I always wanted to see my short stories in print. I just never expected I’d be the one publishing them. Back when I started this writing gig fourteen or so odd years ago, my dream was to publish my stories traditionally via online and printed pro magazines. Write my stories, send them in to the likes of Clarkesworld, F&SF, Analog, Escape Pod, Strange Horizons, etc.
As of 2025, I’ve logged one hundred forty-three submissions. Zero publications, although I’ve come close several times. A few of those magazines told me my stories had made it into the final round of debates for publication but just didn’t quite land it. Twenty-nine of my submissions came back as personal rejections. “We really enjoyed your story, but here are a few things that didn’t quite work for us…”
I had zero interest in self independently-publishing my own stories for a couple reasons. First, I REALLY wanted to publish with traditional pro editors. I think the internal message I kept telling myself went something like this: If a pro editor likes my work enough to buy it and publish it, that means I’m a real writer. It would have been proof to myself that I’m good enough to hang with the cool kids. I’d have street cred, baby! My stories would be right up there with the best of them, and I could finally tell myself I’d made it. I would have felt validated, is what I’m trying to say.
The other reason I wanted to publish traditionally is that I didn’t want to publish my own work out there on Amazon or Kobo or IngramSpark. My thinking was that any old schmo can slap his book together and toss it out there like Han Solo releasing the Falcon into space with the rest of the Imperial garbage. Did I really want my work floating around out there with the millions of other titles that no one’s ever heard of? And let’s be honest, there’s a lot of dubious work out there. Did I really want my name associated with that kind of work? Did I want people looking down their noses at me, giving me that look that says, Oh. You’re self-published. I see.
But then something changed. As a result of my conversations with various and sundry other people (and to be perfectly honest, getting some much-needed professional help dealing with my severe depression) I started to see things a little differently. What if I continued writing another fifteen years, and zero pro magazines ever published any of my stories? What if I wrote the rest of my life, and no one published my stories? It seemed to me it would be a real shame — and an awful lot of wasted effort — if I spent decades writing these stories and none of them ever saw the light of day.
Also, independent publishing is no longer the urine-scented shallow end of the pool it might have once been. People are having real success out there now publishing their own stuff. Yes, there’s still some flotsam and jetsam floating around out there, but there’s some really great stuff too. I know, because I’ve bought some (both kinds). New York Times bestselling authors dip their feet into both ends of the pool now, traditional publishing for their mainstream books and also publishing online for their other books like craft and behind-the-scenes and bonus content.
The final argument that tipped the scales for me went something like this. Yes, you can publish garbage and have it float around with all the other garbage out there. But also…you can take the time to do it right and make it stand out. No one ever said an independently-published book couldn’t be indiscernible from a professionally-published traditional book. No one says you can’t go all-in and make this thing look terrific.
So that’s where I finally landed. I am 100% in control of the content I put out there. And if the traditional, professional publishing gatekeepers aren’t interested in my work, then I’ll just publish professional-looking content for myself.
Screw ’em!
Stick it to the man!
I don’t need their permission!
“Beneath Our Painted Smiles” is my first short story anthology. Most of the stories have a dark side to them, a little twist that shows we aren’t always what we seem to be, that things aren’t always what they seem to be, that there’s always something lurking just beneath the surface. The release is tentatively slated for Halloween 2026.
Right now, I’m in the middle of rewrites and edits because, let’s face it, some of these stories were written years ago when I was a younger, newer, less experienced writer. Also, I’m commissioning a fabulous illustrator for the cover artwork and design. (The featured image for this post is just something I whipped up to inspire me personally for the work. I would never officially publish anything using AI images or writing content.) Once we get a little closer and the work moves along, I’ll do a cover reveal and give you all the deets on who this amazing artist is.
Along with the artwork, I’m also hiring an editor to whip this anthology into shape before it goes out into the world. After all that, I’ll likely publish with KDP and/or IngramSpark. Ideally, I’d like to publish online, print-on-demand hard and soft covers, and possibly even create an audiobook version. But I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself.
I’d like to do something to share my progress with everyone, get people excited (including myself) and maybe pre-market the book before it comes out. If you have any experience in this sort of thing (I am 100% not a marketing/sales person), drop me some suggestions in the comments.
