Author: marylowd

An Aldebaran Sugar Cookie for Star Shaker

by Mary E. Lowd

Originally published in Fantasia Divinity Magazine, May 2017

“Chirri wanted to give her hero something, as a kind of thank you. She dug one of the cookies out of her bag; it was star-shaped and glittered with grains of Aldebaran sugar.”

The asteroid amphitheater rocked with applause as the suspended final note of Star Shaker’s encore vibrated the atmo-bubble over everyone’s heads.  The reptilian pop-star bowed and spotlights shone off of her rainbow-colored scales, making her glitter like the stars all around.

Chirri had loved Star Shaker’s music since she was a little kitten.  Once, she’d even shaved off her fur and drawn little Vs all over her naked skin, hoping they’d make her look like she had scales.  It had looked awful, but she’d been too young to care.  All she knew was that it had made her feel closer to her hero. Continue reading “An Aldebaran Sugar Cookie for Star Shaker”

Happy Unicorn Day!

Apparently, today is Unicorn Day.  So here’s a fresh hot cup of unicorn stories, newly available here at Deep Sky Anchor:

  • Hot Chocolate for the Unicorn — The Dragon and Unicorn come calling.    [~1,000 words]
  • Feral Unicorn — Janie’s in over her head when her pet unicorn’s horn comes in, and he starts working mischievous magic around the house.       [~4,800 words]

And if you need some more, we do have a few stories that have been rattling around the site a bit longer:

  • Cyclops on Safari — A normal day on safari, in a different world.    [~800 words]
  • The Carousel of Spirits — When Artie finds a ghost haunting his carousel, it’s time for him to build a new horse.     [~3,700 words]

Enjoy!

And Happy Unicorn Day!

Feral Unicorn

by Mary E. Lowd

Originally published in Luna Station Quarterly, December 2015

“The snowy whiteness of his fur and the pearlescent shine of his horn bespoke purity, but I could swear the bastard was glaring at me.”

As I brought the mug of fresh-brewed coffee to my lips, the steaming liquid froze solid.  Startled by the sudden coldness in my hand, I dropped the mug.  The handle broke off when it hit the linoleum floor.  To make matters worse, the magic wore off almost instantly, and the mug-shaped block of coffee-ice promptly melted, puddling on the floor. Continue reading “Feral Unicorn”

Hot Chocolate for the Unicorn

by Mary E. Lowd
Originally published in Untied Shoelaces of the Mind, March 2012

“”You always want a story,” the Dragon snarls. The Unicorn shies away from him, but he’s not really scared. The Unicorn and Dragon are the best of friends. My best friends.”

The curved neck and stretched wings of the black Dragon dwarf the figure of the doe-like white Unicorn.  They make an unlikely picture behind the glass panel and aluminum frame of my sliding glass kitchen door.  As always, quite the sight to see.  I ask them in.

Continue reading “Hot Chocolate for the Unicorn”

Otters In Space III: Octopus Ascending (Chapter 1)

Art by Idess (www.idessart.com)

by Mary E. Lowd

This is an excerpt from Otters In Space III: Octopus Ascending, a novel published by FurPlanet, June 2017

The pale glow of Jupiter lit the moon’s watery surface.  Europa’s recently melted ocean reflected the gas giant’s ruddy face back at itself, broken by ripples where Brighton’s Destiny disturbed the water on takeoff.

The dark metal V-shape of the two-man spaceship skimmed over the ocean before veering upward in a sharp climb out of Europa’s gravity well.  Spacesuit clad paws eased off on the throttle, and Brighton’s Destiny leveled off into a smooth arc toward Jupiter. Continue reading “Otters In Space III: Octopus Ascending (Chapter 1)”

Furry Award Eligible Stories

award-ribbon4It’s award season, and so we’re doing a round-up of Mary E. Lowd’s furry short stories published in 2017.  There are a lot of them!  All but one of these stories can be read online for free; four of them can be read right here at Deep Sky Anchor!  If you love any of these stories, please consider taking a moment to nominate them for the Ursa Major Awards, or if you’re a qualified nominator, the Leo Literary Awards. Continue reading “Furry Award Eligible Stories”

The Unification of Worlds

by Mary E. Lowd

Originally published in Arcana: A Tarot Anthology, November 2017

“The final piece of the puzzle might be here, hidden underneath the pale pink snow.”

Diamma’s scaly green tail curled to one side, then the other, swaying uneasily, as she stood in the open hatch of her spaceship.  Crystals of pink snow caught in her fiery, leonine mane as the flakes drifted down from the powder blue clouds of this world.  Snomoth.  For years, it had been a number in the registry on her ship; somewhere she would eventually go.  For the last few weeks, it had been a dot of light on the main viewscreen.  Now it was a faintly pink snowball, the color of cherry blossoms in the early spring, stretched out before her, waiting to freeze her toes when she stepped down from the hatch.

The final piece of the puzzle might be here, hidden underneath the pale pink snow. Continue reading “The Unification of Worlds”

The Moon Like An Unhatched Egg

by Mary E. Lowd

Originally published in The Symbol of a Nation, June 2017

“Jenn tried not to think about the cardinal and the bluebird, the seagull and the peacock — all of them gossiping and judging her. She knew they all expected Kiley the bald eagle to win.”

The moon stretched out in front of Jenn like an unhatched egg.  Full of possibility.  Full of portent.  In a few moments, the four pod capsules, including hers, would be ejected from the USS Fledgling, and the final competition would begin.  The winner would secure the continuation of their genetic line and be the first live astronaut to Mars.  All of them were uplifted birds, designed especially for this purpose, but only one would win. Continue reading “The Moon Like An Unhatched Egg”

Mouthful of Nightmare

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Last week, we gave you a treat — two Shreddy the cat stories.  Today, we have the corresponding trick — a trio of bite-sized stories that add up to a mouthful of nightmare:

Continue reading “Mouthful of Nightmare”