Guest Author David Fingerman

Ack!  And somehow this was originally posted as if I posted it yesterday!  Hate those SNAFUs!  I hope we didn't miss any readers who didn't see it.  But anyway, fixed now, and back to it!

First, I want to stop off wishing my American friends a Happy Memorial Day! And to the rest of you—neener neener—I have a Monday off! But seriously, the holiday is about remembering those who've died in wars fighting for my freedom, something I definitely appreciate. And it calls up memories of trips to the cemetery with my mom and grandparents to clean up and put flowers on the graves of family members—the peonies were always in bloom for the visit and I loved that the big gorgeous flowers brought such life to the headstones. So THANK YOU to everyone who has given service. And I am sending out my warm, otherworldly tentacles across whatever boundary that is to let my loved ones know they are missed.

And now, onto topics sincerely less morose... I am not referring to barbeques and beer at the moment, but to guest bloggers promoting their books.

I'd like to welcome David Fingerman (he looks suspiciously like he might have Hart relatives—you're not a cousin, are you?), who is promoting his book of short stories. So I will turn it over to you. Welcome David!

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A little bit about the writer in me:  Like many authors I've met and read about, I am pretty much an introvert. Around friends and people I know, I can be as gregarious as Santa at the mall a week before Christmas. Around strangers? “Call security. I don’t like the way that weird guy sitting in the corner is staring at me.” I don’t do well around strangers.  I've been told I have to get myself 'out there.'  A good way to start is go to conventions and conferences. I’ve been to conventions and conferences. I’ve seen the crowds mill about authors and editors. It’s like an entourage. Bless those unknown and wanna be writers who can push past their own inhibitions and insecurities and dive right in and introduce themselves. That ain’t me. Then there are those who first have a couple of drinks, then feel comfortable enough to join the crowd. I truly wish I could. I’d walk up to the editor, extend my hand, introduce myself, then throw up on his/her shoes. On the plus side, at least they’d remember me.  That's important, right?

Well, thank the writing gods for the internet.  I was swarmed with a list of other things I must do that I know nothing about.  Okay.  One thing that I’ve been told again and again and again is that I have to

Start a website.(√)
Get a MySpace page. (√)
Get a Facebook page.(√)
Start a blog. (√)

Okay, I’ve been writing blogs and baring my soul to possibly billions of people. I can do that because I’ve convinced myself that out of those billions, only a few friends are ever going to read them (after the amount of comments I've received, not even a few). I've been doing some of these things for a while now (I recently surpassed 100 friends on facebook - and I even know the majority of them) and still feel like I'm drowning, but I am learning new things all the time.  So being somewhat of a newbie with still lots to learn, here's my two-cents worth.  Do your homework.  The internet makes it easy.  When querying an agent or editor, make sure it's someone interested in what you write.  And be creative.  They get hundreds of emails.  Make sure yours stand out (but I highly advise against using threats like "I know where you live."  They seem to frown on that and usually don't take it in the humor as was intended). I've found that many editors still want hard copy. That editor whose shoes you threw up on?  Send them a new pair of shoes with your manuscript inside.  Email that other editor ~ “You remember me? I’m the guy you had thrown out of the bar because of the way I was looking at you. If that scared you, wait until you read this.” (Probably works best if you’ve written a horror novel.) In other words – get their attention. Like they say about publicity, there ain’t no such thing as bad.

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EDGING PAST REALITY is a collection of horror and speculative fiction short stories that will take you to the precipice of reason ~ and then push you over the edge.  If you think you can always believe your eyes, and you're sure that what you believe is true, it's time to check your certainties at the door.  You can order EPR at Amazon or most other online bookstores.  Or, go to http://davidfingerman.com and click on the cover.  Plus, you can learn lots more about me.

An excerpt from "Snow Crabs"

White as snowflakes and no larger than thumbtacks, creatures were crawling, weaving between his fingers, trying to get under the sleeves of his jacket.  Tiny pincers nipped at the skin, tearing it away as they went.  Leaving the shovel and gloves where they lay, Greg screamed as he raced back to the house.  His hands felt on fire as droplets of blood bubbled to the surface.  He threw the door open and jumped inside.  The creatures leaped off his hands and as he looked down the snow seemed to come apart on his boots.  Snowflakes scurried to get back outside before he closed the door.