Carol Willis
Novelist, short story writer, and essayist
COMING SOON:
Also, I am pleased to announce Valparaiso Fiction will be publishing my story, “Fluctuat nec mergitur” in the summer 2024.
“The Golden Girl” - a darkly evocative story of murder to be included in an anthology put together by Central Virginia’s Chapter of Sisters in Crime (SinC). The date of publication is TBD.
I will share links once they become available.
You will always find me:
writing my next novel
Please enjoy several of my latest short stories published in 2023:
“A Responsible Man” is published in issue (20) of Dark Horses. In this dystopian western set in Western Nebraska, fifteen-year-old Jake Turney must set aside his deepest desire to do what needs to be done. Amazon.com: Dark Horses: The Magazine of Weird Fiction No. 20: September 2023 (Dark Horses Magazine) eBook
The Laws of Attraction by Carol Willis – literally stories (literallystories2014.com)
“The Laws of Attraction.” This meet-cute between two graduate students in astrophysics at UChicago is one of my favorites. I think you’ll love it, too.
Cold Comfort – The Worlds Within
A very special domestic drama with speculative elements, entitled “Cold Comfort” is now live as of August 5, 2023, in The Worlds Within Magazine. This is another story set in beautiful rural Western Nebraska, post-Covid. When the bank forecloses on Mia’s small farm, she experiences something disturbing yet strangely comforting. Please follow the link:
Unmet Expectations - QUAIL BELL MAGAZINE
A couple, Meera and Conner, navigate the balance of desire, duty, and expectation in their young relationship. Set in Mexico, in a Pueblo Magico, this poignant and heartfelt story speaks to all women.
A sister and her brother face difficult decisions about end-of-life care for their mother. Death bed scenes and these kinds of end-of-life conversations between family members are often romanticized or over-sentimentalized. The truth is usually darker, and less kind.
Last but not least is another ghost story. Always a favorite of mine to write:
“Trembling With Fear” is a captivating horror series featured on The Horror Tree. Written by Carol Willis, it delves into eerie and unsettling tales that will send shivers down your spine. Let me share some highlights from this chilling collection:
“The Weird Ghosts of Lanark Manor”: This four-part serial takes you on a haunting journey through the dark forest, where a fire roars within a circle of stones. The tangled undergrowth and mysterious happenings create an atmosphere of suspense and fear.
See below for additional stories. Follow the links to read.
Background: I received a medical doctorate from Texas A&M University College of Medicine and completed a residency in Child Health from the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri. After practicing pediatrics in a small mid-western town, I completed a pathology residency at Vanderbilt University and obtained an MBA in Healthcare from George Washington University. After growing up in Charleston, WV, I practiced medicine in Texas, Western Nebraska, and Chicago before moving to central Virginia with my husband where I enjoy the writing life full-time.
I received an MFA in Writing from the Vermont College of Fine Arts and several of my short stories have recently been published by Unlikely Stories, Inlandia: A Literary Journal, Mulberry Literary, and elsewhere. See above and below for additional information and links to the stories.
High Hopes by Carol Willis
Plainsong by Carol Willis
Entanglement by Carol Willis
The Laws of Attraction by Carol Willis
The Laws of Attraction by Carol Willis – literally stories (literallystories2014.com)
The Hundred Thousand Things by Carol Willis
Cold Comfort – The Worlds Within
Cold Comfort by Carol Willis
A Responsible Man by Carol Willis Dark Horses Magazine
School’s Out Forever in November 2023 in Living Crue Magazine
Inspired by the place I grew up, this story is near and dear to my heart. I also shared this as my graduate reading during graduation at VCFA.
“Trembling With Fear” is a captivating horror series featured on The Horror Tree. Written by Carol Willis, it delves into eerie and unsettling tales that will send shivers down your spine. Let me share some highlights from this chilling collection:
“The Weird Ghosts of Lanark Manor”: This four-part serial takes you on a haunting journey through the dark forest, where a fire roars within a circle of stones. The tangled undergrowth and mysterious happenings create an atmosphere of suspense and fear1.
Above is a sampling of several short stories published in the last few years. I write across all genres for adults and children. I have completed a contemporary adult psychological thriller and crime suspense, two novels for middle grade, and a science fiction saga for YA. Many of my stories contain speculative elements and you will almost always find a dead body or a ghost and sometimes both. I am a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, Poets and Writers, Inc., and the Authors Guild.
Currently, I am revising a historical mystery/suspense novel set in Central Virginia during the 70s and 80s.