Here are all the free short stories, ficlets, etc. I’ve posted over the years, turned into pdf format so that you can download. I’ve given the word counts in each case because I know some readers like to know whether there’s time to read over coffee or during their lunch break! Each piece has an appropriate illustration. Simply click on the title underneath the description to download. I apologise for WordPress’ insistence on constantly altering the way they allow me to include the download links. I load the pdf to my media library then link it here – but they keep changing the system and the page is now quite untidy but outside my control!
First, the general things, with no romance involved.
Possibilities contains three short pieces. The House (388 words) suggests a kind of alien invasion, Manipulation (339 words) extrapolates from trends in surveillance and the authoritarian state, and Ghost sounds (575 words) is based on my own experience.
Zoos and gardens has two pieces, Shakespeare at the zoo ((594 words) was inspired by the idea of chimps typing and producing Shakespeare, and Frustration (306 words) considers the feelings of squirrels denied access to bird feeders.
The addlebrained dictionary (3134 words) takes a humorous approach to typos and common spelling errors.
The second set of pdfs has an mm romance focus.
Halloween Changes (3266 words) is a Halloween story I posted in 2019 for Halloween.
Seasonal Greetings contains Last Christmas (657 words) which is a kind of homage to the song, and New Year’s Resolution (1023 words) is a pair of mirror fics which start in an identical way but lead to very different endings.
Of ties and lawn mowers (2893 words) was posted early 2020 and explores how two very shy people might get together.
Three flashfics contains (obviously) three short pieces. Something to remember (659 words) was written for Remembrance Day, after seeing a photograph that went viral of a young man in a kilt on a windy day. Travelling together (400 words) is about a chance meeting in a bookshop, and Writer’s block (264 words) looks at another possible meaning of the words.
The Old Ones
A short story (6k words) for Halloween. A contemporary paranormal mm romance. Werewolves and ghosts in Northumberland’s National Park (UK).
The Old Ones
King of the Wood
This is my holiday offering for 2021. It’s an mm romance featuring plant shifters. Just over 8k words.
https://jaymountney.files.wordpress.com/2021/12/king-of-the-wood.pdf
Out of Time
This is my holiday story for 2022. It’s an interspecies (human/fae) mm romance very loosely inspired by the story of Rip Van Winkle but with a HEA set around a New Year celebration. 25k words so it’s a novella and I may move it to Amazon/Smashwords in 2023.
The third section has a focus on ff romance.
False Starts is the free short story I published Christmas 2019. I decided to withdraw it from Smashwords and make it permanently free here. About 5.5k words
Knocking at heaven’s door (352 words) concerns the thoughts of a young woman whose morning is interrupted by a caller wanting to engage her in religious discussion.
And here’s the story for Halloween 2020. It’s called Halloween Gift and is ff. It’s about 3,500 words and is a lighthearted look at witches and ghosts.
Stories set in my fae ‘verse
So far, a children’s book and two mm romances.
Answering Amanda
I have added the short story that inspired my Living Fae series. It’s a children’s book with illustrations and no romance, sex, politics or anything else unsuitable for the 7 – 14 age range for which it’s intended. There are 3756 words in 30 pages, plus some illustrations that often involve letters written in gel pen on special paper; these repeat some of the text but if you want the full effect of both the illustrations and the coloured text in the story, I suggest reading on a tablet e.g. iPad or Kindle Fire so that you get full colour! The age range is based on the reactions of a trial group of children. Those at the older end of the range should be amused by the creative spelling and other aspects of the tale. I have told readers of my Living Fae series to apply to me for a free copy; I will direct them here.
Answering Amanda is in some senses the prequel to my adult series Living Fae (available on Amazon and Smashwords – see ‘buy links’ page).
Across Two Seas is set after the events of the Living Fae series but can be read as a standalone and as a ‘taster’ for the stories. Unlike Answering Amanda it’s an adult story and is an mm romance between two minor characters from the other stories. Just over 10k words.
Once upon a riverbank.
My Valentine’s Day free story for 2022 is set in my fae ‘verse but in Australia. It is very very loosely linked to Living Fae in the sense that Harlequin, the main narrator of that series, visited Australia and met, briefly, one of the characters. 3.5k words.
I want to remind those who are interested that my fanfic is available free on Archive Of Our Own (AO3) at: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moth2fic
Enjoy! Comments gratefully received!
Jay's World 