Tag: Literary fiction

Propping Up Literary Genre Fiction Sales

Guest post
by Bill Stephens

Okay, I’ll admit it. I lack what it takes to write serious literary fiction. Stephen King settled that issue for me in his book, On Writing, when he said, “You will never be a great writer unless you are born with it.” Great writers must be passionate about something, right? I’m only passionate about things I shouldn’t eat or drink.

So the arrogance of someone so lacking as myself, offering up a thesis that literary fiction doesn’t sell and inferring that cognitive critters might solve that problem, is not lost on me. But even the most calloused devotees of esoteric fiction among publishing gurus, are hard pressed to make the case that a Nobel Prize winner will outsell a good murder mystery, thriller, vampire, S&M, or diet book. Continue reading “Propping Up Literary Genre Fiction Sales”

Book Brief: Through a Dusty Window

Through a Dusty Window: New York City Stories 1910-2001
by Delancey Stewart
Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Short Stories
Word count: 20,450

It’s impossible to live in a city like New York without feeling the presence of those who have preceded you – on those streets, in those subway cars, in that apartment. The city thrums with vibrations of lives and eras passed, and traces of that history are left imprinted in tangible ways everywhere we look.

Through a Dusty Window is a collection of ten short stories spanning a century of lives inhabiting one New York City brownstone on the Upper West Side. They are the culmination of the author’s experience in that city, during which she wondered constantly who had occupied her apartment before her, and what stories they might have lived.

Ten vignettes offer historical perspective on real events from Prohibition to World War II; the Vietnam-era Summer of Sam killings to John Lennon’s murder.

Through a Dusty Window allows us to be voyeurs, seeing the fascinating lives of others as they experience the history that New Yorkers today hear whispers of around every corner.

This book is available through Amazon.

Continue reading “Book Brief: Through a Dusty Window”

Sneak Peek: The Tapestry of Spirit

Today we have a sneak peek from author Erik Paul Rocklin’s spiritual fiction novel, The Tapestry of Spirit.

An enchanting, allegorical tale with insights of enduring relevance, The Tapestry of Spirit presents an artfully layered story of an orphan boy following a dream — a dream of a meeting in the East with a mystical figure known as the Mage. A seemingly coincidental encounter the day after the dream introduces the boy to an old man, summoned by the power of the boy’s dream, to serve as his guide and protector during the journey. Along the way, some of the boy’s encounters include a wise, elderly Sage, a blind Seer, a captive boy Monk, a grieving Mother, and a dying Father. And through these encounters, the boy learns of the power of dreams, the value of trust and belief, the vision of the heart, and the capacity of every individual to help in the healing of the World. As the boy journeys to seek the Mage, he comes to understand that in doing so, he also seeks his Destiny Thread, and ultimately, how it returns to the universal wisdom that is The Tapestry of Spirit.

This title is available from Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

And now, an excerpt from The Tapestry of Spirit…

Continue reading “Sneak Peek: The Tapestry of Spirit”

Book Brief: The Tapestry of Spirit

The Tapestry of Spirit
by Erik Paul Rocklin
Genre: Literary fiction / spiritual fiction
Word count: 50,000

“While there are many that journey who seek, not all that travel will find, for they are bound by what they have been taught and not of what they know.”
— from The Tapestry of Spirit.

An enchanting, allegorical tale with insights of enduring relevance, The Tapestry of Spirit presents an artfully layered story of an orphan boy following a dream — a dream of a meeting in the East with a mystical figure known as the Mage. A seemingly coincidental encounter the day after the dream introduces the boy to an old man, summoned by the power of the boy’s dream, to serve as his guide and protector during the journey. Along the way, some of the boy’s encounters include a wise, elderly Sage, a blind Seer, a captive boy Monk, a grieving Mother, and a dying Father. And through these encounters, the boy learns of the power of dreams, the value of trust and belief, the vision of the heart, and the capacity of every individual to help in the healing of the World. As the boy journeys to seek the Mage, he comes to understand that in doing so, he also seeks his Destiny Thread, and ultimately, how it returns to the universal wisdom that is The Tapestry of Spirit.

This title is available from Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Continue reading “Book Brief: The Tapestry of Spirit”