I love coming across a line I wrote and saying to myself, Wow--I wrote that? And then wondering where the hell it came from. Sometimes I think my best lines were dictated to me by some unseen presence. It's no wonder ancient writers came up with the idea of the muse.
Hi, Martine! Guess who found her way here on Substack, only been here a day... and I found you! I’m so happy for you, seems like your writing is continuing to take off. This piece is so relatable. Looking forward to reading more of you more often. Hope you are well and staying cool.
Thank you, Bonnie! Good to hear from you... I'll get in touch by email. I can't believe we haven't talked in so long. Pfff, time is a wispy thing indeed.
I have to be frank with you, it's a collection of crime stories. They have a tender, sometimes humorous heart, but the subtitle is "Crime stories close to home". Now you are warned.
Love a good cobbler. Is this the official announcement that you have a collection of short stories accepted for publication? CONGRATULATIONS, Martine!!
Wonderful peak into the a writer's mind, especially yours, creates. It's easy, though, to come up with dozens of short stories that are still explored, read, debated, and adapted to stage and screen. Many are classics by Poe and Hemmingway, Carver, Joyce, Irving, King and more, But others like The Yellow Wallpaper and Desiree's Baby explored thinly veiled forbidden themes that went against their times. Yes, I did a little digging on short stories. Your posts always inspire me to dig beyond and learn new bits.
Thank you, Beth. So glad I inspired you to explore. Short fiction is often treated like the poor sister, when I think it gives writers a ton more freedom to "go beyond" than books.
I spent seven months going over the stories in my debut collection with the editor at St. Martin's Press. That was even though they had been edited by magazine or newspaper editors already and one had even gone into an anthology and been edited yet again. He had a fresh eye, and once the stories were assembled and fit together, they required work to avoid repetition and just generally work in an ensemble. Our correspondence was via snail mail and it was voluminous with his notes and my responses.
Thank you, and I'm reading them all once again right now... there's a balance of lengths and moods. You look at them differently when they sit side by side.
I love coming across a line I wrote and saying to myself, Wow--I wrote that? And then wondering where the hell it came from. Sometimes I think my best lines were dictated to me by some unseen presence. It's no wonder ancient writers came up with the idea of the muse.
So, so exactly how I feel. The zone.... can't explain, should not try to explain. This is where no rationalization whatsoever should ever interfere.
Congrats on the stories and the re discovery of the lines!
Hi, Martine! Guess who found her way here on Substack, only been here a day... and I found you! I’m so happy for you, seems like your writing is continuing to take off. This piece is so relatable. Looking forward to reading more of you more often. Hope you are well and staying cool.
Thank you, Bonnie! Good to hear from you... I'll get in touch by email. I can't believe we haven't talked in so long. Pfff, time is a wispy thing indeed.
Love the title Family and Other Ailments. Creates an immediate reaction ( humor) in me! You are on a roll!
I have to be frank with you, it's a collection of crime stories. They have a tender, sometimes humorous heart, but the subtitle is "Crime stories close to home". Now you are warned.
Ha! I consider myself well-warned! It has to be fun to write crime...😜
Love a good cobbler. Is this the official announcement that you have a collection of short stories accepted for publication? CONGRATULATIONS, Martine!!
I'm always skittish about these things, but yes, I am looking at the proof right now... no cover yet!
Congratulations on the collection coming out later this year! How exciting!
Thank you!
Wonderful peak into the a writer's mind, especially yours, creates. It's easy, though, to come up with dozens of short stories that are still explored, read, debated, and adapted to stage and screen. Many are classics by Poe and Hemmingway, Carver, Joyce, Irving, King and more, But others like The Yellow Wallpaper and Desiree's Baby explored thinly veiled forbidden themes that went against their times. Yes, I did a little digging on short stories. Your posts always inspire me to dig beyond and learn new bits.
Thank you, Beth. So glad I inspired you to explore. Short fiction is often treated like the poor sister, when I think it gives writers a ton more freedom to "go beyond" than books.
Shawshank Redemption, The Lottery, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow certainly stretch imagination still.
Classics. Try Meagan Lucas's newly issued collection "Here in the Dark", it's brilliant! I'm a third in and wow!
Congrats!
I spent seven months going over the stories in my debut collection with the editor at St. Martin's Press. That was even though they had been edited by magazine or newspaper editors already and one had even gone into an anthology and been edited yet again. He had a fresh eye, and once the stories were assembled and fit together, they required work to avoid repetition and just generally work in an ensemble. Our correspondence was via snail mail and it was voluminous with his notes and my responses.
Thank you, and I'm reading them all once again right now... there's a balance of lengths and moods. You look at them differently when they sit side by side.
Absolutely! A story in isolation becomes something completely different in concert with other stories.
Those seven months were like taking a master class in editing and I learned a lot for my work going forward as a writer, teacher, and editor.
Waiting for somebody to write a story called "The roach curse".
I don't want to re-read my earlier works for this reason. I'll instantly find a cringey typo!