Just Published: Joe Clifford's Lamentation

Joe Clifford’s third novel, Lamentation, has just been published by Oceanview Publishing. In a starred review, Publishers Weekly says Clifford, “understands human potential for moral collapse and redemption, and his lean, gritty prose never lets characters or readers off the hook.”  Revolt Daily’s Renee Asher Pickup writes, "Crime writers are known for getting down to the grit of real life, but not all of them can pull off the heart Clifford works into his writing. Through the story you will roll your eyes at the protagonist one moment, cheer for him the next, and find your heart breaking by the end."

Since graduating from the MFA program, Clifford has published a collection of short stories, Choice Cuts,  his thesis novel, Wake the Undertaker, (both, Snubnose Press), and an autobiographical novel, Junkie Love (Battered Suitcase Press).  While in the MFA program, he was editor of Gulf Stream Magazine, and since graduating he has pursued editing as well as writing. He is co-editor of The Flash Fiction Offensive.  In December, Out of the Gutter and Zelmer Pulp will bring out Trouble in the Heartland, a collection of crime stories inspired by the songs of Bruce Springsteen that Clifford has edited. 

Clifford's book tour will bring him to Murder on the Beach in Delray Beach on Wednesday, Nov. 19th, and he’ll be among the presenters at Miami Book Fair International Sunday Nov. 23rd.  He discusses his time in the MFA program and his path to publication in an interview with MFA student Justin Bendell in Sliver of Stone Magazine's latest issue.  More info. at Clifford's blog, Candy and Cigarettes.

Laura Valeri's Safe In Your Head Published

FIU MFA alumna Laura Valeri's Safe in Your Head, a novel in stories, has been published by Stephen F. Austin University Press.  Stories from the book have appeared in, among other journals and anthologies, Glimmer Train, Waccamaw, Night Train, Voices in Italian Americana  Valeri drew upon family history for the book, including stories told to her in childbood by her grandmother that "ingrained themselves so vividly in my imagination that they nagged at me from the subconscious for decades."

Valeri's first book, the story collection The Kind of Things Saints Do, won the Iowa/John Simmons Award and the Binghamton University/John Gardner Award.  She is an Associate Professor of Creative Writing at Georgia Southern University.  Learn more about her writing and research on her website.

Preston L. Allen's Every Boy Should Have a Man Published

Akashic Books has just published Every Boy Should Have a Man, by FIU MFA alumnus Preston L. Allen.  Publishers Weekly says "In a future where primitive 'mans' are considered pets or food by the dominant, giant humanoi 'oafs,' one female man and her daughter become the cherished possessions, then friends, of a young oaf who learns to see them as more than just creatures."  Booklist calls it "Imaginative, versatile, and daring...Allen sharpens our perceptions of class divides, racism, enslavement, and abrupt and devastating climate change to create a delectably adventurous, wily, funny, and wise cautionary parable."

Allen is a professor at Miami-Dade College. His previous widely-praised novels from Akashic are Jesus Boy and All or Nothing, and his story collection (and thesis) Churchboys and Other Sinners won the Sonya H. Stone Prize in Fiction and was published by Carolina Wren Press. He will be reading from his new novel at 7 this evening, May 8, at Books & Books on Miami Beach.

Joe Clifford's Short Story Collection: Choice Cuts

Joe Clifford's first book is out.  His story collection, Choice Cuts, has been published by Snubnose Press.  Of Choice Cuts, the Ampersand Review says, "What brings the collection together is the raw, no-holds-barred writing style, intense characterizations, and beyond twisted plotlines."

Snubnose Press will also be publishing Clifford's hardboiled novel, Wake the Undertaker, and Vagabondage Press will be bringing out his novel Junkie Love, both books scheduled for later in 2013.

After completing his MFA, Clifford moved to the San Francisco area, where he is the producer of Lip Service West, a "gritty, real, raw" reading series. He is also editor of the Flash Fiction Offensive. His work has appeared in Big Bridge, the Bryant Review, Drunken Boat, Fringe, Opium, and Word Riot, and many other journals. More info. on Joe's work can be found at www.joeclifford.com and his blog Candy & Cigarettes.