Category: Short Stories

Alternate History and World Building – A Talk with Author Daniel Ottalini Tomorrow Night!

Join Author Daniel Ottalini for a talk on Alternate History at the Worldbuilding EXPO tomorrow at 5:15 PM PST (8:15 EST)


Have you ever wondered how to build up your worldbuilding? Want to know how it connects to Alternate History and the worlds of potential futures & pasts? Sign up for my free talk tomorrow night at the Worldbuilding EXPO (8:15 PM, EST, or 5:15 PM PST).

I’ll be in the No Stress Writing Academy booth run by my awesome friend (and editor / publisher at Heart Ally Books, the awesome people behind Antioch Burns). Here’s the schedule tomorrow. All times are PST.

March 12:

  • 1:10-1:25 PM – Ossandra White – Let’s Talk Online Communities with Ossandra White
  • 2:05 – 2:20 PM – Sarah (Sally) Hamer – The Magic of Writing
  • 3:45 – 4 PM – Joseph Lallo – Creating Worlds and Characters Readers Love
  • 5:15 – 5:30 PM – Daniel Ottalini – Alternative History – The What-ifs of Worldbuilding

You’ll have to register (it’s free!) and registering once gets you into a variety of free talks, seminars, and booths. Listen to engaging speakers, check out some wares, perhaps learn a thing or two about writing, worldbuilding, and beyond!

Besides that, I’ll have a huge announcement that I’ve been waiting to share with all of you! Once again, click here to register (change the day to March 12th), click into it and you’re in!

Tales of Tallavanor – Now in Audio Form!

Enjoy the new Tales of Tallavanor – now in audio form!


You – Hey you! Want to listen to all of Tallavanor’s Tales from the very beginning? Well now you can! Thanks to our Friends over at Fantasy Storytellers, you can listen to a large chunk of my character’s story. Pretty neat! I’ve embedded the first one below for your delight. Also – gotta say, I love the artwork! Someone’s got some talent over there, and I want to know who! If you want to reread Tallavanor’s Tales then check out the homepage for that here, and if you want to read more of my work, check out my novels and DM’s Guild Dungeons and Dragons Modules!

Tallvanor’s Tales: From the High Seas to The High Temple


When last we left Tallvanor and his band of, well, ne’er-do-wells, the party was struggling to deal with the after effects of chasing down leads in Mulhussen. We’ve since gained some new party members and we realized we would need holy intervention if we truly were up against some type of unholy or vampiric influence. Ibrahim and Tilly, our newest Paladin and Cleric, joined the party, while Claudia, our bard, disgusted at the events that took place around the stealing of the annals of the Yellow King, left the party.

Continue reading “Tallvanor’s Tales: From the High Seas to The High Temple”

Final Kohtumine Focus: Tradespont


You’re going to have to speak up! I can’t hear very well in that ear. That’s what happens when you face down pirates in the Gulf of Hertanzia and…oh, you’re not here for stories. You’re here for the goods. You want weapons? We’ve got them. You want every type of rope imaginable? We don’t have that, but the people across the way do! Exotic metals, gemstones, jewelry, if it isn’t here, then you’ll have to go to the Silks. But no one wants to go there, you come out smelling like a flowerpatch. Unless, of course, you’re looking for perfume, in which case check my cousin’s ship three rows down.

‘Shaver’ Virgil Ngolo, Tradespont Visitor Representative & Tour Guide Company Owner

Continue reading “Final Kohtumine Focus: Tradespont”

Kohtumine Focus: The Lord’s Cluster

Continue the tour of the Kohtumine with me as we learn a bit more about the Lord’s Cluster!


It’s always an honor to guard the Lord’s Cluster. It’s nice and quiet, just a lot of line control. You know, keeping people in line as they’re ready to vote, making sure they don’t touch the voting jars themselves, reminding the observers they can’t talk. The most tiring part is dealing with those damned idiots who think we’ve never dealt with people trying to cheat before. Honestly, what do they think this is? A monarchy?

Reggie W. Queiroz III, Keelhelm Officer, 114th Kohtumine

Continue reading “Kohtumine Focus: The Lord’s Cluster”

Kohtumine Focus: Peregrine Cay

Check out the second stop on our tour of the Kohtumine – our only bit of solid land – Peregrine Cay!


I swear, if the Kohtumine wasn’t required to be here, there wouldn’t be a ‘here’ at all. Not for very long. The priests alone don’t bring in that much money, and fishing doesn’t pay that well hundred of miles from any major nation. But now that they’ve decided this is part of the Lord of the Ocean’s domain, so every pitiful slop pays for passage here to read the Codes and enjoy the tropical weather. Of course, it could be nicer if the beaches weren’t covered in jagged rocks and the beds weren’t 10 gold – a night!

Percival La Glang, First Lieutenant, His Rhodavian Majesty’s Ship, The Weeping Wisp (Now Deceased)

Continue reading “Kohtumine Focus: Peregrine Cay”

Kohtumine Focus: The Minnow Cluster

Check out the first cluster grouping of the Kohtumine, the Minnows!


The Minnows is the most rag-tag collection of ships, boats, outrigger canoes and just plain rafts that you’ll ever see. I swear, if a marooned sailor can tie two pieces of deadwood together an paddle it to the Kohtumine, he’d end up in the Minnows. What’s there to do in the Minnows? Sleep, eat something that was likely a rat, and get a boat to another cluster. That’s it, if you ask me.

Shipmaster Zarik A’Ragim, Commander of the Garuk’s Breath

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A Map of the Nova Caesarian Colonies!


Some new maps for your pleasure. I’m excited to have these be part of my next project – a Brief History of the Colonies of New Caesaria! Which map do you like better?

Colonies of New Caesaria(1)Colonies of New Caesaria(2)

Colonies of New Caesaria(3)Colonies of New Caesaria(4)

Saviors of Saltmarsh: Clearing the Mansion


When last we left off, our brave explorers had cleared the topside of the Alchemist’s mansion and were descending into the depths of the abandoned building.

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If I play the music louder, I can’t hear the bad guys creeping up behind me!

Continue reading “Saviors of Saltmarsh: Clearing the Mansion”

Year of Accountability 3/1-3/6


Hi all,

Let’s hear how accountable I was this week! What did I do?

Well,

I wrote a 4,000 word short story, so yay for being successful! I also published my latest D&D adventure – the Invasion of the Phandelver Valley. So lots got done this week. I ended up not submitting my short story. I felt it didn’t match the parameters of the request (a steampunk fairy tale) and instead was a more exploration with fantasy components.

So now I’ve got 4,000 words for A Brief History of New Caesaria 🙂