Short Story Accepted

I am delighted to report that my short story, "Stonecutter," has been accepted for publication in an anthology to be titled Fish Nets!

I have reported here previously that I am a member of Sisters in Crime, a nationwide group formed to promote and celebrate women who write crime fiction. I'm even on the board of our very active New England chapter. Sisters in Crime has several online groups that are also very active. One is the Guppies, short for the Great Unpublished. I have learned much of what I know about the business of getting published from the Guppies. Many who have achieved publication stay in the group to impart knowledge and cheer on those of us still on the path.

The Guppies decided to produce an anthology of short stories several years ago. I submitted a story for that edition which was not accepted. The book, Fish Tales, came out this spring from Wildside Press and is a great compilation of stories. It was expertly edited by Guppie Ramona Defelice Long. It's been selling well and is also out as an ebook.

When the call for stories for a second anthology went out this winter, I worked on a new story for a while (see the first two bullets in this post) but it wasn't coming together. I went back into my files and found "Stonecutter," which I had written about ten years ago. I'd worked on it in a writing group and felt pleased with the characters and the writing but it hadn't made it into publication anywhere. It wasn't originally a murder story. Hmm. Could I make it one? I changed a few things, added a satisfying twist, sent it in. And it made it through the competition (which is stiff)!

Each story is peer judged, using a common score sheet, by three other story submitters. The Guppies include some very accomplished writers, so the judging is competent and eagle-eyed.

(The acceptance was particularly good news this summer, since two other stories I had submitted to the Level Best Books anthology were rejected. Ah, the life of a writer. Who knows? Maybe one of them will be accepted elsewhere in the future, just like "Stonecutter.")

Ramona is editing this anthology, as well. I received her comments on my story this week. They were very positive (blush) and included only a couple of very small editorial revisions. Way cool. We'll need to find a publisher, but since Wildside published the first one, they might be interested in this one, too. Stay tuned