Christmas Presents

Yesterday.

I went to work, they had a Christmas party, but I left early. The apartment was so hot, it is using up the water in the CPAP machine. It has dried out my throat. I am hoping not to have a return of the sinusitis.

Again, I made the mistake of a nap. I overslept, not getting up until around 4. I missed the #2 downtown, so I walked to the bus station. Before that, I had a quick chat with my neighbors about turning down the heat.

I spent more money than I have for some time on groceries. The fast ends tonight, so I stocked up on meat. I have enough to start the week. I got back here around 6. 

Then I vegetated. I had Enola Holmes 2 on in a tab while I went through email and decided on submissions. I spent a lot of time on The Thrilling Detective site.

Published!

Seasons Greetings! LLFO V9 is out. It'll take a few weeks to get print contributor copies to you all. In the meantime, enjoy this copy of the Winter Issue flipbook. Thanks again and have wonderful, safe holidays. Tom

Lost Lake Folk Opera v9 Winter 2024

Tom Driscoll

Now for the rejections:

Thank you for submitting Problem Solving to Bluestem. Thank you for your patience in waiting for our reply, and know that the wait meant your work was being carefully read. 

We must, unfortunately, pass on your submission at this time. This is not a judgment on the quality of your work; rather, it is about the fit of this particular piece for this particular issue.

We wish you the best in placing this elsewhere.

Sincerely,

Bluestem 

http://www.bluestemmagazine.com 

***

Thank you for submitting "Problem Solving". We appreciated the chance to consider it. Unfortunately, we didn't find it a fit for the magazine at this time. However, we truly enjoy your work, and we hope you will send us something else in the future. Please feel free to remind us of this letter when you do!

Best of luck,

The Press Pause Press Team

 ***

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to consider "Problem Solving" for Reed Magazine Issue 158. While it is not a good fit for our journal this year, we wish you every success placing it in another publication.   

Best Wishes,

The Editors

Reed Magazine

https://www.reedmag.org

This came from the T Paulo Urcanse Prize For Literary Excellence - High Horse Contest for "Irretrievable Breakdown":

Thanks for your submission. While we didn't select it to be one of our winners, we enjoyed this, and hope you'll submit again in the future. 

Sincerely,

Reese Sawyer

Co-Editor in Chief 

I keep submitting. "Napoleon Bonaparte Dreams" went to Clarkesworld. The science fiction magazines do not do simultaneous submissions, so I am holding off sending more of "Napoleon Bonaparte Dreams".

Christmas Eve Morning

Up at 4, 5, and 6. Started on this post.

Some reading from this morning: 5 Journalism-Related Movies Based on Real Events (I have seen two of these; never saw "The Killing Fields".). and One Piece of Advice From 28 Science Fiction and Fantasy Authors in 2024 (both from Writer's Digest). From the latter, I have to remember this one - advice I wish I had known when younger:

"Love your books. Even if it feels like no one else does—trust that what you’ve written has meaning, and that meaning has inherent worth, because it does. As writers, there is no shame in wanting to share our work with others, nothing wrong with thinking about marketability and how best to reach readers, but, in the same breath, if one of your books isn’t picked up, if a story you care about doesn’t reach the audience you hoped it would reach, that doesn’t diminish its value. Keep writing. For the love of writing, for the hope of sharing what you love with others. You know the result if you stop writing, but you don’t know what will happen if you keep going; it’s only when we give up that we fail." -Lynn Buchanan, author of The Dollmakers (Harper Voyager)

Being nosey, I went on to check out 10 Best Movies With Writers and About Writing (and have seen most of them).

Check out Library of America's Year in Review: a look back at our best online content of 2024

Laundry, seeing CC and going to St. George's are all I have planned for today. I am working my way through Netflix's No Good Deed - too many commercials.

sch