2012: The Year in Review (Part 1)

A week into January, life begins to return to normal. The ornaments have been taken down, carefully wrapped in tissue paper, and packed away again until next Christmas. The tree (a real one this year) is out on the brush pile, currently providing temporary shelter for birds and already well on its way to becoming the dry and brittle centerpiece of next midsummer's bonfire. The last of the pine needles have been vacuumed out of the carpet; the living room furniture returned to normal configuration; the holiday cards taken down and changes-of-addresses noted and filed away; and the NFL playoffs have begun as they rightly should, with the Packers beating the snot out of the Vikings. It's time to pause, take a deep breath, and take stock of the situation.

(Read the rest at StupefyingStories.com)

STUPEFYING STORIES 1.11 RELEASED

Hard to believe it's December 2012 already. Depending on who you listen to we only have about three weeks left before the world ends, either from magnetic pole reversal, crossing the galactic ecliptic, the dawning of the Age of Aquarius, a collision with Planet X, global warming, global cooling, the return of Quetzalcoatl, President Obama and Speaker of the House Boehner joining hands, flooring it, and going full Thelma & Louise off the edge of the fiscal cliff, or the regrettable and wholly inexplicable failure of the Ancient Mayans to invent the perpetual calendar.

In any case, as we were putting together this book, we thought: what better way to go out with a bang that with a bunch of great stories exploring the end of the world—and what might come after? From ecological catastrophes to alien invasions; from tyrannical overreaching central governments to dangerous unfettered cowboy capitalists: It's the End of the World, As We Know It!

And the stories in this book will make you feel just fine.

STUPEFYING STORIES 1.11 (a.k.a., "the December edition"), is edited by award-winning writer Bruce Bethke and features:

   "We Talk Like Gods," by Jon David
   "Tiny, Tiny Hungers," by Mark Wolf
   "Moonbubble," by Eric Cline
   "The Relic," by Lou Antonelli
   "Mr. Non-Existent," by Paul Malone
   "Blue Stripped," by Gerry Huntman
   "HoPE," by A. A. Leil
   "Avocado Rutabaga Aubergine," by M. Bennardo
   "In the Shadows of the Empire of Coal," by Shaun Duke
   "Measure of Intelligence," by Torah Cottrill
   "The Gods of Sand and Stone," by Joel V. Kela

Now available for Amazon Kindle and Kindle Reader apps at these links!

US  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AFYXAX0
UK  https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00AFYXAX0
DE  https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00AFYXAX0
FR  https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B00AFYXAX0
IT  https://www.amazon.it/dp/B00AFYXAX0
ES  https://www.amazon.es/dp/B00AFYXAX0
JP  http://www.amazon.jp/dp/B00AFYXAX0

Now available for Barnes & Noble Nook and Nook Reader apps at these links!
US  unnecessarily complex URL
UK  Amazon helpfully supplies all links. B&N makes you hunt. Check back later or let us know what it is, if you find it.

Coming soon to the Apple iTunes iBookstore!

STUPEFYING STORIES 2.1 (1.10) RELEASED

From the Editor-in-Chief’s Desk
By Bruce Bethke 

Along with discovering new writing talent, another part of our mission at STUPEFYING STORIES is to find and foster new editorial talent. Therefore for the November edition, we turned the reins over to promising newcomer M. David Blake, who has long been playing several crucial roles behind the scenes here.

The result is our first double-length book, which includes some of Mr. Blake's latest experiments in e-book design. We wanted to call it STUPEFYING STORIES 2.1, but our distribution channel had trouble with that, so we ended up having to give it the parenthetical designation of 1.10. And with that preamble out of the way...


From the (Guest-)Editor’s Desk
By M. David Blake

Welcome to Stupefying Stories 2.1

That's it, really. A dozen syllables tell you all you need to know to enjoy this issue. Those who want to ignore the preface and skip ahead to the stories are entitled to do so.

Still here? Since I am as well, I'll share a secret. Several months ago, when our chief editor asked if I'd be willing to assemble the November issue on my own, I wasn't going to accept. He lured me in by dangling a budget and a deadline in front of my face, with the promise of complete autonomy.

He gave it to me, too. No one else has seen all of the pieces, as they were being assembled... and that includes the regular Stupefying staff.

Autonomy is a nice concept, but it comes with a price. In all likelihood, no other combination of our associate editors would have selected these same stories from the (deep!) slush I processed. My instructions were simply to produce the best issue possible, given the available resources and time. “Best” is a subjective valuation.

While approaching that task, I had the privilege of working with an incredibly creative group of writers. To the extent that you enjoy the result, all the credit goes to them.

On the other hand, if you notice any typographical errors, or if you are unable to suspend your disbelief long enough to get through the next sixty-four thousand words, that’s my fault.

There is no guarantee you will enjoy all of these stories. But here’s another secret: I love each of them. Should you wind up seeing any of the same inscrutably beautiful things I did, I’ll feel pretty good about my selections.

There is one other thing that makes me feel good about this collection: I think my grandfather would have enjoyed reading it. He introduced me to science fiction, and to fantasy, and he loved this world.

Today would have been his ninety-third birthday.

— M. David Blake, 16 November 2012 

STUPEFYING STORIES 2.1 FEATURES:

Beauty & Loss (I)

• “Queen of Sheba” by Samuel M. Johnston
• “Wednesday’s Child” by Damien Walters Grintalis
• “Snatching Baby Delilah” by Travis Daniel Bow

Lore & Speculation

• “Nonsense 101” by Gary Cuba
• “Lucky” by Bill Ferris
• “The Ants Go Marching” by Sarah Pinsker

Folk & Superstition

• “Lover’s Knot” by Ada Milenkovic Brown
• “Girl Without a Name” by Courtney Valdes
• “Toilet Gnomes at War” by Beth Cato

Loss & Beauty (II)

• “Moondust” by Elizabeth Berger
• “Citizen Astronauts” by Holliann R. Kim
• “Heartbreath” by E. Catherine Tobler

Angels & Demons

• “Revolver” by Clarence Young
• “Office Demons” by Christie Yant
• “Number Station” by Alex Shvartsman

NOW AVAILABLE AT THESE LINKS:

For Amazon Kindle: 
US: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AAPC1CU
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00AAPC1CU
DE: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00AAPC1CU
FR: https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B00AAPC1CU
ES: https://www.amazon.es/dp/B00AAPC1CU
IT: https://www.amazon.it/dp/B00AAPC1CU
JP: http://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B00AAPC1CU

For Barnes & Noble Nook:
Worldwide: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stupefying-stories-m-david-blake/1113834598?ean=2940015769166

Apple iTunes iBookstore and other links coming soon!

STUPEFYING STORIES 1.9 RELEASED

STUPEFYING STORIES 1.9, originally scheduled for release on October 15 but delayed for three weeks by Forces Beyond Our Control, is officially released today. We still don't have live links yet, but when we do, we'll post them here. With this edition we add India and Japan to the list of countries where STUPEFYING STORIES is available, so here's hoping Amazon resolves their technical issues soon and Barnes & Noble doesn't follow their usual pattern of taking four times longer than Amazon.

Featuring the awesome cover story, "The Jade Box," by Stephen G. McDonald (and correspondingly awesome original cover art by Aaron Bradford Starr), as well as new stories by fan favorites Chuck Bordell, Jamie Lackey, and Gary Cuba, STUPEFYING STORIES 1.9 presents thirteen original tales of ghosties and ghoulies, spirits and specters, and things that go bump in the night, by an outstanding assemblage of American, Canadian, Irish, and Swedish authors. Including:

• "Between Life and Oblivion," by Samuel R. George
• "The Florence," by Chuck Bordell
• "Door in the Darkness," by David Steffen
• "Streaming," by Sharon Irwin
• "The Flint Indenture," by Tim W. Burke
• "Not Everything Goes Bump," by Robert W. Hobson
• "Ashes to Diamonds," by Jamie Lackey
• "Blood and Saltwater," by Cassandra Rose Clarke
• "A Homeowner's Dilemma," by Mark Hill
• "The Ghost Train," by Fox McGeever
• "The Jade Box," by Stephen G. McDonald
• "Going Out With a Bang," by Gary Cuba
• "The Old-Fashioned Way," by Thomas Pluck

From a haunted hotel room in Seattle to the waiting room of the afterlife; from a quietly chilling meditation in a country cemetery to an ambitious plan to revive entire dying cities with industrial-scale necromancy; from a heart-breaking tale of a love that lives on after death to a side-splitting story about a funeral gone horribly wrong that, as one early reviewer said, "puts the black in black humor," you'll find it in this edition of STUPEFYING STORIES.

Enjoy,
~brb

Now available for Amazon Kindle and Kindle Reader apps at these links!

US  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A1WYKEO
UK  https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00A1WYKEO
DE  https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00A1WYKEO
FR  https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B00A1WYKEO
IT  https://www.amazon.it/dp/B00A1WYKEO
ES  https://www.amazon.es/dp/B00A1WYKEO
JP  http://www.amazon.jp/dp/B00A1WYKEO

More links coming soon!

Open Mic Saturday

We haven't done one of these in a long time.

What's on your mind today?

At last, we have a Barnes & Noble NOOK link

Stupefying Stories 1.8 for NOOK

I have no idea why it takes Barnes & Noble four times as long to process a new book upload as it takes Amazon, but it does. Of course, as soon as I start counting on that delay...

STUPEFYING STORIES 1.8 RELEASED

From the Editor’s Desk

By Bruce Bethke

You know, I wrote a very thoughtful, serious, sober, and long keynote editorial for this book, describing in great detail what we intended to accomplish this time out. But hey, let’s be honest: this is the October edition, and around here, October really means just one thing:

HALLOWEEN!

So let’s skip the commercials and cut right to the exciting conclusion. This edition is really all about—

Vampires! Werewolves! Mummies! Living Fossils! More Vampires! Mad Scientists! Fiendish Laboratory Creations! Flying Saucers! Treacherous Aliens! Strange Little Towns Where No One And Nothing Is At It Seems! Even MORE Vampires! Zombies! Giant Prehistoric Reptiles Stomping The Daylights Out Of Tokyo! And Even MORE Aliens, Plotting To Conquer The World!

Featuring:

• "Father Pace" by Samuel Marzioli
• "A Wolf Like Leroy" by Gef Fox
• "King of the Giant Monsters" by Michael D. Turner
• "Darcy and the Gill-man" by David C. Pinnt
• "Dark Illusions" by Evan Dicken
• "Legacy of an Unwanted Titan" by Ryan Creel
• "The Wrong Side of the Rainbow" by Bill Bibo Jr.
• "On Main Street, After Closing Time" by S. R. Algernon
• "Night Shift of the Living Dead" by Tyler Tork
• "Our New Benevolent Overlords" by Andrew Kozma.

Now get yourself a big bowl of popcorn, settle back into your favorite chair, and give your sense of disbelief the night off. STUPEFYING STORIES 1.8...

IT'S ALIVE!

Bwa-ha-haaaaa!

Bruce Bethke
Editor, Stupefying Stories

---

Now available* for Amazon Kindle and Kindle Reader apps at these links: 
US http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009JWHG2U
UK https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B009JWHG2U
DE https://www.amazon.de/dp/B009JWHG2U
FR https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B009JWHG2U
IT https://www.amazon.it/dp/B009JWHG2U
ES https://www.amazon.es/dp/B009JWHG2U

* Or so Amazon claims. At the moment, while the web pages are there, they don't seem to be fully functional.

 More links to be posted as they go live.

STUPEFYING STORIES 1.7 RELEASED!

What, a new edition already? Yes!

Edited by award-winning writer Bruce Bethke and featuring stories by nine outstanding Canadian, Australian, and American authors, the STUPEFYING STORIES "Pirates & Dragons" edition is chock-full of all-new tales of dastardly pirates, lonely dragons, quarrelsome petty gods, meddlesome slimy aliens, and profoundly philosophical chickens. Featuring:

• "Riddle Me" by Richard Zwicker
• "Corsairs of the Concrete Sea" by Thoraiya Dyer
• "The Thundering Dragon of Heaven" by Michael Matheson
• "God Mic" by B. Sanford
• "The Thirty-Ninth President and the Fourteenth Tentacle" by Theodore Carter
• "Thief of Hearts" by Auston Habershaw
• "In the Castle of the Assassins" by Melissa Embry
• "The Lord of Flocks" by Alison Pentecost
• "The Little Thief" by Phil Temples

From a road in the middle of nowhere to the day after tomorrow, from a shattering tale of First Contact to the long-suppressed story that finally makes it possible to make sense of the events of the past thirty-five years, you'll find it this time out in STUPEFYING STORIES!

Now available for Amazon Kindle and Kindle Reader apps at these links:
US   http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0094WYB9G
UK   https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0094WYB9G
DE   https://www.amazon.de/dp/B0094WYB9G
FR   https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B0094WYB9G
IT   https://www.amazon.it/dp/B0094WYB9G
ES   https://www.amazon.es/dp/B0094WYB9G
Coming soon to Amazon India!

Now available for the Barnes & Noble Nook at this link:
Nook - all markets

More links to be posted as they go live.

Labor of Love Weekend Promo

This weekend only, and for the Kindle only (sorry, Nook and iPad fans) we’re practically giving away STUPEFYING STORIES 1.6 at the low, low price of just $0.99! It’s all part of the LABOR OF LOVE promotion cooked up by Elle Lothlorien, with assistance by Michele Winkler, author of “Family Magic” (which not coincidentally, you’ll find in SS 1.6), and a cast of.... many!

Tell your friends! Tell your mom! Tell everybody!  

 

 

Plugs!

Just posted! The breathtaking latest chapter of...

CLIFFHANGER 250!

STUPEFYING STORIES 1.6 ESCAPES!

Edited by award-winning writer Bruce Bethke and featuring stories by twelve outstanding American, British, and Irish authors, the STUPEFYING STORIES "Weirder Homes & Gardens" edition is filled to overflowing with all-new tales of the fantastic, funny, and frightening things that can happen in that most mundane of places: the home, with attached garden. Includes:

• "No Onions" by M. Bennardo
• "The Growing" by Sylvia Hiven
• "Family Magic" by Michele Winkler
• "Mission Accomplished" by Peter Wood
• "Helen Went Beep" by Erin Entrada Kelly
• "The Prototype" by Judith Field
• "Colorful Caps" by JC Hemphill
• "Lifesource" by Barbara V. Evers
• "The Centaur Bride" by Eric J. Juneau
• "Rooting for You" by Michael Heneghan
• "Security" by Chris Bailey Pearce
• "The Garden" by R. L. Bowden
  

From practical advice on raising homunculi to the difficult magic of raising a happy family; from things that go bump in the night (or in this case, the kitchen) to things that go beep in the bedroom; from the magical, mythical distant past to two very different visions of our technological future; and from the primal temptation to be found in a stolen paper clip to a tale of lost love that can't be described, only read: you'll find it this time out in STUPEFYING STORIES!

Available now for Amazon Kindle and the Kindle Reader App:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008YPRBCI
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B008YPRBCI
https://www.amazon.de/dp/B008YPRBCI
https://www.amazon.fr/dp/B008YPRBCI
https://www.amazon.it/dp/B008YPRBCI
https://www.amazon.es/dp/B008YPRBCI

UPDATE: The Barnes & Noble Nook link is now live!

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stupefying-stories-bruce-bethke/1112531290?ean=2940014909570

The Slushpile Survival Guide

I had an interesting exchange with an author recently. On further reflection the highlights of this dialog seem worth presenting to a wider audience, so without further ado:

---

Dear Editor,

Attached please find my story, [title redacted].

I am not sure if I am eligible to submit, as I have already had one story accepted and scheduled for publication in Stupefying Stories this year. Please advise if this is the case.

Regards,
[author's name redacted]

---

Dear [author]

Excuse me for asking, but where the heck did you get the idea that once we've accepted a story by you, you must wait until we publish it before you can submit another? When I accept a story from you it means I like your writing and want to see more of it!

So no more of this "I am not sure if I am eligible to submit" silliness, okay? Trust me, Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, and Robert Heinlein didn't wait until John Campbell published their last story before sending him their next story, and if that modus operandi was good enough for Asimov, Clarke, Heinlein, and Campbell, it's good enough for us.

Kind regards,
Bruce Bethke
STUPEFYING STORIES

---

Dear Mr. Bethke,

[...] I asked because recently some markets have made unambiguous statements about not wanting concentrations of particular authors in relatively slim time frames. [...]

---

Dear [author]

Hmm. That must be another of those goofy ideas that's come out of some creative writing program somewhere. "Let's all play fair and take turns and give everyone an equal chance." It seems akin to:

    "Now class, let's all try to find something nice to say about Sally's poem."

    "Er, I used to fear death, but as I listened to Sally read her poem, I longed for it?"

Luckily my dad was a basketball coach, not a liberal arts instructor, so I don't believe in any of that equalitarian nonsense. Every writer who pitches a manuscript to me gets an equal opportunity to impress me with their work as they come in the door, but I have absolutely zero interest in forcing equality of outcome. I run a brutal meritocracy here. I want to put my best players in the game, every chance I get, and keep them in the game for as long as I can.

I mean, let's switch to the reader's point-of-view for just a moment. When you read a really terrific story, do you think:

a.) "Wow! I really loved this story! I'd better not read anything else by this author for a while!"

or

b.) "Wow! I really loved this story! Where can I find more stories by this writer!"


Not wanting concentrations of particular authors in relatively slim time frames? Sheesh. What madness.

Now go write more stories!

Kindest regards,
Bruce Bethke
STUPEFYING STORIES

Plugs!

JUST POSTED: THE BREATHTAKING CHAPTER 27! READ IT TODAY!

What is the Cliffhanger 250?

Open Mic Saturday

Good morning all, and welcome to Open Mic Saturday. This is the place to share your news and perhaps do a little bragging. If you're writing a novel: how much progress did you make this week? If you're writing short stories: did you finish anything or submit anything this week? If you've sold or published anything recently, when is it coming out and where can we find it? In short, as a writer, what kind of progress did you make this week?

Or what else is on your mind, that you feel like sharing with the group here?

Reviews!

Wag the Fox reviews the March 2012 issue of STUPEFYING STORIES and has some pretty nice things to say about us, and then follows up with an interview with yours truly.

Read! Enjoy! Tell your friends!

~brb

Open Mic Saturday

Good morning all, and welcome to Open Mic Saturday. This is the place to share your news and perhaps do a little bragging. If you're writing a novel: how much progress did you make this week? If you're writing short stories: did you finish anything or submit anything this week? If you've sold or published anything recently, when is it coming out and where can we find it? In short, as a writer, what kind of progress did you make this week?

Or what else is on your mind, that you feel like sharing with the group here?

World Enough, and Time

Eye-Opening Research

Several Friday Challenges back, we were tasked with writing a children's story.  I had one on the back burner at the time, and the Challenge gave me the kick in the pants I needed to actually finish it.  "Quinn in Trashland" received high marks, has gone through some revisions, and just might be ready to release to the wild.  At least, that's what the First Reader, Final Reviewer, and Chief Editor all agree on (and who am I to argue with Her?).

I shared the story with a handful of test readers.  One of those, an online friend and substitute teacher, claims that every time she returns to sub for the class she read it to, they beg her for a copy of the book and demand she read it to them again.  All of the test reader responses came back with glowing encouragement.

So.  Then...the big question.  Traditional publishing or self-published ebook?

I admit, I was leaning towards the traditional route.  I still read to my kids at bedtime, even though they're all more than old enough to be reading to me instead.  I just couldn't quite picture curling up on the couch with an e-reader or laptop instead of a book, and Quinn is definitely a story that begs to be read aloud to younger kids.

I grabbed my 2011 copy of "Short Story and Fiction Writer's Market" and a highlighter, and started my research.

Wow.

Quick summary?

A fairly large portion of the children's book listings simply say something to the effect of "if you don't have an agent, you're not worthy of our attention."

The general overview of the rest?

• Generally only accept submissions the old-fashioned snail-mail way.
• "Please cool your heels for six months" waiting for a response from us, and then--
• "We won't even bother to contact you unless we want to publish your stuff."  Because, after all, they receive "more than 1000 submissions per month."
• Receive payment on publication--which, in general, is eighteen months to two years after acceptance.

Okay, I admit, these aren't a huge surprise.  Perhaps I've been spoiled by Stupefying Stories, or I'm just totally and completely clueless about the publishing world  (which is true, I am).

...but the idea of putting Quinn on a shelf for the next two to three years is not a pleasant one for me.  And that's assuming a quick acceptance, first or second try; if five or six companies reject it before it hits that two year wait for printing, none of my kids will be young enough to enjoy it when it finally hits the bookshelves.

I do not understand how the publishing world can function this way, in the days of the Internet.  Sure, the writer is lining up a paycheck two or three years down the road, but what does he do about next month...?  I just don't find this to be an acceptable, functional business model.

If I were to go that route, it would mean giving up three years' worth of sales opportunity.  Granted, I lose the big "super publisher" logo on the side of the book...and the odds of my seeing it on a store shelf next to Curious George or Willy Wonka are fairly slim...and I'll have to do all of the advertising and sales myself, just like with the other ebooks I've got in mind.  Is there a huge difference between the two?  Would I really be passing up a huge opportunity by doing it myself rather than wait three more years to see it in print...?

Okay.  I give.  

The Writer's Market goes back on the shelf, to collect some more dust.

I am contacting some artist friends I know to work out a deal on illustrating "Quinn in Trashland" for a self-published ebook.  If anyone knows of any poor starving artists...send them my way.  

If it sells enough copies, perhaps it will work its way to a self-published print-on-demand project...?  Or one of those big-name publishing houses will come to me...?

Regardless...wish me luck.  I hope you're all interested in curling up on the couch with your kids, and Quinn, and your digital e-reading device of choice.

-=ad=-

Now playing on StarShipSofa

"Return to Earth," by Ryan M. Jones, first published in STUPEFYING STORIES 1.1 (October 2011), is this week's Main Fiction feature on StarShipSofa, the Hugo Award-winning SF podcast. Check it out!

http://www.starshipsofa.com/2012/07/10/starshipsofa-no-246-ryan-jones/

The Old Goat Learns a New Writing Trick

As many of you know, for the last five weeks I've been working on my serialized novel at the Cliffhanger 250 (stop by and check it out, if you haven't already).  Chapter 16 went up today and is going to be used as an example for my new writing trick.  And it's not just any trick, either.  My new trick is the most important trick a writer can learn.

What is this amazing, new writing trick?  It is the trick every editor in the business wishes every writer in the business would learn.  It is the trick of making my prose leaner so every word serves to advance the story.  It is the trick of cutting words from my story.  Lots of words.

The idea of the Cliffhanger 250 was to force me to write and publish short, 250 word installments of the story.  The short length (equal to approximately one typed page of manuscript back in the days of typewriters and snail mail submissions) was to keep each installment from feeling daunting to me (a guy who's never written any single story longer than 5000 words) and to use cliffhangers at the end of each chapter so I would have a goal for each installment I wrote.  While writing those chapters, I found the first drafts of chapters had anywhere from 300 to 400 words; well above my targeted word count.  I didn't want to change the title of site -- the "Cliffhanger 300 to 400" doesn't have quite the same punch -- so I really only had one choice.

I had to cut words from my chapters.  Ruthlessly.  Even if you consider that each chapter tends to be 270 to 280 words in length, I found myself faced with cutting 10% to 30% of the words from my first draft.  When you have so few words to work with in the first place, that should be really hard.  It would be really hard, too, if I didn't have that target word count.  By making the number of words more important than the specific words in the first draft, I found it much easier to do what needed to be done.  I cut words, phrases, even entire sentences from the story and deleted them with ruthless abandon.  Along the way, I found better, shorter ways to say what needed to be said.

Want an example?  Preparing for this column, I marked up my changes to show what I deleted and rewrote for Chapter 16 of Scout's Honor.  Just for the record, the first draft was 353 words in length.  The published version, not counting the italicized lead-in and wrap-up lines, is 269 words in length.  Eighty-four words -- twenty-three percent of the word count -- gone in less than half an hour.  Here's the example.  Highlighted words were added, struck out words removed.

          Scouts receive extensive training for handling all sorts of situations we may face.  Our implants are loaded with further data covering virtually everything else.  Somehow, the experts who designed the training never considered my current situation.  That's why, When the princess's lips locked on mine, training fled and instinct took over.  I pulled her close and returned the kissed her back.  Enthusiastically.

            "Ahem!"

            We jumped apart, brought to our senses by Rob's interruption.  We cast our eyes downward like two scolded children eyes downcast, unable to meet Rob's stern gaze.

            "Highness, go to the stern of the airship," Rob ordered.

            The princess bristled at his tone, "Rob, you will not-"

            "Callan, do as I say."

            Chastised, she stalked aft.

            Trying to forestall what was to come Hoping to avoid a rebuke, I said, "Rob, I promise-"

            "Silence, boy!" hissed Rob.  "You just took an oath this morning to protect the princess with your life.  That includes protecting her from herself, from her flights of fancy and her infatuations.  That includes protecting her from your base instincts.  Do you understand?"

            "Yes, sir!"

            His gaze bored into minee stared intently into my eyes.  Apparently Satisfied by what he saw, he relaxed slightly.  "Many guards develop strong feelings for those they guard, David.  Burying those feelings, especially if they are returned, is your duty"

            "It will not happen again, sir."

            "Good," He nodded, dismissing the matter.  "Now, can that...thing...in your head teach you how to fly this airship?"

            My implant was feeding me informationIt could.  As Rob marched aft, toward the princess, I concentrated on the airship controls, trying to ignore ignoring the heated discussion at the stern.  We needed altitude to reach the prevailing winds and forward speed to generate the little bit of lift required for the airship to rise to gain altitude.  A clever steam engine mechanism provided power for propulsion and also vented exhaust into the gas bags for lift.

            Looking up from the controls, I saw spotted a dark smudge on the horizon.  Happy Rob has brought my Grabbing the survival pack Rob brought aboard, I grabbed took out the binoculars and trained them on the smudge.  Ice lanced my gut as the smudge came into focus.

            A sandstorm stretched across the distant horizon, and it was coming straight for bearing down on us!

Is this perfect?  No.  Is it better than the first draft?  Definitely.

The point to remember is that the words are there to serve you.  Words don't get to stay on the page simply because you put them there sometime in the past.  Words have to earn the right to stay on the page.  They do that by serving the story, propelling it forward.  Any word which doesn't do that is not serving the story and deserves its fate.  Delete and don't look back.

Open Mic Saturday

Good morning all, and welcome to Open Mic Saturday. This is the place to share your news and perhaps do a little bragging. If you're writing a novel: how much progress did you make this week? If you're writing short stories: did you finish anything or submit anything this week? If you've sold or published anything recently, when is it coming out and where can we find it? In short, as a writer, what kind of progress did you make this week?

Or what else is on your mind, that you feel like sharing with the group here?