Upcoming publications

I have a few stories being published in quick succession in the near future.

First,"Three Twilight Zone Variations on a High School Reunion" is being published in The Third Spectral Book of Horror Stories, whose release date is Monday - Halloween, of course.

My flash "If You Were a Dinah Shore, My Love" should be coming out in the Curious Gallery podcast fairly soon.

"Texas Leaves" is on the way in the Victory Fiction anthology "Freedom's Light".

Both "Dinah Shore" and "Texas Leaves" are alternate histories.

"The Revenge of the Internet"

OK, the big problem with social media - which I think everyone recognizes - is that it allows you to attack or insult people with impunity. it unleashes our worst nature. We can get away with saying things to people we would never say to their face, or even on the phone, and we can do it across great distances.

SO... imagine in the future, after a societal collapse - with our current technology inoperative and no rule of law - people seek out and exact revenge on others who attacked them and lambasted them on the internet years earlier.

"Revenge of the Internet" would make a darkly-humorous anthology of short stories, don't you think?

The spin rack is still making a comeback

As some of you may - or may not - know, I have a personal policy that, when I stop in a discount store such as Dollar General or Family Dollar, I will always buy an s-f mass market paperback to encourage them to stock the genre.

I learned from Tom Doherty in 2009, when I interviewed him for an article that was published in the SFWA Bulletin, that the people who maintain the spin rack pay attention to what types of books sell.

Almost a year ago, on Nov. 29, 2015, I wrote on this blog ("Help the spin rack make a comeback") how my efforts - at least at the Dollar General store closest to where I worked - had paid off. There were so many s-f titles being stocked they cleared shelf space for them and put all the other genres in the spin rack.

I still follow my policy, and this evening I stopped at the Dollar General store in Blossom, Texas, - which I don't think I have ever patronized before - and was pleasantly surprised to see they had a fine selection of s-f paperbacks, and I was quite happy to pick up this little gem by Harry Harrison.

The authors don't benefit much personally from these remaindered sales, but I'd like to think they have an overall uplifting effect on the genre. Who knows, some kid may spent a buck he was planning to use for a candy bar on one of these books, get hooked, and in 20 or 30 years become a great and famous author?

"Texas Leaves"

"Freedom's Light" is a forthcoming anthology from Victory Fiction publishing, It will include my short story "Texas Leaves". In this alternate history, George H.W. Bush is defeated for the presidency by Michael Dukakis in 1988. The Soviet Union never falls because Dukakis helps prop it up to insure "world stability."

In 2000 son George W. Bush makes a run at the presidency. Here's how the story kicks off:

---
“The fall foliage is stunning this year. Texas hardly ever sees any color in the fall."

The Governor turned to his Advisor. “Beautiful, isn’t it?”

“Yes, and it’s ironic,” said the Advisor. “The landscape looks lovely, and our future never looked bleaker.”

“Are the polls still open in Florida?”

“Yes, and President Clinton said they will stay open until everyone gets a chance to vote.” The Advisor stared at his drink. “They knew it was going to be close, they were sampling the ballots already cast, and now they’ve stolen the election. The polls should have closed 12 hours ago. People are being allowed to vote multiple times.”

“We came so close,” said the Governor. “Maybe next time.”

“There isn’t going to be a next time. After Clinton comes Gore, and he’ll crack down on us more than ever.” The Advisor stood up. “We need to face reality. After eight years of Dukakis and now eight years of Clinton, the U.S. will be just another Third World despotism under Russia’s thumb.”

“Well then, if we can’t save the U.S., then maybe Texas can save itself.”

He nodded knowingly at the Advisor

"Time Like a Rope"

"Time Like a Rope", published by Silver Blade magazine, is my 102nd short story publication since 2003, my seventh this year. My stories published so far this year are:

1. “Captain of the Clouds” – Aurora Wolf, January. 2016
2. “Higher Powers” – Sci-Phi Journal, February 2016
3. “The Milky Way Dance Hall” – Decision Points anthology. May 2016
4. “Lone Star, Lost Star” – Fiction on the Web, July 31, 2016
5. “The Yellow Flag” – Sci-Phi Journal, August 2016
6. “And He Threw His Hands Up in the Air” – Siren’s Call, No. 28 August 2016
7. “Time Like a Rope” – Silver Blade magazine, October 2016

My updated biography

I've already had a request for a biography for a 2017 convention. I took a few moments over the weekend and updated the biography file I keep on my desktop. I seldom use all of this, but it covers all the main points I think are of interest. Whenever I need a bio or blurb, I just cut and past to the appropriate length. But here is the whole thing:
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Lou Antonelli started writing fiction in middle age; his first story was published in 2003 when he was 46. He’s had short stories published in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, India and Portugal in venues such as Asimov's Science Fiction, Jim Baen's Universe, Tales of the Talisman, Andromeda Spaceways In-Flight Magazine, Greatest Uncommon Denominator (GUD), Daily Science Fiction, Buzzy Mag, and Omni Reboot, among many others.

His collections include “Fantastic Texas” published in 2009; “Texas & Other Planets” published in 2010; and “The Clock Struck None” and “Letters from Gardner”, both published in 2014. His debut novel, the retro-futurist alternate history “Another Girl, Another Planet”, is slated for release later in 2016 by WordFire Press.

His story “Great White Ship”, originally published in Daily Science Fiction, was a 2013 finalist for the Sidewise Award for alternate history. His short story “On a Spiritual Plain”, originally published in Sci Phi Journal, was a finalist for the Hugo award in 2015.

His first professional science fiction short story, “A Rocket for the Republic” (Asimov’s Science Fiction Sept. 2005) was the last story accepted by Editor Gardner Dozois before he retired after 19 years.

“The Yellow Flag” his 100th published short story (Sci-Phi Journal Aug. 2016) set the record for all-time fastest turnaround in genre fiction. It was written, submitted and accepted between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. on May 6, 2015.

A Massachusetts native, Antonelli moved to Texas in 1985 and is married to Dallas native Patricia (Randolph) Antonelli. They have three adopted furbaby children, Millie, Sugar and Peltro Antonelli..

Lou, Louis and Luigi

Some of you may know I have a Facebook page where I post purely personal things. It uses the name "Lou AntonellI". It is used mostly for outreach to people interested in me as an author.

Originally, this page was called "Author Lou Antonelli" and the other one simply "Lou Antonelli", but I had to change it last year. When the Hugo nominations hit and the Puppy Kickers started their campaign against dissident authors, someone complained to Facebook that I was a liar because "Author Lou Antonelli" isn't my real name.

Facebook said I had to change it, but I couldn't have two Facebook pages both named "Lou Antonelli", so I changed personal one to my proper name, which is "Louis Antonelli".

(A colleague once asked - in light of the fact my middle name is Sergio - if my first name was really Luigi. Actually, although I am named for my paternal grandfather, who WAS named Luigi, my parents thankfully had the sense to bestow the English version of the name on me.)

If you are ever interested in keeping track of my personal life without any reference to literature and such, check out my other Facebook page, which can find here.. You'll read a lot about my wife, my dogs, my lasagna, and all the other stuff that is important to me.

Some positive developments

Patricia and I have had some good news recently. After being laid off last April, Patricia started work three weeks ago at a new job, and it is in education again - she is teaching four-year olds in the Head Start program in Texarkana.

She was a middle school teacher up until last year, but quit because of the horrible working conditions at the local school district. Most of last year she worked as an office manager. Now she is back in a school, and she's enjoys the job very much. It's a bit of a commute, but worth it.

I've been commuting since the start of last year 46 miles each way to my current newspaper job, but that will be coming to an end. After some searching, and a few missteps, we closed on a house yesterday in the city where I work, Clarksville. So my commute will be ending while now Patricia has the commute.

It took some creativity to get the new house. It was a foreclosure and we had to bid in an auction - but we won, and got it at a great price. It has over 2300 square feet, four bedrooms and three baths. It was built in 1931.

Because of the auction date we didn't qualify for a conventional mortgage - we haven't been able to sell our current home, and we didn't 't have the income level to carry two mortgages at the time, which was before Patricia got her current job.

But a local bank gave us mortgage instead, and so everything worked out.

We are in the process of getting the utilities turned on and having inspections done (being purchased via an auction, it was an "as is" sale, although we were able to inspect the house ourselves beforehand.)

Latest sale

I'm proud to announce that TANSTAAFL Press will be publishing my story "A Choice of Weapons" as part of its forthcoming "Enter the Apocalypse" trilogy.

They describe is thusly:

"For all of you fans of apocalyptic fiction, TANSTAAFL Press is planning an anthology along that line. We have open call for stories from people all over the world.

"The first book in the anthology series will be Enter the Apocalypse. This will be devoted to apocalypses just starting.

"The second book in the series will be “Enter the Aftermath.” This will be devoted to the height or burnout of an apocalypse.

"The final book in this series will be “Enter the Rebirth.” What is the new normal after the apocalypse is over.

"We have already accepted several stories that run a wide range of destructive scenarios from a creeping mold that won’t creep any longer to a religious disaster to the singularity that goes horribly right. We plan on publishing this circa December this year."

The 3rd Spectral Book of Horror Stories – Table of Contents Announcement

BY DAVE DE BURGH
SEPTEMBER 30, 2016

After announcing two days ago that submissions have officially opened for the 4th and 5th Spectral Book of Horror Stories, we’re proud to reveal the incredible Table of Contents for The 3rd Spectral Book of Horror Stories, edited by Joseph Rubas, with cover art by Holly Madew.

Let’s hand over to Joseph Rubas to announce the Table of Contents:

***

In April 2016, Gary Compton, of Tickety Boo Press, who had published my second short story collection After Midnight (2014) approached me about editing the third entry in the Spectral Book of Horror Stories series. “You’re kidding, right?” I asked. To me at least, the Spectral Book of Horror Stories is the top of the top. Sure, you might not get rich and famous after having your work in one, but growing up, I loved horror anthologies, especially the Pan Book of Horror Stories and the Zebra Book of Horror Stories. I read every single anthology I could get my hand on, and discovered work, by authors both known and unknown, that stays with me to this day. I loved the covers, the stories, the yellowed pages. The Spectral Book of Horror Stories has always reminded me of those old collections, and to be asked to edit it…it was like going from playing guitar in a suburban garage somewhere to playing Madison Square Gardens.

It was intimidating, but I think I did fairly well. Or rather, the authors did fairly well.

Okay, they did really well.

Here, then, is the table of contents for the Third Spectral Book of Horror Stories. It runs the gamut from psychological horror (“Portfolio’, “Disappearing in the Desert”) to supernatural horror (“It Knocks”, “Cotton Face”) to light science fiction (“The Eyes Have It”). Some of these writers have never been published before, and some have been in the business for over fifty years (William F. Nolan, who, with the late George Clayton Johnson, authored the novel Logan’s Run, will be 89 next spring). I am proud of them all.

Okay, enough. Here it is in all its glory:

Table of Contents

Foreword: A Word on Fear

Portfolio – A. H. Day

Dysfunctional – William F. Nolan

Playthings – Eugene Johnson

Beyond the Grave – Alex Marco

Three Twilight Zone Variations on a High School Reunion – Lou Antonelli

Sins of the Father – Mark Allan Gunnells

Cotton Face – Dan Weatherer

Disappearing in the Desert – Billie Sue Mosiman

It Knocks – Paul Longmate

The Eyes Have It – Tim Major

Boat Trip – David A. Riley

And the Woman Loved Her Cats – S. L. Edwards

Lacey – David Wellington

The Day the Leash Gave Way – Robert Clarke

The Door into Envy – Adrian Cole

Penelope’s Song – Samuel Marzioli

Government Work – Richard Farren Barber

Static – Dave-Brendon de Burgh

“Grave ‘Neath a Willow” – Alexander G. Tozzi

Trigger Fate – Lisa Morton

Coulrophila – Jason V. Brock

***

The 3rd Spectral Book of Horror Stories will launch on October 31st – keep an eye on this site and our Facebook Page for continuing announcements.