** Wattpad Featured Story!** A young girl arouses the wrath of an ancient Scottish water spirit who takes her brother's soul in revenge. To save him Brigid must journey through the Shadow realm, begging help and proving herself to each of the totem animal spirits of Britain. Steeped in British mythology and animal lore, The Shadowkeeper is a modern fairy tale written with animation in mind but could also be live action/CGI - lots of CGI! Author's Note: Back in 2005, The Shadowkeeper came heartbreakingly close to being sold to major production companies thanks to good showing in the three screenwriting competitions I submitted to*. A whirlwind trip to Hollywood for an awards night followed by meetings with managers and production companies had my little heart singing (literally one night, at an Etta James concert at the Hollywood Bowl!) Then reality hit. All of the feedback I received was the same: We love it but there's no audience for adventure stories with a female protagonist, change Brigid to a boy and we'll negotiate. Call me stubborn (the two managers offering me representation did) but I didn't think that was a legitimate "note", I thought it was simple sexism and I refused. Since then, The Shadowkeeper has been in the proverbial drawer but I love Brigid, I think she's a badass little eight year old and I've never given up on her. It's now ten years later and the attitude to female protagonists appears to be changing so I'm thinking of submitting The Shadowkeeper again but first I thought I'd pop it up here and see what Wattpadders think. If you like it, I do hope you'll vote and/or comment to let me know whether you'd like to see it on the screen! Happy reading! Darcy. *Competition Results: Finalist, ScriptP.I.M.P. Competition 2005 Quarter finalist, Academy Nicholl Fellowship 2005 Quarter finalist, Page International Screenwriting Competition 2005 All rights reserved. WGAw Registration: 1065086 Cover Design ©NarrativeDisorder

Cara’s mother has disappeared. Her father isn’t talking about it. Her big brother Max is hiding behind his iPod, and her genius little brother Jackson is busy studying the creatures he collects from the beach. But when a watery specter begins to haunt the family’s Cape Cod home, Cara and her brothers realize that their scientist mother may not be who they thought she was—and that the world has much stranger, much older inhabitants than they had imagined. With help from Cara’s best friend Hayley, the three embark on a quest that will lead them from the Cape’s hidden, ancient places to a shipwreck at the bottom of the sea. They’re soon on the front lines of an ancient battle between good and evil, with the terrifying “pouring man” close on their heels. One chapter will be posted Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays until all 10 chapters are up. These will be followed by the second book in the series, The Shimmers in the Night. A Junior Library Guild Pick; Kirkus Reviews Best of 2011; Selected for the ABC Best Books for Children Catalog; Locus Notable Books.

When your soul is hunted, you can't hide forever. Thousands of years ago, an evil known as the corruption seeped into the land. Where once it was contained by the Sentinels -- humans or elves gifted with magic -- it now thrives unchallenged, gaining strength and claiming those that once fought it for its own. Nineteen year old Skye has always known this. Living with demons on your doorstep is a constant fight for survival, but she’s determined to not become one of the corruption’s monsters. To keep her soul pure, no matter the cost. But with the Sentinels gone, betrayed by their own, it’s only a matter of time before the corruption seizes them all. When a scouting mission goes awry and Skye is taken prisoner, her blades can’t save her. Marked by the corrupted Sentinel, she waits for a fate worse than death to take hold. Only when the Silverborn, knights dedicated to fighting the corruption come to free her does something awaken within her. Something powerful. The power of a Sentinel. Celestial. Fire. Water. Nature. Shadow. None are safe from the corruption. *+*+*+*

Sam is the most promising swordsman among this year’s crop of Paladin trainees...and knows it. Brash, cocky, and unbeatable with a sword (well, almost), Sam is the kingdom of Thule’s best hope against the violence wrought by demons. The only problem is that Sam is really Lady Samantha, daughter of the seventeenth Duke of Haywood, and if her father has his way, she’ll be marrying a Paladin, not becoming one. But Sam has never held much interest in playing damsel-in-distress, and so she rescues herself from a lifetime of boredom and matrimonial drudgery. Pity that Tristan Lyons, the Paladin assigned to train her, is none other than the hero of her childhood. He hasn’t recognized her as Lady Samantha--yet-- but if he does, he’ll take away her sword and send her packing. Sam is not the only trainee hiding secrets: Braeden is a half-demon with a dark past that might be unforgivable. Sam, Braeden and Tristan set out for the western coast, charged with rooting out an infestation of demons that has made the West unlivable. As they travel, they uncover a deep-seated corruption of power that threatens to derail everything they stand for. Rebellion stirs, led by a rival faction of warriors who tempt Sam to join them with an irresistible offer. A war between men is coming, and Sam must pick a side. Will saving the kingdom cost her life -- or just her heart? Reminiscent of Mulan, but with a medieval fantasy twist, Paladin is a tale of adventure, action, and romance.

***Updated on Sundays*** The gods have died and the arkanists have been blamed. Ash and darkness cloak the land, the Evernight, the free folk call it. Daemons rise from the shadows and the nights are long. Alone upon the road, heading to the College at Oldtowne, Hale finds refuge within a book. That book is called, The Arkanist, and tells the story of a boy called Kaedn Fallow. *** Following his father's unanticipated suicide, Kaedn is left alone and alienated throughout the city he has grown up in, faced with isolation, poverty, and questions. He needs to find out why his father killed himself, and starts off by searching through the library, reading the books his father read shortly before his untimely death. While there, he stumbles upon one man's secret, and changes his life forever. Copyright © 2015, Jack Pagliante. All Rights Reserved. Cover Artwork: Marc Simonetti