When I called Mr. Mongeau to accept the award, he congratulated me and asked me to tell him about myself and the background of my story.
During our forty-five minute conversation, he shared with me what he liked about "The Judas Goat" as well as why it didn't make the top five. I thanked him for the gift of his time and his candid comments and told him I'm looking forward to revising my story before it appears in the anthology.
The official announcement, which includes the names of the winning stories and bios of all the winners, was posted on the Tuscany Press blog yesterday. After reading the bios of the winners, I'm humbled to have my story included among such an esteemed group of writers.
The publication date for the anthology, The Grove and Other Stories, is Spring of 2016. To share these stories with my blog visitors, I plan to give away a copy of the anthology some time next spring.
Congratulations, Donna! And how great to hear those candid comments to help with revising.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Madeline. Revision is a way of life for writers. So, I'm grateful he took the time to make suggestions to make my story better.
DeleteSo happy for you! This is quite a notch in your belt! I hope the editor had sound reasons for his comments. I find so many editors are about what pleases them personally. That makes it hard to know how to write some stories...if only we knew their preferences before hand. Will be anxious to hear more as it develops.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Claudia. Knowing what an editor likes is a definite plus. This editor prefers contempory stories. Mine took place in 1969, so I'm pleased it made the cut. But it's good to know for future submissions.
DeleteCongratulations! You've hit the big time before, and now you've hit it again. What a bonus that Mr. Mongeau took the time to share his thoughts and learn more about you.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Val. It was very kind of him to take his time to get to know me and talk about writing with me. It truly was a gift.
DeleteThe lengthy conversation with the editor is a bigger coup (in my opinion) than the honorable mention.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Donna. You are one of those quiet writers the rest of us need to look out for... quietly plugging away and submitting and getting noticed in all sorts of ways...
You are right about my conversation. I'm not so sure about my being a quiet writer. I'm more of an erratic writer. I need to focus
DeleteDonna, congratulations on a well-deserved award!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Donna! It's so nice to get recognition for hard work. Now go forth and write another!!! :D
ReplyDeleteThanks, Linda and Patricia,
ReplyDeleteHope you both had a great summer.
How awesome you were able to receive personal feedback from Mr. Mongeau. You should do a blog post on what you learned from him. Congratulations again on this well-deserved honor, Donna!
ReplyDeletePat
Critter Alley
Thanks, Pat. I just might do that.
DeleteCongratulations, Donna! Looking forward to reading it.
ReplyDelete