How far do you go?

My writing-widow wife is used to me leaping on cheap flights to nearby Europe to do research for my stories. I need to smell the plants, feel the stone walls, experience the culture of Mediterranean or German environments before writing about them. Love that part of writing as much as crafting the story. However, she said noooooo when she realized my latest short is based on a tandem parachute suicide pair. Of course one of them changes their mind on the way down. Wife knows I’ve not yet done a tandem jump and guessed I’d need to know the noise, wind, where toggles and handles are, and so on. The so on might be to see how much freefall and still survive for last few seconds… Luckily our son has done a tandem jump but it was heartening seeing my wife looking so concerned.

How far would you go for research?

I’ve been spending a lot of time on promoting this last week, in between writing more, editing and playing with grandkids. Wife’s birthday today too. Been using twitter but worried it might alienate if I push too much. I’ve used one liners such as: Set fire to your Kindle with my Hot Air. Details at http://geoffnelder.com/hotair.htm

Also promoting our How to win short story competitions, also out on Kindle or pdf with details at http://www.ideas4writers.co.uk/books/storycomps.php

This week the Helen Whittaker prize is confirmed with a start date on June 7th. I am the short fiction judge with Mandy Pannett as poetry judge. I can’t wait. Details are at http://www.helenwhittaker.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=9848

Good luck if you are entering.

 

 

Short story submissions

I note that some writer friends post news about the progress of their short story submissions in public domain places such as Facebook, MySpace and in their open blogs. Now, it might seem silly but I am wary of telling the world that a favourite story has just been rejected. For example a favourite of mine is Janet and John Deconstruct the Cassini Ring. A fun science fiction piece written in the style of a Janet and John primary reader. It’ll either tickle or provoke sputum. It is being judged at the Fylde Brighter Writers competition, the results to be announced at the end of April. Wish me luck! Statistics are against it winning but hey ho you have to try. If it doesn’t get placed should I announce that too? Other writers do. However, if a magazine or anthology editor winds up his web search engine he’d find those stories that failed x number of submissions. Seems to me that making public one’s failures is asking for more. I do get the need for writers to be open, gather support in virtual group drowning of sorrows, but I’m dubious.

Checking the blog statistics there are more hits from the one page on my climbing Tryfan than for any writing page. Maybe some climbers will be tempted to buy Exit, Pursued by a Bee – sales are in decline even though there must be millions of Science fiction fans who have yet to be scintillated by it. Come on readers head for http://geoffnelder.com/exitbee.htm