Distant Moons
A quick (ish) (not really) writing update.
I previously mentioned in a note, without sharing specific details, that I’d finished a short story.
I had hoped to wait until either the story sold or I put it to another use before talking about it, but since it could be a while before either happens, here’s a quick update.
The story is called “The Long-Unburied Dead.” It’s Moon Horror with a Military SciFi vibe and an upbeat ending. Ok, maybe not exactly upbeat, but not a total downer either. The main character is Agatha “Aggie” Agarty, a former Marine who joined a security unit protecting a moon base from monsters.
It’s a fun story, in it’s own quirky way, though it was quite fiddly to write. I started writing it on 22 February 2022. This past January, I managed to finish the penultimate scene, then got stuck because…fiddly bits. A lot of research went into this one, including what kinds of weapons can be used on the moon, how long it takes to strap into a spacesuit, how to consume food on the moon, how to keep Newton’s Third Law of Motion from killing all my characters while they’re fighting, and how to deal with gravity inside a permanent moon base.
Like I said. Fiddly bits. For some of it, I resorted to handwavium, but I did aim for authenticity with most of the fiddlies.
Anyway, after sitting on the story for months, I finally said enough and wrote the final scene last month. It took another coupla weeks to work out all the kinks (boy, were there some kinks!). Soon as I finished quashing those, I formatted the story and put it to work.
By “put it to work,” I mean that I submitted it to a pro-rates short form fiction magazine. I confess: it was kicked back to me within two days as a form rejection.
Did the rejection upset me? No. Rejections of this type aren’t necessarily an indication of poor quality. More often, the submitted story isn’t quite what the editor’s looking for. In the words of most editors, it’s “not a good fit.”
And that’s fine. Editors are curators as much as anything. They’re experts at knowing the market for their particular outlet. I’m a reader, too, and have a high appreciation for the hard work editors put into curating stories.
So. The next step is to submit “The Long-Unburied Dead” to the next market on my list. Yes, I have a list, with notes, and will modify it as needs must. Maybe an editor will pick it up, maybe they won’t. This is a clear case of if I don’t try, I’ll never know.
Perhaps this attitude seems flippant or reckless, or even arrogant or uncaring. The truth is that I know the story will be rejected again and don’t give a flying flip. To quote Mark Manson, the author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, confidence is comfort with failure. Failure is a given in the publishing industry, whether through rejection or a lack of sales or a story that didn’t hit the market just right and garnered a lot of negative reviews.
If one piddly form rejection sends me scurrying into the corner with my tail between my legs, I may as well throw out my computer now. Not gonna happen, folks. The number one trait of successful authors is that they refused to quit. I aim to be successful in my own quirky way.
Plus, I have a plan…
Because the other truth about putting your stories out there is that the submissions process can be a tedious slog. My patience may wear thin before the story finds a home. Rejections may not send me scurrying, but time lags will. I’d rather not sit on a story for too long when I know it can be out there winning over readers.
To that end, whether it sells quickly or not, “The Long-Unburied Dead” will eventually be bundled into a four-story collection called Distant Moons. There’s the cover. Ain’t it a beaut?
Three other stories will go into Distant Moons along with “The Long-Unburied Dead.” I have a list of ideas to choose from and am deciding which one I want to tackle next. Possibly another, stronger Military SciFi, this time without the Horror? Maybe so.
In the meantime, I’m contemplating writing something (or several somethings) for the many wonderful anthologies currently seeking stories. I couldn’t quite get one pulled together for Raconteur Press’s Wyrd West Vol. II anthology, but have a pertinent-ish idea that’s slowly developing in the back of my mind. Hopefully, it will come together before the open call begins for Vol. III in early February 2025.
Or I may choose another anthology to aim for. Alpha Mercs has an open call for an anthology styled as “Bon Jovi meets Firefly.” Galaxy’s Edge is looking for ocean themed stories. A project called Stop Surveillance Copaganda is looking for anti-surveillance stories.
Did I mention the insane amount of open calls Raconteur Press is doling out between now and the end of 2025? No? Well, there are a lot. I’m sure other opportunities will pop up over the next few months as well.
Naturally, writing and submitting a story doesn’t guarantee acceptance, but if you haven’t figured this out already, even a rejection is a win in my book. It means I’m trying, I haven’t given up, and there’s nowhere to go but up.
Seriously. Nowhere but up.
Also, no story is wasted. I can always find a use for a well-written short story.
As for longer fiction, I’m slowly immersing myself in two stories, one a stand alone novel, the other the start of a series (small hint above). That’s as much as I’m at liberty to say until one or the other is close to being finished. After that, you may have a hard time getting me to hush up about them.
Do not expect either to be published quickly. For now, I’m taking my time with them, though hopefully not another 2.5 years (the time it took to finish “The Long-Unburied Dead”), and may submit at least one to a publisher. It depends on how quirky the finished products are.
I came to terms with my story-quirkiness a long time ago. It’s why I’m trying to move into SciFi and Fantasy, because I think here, in these places where imagination is not as constrained as in other genres, my stories may find a good home. But I’m realistic enough to understand that publishers may not want quirky stories no matter how well-written and tropey they are.
In which case, I have a plan…