24 Hour Fiction Contest

I entered the 24-Hour Fiction Contest over at Writer’s Weekly this weekend. The concept is simple: they email you a paragraph with the theme at noon on Saturday, and you have until noon on Sunday to come up with a story. Here is this year’s topic:
From her lap, his shiny black eyes stared up at [...]

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My latest, “Hands-Free Annihilation,” is up at Big Pulp. It’s about a GPS system that gains awareness and turns murderous. Kind of like my own GPS system. Although to be fair, Gabbie didn’t have the mouth on her that this one does.
Anyway, you can take a look at:
http://www.bigpulp.com/
My story is currently on the front page, [...]

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They were kind enough to publish my newest story, ‘Til Death, a cheery little tale about a new bride and a missing groom. I’m afraid I can’t say anymore about it, other than The Flash Fiction Offensive rocks!! Oh, you wanted to hear about the story? Go read it yourself.
http://theflashfictionoffensive.blogspot.com/2009/11/til-death-by-shannon-schuren.html

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Life is good.
As I type this, everything is better. The sun is brighter, my children are sweeter. The bacon is crisper.
I have found my bliss, and it is the ending of my novel! Not ending as in I have finished, but ending as in I now KNOW WHAT HAPPENS!
This may come as a surprise to [...]

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There are so many books in the world, and so little time to read them. This is not new insight, I’m aware, but it is something I struggle with both as a reader and a writer. After all, how can I justify putting a book down just because it hasn’t held my attention as closely [...]

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I am a firm believer in education. After all, I married a teacher. And I work at a child care center, where in between the nose-wiping and getoffyourfriendhedoesn’tlikeitwhenyoubounceonhisheadlikeatrampoline, we do manage the occasional teachable moment. I graduated from high school, completed six years of college, and have since taken classes on everything from grant writing [...]

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Some of you have probably already heard about the poor bird who unwisely chose to enter our humble abode on Friday after my husband had gone to work. My first thought as it buzzed my head was that it was a bat, which of course freaked me out completely. And explains why I made my [...]

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What I’m working on: I’m working on a new story, the plotline of which I’m keeping to myself for right now. Unfortunately, it has an impossible deadline of Tuesday. I want to submit it to the Good Housekeeping Short Story Contest, which is being judged by Jodi Picoult. Grand prize is $3000, and while I’d [...]

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It puzzles me that many writers seem threatened by the idea of amateurs dabbling in their medium. I wonder, is Diane Von Furstenberg angered at the thought of my mother-in-law shopping at Hobby Lobby for fabric and patterns? Does Steven Spielberg rue the day handheld video recorders became the product of the masses? There are enough stories out there for all [...]

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Where my head is at:  Today, my youngest turns four. I assume that most parents go through these bittersweet feelings. He’s growing up, which means more freedom (translation: writing time) but at the same time, he’s growing up! When did this happen? And how do I make it stop?
What I’m working on: It’s been a [...]

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