Today I welcome Maria Siopis, one of the contributing authors to the Resist and Triumph charity anthology.

Elizabeth, thank you for hosting me on your blog,   
 
            It is a great honor to be involved in an anthology that propagates equality, and points out some of the ills of our society that have the potential to destroy what we have accomplished the last decade. There are nine remarkable stories, and nine unique voices in the anthology that effortlessly came together to Resist and Triumph. My story, Leto of the Ionian Sea, was conceived as soon as I typed a few words but I stopped as my brain frantically progressed forward in a speed that scared me. Was it possible to have a story constructed in its entirety in a mere minutes? Of course, I obsessed and overanalyzed it to make sense of this strange occurrence. I had never created a story before without laborious work.

            Was it fear that forced my brain to produce the story or was it some type of chemical imbalance? It was pure, dark and malicious fear that filled me with insecurities and sent my mental balance into a tailspin. I feared that our democracy was on the verge of catastrophic collapse, and people had to voice their opposition. I did. My character, Leto, did too, who stood with powerful force to object her land’s law. Was she successful? Perhaps not, as her voice was lost in the millions of others who believed otherwise. Yet, one person, one voice, one opposition is all it takes to make a difference. Below is an excerpt where Leto overcomes her fears and shouts her declaration of freedom:

            Her chest got tight and she was unable to breath, but her mind was clear. She realized that she had to resist in what was known to her, and even change the laws. She wouldn’t marry any of the suitors, she would free the slaves, and people would be equal. She got up and stopped the fight ignoring her mother behind her who tried to silence her. She told the spectators about her and Melpo, the idea of equality, and the creation of a free state. Yet, no one applauded her noble notions. Two guards grabbed her arms and pulled her back under her mother’s command. Leto couldn’t understand why people didn’t embrace her ideas.

            She tried to free herself of the tight grasp but she was unable to do so. They forced her off the stage with her mother behind her who instructed them to take her to the dungeons where the slave was. Her own mother betrayed her, but she didn’t mind. She would see Melpo again. She had been in the dark and wet cells not long ago when she bribed the guards, but now it felt different.

            The gates opened and closed and they continued progressing deep inside the earth. It was cold, and the torches on the wall created images that terrified her. 

Blurb of the anthology:

As 2017 opened, the United States took several steps back in the progress toward equality. In response, a group of authors has stepped up to offer positive stories of hope and love. In an effort to help fight and support those groups who are facing even greater challenges, we wrote these stories to offer a small amount of aid.
Stories of hope, resistance, and ultimately triumph fill the pages of this anthology.
​
All proceeds of the anthology go to The Trevor Project and GLAAD to help fight the effects of the dark times we’re facing.

​Maria Siopis possesses a MPA in Emergency Management and Homeland Security. She completed her dissertation, “Avian Influenza (H5N1): The Doctrine of Social Disassociation, Quarantine, and Emergency Preparedness,” in 2006 tackling a non-fictional theme. Other than writing she obsesses over climatic or manmade catastrophes and continuously attempts to conceptualize needed actions. Her first novel, The World That Will Never Be, was published in 2017. The author lives in New York and is currently working on her second novel, The Music Hall of Dreams which will be released late in 2018.

We are offering a free paperback copy of Resist and Triumph so we encourage everyone to enter our giveaway. It truly is a remarkable anthology.

This comes from my second WIP, an urban fantasy romance. The series is El Corazon and book one is Scintilla.

Raul is a werewolf. Brandon a magical human known as a Scintilla. 

*****

“He had business in Sahuarita this morning,” Brandon said to the laptop. “Maybe…?”

Brandon put one finger against the flash drive port and closed his eyes, concentrating.

Shouldn’t use my power for evil.

Except he wasn’t. He was using it for self-gain. How was that any different than the way his ability had been used for profit by his parents his entire life?

It wasn’t.

A few minutes of time circumventing fire walls and impressive security for a small-town police department, Brandon knew that Raul needed to collect his fee for the centaur he’d delivered yesterday. According to Raul’s e-mail he’d be stopping at the bail bond office in about an hour.