Well, the silly season is in full swing.

Semester two approaches and Ange is coming to the end of her Cert IV. At the same time, any financial assistance I’m receiving to complete my Diploma is also ending very abruptly, so, with rising agitation, we are scouting for courses to pick up on next semester.

There was an awesome Associate Degree in Writing course at Southern Cross University, but it’s not available until next year. Likewise, a groovy Diploma of E-Journalism from Central Queensland University is also unavailable. That brings me down to Bachelor of Arts Degrees. Three years of commitment is a long time. Possibly too long for my attention span.

It’s ironic that I will get precious little from a uni course, and yet it’s been a backseat dream of mine for years. Now I’m in a position to do it, I have the experience and knowledge that I don’t strictly need a course.

While things are very much up in the air, I may end up at either Edith Cowan University (and praying for advanced standing) doing real-life, in-person tutorials, or else UCQ or Southern Cross doing a correspondence Degree. Eek!

In and around all this, my story Siege was rejected by Fables & Reflections, and consequently picked up within 24 hours by Marginata magazine (the WA Writers Centre magazine, which has a statewide distribution in excess of 1000, which impressed me when I heard about it). In all honesty, I never expected Siege to see print.

The near miss – Alley of Dead Whores was rejected by Brutarian magazine. This US prozine stated it was a fine story, but too long for their close to brimming line-up this year. I’m sending Alley to The Third Alternative mag in the UK. The main drawback is the story’s size – at 6000 words, it’s a shade too long for most prozines.

The near hit – Robbie from Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine let me know Ian (the story) is being considered for his forthcoming issue of ASIM. Cool. Fingers crossed there.

The bullseye – my strange little story/poem Countdown Macabre was accepted by Flashshot, bringing my contribution to their schedule (and yearly anthology) to three stories (comprising Countdown, Hell & Web).

Today I’ve spent pretty much in formatting mode – editing Alley of Dead Whores (adding one last touch), and Wisps of Pallid Snow (Ange changed it for a more dramatic ending), as well as printing out applications for various things (see future blog posts for more info) and conducting research.

At last, my Dread Seasons Quartet – comprising Naked Azure Sky (Summer), The Rustle of Autumnal Leaves (Autumn/Fall), Wisps of Pallid Snow (Winter), & Rainbow Speckled Field (Spring) – is complete.

Today, it was Winter’s turn, as I put together Wisps of Pallid Snow.

There is a very high level of verisimilitude between these four stories, a very high level. I have tried to give each a unique flavour, but the structure is very much the same for each, and they all come in at 500 words (or just over). And of course, the titles are derived from the very last sentence of each.

In the breakdown, I notice some striking themes in these stories. The Spring and Autumn stories feature children (girl and boy respectively). The Summer and Winter stories feature a man and woman. It is all very balanced out.

While the seasons are incarnated, and form the essence of any challenge/creepiness, I realise it is the actions of the main characters that drive the ending.

Hayden and Mindy, (from Autumn and Spring) are cautious. Kids who do not contravene the spirit of the seasons. For instance, while Mindy’s friends are chasing butterflies or picking flowers (i.e. interfering with nature), she makes no impact on her surroundings, and therefore is spared the fate of the others. Similarly with Hayden. Of course, they both may have a few mental scars to bear…

Jake (Summer) is an adventurer setting out to conquer the elements. That in itself is not a big deal, but it’s his arrogance that gets him in trouble, and ultimately sees him pay the price.

On the contrary, Sara (Winter) is angry at her husband’s betrayal, and bears no direct malice to the season, just some indirect invectives. Ultimately the spirit of winter gives her what she wants, but takes away just as much. In a twisted way, her fate could be construed as a reward.

Now, as for submitting these stories, I have already subbed ‘Rustle’ to Ideomancer, but as they have a Jay Lake homage happening at the moment(yeah, he had the foresight to do a 12-part series, not a 4-part one like me! And yes, like on their discussion board, I honestly don’t ‘get’ most of his stuff, it comes down to the rant I had about Chizine’s contents about a month ago [somewhere in the April archive I'm sure]), the story may be rejected. They certainly spun Practical Joke out quick enough.

My plan is, if Ideomancer accept Rustle, then I’ll send the other 3 to them. If not, I’ll send the 4-set to Amazing Stories in the US. If that fails, I’ll try Weird Tales (once I hear on the progress of Hear No Evil).

Just a quick comment on Comments – the little link you see at the bottom of every post. Feel free (I INSIST) to leave comments on my self-indulgent postings. I need to believe there is more than just ME making the counter tick over.

I don’t care if you’re a relly, friend, complete stranger, or bitter enemy. Just COMMENT away! Go on!

I’ve sent a couple of queries off in the last two days, both to the US, both to magazines concerning reprints of my stories.

As mentioned previously, the crew at Weird Tales responded promptly and personably. Today I received a very similiar level of response and courtesy from The Book of Dark Wisdom.

Despite the ominous title, the editor was very polite and considerate in his welcoming response to my query. I have little doubt both magazines are swamped with submissions, as well as the usual headaches that challenge editors, so it’s great to see this level of detail, especially for unknowns like myself.

So, on the submissions merri-go-round, I have sent On Dark Clouds Borne to The Book of Dark Wisdom, Hear No Evil to Weird Tales, and a slightly revised version of Countdown Macabre to both Flashshot and Antipodean SF (both markets that have snapped up all my submissions without a second though). I’m definately hedging the bets with these reprints and simultaneous submissions, but I realise it comes down to the fine print. Most editors specify either no reprints, or no simultaneous submissions etc. The trick is to find the ones who do offer some leeway (such as the generous publications listed above) and to ever so politely enquire. The worst that can happen is a negative response.

Also on the subject of the niceties of editors, I received issue 6 of Dark Animus in the mail today. I was ecstatic, namely because I hadn’t paid any subscription fees and the magazine turned up anyway! I thought ‘awesome – free mag! Gotta love the Aussie small press!’ but then my conscience kicked in. Rather than offering some lame excuse about the cheque being in the mail, I promptly logged onto paypal and squared the ledger. Karma is a bitch, but one you MUST obey – just like Ange. Just kidding on that last bit my love, really!

Using my amazing submission tracking utility [Submissions Track 2000 (TM)], I discovered today that I have:

20 short stories currently being evaluated by magazines and anthologies in Australia and USA.

3 short stories entered into competitions in Australia and UK.

1 collection of short stories under evaluation by an Australian publisher.

2 submitted queries to literary agents in the US.

Actually, I lied about the tracking utility – total fabrication. But the rest of the information is correct at time of posting.