The shootings in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the place my family and I call home

For those of you who know that my family and I live in Colorado Springs, Colorado, you also may know about the tragic shooting deaths that occurred downtown yesterday. Everyone in our family is okay, but please keep the families who lost loved ones yesterday in your thoughts.

The people who were gunned down and lost their lives did nothing wrong. They were minding their own business, just living their lives. Until a selfish, rifle-toting man bent on chaos and destruction mowed them down like animals.

We live about five to ten minutes from where the final shootout occurred, depending on the volume of traffic. We often pass through that intersection (90% of the time, in fact) when we head downtown. It's in a neighborhood where nobody would think it wasn't safe to walk, ride your bicycle, or stand outside on your porch.

We've often gone through that drive-thru at Wendy's, as well as the McDonald's across the street from where the shootout with police happened. There will never be a time that we will go by there in the future that we won't be reminded that innocent people lost their lives there.

The people who were shot by the gunman were random people on the street, just minding their business on a Saturday Halloween morning. This was a senseless tragedy that did not need to happen. My heart aches for their surviving family and friends.

We do not have any other info than you may have read at this point. However, this is not something we could've ever guessed would happen here in Colorado Springs. But I guess that's a refrain we hear all too often these days.

Thank you to the police officers who risked their lives to stop this man from killing more people. If it had been a Monday morning, there probably would've been more victims.

As you spend tonight with your family and friends, please keep the victims' families in your thoughts during this awful time.

Thank you, stay safe, and much love to all.

(**NOTE: Please do not use the comments of this post to begin a debate about guns. Quite frankly, I don't want to hear about guns right now. Right now I want to use this post to ask people to remember the victims and their families. Any comments that go against this request will be deleted.)

[Writing Contest] Dark of Night short story contest

)0( Triple Crow Publishing )0( presents the Dark of Night short story contest

============================================
Entries open through midnight EDT, September 30, 2015.

This will be the first in a series of themed writing contests sponsored by
)0( Triple Crow Publishing )0(.

All writers, published and unpublished, are welcome to enter.

TCP’s favorite time of year is almost here! Halloween/Samhain is approaching, when the veil between the living and the dead is thinnest. Naturally, it’s the perfect time to tell creepy tales designed to send shivers down our spines.

Are you up to the task? Enter today and find out!

Participation fee: $3

What we’re looking for in the winning entry:

Weave a bone-chilling tale we’ll remember. Make your tale short, original, and scary. Get inside our heads and terrify us as best you can!

We prefer intense, maddening psychological scares to senseless blood spatter and gore. If your story includes violence, it must have a purpose beyond shocking your readers.

Slither into our minds and terrify us enough to cause sleepless nights and life-altering nightmares – all within a 2,000-word limit. If you do all of these things, and do them well, you could emerge a winner.

PRIZES:

1st place - $35 Amazon gift card & publication in TCP’s new quarterly publication, From the Crow’s Nest

In addition, the winning entry will be featured in TCP’s first annual short story anthology, due for release the first quarter of 2016.

2nd place - $25 Amazon gift card & publication in TCP’s new quarterly publication, From the Crow’s Nest

3rd place - $15 Amazon gift card & publication in TCP’s new quarterly publication, From the Crow’s Nest

Submit your entry by September 30th to triplecrowpublishing@gmail.com with CONTEST ENTRY in the subject line. Please paste your short story directly into the body of your email. PLEASE DO NOT SEND ATTACHMENTS.

Send your $3 participation fee via PayPal (http://www.paypal.com) to triplecrowpublishing@gmail.com

(You DO NOT have to have PayPal to complete this step.)

When you send your participation fee, please add your name and your story’s title in the payment notes section. If you are paying the fee for someone else, provide the entrant’s name and story title so we will know which entry matches your fee.

Note: Your short story entry is NOT valid until we have received both your story AND your fee. Stories not accompanied with paid entry fees will be disqualified and unread.

RULES:

* Entries must be double-spaced and in Arial or Times New Roman 12-point font

* Entries must include your full, legal name. If you have a pen name, indicate your preferred author name. Also include your mailing address and your preferred email address.

* Entries may be previously published; however, you must have permission to resell/reprint your story. TCP only asks for one-time rights to publish your story.

* No entries over 2,000 words

* Plagiarism will not be tolerated. You must submit your OWN original work

* Judges’ decisions are final

* TCP is not responsible for late, lost, or misdirected email entries

* Entry fees are non-refundable

Please note: failure to follow contest rules may disqualify your entry.

By participating in this contest, you affirm you have read these rules and agree to abide by them.

This short story contest is not associated with or endorsed by Google+, Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media platform.

Have additional questions? Email triplecrowpublishing@gmail.com with CONTEST QUESTION in the subject line.

Best of luck!