The Fronds in Tond (and other stories)

Memories from earliest childhood (partly mine, partly fictional) continue in these fragments of Chapter Two of this experimental novel. Fear and dream-sequences shatter familiar language. Refer to the May 22nd post if you need to review what "ussers" are, though they are only mentioned briefly here in a dream. Ussers and the Echo of Nothing Chapter Two Fear Hot summer night Sleep, dream. Hat sum merknight H some some lightight sight sigh darknesses Dsoiug goians; oiub Fo gho know ahgoq ghghgh stm Darkness below, we were there, and that darkness was mushrooms and over thedge also grownd on all sidse but you can’t button mushrooms. The road continued but they’d like it. —Go! —Let’s go sea! —Mushrooms are a fun gas for the car. We drove into the rags, dirty glass, slide them, or to see where it seemflowers, sunflowers, sunglowers, and rootsed to mind backled there. You can’t cook a peel into a loop-way round. —Certain species. —That’s a new word, said Dad...

 Due to some unfortunate posts on Facebook (not mine), I have moved much of my social media to elsewhere. This includes my announcements of future literary activity, which I (up until last week) posted in “The World of Tond” page on Facebook. They will live here now, in this blog. With that in mind, I hereby present my book-selling schedule for the rest of the summer. Click on the picture to see it more clearly. Thanks to Cassander Garduna (Shiloh Moon) for the Moon-Horse, the mascot for my “MadStones” books — and up to now, mysterious. The soonest upcoming event is “Kla Ha Ya Days” in Snohomish. I went to this street fair / carnival / parade last year with other local authors in the Authors Event Network, and had a lot of fun. I expect it will be the same this year. I will be there in the AEN booth on Saturday (7/18/2026). So, reader, if you’re in the north-of-Seattle area this weekend, drop by for a street fair, ice cream, a pie-eating contest, carnival rides, a parade, and...

 The "Tond" Series contains background information; what is often called "world-building" or more recently "lore". This was originally published in a seperate book called "The World of Tond: Companion Volume to the Tond Series", but: after some rewrites, that book has been unpublished. The background info now lives in the appendices to Book One. Here is a sample. Tond, Book One: The Sons of Tlaen Ras-Erkéltis Appendix 1 The Ecology and Geology of Tond Due to the fact that natural “wormholes” open up from time to time between this world and Tond, any overview of the ecosystems of Tond must treat it as a subdivision of the ecosystems of this world. Most of the flora and fauna of Tond are also familiar here, though there appears to be a rather curious mix, i.e., here, camels and cactuses are not found sharing the same desert. The geology of Tond follows that of known continental landmasses. A ridge of mountains is seen near the western coast, ...

My collection of short fiction called "Fronds" contains four ultra-short or "flash" fiction stories. They are not related to each other; but if you read them together, they form a brief tetralogy moving from a very dark story through a very snarky story to one filled with kindness, creativity, forgiveness, and light. The Formula I know why you’re here. The fact that the formula exists is no longer a secret, though I hadn’t expected a reporter to come looking for it so soon. The physicist who discovered it shot himself, you know. Same with the other scientist who worked in the same office, when he found it with the body. Used the same gun to blow his brains all over the whiteboard. They both died because of it. And now you think you can handle it? The cops were spared because they didn’t know what it was . Do you even know what it is? I bet you think you know. A new kind of energy, that’s what you think. A particle beam or something that can wipe out the sun. It...

As we continue the "Tond" story, the nature of the "curse" on Rolan is revealed, leading to the inevitable cliffhanger. Tond, Book One: The Sons of Tlaen Ras-Erkéltis Chapter 7 The Poison Spreads “In the weeks before the Devastation, mordhs appeared in Tond but they were hidden. They whispered in the ears of the Fyorians at night, “The Karjans are plotting to kill you. You must kill them first.” They whispered in the ears of the Karjans at night, “The Fyorians are plotting to kill you. You must kill them first.” In this the seeds of war were sown. The wrath of Kullandu was unleashed, and the mordhs laughed as Tond burned, for they are the bringers of destruction.” From the Annals of the Ahíinor (Fyorian). Dzokra-Krtsng, The Karjan Imperium, fifth month, Fyorian year 614   Humid midnight in Dzokra-Krtsng. The mist settled on the thatched roofs of the Karjan houses, and moved on. From the distant tree-tops came the hooting of nocturnal birds. A night watchman pass...