Unacceptance

Two days ago I received my first unacceptance of the year. An anthology editor who accepted one of my stories in 2016 announced that the project is dead. Because it was a themed anthology, that means several good stories with the same theme will likely be hitting the slush piles of publications in the appropriate genre.

I wonder, at times like this, if it is better to resubmit immediately to try to beat the rush or to wait several months until the rush has passed before submitting.

Published: "Itsy Bitsy Spider"

"Itsy Bitsy Spider," a new story featuring Waco, Texas-based private eye Morris Ronald "Moe Ron" Boyette, was published today at Tough. Read it here.

Reviewed: "Harlot Road"

Kevin P Hallett reviewed Weirdbook #38 at Tangent and had this to say about my story, "Harlot Road":

A land ruled by a despotic king is the setting for this short fantasy. An experienced prostitute hates the King’s government and his brutal soldiers. She uses her wits to keep a low profile and stay out of their way. 

Then one day she helps a thief accused of stealing the King’s jewels and in the process becomes embroiled in a possible revolution. She finds herself walking a fine line between protecting what is dear to her and her increasing frustrations with the King’s administration.

At times the prose was deliberate, but the overall intrigue and danger kept the story engaging.

Read the entire review to learn what he thought of the other stories.

Nine

I completed and submitted a 500-word bit of flash noir this evening. I wrote the first half on January 25, and the last half today.

Published: "Harlot Road"

"Harlot Road," a story perhaps best described as an alternate history mystery, appears in Weirdbook #38.

9

I received my 9th acceptance of the year this afternoon, this time for a hardboiled bit of crime fiction.

8

I received my 8th acceptance of the year this afternoon. This one's for a private eye story. The editor doesn't like the title, so I've spent the afternoon trying to come up with something better. So far: Nothing.

7

I received my 7th acceptance of the year this evening, this one for a mystery submitted to an open-call anthology.

Reviewed: "The Mourning Man"

On her blog, Catherine Dilts reviews four stories from the March/April Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine and has this to say about my story "The Mourning Man":

The story Mourning Man by Michael Bracken is a touching tale wrapped up in a dangerous game. Cab driver Johnny Devlin is pressured into driving for a robbery when he can't pay a loan shark back for the money he borrowed to pay for his wife's funeral. You can read about the author's inspiration for this story here.

6

I received my 6th acceptance of the year this afternoon, this for an essay.

5

I received my 5th acceptance of the year this afternoon. This is for a a noir story I started on February 20, finished and submitted on March 2, and revised to editor specifications on March 3.

Eight

I finished and submitted my eighth short story of the year this evening, an 1,800-word noir crime story.  I started the story on February 20, actually finished it a few days ago, but hadn't added it to the count until now because I had to find an appropriate market.

Seven

I finished and submitted my seventh short story of the year this evening, a 2,200-word bit of noir I started February 24.

Reviewed: "Dixie Quickies"

In "Short & Sweet," his column in the just-arrived Winter issue of Mystery Scene Magazine, Ben Boulden reviews the first issue of Wildside Press's Black Cat Mystery Magazine, devoting two paragraphs to the issue, and singling out two stories for closer attention, including my "Dixie Quickies," which he calls "a thriller dressed as a straight crime story where a dead cartel gangster, a motel clerk, and a motel room maid, are all caught in the same gravitational pull."

Six

I completed and submitted my sixth shorty story of the year this evening. This one's a bit of crime fiction I started November 20, 2017.

Published: "My Stripper Past" and "The Mourning Man"

My story "My Stripper Past" appears in Pulp Adventures #28, and my story "The Mourning Man" appears in the March/April Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine.

Five

I finished and submitted my fifth short story of the year this afternoon. This one's a 5,600-word private eye story I started January 16.

Published: "Plumber's Helper"

My story "Plumber's Helper" was published today on The Saturday Evening Post's website: http://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2018/02/16/post-fiction/contemporary-fiction-art-entertainment/plumbers-helper.html

Published: "Poster Child"

Today I write about all the mystery publications that have come and mostly gone, and about how publication in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine ties short story writers to the genre's history in a way publication in no other magazine does, in my guest post, "Poster Child," at Something Is Going to Happen: https://somethingisgoingtohappen.net/2018/02/14/poster-child-by-michael-bracken/

Note: I also now blog as one of the SleuthSayers. My posts appear every third Tuesday at SleuthSayers.org.

4

I received my 4th acceptance of the year this afternoon. This one's for an essay.