Celebrating A Grifter's Song
Let me tell you a story.
For years, I toyed with the idea of a series of short stories featuring a couple of grifters who were devoted to each other and to the con… and to hell with the rest of the world. I considered different ways to approach this, including sending the stories out to different anthologies or publishing them myself. I had titles for individual stories and the subtitle for each would be the series title – A Grifter’s Song.
A general plot for the series emerged, to include the specter of the mob chasing after them. At times, I thought the best vehicle might be short stories, but eventually I settled on novella length. Finally, I landed on publishing a new installment quarterly, so four per year. Each story would stand alone but would also further the series arc.
Then I told Down and Out Books about it, and the editor there, Eric Campbell, liked the idea. Another author was pitching something to him that had some similarities but was still signficantly different (more action than grift, for example). The one thing this other proposal did very differently was the format — six episodes, written by six authors.
A novella anthology series.
I realized instantly that this was the best way to put A Grifter’s Song out to the world. I adopted this model and Down and Out signed me on to edit and contribute to the series. I wrote the first episode, The Concrete Smile, cover designer Zack McCain was brought in to do the covers (which are awesome!), and we were off and running.
I created a series “bible” — a set of guidelines for the authors that detailed the background of both characters and a few guardrails in terms of story. For instance, a central element of the series is that Sam and Rachel’s love for each other is inviolable. They never turn on each other. No double crosses… at least between them. Another was that neither could die or be significantly maimed (although a couple of authors really pushed up against the rail on this point).
The series was invite-only, meaning the authors were hand-selected. The initial criteria was simple: I wanted good authors who I knew would come up with a great con and write gritty grifter stories… and would be easy to work with. My intention was to be absolutely rigid when it came to the core aspects of who these characters were and entirely flexible about pretty much everything else. I looked for authors whose style and voice was different from the others, in order to keep the series fresh.
This turned out to be the easiest part of working on this series — the authors. They each did exactly what I’d hoped for. They brought their own style and voice to a story that they chose to set in a place with some character. They created a memorable con and put the grifters through the paces. Most of all, they were respectful — in most cases, even loving — of these two characters.
No, it wasn’t a perfect run. There was a planned author we had to drop due to creative differences. And there was another story I took on spec from an author that simply didn’t make the cut (it was actually quite a good story but a horrible fit for this series). And while the editing went smoothly, there are always small details to disagree about and to iron out. I tried to approach it with the attitude of being the steward of these characters and this series. The only lines I ever drew in the sand were ones regarding this. Otherwise, I recognized that this individual episode was this author’s story and so I tended to yield on points we disagreed on if they were stylistic or the like.
But honestly, those moments were few and far between. Authors sent in outstanding first drafts (unlikely that they were actually first drafts, just the first ones I saw) and were extremely willing to work with suggested edits. It was a smooth process.
Here’s the thing: that process just kept going. Season 1, season 2, season three… all the way to season 5! It’s been one hell of a ride.
And now, six years and thirty-five installments later, this journey is coming to an end. On October 1, 2023, the series finale, Into the Dying Sun, will drop. Between the first and last episode, thirty total authors have contributed to this series. I have been fortunate to be involved in each as the editor, so I got to see that creation process up close and personal. It’s been wonderful.
To celebrate these authors and their achievments, I have brought my podcast, Wrong Place, Write Crime, out of hiatus for a twelve-episode mini-series that examines each book in the series. In these podcast episodes, I talk with each author about their experience writing A Grifter’s Song.
This series begins September 18, 2023, and will continue with one new episode per day through the end of the month, finishing up the day before the final episode drops.
Join me and the crew of A Grifter’s Song as we celebrate this series that is chock full of wonderful authors! Click on the below graphic to start the first episode, which will be available 9/18/23.
Source: All The Madness In My Soul
