A little while ago, I talked about the Publishing Partner program JMS Books has where they help struggling authors, such as myself, distribute self-published stories to platforms where it otherwise can be hard to find an in.

Now, it’s time for Scary Gary to find new shelves to sit on.

I wrote Scary Gary as part of a project I never finished. I had this idea of writing twelve short stories in a year, one for each month. Elevator Pitch was one, Scary Gary another, and that was how far I came. So I published them without any connection to each other.

Scary Gary is a freebie, 5.3k long, and it’s about a grim reaper called Gary LOL

JMS Books :: Amazon :: books2read.com/ScaryGary

Excerpt:

Gary glanced out the window. “Maybe I should get going.” His skin shone white in the dark, the scythe was leaning against the backrest of the sofa, and the hood of the cloak was pushed off his head to reveal short black hair and chiseled features.

Micah bit his lip, wanting to demand answers but also knowing that if he didn’t change the topic Gary would leave. “You’re such a coward.”

Gary grinned. “Never said I wasn’t.”

So something about Micah scared Scary Gary. That couldn’t be good. “Tea?”

Gary stared. “Tea?”

“It’s a chilly night, I figured we could use something warm and soothing. Or is tea too lame for the lord of the underworld?”

Gary shook his head. “I’m not the—”

Micah laughed at the exasperated look. Gary’s snort only made him laugh harder. “I’m sorry, it must be stress.” Tears gathered at the corner of his eyes, but he blinked them away. Why was the world pressing down on him today? Gary was here; Gary made all his problems go away.

Gary’s arm curled around him. “You’ll be the death of me.” The words came in a whisper close to his ear. Time slowed and Micah wished they could stay like this forever. Gary’s strong arm wrapped around him, his body a little cooler than would be considered normal, but not cold. His scent made Micah’s nose tickle. It was a mix of lemon and burning wood, nothing that could be bought in a bottle.

“I thought you were already dead.”

“Ha!” He was quiet for a moment. “Yeah, I am, and yet I’ll live forever.”

Micah looked up into those electric blue eyes. “Me too.” The frown was small and quickly concealed but Micah saw it. “Won’t I?” Wouldn’t he? It wasn’t fear spreading in his gut, not exactly, but he couldn’t deny the unease.

“As long as I have any power, you will.”

“Gary.” It wasn’t a whine, but close. Micah pushed against Gary’s chest to get away so he could pace, but the arm around his waist didn’t budge. “What are you doing?”

Gary touched his lips to Micah’s, and he forgot how to breathe.

 

Micah Thaxter has a problem — one scary, inconvenient problem. His shadow wants him dead and isn’t shy about it.

On the plus side, it’s not his time to die and Scary Gary is always there to carry him back to the land of the living. Gary is far too pale, his black cloak a bit out of fashion, and his scythe quite terrifying, but he’s still one of the most beautiful men Micah has ever seen.

Micah may be stuck with a homicidal shadow, but perhaps there’s a way to keep Gary around too. His job escorting souls keeps him busy, but since Micah has already died once today, Gary’s there. So what’s the harm in offering him a cup of tea?