Eight Hints

Remember this post where I showed you a bunch of pictures but didn't really explain what they were? Like this:

And this:

Well, maybe this will give you a better idea of the overall specialness of this chapbook:

Yes, that's right. Handcrafted by J. A. Tyler & Co., this special edition chapbook is limited to 500 copies and includes eight of my Hint Fiction pieces, six reprints and two originals. Eight Hints was produced as a promotional item, with the intention of simply giving all 500 copies away.

Where?

Well, at the Hint Fiction events in November, of course:

Now say you can't make it to any of those events but really really really want a copy of this chapbook. Well, I don't blame you. These little babies are gorgeous! And to get your hands on one you will have to do one of two things:

  1. Pre-order or buy the Hint Fiction anthology from an independent bookstore (IndieBound can help you find one near you), scan or take a picture of the receipt, and send it to me at robert (at) robertswartwood (dot) com.
  2. Or, once the anthology comes out, take a picture of yourself reading the book and send it to the same e-mail address. (I'll post your picture in a special album on the Hint Fiction Facebook page so be creative!)

Make sure to include your address. A copy of Eight Hints will be sent to you. I'll even sign and inscribe it, if you'd like.

But that's not all! The first twelve people to participate in this giveaway will also win a free 5 oz. bottle of Wolgamuth, the official aged red pepper of Hint Fiction!

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The Ultimate Flash Fiction Package

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Hint Fiction: An Anthology of Stories in 25 Words or Fewer hits bookstores on November 1st here in the United States, and to celebrate, we're having a contest!

First, what is Hint Fiction? Inspired by Ernest Hemingway's six-word story -- "For sale: baby shoes, never worn" -- Hint Fiction is a story of 25 words or fewer that suggests a larger, more complex story. The anthology features 125 stories by writers worldwide, including such luminaries as Joyce Carol Oates, James Frey, Peter Straub, and Ha Jin. Here is what people are saying already:

“The perfect story collection for all of us with too little time on our hands is a brilliant reminder of the magic that happens when you string the right words together. A must-read for anyone who is or wants to be a writer.” — Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling author of House Rules

“Some of these stories suggest entire novels in just few words. So, in this small book, you have a whole library. It’s reading at the speed of light.” — Robert Shapard, editor of Sudden Fiction and Flash Fiction

“The stories in Robert Swartwood’s Hint Fiction have some serious velocity.  Some explode, some needle, some bleed, and some give the reader room to dream. They’re fun and addictive, like puzzles or haiku or candy. I’ve finished mine but I want more.” — Stewart O’Nan, author of Last Night at the Lobster and Songs for the Missing

The anthology is currently available for pre-order at:

You can follow Hint Fiction on Twitter, "like" it on Facebook, and even add it to your shelf on Goodreads.

Now what's the Ultimate Flash Fiction Package? These eight wonderful anthologies of course!

The total cost for these eight books is $120.00, and it can all be yours.

How?

By simply linking back to this contest. Put it on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Then paste the URL in the comments section of this post (if on Facebook or any other password-protected site, paste your profile URL). The contest runs until midnight, October 31st, EST. A winner will be picked by random and notified by e-mail and announced here November 1st. Five runners-up will receive a copy of Hint Fiction. Have fun!

(Note that the website may hold your comments for moderation, so don't worry if it doesn't appear right away.)

Disturbing Google Search Of The Day

I always get a kick out of the search engine terms people use to stumble onto my blog. Mostly it's either my name (or my evil twin brother Robert Smartwood) and hint fiction, but sometimes a few oddball ones slip through. Like currently I'm getting a lot of hits from people searching "webbed feet" and "ashton kutcher webbed feet" because of this blog post concerning my story "Excerpts From The Journal Of A Boy With Webbed Feet." Not too long ago someone searched "the silver ring by robert swartwood how many pages" which is interesting considering The Silver Ring is an e-book and doesn't actually have pages in the literal sense. But today I got a real doozy worth sharing. Are you ready for it? "wach my wife strip inpublic"

Yes, you read that right. Not only can't the poor pervert spell watch, he (she?) thinks in public is one word. And if that wasn't disturbing enough, this whack-job was sent to my website!

As it turns out, if you Google that phrase, this blog post comes up about my vacation in Vegas, where I talk about the "strip" and how cool it would be to "watch" the lights approaching at night when landing and how "my wife" and I had breakfast at Denny's and how that Hangover T-shirt is something you would never really wear "in public." So yeah, a bit disturbing, but what can you do?

Make sure to tune in tomorrow at noon(ish) here on the East Coast for a very exciting and cool announcement concerning a new giveaway contest. Here are two keywords to give you a hint: "ultimate" and "flash fiction."

4th Annual Micro Award Open For Submissions

Alan Presley, the new Micro Award Administration, asked me to pass along the following information:

The 4th Annual Micro Award will be open for submissions from Oct 1 - Dec 31, 2010. The Micro Award is presented annually for flash fiction of any genre, not exceeding 1000 words, published in 2010. Editors may submit two stories; writers may submit one. The winner of the $500 prize and all other finalists will be announced on Feb 17, 2011. Visit our website for official rules and submission guidelines: http://www.microaward.org.

By the way, in case you didn't know, it's already October 1st, so send in those submissions!

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One More Month ...

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... until the release of the Hint Fiction anthology. Aren't you excited? Yes, yes you are. Also, a quick reminder that the deadline for the Gotham Writers' Workshop Hint Fiction contest is October 11. Get those entries in!

Have a great weekend. Be sure to check in Monday for a very special announcement.

Oh, and is anyone else psyched about Elmore Leonard's new novel, Djibouti, coming out this month? I must say, I'm not as psyched as I am about Dennis Lehane's Moonlight Mile, but still, you can never go wrong with Leonard. Here is the master himself answering some questions.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuOgcbI59Xw