Introduction
A few years back I printed two of my original stories on my website.  I'm not sure why.  I think I was hoping deep down that perhaps some publisher my happen upon them by chance and be interested in publishing them.  Of course, that's not how it works in the real world.   Getting new works from an unknown author published is like..well, blowing on molasses to get it to move uphill in the dead of winter.  In other words, I have better chances of being struck by lightening on a sunny day.  So, I guess I knew also deep down that my best chance of getting published and actually read was to self-publish my works on my own web site.

I have two complete works done.  Both were written earlier this decade before I started programming professionally.  I personally feel writing is my one true passion.  I have always loved writing and if I had a choice, I would prefer to do it for a living.  However, I have resigned myself to the fact that this probably will not happen, and that writing will always be a hobby.   :)

So once again, I am going to share my works on my web site.  Every so often I bring these stories out to read for myself...just for the heck of it.  Now I am doing it again publicly to share with a new group of readers who pass by this section of my web site.

I hope you enjoy them.  :)

I do want to point out in closing that these two stories are complete works of fiction.  Although the geography surrounding these stories are real (towns, cities, places), but the stories themselves are not.  I say this because when I printed these works the first time, that was the biggest question of them all:  "Is this real?  Did this really happen?"  The answer is no.  This all pure imagination.  :)

Also, please forgive any grammerical or spelling errors you find while reading.  The spell check I used is less than perfect, and I am not a professional editor.  :)

Murder
"Murder" was the very first novella I ever completed from beginning to end.  It took three years to do so.  The first chapter was written in 1992 as an entry for the literary magazine that Carroll Community College was publishing at the time.  It received the equivalent of first place prize, although it really was not a true contest.  Originally it was supposed to be a "stand alone" short story with no true resolution.  As the year went by the story always came back to me and in my head I wrote the second part of it.  A year later I put it on paper although I never submitted it for review at the college.  I just didn't think it would match up to the original.

The third and final chapter of this gruesome story was written after I have moved away from Maryland to Florida.  I had deliberately left chapter two hanging so that someday, when I got bored and wanted something to do, I could finish it.  In 1994, I did just that.  In 1995 the story underwent a major rewrite so that the three parts would blend together better.   The following year I published it on my web site (at that time, it was still on AOL).

So here it is again.  :)

Synopsis   A young man is pushed over the edge when his girlfriend is raped. He kills the rapist and flees town leaving everyone and everything behind in his own act of selfishness. But he is haunted and the killing continues as he begins to struggle with his demons in the year that follows. This is his story...

Warning  This story contains scenes and depicts extreme acts of violence, murder, rape, necrophelia and adult language.  If such content offends you, I ask you move onto the next story and skip this one.  I know that its gross, violent, disgusting and to some point, morally reprehensible.  Such scenes were necessary to tell the story in a believable context.

Read it now on Smashwords:

Murder, Act I - Retribution
Murder, Act II - Reversion (coming soon)
Murder, Act III - Revelation (coming soon)

Scarecrow
I started writing Scarecrow out of a fascination with murder mysteries.  I remember the premise for the whole thing.   Back in 1995 there was a soap opera on ABC called "Loving" (don't ask) which was going to be cancelled.  I supposed the producers of "Loving" decided the best way to end the soap was to kill most of the major characters off via a serial killer.  Theme for the show then became "Figure it Out".   Having the logical mind I do, I played along (it didn't take too long to figure it out unfortunately).  Well, it got me thinking that I wanted to be the one writing the mystery and leaving the clues for other to "figure it out".  So Scarecrow was born.  I sat down for a week or so and hand wrote the storyline, characters, clues and of course, the backstory behind the killings.  Then I sat down at my Brother word processor and began to type.  The book wrote itself and took on a complete life of its own after the first chapter.  What I had planned to be a short story turned into a full blown novel which in the end took about four months to complete.   That was just the first draft.  The rewrite took an additional three months if memory serves.

I always said if Scarecrow were ever made into a movie, it would kick butt (Spielberg would have to direct, of course)  :D

Scarecrow is 15 chapters long, and probably cannot be read on one sitting.  Unless you have a complete day to waste or are a certified speedreader.

This book was the last one I wrote, or finished I should say.   I started its "sequel" using surviving characters with a new storyline, but never made it beyond the first chapter.  Maybe someday I'll finish it.  But for now, here is my favorite of all my works.  :)

Scarecrow.

Synopsis    Ryan Thomas is a student at a small college in the town of Westminster, Maryland.  He and his friends are about to be dragged into one of the most horrifying events that this small town has ever seen.

On a cold morning in March, Ryan awakes with his roommate Jarrod to discover that one of the Western Maryland College's most respected professors, Austin Webb has been brutally murdered and left for dead underneath the football field stadium bleachers.  No motive, no suspects.  Only two clues.

A brand of a crow with its wings spread on the forehead of the deceased professor, and a note from the killer printed on a blank business card that reads "Ring me a Porter".

Ryan and Jarrod, being two of the most active writers for the school paper, "The Forum" team up with the newspapers editor, Alan Kittridge, an old acquaintance of Webb's to do their own investigation of the murder.

What they find will change all of their lives forever.  What they will find will turn this small quiet town upside down where people are afraid to walk the streets at night.

What they will find is a serial killer bent on revenge for something that happened 25 years ago.  A serial killer who is so filled with anger and hate, that he cannot be stopped until he runs his cycle.

Warning    This book contains graphic scenes of violence, implied rape and adult language.  If such content offends you..don't read it  :)

Scarecrow:  Table of Contents

Murder  Copyright © 1990 - 1999   C. Kevin Provance.  All Rights Reserved.
Scarecrow   Copyright © 1995 - 1999  C. Kevin Provance.   All Rights Reserved

No parts of these works may be reproduced in any way without the prior agreement and written permission of the author.