On January 14, an online ezine known as Havok published my short story Beware Said the Man of Straw. A countless number of adjectives can’t express my feelings right now. I’m honored, grateful, excited, thrilled, just to name a few. Havok’s website is: https://gohavok.com/

Havok is an online flash fiction site that publishes genre short stories. A few of the authors I follow have contributed some delightful stories to it. As I read the stories on Havok’s site and the corresponding novels Havok publishes, I started to understand the site’s purpose for writers and readers. It’s to convey entertainment in a short package as well as fill a gap desperately needed in this age.

I collect stories from pulp magazines like Weird Tales which saw their heyday in the 1920s through 1940s. I’m willing to bet most people who submit to Havok have enshrined Weird Tales in their mind. While Havok isn’t Weird Tales—it’s fiction is too short and their guidelines too direct—it serves a similar purpose as those magazines of yesteryear.

Weird Tales and similar magazines gave birth to a number of memorable stories and introduced the world to great writers the likes of Ray Bradbury, August Dereleth, and Robert E. Howard. The writers and editors of Havok provide a similar function, something desperately needed in this world—providing entertaining fiction sans trappings and drek of modern fiction. When Weird Tales was at its apex, people delighted reading wildly imaginative stories without limits. By limits, I mean feedback like: “this is too liberal or conservative,” “this isn’t sexy or violent enough,” or “this doesn’t fit what the current audience is looking for.” As a world of readers, we’ve forgotten that reading is meant to be enjoyed not consumed!

My younger self would be proud of my story. After college, I wanted to be a horror writer. It was my favorite genre, and I thought I knew what it took to spin tension-filled yarn. I subscribed to many small-publication magazines like Cemetery Dance and read and reread them. I mimicked styles, infused creativity, and tried to think like Rod Serling and Richard Matheson. Alas, rejection letter after rejection letter poured in. One in particular broke my heart, and I gave up trying to publish. I wrote privately for my family and friends for years, dreaming of publication but admonishing myself. Publishing was a goal out of my reach.

Recently, I decided to self-publish novels, bringing me immense personal satisfaction. Older, maybe even wiser, I have tried my hand in the market again. Again, rejection letters have poured in, but this time I understand the difference between art and product. Am I good enough to be published? Havok thinks so. They will never know how monumental their decision to publish my little yarn was to me. And so, rejection will still be a part of my life, and I hope it will always be because it makes me a better writer. No resting on laurels here!

And so my little lexicon is an homage to the stories I wrote in my early days. I’ve come a long way since then and hope to publish more to share my art. But for now, I’m very proud to provide a little piece of dark imaginings with you.

Note: If it’s not January 14, 2021, please read the current Havok story they have available for free at https://gohavok.com/. My story will only be available to everyone on January 14.