Let Go of My Ear! I Know What I'm Doing - Softcover

Anthology

9780967212609: Let Go of My Ear! I Know What I'm Doing

Softcover

ISBN 10: 096721260X ISBN 13: 9780967212609

Publisher: Sulisa Pub, 1999

Let Go of My Ear! is an anthology of outstanding undergraduate short fiction, culled from a national contest that was held through colleges and universities across the country.

These stories are an excellent example of what emerging writers are capable of. A wide range of well-written characters grace the book: a woman who wields Scrabble as a deadly weapon to a love affair; an escapee from the freak show, geared up to tackle "the issues;" and a runaway South American slave in search of voodoo solutions, are just a few. Themes are also varied and well-crafted, with stories about family loyalty; isolation and confusion that follows graduation; and the mailability of reality.

College and university campuses are where we can find the most creative new fiction, the most promising new voices, and certainly the future of American literature. Since the publication of Let Go of My Ear! many of our writers have been additionally recognized by prestigious fiction journals and graduate programs; we hope that this is a consistent trend and that they will continue on with the brilliant writing careers that appear to shine in their futures.

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From the Publisher:

Having graduated from Ohio University not long ago, I am not far removed from the excitement and passion in the new-found talent of creative writing. Though many writers like myself, may have written in high school, or even at a younger age, it isn't until the first critique or the first difficult assignment bested, that we understand that this talent is bound to be a life-long passion. With this understanding, it is natural to want to display the work that wading through long nights, battling blank computer screens, and facing endless rewrites has produced. A mere, red "A" at the top of a cover sheet is not sufficient, there must be something more. Which is exactly what led us to offer a stage to writers who have generally been barred from the publishing scene for lack of experience, years, or credentials; but certainly not for lack of talent. Sulisa Publishing's Let Go of My Ear! anthology is devoted to introducing a larger audience to these exciting new voices from the nation's colleges and universities.

Let Go of My Ear! stands apart from other anthologies because it is the collected work of writers who, though were previously unknown by the average reader, have a bright writing future to look forward to, based expressly on the talent and courage demonstrated in their writing. Many famous writers began their brilliant careers at a young age, and of course all writers were at one time "undiscovered." It is the writers who bragged their talents particularly early in their careers that I thought of often, while reading the submissions the contest generated. Rather than an age limit to filter out fresh talent, we required undergraduate status of those who chose to submit. A surprising number of excellent stories showed up in our mailbox, and although choosing the twenty winning entries was a daunting task, the judges and I were able to come to consensus on the stories you see in this book. After careful consideration and stimulating debate over the submissions, I can say with confidence that the work in this anthology is the best of what colleges and universities have to offer today.

I have read that Rust Hills, fiction editor at Esquire, feels that, "If one but stands back a bit and looks, one sees that it is no longer the book publishers and magazines, but rather the colleges and universities, that support the entire structure of the American literary establishment--and, moreover, essentially determine the nature and shape of that structure." With this in mind it is clear that it is not merely the work of Sulisa Publishing that has made these stories available to readers, but more importantly, the writing programs that have encouraged these new writers to contribute to and possibly alter the structure that is the American literary establishment. I applaud the work of the creative writing programs across the country, and eagerly look forward to the next wave of talent they will present us with.

One certainly never knows what to expect when working with a bunch of wild undergrads, and I certainly did not predict a network among the writers, who live in every corner of the country. Now of course, it seems a completely natural development. My hope is that the connections the writers make with each other, through critique and comparison of their work, will survive past graduation; and with any luck, continue to provide a sense of community within the writing world when workshops on campus have been outgrown.

This process has been extremely rewarding for me, particularly because I have had the lucky experience of working with the wonderful people included in the anthology, something I will always treasure. The writers' enthusiasm often matched or exceeded my own and their commitment to the project also often rivaled that of the Sulisa staff! These are writers that will not only show up again and again because of their talent, but also because of their devotion to the craft and business of writing. I am very proud to be a part of their early careers and wish them the very best in their lives as writers and whatever else they may aspire to be.

From the Back Cover:

Sponsoring a nation-wide, undergraduate fiction contest allowed us to cull these twenty innovative short stories from some of the best writing programs across the country. The stories collected in this book represent the finest work that the next generation of American fiction writers has to offer.

Swamped by the excellent entries that the contest generated, a varied and experienced panel of judges was forced to select the best of the lot; as a result, the pieces collected here range from the comic to the sincere and encompass such themes as emotional growth, family strength, and personal greed. Some stories are graced by characters that run from the freak show to tackle "the issues," others that introduce us to a dynamic, latino cousin, and still others that wield Scrabble as the deadly weapon and final blow to a love affair. There are coming-of-age stories, stories about finding an identity beyond college, stories of slavery in South America, and stories about death, dying and survival in the deep south. The range of themes is only paralleled by the range of personalities that the writers boast in their work.

Let Go of My Ear is perfect for any reader who loves short fiction that is fresh, intelligent and unpredictable.

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