Guest Post: Andrew Q. Gordon
Please welcome Andrew Q. Gordon back to my site. He’s here to talk about his new short, part of Wayward Ink Publishing’s new anthology.
A Closed Door – My First Anthology Story:
A Closed Door - Part of the Love, Loss, Laughter & Lust Anthology
From Wayward Ink Publishing
First, thank you Rob for letting me commandeer your blog to talk about my newest story.
I never seem to have enough time to write—a common complaint if you hang around writers—and since I’m always so focused on the amazingly long and growing back list of stories I ‘need’ to write, short stories for anthologies haven’t made it onto my list of what to write. Until now.
For some reason, I’ve got it in my head that if I don’t use fifty thousands word or more, I haven’t properly told a story. I’m trying to change that because, with a two year old daughter, full time job, husband I don’t want to neglect and the occasion forays outside to actually run, bike, referee soccer or take ‘lil q swimming, I really don’t have a lot of time to write. Fifty thousand words takes a while to write and write well. (And let’s be real, 50K is short for me. The shortest of my books, Purpose, is 80K) If I limit myself to just stories over fifty thousand, it tends to be a while between books. The release of A Closed Door, my story in Love, Loss, Laughter & Lust, was one day shy of a year since my last book - Purpose came out.
Writing A Closed Door, I was reminded of my writing professor. She used to chide me that I was always trying to write a novel, but had no time for anything. She kept encouraging me to try to write things under ten thousand words and submit them for publication. Of all her works, and she had at least a hundred stories of various sizes published, she was proudest of her short stories. Hopefully I was a better student learning how to write than I was when it came to how long of story to write.
A Closed Door has no magic, no wizards, no swords, no shifters, and no sex. It’s about two people Orin—the main character—and Thomas—his one time best friend, come gay basher in chief—trying to cope with loss and their past. When writing this story, I found that if I focused on just the characters and not a complicated plot or world building or defining super/special powers, I could write something worth reading in less than twenty thousand words. If you get a chance to read it, I hope you’ll feel the same way.
Blurb:
Love, Loss, Laughter & Lust Anthology, by Wayward Ink Publishing.
We’ve all loved.
We’ve all laughed.
Sadly, we’ve also probably all known loss in one form or another.
And, yes, we at Wayward Ink are sure we’ve all experienced lust!
In Love, Loss, Laughter & Lust, you’ll experience one or more of the “L”s as we take you on a roller coaster of emotions. Whether you like to sigh over the sweet, cry for the broken-hearted, enjoy a good laugh, or get a little hot and bothered, there’s something for everyone in this collection.
A Closed Door; by Andrew Q. Gordon
Orin Merritt left home after high school hoping to escape the hell his life had become since he’d been outted at thirteen. When a tornado destroys his childhood home and kill his parents, Orin finds a new kind of hell. Blaming himself for failing the two people who always loved and supported him, he returns home and confronts his past in the person of his one time best friend, Thomas Kennett. Thomas not only rejected Orin when he came out, he led the group that caused him to leave. As he struggles to deal with his grief , he tried to fulfill a pledge he made to his parents before their death. In the process, Orin learns that sometimes when you leave to find something, you might have left what you’re looking for behind.
Buy Links:
Giveaway:
As part of the release of the new Anthology, Wayward Ink is holding a giveaway. Just click the code below for a chance to win a $25.00 Amazon Gift Card. Two people will also win a paperback copy of the book, and three people will win a WIP USB Extension Cord and Fridge Magnet. There are 11 ways to enter and you can earn up to 20 chances to win.
About the Author:
Andrew Q. Gordon wrote his first story back when yellow legal pads, ball point pens were common and a Smith Corona correctable typewriter was considered high tech. Adapting with technology, he now takes his MacBook somewhere quiet when he wants to write. He currently lives in the Washington, D.C. area with his partner of eighteen years, their young daughter and dog. In addition to dodging some very self-important D.C. ‘insiders’, Andrew uses his commute to catch up on his reading. When not working or writing, he enjoys soccer, high fantasy, baseball and seeing how much coffee he can drink in a day and not get the shakes.
Social Media Links:
You can find his books at
Follow Andrew on his website: www.andrewqgordon.com,
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/andrewqugordon,
On Twitter: @andrewqgordon,
Or just email him: andrewqgordon@gmail.com
