Motownphilly Back Again

As a reminder I’ll be participating in a reading at Big Blue Marble Bookstore tonight between 7-9 pm along with Barry Graham, Randall Brown, Curtis Smith, Scott Oliver, Drew Kalbach, Daniel Wallace, and Peter Schwartz. Thank you to Lisa and Jeff D. for humoring me last week and suggesting I read "Superman's Dead." I was all for it until I actually tried to read that story out loud and realized that because it's second person it will most likely be too confusing.

So what will I read? I'm not sure yet. But remember if all goes according to plan, my wife will be coming with me and will videotape my reading using the Qik application on my phone, so anyone can view it live on my Qik page. I’ll post something on Twitter and Facebook a few minutes before it goes live. When exactly, I don’t know, but sometime between 7 and 9.

Of course, if you are in the area, stop by!

Reading At Big Blue Marble

Next week I'll be participating in a reading at Big Blue Marble Bookstore (Wednesday, June 9, between 7-9 pm) along with Barry Graham, Randall Brown, Curtis Smith, Scott Oliver, Drew Kalbach, Daniel Wallace, and Peter Schwartz. Barry and Peter are currently hiking/hitchhiking/roaming the east coast, and this is one of their stops. Normally I'm not one to jump at the chance to do a reading, but Barry asked me if I'd like to read and I said sure.

Now here are my thoughts on readings -- not everything a writer writes should be read aloud. I mean, a writer could read anything they wrote aloud, but some stories are best left alone on the page. I think it was T. C. Boyle who said that he doesn't do readings; he does performances. And that's the best way authors should think about readings -- not just standing up in front of people talking in a dry monotone, but actually bringing their stories and characters to life.

So I've been thinking about some good stories to read next week and have narrowed them down to a few pieces, and I'd like to get some opinions on which you think I should go with. I figure for the setting flash fiction pieces would work best. Humor is a plus, too. So far I'm thinking one or two of the following:

• "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia"
• "The Dry Patch"
• "Superman's Dead"
• "Multiplicity"

Of course, there are a bunch of others to choose from, so if anyone would like to suggest another story or two, please do.

Because here's the fun part ...

If all goes according to plan, my wife will be coming with me and will videotape my reading using the Qik application on my phone, so anyone can view it live on my Qik page. I'll post something on Twitter and Facebook a few minutes before it goes live. When exactly, I don't know. The reading is between 7 and 9 next Wednesday evening. And I don't expect anyone to be sitting in front of their computers waiting to see this. But if you do happen to be online around that time, and see my tweet directing you to the page, feel free to click on it. I can't imagine the video and sound quality will be stellar, but it should definitely be interesting. And fun. After all, isn't that what it's all about?

This Is For All My Peeps Out There

My hint fiction piece "Peep" appeared last year at The Northville Review. Quite recently I wrote a reflective piece for the Northville Notebook, where contributors give notes on their work.

And if you haven't had a chance to check out my story "Multiplicity" yet over at Every Day Fiction, please do so. As I'd predicted, for the most part it got slammed in the comments section, which is fantastic. It seems readers are split right down the middle: either they "get" it or they don't ... or maybe there's nothing to "get"?

Finally, I just learned that both The Silver Ring and Through the Guts of a Beggar are now available at Barnes & Noble.com. The Silver Ring is listed for $0.00, and Through the Guts of a Beggar is listed for $0.99. And even better, you don't need a Nook to download them!

The Story Of Many Jeffs

So you remember me posting this video on Wednesday? Well, my story "Multiplicity" is featured today at Every Day Fiction. It's a quirky little tale that used to have a title similar to this blog post but which was improved upon greatly based on a suggestion made by the one and only Roxane Gay. Next week I'll talk more about the inspiration, but right now I'll let the story run its course. I always get a kick out of the comments readers leave at EDF, and I'm sure this story is going to get a pummeling. Have a great weekend.

The Cigarette Tree

I didn't get a chance to post this because of the Hint Fiction announcement (which, if you haven't heard, I'm hosting another contest), but yesterday my story "The Cigarette Tree" was published at Staccato Fiction. It's probably one of my quieter stories. Plus, it's based on true events (well, as a boy I did go and stay with my grandmother for a week or two during the summers, and she did, at one time, smoke a lot, so let's just say it's somewhat based on true events).

In other news, the table of contents has been posted for the edition of the Postscripts anthology I somehow managed to sneak my way into. I still can't believe that happened. And I just got an e-mail from the editor letting us (the contributors) know that the signature sheets are starting to make the rounds. Boy, now I really feel like a real writer! I just hope that when they arrive and I start signing them I don't get so nervous that I throw up all over them. Now that would be a major faux pas, no?