Southern Writemares

A Good Rejection

2012-02-13T17:38:00.001-06:00

I kind of expected this letter. Wasn't too confident about the length of my story. Oh well. I hope they raise a lot money for AIDS Research. You can follow the progress of the anthology via their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/horrorforgood.

Dear Andrea,
I'm sorry to say this, but we're going to have to pass on "Rod's Little Blue Wagon."

We had a lot of submissions to consider and as a result we had to let a lot of good stories go. We feel you shouldn’t have a problem getting your story placed in another anthology and we can’t thank you enough for allowing us to read your tale.

We hope you will still consider supporting the anthology and its cause. Thank you again for submitting and we wish you luck in all your future endeavors.

Sincerely,

Horror For Good Editors

Acceptance!!!

2012-02-08T12:28:00.002-06:00

It's been awhile since I've opened my inbox and found an acceptance letter. So, I'll definitely take this one!

Congratulations Andrea,

Your story, "Broke Down" has been selected as "Today's Story" on OneFortyFiction.com.

As you might know, we allow visitors to critique stories once they've been posted. If you'd like to follow the critiques our readers choose to make, you can do so at http://www.onefortyfiction.com/archives/broke-down.

Thanks so much for contributing, and please, don't hesitate to send us more stories in the future.

-
Editor@OneFortyFiction.com

Free Shock Totem All Week

2012-02-07T15:26:00.000-06:00

The all mighty Gods of Shock Totem magazine have been so generous as to offer free digital downloads. Each issue will be listed as free on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk from Monday to Friday.

You may have missed grabbing a copy of Shock Totem #1 yesterday, but you can get Shock Totem #2 today. Issue three will be free tomorrow, issue four on Thursday and the holiday issue on Friday.

It's a great magazine with excellent artwork and content. If you're a writer looking to break in to this market, I suggest you take advantage of this promo to see what they are all about.

W1S1 Update - Month 1

2012-02-01T17:50:00.000-06:00

The first month of the Write 1 Sub 1 challenge wore out its welcome and has since left the building. I am proud to say I have been knighted in to the League of the January Juggernauts!

While I did meet the goal for the month, I wish it was something more than just Twitter fiction. I'm in a procrastination funk. My to-read pile is growing by the day. I'm slipping on my blogging and writing duties. This is not the way to start out a year. But I refuse to give up. I have the next 29 days until the next goal to start proving it.

BTW, while I have your attention, J.A. Konrath, Black Crouch, J. Carson Black, Lee Goldberg, and Scott Nicholson are hosting a Big Kindle Boogie. They're giving away Kindle books, Amazon gift cards, Kindle Fires and library donation today and tomorrow. Please check out the website for a list of free ebooks and more information on the giveaways - http://bigkindleboogie.blogspot.com/.

What's Next

2012-01-10T08:50:00.001-06:00

I have to make a confession. I HATE this new Blogger interface...thing. The whole thing is a mess. I would like to switch back to the old one but the link has mysteriously disappeared. Sneaky bastards! They tricked me with pretty candy. It's the story I'm sticking with and no one can prove otherwise. Hopefully, with enough people complaining, they'll return the option but I doubt it.

I should be excited we are starting a new year but all this talk about apocalypses has made this year such a downer. Is it December 21st yet?

As you can see, I have signed up for the Write1Sub1 Monthly for 2012. I reviewed my writing productivity for last year. Long story short....it's nothing to brag about. Currently, I have a submission out from last month to a charity anthology. I'm anticipating the rejection. With every announcement of a well known writer joining the project, I'm losing faith in my little story. It's great that Jeff Strand, Jack Ketchum and Joe R. Lansdale are contributing. I was among the famous with the last charity anthology I was involved with. Not feeling confident the lightning will be striking twice this time around but we'll see.

An Expected Rejection

2011-12-03T17:46:00.002-06:00

I submitted my little short short to One Forty Fiction the Saturday before the week of Halloween. Actually, I may have sent it twice. My first attempt to send it ended with our power going out (It was raining). Sent it again when the power came back on...a few hours later. Since it was a themed week and my story wasn't chosen to be published, I was expecting this. Happy Saturday!

Dear Andrea:

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to read your work. Unfortunately this particular story, "No More Cute," was not the right fit for One Forty Fiction.

Thank you for trying us. And we welcome any submissions you might make in the future.
-
Editor @ OneFortyFiction.com

One Day Left

2011-10-30T16:59:00.003-05:00

I can't believe Nano is one day away. October seemed to speed by pretty fast on his Harley. Somebody should give that guy a ticket and tell him to slow down next year.

After four years, I'm kind of burned out on Nano. I think I'll skip this year's fun. But I don't have a problem sitting on the sidelines with my foam finger, cheering everyone else to the finish line.

GO WRITERS!!! Woot! Woot!

Should I Nano?

2011-09-30T06:49:00.003-05:00

October is fast approaching. Some writers are starting, if they haven't already, to develop ideas and strategies for this year's National Novel Writing Month extravaganza. However, I have yet to determine whether or not I want to participate in this year's activity.

Of course, I made the same proclamation last year and ended up participating anyways. Will November be a repeat? In some regards, I'm an overachiever and will take on the challenge any day of the week especially since I know its an obtainable goal. This leaves me with the option of raising the bar. Push myself a little harder in to that horizon...

Or, I can spend the month watching True Blood and eating pie (gaining weight I certainly don't need). Maybe throw in a little Supernatural for good measure. I guess in 31 days (and counting) I'll surprise myself.

How Long Has It Been?

2011-09-19T02:36:00.003-05:00

I can't believe it's been several months since the last time I posted here. I'm totally slacking this year.

I doubt anyone was really holding their breaths over the results of the contest. As I predicted, I didn't win. I wanted feedback and feedback is what I got. Despite only a handful of entries, I didn't really receive a lot of comments on my novella. I'm not really reading in to that. The judge pointed out sections I already knew needed work (didn't have time to do extensive edits at the time). Overall, it was what I expected it to be.

I bow my head in shame for the lack of actual writing and submitting this year. I've been catching up on book reviews for Ghost Stories as of late. However, I have been doing a little market research. Hopefully, I'll get some submissions in before the year ends.

My birthday was Saturday. I received my gifts a week early in the form of a new DVD player (my old one was on its last legs), DVDS (including Season 3 of True Blood and a collection of other horror movies. Yay!) and a new flat iron to replace my old one. So, I wasn't really expecting much on the day of my birth other than birthday wishes from family friends and maybe a cake. The surprise came in the form of "Happy Birthday" balloons. I can't remember the last time I received "Happy Birthday" balloons. It was quite unexpected.

Happy National Camera Day

2011-06-29T14:01:00.004-05:00

It's amazing what people dedicate an entire day to: doughnuts, eclairs, fairies, doodles, etc.

So, it's been almost a month and an announcement hasn't been made concerning the AW contest yet. I'm not in the mood to put any added pressure on the judges. However, the wait seems to have gotten to a few participants. They've dusted off their torches and pitchforks and started a riot. All in good fun, of course.

In the meantime, it's National Camera Day. Enjoy the photo!

Short and Sweet Rejection

2011-06-08T02:02:00.003-05:00

Dear Andrea Allison,

Thank you for sending us "Sealed With Anguish". We appreciate the chance to read it. Unfortunately, the piece is not for us.

Thanks again. Best of luck with this.

Sincerely,
Jessy Marie Roberts
Pill Hill Press

Sigh.......sigh........sigh.....sigh........

Okay, on to the next. I wrote my first novella and submitted it to a contest. Despite there being three prize packs up for grabs and only nine entries, I doubt mine will be one of the lucky winners. I did this more for learning experience and feedback.

Happy Wednesday.

Bad Blog Friend

2011-05-02T23:11:00.003-05:00

A few things need to be highlighted first:

About 300 people were killed by tornadoes over several states - May they rest in peace

Prince William and Kate Middleton Got Married - Best wishes on a long and happy marriage

Osama bin Laden was killed by Navy SEALs during a raid on his compound - Yay, finally! Much appreciation goes out to the men and women serving in the United States military

Now on to why I'm a bad a blog friend. I haven't been posting here very often as of late. I won't list any excuses for it. It is what it is. I also haven't been doing much blog reading much less commenting either. So, I offer you dear friends two things:

1. I promise to get back in to blog reading shape and visit your online homes on a regular basis. And,

Ah, come on. How can you say no cute little kittens? :o)

March Round-Up

2011-04-05T02:28:00.003-05:00

I fully recognize I haven't posted anything here in over a month. Not going to bore you with a long list of excuses. It is what it is.

I haven't jumped back in to the submission process just yet, but haven't been sitting on my thumbs counting zombies either. Pulled out several short stories from the dusty shelf pile. Began the first round of edits on them (or at least some of them). I've read through and made notes on four of them. Twenty or so more to go.

The Horror Hounds from the horror section of Absolute Write are holding a novella contest. There's a lot of cool prizes including a publishing contract with Black Label Books. What I like about this contest is the contract isn't set in stone. They seem to be very flexible. You don't have to accept the contract if you don't want to. Plus, if you don't even win, you still get feedback. I haven't been published in almost two years. I can use the feedback. The bonus is its a theme I'm quite familiar with. Spent the last seven years researching storylines like this.

So far, I have about 2100 words written but I can totally get it done by the beginning of May. Just gotta find two sticks and get the fire under my butt to blazing. More details on the 2011 Horror Hounds Contest: http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=206314.

I'm outta here! Happy Tuesday folks!

BTW - like the new look???

Mail Call

2011-02-24T16:12:00.004-06:00

Look what I got in the mail today. Of course, I ordered this before I found out the decision had been made to shut down Necrotic Tissue (You can read the details here). Loved the content, graphics and layout this magazine produced and was hoping to break in to it. Unfortunately that won't happen now. Just a darn shame.

Can we please have a moment of silence?

Myspace Divorce

2011-02-09T03:08:00.005-06:00

So, my relationship with Myspace was fair....at first. Last year, we commenced in a long separation due to a lot of change on its behalf. The funky new look. The logo change. A reconnection was attempted last month, but I knew it was over. *tear*

With divorce comes a lot of sadness and the tedious chore of dividing property. It has all been decided. I will take the hundred or so messages, blog posts, pictures, and well....my page (or rather dump it entirely). All of it will take weeks because Myspace insists on slowing the process. It can keep the rest.

My focus has been switched to the other side until Facebook stops being cool too. Then, I'll pray Twitter sticks to doing what it does best although it's new look is starting to give me doubts.

If I don't return by March, you'll know something went totally wrong with this transition and it'll be totally Myspace's fault no matter what it says. :o)

BBRRAAAIIINNNSSS!!!

2011-02-04T03:37:00.004-06:00

I could certainly use this book for translation purposes. The other zombies would get a hardy laugh at my expense if I don't get the pronunciations just right especially on a day like today. Although the snow may provide us with some safety. If we can't get through, surely they can't either. Anyways...

It's Tweet Like a Zombie Day!!! You know how quirky those zombies are about their twitter. Happy 71st birthday George Romero!

RAHHHhh...RAHHHhh....BBRAAAINNSS!!!

Blizzard 2011

2011-02-01T18:32:00.006-06:00

A few photos of our little blizzard today. There first two were taken this morning, same angle. I took the last two this afternoon after the snow tapered off.

Our front yard

Poor little windmill is buried by mother nature and digging out our front walk.

Our little pond in the front yard. Poor little goldfish are probably frozen solid.

I have a couple of video clips too, but the quality is rather poor. We received about 12 to 14 inches of snow with a 20% chance of more on Sunday. A lot of people had power outages. Thankfully, we weren't one of them. Fun times...

Giveaway CLOSED

2011-01-27T01:59:00.003-06:00

UPDATE - The contest is closed and winners have been notified.

I'm ashamed to say I have neglected my little giveaway for almost two months now. I can blame the holidays, writing or whatever else for poor management but at the end of the day, it sits idly with very few entries. So, please allow me to reorganize.

The same prizes are up for grabs. Two winners will be randomly chosen using Random.org. One will receive a brand new copy of The Walking Dead Vol 1: Days Gone Bye. This is the first six issues of the comic book version of the hit AMC show. The second winner will receive a used copy of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Anyone who is a fan of Jane Austen and zombies will love this book.

The previous rules were slightly vast. So, allow me to make it simple. Leave a comment with your answer to the trivia question, name and email and you're entered. If you've entered already according to the old rules, you need not have to provide another entry again. Yours has been counted. One entry per person. U.S. residents only. The deadline remains January 31st.

Trivia question: In "Days Gone Bye", why was Rick Grimes in the hospital?

I Blame the Snow

2011-01-21T02:22:00.002-06:00

I guess this is the part where I hold my head down in shame. While I have stayed on track with my reading, can't say the same about everything else.

I tell ya it's all the snow's fault. It's all white and shiny, mocking me with its coldness. Who wants to write with all that drama in their face? It's just plain rude.

If that wasn't bad enough, my computer was totally PMSing yesterday. I think she's jealous I've been paying more attention to her more portable counterpart. I'm like "Seriously? Get over it." There's just so much of the silence treatment I'm willing to take.

If you haven't noticed by now, this is me saying I've got a brand new stack of "I'm Totally Innocent" cards and have already cashed one in.

Welcoming the New Year

2011-01-09T19:18:00.000-06:00

It seems my first post of the year is way overdue. I read somewhere that if you don't have your Christmas tree down by Jan. 6th it's bad luck. It's January 9th and the tree is still standing tall, looking pretty. At this point, we're milking the bad luck for all it's worth.

I have been thinking about what I want to accomplish this year. 2010 was better than 2009, submission wise. Granted, it was more like one story being sent out to various markets, but I put myself out there. Totally important. All rejections. No acceptances. Not exactly uplifting but the slate is clean.

New goals equals momentary burst of "WooHoo" followed by a realization of how much work new goals bring with them. Here's what I'm hoping to accomplish in 2011:

1. Write more. Excluding Nano, I didn't write much. My Nano novel sits unfinished on my laptop and I have a folder full of ideas. No shortage on project potential.

2. Read. Did quite a bit of reading last year but have since fallen behind on reviews. Must. Catch. Up.

3. Edit more. Naturally, writing's best friend editing is part of the love/hate package. After several years of Nano, I still have a pile of short stories still waiting for a little attention.

4. Interact. Sure I have shared a few giggles with other writers but not so much shop talk. Last couple of years felt like I was always being left out of the loop. Not fun.

The rest is left up to my mood swings and necessities. Or perhaps a flying unicorn will swoop in and give me infinite knowledge of the universe.

Good luck to the masses for a great year!

Inside Spoiler Alert

2010-12-17T02:54:00.003-06:00

I don't watch a lot of foreign films in any genres. I don't have any excuses or possible explanations for it. However, after finishing up some online Christmas shopping, I took a gander at the horror DVD selection and came upon this little French film called Inside.

The movie received a lot of good reviews on Amazon to the point that people would erect a temple in its honor and worship it. Bought a used copy and gave it a try. Totally loved it!

The premise is rather simple and unoriginal. A pregnant woman still grieving her husbands death four months prior is home alone preparing to deliver her baby the next day (Christmas coincidentally). An unknown woman shows up requesting to use her phone. Her innocents washes away when she starts revealing details about the woman. The police are called and the stranger disappears but returns later that night. She kills anyone who tries to help the woman all in pursuit of the baby. Like I said, not original.

However, it was the way the movie was filmed that makes it so good. The unknown woman was dressed almost like Morticia Addams which I think adds to her sinister appeal. There's some gore and A LOT of blood. This momma took quite a lickin' and kept on tickin' til the very end. Sliced and stabbed by scissors, smacked by a toaster and a billy club, and gave herself a tracheostomy. The lights went out briefly just as someone was stabbed by the scissors. I think the universe was trying to tell me I wasn't ready for the ending.

The script, camera angles, mood, atmosphere. It all works. Would recommend it to anyone.

The Walking Dead Giveaway

2010-12-10T10:25:00.000-06:00

In November, I promised a giveaway and I don't like to disappoint. This contest will run the duration of the month to give everyone a chance to enter. On to the details.

The Walking Dead wrapped up its first season last week. Better yet, it lived up to the hype that surrounded it. For those die hard fans, I have a copy of The Walking Dead Vol 1: Days Gone Bye to give away. This book is a compilation of the first six issues of the comic book. Go crazy on the compare and contrast.

The second prize up for grabs is a new twist on an old story. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies By: Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith takes the classic novel beloved by many and tosses plot and characters right in the middle of the land of zombies. This book received some major buzz, resulting in a possible movie (starring Natalie Portman), comic book series and it's own video game. But it all started with the book and here's your chance to own a copy.

How to Enter:

Winners will be randomly drawn using Random.org. First person chosen will get first pick of the prizes. This contest is for US Residents only. Deadline is December 31st. There are several ways to enter, each point equals an entry:

1+ - New Follower
2+ - Old Follower
3+ - Tweet about the contest. (Include @sthrnwriter in your tweet)
5+ - List the contest on your sidebar (Include link to your blog)
8+ - Blog about contest (Include link to your post)
10+ - Tell me who your favorite Walking Dead or Pride and Prejudice and Zombie character is and why.

Leave a comment (1 per person), itemizing your points with any mandatory links. Also include your name and email address. Good Luck!!!

I Crossed the Finish Line/Zombie Giveaway News

2010-11-29T23:07:00.007-06:00

After twenty-nine days of talking myself in circles, stacks of useless dialogue and very little action scenes, I finally stumbled over the finish line with a word count of 51,400 words. I wish I could say I'm doing the jumping for joy and releasing balloons, but I can't muster up any excitement. Even the smooth vocals of one Enrique Iglesias singing "Bialamos" on the radio couldn't lift my spirits.

Have I accomplished something? Yes. I keep trying to convince myself that I've done something thousands of others couldn't or wouldn't. It's like I wrote the 50K words. I validated it to have proof. Then downloaded all the pretty graphics to show everyone what I did which by the way, we should at least get a bumper sticker or something after all that. The online pretties just don't seem as satisfying anymore.

The 50K just doesn't feel challenging anymore. If I participate for a fifth year, I'm going for it. 75,000 words in one month. That's right. I said it or rather typed it. I realized I need a bigger challenge. This isn't working anymore. So, come back next year and witness me write myself to death. Perhaps it'll be a first.

In other news, my friend Autumnforest is putting together a Blogger Zombie Walk. On December 10th, participating bloggers will display their finest zombie material. Some are even doing giveaways.

I'm considering joining in on the fun under my Ghost Stories persona. I've had zombies on the brains for an entire month, why not? I promised my GS readers a giveaway. I was planning on waiting until after the holidays but before could be good too. If I can get my money ducks in a row on time, I will be giving away The Walking Dead, Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye (paperback) which is a collection of the first six issues of the comic book and a copy of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by: Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith (paperback). I'm sure I won't have any problems with the money issue considering Christmas is just around the corner. So, be on the lookout for that.

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-26T00:01:00.002-06:00

Funny graphics comment

Have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving! Watch out for those Giant Turkey creatures. I won't be able to rescue you. My space ship is in the shop. They're talking an arm and a leg just to get it out. Drama. Drama. Drama.

One Week Left

2010-11-22T23:55:00.003-06:00

I can't believe there's only one week left in Nano. It seemed to go by pretty fast. My current word count on Sleeping Ashes (working title) is at 40,544. Broke 40K yesterday (Ha! that rhymes). One thing I don't like about this challenge is that it takes place in the same month as Thanksgiving. After family, pie and turkey, who the hell wants to write?

While on the subject of turkey, who came up with the bright idea to reinvent the turducken by putting bacon on it? Any more meat gets put on or in this bird and the turkey is going to experience an identity crisis. On a brighter note, it's going to be interesting to see if our neighbors finally burn their house down this year. Apparently, no one gave them the memo stating not to put the deep fryer practically in the garage while cooking the turkey.

Who's ready for Black Friday?