Wendy N. Wagner

This year has had its challenges! My parents have had a tremendous number of health issues, which has occupied a great deal of my attention. Amazon destroyed its Kindle Periodicals program, through which the majority of my magazine’s subscribers got their copies. The implosion of Twitter meant it became much harder to connect with readers and potential Patreon supporters. And AI has consistently threatened writers and artists across the spectrum, raising tension throughout the creative world.

But it’s also been a fantastic year on many fronts! My first-ever screenplay won first place at the HP Lovecraft Film Festival. I was nominated for a Locus award for Best Editor, and stories in Nightmare were nominated for the Locus, Shirley Jackson, and Nebula awards. I also had a short story nominated for a Shirley Jackson award — my first fiction award nomination. I had a few short stories come out, and my recent SF short “An Infestation of Blue,” had made it to the Nebula Recommended Reading List. I sold a couple of short stories, and I finished the first draft of a novel. I enjoyed working with several great coaching clients, and I didn’t miss a single post for my Patreon supporters. I went on a tremendous road trip with my family (more than 2800 miles!), brought my mom to live with me, and ran a tough trail half marathon where I didn’t even finish in last place. 2023 might not have been my most productive year, but I kept on soldiering along.

Like many others, I’ve turned to Canva to make a cute shareable eligibility image, which is shown below. For more details about the work, check my bibliography page. I have three stories that are eligible for the Nebulas and Hugos, and two horror stories to consider for the Bram Stokers. I’m also extremely proud of my editorial work again this year — both Nightmare and Lightspeed have released terrific work!

I hope you all have had good experiences in 2023 and that you join me in looking to 2024 for good news, great time outdoors, and all the creative energy we could ask for. Let’s make it a terrific year!

I’m really excited about the new writing workshop I’m offering through Clarion West this fall. It’s called “Does This Come in Another Size?” and it’s for writers who are thinking about making the jump from short fiction to novel writing … or for writers who have been working in novels but might benefit from creating short fiction. Here’s the class description:

Have you ever written a short story only to be told you’ve written the first chapter of a novel? This four-session workshop will help you decide what to do when you’re in that situation—and how to maneuver your terrific ideas into the forms that fits them best.

Over the course of four weeks, we’ll use discussion and critique to delve into what makes a terrific first chapter of a novel and contrast it to the shape of a stand-out short story. We’ll also explore audience expectations, the creative life, and our relationships to our craft. Come build your craft in a small, fun community!

We’ll meet the first Tuesday in October, then take a week off to work on projects that we’ll then bring back to the group to share and discuss. The course covers 4 Tuesdays (10/6, 10/18, 10/25, and 11/1), and there are some free seats available. For more information, check out: clarionwest.org/find/does-this-come-in-another-size-with-wendy-wagner

I might be in this business for the joy of writing, but it sure is nice to see my work getting shout-outs like this:

Sadie Hartmann reviews books all over the place, including the celebrated horror magazine, Cemetery Dance. Not only did she give The Secret Skin a stellar review over at the magazine, she put it on her list of favorite 2021 horror releases.

But that wasn’t the only Best Books of 2021 The Secret Skin made! Back in November, The Washington Post compiled their list of the year’s best SF/F/H novels and The Secret Skin made the cut! That post is behind a paywall, but you can check out the full list on Locus.

I can’t tell you how terrific it is to hear that readers I really admire have enjoyed this novella! I hope it continues to connect to people, because this little book means an awful lot to me.

It’s kind of weird to have another book out just two months after the most recent one, but that’s the way publishing works sometimes! But I’ve got to say that I’m incredibly excited about this novella. I started it ten years ago, and I think it’s probably the prettiest thing I’ve ever written. So I’m thrilled that The Secret Skin is out today!

The always-awesome Paul Semel interviewed me for his website, where we talked all about “gothic sawmills” and all things booktacular. You should check it out!

I’m so excited that today is my novel The Deer Kings‘ launch day! I’ve never had a book that’s felt so personal to me, so it’s amazing to think of it making its way into other people’s hands.

If you’d like to learn more about the process of writing The Deer Kings, there’s a really in-depth interview with me up at Paul Semel’s website: paulsemel.com/exclusive-interview-the-deer-kings-author-wendy-n-wagner. Paul is a terrific interviewer who knows how to get writers to dig deep. In the interview, I talk about some of the scary stuff I saw growing up that inspired the novel, as well as books and movies that helped me write the book. You can also check out a great picture of my dog, Beansy!

If you’re interested in learning more about The Deer Kings, you can check out my publisher’s website here, where the novel is available in ebook and paperback : journalstone.com/bookstore/the-deer-kings

Or you can find it on Amazon (the ebook should show up there soon): amazon.com/Deer-Kings-Wendy-Wagner/dp/195030597X

Wendy N. Wagner

Tag Archives: featured

2023 Roundup

Writing Mini-workshop

Acclaim for THE SECRET SKIN!

Happy birthday, Novella!

happy birthday, book baby!