Breaking Into Print: Early Stories and Insights Into Getting Published

De Witt Henry's "Breaking Into Print" is truly revelatory. This latest book of Henry's is an anthology of Ploughshares short fiction. It contains the early stories of contemporary luminaries of short (and long) fiction. Represented writers include, Tim O'Brien, Edward P. Jones, Mona Simpson, Howard Norman, David Wong Louie, Christopher Tilghman, and Gina Berriault. Breaking Into Print demystifies the process of publishing short fiction. There are 15 stories in the collection and each is preceded by a biography that tells the story of how its author came to have the story published in Ploughshares. These biographies also show how the authors went on to publish more work and receive other literary accolades. Beginning writers will find the appendices of Breaking Into Print especially helpful. The first appendix, Resources for Writers, lists: (1) books that discuss editing, publishing, and marketing, (2) books by writers on writing, (3) handbooks on the craft of writing fiction, (4) websites for writers, and (5) books about the dark side of the literary life. The second appendix, Recommended Literary Magazines for Short Fiction, opens with general advice about submitting short fiction and is followed by sub-sections that identify the agendas of certain venues for publishing short stories (i.e. Mainstream, Feminist, Avant-Garde, etc.). The stories and specials features (the biographies, editorial keynotes, and appendices) in this anthology make it an excellent buy for those interested in learning how to break into print, and it is also an ideal reader for undergraduate and graduate Creative Writing courses.

I found this book doing a search on the editor who released another anthology I enjoyed very much (Fathering Daughters). You're bound to recognize the names in this collection as award winning, fresh and vital authors. The stories are no less than provoking, satisfying, and beautiful.

Breaking Into Print: Early Stories And Insights Into Getting Published presents an informative collection of famous authors' first or very early fiction as it appeared in the prizewinning journal "Ploughshares". Here presented are some of the freshest and most satisfying fiction of the past thirty years including Going After Cacciato (Tim O'Brian); Gemcrack (Jayne Anne Phillips); Expensive Gifts (Sue Miller); Ollie, Oh... (Carolyn Chute); In the Dark (Edward P. Jones); After Rosa Parks (Janet Desaulniers); Approximations (Mona Simpson); Unicycle (Howard Norman); Little White Sister (Melanie Rae Thon); Displacement (David Wong Louie); Back (Susan Straight); Mary in the Mountains (Christopher Tilghman); A Wronged Husband (David Gates); Proper Library (Carolyn Ferrell); and The Infinite Passion of Expectation (Gina Berriault). Breaking Into Print is enhanced for the reader with invaluable resources for writers aspiring to become published; an introduction describing the "discovery" process for new writers; headnotes revealing how the authors launched their writing careers; lists of websites and links for new writers (including MFA programs and writers' conferences); books about careers in writing; excerpts from literary luminaries reflecting on the writing life; and extensive lists of literary magazines and prize anthologies, with advice on submissions. Breaking Into Print is recommended reading for students of contemporary literature, as well as anyone seeking to have their own work successfully published and presented to the reading public.