Writing for an Anthology

I've wanted to write for an anthology for so long and when the call came out on the Astraea Press Author Facebook Group to write a short story for a Valentine anthology, I was super-excited and very nervous. I'm not too great at writing short stories. I've entered countless competitions for them and none have succeeded. Short stories are very different to novels. You can't put in all the detail, background and plot that you can for a full-length or even novella. Every word, speech and thought should be tight and communicate much. The story has to have impact somehow. It has to convey a message even though short. Or touch the heart deeply. Even make the reader laugh or ponder afterwards.

I loved the topic for the anthology and kept on looking at my engagement ring. That inspired the story, The Engagement Ring.

What was scary, is we weren't guaranteed that our story would be chosen. I knew I was up against stiff competition. I've read some Astraea Press books. I've been blown away by the wonderful stories - unique and out of the box.

Well, I was over the moon when I received my contract. Hooray for South Africa and our continent!

I think the biggest lesson I'm learning from this anthology is about promo. The other authors are so clued up about ways to promote the book and I'm learning tons from them. They're also so pro-active and motivated which is something I need to work on with marketing.

Considering writing for an anthology? I think it's a great idea. People who buy the book to read their favourite authors, will also read your story. It's short, so they'll be willing to try it. They may become an instant fan. There's a team effort with promotion - the book gets a much wider exposure.

The camaraderie of working with a team of authors has been such fun and made all the work worthwhile.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book over the weekend. There were some amazing stories in it and such a variation of interpretations of the theme, different writing styles, and settings. I'm not just saying this, but it would make an awesome Valentine's Day weekend read.

Today, we have started a blog hop for the anthology where you can win book bundles and other prizes. Here's the link to the first stop for the blog hop where you will learn what to do to win these prizes:

Scavenger Hunt Blog Hop

You can buy Love and Diamonds here: Amazon