MUSINGS
I'm judging this:
For the week of February 12 through February 18, Flash Fiction Chronicles is having its fourth String-of-10 Contest—String-of-10 FOUR—for the best 250-word story written from a randomly selected string of ten words.
Details on the prompts and prizes and how to enter here.
Good luck!
I have a new story in Stripped: A Collection of Anonymous Flash, edited by Nicole Monaghan, which is available in paperback from Amazon and Lulu. Here's the product description:
Stripped is a collection with a twist. Yes, the fiction contained herein includes works from some of the best-known names in flash fiction as well as the work of emerging writers, but the bylines have been removed so you can't tell who wrote what. What's more, the stories hinge largely on gender roles -- but with the authors' identites stripped from their stories, editor Nicole Monaghan has created a bit of a guessing game. Did a woman, for example, write that piece about ambivalence toward motherhood? Or was it a man? More to the point, does it really matter? Or is there something bigger going on when men and women stretch their minds and imagine what it might be like to be the other?
Yes, that's right -- I have a story in this wonderful collection, but I can't tell you what that story is. What I can tell you is this is one of my recent favorite flash pieces. I wrote it last summer on a whim, taking a break from a novel, and wasn't sure where to send it. Then Nicole emailed asking me if I would like to contribute, which was ironic timing because the story itself was perfect for what she was looking for. So I'm very pleased to be included in here with my story, which will be matched up to my name (as well as the rest of the authors in this collection) next year at Nicole's website.
I must say, it's a great concept, because really, does the author's gender (or racial background, or religious views, etc) influence the reader?
Of course it does, even if they don't want to admit it.
There have been books in the past that I read where I immediately assumed the gender of the narrator based on the author's gender. The most recent example is Death Wishing by Laura Ellen Scott. I knew the basic idea of the novel before I started reading it, but not about the main character. So at first I thought the narrator -- the novel is written in the first person, you see -- was a woman. I was wrong.
Ultimately, does it matter what the author's gender or racial background or religious views or whatever are? Or is the story the only thing that matters?
Besides bringing readers great entertainment, hopefully this anthology will spark a lively conversation among writers and readers about the important (or lack thereof) of gender in storytelling.
There will be a launch party for Stripped on Saturday, February 4th, at Fergie’s Pub in Philadelphia. It starts at 2 pm. If you're in the area, try to stop by. I'll be there, as well as will several other contributors. We'll be reading randomly from the anthology. It will be fun!
And while I'm there, I plan to get Nicole and as many contributors as possible to sign a copy of the anthology that I plan to give away ... now.
To win a copy of Stripped signed by the editor and several of the contributors, let me know what novel or story you've read with a narrator whose gender was opposite of the author (like Death Wishing which I mentioned above, or Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King). The deadline for this giveaway contest is this Friday at midnight, EST. A name will be picked randomly as the winner the next day. Get to it!
It's that time of year again:
The 5th Annual Micro Award is now open for submissions through Dec 31, 2011. The Micro Award is presented annually for flash fiction not exceeding 1000 words. Stories of all genres published originally in 2011 are eligible. Editors may submit two stories; writers may submit one. The winner of the $500 prize and all other finalists will be announced on Feb 29, 2012. Please see the official rules for all requirements and guidelines before submitting. Good luck!
Get the word out, submit your micro stories, because, hey, how often is there a contest like this with no entry fee?
Last year the Gotham Writers' Workshop held a Hint Fiction Contest in conjunction with the anthology's release. This year they're having a Microstyle Contest in conjunction with the release of Christopher Johnson's new book (which I reviewed here). Here are the details:
Inspired by the July publication of Microstyle: The Art of Writing Little, Gotham is pleased to present a Microstyle Writing Contest. We are honored to welcome the book's author, Chris Johnson, as the finalist judge.
THE SET-UP This is the age of the Incredible Shrinking Message. Tweets, status updates, text messages, email subject lines, blog post titles, and other miniature messages are tools we all need to grab a bit of people's precious attention. Everyone is a copywriter now.
Expressive economy is the key to this new world of miniature messages. And there's no better way to maximize the expressive potential of a short message than to get two interpretations for the price of one. Wits, lyricists, and sloganeers have always been keen to seize upon a felicitous ambiguity:
If I said you had a beautiful body would you hold it against me? -Groucho Marx (later used by songwriter David Bellamy)
You can lead a horticulture, but you can't make her think. -Dorothy Parker Labour isn't working. - Saatchi and Saatchi for the Conservative Party in Britain
THE CHALLENGE Your job is to use double meaning to create your own memorable quip, using twenty words at the most. It might, like the quote from Dorothy Parker, highlight an accidental and unexpected second interpretation of a word or phrase, or it might, taken as a whole, express two distinct and equally apt meanings, like the quotes from Groucho Marx and Saatchi and Saatchi. (For writing tips, read Johnson's "Use Ambiguity for Good, Not Evil.")
THE PRIZE The author of the winning entry will receive bragging rights and:
- 10-week Gotham Writing Workshop
- $50 Barnes & Noble Gift Card
- One-year Subscription to The Writer (12 issues)
- Microstyle: The Art of Writing Little
In addition, the winner and four finalists will each receive a copy of Microstyle: The Art of Writing Little.
Enter here.
So that's what was in the mail today, ten copies of The Serial Killer's Wife (which is now available) and the proof copy of The Calling (which is not yet available).
It's cool to have the actual physical book, I guess, though it doesn't really mean much. After all, the reason self-published writers never made much money in the past is because there is no distribution. Bookstores don't normally carry self-published books. And self-published books printed by CreateSpace? Don't even think about it. So it's very unlikely any of these self-published books will ever appear in bookstores. The only way they can be sold is a) via Amazon or b) via me hand-selling them at some conference or convention, which can become a very big pain in the ass and could, most likely, not even be worth my time.
So why even bother?
Well, because readers prefer the choice between electronic and print, that's why. And because it's not really a big deal when it's all said and done -- the print on demand aspect makes it so I don't have to rent out a warehouse or at least clear out a space in my house for extra books. If someone wants to buy the book, they can order the book and CreateSpace prints a copy and ships it. Simple as that.
I am going to try something, though, which may be successful but will most likely fail, which is to offer the option to order a copy directly through me so I can personally inscribe and sign the book. The cost would be retail (for TSKW that's $13.95) plus an extra dollar for shipping in the US, for anywhere outside the US ... email me.
So if you live in the US and are interested in a inscribed signed copy of The Serial Killer's Wife, you can PayPal me at robert (at) robertswartwood (dot) com with $14.95 and I'll ship one out. If you're outside the US, email me first to see how much more shipping will be (probably only an extra buck or two).
Or, if you're in the US, you could always sign up for five free copies that I'm giving away at Goodreads.
