Congrats to Eugene (E.J.) Fischer!

Eugene Fischer is someone I feel like I barely know, as when we were at Clarion, Eugene preferred to be called E.J., which are my own initials, confusingly enough. Nevertheless, when I read Eugene's first sold story (which incidentally was one of his Clarion application stories), published on Strange Horizons, I finished it with such pride and nostalgia. It was so very E.J. His prose is sparse, and his logic is thorough, yet the ending will touch you in a manner that you will not expect. Wonderful work, E.J.

Read Eugene Fischer's "Husbandry" at Strange Horizons.

Congrats to Sarah Miller's First Sale!

While at Clarion, Sarah Miller had discussed creating a pen name for herself because there were already plenty of Sarah Miller's in this world. Well, her first ever sale had only a few days' turnaround until official publication, so no time for random pen names. Congrats to Sarah!

Read Sarah Miller's "The Music at Bish Bash Falls" at Everyday Weirdness.

Congrats to Shweta Narayan!

A belated but still excited shout out to Shweta Narayan for her first pro publication! Shweta attended Clarion the summer before my class, yet we were lucky enough to have her cheerful and helpful presence as a volunteer. Oh, and Shweta is definitely a Clarion star-on-the-rise, as she has recently sold her 3rd pro story!

Read Shweta's lyrical "Nira and I" at Strange Horizons.

Journeying through Thesis-land

Recently, I have discovered Thesis-land, a place where time and space have no logical relationship to who you are, what you are doing, or any sort of reality that is not completely absorbed in your head. Thesis-land is isolating, enthralling and all-encompassing, as you bang your brain against the wall in vain attempts as you re-shape your stories to re-envision your themes, re-will your characters into some semblance of life, rewrite your sentences to actually make some modicum of sense. Forget about elegance. Forget about perfection. Forget about publication. They are not attainable when you are mired in Thesis-land.

Yes, I have been exploring Thesis-land and trying to figure out where I will be after I receive this special little paper stating I have achieved a Masters of Fine Arts, despite my feeling that as a writer I am still very much an apprentice--actually I am a toddler, no longer a mewling infant, but not quite yet confident that I won't fall flat on my face each and every time I attempt that great feat of taking a writing step. And there's not the cushion of diapers to save me from the pain of falling. All tears will be shed on the hardwood floors of reality. All focus is gathered towards finishing.

Sometimes the journey
is all there is, that and faith
you will reach The End.