Be careful what you wish for. . .it just might come true. . .
Love to read? 😍📚 Want to share that love with the world? Check out this AWESOME anthology for the World Literacy Foundation charity.
Join me and the authors of Wicked Wishes as we explore all the ways a simple wish can go horribly wrong! Will these characters be able to set things right again? Or is that just wishful thinking?
100% of proceeds from his anthology will benefit The World Literacy Foundation, a global not-for-profit that works to lift young people out of poverty through literacy. Founded in Melbourne, Australia in 2003, the World Literacy Foundation operates on the principle that education is a basic human right.
This anthology contains over a dozen wonderful stories from USA Today bestselling, international, and up-and-coming authors. Starting from young adult books to a variety of sci-fi and fantasy for every discerning reader.
I am so honored to be a part of this charity anthology and it's for such a good cause!
My contribution to this collection is a metafiction fantasy adventure story entitled "Escape."
Metafiction is a style of prose narrative in which attention is directed to the process of fictive composition.
It occurs in fictional stories when the story examines the elements of fiction itself.
For example, a story that explores how stories are made by commenting on character types, how plots are formed, or other aspects of storytelling is engaged in an example of metafiction.
ESCAPE
Astrid loves to read. Astrid made a wish. Now Astrid's stuck in a book.
Cue the evil kelpie. The Armageddon. The feral troll army. (What's this cute boy doing here?)
The fantasy realm of fiction is everything Astrid ever hoped for.
Except it's probably going to take her life.
Astrid needs non-fictional guts, determination, and sheer will to survive before she can return to the real world.
But will she even want to?
Reading is an excellent escape from reality. But what if . . . you couldn't escape from your escape?
*
Here's a little (yet unedited) sneak peek at this fun, fast-paced adventure:
Chapter One - One Wish
“Do you want to hear the story or not?”
Breathless, Cash turned, giving the arguably tacky, medieval barmaid outfit I had on a wary look up and down through narrowed eyes. “Does it explain the wench look?”
Running along the sandy shore of a tropical island was probably the last place I looked to belong right then. I waved impatiently, pulling the damn neckline up as much as I could while trying to keep up. “Of course.”
Cash rolled his eyes, mostly in resignation, possibly also in incredulity.
Not that I could blame him. I had accidentally dragged him into this world.
I had only met Cash yesterday, or technically, three stories ago. He didn’t really know me.
He wouldn’t have known that my standard outfits for the day were sweatpants and the ratty, too-large college sweater I could never be bothered to replace, that I preferred the company of fictional characters to real people, and that most of my time outside classes was spent binge-reading at the library.
Incidentally, that’s where I’d met him.
Everyone knew libraries were supposed to transport you to the plethora of wild and vast imaginative worlds—you know, in your mind.
But how was I supposed to know the quietest area in the back of the University library, by the dusty, rare, and old books section that nobody ever wandered to, had the powers to actually take you there?
“You made a wish?” Cash repeated as I relayed my tale of woe.
I nodded, picking up the hem of my skirt as I splashed over a puddle in the sand. “I think I finally figured it out from the last place. I told you I’m a literary major, right?” I began. “I was really getting into this fantastic book about medieval Scotland,” I gushed, eyes wide, no longer caring that I was splashing salt water everywhere. “And…all I said was ‘I wish these stories are real’—”
I paused to take a deep breath and the rest of my words rushed out of my mouth. “Which was obviously a huge mistake because everyone knows you should never make wishes. It’s way too easy to blur the line between wishes and curses. You should never mess with either! You’d know this if you read Aladdin or definitely ‘The Three Wishes.’ I mean, come on, the written word is a powerful thing, let alone the spoken word. Really, poems are like spells. Literature is magic in itself.”
Cash shook his head, not turning back. “Okay. Wow.”
I smiled, somewhat proud of my analysis. “Amazing, huh?”
But he blew out a breath. “You are a nutcase. How could I not have seen it sooner?”
I gave him a suffering look. Nice. The guy had probably never cracked a book open in his entire life. I had seen him around campus before but all I knew about Cash was that he played lacrosse and he wore plaid shirts—a lot.
He glanced behind us and finally slowed down. “I think that monster is gone.” He shook his shaggy, wet blond hair out of his face and frowned in distaste at his drenched clothes.
“So I just escaped a bloodthirsty kelpie from a tavern in 1743 Scotland.” I gestured up and down him. “I don’t know what the hell happened to you.”
He glared at me. “I woke up almost getting swallowed by the ocean before you and that thing appeared.”
“Ooh.” I curled my lips in the semblance of an apology. I surveyed our surroundings and motioned inland toward the tree line. “Maybe there’s shelter this way.”
But Cash’s expression soured as he towered over me. “So this is all your fault. You got me into this mess. You almost drowned me just now on the beach—”
“Hey, man,” I argued, putting my hands up. “Nobody else was supposed to be in the rare books section. I didn’t even know you were there. Let alone that the library was magic. No wonder those librarians always knew so much. I guess that’s what the ‘Restricted Area’ sign was for.”
“The sign you also ignored?”
I rolled my eyes in exasperation and waded my way through the long grass. The sky had darkened and the moon was blocked with what few clouds there were. The crashing of waves against the shore was muted now. “Look, the point is at least I’ll know what to expect now, right? So, as long as you’re with me, you’ll be safe,” I reassured.
“Would have been more helpful if you’d figured that out before that grimy, angry mob chased us from before,” he put in.
I rolled my eyes again.
He caught my elbow. “Hey, wish us back right the hell now!”
I shot him an irritated grimace and shrugged him off. “I’ve tried already. It didn’t work.” I spun around to forge ahead.
“Uh…Astrid?”
“Look, if you’re going to—” I broke off my groan of complaint as I followed his gaze up to the sky and squinted. “What’s…that?”
Cash backed away. “I thought you were supposed to know.”
"Run!"
Enjoyed this sneak peek? Read the rest of this story plus MORE by purchasing this fabulous anthology. "Wicked Wishes" releases on 4th May 2022 at all major retailers. Here's that call-to-action button again. Grab it now! Let's all wish hard.
Thank you so much for your support!
What about you? Any wishes of yours that came true you wish hadn't? Let us know in the comments!
This article was written by S. R. Breaker.
S. R. Breaker writes offbeat, easy reading science fiction and fantasy books. Suburban mum by day and author by night, and as meta as it gets, she loves to live vicariously through her characters. They don’t have to vacuum all day long and are almost always guaranteed to survive any fantastical or thrilling incidents, no matter how treacherous she writes them. Visit her epic worlds in books.
