With only a week until NaNo starts, I thought I’d dash off a quick story — turns out to be an origin story for one of my NaNo characters.
Cat Stories for Halloween!

For the last week of Furry Book Month and the week before Halloween, we have two stories for you…
Mice raised from the dead! Zombie puppies! Foolish dogs! And a grumpy cat who’s too clever for his own good! Read the story that started it all, the very first story about Shreddy the cantankerous tabby cat — The Necromouser. And then read the story where Shreddy first meets his unwanted companions, Cooper the empty-headed toy Labradoodle and Susie the lovable Cavalier King Charles Spaniel — Shreddy and the Zomb-dogs.
If you enjoy these two stories, there are more tales of Shreddy and his techno-mystical adventures in The Necromouser and Other Magical Cats, on-sale from FurPlanet for the rest of the month and also available through Amazon. It would make a great book to read for the end of Furry Book Month.

Shreddy and the Zomb-dogs
by Mary E. Lowd
Originally published in Anthropomorphic Dreams Podcast, November 2011

When Shreddy was a young cat, he and the Red-Haired Woman lived alone. Shreddy enjoyed his youth and, in later years, he often daydreamed of those days before the Red-Haired Woman declared: “I think I’ll take up a hobby.”
Shreddy wasn’t worried at the time. She’d taken up a hobby before, growing orchids, and he’d found her pastime perfectly delightful. Delectable, even. This time, the Red-Haired Woman decided to grow something that Shreddy couldn’t eat. Continue reading “Shreddy and the Zomb-dogs”
The Necromouser
by Mary E. Lowd
Originally published in The Nautilus Engine, July 2008

Shreddy never had a particular taste for fish, but he’d been in a sour mood for days.
The Red-Haired Woman had won their latest skirmish over the orchids. She’d cordoned off the kitchen window with chicken wire. Shreddy rattled the wire, pulling with his claws at the edges. He shoved his face into the few centimeters between wire and wall, wrinkling his nose and squinting his eyes at the discomfort, but the wire didn’t have enough give. Shreddy couldn’t get his head through. Continue reading “The Necromouser”
Rewards of Practice
I wrote a 1500-word story this afternoon. I can do that reliably now. A few year ago, I couldn’t have. Writing speed can be increased with practice.
Experimentation in Outlining
I decided I should learn to outline… so, now I have my next novel in Tarot card, toy, & playlist form. That’s how you outline, right?
Tidbits from an Evening
Brownie mix + 3 bananas + a bunch of peanut butter = excellent.
The four-year-old: “I’m Spider-Man and that means spiders will climb on me, and the big ones will kill me!” Continue reading “Tidbits from an Evening”
N.A.S.A.
Ten-year-old: “Hey, Mom, I have a story idea for you to write: Alligators in NASA.”
Husband: “National Aeronautics and Space Alligators!”
You Heard It Here, Folks
The four-year-old: “I’m the greatest guy in the world! GHOSTBUSTERS!”
Gerty and the Doesn’t-Smell-Like-a-Melon
by Mary E. Lowd
Originally published in Golden Visions Magazine, October 2010

Gerty had been snuffle-snorting about the melon patches all morning. She was looking for little people to play with, but all the bugs and mice seemed to be hiding today. Dormancy was in the air.
She tried asking a bird to play with her, but it was so high in the branches of the karillow tree that she had to shout at it. And the master scolded her for barking. The bird flew away anyway. They always did.