After Stars Fall
by Nicole Wheeler
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show notes
In this episode you’ll hear a YA Fantasy short story from Nicole Wheeler filled with sweet romance that blends the pain of grief with the joy of love. After Stars Fall is narrated by Karyne Norton.
Important Links:
The Author: Nicole Wheeler’s website
The Narrator: Karyne Norton’s website
Be sure to check out The Sun Still Rises anthology in memory of Lani Forbes where After Stars Fall was first published. All proceeds go to Lani’s family.
Enjoying the show? Why not share with a friend using these links.
full transcript
Karyne (00:00:07) – Hi fantasy readers. This is Karyne Norton, your fellow book binger, and you are listening to the Finding Fantasy Reads podcast where you can test out a new fantasy story every single week to find your next favorite author.
Today’s story features a sweet romance that blends the pain of grief with the joy of love. Its written by Nicole Wheeler, who’s fascinated by storytelling and the formative power of the stories we love. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Acting and Directing Theatre and while earning her Master’s degree, she explored the intersection between what we believe and the media we consume. Fascinated with storytelling in multiple forms, she began writing fiction/learning craft and business of the book world in earnest in 2018.
Stick around to the end or check out today’s show notes to see where you can find more from the author!
For now, please enjoy After Stars Fall by Nicole Wheeler.
Karyne (00:01:10) – After Stars Fall is read by Karyne Norton. Due to copyright, the full transcript of the story cannot be included here.
Karyne (00:29:15) – I hope you enjoyed listening to After Stars Fall by Nicole Wheeler, narrated by Karyne Norton. If you want to read more by Nicole, go to https://nicolewheeler.com/ to find more of her books. This particular story was featured in The Sun Still Rises, an anthology put out in 2023 in honor of Lani Forbes, who lost her battle to cancer. All proceeds from the book still go toward Lani’s family, so I’ll have a direct link in the show notes.
If you enjoyed this story, please consider sharing it with a friend who loves fantasy. There are links in the show notes to make that as easy as possible for you.
Thank you all for listening, and happy reading!
Know someone who would enjoy this episode? Please consider sharing it!
Featured Author
Nicole loved words before she could read or write them, and is fascinated by storytelling and the formative power of the stories we love.
Nicole earned her Bachelor’s degree in Acting and Directing Theatre. While earning her Master’s degree, she explored the intersection between what we believe and the media we consume. Fascinated with storytelling in multiple forms, Nicole began writing fiction/learning craft and business of the book world in earnest in 2018.
A particular focus for Nicole is the exploration of “Culture Care” as the antithesis of culture war. Rather than dominating society through fear, arguments or forms of oppression, artists are tasked with creating and nurturing the world around them. They accomplish this by creating experiences that invite others toward empathy. Story tellers are an essential part of this movement. Nicole aims to write stories that moves the dial toward culture care, even if incrementally.
She’s lived in Idaho, Washington, California, and Arizona; and was briefly based out of Portland, Oregon, while touring the western US as an actress…but that was a story from long ago and far away.
In 2016, Nicole finally ended the catch-and-release phase with her hometown in southwest Idaho; settling there for good with her husband, kids, and pomapug puppy Winchester.
When she’s not dreaming up new worlds, Nicole is probably engineering the next family trip to Disney (where she met her husband) or hopelessly multitasking.
Narrator
Karyne Norton hasn’t found the key to time travel, immortality, or infinite lives, so she’s taking a break from nursing and photography to focus on raising four human beings while writing epic fantasy.