Sep, 2020

Stories (7)

7 Stories

122 karma pts

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“A Friendly Feather” by J.M. Topp

Submitted to Contest #73

Clank! Clank! Clank!The sound of a hammer striking anvil pulled my gaze, and then, I saw him. His skin was dark-grey like ash and his eyes fiery red, glowing beneath the black tarp of his blacksmith shop. Wind blew wintry-cold through his long and coal-black hair. He looked up as I stared and I quickly broke eye contact. Father approached holding a small crate with a clucking hen within.‘Go on now. Hornbluds deserve good cheer of the dawning winter solstice too,’ he said, shoving the small crate into my arms. The fowl clucked and looked up i...

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“The Whisper” by J.M. Topp

Submitted to Contest #72

The clopping sound of horse’s hooves upon the road alerted the farmer to an armored rider approaching. He was a knight errant from the center-lands, a herald of the court of Mount Valissia, judging by the dragon depicted on his kite shield. The farmer, sickle in hand, departed from his task in the field and met the knight near wooden fence. ‘Hail,’ spoke the knight beneath iron visage. ‘Are you the owner of this land?’ ‘I am,’ replied the farmer, true. ‘I have learned much about your tale, good sir. You are of much renown in the under...

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“The Man Hidden By Light” by J.M. Topp

Submitted to Contest #61

Harsh light from a torch awoke me from my slumber. The gatekeeper had probably risen early this morning searching for a bite to eat from the larder as per usual. I yawned creaking my wax limbs and shaking the soot from wick atop my head. He would usually visit thirty minutes before the break of dawn but there was an odd look on his hardened face this morning. He was worried about something. I sniffed the air as he passed me. Sulfur and gunpowder. I felt chills through my brass base. He smelt of a siege. A few replacements ago, some sixty ...

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“Road to Tumbleweed” by J.M. Topp

Submitted to Contest #60

West Texas – 1857 A soft breeze blew through the tops of the reeds on both sides of the small creek, whistling slowly as a summer sweet song across the prairie. She dipped her feet in the cool waters and wriggled her toes as she spotted a large black catfish roaming the bottom of the creek bed. She couldn’t remember the last time she had seen waters so clear. The calm trickle of water lapped over a large rounded rock covered in moss like a green cap in the center and was wrinkled like her father’s bald forehead. She stood up and then, l...

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“Cosmic Castaway” by J.M. Topp

Submitted to Contest #59

A cacophony of laughter erupted from the center bar as a group of orbital mine workers lifted their beers in unison and slammed steel mugs together. Kimsy stared at them with glee in her eyes and smiled as their drunken joy filled the establishment with life. She wiped the counter with a red cloth as her eyes turned from the men to the koyball game being played on a hologram above them. The Grunsvelt Asteroid Team was doing well this year. It would bring more customers in, she thought. Then, a hooded man walked in shrouded in a brown cloa...

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“S.I.B.A. Safe” by J.M. Topp

Submitted to Contest #58

‘Shh…quiet…Shut the fuck up! Look, there it is,’ snapped Rob, peeking from behind a garbage collector in a foggy alleyway. Jonesy and Petra quieted down to stare at a sleek silver vehicle hovering down the busy boulevard. ‘What’s it doing in these parts?’ asked Petra, adjusting her left eye patch. ‘The owner is a nerd millionaire that invented some kind of new vaccine. He bought himself twenty of those cars or so I’ve heard,’ said Rob. They stared at the hover-car with keen eyes as it came to a halt just before a bank. ‘I’ve also h...

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“They Got Your Nose Wrong” by J.M. Topp

Submitted to Contest #57

FPO password accepted. Access granted. Begin Plunge. *** Success! The warp-catch threw me against the wall of an empty sixteen by sixteen foot apartment. I landed with a thud and gasped as my breath was forced out of my lungs. The air was pungent with the smell of sewer and water dripped in from tiny holes in the ceiling. The place had been long abandoned. My cam-cloak was wrapped around my throat choking me. I pulled with all my might and nearly tore it. Through rapid breaths my eyes began to focus. Well, my right eye. The other eye was s...

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Author bio

J.M. Topp is an author with his first debut being Knights without Kings, the first novel in the Harmony of the Apostles series which you can find on amazon. He has a bachelors in Mass Media Communications with an emphasis in journalism. He currently works in a hospital as a computed tomography radiologist but his true passion is writing. J.M. Topp has a writing vlog on YouTube and on his website jmtopp.com.