Eight hard driving inches……

Abandon yourself to eight hard driving inches of masterful horror. That's right, the 2010 edition of 52 Stitches is hot off the press and ready for you to spend a stormy, pretend the power is out and read it under the covers with a flashlight, kind of night reading these jewels of flash fiction.

The book measures a purse sized 8 inches by 5 ½ inches by ¾ inches deep, but the 52 stories packed inside will wallop you in the head like it was one of those giant unabridged dictionaries that they used to keep chained up in the library when you were in elementary school. [Either so you couldn't go off into a corner to look up dirty words; or just because that many words squished all together start getting ideas about overthrowing humankind]

If you're wondering why I'm so excited about this collection; it's because my story Aftertaste is on page 73. To top that, one of the best things I've ever read of Laura Eno's [and that's saying a lot] a story called Dangerous Premonitions, is on page 44. I was familiar with quite a few of the other authors listed in the table of contents before reading the book, some are friends, some are writers I've seen in passing, but after reading the collection I've gotta say I've got some new writerly crushes.

Aaron Polson is an amazing writer and as an editor he has an unerring eye for picking stories that provoke a reaction in the reader. He also has a really big pencil.

The book is dedicated to Aaron's friend Jamie Eyberg. All of the proceeds from the sale of the book are going to go to the trust fund that was set up for Jamie's children after Jamie and his wife died suddenly last year. Jamie has a wonderful story called The Trouble with Gnomes on page 42.

Click right here on this link
to go on over and order your very own copy of 52 Stitches. For those of you who are faint of heart, shut your eyes, because I'm going to show you the cover that Aaron put together now…….

I’m feeling fabulously scandalous….

Fag

Hag

Those are two words that I would never use. Especially not in a sentence together. Well, I would never use them unless I was just published in a book of poetry with them both in the title. And guess what? I was just published in a book of poetry called :

Fag Hag –A Scandalous Chapbook of Fabulously-Codependent Poetry

The first piece I ever read by the poet Bryan Borland was published at InkNode and it's titled Fag/Hag. I fell in love with Bryan's work that day. Over time I fell in love with the joyful, mischievous and soulful man behind the work.

Bryan pulled together a group of poets by asking us to use Fag/Hag as a jumping off point for a piece of poetry touching on the very broad topic of unrequited or somehow otherwise unattainable love.

I wrote a poem about my beautiful friend Judy Clement Wall. To my delight and amazement, it's in the collection.

-j-

If I were a boy
her husband would
have to fight me

Fight me for her
time, her laugh
her unqualified exuberance

If I were a boy I would
wrestle all comers
to be the one to make her smile

But if I were a boy
she wouldn't love me anyway
she only likes older men

-j- looks extremely vanilla compared to most of the other pieces. This is not a book for the faint of heart. Some of the pieces are angry, some are raw and achingly beautiful, some are just raw.

In short, it's everything you want in a poetry collection. Pieces that break your heart, pieces that make you think, pieces that are alien and far removed from your own experience right next to pieces that resonate with you in every fiber of your being. I think my favorite piece is by Stephen S. Mills. His piece is titled "Bryan makes me write a poem about a term I don't like." Stephen's piece is a heartbreaking telling of what life for both the fag and the hag can be like, and the power that ugly words can have on the human psyche.

There's a great preview of the book HERE.

It was incredibly easy to be inspired by the dazzling life force that is -j- ; so the only thing I had to do after I wrote my poem was come up with an interesting seven word bio [which is harder than it sounds] and then be ever so grateful that I got to participate in this particular collection of very powerful and very human words.

[which I am]

Thank you Bryan.

Horatio Horn Blower…..

Well, it's tax day, which is not usually a day of good news, but I've got some to share, so I thought I'd lump it all together.

I had a new piece published at Voxpoetica today.

Click here to see my poem "Erosion"

I found out yesterday that my poem "The Locksmith" is going to be included in the Art Around the World project which will raise money for Greenpeace. I'm pretty delighted about that to say the least. I'll let you know when the project is completed and the book is for sale.

The newest copy of Eclectic Flash Magazine has been printed and I have three pieces in this issue. A poem, an essay and a piece of flash. I've always wanted to accomplish a hat trick. Now I'll have to go for a shoe trick to balance things out.

I told Brad Nelson that I thought I'd only record one of my pieces for the "Voices" page like I did for "Bowling Night", but he wants me to record all three. He's threatening to impersonate me and do it himself if I don't. I might just let him because it'll be a hoot to see him try to get his voice that high. [maybe really really tight pants?] I just hope he doesn't hurt himself.

Monstrous News

I have a story at Flashes in the Dark today called "Good Clean Fun." It's entered in the lycanthropy contest and I'd really love to win. Go on over and leave me a comment if you have time.

[gives you the big brown eyes]

The last time I won a contest was in the sixth grade spelling bee.

Funnily enough, the winning word was Lycanthrope.

CLICK HERE to be magically transported to Flashes in the Dark