Digging In This December

I'll be brief – good thing I write flash fiction! -  because I'm still struggling with my novel/novella draft, and I am determined to be done by the end of the year. 

 

This holiday post is short on words, but it is long on gratitude. As 2023 draws to a close, I am grateful for so much in my life, including all of you. Thank you for reading my dark, weird little stories. Thank you for stopping by this blog. Thank you for all the comments. Your encouragement and support, humor and information are thoroughly appreciated. 

 

*** All of us here at TSR wish you 

a wonderful holiday season and a new year 

that exceeds your dreams and expectations!!! *** 

The More Creeped Out You Are

I am socially awkward at the best of times, but I usually manage to come up with a coherent and interesting (hopefully!) answer to the general question about what I write - something along the lines of short fiction, dark fiction, horror. Now, if you ask me specifically what my novel is about, you get this -

"Um...."

Doesn't that just sound deliciously creepy and like something you're dying to read? NOT! Napping tortoises are more interesting than that. (And definitely cuter.)  

Literary agent Janet Reid wrote an excellent post - What's Your Book About? - about her experience at a conference speaking with authors and what happened when she asked them about their work. I absolutely recommend heading over and reading the whole post, but here's the biggest takeaway for me:

"You simply MUST be prepared to tell people, in a compelling way, what your book is about. . . . First thing to remember is start NOW. No matter where you are in the publishing cycle: querying, sold, pubbed, you need to be able to say what your book is about."

I'm working on it!

*****

And speaking of Ms. Reid, I entered her Writing Without Rules Flash Fiction Contest last month, and although my story didn't win, her comments on it (below, in blue) made my entire month.  

Gregory, old and gnarled, slumps on his porch. His lawn, overgrown with weeds and wild things, chokes the once neat path. At the gate, nettles cling, watch deserted streets. He calls out, can only hope for more survivors.

A man and woman appear, dirty, laden with packs.

"Please help! I fell."

They hesitate, the rules different now.

Gregory is desperate. "I have food, water. It's yours."

They nod, start toward him.

He watches the lawn shiver, the monsters within slither out to feed. He listens to the screams.

Gregory is spared. Again. He stands, stretches.

The rules are different now.

Honestly this creeped me out so much I could barely read it the second time.
Thank all deities foreign and domestic that I live in Brooklyn, a place with few lawns.
Of course, the more creeped out you are, the better the writing.

*****

Are you prepared to talk about your novel? Or are you like me, still working on it? Do overgrown lawns creep you out? If you have a lawn, do you know what's lurking in it? 

The Write Way to Start 2016

I'm excited to share some recent publications and writing news with you all!

First up, most of my regular readers know I'm a huge fan of Nailpolish Stories (stories are 25 words, titles are nail polish colors.) My story, Coming Up Roses, originally published in the July 2015 issue, made it into The Best of 2015 issue. I loved taking a positive phrase and giving it a dark spin. (I know, I know, big surprise.) And, in the January 2016 issue are two more stories, Fade to Black and Shifting Power. 

Next, as a huge fan of literary agent Janet Reid's blog and her flash fiction contests, I was thrilled to see my most recent entry make Finalist. Here's what she had to say about it:

This is incredibly creepy given the clues about the character's age/s.  So much is left to the reader's imagination, but there's exactly the right amount of information here so we can fill it in with all the horror it deserves.  This is very elegant writing.

Whoo hoo!

Click here if you'd like to read all the Finalists and the Winner.

Click here if you'd like to read all the entries. 

How's your writing going so far this year? Any exciting news - writing or otherwise - you'd like to share?

A Flash Fiction Finalist!

It's no secret around here that I'm a big fan of literary agent Janet Reid's blog, and that I am a total sucker for her flash fiction contests. I enter more often than not, and even though my entry doesn't always garner recognition or finalist standing, I love the challenge, love stretching that creative muscle.

So, I was excited to see that my entry - "The creature leaves Janella gifts...." - was a finalist for last week's contest! Not only that, but all the finalists' entries received comments from Ms. Reid herself, saying why she enjoyed that piece.  

If you'd like to read my story and all the finalists, including the winner, click here.

If you'd like to see the contest details and read all the entries, click here.