Cover reveal and pre-order link — New Short Fiction!

November 16, 2024 / Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

I’m soo excited to finally be able to announce this!

Last year, my short story “The Beekeeper” was accepted by co-editors Lynn Hutchinson Lee and Nina Munteanu for their Exile Editions anthology Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia!

It’s available now through the Exile Editions website (linked in the title above) for pre-order at a 15% discount until the official launch date on December 31st, 2024!

Just look at this lovely cover:

Cover of Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia.

Full cover (front and back) of Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia.

Hopeful dystopias are so much more than an apparent oxymoron: they are in some fundamental way the spearhead of the future – and ironically often a celebration of human spirit by shining a light through the darkness of disaster. In Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia, award-winning authors of speculative fiction Lynn Hutchinson Lee and Nina Munteanu present a collection that explores strange new terrains and startling social constructs, quiet morphing landscapes, dark and terrifying warnings, lush newly-told folk and fairy tales.

This is a fascinating collection of all-new, modern-day speculative storytelling, with insightful “Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia” featuring Agata Antonow, Sarah Christina Brown, Mary Burns, K.R. Byggdin, Petra Chambers, Katie Conrad, M.L.D. Curelas, Matthew Freeman, R. Haven, Liam Hogan, Cornelia Hoogland, Vanessa Hua, Jerri Jerreat, Zilla Jones, Katherine Koller, Erin MacNair, Melanie Marttila, Bruce Meyer, Isabella Mori, E. Martin Nolan, Avery Parkinson, Ursula Pflug, Marisca Pichette, Shana Ross, Lynne Sargent, Karen Schauber, Holly Schofield, Anneliese Schultz, Gin Sexsmith, Sara C. Walker, Jade Wallace, and Melissa Yuan-Innes.These authors show us that now, more than ever, our world urgently needs stories about hope.

So thrilled for this next publication and to be sharing the table of contents with so many fabulous author friends!

The Art of Floating cover reveal!

October 9, 2023 / Melanie Marttila

One of the many things I’m grateful for this Thanksgiving Day!

I’ve been sitting on this for a while, uncertain when I could make the announcement, but I confirmed with my publisher back in September that I could publish a cover reveal for The Art of Floating. Rather than compete with my monthly update and newsletter, however, I thought I’d wait and make a separate post of it.

And here we are:

Isn’t it gorgeous?

This is a digital print of a beautiful piece by my cousin (!) Gillian Schultze called “Lost Lake.”

When Heather Campbell and I met in July to discuss options for the cover of The Art of Floating, we considered some of the pictures I had taken (see my Instagam for those), but in a subsequent email exchange, we discussed Gillian’s work, considered a few, and ultimately decided that “Lost Lake” was it.

Heather reached out to Gillian in August and, after navigating summer vacations, Gillian agreed!

I can’t tell you all how happy I am with this evocative cover and how well it complements the poetry in The Art of Floating.

Now, I’ll encourage you all to support Gillian. Her work is on display in her art gallery in Killarney. You can find her on Facebook and Instagram as well as on her web site (linked above). She is just as awesome as her social media suggest!

And now, I’m going to get back to my own creative work.

Until next time, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Cover and Table of Contents Announcement

May 23, 2022June 6, 2022 / Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

I’m so excited to share the Table of Contents for the upcoming Tyche Books anthology Pirating Pups: Salty Sea-Dogs and Barking Buccaneers!

The anthology is edited by Rhonda Parrish, cover art is by Sarah Dahlinger, and the book will be out in August.

And now for the complete Table of Contents:

The Empress of Marshmallow — Chadwick Ginther

Davy Bones and the Domestication of the Dutchman —Jennifer Lee Rossman

Johnson the Terror — Meghan Beaudry

Ghost Pirate Dognapper — Kristen Brand

Blackbark’s Collar — Richard Lau

Let the Water Drink First — V.F. LeSann

New Tricks — Alice Dryden

Torvi, Viking Queen — Melanie Marttila

Under the Curse of Jupiter — Mathew Austin

The Boomer Bust — JB Riley

What Gold Smells Like — Frances Pauli

Artistic Appropriation — George Jacobs

What Frisky Wrought When the Wheels Fell Off the World — E.C. Bell

You can find out more at the publisher’s page: Tyche Books — Pirating Pups. And even though the anthology won’t be out until August, the pre-order link is up!

I’m so excited!

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, Aug 1-7, 2021

August 10, 2021August 8, 2021 / Melanie Marttila

It is time, once again, to stock up on informal writerly learnings.

Janice Hardy says, don’t let these plotting errors knock your novel off track. Then, Jodi Turchin touts the benefits of a DIY personal writers retreat. Bethany Henry provides a guide for writing strong female characters. Then, Aly Brown lists three mixed-up writing goofs you might be making. Fiction University

Jill Bearup analyzes Harley Quinn’s bonkers elevator fight scene. One Villainous Scene

Greer Macallister shares three tips for a great cover reveal. Then, Allie Larkin says, don’t finish your book. Donald Maass: the walking stick. Later in the week, Rheea Mukherjee wonders, how absurd can our characters be? Writer Unboxed

Princess Weekes presents Demona is alone. One Villainous Scene. Melina Pendulum

K.M. Weiland explains how the antagonist functions in different kinds of character arcs. Helping Writers Become Authors

Elizabeth Spann Craig provides us with a release checklist.

How to write literary fiction. Reedsy

Literary fiction tropes. Reedsy

You may think Jeanette the Writer is being facetious when she explains how to edit an email, but for those important emails (queries, client relations, etc.) do you really want to take the chance of making a critical mistake? Then, Tammy Lough says, historical romance is too hot to handle! Becca Spence Dobias shares five ways audiobooks improve your voice as an author. DIY MFA

Narrative worldbuilding. Shaelin Writes