Author covers bad hair, reveals new story
I’m pleased to announce the release of a new anthology, Incarceration, from WolfSinger Publications. It’s a collection of tales that will appeal to horror fans (thanks for your support!) and those interested in variations on imprisonment (likewise!).
My story, The Auditor, was inspired by the Sichuan schools corruption scandal in 2008. Shoddily made buildings, many of them schools, collapsed in a massive earthquake in China’s Sichuan province. Tens of thousands were killed and hundreds of thousands injured. The Auditor, one of two reprints in Incarceration, was first published online by the Absent Willow Review in 2009.
The Auditor was written in anger: anger at human greed and corruption that ultimately destroys life. For once, I was able to punish a willful evildoer and get away with it. Writing as therapy? Perhaps. It’s difficult to keep issues that concern me out of my fiction and that’s probably a good thing. To understand issues well enough to present them in a created world, I read- -a lot. The third book in my contemporary fantasy/mythology series for grown-ups, Beyond Big-G City, deals with climate change, world hunger, the search for one’s roots and the fight of good against evil. Also a raft of romantic conflicts and strained family relationships. I’m able to filter my concerns about our world through that other world, to dream of ways to fix today’s seemingly unfixable problems.
Therapy or problem solving? You tell me.
Hey, there’s a new page at my website! I know, I know, what you really wanted was a pony. The page is home to anthologies that include (you guessed it) my short stories. You can order Incarceration (and 2016 anthology Unintended Consequences) here: https://www.susandmatley.com/anthology/ Writers: go all the way to the bottom of the page and you’ll find a link to WolfSinger Publication’s open call for anthologies.
And now, for those of you who like contests, here’s one inspired by Incarceration. Send the name of your favorite prison found in a work of fiction (it can be an actual prison or a fictional prison) to me via my website https://www.susandmatley.com/contact/ or Facebook and I will enter your name in a drawing for (you guessed it) a copy of Incarceration. Entries will be accepted through midnight, Pacific Time, June 16, 2017. As ever, the winning entry will be selected by cat.
June is a busy month. Here’s what will likely infiltrate this month’s blogs:
Tales from my 40th high school reunion
Impressions from the writing workshop “Landing the Gut Punch: Finding Emotional Resonance in Fantastic Fiction” as taught by Helen Marshall through Clarion West
Interview with author Martin McCaw (aka The Line Editor From Hell) about his new novel, The Low Road. For a sneak peek, go to: http://martinmccaw.com/book.html
And maybe, just maybe, we’ll find a house
Back next week. Best wishes to you for happy graduations, weddings, anniversaries, dance recitals and all that comes with the month of June.
New Dayð
🙂 back atcha!