I am truly honored to have my story be Editor's Choice.  Thanks Claire!

Another of my tales is currently online.  On the Hunt in the Urban Jungle can be found and read in the August Issue of Apollo's Lyre.  Apollo's Lyre is published quarterly, so you have plenty of time to read my story and stories from the other featured writers. 

Some argue that it can't be done.  They say a good story can't be told so precisely.  Others have done, just that.  They've written wonderfully worded tales in this new meduim, call Flash Fiction.

At AlienSkin Magazine, we confine flash fiction to the parameters of 500 words minimum and 1,000 words maximum.  While this may seem a daunting task to those of you who are used writing longer fiction, stories can be told using less words.  We receive a large volume of flash fiction on a regular basis. Enough so, that we are converting to an All Flash Magazine.  Our readership and online stats show that our Flash Fiction and Micro Fiction sections receive the most reads each and every issue. 

People love surfing the net.  They love to pop into a site, read and item or two ~ items that quickly catch their eye ~ and then they pop out again on to the next site.

Readers enjoy good stories.  They seek them out in print, online and as podcasts.  They devour flash fiction during their lunch hour, between classes, during their ride home from school or work on their PDA.  They savor more tales after super on their home PC, on their multifucion cell phones, and again, their PDAs.

Flash Fiction Sells.  More and more markets seek very short stories.

But how can you, as a writer, be so precise and utilize such limited space to craft a well-rounded tale?  How can you cram characters, conflict, action, and dialogue into such a short piece?  Is there a formula for writing flash fiction that differs from writing short stories?

It can be done ~ it has been done.  And the formula for writing such a short story differs only slightly from writing fiction that generally falls within the 2,000-5,000 word range.

Flash Fiction Facts

In Flash Fiction:

• Only 1 or 2 characters are active. Name them.
  Readers identify with realistic characters.
• One Point of View prevails throughout the story.
• Scenes are limited to 1 or 2; 3 on rare ocassions.
• Dialogue is clipped for dramatic effect. Nothing is
  wasted on polite, etiquette speech.
• Conflict may involve internal turmoil or external stressors.
• Action must be concisely described and appropriate
  for the story.
• Description of setting and characters are minimal, yet vivid
  and concise.
• The first sentence must hook the reader.
• The story problem must be conveyed quickly, generally in
  the first 3 to 5 sentences.
• A resolution to the story problem must occur by the before
  the tale is complete. 

Why Some Flash Fiction Fail

The primary reason a writer fails to create a marketable piece of flash fiction is in the exclusion of one of the basic foundations on short story writing.

The tale typically lacks:

1.  A realistic, defined character that the reader identifies
    with and cares about.
2.  A life-changing problem that is within the central
    character’s ability to solve or one that is indeed
    solved by the central character.
3.  Appropriate dialogue. Often such tales contain
    dialogue that is lame, melodramatic, or unrealistic
    given the story’s circumstances.
4. Proper Point of View. Omnipresent point of view may
    distance the reader from the story. And first can’t be
    used if you end up killing off the viewpoint character.
5. A satisfying ending. The ending does not have to be
    a happy one, but it has to make sense and the main
    character has to be affected or changed by it.

Other times, a Flash Fiction story fails because it:

1. Relies on a gimmick or twist ending that most often
    seems tacked on.
2. Contains a cliché or overused plot. It is true that most
    storylines and themes have been used repeatedly in
    fiction, stories convey them in a different and unique way.
3. Utilizes generalities in describing action, character, and
    setting instead of specifics and vivid imagery.
4. Raises more questions than it answers once the story
    has ended.  Loose ends within the story have not been
    neatly tied up. They remain unraveled, causing the story
    to lack clarity.

Still not sure if Flash Fiction is for you?  Not certain a satisfying tale can be written in so few words?

Read the Flash Fiction section in AlienSkin Magazine.  We publish at least a dozen of them in each issue! 

It keeps us from climbing the walls and from biting our fingernails down to the quick as we wait and wait for that all important editor reply. And we must wait, for just as it took us time to think up that neat story idea, to write it, rewrite it, edit it and submit it, we also must wait for that story to find the right home.

Sometimes that takes more time than we expect.

For me, patience proved handy. Three of my poems based on the Fibonacci Sequence (more commonly called fibs) were sent out to an editor back in early March. The months came and went. My observant eye noted the absence of an reply entry on submission log beside each poem, but still I waited.

Did I query the editor? Nah.

There were twisted, weird poems; and there are few marks taking dark poems of a such short length. So I waited.

And waiting paid off.

I just got word that all three poems were accepted for inclusion in Twisted Tongue magazine.  Suicide Sally, Witch Jelly, and The Other Woman will be appearing in issue #11, this August!

In March I took two editors up on their offer to submit more stories to them.  I submitted four micro tales and three poems to Claire Nixon, of Twisted Tongue Magazine.  I sent three additional tales of various length flash fiction to Molly Feese and CD Allen, the editors of Scotopia Press, for their Dark Distortions II anthology.

In May received offers of publication on all four of my micro fiction pieces from Twisted Tongue.  My horror tales, On the Grounds of the Evil Eye, and Mid-Summer Catch, will be published in Issue #10, which is due out in print form in Juy.  Two more tales, Season of the Snow Beast, and Maude Hatter's Wicked Garden Party, will appear in Issue #11, this Septembr. The first three tales will be reprints since they had originally appeared online at MicroHorror.com.  PDF copies will be available online through the publisher mid-July and in September also!  So drop by Twisted Tongue and take a peek and my Micro Fiction!

One of the three tales I sent to Scotopia Press, caught the interest of the editors.  The story I sent, The Q-Tip Dip, has entered the editing phase of their selection process.  I can't complain about that.

Basic Short Story Plot Structure

Yeah, I know every one of you are smirking because you feel you already know this ~ or at least you think you do.

From what I see, reading through the hundreds of stories we receive each month at AlienSkin Magazine, many writers don’t.  You have a fairly good idea of what story structure is, but many of you fail to know how to build a chronologically solid plot structure for your story.

Some of the stories we receive are just base ideas that have not been fleshed out enough to offer enough conflict or complications for the main character to truly engage the reader and to maintain their interest until the end of the story.  They fail to see where dramatic scenes should occur.

If there are no Dramatic Scenes, the story wallows in ho-hum.  The writer receives a rejection letter. Hopefully, it will be a rejection letter hinting at what the story is lacking.  Such hints may be worded as "The story failed to maintain our interest" or "We feel the story needs work to heighten the tension and drama within the piece".  Those are two phrases we have used on our rejections letters from AlienSkin Magazine.

So let’s take a look at the standard plot structure of a chronological story as noted by Robert C. Meredith and John F. Fitzgerald in their article for The Writer’s Digest Handbook of Short Story Writing, entitled, Dramatizing Conflict in the Short Story.

Can you guess where the Big Scenes should occur?

Beginning:

1. Set the scene, giving a sense of where, when.
2. Introduce the main character or characters and establish
    the point of view.
3. Suggest in the tone and style of your writing what type of
    story the reader is reading (sci-fi, horror, fantasy, mystery,
    suspense, etc.)
4. Offer the background circumstances that eventually lead to
    the story’s main complication.
5. Trap the reader into reading the rest of the story with a
    narrative hook. Present a minor problem that later results
    in the main complication, or arouse an interest in the main
    character’s welfare.

Middle:

1. Present the main complication.
2. Present a series of events in which the main character
    tries to solve his/her problem only to meet with failure.
3. Present a situation of anticlimax in which it appears the
    main character will finally resolve the main complication,
    then have his/her efforts end in a disastrous failure.
    Have the failure be so bad that the reader will become
    convinced there is no hope of a satisfactory solution.
4. Have the failure of Step 3 of the Middle force the main
    character to make an agonizing decision. Have the decision
    point to the solution of the main complication.

End:

1. The solution of main complication happens here. The
    solution must be satisfactory and must be believable
    to the reader.  The main character must be changed
    in some way by the end of the story.

Now to find where the Big Scene/Dramatic Scenes should occur, we look for places within the above structure where two forces meet.

These places are primarily in the Middle, #1 - #4. There could even be one in the Beginning at #5.

In flash fiction, there would most often be one Big Scene. Thus, the whole Middle section would be squeeze into one dramatic scene.

Longer fiction, of 5,000 words or more, would have four dramatic scenes, those of the Middle.  You may even have five dramatic scenes.  If you did, you would utilize the last scene in the Beginning to give you the total of five scenes.

For stories in the mid-range of 2,000 to 3,500 words which we accept at AlienSkin, a tale would possess between 2-3 Big Scenes.

So if you guessed the Middle is where the Big Scenes and major action happens, you’re right!

What Every Scene In Yor Story Must Do

Scenes are the essence of a short story.  They organize your plot, like a map or blue prints.  They present your story to the reader in a vivid, unfolding fashion.  Each scene builds upon the other, building suspense which pulls the reader along.  They draw the reader deeper and deeper into your story toward the promised, and delivered, climatic/dramatic scene at the end.

Scene creation and how many scenes you’ll need to tell the story, both depend on the story you want to tell and on the length of the tale.  The pacing of scenes depends on the type of story you are writing and the amount of tension you are trying to build within the piece.

There are innumerable How-To books on short story and fiction writing that offer more details on scene structure and how to write compelling scenes, but if you’re like most writers, you have the itch to write right now.  Like most of us you can only spare a few moments to brush up on writing tips, hoping to surf the web to find one that will help you tweak your story enough to snag a sale and a publishing credit.  You want some advice now.

While I don’t have any How-To Write Scenes advice of my own to offer you, I do have something for you to measure your own writing against.

It’s a test.  Just a little one.

It’s a little tidbit that may help boost your confidence a little. It may also damped your spirits ~ if you story fails to measure up.  But if your scene does fail this simple test, at least you’ll know where your story needs tweaking before you attempt to send it out to markets.

I call it:

Does Your Story Pass the Scene Test?

(Every scene within your short story MUST have these 5 elements or it fails to be dramatic)

1.  A Meeting ~ Two main forces of your story must be
     involved in conflict. Your hero and villain must clash.
     There must be emotion.

2.  A Purpose ~ Each scene must have a purpose for
     being included in the story. They must have something
     important to convey to the reader.

3.  The Encounter ~ must do these 2 things:

1.  Attempt to seek information or give
     information;

2. To Overcome the other by logic, argument,
    persuasion, or brute force.

4.  Final Action ~ The action within the scene should result
     in someone Winning, Losing or Quitting.

5.  The Aftermath ~ The state of mind of the characters or
     the state of affairs of the story should lead to the next
     scene or end the story by resolving the story problem.

If you answer to that question is the later, then its time to sit back and take a real look at why you stories might be turning editors off.

Here is where I offer you a very simple method for weeding out stories that should earn ready publication from those that may require some tweaking or major rewriting.

My motto is:

GET EVERY STORY RESUBMITTED TODAY! OR GET CRACKING ON A REWRITE!

Which is simply:

GET the guidelines for the market you just submitted to.  Did you follow them?  Did you send them a story in:

1. the Right Genre;
2. the Right Format;
3. the Right Word Count?

If your answer is NO ~ Shame On You.  You just wasted your time and the time of an editor.  No wonder they rejected you! Pick another market and submit the story properly this time.

If you answered YES, that you did all 3 of these things, than Continue On:

EVERY editor does not add a comment on their rejection letter.  Did this rejection include a hint as to why the story was rejected? If the answer is NO, don’t feel bad, your story may still be marketable as is, continue reading this blog entry.

If the answer is YES, skip to GET CRACKING ON A REWRITE section of this blog entry.

Your STORY may contain too many spelling and grammatical errors for an editor to consider to publishing.  You can not trust your Spell Checker program to catch all spelling errors for you and it does not find or correct grammatical errors.  Luckily, most word processing programs offer Spell Checking and Grammatical Error checking.  Both MSWord or Word Perfect, have this capability.  So be certain the option for the Spelling and Grammatical Checking is Turned ON and run it on your rejected story.

If you use MSWorks, you are out of luck, since the program does not offer such an option. Continue reading this blog entry.

After you have corrected and addressed each error it points out (or, and even if the program didn’t detect any errors, do the following:

1. Print out your story and visually review it for errors;
2. Circle the spelling errors, typos, and poorly worded sentences;
3. Fix the errors and tweak the faulty sentences;
4. Then continue reading this blog entry.

Before being RESUBMITTED, all stories MUST be read aloud a least once! Since you already printed out your story in the step above, READ IT ALOUD!  You will be surprised how many errors you will find by doing this.  Most will be stylistic, but such stylistic errors can also turn off editors as they review stories.

If you made considerable changes to the story in the previous step, you may want to print out a fresh copy of it, so it includes the corrections or updates you made.  If you find more errors, or areas in need of tweaking, fix them and update your story; then continue reading this blog entry.

TODAY is the day you put your story to the test: THE DOES YOUR STORY HAVE MERIT TEST.

In a blog entry I wrote last February, I offered you a way to test your story idea to see if it possesses enough merit to attract a publisher.

Take This Test Now (CLICK HERE):

If your story PASSES the Merit Test, pick another market for your story and SUBMIT IT NOW!  Follow all the Submission Guidelines naturally.

If your story FAILED the test, proceed to the Final Step of this blog entry:

The Final Step, being:

GET CRACKING ON A REWRITE!

Suck it up, get it done, spell and grammar check it, read it aloud one last time and send it out!

Follow the above Motto and YOU WILL GET More Stories PUBLISHED!

My first tale, Miss Mogley Speaks, is a creepy story inspired by those who take pilgrimages to reportedly religious sites or to locations where statues of the Virgin Mary have been know to cry; or places where Mrs. Horowitz saw the face of Jesus appear in a dirt smudge on her front picture window.  The story now appears online at EveryDayFiction.com, hostd by editor, Jordan Lapp.

Three of five stories that I sent to Twisted Tongue Magazine received offers of publication.  All three are horror tales of exactly 150 words.  Weed Killer, The Tattoo of the Viking Queen, and The Music Lover, will appear in Issue #9 of Twisted Tongue, which is due out in print in the United Kingdom this February!  PDF copies will be available online through the publisher in February also!  So drop by then and take a peek and my Micro Fiction!  Wahoo!

How Did They Stack Up to My Expectations?

Last year, I set 6 writing goals for myself.  The goals were achievable.  I set a bar for myself higher than my normal productivity, but no so high that they weret unrealistic or unobtainable.  With those goals set, and now with 2007 behind me, how did I do?  Did I keep my list of resolutions for 2007?

Let's see:

Goal # 1:  Produce 2 New Short Stories a Month.

  ~ Yep, kept it.  Even excelled above it most months.

Goal #2:  Submit 2 or More Stories a Month to Markets.

  ~ Overall I did, when you consider the volume of submissions I sent in 2007.  Most months well exceeded my goal ~ with the exception of October and November, when no subs were sent.  In reviewing those two months, I found no viable excuse.

Goal #3: Start & Complete First Draft of my Fantasy Novel

  ~ Well, I did start my Epic.  I'm knee deep in Chapter Seven.  As far as having a completed draft.  No, but the entire 1st book is outlined and the plot kinks worked out. The outline for the 2nd book is partially completed also.  So, I'm happy with how Goal #3 went, even without the draft being done.

Goal #4: Complete 1st & 2nd Book of Children's Series

  ~  Sad to say, I didn't even touch this one.  Honestly, I'd rather work on the epic.

Goal #5:  Enter Story Ideas/Notes into a Database for Quick Reference

  ~ Done, and continuing.

Goal #6: Publicize Latest publication News in Emails Throughout the Year

  ~ Done, and continuing.

So, as you can see, 2007 wasn't a bad year for me goal-wise.

Having goals as a writer is very important.  They give you something to think about and to strive for.  What is really cool, is discovering just how far you've come in a year!

Now for 2008.  What Goals Have I Set for This Year?

Well, I decided to keep Goals #1, #2, #5 & #6 from last year.  And I've revamped Goal #3 to Complete First Draft of Fantasy Epic.

Sounds go too me!  I'll let you know how things go as the year progresses.

What Are Your Writing Goals For 2008???

If you haven't made any yet, DO IT NOW!!!  You Can't Get Published If You Don't Write & Don't Submit!

Submissions: 1
Sales: 0
Rejections: 1

February

Submissions: 3
Sales: 0
Rejections: 3

March

Submissions: 11
Sales: 8
Rejections: 3
1 Awarded Editor's Choice Award in August

April

Submissions: 0
Contest Entries: 3
Sales: 0
Rejections: 0
Loses: 3

May

Submissions: None

June

Submissions: 1
Sales: 1
Rejections: 0

July

Submissions: 3
Sales: 1
Rejections: 2

August

Submissions: 2
Sales: 0
Rejections: 1

My fiendish horror tale, The Litter, appears in this issue. And the black and white artwork by James Fletcher is an awesome accompaniment. The issue is packed full of dark, haunting tales and creepy art.

Under the high-gloss, color cover with artwork by Geoff Taylor, Murky Depths #2 features stories by Jason Sizemore, Luke Cooper, Richard Calder, Alex Wilson and others ~ so get your copy today!

Contests Enteries: 5
Story Submissions: 3
Losses: 5
Rejects: 2
Sales: 1

February

Story Submissions:5
Rejects: 3
Sales: 2

March

Contest Entries: 1
Story Submissions:12
Rejects: 7
Sales: 5
Contest: 1 Honorable Mention & Publication

April

Story Submissions: 2
Rejects: 2
Sales: 0

May

Story Submission: 8
Rejects: 6
Sales: 2

June

Story Submission: 2
Rejects: 0
Sales: 2

July

Story Submission: 4
Rejects: 1
Sales: 3

August

Story Submission: 4
Rejects: 3
Sales: 1

September

Story Submission: 3
Rejects: 1
Sales: 2

October

Story Submission: 1
Rejects: 1 (assumed reject/no response)
Sales: 0

November

Story Submission: 1
Rejects: 0
Sales: 1 

December

Story Submission: 6
Rejects: 2
Sales: 3

Totals 2007:

Submissions: 53
Rejects: 30
Sales: 22
Pending Responses: 1

In October, I had two micro-fiction stories accepted for publication.  My mini sci-fi tale, Four Crows will be appearing online in Apollo's Lyre this month.  Through  friend I learned about a neat little online site called, 365 Tales, so I took a look around, read a few stories.  I submitted a mico ghost story, The Haunting of Franklin Pristley, and they liked it enough to publish it.

I slipped up in my October submissions goal of 4 stories out.  I only sent out 2 subs ~ which is still in line with my New Year's Resolutions.  But the good news is, I was busy working on my fantasy novel ~ so I cut myself some slack on the story deadlines and considered it time well spent doing what I love most . . . writing . . . creating.

Hope you receive equally good news this month!

At the nagging of my staffer Phil Adams from AlienSkin, I set before you a handy bit of advice that will help you produce more comprehensive fiction.  Whether you write short stories, novellas or novels, this advice is key to ensuring your story will be comprehended by a wide audience or readers and editors.

Pro writers churning out best-selling novels are found to use a high percentage of active voice, shorter words and shorter sentences.  By doing this, there ensure their stories are comphrended by a broad audience of readers.

Even though each story we write is unique, and though we should strive to for a natural flow to our storytelling, the Readability Test helps us gauge where our writing falls compared to a norm.  There will be instances where you will want to use longer words and more complex sentence structure ~ especially when you are try to establish a specific style or when you are try to appeal to a particular audience ~ and this is fine.  The Readability Test is merely a gauge to alert you to how comprehensible your scene is compared to a preferred norm that appeals to readers.

The Readability Test is a simple way for you to monitor the readability of your story scene-by-scene.  The components of the test are compiled and accessed via the word processing software you use ~ primarily Microsoft Word or WordPerfect.

To access the Readability Statistics in MSWord you must turn that option on. Under the Tools menu of the Word tool bar choose Options, then Spelling & Grammar. Under the Grammar section be sure there is a check mark in the box beside Show Readability Statistics, then click OK to save your changes.

To find out the score of your scene, simply highlight the scene and choose Spell Check.  Once the spell check is complete, the Readability Statistics will be automatically displayed.  Write them down and compare them to the following Preferred Scores ~ better yet ~ copy the Preferred Scores onto an index card and keep the card beside you as you write.

The Readability Test

~ For Writers Using MS Word ~

Strive for the following scores on a per scene basis.

Words per Sentence:           15 maximum
Characters per word:            4.5 maximum
Passive Voice:                     5% maximum
Flesch Reading Ease:           80% minimum
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level:   6 maximum

~ For Writers Using WordPerfect ~

WorkPerfect uses Grammatik to compile statistics for readability. The elements below are slightly different than those used by MSWord, but they work just the same.

Strive for the following scores on a per scene basis.

Words per Sentence:        15 maximum
Syllables per word:           1.5 maximum
Passive Voice:                 5% maximum
Sentence Complexity:      30% minimum
Vocabulary Complexity:    15 maximum

This test, as well as other nifty writing tips can be found in the book, The Writer’s Little Helper, by James V. Smith, Jr.  I’ve found the book to be an invaluable aid to me in my own writing.  It’s a small-sized book for a small price that will save you more rejection letters than you would get without following its advice.  For as low as $3.50 you can buy the book used on Amazon.com!

Often writers make the mistake, believing they shouldn’t read while they are working on their own work. Many believe they might be influenced by the style of the author they are reading, and thus, lose their own voice and style within their own work. While this may happen, it will be a rare thing. You will more likely find yourself remaining true to your own style as you burrow deeper and deeper into the story you are writing.

Others, find themselves overwhelmed by the powerful writing of a pro writer, feeling their own writing is inadequate. So they avoid reading, hoping to preserve their self-esteem. But what you’re really telling yourself, is that you’re confident in your own writing and your don’t need to study the writing of a professional writer.

Both avoidance reasons are myths!

Best advice I can impart to you, is Read in between your writing session. If your writing a horror story, read some stories y your favorite horror writer. There is a reason you like his/her work and there is a reason you like writing horror. So, as you read the stories by your favorite writer (regardless of genre actually) keep your mind open to the areas of the story that draws you in, pay attention to how the writer introduces characters, how they present dialogue. You don’t have to memorize this or to mimic it. Just notice it.

Anyway, here are a few of my favorite books from the Summer.  These are just my notes and thoughts on the books, if you want full blown reviews and details on the plotlines, you can find those on Amazon.com.

Odd Thomas:  This was Koontz at his finest.  Fast paced, riveting, packed-full of 'odd', likable and quirky characters.  There is a neat evil element and the suspense sucks you in immediately.  Early on, you want to know who will live and who will die.  An excellent book for any writer eager to study the art of story-telling.  Kudos to Dean Koontz!!!

The Overnight:  Writing a novel in present tense is a rarity, and a awesome endeavor. Not many can sustain it. No many can do it well. But not so for Ramsey Campbell and not in this novel. The Overnight is a subtle chiller. It introduces you, the reader, to the paranormal as it does the characters of the bookstore ~ slowly and subtly. I enjoyed reading this book late at night, just before bed, while I lay under the covers with only my small headboard light on. Its a book you savor over time, and not one you’ll find yourself reading in one sitting, because Ramsey Campbell takes his time to immerse in the mundane drudgery of working an ordinary job.

It’s a great book to study how presence tense can work, if done right.

     The Face:  No, I'm not a Dean Koontz fanatic;and yes, I do have a wider reading range beyond that of horror fiction.  But hey, I write horror and when I write horror I read horror.  I had a lot of story deadlines to meet over the summer and most of those involved horror stories; and I have other project I'm working on that involve horror tales so I craved horror and suspense.

Although this novel possessed an evil antagonist and would be considered for speculative fiction rather than outright horror, the tale was indeed packed with suspense.  The characters here were a tad bit stereotypical for my tastes, with the exception of Fric, the neglected and most often overlooked son of a movie star.  Yet the story made up for that with the dazzling descriptive passages Koontz used to set each seen and with his use of the puzzles.

This was a page turner for me, and thus, it was savored and read in less than a week.  Neat read!

And, in case you inquiring minds want to know, I read a total of 6 books over the Summer from June through August.  For me, that's about average.