~Photo Jen Connic, 2008.
Where to Read Me
Here’s where you can read
any work that is currently available online. Much of my work that was published
is no longer available or appeared in print; for a complete list, see
Previously Published.
(Afternoon)
(I Am This Meat Anthology, Susurrus Press)
(The Fix)
(Toasted Cheese)
Confetti
(All Things Girl)
(The Illuminata, Tyrannosaurus Press)
(Barbaric Yawp Editor John Berbrich and novelist, short story writer and poet William
Michaelian)
(Pitkin Review)
(Chucklehound)
(Toasted Cheese)
(The
(Microhorror)
(Toasted Cheese)
Wisdom (listed as “Teeth Wisdom”)
(Bewildering Stories)
Available for Purchase
What is currently available for
purchase in print—the links will take you directly to purchase pages. I have not included any back issues or
what is pending here; for a complete list of all publications in which my work
has appeared, please see Previously Published.
Crossing Guards
Walls & Bridges Anthology, Newport Round Table ~ Millenial Concepts
Deconstructing Fireflies
Beacons of Tomorrow: Second Collection, Tyrannosaurus Press
How I Learned to Stop Complaining and Love the Bunny
Wailing Station
I’m Going to Tell You One More Time Anthology, WrongWorld®
News
May 4, 2009
Yes, I know. It’s been a
long time since you’ve heard from me! The good news is: my thesis, Skeletons
in the Swimmin’ Hole (ghost stories set in Walt Disney World) is
complete. I will receive my MFA in Creative Writing from Goddard
College in Vermont on June 28. Right now, I am preparing to attend the Writers Institute at Miami Dade College from May 5 - 10,
where I will be lucky enough to take such classes as a three-day course
on the craft of the short story with Steve Almond (and, enjoy the
glorious weather!)
A few bits of things that
have happened recently:
~ Macabre Cadaver will feature “Synecdoche” in an upcoming issue – publication date to be announced.
~ Microhorror ran “Right Where Mother Left It” in its December 10, 2008 issue. For some reason, I forgot to post this earlier (well, it was the holidays).
~ Nathan will be featured in Melissa Martin Ellis’ The Everything Ghost Hunting Book, which will be available for purchase in August.
~ We had an enormously successful book signing and reading for the Walls & Bridges Anthology this past Saturday, April 25, at Books on the Square in Providence, RI. Thanks to Mark and Melissa Ellis for putting together such a fine book! I was privileged to share the dossier with E. Bell Carroll, Jessica Grota, Amy Machado, Gil Paradis, Richard Alan Scott, Heather Sullivan, John Michael Skaggs, and Susan West Kurz. And as someone who has held groups and readings at many bookstores, I’d like to add the note here that Chris and the gang at Books on the Square were the most gracious hosts thus far.
March 1, 2009
Morpheus Tales will feature "Ghost Light," a post-apocalyptic ghost story, in its upcoming Special Undead Issue. "Ghost Light" was originally published in the December 2006 issue of Barbaric Yawp. You can check out Morpheus Tales -- a great print 'zine out of the UK -- here.
My urban legend/ghost story "Bridging
Christmas," which placed 3rd in Toasted Cheese's 2008 Dead of Winter
Contest, is posted in their March issue. You can check it out here.
February 1, 2009
Great news to kick off my birthday month! I'm pleased to announce that my story "Bridging
Christmas" just placed 3rd in Toasted Cheese's 2008 Dead of Winter
Contest! This is the third year in a row I've placed -- "Wailing
Station" took 2nd in 2006 and "King of Bull" took 1st in 2007. The
contest is blind-judged, and this year's theme was "Blood River
Bridge", "Alternative Santa", "Ventriloquist", or "Alaska" -- or any
combination thereof. The piece will be published in the magazine's
March issue. More information here: http://www.toasted-cheese.com/
December 3, 2008
A few notes to close out the year…
1. Walls & Bridges Anthology Book Signing Saturday, December 6. The whole cast of talented writers and artists who were published in Millennial Concepts' Newport Round Table Anthology Walls & Bridges, under the editorship of Mark and Melissa Martin Ellis, will be on hand Saturday, Dec. 6, from 6:30 – 9 p.m. at Empire Tea in Newport, RI. We'll sign books, read, and celebrate! I'm honored that "Crossing Guards" shares the Table of Contents with so many great pieces of work. It's also the first time my friend Heather Sullivan and I are in the same publication!
If you happen to be in town, come on by and say hello. If you wish to purchase the anthology, you can head to The Newport Round Table or Amazon.com.
2. "Down in the Green" in Crimson Highway: Dark Romantic Fiction. The story appeared in its October issue. You can read it here.
3. "Confetti" Parts I & II in All Things Girl. They divided the story into two parts. You can read Part 1 in the November issue by clicking here. Part 2 is in the December issue; you can read that here.
4. Acceptance: New England Horror Writers. I applied and was accepted to New England Horror Writers, joining many other talented writers and friends like Lon Prater, Richard Alan Scott, and Jody L. Campbell. You can read more about them at http://www.horror.org/ne/
5. I'm happy to report that for the 5th year in a row I've hit the 50,000 word mark in National Novel Writing Month. This year, I didn't do a novel—I instead wrote brand-new material for Admit One Literary Theme Park. I now have an inventory of nine new stories to send out. Some will be included in my hard-bound thesis, What the Dormouse Knows; the rest, as of now, will go into the (eventual) hard-bound collection Digging Dirt in River Country. And I've got six more stories in my brain just waiting to be put on paper. While I'm at it, congratulations to CJ, our fearless ML for the brand new Fairfield County region. We are small but mighty. I'm already looking forward to participating next year!
November 1, 2008
It's that time of year again! Get out your AlphaSmart NEOs or your laptop, head to the nearest coffee shop, and get Nano-ing!
October 4, 2008
Remember that although Fall is descending and the leaves are dying, October is also a month of blessings—get out that catnip for good luck! Anyway, these past couple of months have been so full of blessings that here, I'll just be brief.
Wrong World®'s multi-media anthology (PDF and DVD) I'm Going to Tell You One More Time, which features my short story "Wailing Station", is now available. It's a true pleasure to be featured among 23 other fantastic, well-known horror writers—many of which are my favorites: Sara Joan Berniker, Mort Castle, Ralan Conley, O'Neil De Noux, JG Faherty, Bruce Golden, John Grover, Jane Gwaltney, Brian A. Hopkins, Michael Kelly, Michael Keyton, John Kuhn, Barton Paul Levenson, Norma Jean Lipert, William Meikle, Scott Nicholson, Maria E. Schneider, Jacqueline Seewald, Martin R. Soderstrom, J.J. Steinfeld, Bev Vincent, Kaaron Warren, and Donald P. Willard. Each of us was asked to record a special Halloween audio message, featured on the DVD. Don't miss out: get Scary Short Stories for Halloween here and watch the brief video introduction.
Crimson Highway's October 2008 Issue features "Down in the Green" as one of the four it chose for this month. You won't ever set your feet in murky waters again!
Admit One Literary Theme Park is now open! Head on over to enjoy E-Ticket Short Fiction for Grown-Up Disney
Fans. This month's feature, "Miss Reyna Gets Her Comeuppance on Flash Mountain", will be posted soon.
Dead Letters' new feature, "The Sweet Perils of Isolation", aired September 21 and highlights Jeanne Mackin's book, The Sweet By and By, about the Fox Sisters. Full text of episode.
Happy Haunting!
August 15, 2008
Hope your summer's better than it's been here in Connecticut...much too cold, too much rain. But lots of good news this month!
My short story "Crossing Guards" was picked up by The Newport Round Table's Walls & Bridges anthology, due out later this year. I'm especially honored to be included in this collection. Not only is it edited by Mark and Melissa Martin Ellis (talented, widely published writers and artists and really cool people), but my friend Heather and I have been friends for 15 years, and this is the first time we'll be featured in the same Table of Contents! Her poems "Driving Home" and "One Patch of Earth" will be in the anthology as well. I should have purchasing information within the next few months.
"Wailing Station"—which took 2nd place in Toasted Cheese's 2006 Dead of Winter Contest—has been purchased by Wrong World® for inclusion in their sixth multi-media collection, entitled I'm Going to Tell You One More Time. The story, along with many others on the same theme, will be published in DVD, video, and PDF format. It will be available for purchase and rental on October 1.
Admit One Literary Theme Park's website will be up and running on September 1. Ads will appear on the Orlando Attractions Magazine website on the same day, and in their print editions beginning with the October/November issue. Want to see the ad that LOKI Graphics designed for the print magazine? Check it out—here's a TINY version of it, below. You can still sign up to get stories once a month in your inbox. Remember to keep your arms and legs inside the margins!
On a related note, artist Melissa Duckworth of Pandora Ink Designs, Inc.—which is publishing an altered book version of "Candle Garden"—has expressed interest in publishing a collection of the Admit One stories when they're ready. She's a fantastic artist and already has some great ideas. Visit the Pandora Ink Designs' beautiful new website at www.pandoraink.com. In fact, if you're a writer, check out their submission guidelines under the Upcoming Projects tab. If you're looking for unique gifts, explore their store.
You already know that "Deconstructing Fireflies" appears in the Beacons of Tomorrow: Second Collection. The other day I found it—and our names—on someone's blog! It's nice to know you're being talked about! It's under the August 9, 2008 entry entitled "Auburn Good 'ol Days". In addition, Nathan and I just put together a really great radio commercial which will air on The Ghostman & Demon Hunter Show.
Pencils! Writing Workshop celebrated its 5th anniversary on July 26! Here's photos of our Soiree in Wonderland.
That's all for this month…and now, I'm going to Disney World! (Yes, for real; I leave on August 21st).
July 15, 2008
With the onset of summer, things have slowed down around here, but the workload regarding the number of projects I'm involved in has picked up. So I took the plunge and put a small pool in my backyard. Here's what's happening right now:
1. BEACONS OF TOMORROW: SECOND COLLECTION: Nathan and I are proud to announce that Tyrannosaurus Press' second science fiction anthology, featuring our story "Deconstructing Fireflies", is now available for purchase! Support Bret Funk and his amazing small press. Purchase a copy at the special price of $8 at Tyrannosaurus Press, or check it out on Amazon.com.
2. I wasn't expecting this one—on May 25, I was appointed Editor-in-Chief of Goddard College's literary journal, PITKIN REVIEW! It's been a hectic couple of months working with the staff and putting measures in place to get the Fall 2008 issue up and running. If I've not responded to your e-mails and phone calls…well, this is probably why! Needless to say, I'm thrilled about this amazing opportunity. And I'm proud to brag that I've got the most talented, enthusiastic staff I could have ever asked for—we're gonna make this issue sing! Stay tuned for updates…I will be taking pre-orders for anyone outside the school who'd like to purchase a copy.
3. ADMIT ONE LITERARY THEME PARK. I was a Disney fiction fan who wanted more. I met other Disney fiction fans who wanted more. So I started writing short stories set in Disney Parks and e-mailing them in PDF form to Disney fiction fans who wanted more. And now I'm pleased to announce that Admit One Literary Theme Park is on the cusp of its opening day!
The website, which will feature PDFs of the stories that have gone out so far, and many new ones in the coming months, will be up and running sometime between August 15 and September 1. All of the site's content will be FREE and distributed under the Creative Commons License. At the moment, I'm considering two options: guests can visit the site once a month or elect to have the stories e-mailed. Being that Admit One is an extension of my graduate thesis, What the Dormouse Knows, some of the stories may be works-in-progress and subject to additional polish. Print and web ads will hit Orlando Attractions Magazine beginning with the September issue.
I couldn't have made it this far without the team of people who have provided feedback and given their time to work on this project. Jonathan Sullivan of LOKI Graphics designed our logo; Rob Mayette is working on our website; Jerry Rivard, Heather Sullivan, Rob Mayette and YoungJames Kenny, all fine writers, provided initial feedback on the story drafts; Richard Merskin at Orlando Attractions has been patient and encouraging. And, of course, there are the countless readers from the Inside the Magic forums—the Disney fiction fans who wanted more—who read the stories and gave me their input.
I'll keep you posted, but get ready to vacation in the park soon!
4. PENCILS! WRITING WORKSHOP, based in Norwalk, Connecticut,
will celebrate its 5th Anniversary this month. I raise a toast to a
very talented, diverse, and dedicated community of writers who have hung in
there as a family for five years. Wow. Here's to another five years of
rejection slip burnings, savvy critique, growing membership, field trips,
parties, and innovative educational opportunities. Want to know more about
Pencils!? Visit Pencils! Writing Workshop
5. DEAD LETTERS—my monthly segment on Nathan's The Ghostman & Demon Hunter Show—hit the airwaves with "Creative Crypto" on May 11! Although June and July haven't made it up yet (June was a bit crazy), those episodes have been recorded and a third is in the works. I'll announce them when they're released! Check out the full text of Creative Crypto or listen to the show's May 11, 2008 episode in the G&D archives.
That's all for now. I have many stories floating around out there, and I hope to report more acceptances soon.
April 2, 2008
1. A photo of my brother Chuck and I, as well as a
blurb about the extinct Bob-A-Long boats at Disney’s Polynesian (then-Village)
Resort, appears in the April/May 2008 edition of Orlando Attractions Magazine. The photo was taken in 1977, and
thanks to the fact that it was good old-fashioned Kodak slide film, looks as
though it was taken yesterday. Don’t miss this trip down memory lane! If you’re
interested in ordering the issue, just visit their website..
You can flip through the magazine for a free preview or order directly from
that page.
2. “Deconstructing Fireflies”, which was written by
Nathan and I back in 2005 and was previously published in The Illuminata, is due out in the Beacons of Tomorrow II anthology, published by Tyrannosaurus Press,
on July 1 of this year.
3. All Things
Girl has picked up my short story “Confetti”—all about paper dresses, a
pissed off girl and a couple of matches—for its November and December issues;
it will serialize the piece. ATG is
an e-zine that launched in 2001, and their mission is to, as noted on their
website (I don’t want to plagiarize here, but they really put it best, so these
are their words, not mine): “give women a place to showcase their stuff - their
artwork, photography, poetry, prose, articles on health, reviews, thoughts on
business, creative endeavours and so much more.” Curious? Explore ATG …and
stop back there in November and December to take in “Confetti”.
March 20, 2008
I’m pleased to announce that Pandora Ink Books will publish a limited edition, perfect-bound
pressing of my short story, “Candle Garden”—a haunting story about a woman
struggling with the loss of her children whose tryst with a wax artist leads to
some…well, interesting outcomes.
2. It was nice to see that my story, “King of Bull”, was
mentioned on at least one other website, Technorati.com. Although it’s just
that my name appears in an entry, if this person has lots of readers, then
those readers may go and check me out!
March 10, 2008
A boatload of stuff, here! Here we go:
1. "King of Bull", which took 1st Place in
Toasted Cheese's 2007 "Dead of Winter" contest, is now available to read in
their March Issue. This year's topic was "Urban Legends". I encourage you to
not only read King of Bull, but other stories in all over their archived
issues. It's a great magazine. To check out the other issues, go to Toasted Cheese.
2. "How I Learned to Stop Complaining and Love the
Bunny", which was first published in Citizen Culture Magazine back in 2005, has
been picked up and is available for purchase at AnthologyBuilder.com. Anthology
Builder is a great new concept that's doing very well: they have tons of
previously sold short stories on a wide variety of subjects. You can register,
browse in a number of ways, select up to 300 pages of fiction, a customized
cover and title, and purchase. It costs around $15, and the authors make small
royalties on every story of theirs that's sold. This is really a lot of fun,
there's quality material, and it makes a great gift—or, for people like me who
are picky, makes it easy to put together an anthology of nothing but stories I
like. Consider putting together your own anthology (and include my story!) Head
on over to AnthologyBuilder.
3. "Dead Letters" -- my monthly segment on Nathan's The Ghostman & Demon Hunter Show which had been on hiatus for the past six months because I wanted to re-tool its vision--is back on track! Now it's paranormal short fiction picks, and this month I recommend 4 goodies incorporating Urban Legends. You can investigate the March episode at www.ghostanddemon.com and hit the archives for the Sunday, March 9 show -- or just take a short cut to what I've recommended at The Ghostman & Demon Hunter Show forums under the "Dead Letters" section.
January 30, 2008
I'm PLEASED to
report that Kaye's story (here I go again, referring to myself in the
third person), "King of Bull", took first place in the Toasted Cheese 2007 Dead of Winter Contest! The last time she won first place in a short story contest, she was 12. Perseverance pays off!
This
was the second story she wrote for the contest -- the first one was
"Crossing Guards", which she didn't submit because it made a
disappointing show at the Pencils! meeting on November 27. So she came
up with this second idea.
The story will be published in Toasted Cheese's March issue. Toasted Cheese is a great mag; check it out at www.toasted-cheese.com.
January 17, 2008
Interesting! Found a review of the I Am This Meat Anthology on The Fix, an online journal which has commented on such publications as Apex Digest, The Town Drunk and Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet. Here's what he had to say about Kristi's story "Bad Enough".
January 15, 2008
Archive update: full texts of "Bad Enough" and "Matchbox" are now on the 2007 archive page.
Full text of "Glass Kill" is first up on the 2008 archive page.
January 14, 2008
"Wailing Station" has been honored once again--this time, it's been accepted to the podcast-based magazine Parade of Phantoms! Great stuff, scary stories all worth a listen. "Wailing Station" will be broadcast in a future episode, but for now, you can check out this fantastic 'zine here: http://paradeofphantoms.com/
Do yourself a favor and listen to "The Withering." It's really great.
January 8, 2008
"Glass Kill" appeared in Goddard College's journal The Pitkin Review, Spring 2008 issue. Now, here's something interesting: the editor sent Kristi a note assuming that the word she'd used in the story, "chourico", was misspelled, and shouldn't it be "chorizo"? Kristi replied, "no, the story is set in Fall River, Mass, where "chourico", because of the area's Portuguese influence, is spelled this way. "Chorizo" is the Spanish spelling." In fact, the meats are, indeed, prepared differently, so they don't even taste the same. Despite all of this, the magazine prints -- you guessed it -- "chorizo"!
January 5, 2008
My father, Charles W. Petersen, passed away on January 2. He didn't exactly love the things I wrote, but he was a writer himself who had a great love of literature. His favorite poet was Robert Frost.
Dad is the man who inspired me to be what I am today. If you'd like to read the eulogy I gave today, it's posted here: Nothing Gold Can Stay: In Memory of Charles W. Petersen
I'll miss you, Dad.
Where to find Kristi's recent work (updated every 3-6 months)
November, 2008: Sorry this hasn't been updated in awhile! For now, jump on up to the "News" section and catch the links from there. I'll be overhauling/updating this section in the next few months.
April 2008
1. "King of Bull" in Toasted Cheese's March, 2008 Issue:
http://www.toasted-cheese.com/ezine/2008/8-1/schoonover.htm
2. "How I Learned to Stop Complaining and Love the Bunny" as part of AnthologyBuilder.com:
http://www.anthologybuilder.com/welcome.php
3. Me and Chuck in the Bob-A-Round boats at Disney's Polynesian (then-Village) Resort, ca. 1977. Issue 3, Orlando Attractions Magazine:
http://www.attractionsmagazine.com/vol1issue3.php
4. "Glass Kill" at the Pitkin Review. Remember, they screwed up on "chourico"!
http://web.goddard.edu/pitkin/2007_fall/GlassKill.htm
January 2008
The Fix's review of "Bad Enough": http://thefix-online.com/reviews/i-am-this-meat/
"Glass Kill" in The Pitkin Review. Link coming soon -- but to read the full text with the correct spelling of the meat mentioned, visit my 2008 page, above.
December 2007
Photo/Tip in Orlando Attractions Magazine Issue #1. (Shameless plug: this guy's a friend of mine. The info's not online, but you really should check out this magazine!) Click here.
"Matchbox" in The Taj Mahal Review, December 2007 issue (not published online; you can read the text of the story in the 2007 archive): Click here.
October 2007
"Deconstructing Fireflies" in Tyrannosaurus Press' upcoming anthology. Link coming soon!
"Bad Enough" in Susurrus Press' I Am This Meat anthology. Click here.
March 2007
Kristi's story "Wisdom" (entitled "Teeth Wisdom" by the editors) is online at Bewildering Stories in Issue #238. "Wisdom" in Bewildering Stories.
"Wailing Station" in the Toasted Cheese's March 2007 Issue
Please be sure to check out the entire issue! It's fantastic writing!
Kristi's "Ghost Light" was discussed on author William Michaelian's website. To read the conversation between the author and Barbaric Yawp editor John Berbrich, click here: "Ghost Light" Discussion
Algonquin Table
~ If you live in the Norwalk area, consider joining Pencils! Writing Workshop, an open group which welcomes everyone. Find others like you! Check it out at http://www.pencilswritingworkshop.com
~ Work and links from Kristi's friends -- among them Stacy Horn (The Restless Sleep, Cyberville, Waiting for my Cats to Die), Marcelle Clements (Rock Me, Midsummer), Dan Pearlman (Black Flames, The Final Dream and Other Fictions) Howard Mittelmark (How NOT to Write a Novel, Age of Consent) and Lauren Baratz-Logsted (The Thin Pink Line, Vertigo) -- coming soon! Work Worth Reading...
~ Personal Pix: The Writing Life