First Chapter Excerpts by New Authors

If you're looking for great new voices, think of OnceWritten.com as the clarifying shampoo of the literary world. We clear away the "same old story" gunky build up and introduce you to some great new authors. Read through our latest first chapter excerpts, all from books written by new and emerging authors. Pick up a new book this week, and maybe you'll even find yourself a new favorite author.

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Featured Authors at OnceWritten.com

Murder, Madness & Love
Yolanda Renee
I Can Tap Dance
Sarah Ulmer
Timely Persuasion
Jacob LaCivita
Trapped
Judy Spurr
The Shaman and the Rose
Bill Haynes
Writing as a Small Business
Nash Black

If I Were an Eagle: Book 2
D.L. Hale
If I Were an Eagle: Book 1
D.L. Hale
Tainted Hero
Michael Davis
Some Glad Morning
Irene Steele

First Chapter Excerpts at OnceWritten.com

May 2008

Murder, Madness & Love

Yolanda Renee
Mystery

After a gritty Anchorage Detective, Steven Quaid, becomes involved with a beautiful widow, Sarah Phalmer, suspected of murder; slander and obsession...

I Can Tap Dance

Sarah Ulmer
Self-Help

Have you ever been so fed up with parts of your life you wish you could take a sledgehammer and start over?

Dusting off the ashes of her...

Timely Persuasion

Jacob LaCivita
Time Travel

A struggling music critic goes back in time on a quest to save his sister from the relationship that ended her life. But is her husband Nelson...

April 2008

Trapped

Judy Spurr
Young Adult

TRAPPED will appeal to young readers who have struggled in school or had to deal with bullying. In an often humorous way, the main characters learn...

March 2008

The Pen Is Mightier Than the Broom: Memoirs, Stories, and Poems

Barbara Shine (editor)
Short Stories

This unusual collection offers 52 short works by 11 remarkable everyday women. Writings are grouped into chapters about childhood, family histories,...

Out of Time

Cliff Ball
Science Fiction

The US government clones a famous scientist and he invents time travel so the government can change history. Nothing goes...

The Shaman and the Rose

Bill Haynes
Fantasy

After 2000 years of imprisonment, Satan has been freed. Whose side will he join when the horsemen arrive with the Armageddon? One angel, an elf and...

Writing as a Small Business

Nash Black
Business

Writing as a Small Business is the perfect guide to help writers navigate the world of creative self-employment. This volume provides an overview of...

If I Were an Eagle: Book 2

D.L. Hale
Romantic Suspense

It's 1969 and life or death in Vietnam, but half way around the world, an elderly man is dying. Haunted by his past, he needs to find his heir. He...

If I Were an Eagle: Book 1

D.L. Hale
Romantic Suspense

It's 1947 in Tennessee Moonshine stills, bootleggers dot the landscape. Karen Quincy, young and naive, struggles with her beauty and desires soon...

Tainted Hero

Michael Davis
Mystery

As a decorated Army Ranger, Eric Emerson is honor bound to defend the helpless, and trained to survive against a ruthless enemy, yet these skills...

Some Glad Morning

Irene Steele
Historical Fiction

Mildred Johnson is orphaned when her parents are killed in a protest for voting rights in the South. Her Aunt Rose flees with her to a Chicago...

February 2008

The Demon Inside: The Zone War, Book 1

Terry Cloutier
Fantasy

Everyone needs an escape from reality occasionally, but for Edward Fox, the fantasy world he created as a child just might end up destroying him as...

Spirit Box

Michael Mordenga
Science Fiction

No one can breathe on the icy planet of Taros-Avros, but that didn’t stop colonization. The solution: make spider children companions that assist...

Too Much

Linda Taylor West
Children's Picture Book

Luke likes food a little too much. He wants to eat everything. When will he stop? Join Luke on this rhyming adventure as he learns the importance of...

January 2008

Sexiest Man Alive

Diana Holquist
Contemporary Romance

Jasmine Burns has always wanted to know the name of her one true love. Her sister Amy is a gypsy psychic who can read the name of a person's true...

Feel Happy Now

Michael Neill
Self Help/New Age

In his bestseller YOU CAN HAVE WHAT YOU WANT, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) master trainer Michael Neill revealed the practical benefits of...

Riding a Stallion: Igniting the Fire

Robert P. Theiss
Self Help/New Age

In his first book, Robert Theiss openly shares his spiritual journey which led him to develop a conscious relationship with the Family of Archangel...

Mysterious Secret (After Death)

Sabije Dervishi Veseli
Horror

MYSTERIOUS SECRET is about a young girls soul that carrying a mysterious secret. This tragic story occurs via a diary , where everything that this...

Why Did You Fall in Love With Me?

Sabije Dervishi Veseli
Horror

WHY DID YOU FALL IN LOVE WITH ME? is a unique love story, about a spiritual path one can take that will help them find happiness, written with an...

Mary Magdalene, Her Legacy

Bettye Johnson
Historical Fiction

The lineage of Mary Magdalene and Jesus has long been disputed, and now comes a novel based on research that holds the reader's attention with...

Under the Liberty Oak

Paige Mercer Cummings
Mystery

A taut fast-paced mystery which adroitly shifts between the tumultuous events of the summer of 1964 and the present life of concert pianist Brittan...

Paraworld Zero

Matthew Peterson
Fantasy

Twelve-year-old earthling, Simon Kent, stumbles upon a secret that thrusts him into a bizarre adventure filled with magic, technology and deadly...

December 2007

Midori By Moonlight

Wendy Nelson Tokunaga
Contemporary Fiction

Fresh-from-Japan Midori Saito gets lost in translation in San Francisco as she searches for her American dream and the perfect...

No Experts Needed: The Meaning of Life According to You

Louise Lewis
Inspiration/Spirituality

The author narrates the true story of her four-year journey of following messages received from Spirit... messages that led her to a new life of...

Searchable Whereabouts

Tinisha Nicole Johnson
Mystery

SEARCHABLE WHEREABOUTS is the story of Rahkel Williams who’s trying to unravel the mysterious murder of her beloved uncle, however after finding...

Dr. Zastro's Sanitarium: For the Ailments of Women

Ludmilla Bollow
General Fiction

This beautifully written novel explores the joys and sorrows of passion during the 1880's. Fiercely independent Yana, a Gypsy artist, is led to Dr....

The Seraphs

M.W. Briggs
Science Fiction

THE SERAPHS is a compilation of time travel, alternate realities, parallel universes and alien beings. Were their multiple universes created...

November 2007

Tales of Tara

Lily Sparkletoon
Science Fiction

Imagine a post apocalyptic world where only a few dare fight for freedom and of those who would put their lives in dangers in order to...

Make Me a Match

Diana Holquist
Contemporary Romance

Pick out wedding dress and ignore psychic sister who says I'm marrying the wrong guy.

Really ignore her when she says the right guy is...

The Dowry Bride

Shobhan Bantwal
Contemporary Romance

Megha is sick with horror when she realizes that her husband and his mother are plotting to kill her because her family has not paid her promised...

We Care About Golf

Thomas E. Warner
General Fiction

WE CARE ABOUT GOLF is a sequel to Mr. Warner’s first novel; he has increased his characters by bringing in several real life people who become...

Understanding Evangelicals: A Guide to Jesusland

Dave Jeffers
Christianity & Politics

One of the immediate results of the 2004 General Election in the United States was the notion of Jesusland. This came about from the exit polls...

Neitherworld Book One Akiiwan

Scott Baker
Science Fiction

An extraterrestrial culture makes an urgent appeal to a powerful 17th century Ojibwe clan shaman during his vision quest on a remote northern...

Drive

Rob Roberge
General Fiction

In DRIVE, Rob Roberge brings together an eclectic group of characters bound by the Sarasota Sun, a minor league basketball team in the newly formed...

October 2007

Family Acts

Louise Shaffer
Contemporary Romance

Louise Shaffer follows her beloved novels The Three Miss Margarets and The Ladies of Garrison Gardens with an unforgettable tale of poignancy, wit,...

The Mansfield Lighthouse Cats

Charlotte Barnes
Poetry

The book is a collection of poetry covering everything from love and loneliness to genetic testing and football! There's something for...

Real Solutions to Children's Health

Anne Arsenault
Health, Fitness & Beauty

Real Solutions to Children's Health, is designed for busy parents who want health for their children. My book goes into healthier eating, drinking,...

Of Doggerel and the Dean

Patrick O’Donnell
Mystery

Private investigator Phil Oxnard is called in to investigate a rash of robberies at Garwood College. Soon thievery, poetic clues, and murder combine...

Tinna's Promise

Miranda Mayer
Fantasy

Aside from being forced to resolve such minor issues like figuring out why legions of dragons are destroying human cities, how to stop the...

Max and the Gatekeeper

James Todd Cochrane
Young Adult

A war has been waging for centuries; a magical and technological battle between good and evil. This conflict will affect life everywhere, but not...

September 2007

“Passing” For Who You Really Are

A.D. Powell
Social Criticism

“Passing” For Who You Really Are: Twelve Essays in Support of Multiracial Whiteness is a manifesto condemning mainstream or liberal American...

As I Tarry Along Life's Road

Jerusalmi Streete
Poetry

As I Tarry Along Life's Road is a collection of contemporary poems, which reflects various circumstances and situations one may experience had...

One Is Fun

Leona DeRosa Bodie
Children's Picture Book

One Is Fun follows a one-year-old as he enjoys the magic of daily activities until he finally says goodnight. The rhyming text makes it a great...

77 Urban Street

Annie Grant
Biography/Memoir

You Think You’ve Got Bad Neighbors?

When Annie and Pete moved into their new apartment, the thrill of finally being out on their own was...

Catchers in the Sky, Mission: Korea

Jonathan Damien
Military Thriller

A revolutionary airborne weapons system barely off the drawing board. A diverse and divided crew from the Air Force Research Lab. As a reunification...

The Ezekiel Code

Gary Val Tenuta
Mystery

Zeke Banyon, a Catholic seminary dropout, runs a homeless shelter in the old waterfront district of Seattle. He and his assistant, Angela, happen to...

August 2007

Your Writing Coach

Jurgen Wolff
Writing Reference

More than just a how-to guide, YOUR WRITING COACH is a friendly coach and mentor, providing all the strategies needed to become a full-time writer...

Of Ghosts and Magic

Alfred M. Albers
Mystery

"In 1973, Alex Holloman got a job as a courier and met a wonderful lady. Suddenly, his world fell apart; his parents were killed and he inexplicably...

The Fortune Quilt

Lani Diane Rich
Contemporary Romance

Carly McKay's life is going just fine until she produces a television piece on psychic quilt maker Brandywine Seaver and receives a quilt with an...

Devils in the Sugar Shop

Timothy Schaffert
General Fiction

A failed erotic novelist; a hostess of prim sex-toy parties; an artist and a bookshop owner pursued by a demented if harmless stalker; wives, lovers,...

Zeera

Mary Dombach
Science Fiction

Zeera is one of a dozen nubile young Argerians rocketed to Earth on a single-purpose mission: get pregnant and bring home Human genes to fortify...

Romeo and Juliet: A Modern Day Sequel

James Edwards
Contemporary Romance

Juliet's beloved Romeo dies for their love as does she. He chases her through time and awakens in this age on a Volcano in Hawai'i, where he meets a...

Victory Song

Jeri Doner
Christian Fiction

The United States is a country at war. Andy Richardson sees enlistment as an opportunity to get away from the farm life he so desperately...

The Balkan Secret Conspiracy

Barbara Shenouda
Thriller

For years, Canadian novelist Zlata Pierce remembered the horrible day when her Croatian family died at the hands of Hitler’s SS during World War II....

July 2007

Foot Ways

Lynn Veach Sadler
General Fiction

Lynn Veach Sadler weaves this coming of age tale with old wives' tales and a twist of menace to deliver a stunning, thoughtful story of youth and...

Partially Human

Dwayne G. Anderson
General Fiction

When a teenager from Los Angeles discovers that he is not entirely human, he becomes a social outcast, and must depend on those who have not turned...

May 2007

Just a Season

John Wills
Historical Fiction

JUST A SEASON by new author, John T. Wills is a luminous story into the life of a man who in the midst of loss and pain journeys back in time to...

In the Wash: The Rona Shively Stories

Rebecca Benston
Mystery

Rona Shively has seen a lot of things in her day, but nothing like the case brought to her by Gilbert Delvecchio. He is looking for his ex-wife, and...

Men Cry Too: Poems & Prose

Wayne L. Misner
Poetry

The poems help make sense of how people hold onto the thrills and memories of love, as they lose their loved ones. Many men hide pain inside, fearing...

Jadwiga's Crossing

Richard J. Lutz, Aloysius A. Lutz
Historical Fiction

What kind of heroine did it take to build Twentieth-Century America? The people who built upon the American dream after the Civil War were immigrants...

Yesterday's Falcon

Tim Newman
Historical Fantasy

YESTERDAY’S FALCON opens when Gawain, knight of Arthur's Round Table, collapses at the portals of an isolated castle in the midst of a terrible...

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