Excerpt

Above the walls
Qian Zhongshu once used a city wall as a metaphor for marriage, saying, "Marriage is a walled city, people outside the city want to get in, people in the city want to get out.
By SondJam4 years ago in Fiction
Farewell, my old house
The old house is "gone". "Gone" is the dialect of the old house, which means dead and gone. The old house is more than fifty years old and has finished its life's journey this spring.
By SondJam4 years ago in Fiction
Mama's Porch
It is comfortable here. Swaying on the swing through the nice May air. I get a cold chill every time I think about it. Thank you for putting it there for me to swing on. And another way to remember it is to gather the memories in my cute adorable mind. Later on I will go and sit down and write about it, like I am doing now.
By Alex Jennett4 years ago in Fiction
The Dragonlord
“There weren't always Dragons in the valley,” old Wilfrin said with a mischievous smile, his voice scratchy after a long day in the fields. He took a long swig of his ale and looked around. “Gather close children, tonight I will tell you the tale of Kavri, the last king of Pelandale.”
By Peter B4 years ago in Fiction
This Veiled Sky
There weren’t always dragons in the valley. There still weren’t, not really—just once a year, and when Malora saw the dragon this time, she knew her son would die.
By Nick Sifuentes4 years ago in Fiction
Stripes and Scales - Chapter I: "The Street and the Pool"
There weren't always dragons in the Valley. Long before she had been old enough to grasp the concept, she had heard the adults speak, in whispers, about the beasts. They whispered, as their parents and their parents before them, had once shouted, because the years had worn them down, left them able to do little more than raise their crops and their children, debate and plan their communities, and always, prepare themselves for war against their enemies, be they human or reptilian. What fabulous enemies they made, these legends of the air and the water and the very bowels of their Kingdom-earth, how magnificent!
By Eric Wolf4 years ago in Fiction
Valley of the Stars
Valley of the Stars by K.W. Peeta There weren't always dragons in the Valley. But there was always this. The thought had carried Traust forward since leaving the castle and embarking on, what could be, the most important quest of his life. Yet his destination lay mere miles from home, well within the Valley’s southern edge. The narrow, dirt path Traust followed was as familiar to him as his own hand, yet he proceeded with care. Dense forest flanked him, the pathway curated by massive, mossy trunks as large around as a man, separated sparsely by thin lines of inky black. The moon was bright, but of little help this night. It was all but a sliver, a harsh yet magnificent crescent holding its own amongst the stars.
By K.J. Wilson4 years ago in Fiction
An Anthem of Wings
There weren't always dragons in the valley. It wasn't their home, but they had been driven from so many places, so many other homes, the valley was all they had left. Dex knew the stories by heart. His Granddad had told them to him since the age he could walk, and when Granddad passed beyond, Granny had told them to him on the nights he was restless and couldn't settle to sleep. He remembered them both telling him the stories as he stood before his Granny's freshly dug grave.
By R.S. Belcher4 years ago in Fiction
In Flames
There weren’t always dragons in the Valley. Mom never let us forget that, that there once was a time without them. Not that she was alive all that long ago, but word travels, not just from location to location, but down the bloodline, too. Wish I’d been here the day those damn Karvens showed up here, she would spit. If only I’d been there. I know how it would have gone if she’d been there --- Mom may be magical, but she isn’t divine. I would always pretend with her, though, that things would have gone differently if she had been alive all those decades ago. I know, I’d say. To think how much better off we’d be today. But in reality I know she would have cowered like the rest of them. The Karvens tend to have that effect.
By R4 years ago in Fiction
On Emerald Scales
There weren’t always dragons in the Valley. In the days before the Breaking, in those times of bliss, the dragons lived peacefully upon their peaks, coming down only to engage in kind diplomacy with the Flightless creatures who made Etenia their home. Even then, it was known that the Valley was forbidden to them. The dragons, in their characteristic wisdom, felt that their presence between the peaks might unnerve the people of the world. They were right.
By Matthew V De Simone4 years ago in Fiction
Esemantha
There weren't always dragons in the Valley. They returned with the snow. Shards of ice swarmed from above, skirting the mountains. The river cutting between them had solidified, forcing the men of the valley to melt snow for drink. The shallow soil that held the blue beets the valley was known for also hardened, and the crops rotted to slush.
By Omer Dagan4 years ago in Fiction
Dragon’s Mark
There weren't always dragons in the Valley. There was a time we’re there were smokeless skies. Everyday faithfully, when the bells at the watch towers surrounding the town rings, I can see them into the distance. They dance effortlessly in the air; making their daily rounds to patrol the area like clock work. Their eyes light up like the golden sun, as their impenetrable skin shimmers and sparkles in the twilight. To watch is breathtaking, but frightening at the same time.
By Tiffany Wiggins4 years ago in Fiction