amberkbryant
The Sea and the Sand

The Sea and the Sand

934 106 4

There is a power beyond the sea and the sand...The ocean's depths have claimed her beloved, but Arabeth knows a way to bring him back.…

Trident

Trident

1,271 71 3

When her husband become the victim of an apparent suicide, Navy SEALS candidate Amanda Laverty unravels a deception going back to his days in Syria and a cover-up that may have led to his death.*Please be advised: this story deals with trauma and PTSD.**Chapter titles are taken from common Navy SEAL sayings.…

Zoey, Willow, Clover Honey

Zoey, Willow, Clover Honey

667 67 1

WINNING ENTRY TO @Hulu and @MargaretAtwood 's #MyHandmaidsTale CONTEST!In an era of amnesia... I remember.Thank you for reading!…

Vestige: a Battle the Beast Story

Vestige: a Battle the Beast Story

291 25 2

#BattletheBeast TOP TEN FINALIST!When Kady, the least likely of the magicians to battle Fillory's greatest evil, goes head-to-head against the Beast, killing him becomes the least of her concerns... An entry for the #BattleTheBeast contest promoting season two of THE MAGICIANS on the SyFy channel.…

Vigil

Vigil

504 41 1

I freeze. I burn. I have a vigil to attend... My second entry to Hulu's #MyHandmaidsTale contest.…

Further: A Battle the Beast Story

Further: A Battle the Beast Story

453 37 2

In Fillory, the air you breathe will either give you the power of gods, or choke the life out of you... An entry for the #BattleTheBeast contest promoting season two of THE MAGICIANS on the SyFy channel. This story's characters belong to the world of The Magicians. If you haven't read the books or watched the show, be aware that there are spoilers below. There have been 40 time loops created to destroy the Beast, a force of immense evil residing within Fillory. Season one of The Magicians deals with the 40th loop. This short piece was written with the following prompt in mind: create a story exploring one of the first 39 loops. Towards the end of season one, there is a scene taking place in Ember's abode in which Julia and Quentin are both present. Ember expresses surprise at seeing Julia. As it turns out, in most of the previous loops, Quentin had usually killed her by now. Our heroes shift uncomfortably at this revelation, which seems intended as a bit of dark humor. I haven't been able to stop thinking about this. I wrote another story for this contest working in an entirely different vein of thought, but still Ember's declaration stuck in my head. Why would Quentin, of all people, kill Julia? If you're a fan of the show, you know that when Dean Fogg tells Quentin and Julia they are reliving a timeline, it's also revealed that this 40th loop is the first in which Julia was not accepted to Brakebills. The hope was that the inner struggle resulting from her feelings of rejection would make her stronger. Stronger than what, I wondered. What occurred for Fogg to feel she needed greater strength? I took Dean Fogg's and Ember's words as hints of what may have happened in one of the other loops and ran with it. I hope you enjoy the resulting story!…

Let's Make a Trade (The R. L. Stine Fill in the Fear Contest)

Let's Make a Trade (The R. L. Stine Fill in the Fear Contest)

5,318 354 4

This is my winning entry for R. L. Stine's Fill in the Fear Contest. Thank you R. L. Stine and Wattpad!What happens when a group of teenagers are invited to a party at a remote farm house only to discover that their hostess wants to kill one of them in order to raise her sister from the dead? Read on to find out!Featured in the #WattpadBlockParty.…

I Never Promised You a Moon Colony

I Never Promised You a Moon Colony

2,341 201 1

WINNER of Margaret Atwood's 'Dear 2114' #FutureLibrary Contest! I attempt to answer the prompt: Write a story about the advice you would give the world in 2114.Listen very closely, future people.Or not. Your choice.(Cover designed by Amber K Bryant. Cover image and chapter image have no known copyright restrictions).…

Skin Crawl

Skin Crawl

1,283 146 4

She feels everything you do. Your touch is her solace... or her greatest nightmare.In an isolated village deep within the jungle, Hestia lives the life of a pariah. She has the rare ability to skin crawl, feeling on her own skin the touch those nearby give to each other. When heavy rain floods the river and people begin to fall ill, the villagers' desperation turns to wrath and this wrath turns its misguided eye upon the village's most hated daughter. There is one way a skin crawler like Hestia can best be tortured. Unfortunately for her, the villagers have figured out what it is.…

Expiration Date

Expiration Date

2,725 235 4

A finalist for Margaret Atwood's The Heart Goes Last Contest."Retribution isn't pretty. But it is immensely satisfying."Lucy has known ever since she was a young girl that she was born with an expiration date. It's a fate that, according to her mother, no woman can avoid. Haunted by her mother's dire warnings, she makes her way in a world she believes will turn on her as soon as the bloom is off the rose. But unlike her mother, Lucy is ready to face this certain betrayal dead on. She's going to have one hell of an expiration date.…

Star Students

Star Students

15,956 867 3

When the popular kids at Westfield High School begin getting matching star-shaped tattoos, Chelsie doesn't think much of it. She's never been one to follow a fad. Besides, her circle of geeks have little hope of ever being popular. Before long, though, it's not just the cool kids showing up to school baring the cerulean blue stars.Encouraged by a popular boy to get inked, Chelsie's best friend Jayla can resist the rage no longer. One day, the girls are planning which Ivy League school to apply to; the next, Jayla won't even look in Chelsie's direction, and her biggest concern becomes matching accessories with those of her starred friends.Something is very wrong with those tattoos. Someone, or something, is using them to control her classmates. At first the "star students" seem weirdly docile. Then their behavior turns in a most horrifying manner. The closer Chelsie gets to the truth, the more likely it seems she'll find herself either under the needle or under six feet of dirt. If that happens, there will be no one left to stop the growing evil from taking over not only her school, but the entire town.Cover photo by Mick Amatto. Cover design by Drew Kunz.…

All Out of Sugar

All Out of Sugar

1,900 102 2

Winner of Michelle Jo Quinn's Just Pitch It contest and a featured story in the Hearts on Sleeves Valentine's Anthology.Romance was so 2010!Ever since her husband left, Josie prefers to think of Valentine's Day as a kid's holiday and nothing more. Finally happy on her own, she's perfectly content to spend the day doling out heart-shaped cookies at her son's preschool. When she learns she'll be paired with another parent during the school party, a candy shop owner named Brook, Josie figures she'll spend the time chatting about life as working mothers. Much to her surprise, working mother Brook is actually hot, single dad Brook. Could this holiday hold promise of something sweet for Josie after all?…

Story in Which I do Not Save the World from an Alien Invasion & other Flash Fiction

Story in Which I do Not Save the World from an Alien Invasion & other Flash Fiction

1,763 154 5

Flash Fiction, challenges, fun short things, including this:This is my entry to @ScienceFiction's Challenge 8: The Duoabble. The goal of this challenge is to write a story about a teenager and an alien life form in EXACTLY 200 words.The scoop:Girl meets alien.Alien tells her that other aliens will attack Earth soon.Girl (kind of) tries to convince people.Alien is not impressed with her "save the world" skills.Earth gets sort of...forgotten about. Oops!Cover photo by Stephendotcarter. Layout by Amber K Bryant.…

Harbor: a Freeze-Dried Fiction Contest Entry

Harbor: a Freeze-Dried Fiction Contest Entry

1,452 69 2

It takes a con to know a con. Or possibly, it takes a woman meeting a con to figure out she’s married to a con.This is my entry for Margaret Atwood’s Freeze-Dried Fiction Contest. Take a look at Atwood’s story, THE FREEZE-DRIED GROOM, on which this story is based and then come back to mine. Thanks for reading!…