A.M. Steele

@angstee.bsky.social

143 Followers 144 Following

(she/her) Author of Tears of Eternity. Knitter. Gardner. Cinephile. Part-time Bog Hag. https://books2read.com/b/bz9pan https://amsteeleauthor.com/

MegaMan pumpkin smashed on a neighborhood sidewalk.
A creepy smiling carved pumpkin sits on steps, staring at children that would like candy on their level. Up higher, a pumpkin with a MegaMan life sits, greeting the children's middle aged parents. It's a real something-for-everyone-house.
A trio of partially pollinated ears of corn in front of a half-dried row of corn in the city.
I can't recall the taste of food, nor the sound of water, or the touch of grass.
Futurama still. Bender singing "I love stealin', I love takin' things."
A mountain reservoir surrounded by greenery and wildflowers on a sunny afternoon.
An orange kitty rolls on the sidewalk beside a closed copy of Written on the Dark by Guy Gavriel Kay.
A jealous dog stares at a handful of ripe strawberries. She ate what she thought was ripe already and is now confused how the human found more.
A copy of Joe Abercrombie's The Devils inside a church for a signing event.
Heroes Die by Matthew Woodring Stover being brushed up against by a nice orange kitty named Twinkie.
The bright sun hits a lush green lawn. In the shade, a glass of beer sits beside a vape pen while a copy of The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie rests atop your author's lap. It is a nice day.
A cat's paw swipes at an innocent hand just trying to keep a book open on a desk.
5-Star Amazon Review reading, "Tears of Eternity: Foresight" is an extremely well written epic fantasy that intertwines the destinies of the four main characters. The author is a wizard himself, immersing the readers into this captivating world. The story illustrates how resilience combined with magic pays off in the end. Excellent book." The phrase "The author is a wizard himself" is highlighted. Underneath, Normon Osborne wears a poorly photoshopped wizard hat, saying "You know, I'm something of a wizard myself."
Image of paperback book titled "Scar Night" by Alan Campbell. Backdrop is a green yard with a pale blue sky.
“Hey, are you awake?” he whispered over to her, not sure why he was whispering. As if someone had answered his concerns about being in danger, sounds of guards walking down the hall reached him. “This one was to be kept separate, boss’s orders,” a guard said, keys clinking outside the cell door. “Elves are supposed to be together. You damn duff. Now we have to move this one and hope they won’t wake up. Not even branded yet. Idiot. Lucky for us, the paralysis is holding.”
Tears of Eternity Book One Foresight by A.M. Steele. Releases 3/21, available as an e-book or paperback.
“To predict the fate of a single individual is near folly. An individual’s specific decision in a nearby period? That is easy. Some grand-scale natural disaster in a few hundred years? Easy. To see how a series of bad decisions by one or two individuals over the course of a few weeks will end up? Near impossible.”
He’d had to wait until dawn to fully investigate, and he worried he missed something by waiting. Arthur wove several spells for remote viewing and scoured the building’s remnants. While chewing his lip, he drew a ritual circle, attempting to look backward through time at the collapse, then groaned. The building itself only gave the image of the outside falling. He didn’t know enough about what was occurring inside the manor to determine what had happened. The only thing he was sure of was that the earthquake was not natural—Minarin did not have earthquakes. Arthur left the building and saw a grime-encrusted arm poking up from behind a stone, too far away to be part of the manor. Curious, he moved the rock with a flick of his wrist, revealing the body attached to the arm. After a cursory glance, he took a step back and gasped.
Little gray kitty, Pip, poses for a photo as if she did not poop on a guest's laundry an hour earlier.
Once he was out of view of the row home, Rejnar pulled his hood over his head and wrapped his face and body in the weave. He chose to appear as a human man with dark hair and brown eyes, mirroring the look of the common sort that would not stand out on a street corner. The walk down the city streets toward the junction of portals was bustling with activity, with vendor signs pushing into the thoroughfares. He moved like a ghost through the crowd, almost alive, invisible in plain sight. As he neared the portal hall, his gait shortened and footsteps became heavier. Lost was the phantom and in its place, a man looking to find work in Fortuna’s docks aboard a Prinz ship.
Cover image of Tears of Eternity Book One: Foresight by A.M. Steele. Includes an icon for a LoveReading Indie Books We Love award.
Tears of Eternity: Foresight by A.M. Steele
Luminocity: Grieving Gold by Daniel McDaniel
As Lee wandered back to camp, the cold rains beat down on the clearing, soaking more of the ground without the extra tents set up to house the injured. For how the variations of elves intermingled with wilderfolk and the rebels, he offered thanks to Cissonia. He then rethought his prayer and offered another to Selvans, grateful that he allowed things to grow with magic and kept them safe in the dense canopy. What he might have considered fortune now seemed childish. It was the community that saved them and should any god deserve praise, it should be the one that oversaw the earth, not luck and gold.
Virga & Bone: Essays from Dry Places by Craig Childs
Arthur relented. She knew the risks of playing a prediction game against him. Just what she had in mind piqued his curiosity. “May I borrow a set of dice? We are not allowed to play with you fine folks.” She pulled Arthur aside from the group. “Given your proclivities, I believe I should roll first. Seven,” she announced before tossing the dice and landing on a seven. “Most probable roll, hardly clairvoyant.” “I’m merely lucky, not clairvoyant,” she said to his laugh, her broad grin and twinkling eyes matching his. Arthur rolled his eyes at her, tossing down coins based on her winnings. She won five runs before finally losing. She floated the dice by her and blew on them before sending them to Arthur. “You realize this is the most ill-advised scheme you have had this entire journey?” Arthur asked, “Even more so than yesterday.” “You realize that you could still fail the first roll? My odds aren’t so bad.” Arthur shook his head and stared her in the eye. “Five.” The dice rolled a five. Ostara picked up a leaf and watched it turn into a coin, then tossed down a coin to cover the bet. “Feygold, really?” Arthur asked, laughing. “Now, that might be the worse cheat.”
Ostara put an arm around the girl’s shoulder and squeezed her, smiling down at the child while grimacing internally. She searched for a comforting phrase that she would have liked to hear at that age. “I’m only half wood elf, making me half of two things, too. And you know the best part about being half of two things?” she asked. The girl wiped a tear and sniffled while shaking her head. “You get to take part equally with either side,” she said, smiling down at the girl, disguising her own lack of belief in the same statement. “I do?” the girl squeaked. “Yes, sweetness. Do you want to curtsy or spin? Go ahead.” The girl wiped her tears and joined the others. Ostara frowned and walked away from the children, feeling awful for the false comfort she’d offered the girl. Then, there was a deep rage at the girls’ parents for going against dogma, followed swiftly by anger at Ejwah. It was fine to play around with humans, but mixing with them fully was not.
She looked at the sky and pointed upward. “You see that star? In the Leporo constellation? or The Hare? I think you would call it?” “Kanina? Of course. Did I tell you that I can navigate by the stars? It was one of the few reasons I was ever brought on whaling trips as a youth,” he said, staring up at the clear sky, searching for the star she was referencing. “Yes, that’s its name, Kanina. Its first sighting after the Winter Solstice told my caravan to leave their winter encampment. It always makes me happy to see it. Odd to see it so late in the year,” she said, squinting at the star, and then said under her breath, “Dankon Sasa pro ĉi tiu tago.” Thank you, Ejwah, for this day.
“They eat our children. They curse our fields. They take our immortality and use it to live long lives and guide our nations. They must be contained for their treachery.” “Don’t,” Arthur telepathically messaged Ostara, seeing her face twist. “Don’t,” he ordered her when she winked at him after his first warning. “I thought I was just doing what I was always going to do,” Ostara returned while still silently smiling at the soldiers. “Eat their children? Do I have a choice in that matter?” “Are you claiming to know better than the council?” The soldiers were becoming more visibly irritated. “Are you claiming they know better than reason?” Ostara looked at Arthur. “Have you ever heard of such nonsense? I’ve heard mad men on corners hold more cogent beliefs.” The men shifted uncomfortably. They are scared to arrest a wizard, but they’re going to.
“When dawn lights up the morning, In a thousand shades of gold. A blackbird gently wakes the air As he makes the day unfold. Each note gives a new hope Of food and drink and friendly folk When we’re bound on another forest road.” Ostara looked into the branches overhead at the birds gathering. She strummed her lute through the same verse, vocalizing without words as the birds chirped along with her song.
“I needed to think about it. In my reverie, you were disgusted with the Prinz family. Silas, in particular.” Rejnar leaned back, relaxing his position. “I watched you neutralize the alcohol and other drugs they offered you. Your face gave away how uncomfortable you were.” “And? Did you report back that I am a boring prude, not worthy of my station?” Arthur repeated the description that was given to him by a few nobles.
“The council has sanctioned this campaign. We are searching for an ancient relic, something of elven origin, something that would, at last, put down these vermin and prevent future resistance. Because of its importance, we can speak no further on the relic,” the bald man said to the gathered youths. “You have been divided into your parties. Each of your parties will be led by a wizard of the Cowled. They will tell you all you need to know. Eat and rest easy tonight, for in the morning, all of you will gather and set out. And remember, we will reward any party that finds and retrieves the relic handsomely.”
“If I knew that I would have to walk back, I would have asked the vessel that delivered me to return,” Arthur said, following a few steps behind. “Really? It is mostly flat terrain, and the forest doesn’t look very dense. I’m sure it won’t be so bad,” Lee said, shifting Ostara’s pack onto his back. He was carrying hers under his. It was a cruel surprise to realize she’d filled it since last night. Arthur grumbled and seemed to look over Ostara with frustration. She heard the grumble and saddled up next to Lee. “I think we’re going to be the best of friends,” she said, giving him a gentle side hug and looking up at him with laughing eyes.
“But if magic had influenced him, how could his choice have been free?” Lee asked. He had recognized the same wisps of magic around the wizard’s words in Corinne. Was he influenced by magic then, too? He now worried that he had been pushed into a decision through magic rather than his own discretion. The wizard had even claimed elves could poison your mind against yourself. Where she had seemed friendly the night before, Ostara now troubled him. “That’s nonsense. He still had a choice, just weak self-will. Did you ever have a friend or lover that you did stupid things to impress? How was their influence upon you any different from my influence on the shopkeeper?” Ostara asked him.
Another few pounds of the less valuable fungi, along with the bags of dried acinderconk that he and his father had prepared over the last month, would support them for another year. This year’s harvest was smaller than the past few, and if prices stayed unchanged from the previous year, he knew they would struggle in the winter. Despite the acinderconk becoming harder to find, merchants’ purchasing prices never seemed to increase. While scavenging, Lee often pondered their meager earnings from the rare medicinal fungi, reminiscing about childhood winters that were not devoid of food.
“Are you quite pleased with yourself?” Arthur’s hands had been bound around a thin tree behind his back. Ostara’s hands were tied just above Arthur’s. Her back was to him, and she leaned back, resting her head on his shoulder. “Now you act like I am responsible? I thought we had no choices?” Arthur elbowed her forward off his shoulder. “You’re misrepresenting me. And now we have to break out of here.”
“From the clearing?” Arthur asked, standing upright while leaning against his staff for support. Lee nodded, then noticed the curious looks on both Rejnar’s and Arthur’s faces. “What?” “Through the darkness?” Rejnar asked. He checked over his gear, then pulled down his face mask that still had stray webs clinging to it. Ostara bumped Arthur with her hip, causing him to stumble to the side as she asked, “Are you going to deny that tell?” “Seeing into the darkness is not a tell,” Arthur said, then began walking again.,
One enigmatic image shifted into the next until they coalesced on a map of Minarin, where a viscous gray substance seeped through the paper, erasing any recognizable markings. The murky liquid covered the ground, dark shapes that looked like people collapsing in the distance, swirls of light coming off their bodies as they fell into the haze and turned the map into an abyss. As the ethereal scene dissipated, the melodic voice addressed the wizard viewing the carnage, as if spelling out her meaning. “Arthur, come find me.”
Redwall by Brian Jacques
Arthur had only seen similar performances at the few lavish events he had attended as a guest of nobility. While those performers seemed to go to the extreme in holding perfect posture with each movement, she moved fluidly, never needing to stress the motions, like a dandelion seed floating in harmony on the wind, flitting about yet never out of place. Watching her, his mind filled with anger toward whoever would mar such a creature with such a crude brand. He breathed and steeled his mind against her influence, not disagreeing with his thoughts, but as a reminder of her abilities, knowing he’d be open to her persuasion if he were too sympathetic.
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
Thinking in Systems by Donella H. Meadows
Battle Royale by Koushun Takami
“The river lands’ song was included in Marlowe’s Songs of the River Folk. You used the phrase cattywamp, but the colloquial term for that area is caddishamp,” he said, exchanging out his pipe. Ostara lifted an eyebrow, unfamiliar with the text but entertained by the scholarly response. “Oh, I’m sorry. Was I supposed to reference your book before I performed?” she asked and raised her hand to her chest, feigning embarrassment. “Well, no, I suppose…” He trailed off as he lit a fresh pipe as she cackled at him.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews
Ostara hid her grin when Arthur returned. He had trimmed his beard and pulled back his hair, causing his gray streaks to appear distinguished rather than slovenly as they had before. She wasn’t sure if it was insulting his appearance or seeing her dance, but either way, she awarded herself credit for the pleasant change.
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
They both worked in silence, the sound of knives scraping and the water splashing from the dunked fabrics the only disturbance to the peaceful evening. The narrow stream babbled against its rocky edges, hidden by the grasses that grew thick around it. To access the chilled water to wash her dress, Ostara fought the grass by continually pushing it under the brook’s surface.
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie, previously published as Ten Little Indians.
The Anatomy of Peace by The Arbinger Institute
Arthur Wells, concept sketch
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones.
Above a tranquil ocean stood a towering manor constructed of timber and stone on the edge of a cliff. Vines crept up its side as if forgotten by time. The shimmering waters beneath reflected the warm light of the luminous moon as they lapped upon the cliff side. Overhead, stars illuminated the night as the galaxy’s dust painted the evening in a magnificent blend of purples, reds, and golds, yet a disquieting calm filled the air.
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
The Future of Consumer Society: Prospects for Sustainability in the New Economy by Maurie J. Cohen
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkein
“A regret?” Rejnar asked and cocked an eyebrow. His tone was paternal and concerned for her safety, far too familiar for her tastes. It made Ostara wish she hadn’t tried conversing with the older elf. “Considering I was the filling in an inbred sandwich, yes, I have some regrets.” She covered her face and lay backward again. “Carlana and Ethlan?” Rejnar’s tone grew heavier. “No comment.” “Claren and Maroy?” His tone needled at her more than the pain in her feet. “I am not telling you. It’s embarrassing, even for me. I’d say that the coin was worth it, but all my gold disappeared in that prison.” She kept her face covered and drew her legs up onto the tree, trying to end the conversation, but he kept taunting her. “When we get back, I can just ask around.” “Why do you need to know?” Ostara asked, finally snapping at him. “A few of them have the hutch,” Rejnar said, referring to a common venereal disease. Ostara grunted and nearly sat up as she put a hand on her chest. “I’m hurt you think so little of me. I’m a trained cleric of a god with entire temples dedicated to orgies. Easily curable.” Rejnar chuckled and closed his eyes as sunlight hit his face. “Somehow, I don’t quite believe that.” “Swear to Ejwah. Took a few vows to conduct weddings and funerals.” His laugh convinced her he wasn't convinced. Fair enough.