The Autumn of Our Discontent

So here I am sitting at my desk in front of my computer, four feet from my bed. There are stacks of submissions on the bed and folders of accepted material also on the bed. For months now, I've been doing a pretty fair job of staying one or two steps ahead of the bill collectors and the grim reaper, despite no money, suffering through another birthday and a presidential election year here in the U.S. that's shaping up to be a lose/lose proposition no matter what the outcome. But, now that the current issue of 13thWR is laid to rest, perhaps a little rest and a few new breaths before the next project comes to fruition -- after all, this is a marathon, not a sprint! Hopefully, this issue is to your liking, dear reader. There are a couple of things to note in this issue: one, that this marks the first time I've received a significant amount of creative nonfiction submissions -- something I've been begging for nearly as long as I've been publishing this ezine. Second, I think the quality of fiction has steadily improved since the first issue. Third, the publication continues to draw interest from readers and writers overseas. I am pleased by the international interest. It tends to support my belief that the Internet is a lively venue for literary work. Still, despite these minor successes, I am discontent. I am unhappy with myself, that I have been unable to meet my own deadlines and haven't been as efficient of late as I once was. I am unhappy with the Post Office which continues to lose my mail. I am pissed over the problems I'm having with my printing service -- problems that have effectively shut down my book publishing enterprise. Had those problems not erupted, there would have been at least three new titles available from Asterius Press. It's just gotten much harder to do this. But, no one ever said it would be easy. I think if one lacks the stomach and the spine to be an independent publisher, one shouldn't do it. But, if you, dear reader, enjoy this issue and take something of value from the experience, then enduring these little problems will have been worth it and I should find myself in a more contented place.