Hello, February!
And hello to my subscribers, new and old. I hope 2023 is treating you all well so far.
This month’s news is mostly updates on things I mentioned previously. First off, last month I told you my story, “Splits,” had won the 2022 Short Works Prize for Fiction. The story is now free to read online, so if you missed it on its first publication in Cossmass Infinities, you’ll find all the SWP winners listed here, with links to their work. Just look for my name for the link to my story.
SALES/PUBLICATION UPDATE
In case you missed it, my first sale of the year was also my first publication of the year. My science fiction story, “440 Broad St., Apartment 4C,” went live on January 27 on the Frivolous Comma website. This story takes place during an alien invasion, but like many of my stories, it’s not really about that. It focuses primarily on a group of neighbors who come together to support each other through what is essentially the end of the world as they’ve known it. Possibly their last moments alive. It’s about regular, everyday people, living through something that couldn’t possibly be further from their normal.
I also recently sold my flash SF story, “A World Unto Myself,” to Apex Magazine. This story is about a decommissioned robot searching for new purpose and meaning. I’m excited to see this story out in the world, especially in Apex, which has long been a dream market for me.
Last newsletter I mentioned I was writing a non-fiction piece. This has since been accepted for publication by the website, Writer’s Helping Writers, and will go live on March 2. This guest blog takes the lessons I’ve learned through Lego-building and explains how they can relate to writing.
REVIEWS
The latest review of my novella, Lost Cargo, comes from Dark Dispatch. Among other things, they had this to say:
“You have all the ingredients coming together for a lot of tension in this particular setup. It really makes for a good story that held my interest throughout. This is my first novella by P.A. Cornell and it definitely won’t be my last.”
View the entire review on YouTube, TikTok, or Instagram.
FORTHCOMING FICTION PUBLICATIONS
INTERVIEWS
I recorded two interviews this past month that will be out later this year. The first was with The Halfling and the Spaceman podcast where we discussed my early exposure to science fiction and my journey to becoming a writer. This was a fun, informal interview that comes off as more of a conversation you’ll soon get to listen-in on. It should be out within a couple of weeks or so.
The second interview was with the podcast Sonitotum. Host Matthew Selznick and I had a great chat centered around the themes of his evergreen interviews: making stuff (in my case, writing), finding and defining our success, and staying healthy in the process. This interview will be out later this year.
WORKS IN PROGRESS
Work on the first draft of my novel is going well, but due to life stuff probably a little slower than I hoped it would go. I think I’m still on track for a first draft by end of February for now, but we’ll see how it goes. At any rate, I’m happy with the progress I’m making.
I also mentioned last month I’d be participating in Codex’s “Weekend Warrior” flash fiction contest. I can’t say a whole lot about that, as the contest is still ongoing and it’s anonymous. But I have managed to write 4 new stories so far through this year’s contest. These will be doing the submission rounds shortly.
That’s it for this month. As always, thanks for reading.
P.A. Cornell