Promotion

A few announcements and whatnot:

Before J.C. and I took off for a week-long stay at my parents' lake cabin a few weeks ago, Randall Brown interviewed me for SmokeLong Quarterly's blog about serving as the Selecting Editor for Wigleaf's Top 50 [Very] Short Stories of 2007. You can read it here--and get all the links to the good stuff, as well.

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While J.C. and I were gone, the new issue of New South arrived in the mailbox. It contains my story "The First Night Game at Wrigley," as well as some much better work by Stephanie Reents, Derek Nikitas, Michael Martone, and many others.

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Barry Graham picked up the Dogzplot Flash Fiction Anthology 2008 at the printer the other day. My story "Preparation" is in there, as well as work by more talented and more attractive people like Aaron Burch and Elizabeth Ellen and Kim Chinquee and Scott Garson, etc. Go and order a copy. Barry needs a moped.

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And, finally: I received an update about this. Still no word of a winner, but I'm one of seven finalists, which means I now have a 1-in-7 shot at the cash. And regardless: My story "Infidelity, or The Rice Cooker" will appear in Opium7, along with two stories by one of my favorite writers, Etgar Keret. And many more, of course.

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This afternoon I was gathering up some of the magazines that my stories have appeared in (they were scattered all over the house, and I was trying to organize them) so I decided to fan them all out on the couch and take a photo.



I suppose the timing of this shot is pretty on. I'm just now putting the finishing touches on my collection of stories, All I Have in the World. It's been about six years in the making, and this will be the first time I try to sell/place the thing. I have to say, I'm pretty excited. Even if nothing comes of it, I want to spend this term focusing on the YA novel, and sending the collection out into the world will help get me ready for that, I think.