Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Bold Living: the Aftermath

Sometimes the tricky part of a bold move is what comes next.

A very minor example. I wrote an extremely odd short short, a bit of what is often referred to as "flash fiction", which is to say, a story that's very short.

I wrote it in the form of a style sheet, the list of definitions of an editor's markings on a manuscript. As in, stet means "keep as is." The action unfolds in this list of editorial symbols, which grow increasingly fanciful.

I already admitted it was odd.

The story, "Writers' Handbook of Editorial and Proofreading Marks (WHEPM, 17th Edition)", included in an anthology out this month: Long Story Short, edited by Marianne Gingher, published by UNC Press.

So tonight I'm to join Gingher and two other writers published in the collection (Carrie Knowles and Angela Davis-Gardner) at Raleigh's famous Quail Ridge Books & Music to read our stories and talk about them.

My story cannot be read aloud. It's more like a cartoon, not so entertaining when you try to explain it. Carrie's story is 96 words long, including the title, and she's flying in from South Africa today, will no doubt be in flight-dazed condition after 15+ hours in the air. This should be an entertaining evening.




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