Themed Anthologies (Mark H. Phillips)

The Final Twist, a group of Houston writers, has produced a themed anthology each year for the past seven years. The first two anthologies were mystery collections: Dead and Breakfast (2007) set in the wonderful world of Texas Bed & Breakfasts, and A Death in Texas (2008) which got rave reviews. A Box of Texas Chocolates (2009) was our group’s first multi-genre collection—our best seller yet and an award winner (New England Book Festival). It was followed by Twice-Twisted Tales of Texas (2010), a multi-genre collection featuring distinctively Texan landmarks. Underground Texas (2011), featured tales dealing literally or metaphorically with the underground. Deadly Diversions (2012) features hobby and pastime themed stories, while Dead of Night (soon to be published in 2013) stretched our group by dealing with the macabre and occult. The themed anthology process is getting so streamlined that we plan to release a second anthology later this year, a multi-genre collection that features recipes.

Themed anthologies are a great way to get stories published. Such collections allow for targeted marketing. Our book launch for our most successful collection, A Box of Texas Chocolates, was held in a chocolate store just prior to Valentine’s Day. Consignment deals allowed us to display Dead and Breakfast in actual Bed and Breakfast establishments, targeting an audience already interested in our theme. Similar marketing was possible with Twice-Twisted Tales of Texas—tourists could visit a famous landmark and then visit the gift store and buy a short story collection containing a story built around the attraction they had just explored.

Themed anthologies are also an effective spur to creativity, as well as a way to pull a writing group together. The Final Twist prides itself on ushering beginning writers into the profession. Many novice writers have problems with writer’s block or coming up with ideas. A theme helps focus their efforts. During peer-editing they can see the disparate ways other writers handle the same theme. This also brings the group together. Instead of every member off working on their isolated project, editing develops a synergy based on the entire group working on similar stories. Sometimes rules have to be laid down to keep the stories diverse—not all of the recipe stories can involve poison for instance. Our group has been fortunate in finding the proper balance between using the synergy of all working around a common theme and getting a very wide diversity of content.

So far, we’ve also been lucky in reaching easy consensus on our themes. The brainstorming sessions are both raucous and fun. Everyone understands that the theme has to be broad—we want the most diversity and creativity possible within the connecting theme. Texas Underground was inclusive enough to allow both stories that take place literally underground and stories that explore sub rosa clandestine Texan culture. A Box of Texas Chocolates was a multi-genre collection of short stories all having to do with Texas and chocolate (it also helped that a significant majority of the members are chocoholics). There were mystery, suspense, romance, fantasy, and science fiction stories. Dead of Night will feature both literal monsters in macabre occult stories as well as stories containing serial killers and other metaphorical monsters.

Another factor in the success of our anthologies is the thorough professionalism of my fellow Final Twist members. Our writing group is all about getting material out there to our readers. We work on generating, peer-editing, publishing, and promoting our stories. It also helps that our members can produce with a hard deadline in place. Most of us are primarily novelists. Short stories are a refreshing change of pace, an opportunity to keep our fans aware that we are still writing, but never an excuse to stop working on our novels. Usually stories are produced and first-round edited within a sixty day window. If your group members cannot be depended upon to produce quality material in that sort of time frame, themed anthologies could turn into a prolonged nightmare. You have to leave time to pull the project together, get it ready for the publisher, the inevitable last round edits, contracts, cover design issues, promotional engagements, blog tours, etc. Naturally everyone in the group has to be willing to pitch in; otherwise some poor soul will end up saddled with all that work and never get their own novel finished.

If you are looking for a way to make your writing group more productive I can recommend themed anthologies. Just don’t use the title that I’m still trying to get my group to accept: Texas Chili Cook-off Winners and Their Rip-Roaring Tales.

We’d like to share our award winner with one of you. To enter the drawing, hop on over to our publisher’s website, read about the different stories in A Box of Texas Chocolates, then come back here and use the comments to tell us your favorites. Each person leaving a comment will be entered in the prize drawing (one entry per person) and the winner announced here next week – so check back to see if you’ve won!

If you want to be among the first to know who won, come visit the authors at Katy Budget Books on February 9 from 1-3PM. You can register a second entry in the drawing for A Box of Texas Chocolates, register for a second drawing (it’s a surprise), visit with the writers, and of course, shop for books at this wonderful store. You may even choose to be one of the first to own the latest anthology – Deadly Diversions.

Mark H. Phillips has been writing stories and political tracts for as long as he can remember, submitting stories to a magazine at the age of twelve. He grew up in Central Illinois, and holds several degrees in Philosophy. Mark met his wife, Charlotte, ten years ago, and later discovered they shared a passion for writing – they are collaborating on books and short stories – their first novel is Hacksaw. He’s currently teaching pre-calculus, politial philosophy, and the theory of knowledge. He’s been a member of Houston Scriptwriters for three years, and is a member of Sisters in Crime and The Final Twist. His short stories appear in the Final Twist anthologies: A Death in Texas, A Box of Texas Chocolates, Twisted Tales of Texas Landmarks, Underground Texas, and the upcoming Deadly Diversions.

It takes a village to raise a good author; The advantages of writing with others

I live in Texas, so when we do summer yard work it means high temperatures, mosquitoes, and all the luxury of 100% humidity. Yet, last time I was working in a yard, I realized I was having fun. Not because of the weather (it was over 105 degrees that day) nor the activity (dropping mulch is stinky on the best of days). It was the company during the time I was working. Working with others can give you a safe haven of those that understand.

As an author, I have the same experience with writing. Though writing trumps yard work any day of the week, it’s still work. I struggle with passive verbs, tenses, paragraph alignment, spelling mistakes and all the other pitfalls of writing. Like many other writers, I read my unedited works and cringe a little inside, then begin polishing and editing before polishing some more. And the nature of the human mind, while amazing, doesn’t help. An author ~knows~ how the story is supposed to read. She is the one who created it. So if there is a typo, our brains will probably fix it. Self-editing is the first wall to overcome. We can even use technology, such as automated reading software.

But in my experience, my deepest growth as a writer derives from my writers group. Not only can they tell me if I used the incorrect ‘there, their, or they’re’ (That’s what I paid Microsoft big bucks for, right?), but they can tell me if a character is acting out of his/her normal pattern/motivations, if readers become lost at a critical scene because of my phrasing, and if I said a paragraph ago that it’s sunset and all of a sudden my characters are eating breakfast.

A good group will be a balance. Do they challenge/push you to the edge of comfort without going too far? Do they recommend? Do they change your voice in their recommendations? The deadlines, editing sessions, and critiques I found within my group are precious to my path of growth. And anything that is growing is less likely to wither.

The story in our head makes us laugh, cry, cringe, and hope. We taste the poison; smell the perfume, hear the call for help. With limitless words on our pallet, the goal is to transfer those images and emotions to the minds of others. Just because the words make sense to us (remember, the pictures are already in our minds, how could the words be muddled or confusing…?) doesn’t mean they convey properly to others. That’s where the village comes in to make sure we don’t lose anything in the translation. Mine is an amazing group of talented writers. Everyone has a village. If you write, others will write something similar. It’s called genre. Find your genre and your village.

~Tasha

Natasha Storfer is a graduate of Texas A&M’s College of Engineering. After years of working within the limitations imposed by the laws of science, she turned to fiction as an outlet for imagination and creativity. Her writing includes fantasy, sci-fi, cyber-punk, and mystery.