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Febuary 9, 2007
Short Story by Texas Tech Professor Selected for Year’s Best
Stephen Graham Jones continues his successful career by publishing a short story in two of the year's best stories anthologies.
Written by Gretchen Pressley
A short story by Stephen Graham Jones, an associate professor of English at Texas Tech, will be published in the 20th edition of “The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror,” a prestigious anthology of fantasy and horror stories, and the 2007 edition of "Horror: The Best of the Year."
“Raphael,” Jones’ short story, is about the perceived reality of scary stories, and what would happen if they became real. It was first published in “Cemetery Dance,” an award-winning, bimonthly magazine of horror, dark mystery and suspense.
“It was chosen for the anthology, I guess, because it just got some visibility being in the leading horror magazine,” Jones said. “But then it got good responses as well.”
As with most of Jones' writing, "Raphael" is both horror and science fiction, creating a fantasy story people can still identify with. There is a scene where a blond boy walks into another's living room as if it were his own. This unnatural act is what prompted Jones to create the story.
"I think I wrote it mostly for that bit in it where the blond kid just walks into the living room like he lives there," Jones said. "I just can't imagine much scarier."
"The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror" usually consists of about 40 poems and short stories. The anthology is edited by Ellen Datlow, an editor of fantasy and horror stories for more than 30 years, and coincidentally one of the inspirations for Jones’ writing career.
“I know her tastes just from reading the stuff she edits, and am glad ‘Raphael’ fit that taste,” Jones said. “I’m glad that it’s going to be in the anthology, hopefully the first of many.”
“The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror 2007” will be released in August.
The other anthology, "Horror: The Best of the Year" is edited by by John Gregory Betancourt and Sean Wallace. It is a collection of the best horror prose written the year before. "Raphael" will appear in the 2007 edition, released in March.
“Raphael” has also been nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in Short Fiction, named in honor of Bram Stoker, author of “Dracula.” The Bram Stoker Award is sponsored by the Horror Writers Association.
Jones, a graduate of Texas Tech, is the award-winning author of four full-length novels and a short story collection. His short story collection was a finalist for the Violet Crown Award, sponsored by the Writers League of Texas, and it earned the Texas Institute of Letters’ 2005 Jesse Jones Award for Best Work of Fiction. Past awards include the Independent Publishers Award for Multicultural Fiction and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship.
For more information, go to the Stephen Graham Jones Web site.
Hear Jones Read his stories in person on the Texas Tech campus
Jones will be giving a reading in the auditorium of the English Building (Room 001) on March 1. He will read an excerpt of the story "Raphael," as well as another short story and pieces from one or more of his other books. The reading will start at 7:30 p.m. All Texas Tech faculty, staff and students, as well as members of the Lubbock Community are invited.
Contact
Stephen Graham Jones, associate professor of creative writing in the Department of English, can be reached at (806) 742-2500 ext. 238 or stephen.jones@ttu.edu.
Story produced by the Office of Communications and Marketing, 806-742-2136.
Web layout by Gretchen Pressley