IWSG & Jeremy Hawkins Tribute

 It's the first Wednesday of February, which means it's time for another edition of the Insecure Writer's Support Group.

Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh, the IWSG exists so writers can give and get support from fellow writers. This is your opportunity to air your insecurities without risking mockery, because this group is as supportive as they come. Anyone can join. Simply click on Alex's name and put your blog on the list. We post the first Wednesday of each month. Be sure to hop around and visit some of your fellow writers.

The co-hosts this month are: Joylene Nowell Butler, Jacqui Murray, Sandra Cox, and Lee Lowery!

The optional question this month is: Is there someone who supported or influenced you that perhaps isn't around anymore? Anyone you miss?

Woof. Loaded question for me after the last couple years, so I'll just say yes and leave you with a quote from my grandma after I sent her a copy of one of my horror collections: "This is a nice little book you've got here."

Jeremy and I were co-hosts of the A-to-Z Challenge years ago. In fact, my banner is the one he made me, which is why it still says I'm a host on it. I kept meaning to ask him if he could remake it without that, because I didn't want to part with the design since it's exactly what inspired the name of my blog to begin with. But I hate asking people for things, so I just kept it up despite it saying I was a host.

The team in 2012 consisted of Arlee Bird (of course), Damyanti Biswas, DL Hammons, Matthew MacNish, Elizabeth Mueller, Jenny Pearson, Konstanz Silverbow, Stephen Tremp, Tina Downey, Jeremy, Alex, and myself. Tina and I were brought onto the team after we challenged each other to visit ALL the other A-to-Z participants after the challenge had closed. We ended up running the Post A-to-Z Road Trip. I believe Jeremy made us a graphic for that, as well, but I don't seem to have it anymore.

There was a fun trio with Jeremy, Tina, and I during our tenure with the challenge. A lot of joking around. Unfortunately, we lost Tina several years ago. I hope their friendship can continue now.

One of our points of connection was movies and old movie theaters. It was fun discussing our experiences, each with a different old theater (mine was the Elsinore in Oregon, which reverted back to being a playhouse and now may be closed, IIRC; his had been a vaudeville theater, but I don't know the name). We'd both worked in theaters, as well. At one point, Jeremy donated a canvas art piece of his to the conference where I volunteered, Pikes Peak Writers Conference, for a silent auction to raise funds for the organization. 

In the last couple years we spoke mostly via Facebook and weren't as close as we'd once been, simply by virtue of distance and no longer working together. My heart goes out to those who were closer to him and to his family. He was fun, genuine, and kind, and his absence leaves a hole in the online community that can't be filled, just as Tina's did. They were both far too young to be gone and had so much to give the world with their presence.

My newest book came out yesterday! I'm so excited to share this book with you!

Whether you're looking to add short stories to your repertoire as a solo pursuit or in addition to novel writing, The Business of Short Stories covers every aspect from writing to marketing. Learn the dynamics of short story writing, where to focus your editing efforts, how and where to submit, how to handle acceptances and rejections, what to do with reprints, and how to market yourself and your stories online and in person. The information in The Business of Short Stories has been distilled from over a decade of short story publishing experience so you don't have to learn the hard way. You'll find information on submission formatting, cover letters, querying a collection, sending proposals to writing events, how to create a website, SEO, social media, and so much more. This is an invaluable resource for short story writers.

There's never been a better time to get into short stories!

$3.99 for e-book | $13.99 for paperback

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords

Reviews posted:

Skavansieur Review Blog

Wonderland Press

Focused on Story by J.Q. Rose

My ongoing book tour schedule is as follows:

January 12 - Beth Camp - Beth and Writing - Part I of Q&A

January 12 - Jean Davis - Discarded Darlings 

January 13 - diedre Knight - Stream Pebbles - Part I

January 14 - Michael Di Gesu - In Time 

January 17 - Jemi Frasier - Jemi Frasier - Q&A

January 18 - diedre Knight - Pensive Pens - Part II

January 18 - Toi Thomas - The ToiBox of Words

January 18 - Victoria Marie Lees - Victoria Marie Lees

January 19 - J.Q. Rose - Focused on Story by J.Q. Rose - Her Favorite Short Story (I already know which one it is, and it's one of my favorites, too!)

January 19 - Rebecca M. Douglass - Rebecca M. Douglass, Author

January 24 - Alex J. Cavanaugh - Alex J. Cavanaugh - Top Five Movies About Writing

January 26 - DeAnna Knippling - Wonderland Press & Writing Craft - Q&A

January 27 - Diane Burton - Diane Burton - Her Favorite Short Story

January 27 - Elizabeth Seckman - Elizabeth Seckman - Her Favorite Short Story

January 31 - Annalisa Crawford - Blogging with My Fountain Pen - Her Favorite Short Story

January 31 - Jemima Pett - Jemima Pett 

February 1 - Beth Camp - Beth and Writing - Part II of Q&A

February 2 - Michelle Wallace - Writer-in-Transit - Q&A

February 9 - C. Lee McKenzie - C. Lee McKenzie, Author - Her Favorite Short Story

February 11 - Sandra Cox - Sandra's Place - 3 Quirky Food Facts

And a thank you to Natalie Aguirre, The Faerie Review, and my brother Alex Kenoyer for individual shoutouts!

May you find your Muse.

A Final Road Trip

I imagine just about everyone will know by now, because she touched so many lives, but Tina Downey of the blog Life is Good passed away this weekend. You can get more information at her blog.

I know I won't be the only one thinking of her today. She was a kind person with a huge heart that did so much for others, even if it was just in supporting them or throwing them a friendly hello. Unfortunately, she was battling health issues the whole time. Even knowing that, I was stunned to hear of her passing. I never thought it could go so far.

By xlibber (Sunflower  Uploaded by russavia) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Today I wanted to say goodbye to a friend I met through my blog, so what better way to honor her? We met as participants in the A-to-Z Challenge. Somehow (and I couldn't tell you exactly how), we started talking via a comment one or the other of us left on the other's blog. This conversation bloomed into the Post A-to-Z Road Trip, where we challenged each other to visit ALL the participants of that year's A-to-Z after it had completed.

We both liked a challenge.

I never would have done the Road Trip on my own. I might have gone and visited a bunch of the blogs I hadn't gotten to, but I sure wouldn't have issued a challenge to everyone else to do the same. I was a newbie blogger, who only found others and learned about blogging via that first A-to-Z (that I participated in--certainly not the first A-to-Z overall.)

But Tina was energetic, vivacious. She took hold of a goal and went for it with her all. She was organized and consistent. And we egged each other on, having a lot of fun in the process.

That little Road Trip got us noticed by Lee, and the next year we became part of the A-to-Z Challenge team. Why? Because Tina posted to them about our little mini-challenge. She was brave and brassy. She was a phenom.

We had even more fun working with that awesome team of folks, and we were able to continue our little Road Trip, which wasn't so little anymore. Through it all, she soldiered on, despite health issues that landed her in the hospital off and on, despite trouble breathing, and the misery that comes with that.

Most of all, she did so cheerfully, with no dip in the level of energy she dedicated to us and the challenge.

Courtesy of Saxo, Wikimedia Commons

When I announced to the A-to-Z team that my dad had been diagnosed with ALS, and that I was going through the CNA certification process so I would be better equipped to care for him when the time came, she told me about her dad, who had Parkinson's. And though we'd been talking via email for awhile, we were now able to give each other support and share the understanding of something that was hard for other people to empathize with. What other people didn't know how to respond to (despite wanting to be able to), we knew what to say and how it felt.

I suspect she would have known just what to say whether she was in that situation or not, though, because that's just the type of person she was. She wasn't afraid to speak, to support, to be honest.

Though I never got to meet her in person, despite living only about 90 minutes from each other, she was a great friend to me, and I hope I gave her just a little bit of that back. Our plans to meet were derailed by various things, the last time because I was sick with a fever and she was back in the hospital. I'm sad we never had the chance to meet in person, but I'm glad I got to know her for awhile, and that I had the honor of calling her a friend.

May you find your Muse among the sunflowers.

Seeing Ghosts Cover Reveal, Post A-to-Z Road Trip, & Links

In lieu of [Mostly] Wordless Wednesday, I've got an awesome image for you: the cover reveal of James Garcia, Jr.'s Seeing Ghosts!

Paul Herrera finds himself bequeathed a mysterious old house near the California central coast by a deceased aunt he never knew. The woman who shows it to him is the spitting image of his wife, taken from him three years before in a senseless car accident which also took his unborn son. While he deals with the ghosts of a past he cannot let go, there are new ghosts Paul must deal with - alone for the week in the expansive two-storey house that he will soon discover holds many secrets. Eventually, he will see that he is surrounded by ghosts as he struggles to hold onto the only thing that he has left in this world - his sanity.

Seeing Ghosts will be released on June 5! His previous novels are available from Amazon now: Dance on Fire and Dance on Fire: Flashpoint. You can find James at his blog, Facebook, and Twitter.

It's also time for the Post A-to-Z Road Trip! If you'd like to continue working your way through the list to visit all the participating blogs, sign up to accompany Tina, Nicole and myself on the trip. There are no strict rules, no required number of visits. Take it at your own pace, visit who you like. You can find more information over at the A-to-Z Challenge Blog. The linky will be added at the end of this post.

Now for some links.

Accepting Submissions:

Sirens Call Publications has two calls out for submissions. Fear of the Water, an anthology, closes May 20, and is looking for 4,000 to 10,000 word pieces. Pays with an e-contributor copy, discount on paper copies, and royalties. They are also seeking stories for their Bug Issue, with a deadline of May 31. For this, they'll take short stories, flash fiction, or poetry. Pays with an e-contributor copy.

Fringeworks is seeking short story submissions with the theme Dead Man's Tales. Deadline May 29th. Pays in royalties. 2000 to 6000 words.

Daily Science Fiction is looking for speculative fiction stories of 100 to 10,000 words. Pays 8 cents per word. Always open, so there is no specific deadline.

U.S. Kids is looking for stories for Turtle, Humpty Dumpty, and Jack and Jill Magazines for kids. Payment is $70 for two of the magazines, with Jack and Jill paying per word.

All KHP Publishers' imprints are accepting novel submissions right now. They have a wide variety of imprints, so be sure to look through the list.

Contests:

713 Flash's monthly contest deadline is May 20, with the theme of Slipping Through Time. Pays $10.

Of Interest:

M. Bennardo did an interesting post on submitting short stories, entitled Short Story Submissions: Ten Case Studies. A great read for anyone diving into the submission process, or considering it.

Looking forward to James' new book? Isn't his cover gorgeous? Planning on joining the Road Trip? Considering submitting to any of the above publications/contests? Anything of interest to add?

May you find your Muse.

A-to-Z Reflections Post & Linky

It's time for my A-to-Z Reflections. The linky list is at the end. To sign up, make sure you create your post first then link directly to that post, not to your overall blog.

This was my third A-to-Z Challenge, and I had a lot of fun this month with my theme on History's Mysteries. I learned some new things and got a few story ideas from my research. Most of what I wrote about was already known to me in some way, shape or form, but I still learned tidbits about even those events I'd already heard of.

My favorite topic, by far, was the Dyatlov Pass Incident, which was entirely new to me. It's a fascinating story, no matter which direction you look at it from. At least for me.

But my favorite part of this A-to-Z Challenge was not actually my topics or what I learned from them, but the comments people left on the stories. I liked the discussions, the theories, the funny responses, and the great interaction with you guys. Some of you came up with theories that hadn't been mentioned before. Some of them were crazy, but others were just as logical as those already mentioned. All of them were interesting and entertaining.

So for that I have to thank those of you who left comments during the A-to-Z Challenge. Thank you! I had a lot of fun with this one.

Before you think it is completely done, don't forget the Post A-to-Z Road Trip. We'll be announcing it on May 8 on the A-to-Z Challenge blog, as well as posting a linky lists for those interested to sign up. For anyone who isn't aware of what it is, there will be a more thorough explanation on that date, but the gist of it is that you have between the opening date and the next A-to-Z Challenge to visit the A-to-Z participants. This is for those bound and determined to make it through the entire A-to-Z sign-up list to discover new blogs. There are no limits or restrictions, other than that it ends when it's time for the next Challenge.

Will you be posting a reflections post? What was your favorite History's Mystery? What is your favorite History's Mystery that I didn't post about? Will you be joining us on the Post A-to-Z Road Trip?

May you find your Muse.

Beginnings Blogfest and Links

Today is L.G. Keltner's Beginnings Blogfest!

L.G. asked us to write about any beginning we wanted.  There are five billion thoughts that occurred to me, but I thought I'd talk about the beginning of my taking an active part in the writing community, because my blogging beginning is sort of wrapped up in there, too.

This isn't about the beginning of my writing; I'm pretty sure I was doing that in the womb.  Fetal philosophy.  You know, "write what you know" doesn't cover much when you're floating in a bubble.

No, I wrote for ages, but I had no idea there was a writing community out there where I could find support and education.  It wasn't until a friend invited me to a conference (which I didn't go to) that I started becoming aware of what was out there.

She asked me to a local meeting at another point, so I went.  It took a lot for me to do that, as I'm a major introvert, and tend to be anxious about new social situations.  I liked it; everyone was nice and I learned something.  But most of all, I realized there were a bunch of other writers in Colorado Springs, and that there were local resources for us.  They talked about the conference, about NaNoWriMo (which I'd never heard of), about a writer's contest, etc.  Brain overload!

My brain fizzled like that of a malfunctioning Stepford Wife.  I was a bit overwhelmed, but I was also excited.  I started attending regular meetings, signed up for a local writer's group, and finally, attended my first conference.

It was at the conference that I learned that I knew absolutely nothing about publishing, that I had unrealistic views of the business of writing.  And it was at that conference that I heard about platform and blogging, which planted the seed that became The Warrior Muse.

I've posted about the beginning of this blog before, so the short version is that I had no idea what to write about or what to do.  I'd throw up a random post here and there, mostly updates about meetings I went to.

Snooze.

I had no idea what to say, no idea how to get anyone to read the blog (I hadn't told anyone I was even blogging, because I was too insecure about what I was doing).  And then I somehow happened across a post about the upcoming A-to-Z Challenge.  I bookmarked it, but was terrified.

Then one night I looked at my blog and decided I needed to sink or swim, so I opened that bookmarked page, gulped, and filled out the linky list entry.  Then I sat there hyperventilating until I clicked to enter it.  The rest is history.

From one beginning to another, to another, to another.  I'm now an active blogger and an active part of the the writing community here.  I'm in two writer's groups, and I volunteer for each, as well as the conference, and I couldn't be happier.

Thanks for an interesting blogfest, L.G.!

Now for some links.

Open for Submissions: 

Menacing Hedge is accepting poetry, art and short stories.  They are a quarterly magazine.  "Genres that tickle our fancy are horror, slipstream, magical realism, and science fiction, with styles that lean toward humorous, absurdism, experimental, literary, bizarro, quirky and surreal."

Gutter Books is reopening for submissions.  Reading period begins February 15.  They are seeking pulp fiction.

Electric Spec closes to submissions January 15 for their February issue.  Speculative Fiction.  Paying market.

Commentary is always open to submissions of articles or reviews.

Free Spirit Publishing is open for non-fiction book submissions for kids and teens.

The Red Asylum is seeking dark and twisted flash fiction for their 5th edition.  Non-paying at this time, as they are a new magazine.

Grinning Skull Press is open for submissions for an anthology about B-Movie Monsters.  Paying market.  Deadline March 31 or until filled.  Short stories 3000-10,000 words.

Pantheon Magazine is seeking submissions of short fiction, poetry, reviews, art/photography, and interviews. They take reprints.  They publish all genres.  Paying market.

Monster Corral is seeking stories about monsters in 2013.  Any genre, as long as there are monsters.  Paying market.

Angelic Knight Press is putting together an Urban Fantasy anthology, and are open to submissions January 15 to May 15.  Short fiction.  Shared royalties.

Contests:

Winning Writers is still taking entries for their Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest, closing April 1.  No submission fee.  First prize is $1000 and publication online.

The London School of Liberal Arts is having a competition.  They want you to tell your story of one thing that needs to change.  Submission deadline is February 28.  Free entry.  Open to everyone.  Cash prize.

Donna B. McNicol is having a scavenger hunt contest for her blogaversary.

Other Items of Interest:

Melissa Maygrove put together a great motivation and resource post for writers.

Chris Winfield posted 92 Ways to Get (and Maximize) Press Coverage.

You can find a free book marketing cheat sheet at William Hertling's Thoughtstream.

One last thing:  Hop on by the A-to-Z Challenge blog for a Post A-to-Z Road Trip update.

Anything you'd like to share?  Any contests or publications you're interested in above?  What beginning would you write about?  Are you road-tripping?

May you find your Muse.

Road Trip Check-in at the A-to-Z!

Hello there!  Today we have a Post A-to-Z Road Trip check-in over at the A-to-Z Challenge blog.  Stop by and chat with us!


Are you road tripping with us? Making any progress?

May you find your Muse.

Post A-to-Z Road Trip & A Couple Links

Okay, I'm feeling like I will never, ever, ever, ever, ever catch back up with life again!  I'm fairly certain I can say definitively that I'm behind on every aspect of my life.  Except eating.  I never get behind on that...

In lieu of [Mostly] Wordless Wednesday, I'm going to do a quick post on the Post A-to-Z Road Trip that Tina and I started last year.  I remember being so excited when Lee (Arlee Bird, head honcho of the A-to-Z) contacted us last year in support of it.  If it wasn't for this follow-up to the A-to-Z, I would never have been a co-host on this year's A-to-Z, and if it weren't for Tina, I never would have had what we are now calling the Post A-to-Z Road Trip.  So thanks, girl!

For those who haven't heard of this yet, it was previously called the Post-Challenge-Challenge, or the Visitor's Challenge.  We never really had a perfectly synced up name last year.  From here on out, though, it is the Post A-to-Z Road Trip.

This Road Trip is pressure-free and rule-free. It is simply a means to visit all the blogs who participated in the A-to-Z Challenge, as the vast majority of us stood no chance at visiting all those blogs during the month of April.  You can visit using whatever time frame you prefer, in whatever order.  Do what works for you! 

If you like having company, come visit us on the A-to-Z Challenge Blog when we check in weekly.  You can also read more about the challenge there.  Sign-ups are available there, or you can sign up on this post or under the Post A-to-Z Road Trip tab here on my blog.  Feel free to ask any questions you might have.

Other than that, enjoy the trip!

For the week's helpful links:

Eden's Bookshelf is looking for books to review.  If you're published, go check out the requirements.

Podjam.tv posted 15 Tips to Get You Tweeting.  Very handy, especially if you're tweet-clueless, like me.

White Cat Publications, LLC has put out a submission call for a Steampunk anthology.  This is the first one for Steampunk I've run across, so wanted to pass it along, since I know a few of you write it.  Good luck!

How about a funny one?  David Farland wrote tips on how to keep your writer as a pet.  Writers, pass this one along to your loved ones!  It's amusing, but also quite useful.

Mandy DeGeit  posted a good warning that reminds us to check out anyone we're submitting to.  Her bad anthology experience should be a lesson to us all. 

Any useful links to pass along?  Have you joined the Post A-to-Z Road Trip?  Do you plan to?  Did you make it to all the A-to-Z blogs, if you participated?  Working on it on your own?

May you find your Muse.