SHOELESS

SHOELESS is my linked short story collection in progress, featuring a cast of misfits who fall more gracefully than they rise. Twelve-year-old Celeste narrates the title story, which was published in The Sun and given notable mention in Best of the West. Each of the other stories features one of the characters Celeste knows, and through their stories her fuller story is also revealed.

Shoeless (The Sun, June 2010 issue #414, notable mention in Best of the West 2011)

Darrell, In Milwaukee (Clover, A Literary Rag December 2013 Vol 6)
 
No Vacancy (Ralph, the motel manager) (Clover, A Literary Rag Summer 2016 Vol 11)
 
Estelle of the “L” Line (Estelle, Dominic’s mother)
 
Straight on ’til Morning (Jake’s Uncle Luke)
 
Corner of Valencia (Lois a.k.a. “Shoe”)
 
On the Outs (Glenn)
 
The Mission (Celia and Celeste) (Clover, A Literary Rag Winter 2016 Vol 12)

Bridge Walker (Jake)
 
Beautifully (Dominic)

The motel marquis image paired with “Shoeless” in the magazine—chosen by the editors of The Sun—is the photo art of R.A. McBride. She took the photograph in Albuquerque, along Route 66. I purchased the gorgeous 11-x-14-inch archival fiber base print from Ms. McBride, in part because her art helped to inspire the plot of the companion story, “No Vacancy,” in which Ralph the motel manager features.

For the short story “Shoeless,” I was delighted and honored to work with Andrew Snee, Senior Editor, and the editorial team at The Sun. I also had tremendous fun giving Andrew a t-shirt printed with excerpts of some of the e-mails he sent me during his editing. Here’s some of my faves:

—“We … would like to see it work in The Sun, but it would need some revisions.”

—“We now think that a murder, even an accidental one, isn’t really in keeping with the tone of the story ….”

—”… where the narrator says, ‘I want to help,’ could we drop that?”

—“… I think what we’re looking for is more Raising Arizona, less Fargo.”