Unlike 2012 and 2013, which were years of unprecedented activity on all writing-and-editing-related fronts, 2014 has been something of a wash (although not without cause: from May through early December, it I had nothing but medical appointment after medical appointment and, ultimately, two long-overdue surgical procedures ( Read more... )

Are there things that will always make you back away when reading a story?
-miss_morland

Are there things that are guaranteed to make you keep reading a story?
-jb_slasher

On the first count, character-torture for no reason other than to be gratuitously cruel to both characters and readers turns me right off. I won't stand for it, especially not when those characters ( Read more... )

The Needles & Bones anthology from Drollerie Press is on sale for $1.99 this month. The usual price is $8.99, so that's quite a bargain! This anthology contains what is probably my best (and definitely longest) short story to date, "Answer Me." And other treasures besides.

Also, two of my poems have gone live over at Houston Literary Review.

You can read "Lady of the Lake" here.

"Lady of the Lake" will be appearing in the upcoming issue of Expanded Horizons. ultharkitty, I have you to thank for the market tip! We're about to hit the road for Pennsylvania. More later.

I've been meaning to write this particular story for about two months now, and it has more momentum than the one I started writing after the one I wrote on the way home from Edinburgh. At the moment, I have about four or five fiction submissions out. This is highly unusual. In any case, this new story, when it's done, will be in the range of 6, ( Read more... )

( Read more... )

writeonq on Needles & Bones

I have mixed feelings about today. For instance, these things are good:

• Successfully interpreted some difficult Latin abbreviations in this morning's transcription.


• Turned in about 2500 words' worth of Chapter 1 draft to supervisors.


• Found a pair of Dolce & Gabbana jeans for 70% off.

However, several things about today completely suck, such as:

• ( Read more... )