DIANA L. CONCES
Written Word
Diana L. Conces is a poet and fiction writer from Round Rock, Texas. She was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2018 and was a finalist in Public Poetry’s ARTlines2 contest in partnership with the Houston Museum of Fine Art. One of her poems has journeyed hundreds of miles on a Capitol Metro bus; another has appeared in the San Antonio Express News. Over 75 others have appeared in print and online journals. She’s the author of The Golden Feather, a middle grade comic adventure novel, and Blue Skies & Blacktop, a poetry collection. Temporary Things, a collection of short stories, will be forthcoming in fall 2020.
THE GOLDEN FEATHER
by Diana L. Conces
Art by Stephen Lee Jackson
It all started with a case of spring fever.
Princess Bettina, youngest of the royal family in Castle Windemere, only wanted to take a break from her least favorite tutor’s class to enjoy the beautiful spring day with her leopard, Malalah. However, an encounter with a pair of thieves at her favorite swimming hole starts Bettina on a much greater adventure, a quest that will take her far from home in search of the goddess of spring. If Bettina can overcome her fears, she can save her world from a never-ending winter--and help the Windemeres repay an old debt to the gods.
BLUE SKIES AND BLACKTOP
by Diana L. Conces
Art by Eleanor Williams
This collection of poems of place celebrates the power of noticing. Inspired by her travels through Texas, past and present, the poet provides an album of verbal postcards of small towns and small roads. Each poem is linked to its place of origin, from Caprock Canyon in Quitaque in the panhandle to Poenisch Park on Corpus Christi Bay, from the wind farms of Sweetwater to the cypress growing in Lake o’ the Pines in Jefferson.
TEMPORARY THINGS
By Diana L. Conces
Every life contains seismic moments, when the ground shifts beneath us. Some of the characters in these stories experience tremors so minor they barely register; others experience major upheavals that threaten their foundations. A young mother confronts the consequences of a moment’s inattention in “Suspension.” A man with a secret delays opening a door in “Home Again.” Two days a decade apart collide in “A Convergence of Days.” Those in the path of a mysterious old man find “Luck,” both good and bad. These stories invite us to contemplate whether the ground beneath us is solid... or just another temporary thing.
