Friday's Great Read

 

I am so pleased to have my good friend and fellow author, D. L. Finn with us today to tell us about her newest work TREE FARIES AND THEIR SHORT STORIES. Since I was lucky enough to get a sneak peak, I can tell you it’s a keeper just as D. L. is herself.

 

Thank you, Sandra, for having me here today to talk about my latest release, “Tree Fairies and Their Short Stories.”

In my stories, I mention a few things that are dear to me, including my love of trees and nature, which usually shows up in my writing. There is a lot of debate going on right now about how to fix our state’s fire danger. I won’t debate the theories, but I will share what we’ve done on our property.

Over the years, we’ve selectively cut trees on our property, and more recently, we’ve cleared further away from our house for safety and insurance purposes. The only downside I’ve seen to getting rid of the underbrush and natural plants is weeds with stickers on them replace them. I’ve picked many stickers out of my socks.

But it was nice to open things up and explore more into our forest, or as we call it, the Magical Trail. It’s here we’ve put up some housing for our local fairies.

Although we’ve never seen a fairy living in the houses, I know they are there and keeping us safe.

 

Fun Finn Facts:

1.       I believe in fairies.

2.       I’ve stood inside a redwood with my entire family in complete darkness.

 

Blurb:

When reality and magic meet in the forest

It’s 1969, and twelve-year-old Daniel Burns is camping in the redwood forest with his family. Danny wants to listen to his music and read, but his family has other plans. S’mores around the campfire and stories end their first day. The family is sleeping soundly in their secluded tent when Danny wakes up and finds his sister, Colette, is missing. Assuming she went to use the outhouse, he goes after her. When he finds his sister, they discover there is a thin veil between reality and fantasy.

Two bonus short stories offer a glimpse into the magical world that finds Danny and Colette. These hidden beings not only share our world but have a role in protecting their forest.

Excerpt from a short story:

Roselle

2004

Roselle stopped midair to admire the pink, orange, yellow, purple, and red that filtered through the redwood forest as the sunset. She carefully scanned the area to make sure no one was watching, and then, with a huge grin, she dove into a double roll.

“Woo-hoo!”

Her twirling skidded to a halt when an older fairy from the school office flew directly under her. Her always-braided gray hair had yellow flowers woven in like she was meeting someone special. The fairy made a sharp turn and shot out of sight without acknowledging Roselle’s childish frolicking.

Roselle couldn’t hold back a smile. It was hard to contain her exuberance because the forest was the best place to live. Everything about the redwood trees was amazing. They made tannin, a natural insect repellent that gave them that wonderful red tone and protected them from fires.

The only downside to a smaller number of insects was fewer birds, which she loved the most. The bright yellow Wilson’s warbler was her favorite. They added so much color to the deep green forest, and the male had a little black cap that she found endearing. Right now, her warblers and many others were on their way south as fall left summer behind, which also meant they would have winter bird visitors soon.

She found the year-round birds, the great horned owl and red-tailed hawk, beautiful but annoying. Those birds could ruin a peaceful moment like this. Both seemed to forget fairies weren’t their meals. Roselle reminded them with a powerful jolt that felt like a mini lightning strike. It didn’t hurt them, but they didn’t like it, either.

Her carefree moment quickly passed when she flew by her school. She sighed deeply and headed for the forest floor. “Darn paper’s due tomorrow. Why did I wait to write it?”

The paper stood between her and the upcoming fall break. It was normally a time when she could roam the forest uninterrupted and take in the deciduous trees as they burst into red, orange, and yellow. However, this break wouldn’t be the same without her human friends, Wren and Sierra. Roselle missed their company and all their silly jokes, including the ones about her putting off getting things done.

Sierra would say, “If they had an award for procrastination, you’d win first place.”

Wren would add, “But you’d be late and miss the ceremony.”

Okay, maybe she did put things off until the last moment and might be late for school now and then, but at least, at some point, it all got done. When Wren and Sierra left for college two months ago, it was like she lost a part of herself.

Purchase Links:

Amazon

SMASHWORDS

Author Bio:

 

D. L. Finn is an independent California local who encourages everyone to embrace their inner child. She was born and raised in the foggy Bay Area, but in 1990 she relocated with her husband, kids, dogs, and cats to Nevada City, in the Sierra foothills. She immersed herself in reading all types of books but especially loved romance, horror, and fantasy. She always treasured creating her own reality on paper. Finally, surrounded by towering pines, oaks, and cedars, her creativity was nurtured until it bloomed. Her creations include adult fiction, poetry, a unique autobiography, and children’s books. She continues on her adventure with an open invitation to all readers to join her.

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