This year, I bring you something a little bit different...12 Holiday Excerpts and Flash Fiction!

Our next author with our next holiday tale is Joshua Pantalleresco...

Little Drummer Boy
by Joshua Pantelleresco

All I have is a song and a drum. I rumpabombom my drum nervous. Everything in my skin was crawling as the line moved closer inch by inch. Soon it would be my turn. Oh man. What was I doing here? I look at the people in front and behind me and they all seemed to have the same question. At least I wasn't alone in that.

I smell the perfumes at the various people in front of me. Scents of myrrh and frankincense caress the air. I watch a family of four hold a large portion of gold. The people behind me had shirts, and clothes and something to offer the new king.

Me? I just have a song and a drum.

I got to the head of the line and wanted desperately to leave. I didn't belong here. I wasn't rich, or had any money. I was a kid on the street. Nobody special. Nobody important. I just have a song and a drum. I got no gifts to bring.

Rumpabombom. Rumpabombom. Rumpabombom.

I heard the sheep, and saw the hay. My heart stopped, and the drum went silent. It was time.

I didn't expect the mother and father to be so kind. Relief was on the mom's face as she held the baby in her arms. The newborn king heard cooing sounds and her husband held her and made silly faces to the baby. My heart held still and softened looking at the loving family.

Then the mother and father turn their attention to me, and the my heart started to play it's own tune. I took a deep breath.

“Shall I play for him?” I ask. I had nothing else to give. All I have to my name is a song and a drum. It was all I had to give. The mother nodded.

I close my eyes and pray my God. Please let this be enough.

The drum started, and I hesitate. My first notes slow and steady. I hear my heart fluttering more than the beat of the drums.  I stumble, I fall, and I stop. I nearly drop the drum. What was I thinking?  I didn't belong here.

When did tears start to fall? I brush the tears away and look at the mom and dad. They were watching me. He was watching me.

He smiled at me.

Watching him smile, I realized that the king was like me. He didn't have much. He didn't even have a drum and a song. He just had a smile. Like me, it was all he had to give. Something in my heart loosened. A song came to my head.

The sticks on the drum moved on their own accord. The song came, and my world shrunk to me and my drum. The whole world was the sound of the music, and it was me and my drum and the baby. My song, my drum and his smile. I played my best, and he smiled at me.

My song, my drum and his smile. It was enough.

This year, I bring you something a little bit different...12 Holiday Excerpts and Flash Fiction!

Author Jen Frankel is the first to spin an original holiday tale!

Merry Whatmas! Love, the North Polar Bear
BY JEN FRANKEL

“Bear!” bellowed Santa.

It was pretty clear who had perpetrated the vandalism. With most of it above the seven-foot level, all the elves and Mrs. Claus were ruled out immediately. The reindeer seldom came into the House at the North Pole, and anyhow, their hooves were not particularly well-suited for writing implements.

A sheepish North Polar Bear emerged from behind the twenty-foot tree. “Yes, Santa?” he said tentatively.

“Merry Christmas question mark?” cried Santa. “What kind of message of cheer are we sending here?”

For yes, on all the iterations of the traditional Christmas message around the Great Hall and the North Polar village, an underline had been added under “Christmas” and a question mark at the end, turning a well-wish into an interrogative.

The Bear stumbled out a mumbled explanation.

“What?” bellowed Santa, unable to hear it. The commotion by now had attracted Mrs. Claus as well as all of the elves who were in the House at that moment. An angry Claus was cause for concern for all.

One of the elves stepped forward, and placed herself between Santa and the Bear. “It’s all my fault, Santa,” she said, lifting her chin resolutely, but there were tears in her eyes as well. “You know I just got back from my holiday tour around the Equator with the National Geographic Society.”

Mrs. Claus smiled fondly. “Ah yes, the Society is so good to run mystical creature tours in addition to their regular expeditions.”

“And I had a wonderful, wonderful… eye-opening time.” The elf concluded and glanced around at the defaced Christmas greetings. “I was telling Bear about all the different places in the world that celebrate different holidays around this time of year, and at others as well, and I think he…” She trailed off, not sure how to continue.

“Merry Christmas question mark!” rumbled the Bear. “So many people and so many holidays! I got confused.”

Santa and Mrs. Claus exchanged a long look.

“Also, Santa,” said the elf. “I would like to change my name. Out in the wide world, Ivy-Anka sounds a little… problematic.”

Mrs. Claus coughed. “Oh yes, I see that.”

“How about Hollyamory?” suggested the Bear, but Santa had another idea.

“What about simply Bella?”

“Yes! That’s lovely,” said the elf.

“And about the other thing, Mrs. Claus and I have been discussing this very issue for the last few years. We can’t keep our heads in a snowbank and pretend the rest of the world doesn’t matter, or even exist. Since we’ll have to replace all the signs at the Pole anyhow, I have a suggestion about how we can at least start to be more inclusive. So, everyone, Happy ChristmaKwanzaKkah!”

And it was a Happy ChristmaKwanzaKkah for all.

This year, I bring you something a little bit different...12 Holiday Excerpts and Flash Fiction!

Today, I bring you excerpts from Allison McWood's holiday picture book, Donna and Blitzen!

Allison McWood is an acclaimed Canadian author, playwright and lyricist. Specializing in comedy and farce, Allison strives to bring the world together with stories, as per the tag line of her micro-publishing company, Annelid Press. Allison writes novels, plays and children’s books, all featuring her signature quirkiness. Her writing has not only charmed audiences and readers across the country, but her works have also been taught in Universities around the world, from Vancouver to Lucknow, India. Aside from writing and publishing, Allison is also a Shakespearean dramaturge and Marlovian academic. 

This year, I bring you something a little bit different...12 Holiday Excerpts and Original Flash Fiction!

First up...excerpts from Susan J. Berger's picture book, Mom, Is There a Santa Claus?

“Mom, tell me the truth.”
 
Growing up isn’t easy. Some of Lucas’s friends don’t believe in Santa. Lucas wants them to be wrong. But are they?

In this coming of age Christmas story Mom offers Lucas a chance to be a part of the secret.
Is he ready to become one of the Dream Keepers?
 
A coming of age Christmas book for children at the point where what they want to believe and what they actually believe start to drift apart. The surprise illustration at the end gives them a choice.

Suggested age for readers: 7-10

Captures the essence of the season beautifully. The illustrations are vivid and delightful and they breathe life into the characters and scenes.
Readers Favorite

5.0 out of 5 stars  A perfect book for any child at “that age” where what they want to believe and what they actually believe start to drift apart. 
Amazon Customer
 
A welcome addition to family holiday collections and traditions
It will help parents answer the sticky question, is there really a Santa Claus?
Highly recommended for ages 7 to 10.
The Children and Teen's Book Connection

Author Susan Berger is a writer and an actor. She wrote her first children’s book with her son Christopher Corbin when he was nine. It was published when he was twenty-five. Susan’s other career is acting. On IMDB She is Susan Berger. Never give up your dreams. Her dreams are still coming true.

Thank you, Cheryl, for your LOVELY review of Merry Myrrh the Christmas Bat...check it out on her blog and below:

…Meet Myrrh, a young and very merry brown bat named after one of the gifts of the Magi.  He experiences the wonders of his first Christmas among the decorations of a farmhouse, as well as the kindness of the family that discovers him in their home.

…And meet Sloth, who lives in a mountain atop his hoard of gold and jewels. He believes he has all that a dragon could possibly want, until he meets a brave dwarf named Radish who offers to help him lose weight. With Radish's guidance, Sloth finds himself eating healthier and getting plenty of exercise. In time, Sloth gains the freedom that his new healthy lifestyle brings, which he discovers is more valuable to him than all the treasure in the world.

If you review either or both books on Amazon you will receive a $5 digital gift card for Amazon! I appreciate the time you take to post reviews up on Amazon (and GoodReads, if you’re feeling like going that extra mile!), so I want to make sure you are rewarded. 

PM me or send an email to [email protected] and I will send you the links to the PDF reviewer copies. Send me a screenshot of your review on Amazon, then you will be entered to win. Easy peasy!

MANY THANKS!!! 

Join me here on my blog December 13-24 where I present to you a different micro-fiction story by a new author every day of the 12 Days of the Holidays. There’ll be stories from RJ Downes, Jen Frankel, Joshua Pantalleresco, excerpts from holiday tales from Allison McWood, Susan Berger, Lacey Bakker and from Merry Myrrh the Christmas Bat!