As you can tell from the tumbleweeds around here I’ve been incommunicado for some time now.  People usually say "life gets in the way", but that’s not the case for me.  It feels like I’ve run out of steam and all my words have just disappeared.  Instead of being frustrated it has been a relief because, in all honesty, I haven’t had much to say.  With no energy and no words I landed square inside the doldrums. 

Resistance reared its ugly head in many forms as well from late night revelry in Ybor City to "just one more episode of this Law & Order: SVU marathon."  Coupled with a heavy and ever increasing workload I’ve had plenty of excuses to slack off which is much easier to justify when there’s no fuel for the fire.  Consumption didn’t work (turned into distraction), change in focus didn’t work (turned into multi-tasking quicksand) and staring at the blank page didn’t work (turned into frustration).  At this point all roads led to the same miserable spot.

Despite this swirling mess of inertia I stuck to the few creative commitments I had.  I hammered out a long overdue post for RetroHack.  My Monday meetings with my new writing partner Mike Elrod continued as scheduled.   I jotted down spurts of words whenever a fleeting moment of inspiration struck.  All of these activities, minor in themselves, slowly built back the momentum I had been sorely missing. 

Now I have writing goals for September that are ambitious yet feel achievable, new stories to develop both offline and online, websites to build into digital homesteads and even creative partnerships which are already fruitful.  I’ve proven to myself that the old adage of "just keep at it" really does work.  It may not have been churning out 1000 words a day, but continuing with any creative pursuit has chipped away at the wall like a prisoner with a spoon. 

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. The first step is always the hardest I just submitted my first short story to a pro...
2. Creativity alone will not sustain you The hopeless Dreamer is a staple of the creative stereotype. ...
3. Goals for October Often times when writing fiction, you’ll find yourself in a...

Writing this blog has introduced me to many incredible people, from indie film makers and reality TV producers to aspiring authors and creative trailblazers.  Each of these relationships started online and, even though they’re geographically diverse, continue to strengthen and grow.

Thersa Matsuura is one of those amazing people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting (in cyberspace).  We first connected in the Absolute Write forums when discussing the upcoming Bram Stoker Awards (recap here) in Burbank, CA.  With a little gentle prodding on my part, I convinced Terrie to join the HWA and we’ve been fast friends ever since. 

For those who don’t know, Terrie is the author of the dark fantasy short story collection A Robe of Feathers: And Other Stories.  It’s a mixture of Japanese mythology and modern day stories that are far from your usual horror fare.  You can read one of her tales "Yaichiro’s Battle" online (I highly recommend it) and she was just reviewed in Fantasy & Science Fiction Magazine (fourth review down) by Charles de Lint.

Not only has Terrie always been super cool and supportive, but she recently sent me an incredible package all the way from Japan… a signed copy of her killer book.  For as long as I’ve been collecting books this is the first author signed book I’ve ever had.  I was giddy as a Catholic schoolgirl.

The first thing I noticed (other than how neatly she wrapped the package) was that a little stowaway snuck onto the package (the pic at the top of this post).  I have no idea who he is, but he appears to be riding a pickle.  Different strokes for different folks.  Now this package wasn’t your standard issue "here’s a signature kid, you bother me", but an explosion of awesome.  Bundled in with the book were a hand painted bookmark (by Terrie) and promotional postcards for A Robe of Feathers also displaying Terrie’s great artwork.  Inside the book was a sweet inscription and another one of Terrie’s great watercolors (I’m keeping that one to myself).

I’ve been devouring this book since the moment it arrived.  Like a delicious box of assorted chocolates these vignettes provide many different flavors of Japanese culture.  The stories alternate in tone and style showing off Terrie’s deft way with words while giving a layered richness to the entire book.  Each tale is steeped in emotion interwoven beautifully with the narrative: In "Sand Walls, Paper Doors" the bittersweet nostalgia for a way of life being destroyed in the name of progress; "Her Favorite" is filled with the pain and heartbreak of old age; Anger—from shame or embarrassment—is at the heart of "The Bean Washer" and "Hate and Where It Breeds".  That’s just scratching the surface of this great book.  The last time I read a short story collection with such textures and emotions was Clive Barker’s Books of Blood. 

Hopefully this post will introduce one more person to her book because writing like this needs to be shared.  I consider myself lucky to call Terrie a friend and can’t thank her enough for this touching gift.

Here are some close up pictures:

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. Aspiring Authors On my own little slice of the Internet, I like...
2. Author Blogs As the world gets more wired there are those using...
3. Primordial Soup: Places & Vices **This post is part of the Primordial Soup series** The...

Earlier this year I participated in the NYC Midnight Short Story Challenge, which pits writers from all over the world against each other to write the best (up to 2,500 words) short story they can.  They supply the topics and you supply the imagination.

The competition is broken up into two rounds.  The 1st round was divided into 30 Heats each with their own genre and subject matter. I was in Heat 30 (Genre: Spy, Subject: A News Anchor). which—as I mentioned in my original post—was an "oh shit" moment for me.  At 12:25am on March 10th I received an email stating the results were in.  I shot over to their site and this is what I found (emphasis mine)…

Out of 22 contestants I made it in the top 5 and not only that, I achieved 3rd place as well.  I missed making it to the next round by a hair, but for my first writing contest—EVER—this was a fantastic result.  In the next couple of weeks they’ll start sending out feedback for all the 1st round entries which is one part of the contest I especially like.

After such a solid placing I’m definitely going to polish this story further and submit it for publication.  The really cool part is that I get to submit to markets I never would have normally contacted (ie. Mystery).  Expanding my horizons will only further strengthen my writing and hopefully round me out better.  It’s been a while since I’ve had such positive results with my fiction, so I’m hoping to capitalize on this opportunity and really crank out some good stuff.

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. NYC Midnight Short Story Challenge NYC Midnight is an organization that runs competitions geared toward...
2. Short Stories and Film The movie adaptation of a novel is an old standby...
3. Flash Fictional Carnival – Aug '09 ***UPDATE 08/20/09*** Due to the great response/feedback I received on...

NYC Midnight is an organization that runs competitions geared toward discovering talented new filmmakers and storytellers.  I first learned of them from the dynamic film making duo of Julie & Jessica [King is a Fink] (follow them on Twitter for awesome indie tips).  They had entered the Screenwriter’s Challenge (here’s their post about it) and had very good things to say about the competitions in general.

What peaked my interest was their Short Story Challenge.  A 2 round competition, the first lasting 8 days to write about a randomly assigned genre and subject.  If you made it to the second round you’d have 24 hours to complete another assignment (same for everyone), then the top four places win cash prizes.

As much as I enjoy writing I had never entered a contest before. With solid feedback from King is a Fink and the allure of an unyielding deadline, I decided to take the plunge.

When the 1st Round assignment rolled into my inbox my first words were "OH SHIT".  Here’s what it was:

• Genre:    Spy
• Subject:  A news anchor

Crap on toast.  I’ve NEVER read a single spy book (even though I’ve seen TONS of films) and the only thing that came to mind with the subject was Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.  I was totally screwed.  On top of that Life™ did its I’m going to eat up all the free time you thought you had routine, so stop me if you’ve heard this one before….

4 hours before the deadline I’m hunched over my computer furiously banging away at the keyboard (with my elbows of course) hoping to spin gold out of turds.  Surprisingly the story didn’t totally suck. Unsurprisingly I submitted it with 5 minutes to spare before the deadline. 

Whether or not it gets me to the 2nd Round my little tale deserves a couple more drafts and eventually will be sent out to markets.  I expect to get a confirmation email on my submission within the next day or two and after that, who knows when they’ll pick the winners of the first round.  So until then all fingers and toes are crossed (damn near braided).

ANYONE ELSE ENTER THIS CONTEST OR HAVE WRITING CONTEST STORIES TO SHARE?

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. NYC Midnight Short Story Challenge Results Earlier this year I participated in the NYC Midnight Short...
2. Flash Fictional Carnival – Aug '09 ***UPDATE 08/20/09*** Due to the great response/feedback I received on...
3. Where did all my time go? In an attempt to keep focused on my writing goals,...

If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you’ll know I’m a big fan of Mark McGuinness and Lateral Action.  Honestly, how could you not love an entire site dedicated to creativity and its effective uses?  None of this crunchy hippie kumbaya crap, Lateral Action is all about leveraging your inner creative talents to succeed in business, productivity and achieving your goals.

Chock full of solid articles, you’ll find fantastic case studies (How to Succeed in Hollywood; The Kurt Cobain Guide to Startup Success), engaging interviews/talks (Is Everyone Creative?;  An Interview with Hugh MacLeod, Cartoonist) and incredibly useful resources (The Top 10 Social Networks for Creative People; The Seven Samurai Guide to Team Building).

Mark just recently started a new series called Break Through Your Creative Blocks where he solicits from his readers their creative conundrums and devotes an entire blog post to the answer.  With his first entry Creative Block #1 – “I’m Not Creative” he’s off to a roaring start.  Breaking down the common stereotypes as to why people are considered creative, Mark does away with the crap and gets into the nitty gritty of what one needs to CREATE.  Diving into mindset shifts, fundamental processes, and the unglamorous reality of all, he lays bare the fact that anyone can be creative.

I’m looking forward to future entries in this series, especially if they all contain the boatload of resource links he provided in the first article.  Not just content with sharing solid advice from his years as a creative coach, Mark put together a thorough collection of resources from leading creative entrepreneurs.

What sites do you go to for creative inspiration or knowledge expansion?

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. Trying To Find My Path I’ve been constantly struggling between the Techie and the Creative...
2. How To Feature Your Best Blog Content If you’ve been writing your blog for any length of...
3. Creativity alone will not sustain you The hopeless Dreamer is a staple of the creative stereotype. ...

NaNoWriMo is a siege against the stronghold known as “Novel Writing”.  With any long protracted war it’s a matter of perseverance and tenacity.  Each encounter is a battle of inches (or word count in this case), slowly getting you closer to your end goal, a completed 50,000 word manuscript.  The proper supplies are essential in order to endure the grueling task ahead.  To prepare myself, here are some of the tomes I look to for inspiration when things are bleak.

For Story

When it comes to breaking down story elements, plot “moments” and the three act structure, this book does it incredibly well.  Written in a conversational tone with plenty of asides, I found it to be the easiest story structure book I’ve ever read.  Yes it focuses on screenplays, but every single tip, hint and suggestion applies just as well to short stories and novels. 

The terms used are far from academic with Monster in the House, Dude with a Problem and Buddy Love as examples of movie genre definitions.  At first you may turn your head wondering why the standards wouldn’t apply (Western, Comedy, etc), but as Snyder reveals the method behind his madness, they make perfect sense and force you to reanalyze some of your favorite flicks.

There are two sections of this book that make the entire purchase worth every cent, The Board and The Blake Snyder Beat Sheet.  The Beat Sheet is an outline based on the structure elements discussed in the book.  In essence, it’s an emotional road map for any good story, highlighting the “beats” that need to be hit in order to keep the story cohesive, engaging and flowing.  The first time I read the beat sheet I immediately saw the glaring holes in a novel idea I was working on, finally explaining why it had stalled halfway thru.  

The Board is a visual representation of the three act structure tied into the aforementioned Beat Sheet sequence.  For the visually inclined its a fantastic way to outline the scenes in your tale while allowing you to manipulate the story flow from another perspective.  If you’re struggling with story structure this book is a lifesaver.

For Character

Political and religious views aside, Orson Scott Card is a fantastic creator of characters.  This book was written for the “Elements of Fiction Writing” series by Writer’s Digest Books.  One of the better books in the series (they’re NOT all winners), it is a step by step manual on every aspect of character creation and the different viewpoints with which to tell their tales. 

The character portion of the book is an in-depth study into the thorough development of characters.  From internal motivations to different methods of revealing them to the reader, he covers every manner in which they can be crafted.  He also goes into how they best can be used depending on the type of story told; 1 dimensional characters to guide us through a setting which is a character in itself (i.e. Lord of the Rings), how a villain should be the “hero” of his own story leading to a richer portrayal and how understanding the character hierarchy will let you know who is needed to move the story forward.  The viewpoint section weighs the pros and cons of the various approaches, helping you understand what limitations are inherent to each along with how to leverage them correctly.

Orson Scott Card runs a boot camp, personally taught by him, that has helped produce some rock solid authors, such as Mary Robinette Kowal.  I scoured the ‘Net for feedback on this boot camp from previous attendees and from what I could gather, the core teachings are the same as the material covered in this book.  Which means if you don’t have the scratch to make it out to his neck of the woods, this little book will give you much of that same wisdom for under 15 dollars.

For Everything Else

This is one of my favorite writing books.  A compilation of Block’s writing column for Writer’s Digest, he’s woven them nicely into a solid little book.  I find myself constantly re-reading it, pulling yet another nugget of wisdom from its pages with each time. 

It’s a soup to nuts “manual” for those wanting to become fiction writers.  All topics are covered; short stories vs. novels, collaborations, pen names, a writer’s schedule and much, much more.  It’s all over the place, going into subjects you might have never even thought of when considering writing as a career.  Just enough substance is given to each segment, smoothly moving onto the next piece while you’re still chewing on the last one.

His style is very easy to read without coming across as dry or lecturing.  What I especially like is that his main type of fiction writing is mystery, something I’ve never even gone near, which gives a different perspective on advice you might have seen in other books.

This book is always within arm’s reach for me.  There’s just something about it that gives me inspiration whenever I crack it open. 

When the writing gets tough what books do you reach for?  Are their other ways you prefer to stay motivated? 

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. Outline versus Organic When composing a narrative there are several methods available.  Two...
2. Goals for October Often times when writing fiction, you’ll find yourself in a...
3. What to write about when you don’t want to write My fire hasn’t been flickering very steadily these days.  I’ve...

With my fiction at a complete standstill there’s isn’t much to share these days.  The only thing I find myself checking on a regular basis are my submissions statistics.  Thanks to the amazing Duotrope, I have an online submission tracker that keeps everything nice and tidy.  It also helps other aspiring writers get a better idea of what to expect from publishers through the aggregated statistics Duotrope provides for free.

Here’s a peak at my remaining subbed stories.

The first column are my story titles followed by the market they were submitted to (hyperlink leading to their respective pages).  The third column lets me know when the story was submitted.  The response column can be changed depending on the status.  Since all of mine are currently subbed, they show pending.  Some of my other entries show Rejection which is then further qualified by Form.  Sometimes you get lucky with a Personalized one, but it’s been all Form for me.

The last three columns are the killers.  How many days out your story has been, the average response time from the market and then the maximum response time based on the aggregated statistics from all author submissions.  For a free tool, this is quite snazzy and I highly recommend it.

So far I’m not doing too shabby, but it’s always a nail biting affair when waiting for responses.  Hopefully in the near future this will be filled with more than just two pieces.

What tools are you using to track your subs (Excel, Sonar, etc)?  Anyone else using Duotrope who knows a cool trick or two?

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. Where did all my time go? In an attempt to keep focused on my writing goals,...
2. Writing Goals Saying you’re a writer is not the same as being...
3. Badge of Honor I got a response from Clarkesworld Magazine last night regarding...

On my own little slice of the Internet, I like to consider myself an aspiring author.  I’m already a writer (I’m doing it as we speak), but since nothing of mine has been published, I cannot truthfully wear the title of author.  Wearing the badge of an "aspiring author" is actually a lot cooler than people might think.  First of all, there are a metric assload of "aspiring authors" out on the web.  All shapes, colors and creeds chasing the brass ring known as publication, banded together in online enclaves, providing support, feedback and commiseration.

Rubbing elbows with the unwashed masses, you begin to gravitate toward like minded folk.  They might be the fan you never knew you had, a nighttime writing partner helping you burn the midnight oil or someone spouting out ideas and thoughts at the same wavelength as you.  I want to take this opportunity to share some of my online tribe, fellow writers fighting the good fight, who I make a habit of visiting their Internet fiefdom’s on a regular basis.

Brad R. Torgersen

Brad is a science fiction & fantasy writer.  He’s had multiple honorable mentions and was a finalist in Writers of the Future, so it’s only a matter of time before I see a hardcover with his name on it.  I first came across him in the comments section of Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s "Freelancer’s Survival Guide" (an essential read for anyone wanting to write for a living) and thoroughly enjoyed his Writer’s Bathtub Analogy (even writing a post about it).  Goes to show, if you write intelligent, sincere comments on blogs, people will take notice.

I like his straight forward writing style and articulate discussions when debating topics, especially ones where emotions tend to obscure any attempt at logic.  He maintains his level headedness and argues the point without devolving into the monkey poo flinging a lot of these imbroglios epitomize.  Also, dude loves The Maxx and that’s always an A+ in my book.  He’s currently doing the third phase of his Warrant Officer school, so wish him luck.

Jarrett Rush

Jarrett’s blog, Jarrett Writes, is about a newly married man in his 30′s finally making the push into fiction writing.  Who can’t empathize with that situation?  We’ve all wanted to pursue that dream we’ve had since being a kid.  Here’s Jarrett, not only trying to make good on that childhood dream, but sharing his trials and tribulations along the way.  His writing frustrations, his struggle with productivity and examples of his work in progress are laid bare on the Internet, inviting you to follow along on his journey. 

He was one of the very first people to comment on my blog (still not sure how he found me) and for some reason keeps coming back.  His writing reminds me a lot of Wil Wheaton, who’s easy going style and naked honesty just pull you into the stories.  Jarrett recently joined a writer’s group and is documenting the experience.  I’ve never been to one conducted in real life, so I’m living vicariously through his posts.

Terry Atkison

Terry is a nerd just like me, scribbling away late into the night because "not writing" would drive him mad.  I first met him in a flash fiction writing group my friend Thersa Matsuura invited me to.  ***Quick aside: Go buy Thersa’s short story collection "A Robe of Feathers" RIGHT NOW! It’s dark, mythical realism steeped in Japanese folklore, what more could you want? Don’t believe me, then have a little taste for yourself.***

I really dug his flash fiction tale which put an interesting spin on a common Sci-Fi trope.  His WordPress plugin recommendation (see, I told you he was nerdy) has already prevented over 850 SPAM comment attempts on my blog, stemming the crushing wave of bloodsuckers.  On top of all that, he scored a solid interview with the always awesome Thersa Matsuura.  Terry’s diving headfirst into a new novel project titled "Higher Ceilings", so send him good writer vibes to keep the dreaded "Internal Editor" away.

Where can I find rocking people like these?

If you’re having a hard time finding writers on your frequency, then I highly recommend checking out the Absolute Write Water Cooler.   This forum is chock full of cool, aspiring writers and approachable, established authors.  You might even find an agent or two lurking around.  I tend to frequent the Horror and Blogging sections, but you’ll find a smorgasbord of topics to whet your appetite.  A majority of the folks populating this board are nice, respectful people who are very welcoming of newbies and first-timers.   Treat them right and you might find yourself forging lasting relationships.

Any cool cats you want to give a shout out to?  Sites you like where writers talk shop?  Drop them in the comments for the rest of the class.

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. Flash Fictional Carnival – Aug '09 ***UPDATE 08/20/09*** Due to the great response/feedback I received on...
2. Horror Writers Association Writing is, by its nature, a solitary endeavor.  There’s no...
3. Trying to keep the momentum Participating in the Flash Fiction Carnival finally got my mental...

Writing is my favorite method of creation, weaving entire realities that exist solely in your mind until pen is put to paper and the words are allowed to escape.  The physical sensation of being in the midst of a furious writing session is felt from head to toe, supercharging your fingers as they hammer away at the keys.  I would equate it to the feeling you get when someone you like first returns those sentiments, a kind of heart skipping, skin tingling wave radiating from your very center.  As much as I love writing—its process, completion and subsequent consumption—there is one major drawback, its extremely solitary nature.  Being alone with one’s thoughts is a occupational necessity and quite calming from time to time, but for me personally, it is the least appealing aspect.  I (by my very nature) am a social creature, not just in the normal human tribe sense, but in a way where I actually thrive when immersed in it.  It’s my love of social interaction that makes many people question how I can be in the Information Technology field.  Their assumptions always veer toward the awkward, introverted stereotype which contradicts my comfortable, extroverted manner.  As much as I relish the joy of creation via written word, my natural tendencies to seek out human contact can cause friction with the process. 

I’ve been thinking a lot about this inner dichotomy of mine, trying to analyze my internal workings in the hopes I can find a suitable compromise.  Using writing as the creative foundation, I investigated other possibilities.  Some involved writing, but in an office setting where the ebb and flow of corporate America would satisfy my needs.  Others focused more heavily on the human aspect, but dealt with shilling wares or selling goods, neither a very appealing prospect.  Finally, I began comparing my other passions which were equal to writing.  That’s when I had a minor epiphany (and major *facepalm* moment).  Film is a passion that I consume as fervently as literature, if not more so in recent years.  I looked back at my experiences with Script Frenzy or the short lived film project my brother and I were going to undertake.  In both cases I truly enjoyed script writing, finding the format new and invigorating, yet the brainstorming with others, hashing out different aspects of the concept, and debating who would handle each filming duty, electrified me as well.

As luck would have it Lateral Action (one of my favorite blogs) recently published an article about film making.  Titled “How to Succeed in Hollywood”, it was guest authored by a husband and wife team.  Joke and Biagio (with an equally named blog) have produced several popular shows such as Scream Queens and Beauty & the Geek through their Joke Productions company.  Their article dispelled the “creativity = success” myth of Hollywood fame, instead detailing how creativity coupled with the ability to execute those ideas is what will lead you to true success.  My appetite was whetted by this post so I promptly dove into their website, which I found down to earth and brutally honest.  They weren’t bitching about running out of Evian at remote tropical locations or only flying business class when doing press junkets in Europe, but revealing war stories from deep in the trenches, steeped with battle tested tips.  From their 4 year labor of love documentary “Dying to do Letterman” to the Do’s & Don’ts of Working with Celebrities, I found all their articles deeply informative and missing the fluff you usually find with Hollywood blogs.  If you took what they were sharing you could easily build a step-by-step guide to producing your own project, navigating the Hollywood maze and building a successful career.  I was stoked after devouring this wealth of knowledge.  Finally, I had a real world picture of what production truly entailed, with all its ups and downs. 

Wearing creative blinders is something I always want to avoid and without variety my passions fizzle out quickly.  I will continue writing short stories (eventually graduating to novels), but having another avenue in which to funnel my creativity is exciting.  The satisfaction of writing a solid script then the pleasure of collaborating with others to make it come to fruition, is the kind of balance I could use.  Hollywood isn’t my goal, just the joy of the process.  I don’t want to stop there either, possibly diving into other outlets like graphic novels.  My plan is to use the tools I already have, pick up a couple more (through books, blogs or people) and aim for a multi-faceted approach (à la Neil Gaiman).  The one trick pony method has been leading me into a rut, but I feel that diversifying will help me continue my momentum.

I’d love to hear what methods you use to keep from going creatively stagnant? 

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. Short Stories and Film The movie adaptation of a novel is an old standby...
2. Creativity alone will not sustain you The hopeless Dreamer is a staple of the creative stereotype. ...
3. Outline versus Organic When composing a narrative there are several methods available.  Two...

In an attempt to keep focused on my writing goals, I’ve started tracking the time spent on different types or phases of my writing, from blog posts to new pieces to re-writes.  Looking back at the collected data (roughly a month) I can honestly say I suck at keeping on task.  In spite of this, I’m still gaining useful information. 

Take my most recent piece “Light” as an example.  It took me 2 hours and 35 minutes to hammer out the initial draft (roughly 1,100 words).  Afterward, I sank an additional 5 hours and 18 minutes into re-writes, expanding it to 1,600 words.  That’s a total of 7 hours and 53 minutes invested into this story before I felt it was ready to send out. I wish I had tracked my last two pieces to use as a comparison, but this is a good baseline.  Being the first metric I’ve taken, hopefully it’ll only improve from here.

With a healthy word count injection and solid feedback from the Beta Readers I decided to submit “Light”.  Since it fell outside what I usually write (genre-wise), I had to do some digging in Duotrope.  My search criteria was Mainstream/Literary genre, pro-rate payments (at least .05 cents/word) and the acceptance of simultaneous subs.  Having never submitted something like this before, I couldn’t let it sit somewhere for 90+ days before kicking it to the next spot.  I needed as big a response as possible to know whether or not this is a genre I should continue pursuing.  Here are the markets I ended up submitting to:

• Electric Literature
• Pedestal Magazine
• Crazyhorse
• West Branch
• Boston Review

The average response time for the five publications range from 20 to 150 days, so at the very least I should be receiving rejection letters pretty soon

Speaking of which, OSC’s Intergalactic Medicine Show sent me a lovely form rejection for “Moonlit Faith”.  That’ll be the second rejection for this piece.  I reviewed it again and taking into account feedback from some of my author pals, have decided to trunk the story.  The effort necessary to fix it (which would be a complete rip/replace) is more than I want to spend on an older piece.  Pressing forward in creating new material is more beneficial to me at this stage.  I know some elements of it will appear elsewhere, but as it stands now it isn’t good enough for publication. 

“Light” is a stronger piece, dealing more with emotional elements and real situations, which was a welcome change of pace.  Hopefully this new direction will yield publishable results.

Related posts: (Auto Generated)

1. Flash Fictional Carnival – Aug '09 ***UPDATE 08/20/09*** Due to the great response/feedback I received on...
2. Trying to keep the momentum Participating in the Flash Fiction Carnival finally got my mental...
3. Badge of Honor I got a response from Clarkesworld Magazine last night regarding...