The Red Penny Papers

That’s the end of our Winter Extravaganza. I know, I didn’t realize it was an extravaganza either. I just made that up. But it fits!

Coming up this spring, we have some excellent goings on. Beginning in a few weeks, when we begin our latest serial fiction, Alan Baxter‘s The Darkest Shade of Grey. Let’s call it… Aussie Supernatural Noir. Yeah, I like the sound of that — and I’m sure you all will too. Darkest Shade will have a cover drawn by the wonderful Megan Eckman, who did our Spring 2011 cover. The original of which is on my office wall. Gorrrrrgeous.

We have some special things planned for this novella, but I’ll leave it at that until all the Ts are crossed and the Is dotted. Think you’ll love it, though.

And then we have, of course, the spring issue, which will drop in the middle of March. Here’s what you can look forward to (because I know I am):

The Red Penny Papers Spring 2012 Quarterly

“The Black Hole” by Patrick J. Worden
“Bone Daddy” Britney Smith
“Garlic Squash” by Nicki Vardon
“Sacrifice” by Natalie L. Sin
“Pins and Needles, Silk and Sawdust” by Tonia Brown
“The Castle of Ashes” by Alexandra Seidel

And a cover by the wonderful S.A. vanMuijden.

See you there.

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Our final mini-interview from the winter RPP authors comes from Sylvia Hiven. Her short, historical-artistic fantasy provided the end punch for the issue, so it seems only right.

1. Can you dsecribe “The Still Life of Doriana” in one sentence for those who haven’t read it yet?
It is a story about a woman who is willing to give up her life for immortality. As contradictory as that may sound!

2. Is there a larger connection to Dorian Gray than the names “Doriana” and “Basilio”? The entire story is a meditation on similar themes, but to very different ends. Does Wilde’s book have a special place, for you? Were there other inspirations? Commentaries?
The prompt for the story was a writing contest at Scribophile, which is a website I frequent. The challenge was to write a story based upon a photograph of a girl carrying a portrait.

Originally, the story idea just came from word play. I was thinking about the expression “still life”, and how contradictory that expression is–and how cool it would be if someone actually could paint still a life. As Dorian Gray was willing to let his portrait distort in order to keep his physical body young and attractive, Doriana of my story is a woman who wishes to do the opposite and seeks the artist who has the ability. Reflecting the names of Wilde’s novel was just a fun little referenceI threw in on top of it.

3. Irresistible, for sure. A google search shows a general sprinkling of fiction around the net — are there any in particular you think would appeal to the RPP reader, and what’s up next?
I think most of what I write is in the RPP vein: definitely fantastical with a serious tinge of dark. I’ve got a story about a sentient island coming up in Bards & Sages Quarterly in January, and OG’s Speculative Fiction will feature a science fiction story about a rather unique space ship. I am very pleased with how both of those turned out.

Else than that, it’s all about churning out new yarns.

And thank god for that. We’ll keep watching for it, for sure. Thanks for stopping by Sylvia! And for those of you who haven’t seen “The Still Life of Doriana”, hey, now might be a good time.

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This Friday’s mini-interview from our winter crew comes from the author of the quirky, charming seaside story “The Gill Bride”, Jan Stinchcomb.

1. Can you describe “The Gill Bride” in one sentence for those who haven’t read it yet?
This is a love story that doesn’t work out the way the key players expect it to–as in all love stories, idealized intimacy meets thorny reality.

2. The voice is so strong and individual, and there are some really fantastic visuals in this, not just of the ocean. Was there a particular place, event, story, or person who inspired it in some way?
For a long time I tried to write a story about a male creature from the sea who couldn’t conform to human reality. I’m sure I was overly influenced by my beloved Creature From the Black Lagoon series. None of those versions worked out. I don’t know where Lucy came from; I suppose she’s a gift from the unconscious. As far as setting is concerned, I lived half my life very close to the sea and considered it a daily source of wonder. The mail-order bride theme came from the years I spent studying Russian and being generally obsessed with that language and culture. Occasionally I would meet men who were planning to marry Russian girls because they assumed that women from that culture would be sweet and traditional and passive. Knowing the strength of Slavic women, I shuddered to imagine the fate of those unsuspecting bridegrooms.

3. I know you’ve had a couple of other pieces published recently — can you tell us a little about them and what’s coming up next for your fiction?
The other recent pieces are from the same project. I’m too superstitious to say much about it, but all the stories in that collection have to do with animals or mythological creatures. Or people acting like animals.

We’ll have to keep our eyes open, then! Thank you so much, Jan. And for those of you who haven’t had a chance to hit up “The Gill Bride” yet, well, here’s your weekend read!

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Next up, a return author. T.J. McIntyre’s been with us here at RPP before, and we’re so glad to have him back with this weird little story…

1. Can you describe “The Comfort of Shadows” in one sentence for those who haven’t read it yet?
“The Comfort of Shadows” is a romance, sort of, that takes place in a surreal world where shadows have suddenly grown autonomous.

2. Both of your RPP stories have played with gender concepts a little — this time you’re writing from the other end of things. What inspired you, and what is it that you like best about doing that?
When writing a story, I typically start off with just a basic idea or image, sometimes it may even just be an opening line. The characters kind of develop on their own from there. Sometimes I write one gender and then realize another gender might make for a more fitting protagonist. However, both of these stories do intentionally examine gender and, perhaps more to the point, examine relationships from different perspectives.

“House of Endless Skies” is a male take on the classic feminist ghost story, “The Yellow Wallpaper.” In the case of “House of Endless Skies,” the meaning of the story hinges on the gender of the protagonist. I don’t think the gender of the protagonist, while still important in its way, is quite as pivotal in “The Comfort of Shadows.” The voice I heard in my head just happened to be female, so I went with it. The gender examination is there – how she collects herself, how she sees things, her role as a career woman, how she interacts with men, etc. – but I think “The Comfort of Shadows” is more about the central relationship than about the gender of the characters.

In fact, I wrote it as a lighthearted piece with the intention to write a happy ending. After reading it again, however, I see the ending reveals a subtle tragedy. It is a tragedy that shows up in both of my Red Penny Paper stories when I think about it: namely the difficulty two different people in a relationship are always going to have seeing things eye-to-eye on some measure. Gender makes a huge difference in perspective on many things, I think. Those differences cause difficulties at times. So, the ending of “The Comfort of Shadows,” while written as a “happy ending” reveals a tragedy if you really think about it. The characters, on some level, did love each other. Unfortunately, they were more in love with the ideal of the other person than the actual person. Reality gets in the way, and, since none of us are perfect, this couple chooses to love the ideal over the always flawed real thing. I find that kind of sad.

As far as writing from the perspective of a different gender goes, I find it important to really think about those differences in gender (not to be confused with differences in sexuality or the range of genders some trans people experience which are distinctions I won’t go into here because of length). The differences between boys and girls are ultimately much deeper than the “boys have a penis, girls have a vagina” stuff we all learn as children. Hormonally we’re different, our brains are different, we mature and reach puberty at different rates, for better or worse we tend to be subject to different social expectations, etc., etc., etc. While there is a certain measure of overlap in how different people see the world around them, these biological and social issues make for real differences in perspective. I try to take these things into account to some extent when writing outside my own gender. A female perspective is ultimately a perspective very different from my own, and that makes it a lot of fun for me to write, a challenge.

But at the same time, I have to admit, it often comes naturally to write a female protagonist for me, at least in a first draft (I often have to refine statements/thoughts to be consistent with gender in later drafts because my own perspective leaks through). It helps that I was raised in a household often dominated by females. I was the middle child and, other than my dad, the only guy in my family. Having been married for so long helps. Also, for a very long period of time, I was the only guy in my old department at work. (And, let me tell you, my coworkers never let me forget it!) I learned a lot about female perspectives from listening to those around me, from being observant. And, ultimately, that’s the writer’s job: to be observant. Writing a different gender allows me to use some of those stored-up observations.

3. Definitely true — great observations, and it explains a lot about your voice and subject matter, for sure. Thanks for that! So what’s up next for your fiction?
Well, I have a short story, “How Did the Catfish Get a Flat Head, You Wonder?”, coming up in the upcoming FISH anthology from Dagan Books in 2012 alongside some other great writers. This anthology is being put together by a couple of … ahem … wonderful editors to work with. I’m looking forward to getting my hands on a copy of it! Also, Southern Fried Shorts is moving along, featuring an original piece of flash fiction every other week or so.

As far as current projects go, I’ve been focusing on a couple novel-length projects. I have a short novel that is a modern-day retelling of the Orpheus myth in the editing stages. But that one’s on the shelf while I work on an emerging first draft of another book that just kind of popped into my head and keeps begging to be written.

I tend to always be working on something …

Too true! Thanks so much for visiting us again, T.J. (And for that thing about the wonderful editors, of course… ahem.) If y’all haven’t checked out “The Comfort of Shadows” just yet, well, we sure think you’ll enjoy it.

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Our next mini-interview from the winter authors is with R. A. Keenan, who brings us our fascinating little goblin protagonist, NeckBreaker.

1. Can you describe “Its Trick” in one sentence for those who haven’t read it yet?
All’s well that ends well, though not well for all . . . at least, for humans.

2. We’ve talked a little about this, and I know you have a lot more going on with NeckBreaker and his goblin kin…
NeckBreaker’s Mother Dearest, ShankBreaker, decides her little darling needs a bit more freedom to best develop his unique talent, one she plans to use toward the goblin race’s advantage. The Goblin Counsel requires proof of NeckBreaker’s Trick, as well as hard and fast strategies if Mother is to gain advantage for her clan and lineage. But first things first, the survival of NeckBreaker’s genes must be assured.

Ah, but the human race is not the easy pushover it may seem. There is ancient knowledge, disdained and/or just about forgotten in the smug assuredness of our modern times. Small enclaves do yet exist, scattered here and about in cultures across the globe that may protect, at least those closest at hand, our dear Ettie in particular, from NeckBreaker’s Trick.

3. So what are the plans for this new year, writing-wise? Where can we get the info?
Writing plans, you ask? Hmm…I shall endeavor, quill in hand, inkwell ever at the ready to release the demons that lurk deep within my waking subconscious, that break forth to haunt my dreams, cast their hidden horror upon my daily life. Writing, I pray is my shelter, indeed, must be my only hope for release from their terrible clutches. Quoth the Raven, “Nevermore” and the rest of that good stuff.

Which, alas, means my ass is definitely grass.

I don’t know, maybe something of my other writing efforts will manage to worm its way past the vigilance of the dungeon’s Editorial Gatekeepers and stumble its way into the light of publishing day. I’ve succeeded with a dozen tales so far. It’s urban fantasy that most often lures me – NOT, oh, dear writing gods above, those damned vampires and lycanthrope thingies, and certainly not zombies. There’s so much more out there to wreak havoc upon we hairless apes.

Oh, you’ve visited my website?

Yeah, okay, you caught me. So, I did cave-in once. A zombie tale was published. But it was really about a nice Jewish boy from Brooklyn, a mensch who prevails against all the zombie odds, not to mention a wise-ass AI computer who thinks it knows best…even if it kind of does.

But if you haven’t already, check out the excerpt, “Schlepping With Zombies,” at: RAKeenan.com. Hell, buy the audio or the print anthology, whatever – baby needs a new pair of shoes, not to mention that Lexus she’s been oohing and ahhing over. These Fall-Spring relationships can be so taxing on the pocket book. Groucho Marx really knew what he was talking about.

And, of course, a novel is always percolating away. Several, as a matter of fact. Fantasy-wise, those ever so subtle, sneaky Elves can be quite detrimental to the modern human race too, you know. It’s a Zero Sum game out there in the real world, kiddos!

All the best,
Bob Keenan

PS – BTW, “human” and “humane” share the same etymology. Perhaps, someday the latter will transform the former! Let’s hope so. Be and do good, folks. Have a Happy, Peace filled New Year.

Haha, thanks a lot, Bob, and the same to you! If y’all haven’t checked out “Its Trick” yet, now seems like the perfect time, right?

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This Friday, our mini-interview comes from Samantha Boyette, author of a wonderful historical fantasy with one of my favorite heroes ever: “The Last Magician”.

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Our first mini-interview from the winter issue comes from the author of our cover story, Mari Ness.

1. Can you describe “In the Pits of Isfhan” in one sentence for those who haven’t read it yet?
Erk.

Lions! No tigers! And chains! Sorta!

I think we have just demonstrated why I’m better at writing stories than summarizing them.

More seriously, this is a story of monsters and chains, bondage and fighting, and choices.

2. Ha! Works for me. In a recent blog entry, you mentioned that “Isfhan” is in the same setting as Trickster — different planet, same multiverse, nyagon — and Love in the Absence of Mosquitoes… Can you tell us a little about how these three very different stories are connected?
Yes.

The first two stories are set on worlds where it is possible to travel from one world to another, although not everyone is aware of this. The third story features a character who is capable of travelling between these worlds, although no one else is aware of this.

And some places, such as Isfhan, can travel from world to another, or exist in more than one world at once — which is how a manticore, a lizardbear, regular bears and a griffin can all show up at the pits.  And how certain gods in “Trickster” could obtain certain of the items in that story.  I also suspect — although I can’t be sure — that the silver chains in “The Pits of Isfhan” just happen to have some connection to the God of Silver and the Chained One in Trickster — although I also suspect I’ll have to do some writing to find out just what that connection is.

3. Oooh, yes, love to see that! Speaking of, what’s coming up for your fiction in the new year, and where can we look for the best updates?
Publishing being the erratic business that it can be, this sort of question always makes me a bit nervous, but I’m pleased to be able to say that I should have at least three new stories out next year, in such places as Daily Science Fiction, Apex Magazine and Shimmer — although the only set date for these is for the Shimmer story, due out in February.  I’ve also heard rumors that I may have some flash pieces and poems popping up in Strange Horizons, Cabinet des Fees, Goblin Fruit and elsewhere.  And I have a few longer pieces simmering away in the works, that hopefully will be breaking free of their own chains and moving out into the world soon enough.

Probably the best place to keep track of these publications is my blog, mariness.livejournal.com, or through following me on Twitter at mari_ness.

Thanks for humoring us, Mari. For those of you who haven’t read “In the Pits of Isfhan” yet, it’s a beautiful story. Check it out right here, and let Mari know what you think.

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Hot off the epresses! Click the cover painting, and it’ll take you away to the web version.

Or download the eBook for free via Smashwords.

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Tagged as Jan Stinchcomb, Mari Ness, RA Keenan, Samantha Boyette, Sylvia Hiven, tj mcintyre

But before we jump into the winter goodies, how about a nice mini-interview with the author of The Sons of Chaos and the Desert Dead, our latest serial. It’s one of those rip-roaring weird west things, but with a twist. A few, really…

1. We’re so glad to have you back, Aaron! What can readers expect will be different in The Sons of Chaos and the Desert Dead, and what can they expect to recognize from the first installment, Black Medicine Thunder and the Sons of Chaos?
I’ve introduced a new character and a new setting for THE DESERT DEAD. Sam Isherwood’s sister, Evie, plays a pretty important role in this story. A very important role. THE DESERT DEAD takes place in Santa Fe, New Mexico shortly after the Atchison/Topeka/Santa Fe railroad arrived. The Sons of Chaos, everybody’s favorite fictional late-1800s, American west anarchist group, arrives with the rail. A few familiar faces return, including Isherwood and Abraham Reaver.

2. Can you tell us a little about your other pulpy ventures? In particular, about how they can get Black Medicine Thunder for Kindle — b