Revival of the short story anthology

The e-book revolution has its detractors, but few can deny that it has been good for the revival of the short story, novella and the anthology.

For years, the received opinion has been that ‘short stories don’t sell’. The men’s short story market, once vibrant in UK magazines, is definitely moribund. Go back far enough and we had Weekend, Titbits, and Parade – all gone. Short story anthologies included Argosy (UK) and The Saint Magazine. Men’s magazines such as Playboy, Men Only, Escort, and Fiesta ran stories – not necessarily of an erotic nature. The stories were in the main adventure and crime. From time to time a specialist magazine arrived on the newsagent shelves, though briefly; brave attempts, indeed: World of Horror, New Witchcraft, and Science Fiction Monthly. I sold stories to four of the above, but by then the writing was on the wall (instead of in the pages). One periodical that has survived is The London Magazine, but it’s a hard nut to crack. The women’s magazine market is still healthy, though even that too has shrunk.

Perhaps the decision-makers deem imagination passé. The same malaise hit TV some time ago, as well. Reality TV has almost obliterated fiction presentations. (I know, dramatic work is very expensive in comparison.)

So we must welcome the e-book for once again providing an outlet and a marketplace for short fiction writers and readers. Save for the few, the rewards may not be great in monetary terms, but it’s rewarding to see your story out there, hopefully being read and enjoyed, because that’s the main impetus for writing in the first place – to entertain.

Currently available e-book anthologies that feature my stories are:

Story title                                                         Anthology

SILENCE (2011)                                                 THE TRADITIONAL WEST

HAZARD (2013)                                                LIVIN’ ON JACKS AND QUEENS

SLEEP WELL, MY DARLING (2014)             NOIR NATION #4

PROCESSIONARY PENITENTS (2014)         CROOKED CATS’ TALES     

MESCAL MAKERS (2014)                              WESTERN TALES #5

‘Silence’ is a long short story that embraces the concept of ‘silence’ – the omerta of the early Mafia in New York and the Old West. The Traditional West contains stories from 24 writers, some of which have become award winners. This collection is also a large format 384-page paperback.

 

‘Hazard’ concerns Ace Hazard, a gambler on a riverboat. Livin’ on Jacks and Queens is an Old West anthology about gambling, edited by Robert J. Randisi and features 14 brand-new stories.

 

‘Sleep well, my darling’ is a noir crime story about a marriage that goes wrong, leading to murder. Noir Nation #4 has 'over 20 entries from some of the very best literary crime fiction writers in the international scene' - plus photos of exotic tattoos...

‘Processionary Penitents’ is a private eye Leon Cazador story set during Spain’s Easter - Semana Santa. Crooked Cats' Tales show-cases the work of 20 Crooked Cat authors.

‘Mescal Makers’ tells of the meeting between an Apache and a priest in 1790 and how torture led to an understanding. Western Tales #5 is one of a series of western anthologies; this contains 'Six short stories from some of the best western writers working in the genre today!'

 

Noir mix - Crime fiction and tattoos

Noir Nation 4 - International Crime Fiction is now out in Kindle; paperback due to follow.

Noir Nation is the only crime fiction journal in the world that combines international crime fiction and tattoos. It's content is often dark, hard-boiled, sometimes creepy, but because it embraces crime fiction in all its forms, readers can also find the occasional humorous story or cozy mystery.

Noir Nation No. 4 -- The Canada Issue -- has over 20 entries from some of the very best literary crime fiction writers in the international scene, among them Lauren Cahn, Marina Perezagua, Richard Godwin, Jonathan Sturak, Melodie Campbell, Bianca Bellova, Joseph Lepis, Neliza Drew, Rob Brunet, Nik Morton, Chloe Evans, Bruce H. Markuson, Jeffery Hess, Tony Haynes, Mike O’Reilly, Gerald Seagren, Edward McDermott, Ryan Priest, Peter Anderson, Al Cerda, Joseph Trigoboff, and Mary Agnes Fleming. (Official blurb)

This issue is dedicated to Kofi Awoonor (1935-2013), Ghanaian poet, who was murdered by terrorists in the attack on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi, September 2013. Men with guns may end lives, but they can't silence the words that live after the victims.

My story 'Sleep Well, My Darling' has gained the subtitle 'Buying a bed can land you in deep water' which appeals to me, I must admit, considering the noir subject...

The story begins:

Graham Turner first suspected his brother John’s death wasn’t accidental when he attended the funeral.

Each article, short story or poem is interspersed with colourful tattoo art.

Noir Nation #3

NOIR NATION
International Crime Fiction #3

The India Issue

If you like crime fiction, then you might like this. Its 368 pages are value for money. The editor, Eddie Vega, says in his introduction, “Noir Nation is a search for beauty, dark and brutal. We can hear the initial call in these lines from W.B. Yeats’ masterful poem “Easter 1916”:
In the casual comedy;
He, too, has been changed in his turn,
Transformed utterly:
A terrible beauty is born.
“There is a turning away from the light and the banal, the casual comedy, and a turning to the murderous passions and dark depravities of human nature and transgressive political bodies. In real life, such turns result in death, disfigurement, and prison. In literature, we can live and relive the mechanics vicariously and safely through the prism of the imagination.”

With over 1.2 billion residents, India is not only the world’s most copious producer of crime pulp, it is also its hungriest consumer. Even in her chirpy feel-good Bollywood films, guns and gangsters vie with the singing and the dancing. Although the work of many Indian writers of crime noir are not to be found in fashionable bookstores—next to the hardcover books of Jhumpa Lahiri, Salmon Rushdie, and Vikram Seth—they are in much more popular spots: the stalls and book carts of A. H. Wheeler & Co. found among the 8,000 railway stations that serve India’s 25 million daily commuters, riding 71,000 miles of uneventful track. That is India’s open secret: crime novels stay close to their devouring readers. This needs commemorating. Hence Noir Nation No. 3: The India Issue—with stories that are dark, brutal, and beautiful to the eye that loves the shadows—where the dark angels flock.

Illustrated with stunning Mehndi tattoos, Noir Nation's India Issue contains over thirty entries from some of the very best literary crime fiction writers in the world, among them Suparn Verma, Samrat X, Yaeer Talker, Bianca Bellova, JJ Toner, Richard Godwin, Simon Rowe, Graham Wynd, David Siddell, and Meeah Cross-Williams; and ace contributions from emerging noir writers Alastair Keen, Terrence P. McCauley, Frauke Schuster, Ryan Gattis, Chelsea L. Clemmons, Gila Green, Paul Alexander, Carmen Tudor, and Anthony Pioppi; and established hard-boiled wunderkinds Jonathan Sturak, Ed Lynskey, Mark Mellon, Christopher L. Irvin, and Nik Korpon, The issue also includes essays on noir-related poetry, music, and the visual arts by Atar Hadari, Vicki Gundrum, and Robert Brunet and two works of classic noir: "The Turkish Brothel" by the late Cortright McMeel and "The Perfect Courtesan" by Kshemendra.

This issue is dedicated to the memory of Cortright McMeel (1971-2013),  ‘Co-founder of Noir Nation, visionary writer & publisher of dark tales, loving husband & father, luminary teacher of writing, literature, and life.’

Amazon.com e-book here

Amazon.co.uk e-book here

You can buy the paperback with all those gorgeous colours here post-free worldwide

Next up is #4, surprisingly. The Canadian Issue.