Michael Darling's Blog, page 2
May 16, 2018
It Came From the Great Salt Lake Anthology
The Great Salt Lake is a remnant of an ancient lake that was almost as long as the State of Utah. What mysteries does it hold in its briny waters? What secrets lurk in its murky shores?
a malevolent spirit haunts a pregnant woman, luring her ever closer to the salty depths, yet what it wants is much more horrifying than death
the inversion and smog in the Salt Lake Valley carries more than just bad air
two locals find more than they bargain for when they unearth an ancient box buried in the...
Apocalypse Utah Anthology
From the Creators of Old Scratch and Owl Hoots and It Came from the Great Salt Lake, comes the next installment of new Utah horror, Apocalypse Utah a Collection of Utah Horror.
Twelve Apocalyptic horsemen of the Rocky Mountains have come together in this terrifying anthology of Utah Horror. After years of dystopian fiction, these twelve writers won the challenge to portray how the apocalypse would occur.
Questionable kittens, ritualistic killing, destroying angels, ancient gods seeking...
July 1, 2016
An Author as Traveler
We’ve gone on vacations before but our family’s recent trip to Europe felt . . . different. Most of the places we visited were new to us, or at least to me, but even the places I’d seen before were somehow fresher and more interesting than I remembered. I finally realized what it was.
I was looking at things throughthe eyes of an author.
The difference wasn’t hiding in the regal castles, the solemn cathedrals, or the beautiful gardens. They’ve been around for centuries and will change very li...
June 1, 2016
Kickstarting the Next Anthology
Crowdsourcing. The latest way to fund a project and, at the same time, offer readers a chance to get into the creative process of writing and publishing a story.
Literally.
Future House Publishing is trying an experiment and I’m excitedto see if anyone will bite on some of the really great premiums in the campaign. Six authors have been selected to write science-fiction stories for an anthology titledFuture Worlds. The quality and variety is dazzling. For my part, I’m wrapping up a short sto...
April 28, 2016
Some Things are Obvious
It’s Spring! The time when birds are singing, flowers are blooming and new anthologies are released! The latest anthology to feature a Darling short story, Obvious Things, was released today! The cover is very mysterious and shows off the main character for my story, “The Mark,” to great effect. The story won the United Authors Association (UAA) 2015 Writing Contest for best short story and was also the overall winner.
Fans ofGot Luck, my first novel, will be excited to discover that “The Mar...
March 24, 2016
Big Day!
Today marked the official debut of Got Luckand it happened at the Comic Con Fan-X event. So many great things came together today and it’s incredibly exciting to have the support of so many people. Here’s the rundown:
Got Luck had a limited print run and was available for the first time in paperback. The digital version debuted on March 17th. Read More. We started aThunderclap campaign to promote the novel. Supporting the campaign could win you an autographed copy ofGot Luck.It’s easy and fr...March 1, 2016
Book Cover Release for Got Luck
This is it.
It finally happened.
A beautiful, amazing cover for my first novel.
It’s a lovely day.
Luck and a little magic — and something more
I usually have a lot to say but this cover renders me nearly speechless. So many little elements from the story are there and the atmosphere is just right.
Just a few weeks untilGot Luck is released.
February 7, 2016
It Came From the Great Salt Lake
It came! From the great Griffin Publishers!
My third short story, “Grandmother Who Breaks the Sky” will be available February 11, 2016 in the anthology It Came From the Great Salt Lake. It’s always exciting to have a story selected and published and even more exciting to have the story chosen to lead off the collection. There are amazingauthors represented in this collection, twenty-one of them in all, and the stories run the gamut from frightening to funny, dramatic to disturbing. I’m proud...
November 9, 2015
Five Things to Try That Can Further Your Writing Career But Aren’t (Quite) Actual Writing
Springville Library. Beautiful place for a one day conference. Great opportunity to try some new things.
In this article, you might find one or two new things to try that will be helpful to you in your career as a writer. Some of the suggestions are specific to writer’s conferences (and, yes, you should go) but some are easily attempted right away, from your home or office.
Try one or two and see if they don’t make a difference in your writing career.
Try Creating a Presentation
One path to...
October 15, 2015
Helicon West
I had the chance to present at the October 8th edition of Helicon West in Logan, Utah. This is a regular series for authors and would-be authors to read from their work, make connections, and talk about writing. I read from my story “The Hollow” published earlier this year in the anthology Old Scratch and Owl Hoots. It was really interesting to watch the audience. Some people listened with their eyes shut but I could tell they weren’t sleeping because they smiled or drew their eyebrows togeth...
