The Things We Do For Love

Lately, I've turned my attention to writing longer stories. I'm submitting to new markets - some with themes, some with deadlines, all horror-related. I enjoy hanging out in my creepy little worlds longer than I'm usually able to when writing flash fiction.

The flip side? I'm hanging out in my creepy little worlds longer than usual.

The air conditioning runs, but it's ghostly breath that prickles my skin. Beneath the rustling of palm fronds, characters whisper, frantic, fearful for their lives. During summer storms, lightning shoots across the sky, pinning hulking and misshapen shadows against the blinds.

But when I came across this quote from James M. Cain, I realized it's all for a good cause:

"IF YOUR WRITING 

DOESN'T KEEP YOU UP AT NIGHT, 

IT WON'T KEEP ANYONE ELSE UP EITHER." 

Ah, I suffer so my readers will, too!

You're welcome.

*****

What was the last creepy thing you wrote or read or watched that stayed with you? What was it about that particular thing that made it stick with you?

Survival of the Fearful

I am no stranger to rejection. (I'm talking writing here, not personal. That's a conversation for another day.) Some of my work received negative reviews, although - thankfully! - not often. But I'm about to do something I've never done before. I'm standing on the bank of a murky swamp that may or may not be full of lurking alligators. I don't know. I can't see. It scares me. Kind of like...publishing my very first ever collection of stories. An ebook collection. On my own. (Okay, my husband and the tortoises are helping, but you know what I mean.) Gulp. 

The ebook cover is cooking. I've chosen most of the stories. I'm working on some new ones, too, so there'll be a few surprises as well. The rest of the pieces are slowly falling into place. Hopefully, in the next month or two, my flash fiction collection will set sail across that swamp. Little. Alone. Nervous. 

How do I keep it afloat in churning waters? How do I keep it from being snapped at, devoured by, swallowed up and disappeared by bigger creatures? How do I keep it safe?

Or can I? Do I just have to let it go, knowing I did the best I could? That I armed it, empowered it, with whatever I had to give? If I shade my eyes and peer across the water, will I see it land safely? Survive? Thrive? 

Some of you have already done this or something similar with your work, and I applaud your bravery! If you have any to spare, could you send some my way? I'm open to advice, too. And alligator repellent.

What do you look for in an ebook? If you weren't looking for a collection of flash fiction at that moment, what would make you stop and notice one? The cover? The book description? The price? Pure whimsy?