Books
Winning at Meltdowns
Contemporary Young Adult novel-in-verse with Adult crossover potential, 40k words
Kaila’s ex-best friend wrote LESBIAN in mud on Kaila’s car, in front of two full dorm halls. Kaila knows it's stupid, but the implosion of their friendship stings. Plus, her grandmother just died--but they hadn't seen each other in years, so she shouldn't care, right?
Unfortunately, Kaila has no support system anymore, after only one semester at a tiny liberal arts college in Southern California. Her ex-roommate had to transfer after getting screwed over by Financial Aid, and her ex-not-boyfriend dropped out and now only communicates through artsy photos of shoes. With all this alone time, Kaila’s clinical depression flourishes, and the troubling memories she’s kept at bay circle closer.
Kaila starts a new S.S.R.I. regimen and is determined to get on with school, like the overachiever she’s always been. After all, she’s not like her missing mother, whose anxiety and self-harm made Kaila’s early childhood harrowing. The new pills make Kaila sleepy, but she continues to excel, even in a Sociology class that talks about child abuse more than she expected. She tries to spend more time with her classmates, Adrian (a sensitive computer scientist everyone expects Kaila to date, as he is objectively cute) and Mariko (who makes paperclip earrings, regrets going to college outside L.A., and is seriously cute). Instead, she experiences memory lapses and finds it increasingly hard to stay awake. As her dreams grow more disturbing, and her mental health continues to plummet, Kaila must stop living in survival mode and confront her traumas, before they kill her.
This manuscript is #ownvoices for queer identity, depression, and PTSD.
Further: A Novella and Stories
Short literary fiction, 45k words
In the titular novella, eighteen-year-old runaway Chloe Grey has a new career (waiting tables), a new love (who also happens to be her landlord), and even a new name (which is the same as her estranged sister's, but only because it sounds cool). Still, she is plagued by memories of her violent mother and a growing sense of unease with her living arrangement. When she runs into someone from her old life, everything starts to unravel.
Shortlisted for the 2016 William Faulkner - Wisdom Award in the Novella category.
Other stories in this collection feature a futuristic fad diet through the eyes of a budding radical, an undervalued detective in crisis situations, and tourist traps both sinister and maudlin. Equally concerned with grim realism and speculative omens, Further: A Novella and Stories dives deep into the loneliness and absurdity of young adulthood. Ten of this manuscript's fourteen tales have appeared in magazines; six have won or placed in contests.
Contemporary Young Adult novel-in-verse with Adult crossover potential, 40k words
Kaila’s ex-best friend wrote LESBIAN in mud on Kaila’s car, in front of two full dorm halls. Kaila knows it's stupid, but the implosion of their friendship stings. Plus, her grandmother just died--but they hadn't seen each other in years, so she shouldn't care, right?
Unfortunately, Kaila has no support system anymore, after only one semester at a tiny liberal arts college in Southern California. Her ex-roommate had to transfer after getting screwed over by Financial Aid, and her ex-not-boyfriend dropped out and now only communicates through artsy photos of shoes. With all this alone time, Kaila’s clinical depression flourishes, and the troubling memories she’s kept at bay circle closer.
Kaila starts a new S.S.R.I. regimen and is determined to get on with school, like the overachiever she’s always been. After all, she’s not like her missing mother, whose anxiety and self-harm made Kaila’s early childhood harrowing. The new pills make Kaila sleepy, but she continues to excel, even in a Sociology class that talks about child abuse more than she expected. She tries to spend more time with her classmates, Adrian (a sensitive computer scientist everyone expects Kaila to date, as he is objectively cute) and Mariko (who makes paperclip earrings, regrets going to college outside L.A., and is seriously cute). Instead, she experiences memory lapses and finds it increasingly hard to stay awake. As her dreams grow more disturbing, and her mental health continues to plummet, Kaila must stop living in survival mode and confront her traumas, before they kill her.
This manuscript is #ownvoices for queer identity, depression, and PTSD.
Further: A Novella and Stories
Short literary fiction, 45k words
In the titular novella, eighteen-year-old runaway Chloe Grey has a new career (waiting tables), a new love (who also happens to be her landlord), and even a new name (which is the same as her estranged sister's, but only because it sounds cool). Still, she is plagued by memories of her violent mother and a growing sense of unease with her living arrangement. When she runs into someone from her old life, everything starts to unravel.
Shortlisted for the 2016 William Faulkner - Wisdom Award in the Novella category.
Other stories in this collection feature a futuristic fad diet through the eyes of a budding radical, an undervalued detective in crisis situations, and tourist traps both sinister and maudlin. Equally concerned with grim realism and speculative omens, Further: A Novella and Stories dives deep into the loneliness and absurdity of young adulthood. Ten of this manuscript's fourteen tales have appeared in magazines; six have won or placed in contests.
STORIES
Empty Eyes
Horror fiction, 5k words
Wealthy and judgmental, Abe is confident of his position in the world. However, a routine business trip loosens his grip on his smugness–and maybe his sanity. In Dragoon, Arizona, Abe takes in a famous roadside attraction: the Thing, a makeshift museum featuring a mummy. He dismisses this silly experience, but when he returns to his comfortable life, the Thing follows. "The Tell-Tale Heart" meets Donnie Darko in this psych-horror tale of tourism and chauvinism. Though currently unpublished, "Empty Eyes" was a finalist for New Millennium Writings/Sunshots' 44th Writing Award Contest.
Fixed
Science-fiction, 4k words
In this follow-up to "Fixings" (Heliograph, 2015), a young teacher must decide how much she is willing to sacrifice for citizenship. In a world of short generations, teenage Ruth is considered an adult, and she does her best to behave like one, despite secret qualms. Her mundane life is rocked by the possibility that the all-powerful government will order her to give birth. Desperately, Ruth seeks help from a neglected town elder, hoping for a loophole... or a way to escape.
Horror fiction, 5k words
Wealthy and judgmental, Abe is confident of his position in the world. However, a routine business trip loosens his grip on his smugness–and maybe his sanity. In Dragoon, Arizona, Abe takes in a famous roadside attraction: the Thing, a makeshift museum featuring a mummy. He dismisses this silly experience, but when he returns to his comfortable life, the Thing follows. "The Tell-Tale Heart" meets Donnie Darko in this psych-horror tale of tourism and chauvinism. Though currently unpublished, "Empty Eyes" was a finalist for New Millennium Writings/Sunshots' 44th Writing Award Contest.
Fixed
Science-fiction, 4k words
In this follow-up to "Fixings" (Heliograph, 2015), a young teacher must decide how much she is willing to sacrifice for citizenship. In a world of short generations, teenage Ruth is considered an adult, and she does her best to behave like one, despite secret qualms. Her mundane life is rocked by the possibility that the all-powerful government will order her to give birth. Desperately, Ruth seeks help from a neglected town elder, hoping for a loophole... or a way to escape.