  Short Stories
This week: Looking Forward to 2017 Edited by: Shannon  
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Welcome to the Short Stories Newsletter. I am Shannon and I'm your editor this week. |
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"The new year stands before us, like a chapter in a book, waiting to be written. We can help write that story by setting goals." ~ Melody Beattie
We're less than a week away from 2017. So much promise; so many possibilities. Have you thought about resolutions? Is there anything you'd like to change in the coming year? Is writing anywhere on your list?
I can always think of reasons not to write: I'm tired, I worked all day, the carpet needs vacuuming, there's laundry to do, blah, blah, blah, but in 2016 I stepped outside my comfort zone and participated in a few short story contests (one was an international contest with over 2000 participants) that were challenging and a whole lot of fun, too. Stressful, but fun. 
With the experience came an epiphany: I'm a decent writer. People enjoy reading my work, and many are rooting for me to advance to the finals. I didn't make it to the finals, but I did make it to the semi-finals--top 300 out of 2100 writers, and nothing in recent years has boosted my confidence and will to write more than that did.
So this year I've decided to push myself even further. I've already signed up for the next round of the international short story contest that begins in January, and I plan to revisit their global flash fiction challenge in July.
Here are my WDC goals for the year:
 Enter at least three official WDC contests.
Donate packages to at least two raffles/auctions.
Read/review at least four pieces written by others every month (one per week).
Help judge at least one contest.
Enter at least three non-official WDC contests.
Donate GPs to at least four WDC causes/fundraisers.
Continue writing two WDC newsletters every month.
There. It's in writing, so you'll have to hold me to it.
In addition to writing, I always set a reading goal--usually 90 books per year. I'll do the same in 2017. Stephen King said “If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that,” and I agree 100%. Writers must read. After all, how will you know whether or not your writing is any good if you've never seen good writing ... or bad writing, for that matter?
Do you have a list of resolutions? What are your writing goals for the coming year? Respond to this newsletter and I will share your comments in next month's edition.
Thank you for reading.
"Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365-page book. Write a good one.” ~ Brad Paisley
P.S. Everyone who responds to this newsletter will receive an exclusive trinket. I will retire this month's limited-edition trinket on January 25, 2017, when my next short stories newsletter goes live.
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I hope you enjoy this week's featured selections. Please do the authors the courtesy of reviewing the ones you read. Thank you, and have a great week!
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And if you're interested in bidding on signed pieces of writing by your favorite WDC authors, check this out! Bidding ends January 14, 2017.
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The following is in response to "Don't Fear the Reaper" . Everyone who responded will receive this month's trinket. If you responded and didn't receive it, please email me to let me know.
Princess Megan Snow Rose  writes, "I love how the rules of vampires and werewolves have changed in movies, books and TV. I don't like zombies but I love Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and I enjoy supernatural world things. This newsletter was informative and gives another perspective on zombies and I may read zombie books and watch more zombie movies." Thank you! 
Jeff  writes, "One of my favorite post-apocalyptic settings isn't from a book or a movie, but rather a tabletop roleplaying game. Palladium Books is a smaller game company that created a post-apocalyptic world called 'Rifts Earth.' I may have mentioned this before in a previous newsletter comment, but the basic premise is that a cataclysmic, near extinction-level event causes the simultaneous deaths of billions of people... and the resulting massive discharge of psychic energy tears open the fabric of space and time. Ley lines of magic energy erupt across the globe and intersect at points of great power called 'rifts which are portals to other locations, planets, or even dimensions. Creatures start flooding into Earth through the Rifts and suddenly humanity is a weak and endangered species on its own planet. I love this setting so much, I wish Palladium Books was a little less controlling; they refuse to let movie development or book publishing out of their hands, so the setting hasn't grown or taken off nearly as much as I think it could have.  " Ooh, this sounds so awesome! Thank you for sharing, Jeff! 
S Ferguson~ Prepping for Prep  writes, "The book Cell by Stephen King was great! Until the end. So if you want a good read but aren't afraid to be disappointed in the end check it out. Oh, also The 5th Wave--good beginning to end. I have started writing a post-apocalypse novel that takes place years after the end. It is a work in progress but reviews are welcome!  " I just watched that film the other day. Yeah, really liked it until the end. The books are always better, so maybe I'll check it out. It's sitting on my bookshelf, along with The 5th Wave, but I read so many books (nearly 100 every year) I have more in my queue than I could ever possibly read, and I add to it every day. Thank you for sharing your story! I've included a link below.
Elfin Dragon-finally published  writes, "I must say that from the title of your newsletter I was hoping for something a little more interesting. The topic of death can stir far more interesting tales that post-apocalyptic zombie tales. I mean what about rewrites of classics like Death Takes a Holiday which became the movie Meet Joe Black? And what of the classic Hitchcock tale The Trouble With Harry? A comedy of epic proportions which still deals with the topic of death; and the character of death. As I said, from your title and your contents - disappointment." Thank you for taking the time to read and comment. 
Annette  writes, "As a teenager, I read The Stand by Stephen King. It influenced me profoundly at the time. Imagining myself as one of the survivors in such a scenario, I became a nurse to be useful if the survival of the human race is up to me and a handful of others. As a writer, I haven't written any post-apocalyptic fiction, but I wrote one in which the known world collides with the fairy world and both have to suddenly get along as the magic separating the two breaks apart. Not exactly an apocalypse, but a massive change in the world for sure." Where's the link to your story?  I'd love to share it.
CHRISTMAS cub-BELLS R RINGING!  writes, " I'm not a huge fan of zombies or aliens, unless of course, it's E.T. or a Star Wars creature. I keep thinking I should watch The Walking Dead to see what the hype is all about, but Hubby refuses to watch it. We both did like Warm Bodies though. It was a little gross, but sweet! I like it when authors/writers think outside the box. BTW, I really like your quote by TS Elliot at the beginning of this newsletter!" By not watching TWD you aren't missing much. I haven't seen Warm Bodies. Sounds like I need to add it to my queue, though. Thank you! 
BIG BAD WOLF is Merry  writes, "Well, if you want to talk about different takes on the whole zombie thing, here's two movies set in the 1800's, that have 19th century people dealing with the Walking Dead, during and after the American Civil War: Abraham Lincoln Vs. Zombies, a knockoff of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, has our 16th president dealing with an outbreak of the infected, and has him teaming up with a certain Confederate general, plus a number of other people who become famous later on--Pat Garret, young Teddy Roosevelt, and even one John Booth (and, spoiler alert, the incident at the theater, that was a necessity, for the good of the nation); Exit Humanity Post-Civil War, an ex-Confederate soldier tries to rebuild his life when the outbreak hits, and tries to find his family, and must deal with Renegades trying to use the situation to their advantage." Ooh, these sound interesting! Are they any good? I'll have to see if Netflix has them. Thanks! 
Mare ~ extended hiatus writes, "Extremely helpful and insightful newsletter!" Glad you liked it. Thank you for reading. 
eyestar~* writes, "I really liked your evocative theme title! I have not read much of this kind of story but the idea that certain themes get old and familiar can be true of other genres. Your ideas for changing it up are creative and cool for an article. Thanks for sharing your experience with this genre. Your choices of items are intriguing titles. I am called to read the Briar Rose one! Keep on shining as the star you are." Aw, thank you, eyestar~*! I appreciate you. 
Dragon is hiding writes, "I'm definitely not much of a post-apocalyptic type of person because I get scared way, way too easily, but these are cool suggestions for action/adventure stories too! Thanks!! " You're welcome! I cover my eyes or turn my head when it gets too gross, and I don't watch movies like Saw or The Hills Have Eyes. I'm not into gore for the sake of gore. For me story comes first, so if there isn't a solid story I'm not wasting my time. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment. 
Jewell writes, "I feel like I have to point out that The Walking Dead isn't supposed to be about the zombies. It's supposed to be about the living as they deal with the dead. They are, in fact, the true walking dead. I think that's the twist that the authors intended to make on the genre (via the graphic novels), but most people just want to see zombie action rather than drama between characters with zombies kind of floating around, myself included. I think post-apocalyptic fiction is something that everyone can get into, because everyone has had that 'worst case scenario' in their head at one time or another about what they would do if something really bad happened. It explores the resilience of the human race while also showing just how bad it can get. I've actually fallen in love with the post-nuclear apocalypse that is shown in the Fallout game universe because I love that weird 50s nostalgia packed in. They put a twist on the post-apocalyptic genre by removing transistors and the modern technology that followed. Everything is nuclear powered and still runs on cathode tubes. It makes for some interesting set pieces." Yes, yes, and yes! I remember seeing an author interview where TWD writers said the title references survivors, not dead. I've never played Fallout, but I've seen it advertised and thought it looked interesting. Thank you for sharing and feeding (see what I did there? ) into my post-apocalyptic addiction. I'll check out the game.
Kai Rajaniemi writes, "I find this very interesting because I love post apocalyptic/apocalyptic stories and have thought about writing something, but just never had any idea how to write it well. Thanks for sharing! " Yay! Thank YOU, and please share a link to your story once it's finished. 
ladeecaid waites, "As I was reading your newsletter, I thought I don't really read post-apocalyptic. It really doesn't interest me. Well, that isn't true. Oh sure, I'd pick up a mystery before I would sci-fi, but I've read some pretty good aftermath books. There is The Stand of course. Good book. There is also The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I really liked that one. The most recent one I've read was really good. The only reason I picked it up was because the author had the same first name as I. Pure by Julianna Baggott. I've never seen a take on post-apocalyptic like the one she wrote. She had twists I wasn't expecting. It was a fascinating book; I recommend it." I've read The Stand and The Road, but I haven't read Pure, and I'm always on the lookout for a good read, so thank you! Yes, I think people forget that not all post-apocalyptic fiction is about zombies. Some very famous post-apocalypse books, like the ones you mentioned, had nothing to do with the living dead. My favorite is Earth Abides. Thank you for the recommendation! 
~ Aqua ~ writes, "I absolutely agree with you on the zombies. I have disliked zombies because of the way they are presented in every single movie and season. It has gotten boring and thinking about it, I could be interested in watching seasons having zombies in them if there was an interesting twist." Yes! Thank you for sharing your thoughts and comments. 
sindbad  writes, "This is a pertinent and practical topic you have written and to be honest, we all have a fetish for new and pristine articles or book. However I will prefer some simplification on 'change' rather than attaching it to setting, behavior, stakes, rules or objective. As my take on post apocalyptic fiction and its popularity is based, purely on upbringing of a specific era." As the article states, these are but a "few ideas for writing a hackneyed topic with a fresh new perspective." You and only you can decide what's right for your work. Every writer has an individual style--a unique voice to share with the world, and originality is not only welcome but encouraged. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and comments. 
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Short Stories: December 28, 2016 Issue [#8006]
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