I partied for a couple of months, and I have to admit (in the interest of transparency) that I was simply too trashed to write anything, or edit, or attempt getting published. Thankfully without any effort, my very short story, ‘Tomorrow’ was published in Midnight Echo on Christmas day. Unfortunately the celebration was so lengthy and over-exuberant that I simply forgot to tell anyone.
By the way, happy new year. If you had a new years eve like mine, congratulations on getting out of jail, finding your keys, getting your lost shoe out of that tree, repairing your relationships, removing most photo evidence from social media sites, and convincing your boss that the initially confusing picture you sent him at 4am was the result of being hacked (‘it doesn’t even look like my penis!’).
You may recall that ‘Tomorrow’ won the AHWA Short Story Competition
You’re probably one of the thousands of devoted fans who come to this site every day, buoyed by unjustified hopes of seeing something new, so you’ll remember that amazing day back in 2016 when I actually published an update informing you of my dark victory. Today you must be absolutely stoked because not only can you relive that moment, but you’re about to have your mind completely blown by my next statement.
You can now actually f**king read the story.
I know, right? I was surprised too. It didn’t look good for a while, but Midnight Echo has received an electric charge from the AHWA’s newly acquired defibrillator (clear!) and its heart has miraculously started. Not only does it contain world-class fiction, but the cover is ace. Well done to the association.
There’s some good Aussie horror talent out there, and I should know, having judged last year’s competition. Chrisi Reardon (short story winner) and Xanthe Knox (flash fiction winner), take a bow. Adults tell children that winning isn’t everything. Come on. Let’s be honest. Winning is pretty bloody awesome. Having said that, it was a close competition. Joshua Kemp and Andrew Cull were runners up. Both wrote excellent stories.
‘Tomorrow’ will become the sequel to ‘Nine-Tenths of the Law’
I know what you’re thinking: ‘how many bombs can this guy drop in one article?’ That’s right. The protagonist in ‘Tomorrow’ will be the antagonist in the sequel to my best selling novel (according to Amazon), Nine-Tenths of the Law.
Bang. That just happened.
So it’s going to be Detective Ben Ricci vs. Mr. Lazzari, the evil bastard who gave his creator the chills. Part of me (the sane part) is not looking forward to spending more time with that monster. Expect a bit more body horror in the second book. One thing you can say about Lazzari is he’s dedicated to his occupation. When it comes to creating terror, he has a very strong work ethic.
That’s something to watch out for later this year (I write quite slowly). There are several of my short stories on magazine slush piles. No one wants them yet, but I know they’re pretty good stories so I expect them to be snapped up at some stage. I’ll let you know (probably belatedly) when that happens.
Don’t do anything I’d do.
Buy Midnight Echo 12 in ‘Straya
Buy Midnight Echo 12 in ‘Merika!
Buy Nine-Tenths of the Law
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