Literary Murder

Guest blog by Keith B. Darrell

So I was having a writer’s conversation – that’s an arcane term to describe two writers discussing esoteric aspects of their craft, usually in a Denny’s parking lot at 3 a.m., continuing a conversation that began with dinner – and the topic turned to murder.

Literary murder, that is. Killing off one’s characters.

This is often a hard choice for writers. We don’t create our characters; we give birth to them. They become our  children. We rear them and guide them through their fictional lives. The decision to commit filicide – the murder of one’s children – can be as  emotional and conflicting as it is final.

Writers and readers can both develop emotional attachments to fictional characters. We go through the stages of loss, but to different degrees. While the writer may grieve for the deceased character – a voice in his head now forever silenced – the reader may stall at the anger stage.

But as much as readers may hate to see their favorite characters killed off, sometimes they must depart this mortal coil because … that’s life. In reality, people die. Even the ones you really, really like. Good fiction has to reflect the human condition, and mortality is the most human condition of all.

If the reader wells up with rage at the writer for killing a character, she should thank the writer having had the talent to bring that character to life, to make him real enough to relate to and care about, and real enough to die.

As I add up the characters I have killed in my novels and short stories, I begin to realize I am a serial killer. I can no longer stop myself. But I do abide by my own set of rules. My victims are either minor characters (Google “red-shirted ensigns” and “Star Trek”) or major characters whose death advances the plot, often leaving an indelible impression on the surviving characters or the reader.

Depending on how the character dies, his death may actually make him and his time spent within the pages, and the story itself, even more meaningful than had he survived.Another factor is the calculus of how a character’s death changes the dynamic among the surviving characters. The story often turns in a direction it would never have taken had a central character remained in the picture.Of course, killing off a character can be a disastrous mistake (can you say “Bobby Ewing”?). Soap opera writers have crafted many ways for deceased characters to return from the grave. Science fiction and fantasy writers also have a few escape hatches. Writers of more realistic genres may be unable to disinter the dead, but they can always bring them back through flashbacks.The alternative was presented by the satirical Web site, the Onion: The fictionalized author too wimpy to kill off any of his characters and whose book is denounced as “life-affirming schlock.”

But I digress. I must return to my manuscript and commit filicide.

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Read more posts by Keith B. Darrell on his blog.

NEW READ: “Gatekeepers” by C.C. Kelly

Summary:  Early in the twenty-second century, self expression is banned, including books, music and art. The Big 5 Divisions of the Ministry of Arts now control and monitor everything. If you’re lucky, your application for content creation will be accepted and if not, re-education may be required.

R. Garraty has worked hard to become the Deputy Director of The Division of Information Control. But, he has always secretly dreamed of a position in The Division of Content Creation. And today his wish is coming true – a promotion.

But, a new applicant-hacker going by the tag Slipknot has demonstrated the vulnerability of the system firewalls. The question now is whether or not this hacker is aiming for a top position with Information Control or launching a subversive attack on the system. R. Garraty can only hope that his promotion comes through before Slipknot’s agenda is revealed.

Buy this story here.

May I Speak to Amber?

Guest blog by Keith B. Darrell

As many of you know, Amber Book Company is named after my dog Amber. I knew it would only be a matter of time before this happened:

Today the phone rang. “Hello, may I speak to Amber?”

I was slightly taken aback, because while my dog is generally more popular than I am, she seldom receives phone calls.

Me: “Who’s calling, please?”

Her: “This is DHL. We have a delivery and I need to speak to the addressee, Amber.”

Me: “Are you sure the addressee isn’t Amber Book Company?”

Her: “No, sir. My screen says ‘Amber.’”

Me: “Perhaps your screen truncated the name? May I help you?”

Her: “No sir, I can only speak to the addressee; may I speak to Amber please?”

Me: “You really don’t want to speak to Amber; she’s a bitch.”

Her: “That’s O.K., sir. I deal with those all day long.”

Me: “No, I mean she’s a real dog.”

Her: “Seriously sir, I can handle it but I must speak to Amber.”

Me: “O.K., hold on.” I called out “Amber!” and she trotted to my desk. I lowered the phone to her ear and put it on speaker mode.

Me: “O.K., Amber’s on speaker phone.”

Her: “Amber, this is DHL. We need to confirm your delivery address.”

She read the address over the speaker phone.

Me: “Amber is nodding that’s correct. She has to go now. Is there anything else?”

Her: “No sir, thank you. You and Amber have a good day.”

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Read more posts by Keith B. Darrell on his blog.

Interview with Author Theresa Weir

Theresa Weir (a.k.a. Anne Frasier) is an award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of twenty-three books and numerous short stories that have spanned the genres of suspense, mystery, thriller, romantic suspense, paranormal, and memoir. Her titles have been printed in both hardcover and paperback and translated into twenty languages. Her memoir, The Orchard, was a 2011 Oprah Magazine Fall Pick, Number Two on the Indie Next list, a featured B+ review in Entertainment Weekly, and a Librarians’ Best Books of 2011. Going back to 1988, Weir’s debut title was the cult phenomenon AMAZON LILY, initially published by Pocket Books and later reissued by Bantam Books.

Writing as Theresa Weir she won a RITA for romantic suspense (COOL SHADE), and a year later the Daphne du Maurier for paranormal romance (BAD KARMA). In her more recent Anne Frasier career, her thriller and suspense titles hit the USA Today list (HUSH, SLEEP TIGHT, PLAY DEAD) and were featured in Mystery Guild, Literary Guild, and Book of the Month Club. HUSH was both a RITA and Daphne du Maurier finalist.

Well-known in the mystery community, she served as hardcover judge for the Thriller presented by International Thriller Writers, and was guest of honor at the Diversicon 16 mystery/science fiction conference held in Minneapolis in 2008. Frasier books have received high praise from print publications such as Publishers Weekly, Minneapolis Star Tribune, and Crimespree, as well as online praise from Spinetingler, Book Loons, Armchair Interviews, Sarah Weinman’s Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind, and Ali Karim’s Shots Magazine. Her books have featured cover quotes from Lisa Gardner, Jane Ann Krentz, Linda Howard, Kay Hooper, and J.A. Konrath. Her short stories and poetry can be found in DISCOUNT NOIR, ONCE UPON A CRIME, and THE LINEUP, POEMS ON CRIME. She is a member of Sisters in Crime and International Thriller Writers.

Welcome to SFWG! You’ve had a successful career in both the traditional publishing world and as a self-published author, how has short fiction, its audience and its viability changed since you began?

Self-publishing has made it easy to get short stories to readers. In the past, short stories had to sell to magazines, be part of an anthology, or be posted to blogs. It’s very cool to be able to write a short story and upload it to the Internet.

What advice do you have for writers beginning to write short fiction?

Short fiction is so different from a novel. I think of short fiction almost like a good joke, with a hook and a quick build and a punch line. I always try for a twist ending, but sometimes I don’t achieve it. I also think of a short story as a circle. I try to bring the story back to the beginning, but sometimes that’s not possible and the story ends up being more of a straight line. I think practice is the power behind a good short story. If you write one that’s not so great, write another one. And another. You will improve.

How is writing short stories different from novels for you, in terms of your approach, process and mindset?

Years ago I was invited to be part of a short-story anthology and I turned it down, saying I could never write a short story. But now I’m kind of addicted. I love being able to tell a complete story in a short space. And I love not having to deal with the sagging middle and a lengthy outline. I think short stories come closer to perfection than novels. With novels, I usually have something I wish I’d done differently. With a short story, there’s a lot less chance of that because short stories are so distilled.

Do you think an author can make a living off of being a short story writer alone?

I wish we could. I’ve heard of people making a living from it, but I think it would be really, really tough. Maybe if you have hundreds of stories available.

How often do your short stories become novels, or vice versa?

I don’t think I’ve ever turned a short story into a novel, but I did write a short story called Santa’s Little Helper with characters from one of my novels.  However, I have taken really short stories and expanded them to make long short stories.

Thanks Theresa!  Interested in reading her work?  Find it here.

Short Story Writing is an Artform Unto Itself

Guest blog by Joshua Johnson

I am not gifted as such an artist. For more than a decade I tried to write standalone short stories only to find myself building them into novels. I never had the self-control to keep things short and to the point.

The biggest thing that got in my way was the worldbuilding. I wanted to create, and convey to the reader, the world into which I was throwing them.

It wasn’t until I created the world of Zaria and my Griffins and Gunpowder universe that I came to see short stories as something that I could use as worldbuilding in their own right.

I want to be clear: your short stories, even as worldbuilding, need to have a plot, characters, and story all their own. But writing multiple short stories in the same world as a novel has the distinct advantage that you can partially rely on those other works as your worldbuilding.

Worldbuilding through short stories, novelettes and novellas allows you a greater deal of flexibility, not only in writing those short stories but in writing the novels that they are meant to accompany.

Short stories that are built in the same world allow you to give details of your world in bite sized bits, rather than infodumping in one long story. You can introduce a nation in one short story, and give the most basic information about them. In another story, you can give some of the history of the nation, and tell about its people.

Using this method, you limit the amount of background that you dump on readers while still getting the information across to them in an effective manner.

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Joshua Johnson is the creator of the Griffins and Gunpowder universe, a world of Gunpowder Fantasy. He has written one novel, The Cerberus Rebellion, and a series of short stories, collectively The Chesian Wars. His website is www.gunpowderfantasy.com

Recommended Read: “Midnight’s Tale” by George Berger

 Recommended by:  Holly Grant who says, “Amazon editors chose this as a Kindle single. It’s a charming story about an innocent goat who learns about life beyond the barn. The book has a literary touch and is humorous, too.”

Summary:  He’s faced hordes of screaming children intent upon his destruction. He’s endured close confinement with a hostile camel. He even narrowly averted being the star attraction in a Satanic ritual sacrifice. Yet, despite handling these crises with aplomb, poor Midnight is ill-prepared for his latest, greatest adventure: a perilous foray into the affairs of the heart. He knows all there is to know of love that a farm can teach – but will it be enough to see the young goat through his darkest and most trying times?

Midnight’s Tale is a 12,000-word literary story of life and love in the treacherous, apple-laden world beyond the comforts of the barn.

Buy this story here.

Recommended Read: “Dealing with the Demon and Other Stories” by KM Rockwood

Recommended by:  Holly Grant who says, “Dealing with the Demon and Other Stories, by K.M. Rockwood, a collection of contemporary short stories with twists and surprises. The collection is sold on Amazon for 99 cents. It has a 5 star rating. including a review by a top 100 vine reviewer. Some of the stories have a Twilight-zone, paranormal feel and some are straight mysteries. I loved the stories. Each one is several thousand words, not too long.”

Summary:  Five stories of five people who struggle to survive on the fringes of society.

- Jerry, a homeless veteran with PTS who doesn’t need more trouble in the form of drug dealers who think he may have witnessed a murder, or an injured stray dog he drags out of the rain into his ragged shelter… or a demon.

- Ruth, a young mother abandoned on a drought-stricken farm by her husband and family.

- Joe, a recently paroled convict who has become a project for his aunt’s stern church auxiliary group.

- Crystal, whose children were sent to foster care, wants desperately to reclaim them and give them a better life than she ever had.

- And Harry, who has lost pretty much everything—his job, his wife, his house—and will take any job offered to him.

Buy this collection here.

SFWG 2013 Romance Contest RESULTS

We would like to thank everyone that took the time to submit to our first romance contest.  Here at SFWG we want to try and celebrate all genres of short fiction which is why we chose something very different from speculative fiction this time around.

And now for the results!

First Prize goes to Amy Krohn for her story “The Third Painting.”  Amy has graciously offered to give a free PDF copy to anyone interested in reading her story.  You can contact her at: amy.krohn@yahoo.com

Second Prize goes to Laura Lond for her story “A Merman’s Kiss.”  You can buy this story  on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

Third Prize goes to Melissa Keir for her story “A Christmas Accident.”  You can buy this story on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or Secret Cravings Publishing.

Always be on the lookout for future contest announcements!

Recommended Read: “Dual” by JC Miller

 

Recommended by: Andrew Biss who says, “I read it last September and absolutely loved it. It’s a fantastic sci/fi/dystopian tale that’s very different to what’s often on offer in that genre.”

Summary:  Imagine you live in a world torn by war and poverty. A world fueled by hate and despair. Then imagine one day you find a portal to a parallel universe, one where your world could be filled with riches, love and safety. What would you do to make it yours? More importantly, what wouldn’t you do to make it yours?

Dual is the story of Betty, a woman who in one short day, will have to answer these questions.

Dual is a short story and runs 5,787 words.

Buy the story here.

NEW READ: “Open Eyes” by Robert Collins

Genre:  Science Fiction

Summary:  Open Eyes (short story, 5300 words): Major Anita Duncan stumbles across a coup to replace the President of Extra-Solar Alliance. She fails to stop the coup, and must seek sanctuary in the Terran Federal Republic. Will meeting Captain Jason Ayers and the leaders of the Republic show her a way forward during this interstellar crisis?

This short story was first published in “Just Because” in September, 1998.

Buy this story here.