52 Stitches

When I was fortunate enough to have my first story accepted to Northern Haunts, I began Googling to see what other writers and stories had been accepted. It didn't take me long to learn there was a community of aspiring writers out there just like myself, writing stories and plugging away.

Though it would be months before I'd set up my own blog, and later still before I had the courage to post at one of the other blogs, I noticed there was a great deal of cross-pollination going on among the writers I followed. They posted comments on each other's sites, congratulating them on acceptances and commiserating on rejections.

Links to many of the blogs I lurked can be found on the lower right-hand part of this blog, but there were lots of blogs I kept going back to that aren't, and one of those blogs belonged to a guy named Jamie Eyburg. He'd had a number of acceptances to markets I was trying to crack, and he'd also blog about his struggles as a writer and his love for his wife and two young children.

He'd also had a couple of stories selected for inclusion in a project called 52 Stitches, which I'd learn later is overseen and edited by the (I'd learn over time) how-does-he-find-the-time-to-do-everything-he-does Aaron Polson.

52 Stitches is a weekly dose of the macabre, conveniently available each week on its own website and at the end of the year made available in printed form.

I'm only telling you that to tell you this:

I'm pleased to report I've got a story titled "Milk of the Goddess" available in the newly published anthology 52 Stitches from Strange Publications and available now from Amazon.Com.



I'm even more pleased to note that after many long years, I'm finally sharing a Table of Contents not only with many of the writers I've since come to know, but also with Jamie Eyberg, who along with his wife died in a tragic accident a few short months ago.

All proceeds from the sale of this, what I understand will be the final edition of 52 Stitches, will go toward an alreadly existing fund for Jamie and Ann's two children.

And so, to my friends and family who are pretty much obligated to buy my stuff, buy this. That's an order. And to those visitors who've ever considered checking out some of my own work or that of the other writers I've long spoken of, this is the one you want.

Thanks, Aaron, for letting me be a small part of it.

Just in time for St. Patrick's Day

The Irish anthology I've blogged about containing one of my stories has been released. Should be receiving my two free copies any day now. I'm proud of this one for a couple of reasons.

It's my first non-fiction sale, recounting an incident that happened on my (thus far) lone visit to Ireland. It's also the most I've been paid for any short that I've written.

In fact, at $50.00 for 396 words, it comes out to twelve-cents a word! Wonder if that'll count as a "pro sale" toward HWA and other memberships.

(Kidding.)

I also suspect its availability in specialty gift shops and other places that sell such tchotchkes will make it the biggest seller of anything I've been included in yet.

My story recounts an incident that occurred while hitchhiking around Ireland during my freshman year in college, when I quite literally bumped into long lost relatives.

At any rate, you can check it out here here on Amazon.

Coming in 2011

I'm sure some of you have been curious, but I wanted to wait until the publisher updated their website before I posted anything.

But apparently . . . it's official.

Can't tell you how excited I am to be working with these folks, for lots of reasons, not the least of which is that their specialty is vampires and they hail from my home state.

Some of my writer friends might also be interested in a recent blog post the publisher made about the recent Amazon kerfuffle, which details exactly the relationship she has with her authors and offers a few more reasons why I'm excited about it.

Coming in 2011 . . .

Applewood

by Brendan Myers

An ancient evil awakens in the central Massachusetts town of Grantham, and only a small group of teenage friends realize what's happening. As they desperately work to learn the truth and fight the thing destroying their community, some of them risk being changed forever.

Learn more . . .

Synchronicity II

Because of my recent move, mail to my old address has to jump through a few hoops to get to me, so I find myself still awaiting my contributor's copy of the latest issue of Necrotic Tissue featuring my 100-word fiction short "Adagio."

This past Sunday morning, I went to Google see if the magazine had become available and discovered that it had. As always, the cover looks really, really cool.



So, to friends and family and all the ships at sea, this fine magazine is now available for purchase, directly from the Necrotic Tissue website or from Amazon.Com.

Pick up a copy! Support your wastrel brother and friend!

You'll be glad you did.

I've mentioned before my own ambivalence about my story ("Is it really any good? Are they just being nice to me? Am I just pulling the wool over their eyes?") emotions perhaps familiar to the more neurotic among us.

But I get that same feeling any time something I've written gets put into print. Because now, it's out there . . . for all the world to see . . . and there's no taking it back.

And so, with these emotions on my mind, after learning the story was out there, I decided to grab my bag and take a long walk around my new city. It was a beautiful sunny day with temperatures in the seventies.

I walked the few blocks down to the waterfront, to stare at the beautiful skyline of waterfront condos and marinas packed with thousands of boats.

It was such a nice day, I grabbed my camera from my bag and took a few snapshots.





Still, I continued my brooding. I walked along the waterfront, past dozens of long docks mooring hundreds of sailboats each.

I stopped at one point, to lean on a fence overlooking the water, all the while still wondering:

Is it really good? Are they just being nice to me? Am I just pulling the wool over their eyes?

Then, I opened my own eyes and saw this (click for big version):



What it means? I have no idea.

But for those who have read (or will read) the story, you'll understand there is perhaps a double-dose of synchronicity in the image above.

Made me feel a little bit better, anyway.

On a related note . . .

Before composing this post, I learned that my friend, the marvelously talented writer Aaron Polson, has already received his copy of the magazine and has provided a review of it on his excellent Skull Salad Reviews blog.

I'm embarrassed to report in this space the kind things he said about my story, however please click the link above and read all about it.

All I can say to Aaron is I can't thank you enough.

It really means a lot.

And the check's in the mail . . .

Adamson's Rock and Other Stories

A routine clinical trial goes horribly wrong . . . a detective investigating a suicide comes away with perhaps more than he bargained for . . . an avid book collector learns to just what lengths he will go to hold on to a treasure . . . and a close-knit New England family comes to terms with the end of the world.



I'm delighted to announce that these and other tales are now available in my first short story collection, titled ADAMSON'S ROCK AND OTHER STORIES, featuring my award-winning novelette ADAMSON'S ROCK.

Available now in Kindle format from Amazon.Com, and coming soon in paperback.

Sumner Gardens

It's October of 1970 and twelve-year-old altar boy Conner O'Neil has a few problems. He's dodging some oddly personal questions from his local parish priest while also suppressing his guilt from that night he and his buddies shot out the window of a local haunted house.

Worse yet, he learns he has to kiss the creepiest girl in class after getting the lead in the school play.

But only after his father has another heart attack do his real troubles begin . . .



A heartwarming and life-affirming coming-of-age tale told in a unique and unforgettable voice.

Available now in both paperback and Kindle edition from Amazon.Com. Click here to pick up your copy today.

Hope Town

Delighted to announce the availability of my new thriller:



The sleepy, seaside village of Hopeton is not all it appears . . .

At the end of a bad day, Parker nurses his wounds at a local watering hole. There he meets a woman. Turns out, her day was almost as bad as his. Almost. After seeking solace in each other's arms, they find themselves unwittingly thrown together in a deadly race for survival.

Because two others are in the bar that evening, one predator: the town bigwig with a cash flow problem, and one prey, the bank president who refuses to help. Big mistake. Because Bobby Jo knows a dark secret and will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

From the high-rises of downtown Boston, to the high seas of the Atlantic, to the dirty sandlots of a sleepy south shore town, events move inexorably towards a pulse-pounding climax.

It's a small town. Maybe even something like your town. But all may already be lost, for the good citizens of . . .

Hope Town

Available now, exclusively for the Kindle. Click the image on the right to to pick up your copy today!

A Truck Story

In Major League cities across the country, the departure of the equipment truck from the ballpark headed for spring training has become an annual rite of spring, and nowhere is this more true than in Boston, where "Truck Day" has become an unofficial holiday.

But what would happen if a fanatic Red Sox fan and his two nephews became trapped in the back of the truck just before the door slammed shut and it began its 1487-mile journey to Fort Myers?

I'm pleased to announce that question is finally answered in my new novella titled "A Truck Story," a charming and hilarious tale that is sure to delight Red Sox and baseball fans of all ages, as well as fans of Florida Fiction.

"Elvis meets Elmore Leonard on the way to Red Sox Spring Training." – Adam Pachter, Editor of the Fenway Fiction anthology series.

Aside from the kidnappings, the car chase, an Elvis impersonator, some hungry alligators, and a few other surprises, the trip itself is relatively uneventful . . .

Available now in Kindle format (and coming soon in paperback) from Amazon.Com.

And if you'll forgive my indulgence, no such announcement would be complete without a word of thanks to the two folks who inspired it:

I love you guys.

Hello World

I've created this blog to share a couple of recent successes in my writing career.

I guess a little about me first. I've been writing novels for a number of years now with nothing at all to show for it. Recently, I thought I'd try my hand at short fiction, and am both delighted and humbled that at least two of my efforts have not been in vain.

Anyway, first off is the acceptance of my story titled "Where Spirits Dwell" to the Northern Haunts Anthology put out by the good folks at Shroud Publishing.



Proceeds from this book are going to the American Cancer Society. The book is available for pre-order now, in both paperback and elegant hardcover collector edition. Many thanks and much gratitude to Tim Deal and Shroud.

The second bit of good news received recently is that my story titled "Ohrwurm" has been accepted into Necrotic Tissue's upcoming anthology titled Malpractice: An Anthology of Bedside Terror.



This promises to be a superb collection of themed short stories about medicine gone horribly . . . horribly wrong.

Sincere thanks to Nathaniel Lambert, R. Scott McCoy, and all the folks at Necrotic Tissue. I'll update further when details about purchase become available.