“Honey, is there anything else I can do for you?” My miserable six-year-old looked at me with tears in his eyes. “Snuggle me.” The morning had begun with an announcement from my kiddo that his tummy didn’t feel good. For the next five hours, we attempted a semblance of our regular morning schedule, punctuated about ten times with rushing-to-the-bathroom episodes. This may be the sickest my…
I have never done this before. I have never been eligible before this year! These two short stories of mine were professionally published, and thus are eligible during this season of writing award nominations. Here's where you can find them: UNTRAINED LUCK - In Writers of the Future Volume 35, buy it from Galaxy Press here / buy it from Amazon here. INHERITANCE - in Escape…
You’ll find yourself among “our kind of people,” my friend told me as he described what it would be like to attend World Fantasy Con. Just the presence of “world” in the title was enough to intimidate me. I’ve been to a handful of conferences before, and I usually feel small and overwhelmed by both the crowds and the amount of information being poured across my…
Today’s post is short! Because the link I’m going to share will take you to my recently launched Patreon page and there you can listen to the short video I recorded on my Elise Stephens Patreon Page. Basically, I’m creating a way for friends and fans to support the writing I’m doing. I've encountered many lovely people who want to help support my writing, but aren’t…
Lake Kachess, WA Pebbles grind beneath my shoes on a rocky beach overlooking the blue-green waters of Lake Kachess. The clouds are clean white and bunched, like someone pushed them together to bulk up their size, then puffed them up using a straw. One cloud strongly resembles a charging elephant—how long has it been since I looked for shapes in the clouds, and for only my…
I stood in an old schoolhouse that had been converted into an art library, then temporarily converted into a studio for a writer (me) and a visual artist (my friend Jason). I hefted a book in my hands, as I narrated my part of the studio tour, sharing that my next literary goal was to be published in this sci-fi and fantasy anthology. One year later,…
I have been biting my tongue for about five months (it's amazing I still have any tongue left...) but now I can finally say it! My story that will be published in Writers of the Future is titled Untrained Luck. Due to anonymity with the Writers of the Future grand prize judging, I was not supposed to link my name to the title of my piece…
It was late April 2018. James and I were hiking Little Si, a small mountain near North Bend, WA. We navigated wet dripping branches and slick tree roots as we tried to rouse our minds and spirits from a season of mental fog that had engulfed us while my husband studied fervently for his Structural Engineer licensing exam. He'd taken the test a few weeks before…
Elise, what have you been up to? Where shall I start? It's officially summer, so my garden and I have been racing each other to see who can weed/grow weeds the fastest. Ha. It's no contest. I lose. But the flowers are gorgeous and I keep picking these bouquets that knock my socks off! Seattle friends--I'll make you a pretty posy is you want to stop…
Today I have good news to share! A glimpse at the day-to-day first: I'm at the tail-end of a very challenging season in which I've had to hold down the proverbial fort with home and children for three months while my husband studies for a big engineering test. (The test is April 13th! Wish him luck!) I have been faced repeatedly with depression, exhaustion, and feelings…