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POETRY
These Hands - 9/21/24 [Free Verse]
typewriter confessions - 9/22/24 [Free Verse]
MICRO/FLASH FICTION
The Itching Hand - 9/27/24 [Horror]
Dear John - 9/24/24 [Epistolary]
SHORT STORY
Lady Bug - 9/22/24 [Sci-Fi]
Avery - 9/24/24 [Existential]
Omens of the Great Spring - 9/23/24 [Fantasy]
A Slap in the Face - 9/24/24 [Literary Fiction]
Echoes of the Vanished - 9/21/24 [Mystery]
No Rest for the Wicked - 9/21/24 [Literary Fiction]
SERIAL
Dark Device of the Great Chasm [Windtracer Tales, Ch. 23] - 9/25/24 [Fantasy]
Looped [Tale of 2 Cities, Ep. 33] - 9/24/24 [Fantasy]
Cable-Tied [Necromance in the Air, Ch. 3] - 9/24/24 [Magical Realism]
Bonus: In the beginning - 9/27/24 [Sci-Fi]
Who Needs Enemies? - 9/21/24 [Fantasy]
HONORABLE MENTIONS
RUOK? [A Horror Story in Texts, Ep. 1] - 9/27/24 [Horror]
A Star Reborn - 9/24/24 [Sci-Fi]
Edgewood - 9/24/24 [Literary Fiction]
Swallow - 9/23/24 [Literary Fiction]
Let's Be Friends [Opt-In, Ep. 2] - 9/24/24 [Horror]
I thought I’d spend some time discussing how the TiF Monthly Recaps are put together. I like to be as meticulous and organized with every aspect of TiF because I feel I can’t afford not to be. Wrangling dozens of weekly options to choose from is not easy! And my time is limited. Going back over a 4-week time span to uncover new stories that haven’t been featured for the Monthly Recap just isn’t possible. Not unless TiF becomes my 9 to 5 paying job!
So, I have a bit of a formula that I implement to put these Monthly Recap issues together, and it goes a little something like this:
1 Weekly + 1 Weekly Honorable Mention x 4 + 8 Brand New = 16 featured stories
What does this formula all mean?
The Monthly Recaps, regardless of date, happens every 4th issue. Not all months in the calendar are 4 weeks exactly, but it helps me to keep it this way for uniformity sake. So, as this is issue #12, the 3rd Monthly Recap is approaching.
The Monthly Recaps are delivered on the Wednesday after every 4th issue. Meaning, Monthly Recap #3 is just two days away!
1 Weekly + 1 Weekly Honorable Mention simply put, means that I randomly select ONE story that was featured AND 1 Honorable Mention to make a second appearance, if you will, in the Monthly Recap. My way of harkening back to previous issues. This also is my way of providing a medallion for the one lucky Honorable Mention, since they don’t receive any like the featured ones do.
“x 4” just means I’m doing this for all 4 issues (aka 4 weeks) that the Monthly Recap covers.
8 Brand New means I will introduce 8 new stories from the previous 4 weeks that were not featured at all! This makes the Monthly Recaps, I hope (?), more desirable to subscribers to read, and affords me the opportunity to feature those I may have been forced to leave out or missed from previous weeks.
All of this culminates in the creation of 12 (4 Honorable Mentions + 8 Brand New) medallions for the Monthly Recaps.
I’m torn about which issues I enjoy crafting the most; Weekly or Monthly. They are both equally as fascinating for me. I get to uncover hidden gems that I’m always on the lookout for. I silently make note of ReStacks in Notes every single day. I see an image or title or name I don’t recognize and I’m right there to investigate. Notes is a place where I try to get a sizable percentage of the featured stories (~5%). With the majority coming from the comments section of our Friday-Saturday meet-ups.
And, because sometimes I can’t hold a surprise back, in 2025 the Monthly Recaps will receive their own PDFs just like the Weekly issues! I’m excited to bring this in the coming year. That means 12 Monthly Recap + 52 Weekly Issue PDFs. Hmm…I wonder what can be made of that?
— Your Most Trusted Fiction Overlord 😈
TiF EXTRAS
[FEATURED WRITERS: DOWNLOAD YOUR MEDALLION HERE]
We’ll be back next Monday for another amazing list of fiction stories worth reading! And if you enjoyed any of these stories, please consider sharing this post everywhere:
I’m so humbled! Thank you so very much 🍁🧡🍁
Oh wow - I didnt realise I got a mention - genuinely shocked! So firstly, thank you very much and secondly - I am honoured to be mentioned alongside so many great writers!