A soldier returns home from Afghanistan with a strange, ancient box, completely sealed and covered in cuneiform. He soon discovers that the box is far older than he realized, and he escapes to California’s high desert to protect his family. However, his young brother is not so easily deterred and puts everyone at risk.
My story “Pyriscence” is now available in the anthology Cosmic Crime Stories. Pick up a copy today at Amazon and add it to your list on Goodreads.
This story is particularly special to me, as I am a US Army veteran and grew up just outside of California’s high desert. I wrote this story for a creative writing class at UW Milwaukee. Writing is only part of the process towards getting a work into your hands. This story went through at least seven major revisions and countless minor revisions.