Rosette Maleficarum calls itself a new literary journal that “shows the beautiful, yet depraved nature that lies within reality, both in humanity and the environment surrounding us. From dark, Gothic fairy tales, to dream-laced poems, the Maleficarum dances between the boundaries of life and death itself.” Maleficarum is perhaps best translated as “witchcraft”.
I hadn’t written “Trails” with witchcraft or depravity in mind, although it has its dark side. A bit embarrassing: As often happens, I’ve taken a tiny fraction of a new friend and developed a tale entirely unlike her. Anyway, the magazine’s editor (would you believe? Robin Goodfellow, editor of a journal inviting witchcraft!) thought my story fit her criteria. Read it here:
I just read “Trails.” Is that the first chapter or are we left to wonder what happened and who done it?
Sort of. Most magazines insist on accepting only unpublished stories — including “publication” in personal blogs. So I can only offer teasers until the magazine is out, at which point the copyright returns to me.