Upcoming Anthology

I am so excited!

Why?

In early April I will finally see over two years of hard work come to light. TALES FROM THE PEAK: FRESH STARTS is going to be published!

FRESH STARTS – A Quick History

In October of 2017 I went to a meeting with Pikes Peak Writers to talk about possibly publishing an anthology with stories, poetry, and memoirs written by members of PPW. What I didn’t realize was that I would raise my hand and volunteer to lead this project.

I professed to everyone in attendance that I had ZERO experience in how to do this project, but I would make it happen. After all, PPW is an organization that supports writers of all levels of experience. An anthology just seemed like the next step for the organization.

NEXT STEPS

The learning curve was immense. At times, I felt like I was climbing Mt Everest without equipment, but I pulled on my boots and faced the mountain. With guidance from my mentors, DeAnna Knippling, Jamie Ferguson, and Jenny Lovett, we pushed through setting budgets, developing a theme, setting a marketing plan, soliciting writers, and collecting stories.

The number of submissions we received was unexpected. When Lou J Berger joined the team as an editor we, at the time, had only received 35 submissions and assured him we would be lucky to break 60. Then the avalanche hit. In total we read and combed through 255 submissions.

TODAY

Today, the selected authors number 30 who were given a theme to write on. Each writer was asked to write their interpretation of Fresh Starts, with a simple added blurb:

After the fires are out, the smoke has cleared, the divorce is over, the widow has stopped wearing black, the sun has risen, the monsters are dead, the world is saved (or destroyed!), the storm has calmed, and the trouble is over…
…what do you do next?
We can’t promise only happy endings. Just that moment when you pick yourself up out of the wreckage and find the strength to begin anew.

What an amazing turnout! The choices were difficult, but we found our way to the best of the best submissions.

We are now working through cover art, contracts, bios, headshots, and the last leg of marketing. I never fully realized what went into publishing a book until I stepped into this project. The peak of Mt. Everest is in view and I am now armed with climbing equipment that will pull me, and this anthology, over the top to publication in April.

Learn more about the anthology here and sign up to receive updates as they are available.