I've come to writing later in life. I had tried it on many times before that, though, and always thought that it was something worthwhile. I think it was a confluence that got me going finally. The accumulation of years, the desire to produce something creative, seeing others achieve that goal, and the inevitable ticking of the clock that gets just a bit little louder each day managed to get me from occasionally thinking about it, to actually doing it.
Not that I'm particularly consistent about it. The "incomplete" attempts here speak to that.
I'm not much for self-promotion, but I thought it would be worth the effort to at least make what I've written available for anyone who wishes to read it. I don't have the resources or interest to find a literary agent, or to self-publish, but the internet is a great way to make information accessible to everyone. So, here's what I've got, and thanks for reading. Feedback of all types is appreciated. Hate it? I can take it.
All files here are in the .pdf format.
All written works available here are ©2018-2025 by Jason Murray, all rights reserved.
Derelict - Jeff Haight is a drunk on a down-hill run. He's lost everything of meaning to his addiction, and is just marking time until the end. He spends his free time staring down at an upscale marina from the parking lot as he drinks, measuring his failure against the success represented in the floating toys below. An empty slip fascinates him, until the day a strange vessel appears in an eye-blink to fill it. He is drawn in, and is allowed by the young woman who owns the marina to enter, though she is unaware of the craft that calls him. He boards the craft, and is gifted instant sobriety. This miracle is followed by the opportunity to enter other worlds, only accessible from within the vessel itself. He chooses to explore, but in doing so both inadvertantly releases a super-human enemy, as well as draws the young woman into the resulting conflict. He and the young woman form an unlikely bond, and together they seek to confront the evil power that he has set free, trying to save the world that they both know from destruction.
Derelict - (final edit)
Dark Lake - Sophia is at death's door, and Jeff decides to return with her to the place that brought them together years ago, hoping that the miracles that they had experienced during their time there could be replicated one more time. Sophia is resistant, but acquiesces in the end. They return and find the hoped-for miracle, but also find the derelict craft dramatically altered within. None of the doors are accessible, but there is now a black pool in the center of the atrium. Knowing what will happen if they return to their world, they choose to jump into the pool rather than go back. This decision allows them to continue forward together, but will also catapult them into dangerous waters.
Threads - Protagonist (currently un-named) comes from an extremely dysfunctional background, with a homicidal, drug-dealing father and what we can infer to be a door-mat mother. He has anger issues resulting from this, but also a preternatural ability, which is the ability to shift himself out of phase with his current reality for a few seconds, rendering himself invisible and untouchable for that little blip of time. This helps him to weather the apocalypse as it happens. The structure of this story so far is that each chapter bounces from prior to the apocalypse, to during, to after in no particular order. It allows for the introduction of the three principal characters, while at the same time advancing the narrative. It has been a fun experiment.
Ian - This one started as a joint effort between myself and my best friend Jason Montague in the early '90s. We mapped out the first part of the story and I wrote Chapters 1-4
probably between '92-'95. I came back to it in 2012, and wrote Chapters 5-7 during '12-'13. I think this was the excercise that cemented my desire to get to the end of a
creative writing endeavor, in that I could see a real difference in my ability to articulate a story between those two time frames.
Ian is a young grifter on the run, having run afoul of the local hard element in a port community. Through sheer luck, he ends up saving the daughter of a visiting
dignitary from a potentially deadly situation, and is whisked away from his current danger to the richest kingdom in the world. Things are not as they seem, though, and
he soon realizes that the player has been played. Not only that, his previous difficulties have followed him. This new game will require more of him than anything that has gone before.
The Candle Flickers - This started as a 30-day writing challenge from my wife, so that we could create together, but also to pull me back into writing after yet another long hiatus. It worked. The premise is the world has lost the ability to generate power, in all the ways that prop up our modernity. It doesn't really focus on the particulars, just follows a young man who intersects with a father and a daughter, and how that plays out.
In the Blue Corner - This was a fever-write short story, only a few pages. It is me dipping into the "Down at the Crossroads" mythos. I've never had an idea take hold like this, and demand to be written before. I'm glad I got to experience it, though.
Lights in the Dark - I have mixed feelings about this one. I don't think I've revised anything quite as much as I did with it, or spent as much proportionate time on its creation. I'll let you decide if it works or not.
Deep Water - The title is apropos. Writing from a female perspective is fraught, particularly for someone like me. Putting my faith into the mix was even more of a risk. Nevertheless, here you go.
Among the Stones - An exploration of grief. Full disclosure, I've not lost a child. But I have young grand-children, and an imagination.
Entombed - Another exploration of loss, and the ambiguity that might accompany it.
The End of the Dream - I was looking at the dissolution of a family in this one. It isn't a happy piece, but I do think there is a bit of hope at the end. For those of you that know me, I do not consider this auto-biographical. Full stop.
The Fireplace at the End of the World - This was from a holiday prompt from my writing group, keyword "fireplace". I promptly made it as bleak as possible. That might sound intentional, but it really wasn't. A lot of the time, these shorts write themselves.
Indian Summer - This one wasn't long enough to be considered a story, but I liked it enough to post it here. There are enough degrees of separation from my own experience to make it ok, I think.
Across the River - I really enjoyed writing this one, and that in itself is a gift. They aren't all fun. It's crossing the river Styx mythos meets the Matrix.
Free Will - Sad to say, I've not read H.P. Lovecraft, but I've read a number of other writers who've incorporated his mythos into their stories. I've also been exposed to cultural references and descriptions. The influence, such as it is, exists in this story but isn't the focus.
The Dance of Choice - Another one about addiction and second chances. Had to do research (ugh) since I know nothing about ballet. I might come back to this one.
The Price of Sacrifice - This set up was a rip-off from a scene in Stephen R. Donaldson's Covenant Chronicles. It was a take on someone who is really good, against someone else that is really, really good. My addition was the idea that the protagonist is going to lose and knows it, but doesn't because someone dear to him intervenes.
Last Train - This one was out of nowhere. It was fun to write, but probably couldn't be described as a fun read. Hello to life's contradictions. I do try to put some hope into the end of these things..
Inertia - One inspired by my grand-daughter Aurie. She's a mover, and what would it look like when she was older, and stuck in a tough situation? She would girl-boss it. I hope to come back to this.
The best way to contact me is via email - attemptsatfiction@gmail.com
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