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Questions I am Often Asked / FAQ's How do you decide
which stories to include? How do you decide which stories to include? The process is both simple and complex. My first read of a given story plays a major part for if it chokes me up, I immediately move it into the top tier of that story genre. Then I have others read it in order to get their feel for it. My wife, Connie, is usually the second reader -- sometimes the first. The story must have power and uniqueness for it to be seriously considered. But sometimes I'm proven wrong in my first evaluation. I pay particular attention to those stories submitted by a number of story-lovers; if they feel a certain story is special -- even if I didn't initially consider it to be --, I re-read the story, attempting to find out where or how I misjudged it. Do you choose stories by established authors only? A resounding "No!" I am somewhat heretical among academicians in my contention that there is no such thing as a great author -- only great stories. Why? Well I feel that no author, no matter how famous or eminent, ever hits them all out of the park. All of us strike out story-wise once in a while; many of us often. This is what has long bothered me about most story anthologies: the editors recycle stories already anthologized rather than have the guts to stick their necks out and choose for themselves. It's much easier and safer to not take the risk of being perceived as wrong. Same problem is clearly evident in today's cinema and television script-writing: banal uninspired writing and cloned material is all too often the norm rather than the exception. So, while I clearly have favorites among the authors I love most, I don't let that prejudice blind me to weaknesses in one of their stories when I evaluate it for possible inclusion. On the other hand, some of the most powerful stories I've anthologized have been from virtual unknowns, some who had never been published before, some who had never taken a creative writing class in their lives. Some even sent to me written out by hand! So my answer is this: We judge every story on its own merits, not on the writer's reputation. What are your submission guidelines? We do accept story submissions, but since the heart quotient (how much a given story moves us) is paramount to us, only one in 100 - 500 story candidates gets accepted for inclusion in a given collection. Our current going rate is $350 for full-length story (paid upon publication). We also send comp books to the author and offer authors we anthologize a discount on purchasing our books. We ask for all world nonexclusive rights only, thus the writer is free to market a given story elsewhere. We do not notify an author until the publishing house's editor confirms that the story is acceptable to that publishing house's editorial team. Since mail comes in avalanches, we cannot promise to promptly acknowledge unsolicited story submissions. Content-wise, what we anthologize must be acceptable to readers in our Judeo-Christian marketplace. Not sectarian, but values worth living by-based. No! Few things irk me more than for a person other than the author of a given published story to decide on his/her own how the story ought to read. Even unpublished stories ought to have their integrity respected. When I do edit a given story -- especially old ones -- it's almost always because certain words no longer mean what they once did, or have developed negative or obscene connotations. By no means! I prefer a mix of old stories, semi-old, recent, and current. That's why I build up collections of stories written by still-living or recent authors whose work I admire greatly. So don't judge the date of a story by the woodcut I wed it to. What do you mean by "staying power"? Oh that's a term I often use. I use it because precious few authors ever survive the decade or generation they write for. To have one's stories or books last longer than that presupposes a rather magical and undefinable element no literary chemist has ever been able to isolate. Look at Cervantes, Chaucer, Shakespeare, Defoe, Swift, Hugo, Tolstoy, Dickens, Dostoevsky, Twain -- what is it about their writing that continues to appeal to readers centuries later? I submit that it is because they stuck to the basics of human motivation and behavior: good versus evil, love, hate, envy, revenge, avarice, kindness, empathy, selflessness versus selfishness, ambition, etc., qualities that are always with us. Only a few, a treasured few, knowingly or unknowingly wrote for the ages. And critics in this respect are more often wrong than they are right. If you doubt it, track down New York Times book reviews of 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 years ago, and note how few of those authors then lauded to the skies are even remembered today. Mighty humbling! And amazingly, "lowbrow," "popular", or "sentimental" authors such as Grace Livingston Hill, Faith Baldwin, Zane Grey, Harold Bell Wright, Grace Richmond, Margaret E. Sangster, Temple Bailey, Gene Stratton Porter, Agnes Sligh Turnbull, etc. -- are still vibrantly alive in our hearts and minds when so many of yesterday's literary "giants" are buried in the ash-heap of trivial pursuit. What do you mean by the "Golden Age"? I often write and speak about the period I label "The Golden Age of Judeo-Christian Stories" (1870's - 1950's). This is the period I return to again and again for my best stories. During this period, print was king, families were strong, divorce was rare, and having a child out of wedlock was cause for ostracism rather than something to brag about on talk shows. During this period, family magazines were strong, influential, and attracted the best writing talent in America. McGuffey-like and biblically compatible values were basic. The print media, parents, schools, churches, and political establishments collaborated so as to provide children with a serene childhood and an opportunity to internalize values worth living by. All this began to change with the advent of the movies, but by and large family films were still a staple until the 1960's. Television itself didn't really turn dark until the 1960's and 1970's. Today, where obscenity and pornography dominate much of the airwaves, it's hard to imagine an age where decency and Judeo-Christian values were the norm rather than an object of ridicule. I choose to select stories that build rather than destroy, such as those that graced that by-gone "Golden Age." I try not to, for I know it ticks me off to buy story collections only to discover I already had most of them under another title. Readers can safely assume the vast majority of stories in any of my collections are unique to that book (exceptions tend to be mainly in the Christmas category -- because of the two different audiences of Christian bookstores and secular book stores). When I do re-use a story it is because it is not only powerful but it lends itself to cross-categorizing. It is because of this sometimes-asked question that I am taking the trouble to list every story in every book on this web site so that multiple uses of a given story may be known before buying. Yes and no, for there is supposedly nothing truly original under the sun. But yes, I do try my utmost to be original. However, having said this, I must admit that I have a partner -- the Eternal. I strongly believe that all true wisdom comes from a Higher Power than ourselves, for by ourselves we can access only the most brackish of thoughts. That is why I daily pray the Prayer of Solomon: that if it be His will, that God will fill my mind with thoughts worth articulating, with wisdom far beyond what I alone could conceptualize. Before I write a given story, I ask God to provide the plot, and help every step of the way. Knowing that Christ on this earth never spoke without using stories, I feel that He will empathize with the struggles we writers face in our attempts to write things worth remembering. If there be anything worth internalizing or living by in my own writing, it is because the God of the universe deigns to partner with me, the weakest of His children. May I send you my favorite stories? Yes! That is what keeps us going. Only please be aware that it is rare that I can respond back to a writer right away for publishing deadlines bludgeon us into the ground and mail comes in avalanches. But rest assured that every last one of them is read and appreciated. Each story submitted represents a vote of confidence in that story to us. If at all possible, also include oldest text you have, authorship, rights, and where and when it was first published. When not possible, send it along anyhow to: Joe Wheeler, P.O. Box 1246, Conifer, CO 80433 or via e-mail. Will you inscribe books to/for me? I do it all the time, and do not charge a penny extra for it. Especially do I inscribe a lot during the Christmas season, so considerable advance notice is much appreciated. Keep in mind that I have many book-signings across the country during that period as well. When I have the time I also include an inscription unique to a given book. For instance, for the Mom book, it's "The mother's face is the child's first heaven." Types of inscriptions include the following:
With love to Carla on behalf of "Grandpa." With love to "Mopsie" on behalf of "Aunt Jean." With love to Bill, Janis, Gordon, and Susan on behalf of "Dad and Mom" With love to "Phyllis on behalf of "your secret pal" With love to Stevie on behalf of "Mom-Mom and Popsie" * Be sure and spell each name correctly for me. Until carpal tunnel catches up with me, I'll keep inscribing books for you. Will your books be released on CD? There are no plans at this time, but I am working on it. |
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