π Our next novel writing master class starts in β! Claim your spot β
Advice, insights and news
Free 10-day publishing courses
Free publishing webinars
Free EPUB & PDF typesetting tool
Launch your book in style
Assemble a team of pros
A weekly short story contest
Author on Reedsy Prompts since Nov, 2019
The first case I took established my name in the black market of gossip. You know the type: tacit probe followed by the inevitable-yet-revealing βI know a guy.β I owed Ariel for launching me into the spotlight even though it turned me into a marked man. Nobody knew if she called herself Ariel because of the pearls, or if the pearls came afterward. She brought them from outside the gate, flaunting her appa...
Every buttercup drooped, sagging and flaccid in the blooming humidity. Saturated air stained floral gowns and starched suits with perspiration. Hot wind teased the air without offering relief, yet Ma-mawβs eyes were icy. She deliberately fastened another button on her crocheted cardigan as the crowd settled behind her. No back row for Ma-maw.The masses shuffled into tiny rows of tidy seating and flapped limp programs against unwavering heat. Lacquered chairs creaked under the heavy crowd, raw thighs pressed against stifl...
Sweat clung to Kateβs sides and stuck obstinately to her skin. The girls sprawled on the furniture and floors at all angles, like three iced-bottles under noonday glare, but without the refreshing coolness. Kate lifted her damp bangs, wishing for a wayward breeze to break the heavy, oppressive air. βIβm dreaming, of a whiiiiite Christmas, just likeββ Carla sprawled on her stomach, cheek pressed against th...
[10:08 AM] βMove, you livid heap of laundry,β Juniper growls. Her feet dangle uselessly while her arms struggle, half-wedged against and half-clinging to the wood. Her dress strains against her armpits, shoulders bunching fabric in cutting creases and billowing in parachute-like excess below. Seams press against her arms with too-tight ardor, clamoring for the release that will cast her down as a heap of ...
Sibley's wispy hair is already escaping her ponytail, straying away from the commanding soccer-mom vibe that marshalls her dolls. Her countenance never changes, authority glittering in her grey eyes to dispel any notion that a crumpled dress means she is slumping into a frowsy mother at the end of her rope. She frowns at Baby Ann, the cloth doll who is slowly sliding to the floor and watches her faceplant. At best, Henson the bear is only a mediocre support; this is the third time Baby Ann has disgraced herself.Sibley cr...
It was the very first lesson Owyn was taught: do not go into the wood. She could step into anything else β candlelight, instruments, raindrops β but wood was always banned. Every child grew up coddled by warnings about the dangers of wood; it was the cornerstone to Kaldorβs survival.The precaution almost seemed unnecessary β children were not taught about Fluidity until they were going on six, and those gifted with the ability were seldom identified before eight. An exceptionally strong-willed or studious Fluid might be re...
Rachael Wu has not written a bio yet!
Oops, you need an account for that!
Log in with your social account:
Or enter your email: