Purple Prose:
Destiny

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Blurb : Forced by his father into a marriage he didn’t want, Prince Alan soon finds that his bride isn’t the sweet, submissive creature he expected. Morgane has the heart of a dragon and beauty beyond compare, but she isn’t thrilled about the marriage either. When black treachery threatens the kingdom, Morgane and Alan embark on a perilous journey that has an excellent chance of ending in failure and death for them and all their people.

Excerpt : Morgane advanced on her enemy with deadly purpose.
"No!" Alan roared. "She has a knife."
Morgane tried to retreat, but it was too late. Aili's knife caught her in her thigh. Blood spurted as if from a fountain. Renweard was closer to her than Alan. His sword rose. Aili breathed her last as Morgane swayed and slipped to the floor.
Alan ran across the room and cradled her in his arms. In seconds he was coated with blood. "ʺWe must stop the bleeding!" he cried. "Where are the healers?"
ʺI will find one." Renweard left the room at a run with King Bowdyn right behind him.
Morgane's eyes fluttered open. "Your arms around me. No heaven can compare.ʺ
Alan pressed a kiss to her hair. "I love you, my brave Morgane."
Morgane sighed. "I could not let you face this battle alone.ʺ Author’s Note : After spending most of the last ten years writing contemporary romance, I decided it was time for a change. So in the spring of 2012 I wrote my first romantic fantasy, The Enchanted. Several challenges immediately presented themselves. First, I knew that I didn't want the fantasy to overpower the romance which meant I'd have to balance my world building details with the romantic elements.

Challenge two was finding characters who'd fit into my newly created world. I didn't want plastic, stereotypical characters. I wanted real people with warts and human imperfections, people whose lives and problems would draw you in and make you care about them.

My third challenge was to craft a plot that included fantasy elements, yet at the same time allowed my characters to be in charge of their own destiny and in the process grow and change.

I'm pleased with the way it turned out. I enjoyed the experience so much I have another fantasy/sci fi romance in the wings waiting for December and its turn at publication. Given my new love affair with fantasy romance, will I write contemporary romance again? I sure will. I'm working on one right now, and I just love it. It will be my first full length romantic comedy. Author Links: http://www.elainecantrell.com http://www.elainepcantrell.blogspot.com http://www.twitter.com/elainecantrell http://www.facebook.com/elainepcantrell The Enchanted is sold at most online retail outlets.
Reviews: A sweet story, easy read, fairytale/fantasy/romance 5 stars. Teresa Cypher on Amazon
A wonderful story that has swept into my heart. I will be remembering this one for a long time and reading it again.
Tifferz Book Reviews on Goodreads

This story is part of the "What if" fantasy blogfest found at http://morganshamy.blogspot.com/. I chose to be on team Plot Twist :)

I hope you like the story... this is Cinderella... with a twist.
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Cinderella stared at the glass slipper her fairy godmother presented. The tiny shoe, so exquisitely perfect, seemed too good to be true.
“Take it, my dear. If you do, tonight you will fulfill your destiny.”
Cinderella’s fingers shook as she reached toward the shiny stiletto. Everything she ever wanted laid in that shoe: to get away from her stepmother, to be free of her taunting stepsisters…
To be with the prince. Her destiny.
Carefully, she took the slipper and gently placed her toes inside. Her fairy godmother’s eyes shined and a smile curled on her lip as Cinderella pulled the shoe to her ankle. “To my destiny,” she sighed, hopes and dreams filling her head.
When the glass covered her ankle, Cinderella’s eyes closed, and she pictured her prince. A few seconds passed and she felt her body tremble. In anticipation, she opened her eyes and saw not her fairy godmother, but her wicked stepmother glaring down at her. “You thought you could outwit me, Dear? Thought you could sneak out and steal myprince for yourself?”
A chill rose from Cinderella’s ankle, up her leg and into her torso. It clamped around her heart, and she felt a squeeze. “What are you doing?” she gasped, slumping to the floor.
“Fulfilling your destiny,” the old witch sang.
The last thing Cinderella saw was her step mother’s hateful grin. She closed her eyes, took one last breath, and wished for a different destiny.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
by: Kelly Martin
So... what do you think?

Check out the following cool Canadian Nike commercial.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bR14o0R5Xlg

Destiny doesn’t determine if we win.

We do.

A great reminder that everything we do, we do to become better writers and increase our chance of being published. And that includes the beating our egos take from our crit partners and our rejections from agents. We can whine or we can push ourshelves harder like these athletes. We can succeed!