existentialcowboy

[existentialcowboy]

Audience

We laughed at each others jokes, the ones no one else seemed to get.

Were we the perfect couple or just the perfect audience?

The show has come to its close; we have both gone home.

Stephen Brooke ©2025 somewhat in the shape of a sijo

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very much of an oldie

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Free the Books!

A while back I decided to go the Cory Doctorow route with all my books, i.e. make them available as free ebook downloads. These are all at the Arachis Press site (arachispress.com) alongside the print editions — which, of course, I hope some of you will purchase.

But I lose nothing by giving away the ebooks, most of which are offered in both EPUB and PDF format (or at least one of the two). It may be noted I do not, unlike Doctorow, make these available under a Creative Commons license. They remain thoroughly under copyright.

It matters more to me that they are read than that I make some modest revenue from them. Nor do I particularly wish to pass on part of any profit to Amazon or some other corporation. All my completed short stories, whether or not previously published, may also be read for free at my story archive, https://storiesofstephenbrooke.blogspot.com/

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Rambling

This old rambling house rambles on at odd hours, conversing with the rain and wind and ghosts of those who lived here before me.

It whispers nonsense, I know, murmured memories I can not share; yet I listen, try to pick out a word, a meaning.

And one of these days I too shall ramble on, being none the wiser, understanding nothing, my house fading to silence.

Stephen Brooke ©2025

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gray chases gray ~ young mockingbirds explore summer’s orchard

Stephen Brooke ©2025

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A Mouse is in the House! A rhyming picture book (and song) from Stephen Brooke, with his original illustrations. Available in print or as free ebook from Arachis Press (arachispress.com)

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Writing a story is like building a model railroad. First you lay the tracks so you know where everything is going. Then you add the scenery and the moving parts, be they trains or characters. With any luck, there will be no derailments.

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midnight rain ~ I awake and roll over seeking lost sleep

Stephen Brooke ©2025

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all hearts must break ~ pieces of mine have fallen along my pathway

Stephen Brooke ©2025

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The weekly (when I remember) promo. The Tower is one of the earlier collections of poetry. Available from Archis Press (arachispress.com) in print or as free ebooks.

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lead or follow we all travel toward the same end

I take a moment to rest and watch traffic pass by

Stephen Brooke ©2025

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How wonderful this life would be if we could just hit Control-Z, and simply undo our latest boo-boo, or maybe the last two or three!

Stephen Brooke ©2025

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Another oldie, that appeared in my fantasy novel The Plain of Silver (available from Arachis Press, arachispress.com, in print or as free ebook)

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my Friday promo for this week, 'These Remembered Hills,' a mystery novel set in the Hocking Hills of Ohio, available at Arachis Press (arachispress.com) in print or as free ebooks

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As artists, it would be a hell of a lot easier if our audiences were more tolerant of our penchant for boring them. ~ Cory Doctorow

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an oldie

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the light at the end of the tunnel shone briefly and was gone

Stephen Brooke ©2025