What is a writer? A daydreamer? An observer? A chronicler who sees the world around him (or her) and lays it bare for others-shining in all its glory or uncovered, to reveal its pain? Do writers decipher the quandaries and take the ordinary and turn it into something extraordinary? Do they inspire joy? And where there is tragedy, do they pluck the chords of human emotion to create a melody bursting forth in a new song of hope? The simple answer is, yes. They do all this and more. This anthology brings you the works of 48 writers, authors who share their memoir tales of sacrifice and triumph, their imaginative short stories that tickle, amuse, and inspire, or shock with bone-chilling possibilities. They provoke thought with introspective essays. They bare their souls with sensitive, imaginative poetry. Within these pages, writers, the everyday chroniclers of life and living, share their art. They turn words on a page into a living, breathing thing-an idea to spark the human imagination. Take a moment. Sit back. Shed the day's cares and let your mind go wandering. Between the pages of a good book is where the magic begins. Marcia Buompensiero, Managing Editor "The Guilded Pen-Seventh Edition" An anthology of the San Diego Writers and Editors Guild