Rich Fabric - A Different Kind of Anthology

What do I know about quilting? Well, a lot more than I did in May this year when author Melinda McGuire (Josephine: Red Dirt and Whiskey, When I Met Crazy in the Morning, Nelson and Cora) contacted me to ask whether I would like to contribute a story to her new anthology.

Of course, I said yes.

But this was not the usual type of anthology that I tend to contribute to. Most of the collections I have submitted to in the past (and the ones I plan to send stories to in the future) are horror anthologies. And Melinda's was about the traditions and techniques of quilting.

Rather different!

I wasn't sure whether I could write something that would work in the context, but I thought I would try... It would test me, if nothing else!

And the profits from the anthology are all going to The Twilight Wish Foundation, a charity set up to help the elderly, and to ensure they have a fulfilling old age.

The Twilight Wish Foundation wants to make the world a nicer place to age, one wish at a time. Through donations and volunteers, the foundation is able to assist those less well off to enjoy their old age. On the website there is a list of 'open wishes' which includes everything from donating to enable a chronically ill artist to have her paintings framed to helping a senior with terminal cancer visit her childhood home for the last time.

I had never heard of such a charity before becoming involved in Melinda's wonderful anthology, but I think it is a wonderful idea. Old age can be lonely, frightening, and something to ignore. The Twilight Wish Foundation shows that, with a little compassion and a little heart, the elderly don't have to disappear.

Rich Fabric is out today, 28th September, and can be bought from Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/Rich-Fabric-Anthology-Symbolism-Tradition/dp/1479278378/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1348655663&sr=8-13&keywords=melinda+mcguire)

or Amazon.co.uk (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rich-Fabric-Anthology-Symbolism-Tradition/dp/1479278378/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1348655663&sr=8-13&keywords=melinda+mcguire)

It contains short stories, illustrations, essays, memoirs, and photographs.

The eBook will be available in December.

Book Launch! A Roof Over Their Heads - Stories from the Isle of Sheppey

On Friday 21st September, we officially launched our beloved project as a paperback book - A Roof Over Their Heads!

As part of the Promenade 2012 events, the Sheppey Writing Workshop were invited to give a reading in front of Mayor of Swale Pat Sandle, MP Gordon Henderson, and an audience who were offered traditional cream teas for elevenses! 

To start, Geof Reed, the man who organised the Roof Over Their Heads project, as well as Jo Eden, one of our writers, entertained us with a rousing rendition of the beautiful Summertime from Porgy and Bess. If you would like to hear Jo sing (and it's certainly worth it), she will, I'm sure, be engaged in events all over the island in the coming months. 

We have sold out of our first run of books, but don't worry, we're taking orders for more! If you would like to buy a copy, you can do so through Lulu http://www.lulu.com/shop/lisamarie-lamb-and-geof-reed/a-roof-over-their-heads/paperback/product-20348882.html;jsessionid=4AAFDC370536D709B4F9C28E7A520936

It will soon be available through Amazon as well. 

Alternatively, you can contact me (lisamarie20010@gmail.com) to order a copy (you never know, we may even sign it for you!).

We hope to soon be stocking the book in local shops and we will be updating this page as the exciting new things happen! 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved for making this project come to life. Here's to the next one! 

Published: From Stage Door Shadows

Blurb:
Twenty-six authors trade Tiny Dancer's California-blessed lyrics for the shadowed recesses of stages large and small in From Stage Door Shadows, a speculative fiction homage to the darkness just beyond the limelight of the entertainment industry.

The stories re-introduce the woman Bernie Taupin wrote about and Elton John sang about: blue jean baby, LA lady, the band's seamstress, the music man's wife, and the girl dancing in the sand, along with a stellar cast of musicians, singers, thespians, fans, managers, dancers, DJs, magicians, talent show contestants, stars, and has-beens.

Frome Vaudeville to opera, piano bar to street corner, hotel suite and beauty pageant, From Stage Door Shadows is a backstage pass to where dreams of fame, fortune, and fulfillment live and die in a heartbeat.

History:
From Stage Door Shadows is the fourth Literary Mix Tapes and the final LMT anthology for 2012. It follows in the footsteps of Nothing But Flowers: tales of post-apocalyptic love, Eighty Nine, and Deck The Halls: festive tales of fear and cheer.  

From Stage Door Shadows is based on Bernie Taupin's lyrical tribute to California in the 1970s, "Tiny Dancer". The song appears on Elton John's fourth studio album, Madman Across The Water and although not a hit at the time of release, it went platinum in August 2011.

Release Dates:
The paperback and eBook will be released simultaneously on the 29th September 2012. The paperback will be launched at Smith's Alternate Bookstore in Canberra (Australia) on 29th September as part of Conflux 8, and will be accompanied by an online celebration.

Pre-orders open Monday 3rd September 2012. Books may be ordered via the eMergent Publishing Bookstore for the reduced price of $12.99 (RRP $19.99).

Table of Contents:
Rites of Spring by Graham Storrs
Torch Song by Andrew J. McKiernan
Fear Is The Sin by Alan Baxter
Candentia by Clive Martin
Luminaire by Joanne Anderton
House of the Cantomancer by Jennifer Muirhead
White Poppy Serenade by S. G. Larner
Time Signature by Melanie Saward
Tiny Dancer by Emma Kerry
Sing to Me by Laura Meyer
Discovering the Gift by Len Lambert
Indigo by Jodi Cleghorn
The Last Illusion by Rus Van Westervelt
Dancing in the Sand by Rebecca L. Dobbie
A Perfect Evening by Sam Adamson
My Moment by Theresa Milstein
Music Box by Laura Eno
Open Audition by Devin Watson
A Living Doll by Monica Marier
The Last of the Undead Beats by Daniel Wynne
The Gods Are Just by Janette Dalgliesh
The Music Man by Lisamarie Lamb
The Colour of Blood by Cath Barton
Velvet by J. M. Donellan
The Twilight Dream by Tom Dullemond
Muted by Jessica Bell

eMergent Publishing
eMergent Publishing is a cutting edge Anglo-Australian small press founded by authors Paul Anderson and Jodi Cleghorn in 2009. eMergent produces conceptual fiction anthologies which push the boundaries of form and structure.