Books by Eric Douglas

Thriller fiction and Non-fiction

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You are here: Home / Archives for Free Fiction

Halloween Short Fiction 2018

October 30, 2018 By Eric Douglas

For the last several years, I’ve put out a call to writing friends to contribute Halloween short stories to a collection. We do it just for fun and for your entertainment. These stories can range from short stories to flash fiction to anything in between. Below you’ll find the links to the stories. They will take you to the respective writer’s websites to read. While you’re there, check out some of their other stories.

Check back today and tomorrow. I’ll add more as writers submit their stories.

Disclosure by Loren Eaton

Game Night by Patrick Newman

Killer Queen by JD Byrne

Stench: A Medical Horror by Connie Kinsey

When a costume isn’t & Left Behind by Eric Douglas

 

Filed Under: Free Fiction, New Releases

When a costume isn’t & Left Behind

October 30, 2018 By Eric Douglas

Below are my contributions to my annual Halloween short story collection. These are two flash fiction stories, each exactly 100 words each. For the last several years, I have asked writing friends to contribute their own stories.

Here is the link to read the rest of the submissions. You can find the links to the previous years, plus loads of other free reading goodies, on the Free Fiction page.

 

When a costume isn’t

“That’s a great costume!”

“Wow, you’re so realistic!”

“How did you get your face to look like that?”

People laughed and shouted to friends. Kids ran past, dressed as…well, just about everything. Celebrities, politicians, witches and ghosts and superheroes.

The young woman walked around the neighborhood stunned. She was confused when she first saw the crowds on the street. And then things got weirder when people handed her candy and other treats.

What sort of weird tradition is this? She thought. This is how I look all the time. Wait until I show them what a witch can really do.

 

Left behind

Eric woke up at his usual time on November 1.

He laughed to himself about the BS he heard the night before. The “veil between worlds grows thin on Halloween” the woman walking down the street said. Such rubbish.

The night before, when the kids came around for trick or treat, he kept his lights off and stayed inside. He didn’t believe in handouts.

Eric flipped on the television, but no one was there. The cameras were on, but the talking heads weren’t in their seats.

No one was outside either. Where was everyone? It was like everyone had disappeared.

Filed Under: Free Fiction, New Releases

Audio version of Frog Head Key

October 19, 2018 By Eric Douglas

Frog Head Key cover artSorting through some older files, I stumbled across an audio version of the Withrow Key thriller short story Frog Head Key. I don’t remember recording it and I’m not sure what I planned to do with it. Audiobooks hadn’t really become a thing yet.

It’s not a perfect recording, but if you like to listen to stories here it is. It’s about an hour long so a good story to put in your ears for a solid workout or a couple work commutes.

The story is part of the Tales from Withrow Key collection or you can download it as a standalone. You can find the links to the direct downloads or read along with the Preview (for the first 20 percent or so) on the book page.

Enjoy!

Filed Under: Adventure, Books, Free Fiction

Murder: With a Grain of Salt Serial

September 10, 2018 By Eric Douglas

In October, I will be releasing a serial story called Murder: With a Grain of Salt. This is a period story, set in 1855 in what was then Charleston, Virginia. The story involves murder, horse chases and river boats along with the burgeoning salt industry.

It will be delivered to your email inbox on October 2, 9, 16 and 23. 

If you already receive monthly emails from me, you will still need to sign up for this special list. I don’t want to send out weekly emails to anyone who isn’t interested. 

Murder: With a Grain of Salt

When an upstanding citizen is murdered on the streets of pre-civil war Charleston, Virginia, the wealthy salt barons who control the town are the main suspects. It’s up to newspaperman Reed Donahue to solve the mystery, but someone is trying to stop him from finding out the truth. Will he become the next victim?


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Filed Under: Adventure, Books, Free Fiction, New Releases

Prefer to listen rather than read? I’ve got you covered.

September 5, 2018 By Eric Douglas

You can now listen to my personal story Heart Survivor: Recovery After Heart Surgery or some short stories from the Free Fiction section of my website.

The audiobook version of Heart Survivor: Recovery After Heart Surgery  is now available for you to listen to for free.  It streams through SoundCloud, so you can listen to it there or on a player directly from my website.

Short stories

Using an Amazon service called Polly, I’ve added machine-narrated versions of some of my short stories. They are obviously machines talking, but I think you’ll be impressed. They even breathe. I’ve used two different voices, a man and a woman, although there are many options to choose from. You can choose from seven different stories, of varying lengths.

These are the longer stories. I didn’t create audio for the Flash Fiction pieces, although I might do that in the future.

And don’t forget the professionally-voiced versions of my books in audiobook format.

Mathew

  • In the Shadows of My Mind
  • Cliff Was His Own Man
  • My Name is Abby
  • Call of the Raven Mocker

Joanna

  • Never Need Another Fix
  • The Cicadas Droned On
  • Santa is from Outer Space (two parts)

Filed Under: Books, Free Fiction

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Real Thugs: A Cult of Murder — Small groups of travelers have disappeared all over the mid-Atlantic without a trace. When bodies turn up with what appear to be ritual markings, FBI Agent AJ West is on the hunt for what might be a serial killer. Or something even more sinister. It’s a race against […]

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