Joe Monson – SF Editor & Author

Twilight Tales call for submissions is live!

Posted on June 5, 2019 - June 5, 2019 by Joe

The third LTUE Benefit Anthology, a light horror collection titled Twilight Tales, is open for submissions! This volume is in honor of Betty Pope, a former librarian at Brigham Young University who established the science fiction and fantasy literature Special Collection section at the library. She also hosted a reception at her home each year after LTUE for the guests and committee. This anthology will contain stories Betty would have loved.

In summary:

Light horror stories (think Twilight Zone or Goosebumps) any length up to 17,500 words
Unpublished or reprint stories
Up to two submissions per author
This is a benefit/charity anthology, so stories are donated and author receives no monetary compensation
Authors receive a print copy of the anthology and an electronic copy
Meet the content guidelines described on the Submission Guidelines page
Stories are due by August 15, 2019

You can read the full call for submissions on the Hemelein Publications site.

All Made of Hinges available on Audible now

Posted on May 2, 2019 - June 5, 2019 by Joe

"All Made of Hinges" cover on Audible. — “All Made of Hinges” cover on Audible.

All Made of Hinges, containing my story “Napoleon’s Tallest Teamster”, is now available on Audible! If you love having stories read to you, pick it up today!

Retreat, FanX, and Authorpalooza

Posted on April 17, 2019 - April 17, 2019 by Joe

Just one of the many books you’ll be able to get at FanX and Authorpalooza!

So, I got really busy (and also sick) during March and the beginning of April, so I wasn’t able to post anything. Sorry.

Last week I attended my first ever author retreat, where you sit around all day and write, and write, and write, and write. I ended up with a short story that became a novelette, and is now well on its way to becoming a novella at 12.5k words and counting. We’ll see what happens. The retreat was great fun. I even prepared breakfast for dinner on one of the days (dirty scrambled eggs served with pancakes and cream cinnamon syrup). I believe the total word count among all those who attended was around 225k, so pretty good!

This coming weekend (April 19-20), I’ll be at the Bard’s Tower booth (1531, so come visit) at FanX Spring at the Salt Palace Convention Center in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. There will be several other authors and editors at the booth, so stop by, pick up a few books, get them signed, and say “Hi!”

Next Saturday, I’ll be participating in the Spring Authorpalooza at the Orem Barnes & Noble, along with about 20 other authors. It’s free to attend and you can buy a few books, get them signed, and chat for a bit. It’ll be fun!

Cover art reveal for A Dragon and Her Girl

Posted on February 15, 2019 - February 14, 2019 by Joe

The next of the LTUE Benefit Anthologies comes out in February 2020, titled A Dragon and Her Girl. We revealed the cover art for it yesterday at the launch event for the first volume. The art is by Kaitlund Zupanic, an amazing artist who graciously offered to create this brand new work to use specifically for this volume.

The authors of the stories for this volume were also announced:

Christopher Baxter
Josh Brown
Jaleta Clegg
Max Florschutz
Melva Gifford
M.K. Hutchins
Sam Knight
Gerri Leen
Hannah Marie
Jodi L. Milner
Wendy Nikel
Michaelene Pendleton
S.E. Page
Scott R. Parkin
John D. Payne
Bryan Thomas Schmidt
Alex Shvartsman
David VonAllmen
Julia H. West

All of these stories are amazing! Thanks to my co-editor, Jaleta Clegg, for helping select these stories. There were a lot of great stories submitted.

Michaelene Pendleton, 1946-2019

Posted on February 11, 2019 - June 5, 2019 by Joe

Picture of Michaelene Pendleton in the sunlight, wearing sunglasses, with her hair being blown in the wind.

I’m sad to report that author Michaelene Pendleton passed away on January 21, 2019 in Moab. I am told by one of her close friends that she passed away quickly. She was 72.

My first memories of Michaelene were at Life, the Universe, & Everything, an annual science fiction and fantasy symposium held in Provo, Utah. I met her in the early 1990s there, and I remember her always having a smile for anyone. I found out later she was a writer and editor at the Moab Sun News in Moab, Utah. She wrote a number of science fiction short stories from the late 1980s through the early 2000s, and they were all well written and interesting. She was smart, articulate, and a great storyteller.

If you’d like to leave a tribute for her family and friends, you can do so at the Spanish Valley Mortuary.

You will be missed, Michaelene.

Picture from the Moab Sun News.