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STEVEN E. SCRIBNER
Teacher, writer, amateur musician, part-time blogger and full-time nerd, currently living in the tree-y suburbs north of Seattle.
"I enjoy writing and reading sci-fi and fantasy (I've been working on the Tond series for nearly fifty years), as well as reading historical fiction, experimental fiction, and non-fiction (science, linguistics, art and music history and criticism). I also like listening to classical, jazz, and other musics too interesting for the mainstream. There's a lot of art, history, and music in my books."
In the world of Tond, it is twenty years after the War of Mechanas, and the sense has gone out of things.
In the east, in the Sherványa Lands, Arnul can sense it: a formerly beautiful art form has been twisted into a grisly weapon, and his long dormant nightmares caused by the War have revived.
In the north, in Kaii, Nanta Hornblower and Tazzie can both sense it: strange beings are stalking the forests while the ancient guilds and societies have turned murderous.
In the south, in the Emb Lands, S’Enrik can sense it: he must journey to meet the others and do his part to stave off a catastrophe.
Even in the world of the mordhs, they are aware of it: one of their kind must go to Tond to attempt reconciliation for past wrongs.
And in the northwest Drennlands, Sren has escaped from the epicenter of this new menace; now he must return with the others to confront a subtle enemy and thwart a plot which may involve more than anyone knows.
FRONDS
A Collection of Short Stories and Flash Fiction
A ghost composer and alien bands; a made-up insult with unexpected (and hilarious) results; a monstrous automaton that runs on ice; a woman who speaks only in haiku; mathematics that could destroy the universe; children's drawings that are of great significance; a disease (and its cure) that exists only in a world where logic and the rules of physics do not apply: these and other tales are to be found in this collection of new and previously-published material. Includes Silkod of the Drenn, The Fourth Source, The Scapekite, Out of his Sketches, and sixteen other stories of Fantasy, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Magical Realism, and even some poetry.
As of September 2024, this collection includes two newly-written stories: two new "Fronds".
SHORT STORIES
NOCTURNE. When music is a (literal) weapon! Two wizards (“loremasters”) are investigating an unexplained use of magic when they stumble across what appears to be a hideous hate crime, but neither the magic nor the crime is what they expected. This stand-alone "Tond" story is available in Summer of Speculation: Sidekicks.
SILKOD OF THE DRENN. In the mist-blanketed northern islands of Tond, Sil investigates a mysterious artifact from the Wandering Folk. (This call to adventure (and stand-alone "Tond" story) is available in Journ-E: The Journal of Imaginative Literature; scroll down to find Vol. 1 Number 2.)
THE FOURTH SOURCE. Is Ras-Sero a good guy or a villain? Or both? On an island west of Tond, he seeks a source of power and finds himself in a high-stakes game against a fish-man and an illusion-casting loremaster. (This re-telling of an unseen prologue to Shakespeare's "Tempest" introduces characters to be featured in the MadStones Tetralogy. Available in Summer of Speculation: Villains.)
THE SCAPEKITE. Their domination of the world failed to take into account one elderly man with a kite, an imagination, and memories of the old days. (Available in Iron Walls: A Burning Embers Dystopian Anthology, with other stories by Atlas Rose, Joshua Reid, Michaela Baker, Astrid V.J., Joanna White, Amanda Wrights, and James Quinlan Meservy.)
OUT OF HIS SKETCHES. Kevin invented the Star-Beast for a game, but now he thinks it is hunting him. Maybe it's all in his mind. Maybe not. (Available in Nightmare Fuel along with fifteen other authors' "tales of horror to raise the hair on your arms".)
THE "TOND" SERIES:
"..dense with peril and hardship, but also with loyal friendship and the cultural details of language, music, food, and folklore that make this series so satisfying."
Karen Eisenbrey, author of The Gospel According to St. Rage
"The writer has a good feel for the fantasy genre and seems heavily influenced by such greats as Tolkien and Frank Herbert (with a little C.S. Lewis thrown in for extra flavor). Fine company to keep. The first book is about a couple of young brothers who find themselves on an adventure filled with wizards, magical creatures and danger. If that sounds more like J.K Rowling’s Harry Potter series, it is more sophisticated than those books (as much as I enjoyed them)."
Reader on Amazon.com
TOND, BOOK ONE: THE SONS OF TLAEN RAS-ERKÉLTIS
In the world of Tond, two civilizations have been at war for centuries, but they must make peace to face a growing, but hidden, menace that they themselves helped to create.
Includes supplementary material outlining the flora and fauna, history, cultures, and languages of Tond.
TOND, BOOK TWO: THE WANDERER
In a darkly humorous, paranoid prequel to Book One, Tayon tells of his own adventures, and of the origin of the great menace that threatens both of the warring Tondish civilizations - and how they both facilitated its creation.
TOND, BOOK THREE: THE JOURNEY NORTHWARD
Having learned the origin of the monster Gashug-Tairánda, Rolan now continues his adventure. Teaming up with others from across Tond, he journeys into the Monster's realm to learn how to fight it, and to attempt a rescue.
TOND, BOOK FOUR: THE WAR OF MECHANAS
Rolan’s quest has been completed, but now the fate of his world, Tond, hangs in the balance as the armies of Gashug-Tairánda explode out of Borrogg to overwhelm and destroy.
QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS, SO MANY QUESTIONS!
Who was playing the Horn on Horn Hill, and why? Can the use of the Translation Stones really drive you mad? What was that Sherványa legend that the loremasters were trying to track down? What became of Fragh the Aged? Is there any significance in the shared elements of the Tond books and the story of Tony Bradner?
FIND OUT IN THE SECOND TOND SERIES, also known as The MadStones Tetralogy. The first book, GRENDUL RISING, has dropped (as of 6/21/2022).
USSERS AND THE ECHO OF NOTHING
Ussers. Tony made them up, before his age of reason; but now they may be real. He sees them in art. He hears their voices in music. He spots them clinging to walls; those domed rectangles signaling to him. He only knows that they somehow relate to four things: Tondalus (though not even he knows the meaning of his band’s name), his missing hand, a strange Medieval painting, and a crime he committed some years before. But what are they trying to say to him?
Readers of James Joyce, Kafka, Toni Morrison, and Haruki Murakami may enjoy this mysterious magical-realist novel full of dream sequences, music, and experimental prose.
OTHER PUGET SOUNDS
In these selections from four blogs, Mr. Scribner details Seattle's thriving experimental music scene, along with discussions about art and other genres of music. This book may be read on its own, but can also be a companion to "Ussers and the Echo of Nothing" which is also to a large extent about music.
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