Believing stories help us to learn from the past, embrace the complexities of the present, and prepare for future, I write lots of stories. Believing myths, legends, folklore, and fairy tales are important in understanding people and their fears, familiar networks, societal structure, and core values. I use them as inspiration. This is the beginning place for all my fiction and most of my poems. I've found common threads run through my short fiction. When enough tales have been written and published, I gather them according to theme, add a few new stories, then look for a publisher.

Dragon Rain is the title of my fourth story collection (Mocha Memoirs Press). Dragons and their kin are present in almost all mythologies. Whether they're portrayed as good, evil, or an ambiguous symbol for nature, dragons usually represent power, wisdom, and strength. Among the cultures celebrated in Dragon Rain are: Japanese, Chinese, Norse, Appalachian, Southern USA Bayou, Alternate Middle Eastern History, Ancient Greek, Medieval European, contemporary USA, British, and Native American. (My 7th great-grandmother was Shinnecock). I hope the collection demonstrates though people are different, we share common challenges, emotions, aspirations, and desires. "A delightful set of dragon tales" says Debbie Mumford, bestselling author. "Sure to please every dracophile" writes award winning author G. Scott Huggins. "Author Steven R. Southard says "Immerse yourself in Dragon Rain, eighteen fantasy stories penned by a master weaver of magical tales." And author James Dorr writes, "Dragon Rain is a rich mix of stories."

Beneath Raven's Wing is my third collection of short stories (Fae Corps Publishing). Ravens appear in these tales as either a character or as a watchful presence. When it came time for a title, I used a line from my poem, "Raven," included in my Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artist Award-winning collection, River of Stars. And I began the collection with an excerpt from the poem: "Raven holds the secrets of night/ beneath her wings,/ guards that knowledge/ with claws and blood." In Beneath Raven's Wing, mystery, magic, and miracles weave through 16 raven-filled stories. Whether set in Edgar Allan Poe's Baltimore, the forests of Scandinavia, a long ago battlefield, the mountains of Appalachia, or a suburban neighborhood, the tales take readers on a dark-winged journey. But be warned, more than an unkindness of ravens haunts these stories. Richard Chizmar, New York Times Bestselling Author calls Beneath Raven's Wing "top-notch storytelling." Claire Davon, USA Today Bestselling Author says the book is "spooky and fantastic." H. R. Boldwood, author of the Corpse Whisperer series and Imadjinn Award Finalist calls the book "an epic journey spanning time and tide." Gustavo Bondoni, author of Off the Beaten Path, Ice Station Death, Siege, Outside, Love & Death, and other books calls the collection "dark, intelligent, and sinister."

Owl Light​ is my second collection of short stories and poems where early stars flicker, owls wake from slumber, and shadows appear where shadows ought not be (Poel to Pole Publishing). In the prose and poems, Owl Light​ ​dims to darkness, dreams change to nightmares, and dawn in more distant than you know.  Again, while written for adults, these stories are Young Adult friendly.  Guardian Liberty Voice ​says of ​Owl Light: "a spellbinding collection," and January Gray Reviews says: "This book will keep you thinking long after you have read it." Other comments ​include: "a wonderful collection of short stories and poems that transport the reader from the past and into the future...Highly recommended" - speculative author, David Lee Summers; "Fairy tales new and re-imagined, modern myth and ancient ritual. Her stories span galaxies and eons. There is something to resonate with all readers within its pages" - author, Rie Sheridan Rose; "A quiet darkness pervades Crist's stories and poems...If you let the tales lull you to sleep, expect shining eyes to peer into the forest of your dreams"- author Anne E. Johnson; and "...a rich tapestry of magic and ritual. What delights the reader...is the way Crist can apply fresh eyes to a familiar situation and conversely, can present the unfamiliar as if it were an old friend" - award-winning writer, Jonathan Shipley.

The Greener Forest is my first collection of short stories and poems (Pole to Pole Publishing). The title refers to that magical place where Faerie and the everyday world collide. There is dark and light, evil and good, and uncertain dusky gray lurking in the stories and poems that inhabit the book's pages. Readers will discover all is not what it seems at first glance, and wondrous things still happen in The Greener Forest. ​While written for adults, the collection is Young Adult friendly.  ​The Greener Forest​ has been called:
"A wonderful, imaginative, multifaceted collection" by author EJ Stevens. "Magikal, enchanting, and so enticing" by young adult novelist, TJ Perkins. Speculative author Robert E. Waters wrote: "Read this collection. You won't be disappointed." Award-winning Maryland author, Laura Shovan, says of The Greener Forest:  "For Grimm lovers, a darkly imaginative book of modern fairy tales."




 

​I began editing science fiction and dark fantasy anthologies for Pole to Pole Publishing, a Maryland-based publisher of speculative fiction in 2015. The initial anthology in the Dark Stories Series, Hides the Dark Tower, ​required me to not only read hundreds of stories, but to select and edit the fiction, then piece together a cohesive book. Thankfully, I co-edit with another Marylander, Kelly A. Harmon, whose editorial skills complement my own.

Since then, we have edited (and Pole to Pole Publishing has published) three more Dark Stories Series anthologies, In a Cat's Eye, ​Dark Luminous Wings, and Not Far From Roswell.​  In addition, Pole to Pole Publishing establised a new reprint anthology series, the Re-Imagine Series. The reprint nature of the Re-Imagine Series means most of the submitted pieces of short fiction are solid stories. This abundant good quality pool presents a new challenge -- to select the best of a well-written group of stories which will piece together to form a collection of work that adheres to the theme, but also expands that theme in unexpected ways. To date, I've edited (with Kelly Harmon) 5 Re-Imagine anthologyies: Re-Launch, Re-Enchant, Re-Quest, Re-Terrify, ​and Re-Haunt.

Editing is a wonderful way to improve my writing! When I read the work of other writers, it is much easier to spot both strengths and weaknesses in other people's fiction, which I might not recognize in my own prose. I find by working with writers (and my co-editor) to make a book as well-written as possible, I improve my own writing skills.

​Collaboration has proven, in my case, to be a wonderful thing, and I hope to continue editing for Pole to Pole Publishing in the years to come.

Believing stories help us learn from the past, embrace the complexities of the present, and prepare us for the future, I write lots of stories. Believing myths, legends, folklore, and fairy tales are important to understanding people and their fears, fmailiar networks, societal structures, and core values, I use them for inspiration. This is the beginning place for all of my fiction.

The world-building to create Lifthrasir, the setting of The Enchanted Dagger, Beyond the Sheercliffs, and any future books in The chronicles of Lifthrasir, ​was both fun and daunting. Lifthrasir is the name of the woman who survives Ragnarok, and means one who clings to and celebrates life - so it is an apt name for a work where characters must make the right choices or face dire consequences. I've tried to not only incorporate pieces of known mythology, but invent my own to give the book and its universe a rich tapestry of  legends, myths, and lore.

The Enchanted Dagger​ is an epic fantasy novel, that while written for adults, is Young Adult friendly. It is the first book in The Chronicles of Lifthrasir. The protagonist, Beck Conleth, begins the book living a quiet life in a seaside town with his grandmother. She sends him to retrieve his father's bones and a family dagger, and the adventure ensues. In addressing this genre, I've tried to bring my own style and creativity to not only the setting, characters, and conflicts, but to the overall battle between good and evil--which is at the core of every epic fantasy.
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​The novel was a Compton Crook Award Finalist and Maryland Writers Association Book Award Winner. It has been called:
"a strong tale set in a world intricately woven through with magic" by award-winning author, Jody Lynn Nye
An absorbing tale...finely crafted" by novelist, Roxanne Bland
"capably-written, energetic, and entertaining" by prolific short story writer, Jim Lee.

A sample of the positive reviews:
"Adventure, magical creatures, enchantment, and evil lurking around every corner...a very enjoyable read" from Getting Your Read On​ (Aimee Brown, reviewer)
"A thrilling story...recommended to all readers of fantasy adventure. Five stars and a thumbs-up to an excellent book" from Books 4 Tomorrow (Ellen Fritz, reviewer).
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Beyond the Sheercliffs is the next book in ​The Chronicles of Lifthrasir​, of which The Enchanted Skean​ is the first in the series. Rather than a traditionally told novel, ​Beyond the Sheercliffs ​is told via novellas which meet at the end of the narrative. Each of the cast of characters and protagonists in the tales has a role to play in the next novel in the series. While the storytelling technique is new to me, I've found it both challenging and rewarding to write the tale from multiple points of view.
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​The novellas did not originally begin as parts of a book-length manuscript, but as episodes I wanted to expand into four separate books. Once I began the writing process, I realized these narratives added together gave a more complete look at the same time in the larger story of Lifthrasir. Once again, while written for adults, ​Beyond the Sheercliffs​ is Young Adult friendly.

Scheduled for publication by Pole to Pole Publishing, ​Beyond the Sheercliffs ​is under contract, and has a cover already available from the publisher. 

Shivers, Scares, and Goosebumps is the first book in the Shivers, Scares, and... Series. 

Winner of the 2023 Imadjinn Award for Children's Literature, it's been called "A wonderful collection" by Douglas Draa, editor of Weirdbook Magazine.

Shivers, Scares, and Chills, the second book in the Shivers, Scares, and... Series is due for publication in October 2024.