News & Updates

New Stories for This Week

NINE NEW STORIES on the Sparkle Website!

We have THREE new series out this week with brand new new stories! You'll find these on the new Sparkle Streaming website.

(For those of you who like to download and own your stories, they will be in the Sparkle Store as soon as a "Season" is complete.)

Martin & Sylvia: Nature School

As the summer comes to an end, Momma, Martin and Sylvia reflect on all the things they loved about the summer season: hikes, walks along the beach, blueberry picking, climbing trees and collecting bird feathers.

Then Momma suggests that they keep the summer outdoor fun alive all year long:

“Every Thursday, lets have Nature School!”

And so Martin joins the Goose-eye Wilderness School, and Sylvia and her friend Sophia create a Nature Home-school.

From wild craft cooking to outdoor games to building projects to tree identification, Nature School will be a year of unfolding learning and fun.

The Color is Always There While Sylvia and Sofia make their own colorful leaves out of paper and paint, Daneesha teaches Martin's Wilderness class how to find color even in a late autumn gray brown New England forest. Martin also gets to know Sam better and learns that she is missing Arizona, the colorful state where she used to live.

Out in the Sticks Sylvia learns that Sofia won't be coming to Nature school this week and resists Momma's plan to go on a hike. But when Momma explains that they are going 'out in the sticks' she is intrigued as to what that could mean. Martin, meanwhile, is frustrated with Griffin's interruptions during Troy's story. But during a 'seeking' exercise, it turns out Griffin has exactly what Martin needs.
Birds and Squirrels Sylvia spends most of this week's Nature School day annoyed with Sofia because her friend won't do the same amount of work. Momma reminds Sylvia that everyone has their own way of helping out, but Sylvia doesn't fully appreciate this until a pair of squirrels demonstrates this lesson in their backyard.
The Touch of Nature This week of Martin's Goose-Eye school is focused on all the senses other than sight - and Martin feels a little nervous about this. What will it be like to walk around the forest without seeing? But Eva, this week's apprentice gently helps him appreciate the sounds, the smells and the touch that the natural world offers.

DRY GABLES

The small town of Dry Gables, South Dakota is unique among the old-west gold rush towns of the Black Hills.

Yes, there is the rustic beauty and the regular pioneer adventures –
but what makes Dry Gables unique are the people.

Meet the Characters of Dry Gables – each has a tale to tell and a lesson to teach about: how to be yourself, how to work with others and how to move forward in the face of challenges.

Wilhelm Bauer: Carpenter and Designer Wilhelm Bauer is the designer and chief builder of Dry Gables, South Dakota. His designs are elegant, efficient and truly perfect. Except for one very significant flaw - which he learns from a new member of the community, the boisterous pigman, Bronislav Bogomolov.

Wilhelm is the hard working architect of Dry Gables, the one who knows the right way of doing things, and hates to makes mistakes.
Jane Meyer: Pony Express Rider Jane Meyer never really fit in her childhood home of Elm Springs. She wanted to see the world, meet new people and try new experiences. So when she finally left at age 16, she began a life of adventure and the stuff of good stories. One of them was the time she won the fastest horse in the Dakota Territory!

Jane is the optimistic pony express rider of Dry Gables, the one who sees opportunity and connection wherever she goes.
EB Herz: Prospector, Businessman, and Mayor When EB Herz was 15 years old, he felt through the ice of Cold Brook and came out with a plum-sized nugget of gold in his hands. This was the inspiration he was looking for and a year later, he set off to 'them thar hills' to make it rich as a prospector. What he found, however, was that his gift was one of leadership and achievement.

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The Violet Crown

The Violet Crown is an epic tale of powerful heroes who defy the ambitious gods of that land. They are stories of discovery, friendship, battle and betrayal.

And they all take place in modern day downtown Austin, Texas.

Part Six: The Message Boards In which Dante finally makes contact with one of his new friends, and in the process learns some history about the Violet Crown - as well as a mysterious introduction to the "Old Ones". And who are the "Old Ones" he wonders - but no one seems to know.

Part Seven: The Back Room In which Dante finally goes to his first day of Superhero Camp. He sees his friends again and is introduced to the final trainer, the intense and powerful Miss Marshall - who seems to know everything about them. He learns that they all were born during a Violet Crown sunset and they all have special powers. But they won't know what those powers are until the end of the week.

Part Eight: The Owl's Nest In which Lizzie takes the 'first years' to the top of the University Tower, where they learn the First of four Protocols "Keep your eyes open". Each of them notice something different, but Dante makes several connections influential Austinites of the 1890's and present day superheroes. He also learns that his grandfather is back in the hospital.