Resurrecting Dead Stories

I've written a lot of short stories over the years. I think some of them are exceptional and I published a few of those in An Adverse Anthology: Strange & Disturbing Short Stories. As for the rest...well, some are fair and some are not very good at all. Even the bad stories, though, are still special. I spent the time to write them, after all, and burying them in a desk drawer forever just doesn't feel right to me.

You may already know that I am very close to releasing a book called The Old Royal (if not, you can find more info about it here and here). This is the story of a man who wants more than anything to become a famous writer like his idol, Roger Kurrey. In the story, I wanted to embed snippets of shorter stories to add verisimilitude to the tale of a struggling writer. To do this, I wanted to resurrect some of my older stories; those considered dead.

The bonus stories in The Old Royal are:

1. Bad Bank Heist - This story is the only one not previously written, so it can't be considered resurrected. It's simply an idea that occurred to me spontaneously during the writing process (note the cliched name).
2. Suicide Suite - Originally untitled; about a traveling salesman who wants to commit suicide, only to be interrupted.
3. Rabbit on the Run - mentioned here and here; this story has languished in the writing process for a while. I hope to release it at a later date.
4. When the Clock Strikes Three - A story that had three different plot ideas. I wrote one of them, which was horrible, but decided to pursue one of the better ideas in this book.
5. The Final Chapter - I think the concept for this story is very interesting, however, my original execution was an abysmal failure. I think I did it justice in this context.
6. The Black Talon - Originally titled As the Crow Flies, this story never got off the ground. One day, I may write the whole thing. I came up with the concept and wanted it to be a book. I think its better as a short story, though.

So, there you have it; a list of some short stories and ideas that I had originally mined earlier in my writing career only to turn out a bust. Some of them were complete failures on my part. Some were ideas that I felt passionate about writing, but never fully materialized. I think that in the context of a larger story, these will help give the reader some pleasant bonus material to read and help add to the richness of the larger story as a whole.

And, for those of you wondering about the status of The Old Royal: never fear, it's inching closer and closer to publication. I'm simply waiting on beta readers to help ferret out my mistakes. I won't release a book until I feel it's ready and by ready, I mean that I want it to be the best that it can possibly be. So, I hope you keep checking back for the big release which should be coming very soon. I also hope you'll pick up a copy and let me know what you think. Thanks for stopping by!