Five Years Later
If you'd told me five years ago that one of my stories would be sharing a table of contents with the likes of Orson Scott Card (Ender's Game), Hugh Howey (Wool), George R. R. Martin (Game of Thrones), and David Brin (The Postman), I would've thought you had me confused with somebody else.
Five years ago, I sold my very first short story and started this blog, figuring a writer should post weekly updates on his progress. That first story was scheduled to be published in January 2010, and I was super-stoked. I'll never forget how my first acceptance letter made me weak in the knees.
Since then, I've somehow managed to sell 98 other short stories to various print and online publications, but my biggest sale to date took place a couple years ago. John Joseph Adams put out the word that he was accepting reprints for his post-apocalyptic anthology Wastelands 2. Thinking my tale "Soulless in His Sight" would be a good fit, I sent it in at the recommendation of fellow writer Stephanie Loree. But having read the first Wastelands anthology when it came out in 2008, I knew I'd have stiff competition. I mean, Stephen King had a story in there!
Being a relatively unknown writer, I didn't think I had much of a shot, but I had hope. I've always believed in my work, you see, and I believe that someday I'll be able to present it to a larger audience. Don't get me wrong; I appreciate each and every one of my readers. I'm just hoping they'll go forth and multiply in the near future.
"Soulless in His Sight" will be reaching plenty of readers in Wastelands 2, due to hit bookstores everywhere on February 10th. (You can reserve your eBook or paperback copy today at Amazon or Barnes & Noble.) My wife and I have already decided we're going to visit as many SoCal bookstores as we can and take pictures with the anthology on the shelf. And if any customers or employees ask what the heck we're up to…
I'm looking forward to that conversation.