Amazing Stories Review of Afterlife

A big thank you to R. Graeme Cameron for the wonderful review of Pulp Literature Magazine Issue 25 on the amazingstories.com, which includes my short story Afterlife.

Check out all the reviews to get an insight into this amazing mix of fascinating tales.

https://amazingstories.com/2020/01/clubhouse-review-pulp-literature-magazine-25-winter-2020/

The mag is available on the Pulp Literature website:

http://pulpliterature.com/subscribe/back-issues-2/issue-25-winter-2020/

Bench Canoes published in the Land & Territory Anthology

Yet another collaboration of the Iowa Writer's MOOC students has resulted in a wonderful collection of writings. The Land and Territory Anthology by various international authors is available as a free download:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/various-authors/land-and-territory-anthology/ebook/product-24340595.html

Or a paper publication:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/various-authors/land-and-territory-anthology/paperback/product-24340568.html

My short story Bench Canoes of the Salish Sea is included in this book. This story has won a Federation of BC Writers competition a few years ago and is now available to a wider audience of readers at Lulu.com.

"Land and territory Anthology is our Annual gathering and publication of international authors in the multiple fields and experiences of writing. Previous issues are Whitmanthology, Womenthology, The Brave & The Afraid, The pain that unites us all. The e.books are always free versions and we aim to remain so as a way to share and spread the benefits of writing and reading as a way towards
reflecting reality and sharing our experiences. Please enjoy!"

Afterlife wins the 2019 Hummingbird Flash Fiction Prize

I am thrilled to announce that my short story Afterlife won the 2019 Hummingbird Flash Fiction Prize by the Pulp Literature Press.






Judge Bob Thurber had this to say:

In ‘Afterlife’, the author skillfully tiptoes around grief and heartache, presenting a nicely woven, quirky portrait of life coming at you, whether you’re ready for it or not.

Huge thank you to everyone at Pulp Literature Press and Bob Thurber for organizing and working hard on this competition.

Congratulations to all the talented writers who participated in the contest! Check out the Pulp Literature Blog to find out more about the competition and this wonderful publication.

My story and the runner-up are published in the Pulp Literature Issue 25, Winter 2019. The book is available here: http://pulpliterature.com/product-category/pulp-literature/issue-25/

One of the best things about being a storyteller is meeting new friends. The fabulous Ann-Marie Brown and myself had a great time signing the Issue No.25 of Pulp Literature which includes my short story Afterlife and the gorgeous cover art by Ann-Marie.

Ancient published by Crannóg Magazine and shortlisted by Flash 500

I am thrilled to report that, after being shortlisted by the Flash 500, my short story "Ancient" has been and selected to be published by the Irish literary magazine Crannóg, in its issue 51 in June 2019.

"Crannóg’s mission is to publish the work of Irish writers alongside the best available worldwide and to show how well such writing sits with the best available internationally."

It's wonderful to be a part of the worldwide community of writers!

July 10 update. My copy just arrived from Ireland. Yey! Thank you Crannóg!

Afterlife - American Short Fiction Semi-finalist

Every little bit of encouragement helps!

Welcome to Canada Places Second in RCLAS Annual Contest

I am grateful to the RCLAS for this opportunity to share my story with readers of literary prose. Also a huge thanks to the fiction juror and excellent writer Claire Lawrence for her sensitive and insightful feedback.

All stories and poems listed above will be published in the next edition of the RCLAS ezine. For more information, please visit the RCLAS website. This great society keeps supporting and promoting literary arts in our community and I can't recommend it enough to the aspiring writers.

The New Westminster Record published a nice article about this popular competition.

New Beginnings Reading in Port Moody

New Beginnings is an upcoming anthology by a group of local writers associated with the City of Port Moody Creative Writing program. The proceeds from the book sales will be donated to the Share Family & Community Services Society.

All stories, poems, and essays in the anthology are themed after new beginnings, as interpreted by each author. My short story Snow Angels will be included in this book. That story has already been published by the New Rivers Press in the US and by Momaya Press in the US and UK.

I am thrilled to have this opportunity to make my story available to the readers in our local community.

The May 22 reading is an intro into this project and a warm-up event leading into the book launch, which is scheduled for July 20, 2019 in the Port Moody Public Library.

Stay tuned!

A photo of me reading Snow Angles, taken by the New Beginnings mastermind, Erik D'Souza.
The reading event at the Gallery Bistro was amazing - full house!

Celebration of SFU Authors

Yesterday afternoon, I attended the annual celebration of the Simon Fraser University Authors. It was an inspiring gathering and a great opportunity to meet accomplished authors from the community. I felt deeply grateful and honored to be included in this event for the two of my short stories published in 2018, which comply with the SFU criteria.

"The Annual Celebration of SFU Authors is a university-wide event that publicly acknowledges and honours our faculty, students, staff, alumni and retired university community members who have authored or co-authored a publication, or its equivalent, within the past year.  The event is an opportunity to encourage academic dialogue and ensure that works by SFU Authors are available to the University community through the Library's collection."

More about this celebration can be found here: https://www.lib.sfu.ca/about/initiatives/authors-event

Huge thanks to the Simon Fraser University Library staff for organizing this wonderful event!

Tatjana

The Skull Tower Published in The Brave & The Afraid

The Brave & The Afraid collaborative anthology by the University of Iowa MOOC students is now available as a paperback and a free download at Lulu.

I am pleased to report that my short story The Skull Tower is included in this wonderful book!

Thank you to author Margareth Stewart for making it possible!

Paperback:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/collaborative-anthology/the-brave-the-afraid/paperback/product-23917629.html

Free Download:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/collaborative-anthology/the-brave-the-afraid/ebook/product-23917592.html#

Snow Angels Published in Coming of Age

I am thrilled to have my story Snow Angels included in the Coming of Age Short Story Review 2018 along with the winning and shortlisted stories from the contest. The book can be ordered from Momaya here http://momayapress.com/bookstore/

Here are a short introduction and my interview by Momaya Press.

Snow Angels to be published in the Momaya Short Story Review 2018

Delightful news this morning.

My short story Snow Angels has been selected to be published in the 2018 Momaya Short Story Review, together with Bits of Colored Glass story by my friend Carol Malley who recived a honorable mention. The theme of the competition was Coming of Age. Congratulations to all the shortlisted writers! Everything is better with friends! 

Read Tatjana's Stories

Here are the places where you can read my stories:


1. American Fiction, volume 16 - Snow Angles, a coming of age story with very unique characters.

The book can be purchased here https://www.newriverspress.com/product/american-fiction-volume-16/



2. WordWorks Summer 2017 edition - Canoe Benches of the Salish Sea, a postcard creative non-fiction piece about early days of an immigrant in Vancouver.

This magazine is available in public libraries across BC, Canada




3. Pain That Unites Us All, Anthology - Shaque Attack, a short story about fathers, sons, and daughters.

This book can be purchased here or downloaded for free here. 




4. Womanthology, Anthology - Dana, Bistra, excerpts from my upcoming novel in stories set in Serbia.

This book is available as a free download and for sale as a paperback. 




5. Whitmanology, Anthology - The Spring of 1999, Tobacco Leaf, excerpts from my upcoming novel in stories set in Serbia.

This book is available as a free download and for sale as a paperback.





6. RCLAS e-zine, Issue 46 - My Burka Girl, a humorous story about a rebellious girl and an enamored young man.

This e-zine can be downloaded here https://issuu.com/rclas/docs/june_2017_rclas_ezine_issue_46





7. RCLAS e-zine, Issue 48 - Spirit Bear Island, a ghost story about a woman with regrets.

This e-zine can be downloaded here: https://issuu.com/rclas/docs/october_2017_ezine_issue48




I hope you will enjoy reading my work.

Tatjana

Eagle Mountain - Honorable Mention and published in RCLAS e-zine

My short story Eagle Mountain earned an honorable mention in the 2018 Write On! contest by the Royal City Literary Arts Society. Congratulations to everyone who participated, and especially to Claire, my friend from the Port Moody writers' group, who won the contest.

I enjoyed reading my story at the awards event on June 9 in the Anvil Centre in New Westminster.

Read my story in the June 2018 RCLAS Wordplay at Work Issue 55 together with some amazing pieces by the featured talented writers.

http://www.newwestrecord.ca/entertainment/write-on-winners-named-in-new-west-contest-1.23290025

American Fiction: Volume 16 with Snow Angels

The American Fiction Volume 16 has been published, and in it is my little short story Snow Angels, along with many wonderful stories by emerging writers, selected by the New Rivers Press and judge Ann Hood. 

The stories are beautifully arranged in five sections: Hand Picked, Youth, Love Lost and Found, Damaged, and Ghosts. Snow Angels is in the Youth section.

I just received my copies of the book in the mail. I am immersed in great fiction, grateful to be in the company of these inspiring authors. Thank you New Rivers Press!

The book can be purchased here https://www.newriverspress.com/product/american-fiction-volume-16/

Surrey International Writers' Conference

This was my first time at a writers' conference and it certainly did not disappoint!

Huge thank you to all the presenters, organizers, and volunteers, and a very special thank you to literary agent Donald Maass for the fantastic Master Class and interest in Bistra's World!

Spirit Bear Island Published!

Big thank you to the Royal City Literary Arts Society for including my spooky literary story Spirit Bear Island in the Haloween edition of their Wordplay at Work monthly literary magazine!

Spirit Bear Island is a fictional solitary island in the Strait of Georgia, where my protagonist, Margot, retreats one winter to face her demons.

The magazine can be downloaded here.

Pain That Unites Us All - Anthology

I participated in “The Pain That Unites Us All,” an anthology inspired by “The Power of the Pen: Writing Identities and Social Issues in Fiction and Nonfiction,” a MOOC course held by the University of Iowa in 2017.

From the “Forward” by author Monica Bergers:

“Pain, when written about, has power, and this power can be channeled into pure energy on the page. From this crafting comes wisdom, and perhaps, peace. It seems fitting, then, to say that these writers, in gathering their work and offering it as a reflection of lived, and often agonizing life are not only courageous, but also joyful. For they have found that writing and art have the capacity to burn out the pain. I agree with them. May it comfort you to know that in your grief and your frustration, in your struggle to live, you are not alone.

Monica Bergers
July 2017”

This book is available as a free download and a paper version for purchase at a great discount if you use a Lulu coupon.

Front cover painting entitled ―Pain‖ by Elsa Orozco, all rights reserved 2017.

Story Published in WordWorks Literary Magazine

How wonderful it is to see my story in print in the Summer 2017 edition of the WordWorks Literary Magazine by the Federation of BC Writers!

My story Bench Canoes of the Salish Sea won the first prize in the annual Literary Writes 2017 competition in the postcard category.

Yugo-nostalgia

"Yugo-nostalgia" is a great word to describe Bistra's World in the last decades of her life. Here is an excerpt from one of her stories:

"She stood in the heat or freezing cold, squeezed and pushed around by spectators, gawking, waiting for the Marshal to show up. For other people, this was entertainment or duty, but for Bistra, it was something holy. A communist pilgrimage to see the man who avenged the death of her father, killed by Nazis. A man who gave her free education and created this beautiful country, the best country in the whole world.

Somehow, Tito’s limousine never took the route she was on, leaving her bitter as if someone had robbed her of her rightful entitlement."

(From "Threads", an upcoming novel in stories by Tatjana Mirkov-Popovicki)

Great photographs of Tito can be found on Getty Images:

http://www.gettyimages.ca/detail/news-photo/people-place-carnations-on-may-25-2011-around-the-statue-of-news-photo/114646280#people-place-carnations-on-may-25-2011-around-the-statue-of-former-picture-id114646280

My First Reading in Public

It happened on Saturday, June 2, 2017 in the back room of a charming little cafe in New Westminster, under the leadership of the fantastic RCLAS organizers.

The room was small but packed with audience, and there was even a raised stage and a mike.

Image provided courtesy of The Royal City Literary Arts Society

My stage-fright was short-lived. I was second up, and before I knew it my voice was booming from the speakers reading the first lines of My Burka Girl, followed by chuckling (at the funny parts of the story), gasps (at the surprising points), and the final applause from the supportive audience.

There were awards, cameras taking photos, and warm congratulations from literary brothers and sisters.

Then I relaxed and listened to the beautifully read stories and poems by all the winners of the RCLAS Write On! competition.

It was an elating and heartwarming experience at the same time. I was thrilled to meet several of my writer friends, and to make new ones. I was even blessed to have a dear art friend show up to cheer me on. How fun is that!

RCLAS is a vibrant organization for writers and lovers of literary arts and I warmly recommend joining it as a member, or attending some of their many great events.

It was a real treat to read all the winning stories and poems in the issue 46 of the RCLAS e-zine!

Image provided courtesy of The Royal City Literary Arts Society

Reading in public? Piece of cake!

Tatjana