I'm happy to announce my first short story available for sale in eBook form for both Amazon Kindle and Barnes and Nobles Nook. It's called Six Days, and is part one of what will be a fictional series of stories based on Bushcraft and the Outdoors. Here's the description and the introduction to preview.
"One man, alone in the woods. Follow Johnny Mac as he tests himself and his outdoor skills on a six day trip."
"It was an unexpected rain. The sky decided to change it's mind from sunny and bright to dark and wet without much warning. Johnny Mac had noticed the change in the air and had just enough time to grab some rope and the cheap plastic tarp from his pack and throw up a quick lean-to. He was dry for now but it looked like the rain wasn't planning on stopping anytime soon.
"Crap" he said out loud to no one but himself, "Looks like it's gonna be awhile”.
He'd made a point of talking to himself at least once or twice a day. He hadn't seen or heard another person for six days and talking out loud to no one in particular seemed to break up the subtle but constant noise around him.
He had often read of people finding solitude and silence in the forest but to Johnny it was far from silent. The woods around him were constantly in motion, the paper like sound of wind blowing through the trees, bird songs, small creatures scurrying about unseen, the rhythmic crunch of the forest floor underneath his boots. It was as full of sounds as any town or city he had ever been in, but softer and without the unpleasantness of those places.
Six days ago he had a friend drop him off on the side of the road that ran through a six thousand acre state forest. His intention was to test himself, he had been studying and practicing for almost a year now. Almost a year of building fires in his backyard fireplace, setting up tarps in the pouring rain and trying out every bushcraft and woodcraft skill he could find. He spent his weekends hanging between two trees in a home made hammock trying to find the perfect combination of comfort and portability. He tested equipment for both durability and multi-functionality. His pack had everything he needed to spend days out by himself and weighed just a bit over ten pounds. He had decided it was time, time to test himself, his skills and his equipment. He had been planning this trip all summer. Six days alone in the woods, no campsites, no trails. He would take his pack and just enough food to get him through.
He knew he was ready."
It's priced at $.99 and available worldwide at the following links. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy it.
N.E.V.
