Free

Lesbian Werewolves!

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / Leave a comment
Image of a path through mossy trees with leaves on the ground. In the foreground is a young woman who looks like Little Red Riding Hood. In the background, further down the path, is a fading image of a wolf.

Hello, my friends! I have exciting news. My werewolf short story, “Where Does It Hurt?” was published today in Zooscape: Issue 16!

“They say a werewolf’s bite hurts like hell, but they don’t know. The worst wounds werewolves give you are the ones nobody sees.”

You can read this bittersweet romance for free here. And you can read the rest of the issue here!

Thank you to all of you faithful readers out there for following this blog and giving my work a chance! I may no longer be on Twitter, but I am still writing like mad and delighted to share my new stories and biology adventures with you here. Keep calm and howl on! 🐺

Furry Arthurian Fantasy Tale: The Corvid King

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / Leave a comment

Hark, friends! Gather round! I have exciting news to share. My short story “The Corvid King,” originally published in the anthology ROAR Volume 10, has been reprinted in my favorite e-zine, Zooscape! You can now read the story for free online, accompanied by this beautiful illustration provided by editor Mary E. Lowd:

“The Corvid King” was inspired by an obscure bit of Arthurian lore: the rumor that King Arthur would one day be reborn as a crow and return to “save his people.” After finishing T. H. White’s brilliant Arthurian series The Once and Future King this year, this story now holds even more significance for me.

You can read “The Corvid King” for free here: https://zooscape-zine.com/the-corvid-king/ I hope it will encourage you to find magic in the ordinary stuff of life. And I hope you will check out the other fantastic stories in this issue of Zooscape! See the rest of Issue 14 here: https://zooscape-zine.com/issue-14/

~*~

“King Pellinore: Who is that, Arthur?

King Arthur : One of what we all are, Pelly. Less than a drop in the great, blue motion of the sunlit sea. But it seems that some of the drops sparkle, Pelly. Some of them do sparkle!“

~from the musical Camelot by Alan Jay Lerner

Random Acts of Magic!

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / 2 Comments

Hi, dear friends! I am excited to announce that my story “Random Acts of Magic” has been published in Daily Science Fiction today.

This story is very dear to my heart; it conveys the struggle of being your imaginative, weird, wonderful self in a world that often rewards conformity over creativity. I am thrilled to share it with you, and so grateful for all the kind comments I’ve already been receiving from readers. The chance to connect with folks like you and experience the joys of dreaming together is the reason I continue to pursue publication for my work, even when the road is long and challenging. Thank you for reminding me that my voice matters, that my stories resonate with people and are worth bringing into the world. Writing can sometimes be a struggle, but it’s a magical thing, and so very worth it.

You can read “Random Acts of Magic” for free here: https://dailysciencefiction.com/fantasy/magic-and-wizardry/amy-clare-fontaine/random-acts-of-magic

New, Free Story! The Dragon Maker

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / 1 Comment

“Griselda made dragons out of words. No one knew how. One moment she’d be hunched over her desk, scribbling furiously, only stopping occasionally to dip her quill or suck on it thoughtfully, her chin lifted and her eyes somewhere else. And the next moment...“

Read the rest of my new fantasy story “The Dragon Maker” for free on the e-zine Zooscape here: https://zooscape-zine.com/dragon-maker/ And be sure to check out the rest of Issue 9: https://zooscape-zine.com/issue-9/

Thank you for your interest! 🙏

My first audio story, read by The Voice of Dog!

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / 8 Comments

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Greetings, friends! Today, my short story “Of a Hawk and a Lighthouse” has been released on the podcast The Voice of Dog by Khaki!

In this story, an abandoned lighthouse on a lonely cliff receives an unexpected visitor. Her new friend helps the lighthouse shine again. But will it last?

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You can listen to Khaki’s lovely reading of my story here: https://anchor.fm/the-voice-of-dog/episodes/Of-a-Hawk-and-a-Lighthouse-by-Amy-Clare-Fontaine-egeflv/a-a2l6r9b I hope it adds some light to your day!

Animal Sighting Simulator: A New, Free Twine Game!

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / 3 Comments

Ahoy, friends! Tonight I submitted to my first ever game jam, an itch.io jam hosted by NarraScope 2020. My submission is a short text-based game titled Animal Sighting Simulator.

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As a disillusioned urbanite in a world where most animals are extinct,  your only consolation is a gaming system that simulates nature.  But thanks to your artistic vision, that’s about to change. Pick your creatures and your creative medium and make your dreams come true.

You can play Animal Sighting Simulator for free on itch.io here: https://fontainepen.itch.io/animal-sighting-simulator

I hope you will enjoy it!

My Twine Game Break Stuff is Now on itch.io!

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / Leave a comment

Hi, friends! Last year, I entered the Interactive Fiction Competition with a Twine game titled Break Stuff. My game took 29th place, which earned me a cash prize, part of which I donated to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and RAINN, as well as a Steam key for a lovely game called Heaven’s Vault.

It was recently brought to my attention that Break Stuff is no longer playable on the IFComp website, so I have uploaded it to itch.io: https://fontainepen.itch.io/break-stuff

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In Break Stuff, you make decisions for a troubled young woman who just broke up with her boyfriend. When your old friend from high school comes over, she invites you to vent your negative feelings by breaking stuff. Who could resist?

Break Stuff is an exploration of depression, lost love, feminism, growing up, and the brokenness that makes us human. Please read the CONTENT WARNINGS on itch.io before deciding whether to play it.

I am grateful to all the people who reached out to tell me this game made a positive difference to them. You’re the reason I create things, even when it’s hard. Thank you.

A Hollywood Werewolf and Three Poems: Free Writings Out Now in Echoes!

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / Leave a comment

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Hi, friends! Recently I said goodbye to the town I lived in for the past year, McAllen, Texas. My favorite thing about McAllen was its fabulous library, as well as the friends I made there.

I had the good fortune of being part of the McAllen Public Library Writing Circle, a writing group that meets monthly at the library. An anthology they just published features three new poems and one new story from me, as well as work from other great authors, on the theme of “echoes.”

My story, “What Spawned the Sequel,” is about a rejected werewolf actress who dreams of giving a speech at the Oscars. Her dream comes true, but not in quite the way she hoped. My three poems in the anthology range in scope from national political catastrophes to a casual chat in a coffee shop.

You can access the Echoes anthology for FREE here: https://mplwritingcircle.files.wordpress.com/2020/01/echoes-anthology-1.pdf You can also buy or borrow paperbacks at the McAllen Public Library, where you can check out Beyond Acacia Ridge too!

New game! Red Dog and the Endless Spaceship

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / Leave a comment

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Howdy, folks! I’ve released a new free game (with graphics and sound) on itch.io called Red Dog and the Endless Spaceship. Give it a whirl over here: https://fontainepen.itch.io/red-dog-and-the-endless-spaceship

I made this silly little game with Adam Le Doux’s Bitsy Game Maker. Bitsy is a very accessible game editor; even if you have no programming experience whatsoever, you can quickly and easily use it to make a simple game. Try it out! https://ledoux.itch.io/bitsy

Break Stuff, a new Twine game for IFComp!

/ Amy Clare Fontaine / Leave a comment

Today is the start of the judging period for the Interactive Fiction Competition! See IFComp’s announcement here: https://blog.ifcomp.org/post/188069134484/the-25th-annual-ifcomp-is-here There are eighty-two entries this year! My entry is a Twine game called Break Stuff.

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Break Stuff cover art

In Break Stuff, you make decisions for a troubled young woman who just broke up with her boyfriend. When your old friend from high school comes over, she invites you to vent your negative feelings by breaking stuff. Who could resist?

Break Stuff is a brief foray into depression, lost love, feminism, growing up, and the brokenness that makes us human. Please see the content warnings listed with the entry on the site before you decide whether to play it or not. Break Stuff can be found among the rest of this year’s games on the ballot here: https://ifcomp.org/ballot I hope you will enjoy it!