Off the Bookshelf: WYRD WRAVINGS

Anthologies. Love 'em or hate 'em? Depends on what the theme is... I suppose the whole purpose of anthologies is to give you a taste of a writer's style and maybe a series of books he or she is known for, so you go look for more.

WYRD WRAVINGS is an anthology of SF/F put out by Echelon Press, that I got as a prize at the Intergalactic Bar and Grill "party," hosted by Linnea Sinclair, at Romantic Times last year in Chicago. Mega-fun party. Way too short. The SF trivia game was inspired. And all the door prizes of goodies ... some silly, some great -- and delicious. (You had to be there!)

Not enough room to give you an idea of the 10 very, very different stories by 10 very, very different authors. But I had fun reading them. Wrapping my mind around them. And struggling through the "Huh?" moment when my brain had to shift gears -- quickly -- from one universe to another. A few that stand out in my mind is the hard-up-for-money time traveler who sold a dune buggy to King Tut -- or the author having major problems with his characters, who keep threatening to talk with their union rep -- or something that could only be described as desperate, unappreciated housewives meet a pyramid scheme meet an intergalactic travel agency ...

If you want a short vacation from reality, no matter what your taste is in spec fic, you'll probably find it in this book. Thanks to: Margaret Bailey, Ellen Dawn Benefield, Linda DeMeulemeester, Karen Duvall, Lazette Gifford, Lynn David Hebert, Kfir Luzatto, Janet Miller, Candace Sams, and Marc Vun Kannon.

On a side note: I'm now part of the Barn Door blog. Check it out, for insights and humor and other assorted offerings. A different blogger every day. My day is the 19th of every month. But like with an anthology, no matter what your tastes, you'll probably find something you like!