Writing news that I shared in other social media places but forgot to post here: My story, “The Summer Ahead,” is on the storySouth Million Writers Notable Stories of 2010 list.

Better news: There aren’t even close to a million writers on that list.

Best news: There’s some good stuff there. Good company to be in; go find some new favorite writers here.

This might have some overlap from when I was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. The editors of Freight Stories, which is always good, nominated me. Once you know how Pushcart Prizes work, they don’t have quite the magic the name might suggest. But I’m not going to lie to you: I liked being nominated, and I certainly like showing up on a list that I didn’t myself apply to be on.

This makes me want to get back to writing some short stories. I’ve been very focused (or, er, not working at all) on long-form work. I haven’t produced any shorts in a while.

It’s good to have goals.

Even if you’re not meeting them every day. Like my writing goal, which is a guideline I’m not being guided by lately. I’ve managed to get back into The Black Hour and write several more chapters, but it’s not going as smoothly or as quickly as I’d like. I wrote 800 words on Friday, 1,000 on Monday, but 70, seven-zero, yesterday.

Today, so far: just zero.

I’m not going to let my disappointment with that amount of work spiral into something else. I’m just going to keep coming to the page and see what I can get done. Some days it will be 1,000 words and others, nada. Try again and try again and try again. I’m liking what’s happening on the page right now, so I’ll hang on to that and be happy when I like all 70 words, or when the 70 words give me an idea for how the story can twist. Which is what happened. Thank you, 70 words, and welcome to my book.