Two for One

Sometimes it happens quickly.

It has been 11 months thus far for one of my stories. Eleven months at a magazine patiently waiting for an answer: will you publish this story or not? I'm told that this is a good sign. An editor at a literary magazine said this. She said, "It means they are interested. These things take time." So I am encouraged. Still, a baby could have been born in less time.

Compare this pace to a different magazine.

Two weeks, said the tweet. We will respond with detailed criticism and a publication decision in two weeks. So I set to work chopping and hacking two of my stories down to the 5000 word limit before sending them off. And to their word, in two weeks I had pages of feedback -- intelligent observations. I was impressed. Plus they wanted to publish my stuff. Both stories. Talk about a contrast.

I won't say who the first magazine is, but the latter is Embers Igniting. I'd check them out if the prospect of a speedy reply appeals to you. Mind you, that tweet was a Christmas special, a limited time offer, and who knows if that offer will be back next year. It's a Christian litmag out of Albuquerque, New Mexico. I'm looking forward to their 2015 issue due out soon. It comes in both hard copy and web version, so two for one.

Lightning Strikes

This blog is supposed to be a chronicle of my writing progress, sort of, so I guess that means I should post some of the successes I've had. I wrote this story called "I Did it for You" way back when our first daughter (Victoria) was still in the womb and I had some free time. She's 15 now. I wrote it at the University of Oregon when my wife was doing her masters one summer and I had time to wander around the campus. We were there for a week and I cranked this thing out in their library. I sent it out to two magazines and got rejected and sort of lost faith in the thing and left it in a drawer. Fast forward to 2012.

My wife and I were celebrating our 22nd anniversary at Harrison Hot Springs, and on our way home, while passing through Mission, BC, we went to my favourite type of place, a used book store (Murdock Books, now defunct). I spotted this immaculate first edition of Morley Callaghan's That Summer in Paris. I wasn't paying $100 for this book, so I searched a copy online. That's how I stumbled across Exile Editions, the company printing a current version of the classic book. But what I noticed in all this is that Exile was holding a short fiction contest. Since the contest deadline was three days away, I hastily mailed my long-neglected story and within a month received notice that I'd made the contest long list. A week later I'd made the short list. This contest is special, because if you make the short list then you automatically qualify to be published in their anthology, so I was most pleased. As an added bonus, I also got to appear in their literary magazine ELQ - The Literary Quarterly. And I got a couple of cheques to boot. I also still had a shot at the $3000 first prize (which I didn't win) but I already felt like a winner just to have my story published.

They threw a gala party in Toronto for the event too, which I wanted to attend, but I just couldn't justify the expense. If I had gone I could have met many of the other authors, the publisher and the sponsor of the prize: Gloria Vanderbilt. But I stayed home and told myself the airfare was too expensive. I could have even participated in a bunch of readings and a book launch and schmoozed with the publishing world. On the plus side, if you like, I still have that airfare in my bank account.

Now I sit at home with four finished stories out at magazines, and I'm hoping that lighting will strike again.

The Beginning

I have waited a long time to start this, typical for me, but now, without planning to, just after midnight, I find myself plucking up the nerve to create a progress report of my writing life. I think I would like to put down some book reviews too (and literary magazine reviews). I've got some junk scribblings in my night stand that are crying for an outlet too.

In case the blog title is a mystery to you, it comes from Ecclesiastes 12: 12. "Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body." I took all of 20 seconds to think of this title, so don't hold me to it. If I have to have everything perfect in this blog I will give up, so here's to being spontaneous. Anyway, I've liked that quote since I read it back in high school. I like how it puts books into perspective. I've had this fantasy about being an author and publishing a book, but if it ever happens I like remembering that my contribution will just be one of however many millions or billions already out there. I need to remind myself of this to somehow temper the fantasy world of my mind.

There's a couple of writers whose blogs I enjoy following (Kris Bertin and Daniel Perry) and I figure it's time I joined in. These guys post their publication successes and I'd like to do the same. I am a turtle when it comes to creating stories and even slower at getting them published, but something has to change eventually and I'm ever hopeful. 

No post is complete without a photo, even if it is a year old almost to the day. That's me and my wife Teena. So now you know.