Well I can't find any gaps in my life to find some words yet, but my story "Finding the words" is still going strong.
The Year's Best Australian Dark Fantasy and Horror 2007 Edition has just been reviewed over at Horrorscope. Reviewer Chuck McKenzie said:
‘Finding the Words’ is an emotionally upsetting piece dealing with the death of a child. I don’t recall having read anything by author Steven Cavanagh before, but I shall certainly be searching out his work in future. This story is an absolute gem.
I really respect Chuck McKenzie. We have a couple of things in common (he's one of the few of us who love to write humour, he's had to throttle back on writing because of family), however I don't look like that guy from doug anthony all-stars.
Then reviewer Robert Black also chimed in on Horrorscope, saying:
Finding the Words is a very innovative tale which explores the emotional power of loss (specifically the death of a child) under the guide of a horror tale. It is a superb and creative use of a genre tale to explore personal emotional pain.
I think Finding The Words is now a benchmark for my writing. Not so much that I feel a need to win comps and awards with every story, but when I wrote this one I was really in the zone (feeling stupid and wierded out because tears were running down my cheeks), and it showed in the writing. I'd like to find that magic point every time I write.
