The Mormon Steampunk anthology Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel is now available on Amazon. I have a story in it called “The Miracle of the Gulls” based on the true story of Olive Oatman (although, as this is a steampunk story featuring mechanical men and zeppelins, I’m obviously using “based on a true story” in the loosest possible sense.)

I read Olive Oatman’s 1857 biography for research and included a lot of the old-fashioned words I found there which hopefully makes the story stand out a bit. I’ve got to say I loved working with editor John M. Olsen. His suggestions certainly improved the story overall.

Here’s a little blurb to give you an idea what the story’s about:

Swarms of mechanical locusts descend on Deseret, destroying farms in the process. Thomas Durant, the man who is building the new railroad, is only too happy to buy up these now worthless patches of land when a mysterious figure named Olive Oatman arrives in town, fresh off the zeppelin. She’s searching for her long lost brother, but where has she been for the last five years? Why does she keep her face covered? What other secrets is she hiding? Will she be the one who can finally stop the locusts?

And here’s the table of contents: