E.A. Aymar

Writer Types podcast

/ Sarah M. Chen / Leave a comment

I’m host of a podcast! Okay, I’m a guest host, but still! And I’m a co-host which means Eric Beetner, the actual host of the awesome Writer Types, figured I needed help which is totally true. I was super nervous and didn’t want to screw up, but I managed to still have a lot of fun.

So if you want to check out me and E.A. Aymar chatting it up with Eric, then click on the link below. We talked about what it was like editing The Swamp Killers and how I manage to work so well with Ed (hint: he makes me laugh a lot).

We also interviewed authors Sheena Kamal who wrote the YA novel, Fight Like a Girl, and Matthew Quirk who writes political thrillers, his latest being Hour of the Assassin.

And while you’re at it, you should subscribe to Writer Types and get the latest scoop on your favorite crime fiction authors plus book recommendations from the Malmons and cool music.

Cut to the Chase!

/ Sarah M. Chen / Leave a comment

My friend and co-editor, E.A. Aymar, writes a column for the Washington Independent Review of Books. His latest features short stories and he asked two very talented short story writers, Art Taylor and Tara Laskowski (who by the way are also in The Swamp Killers!) to name their favorites. Oh, and he also asked me.

So if you want an escape from all this craziness but still find it difficult to break away too long from the endless updates, then a short story is your answer!

Read the column for some excellent recommendations. I don’t really have a favorite short story but I do have a favorite short story writer. Read on to find out who!

Cover Reveal for The Swamp Killers

/ Sarah M. Chen / Leave a comment

BOLO Books hosted the cover reveal of the upcoming novel-in-stories that E.A. Aymar and I co-edited. The Swamp Killers is coming to you on March 16, 2020 with Down & Out Books! I’m so excited for this one. It’s most of the same crew from The Night of the Flood with the addition of some new writers.

THE SWAMP KILLERS: A Novel in Stories

Here’s what we know is true.

Timmy Milici, a low-level hitter with the infamous Atlanta-based Duplass crime family, ran off with Melody Duplass to Jacksonville, Florida. Olivia Duplass, her mother and head of the Duplass family, was incensed, and put a price on Timmy—a hundred thousand for his corpse, but with explicit instructions that her daughter not be harmed.

We know that’s true.

Or, at least, we think we do.

Sixteen writers tell their versions of what happened those fateful days in this gripping novel-in-stories, brought to you from the team behind The Night of the Flood.

Contributors: E.A. Aymar, Sarah M. Chen, Hilary Davidson, Alex Dolan, Rebecca Drake, Gwen Florio, Elizabeth Heiter, J.J. Hensley, Susi Holliday, Shannon Kirk, Tara Laskowski, Jenny Milchman, Alan Orloff, Tom Sweterlitsch, Art Taylor, and Wendy Tyson.

Hope Within the Violence: An Interview with E.A. Aymar at LARB

/ Sarah M. Chen / Leave a comment

So my interview with the awesome E. A. Aymar is up today at Los Angeles Review of Books. We talk about his excellent crime fiction novel, The Unrepentant, which is one of my favorites of this year. Despite its dark subject matter of sex trafficking, it has heart and humor. Ed and I talk about his fascination with violence and the daunting task of examining the impact of violence against women when writing The Unrepentant. It was no small undertaking to tackle this subject yet he pulls it off with grace and wit. As always, I enjoyed our conversation and his stupid jokes.

Pay It Forward

/ Sarah M. Chen / 2 Comments

The Thrill Begins has a series called “Pay It Forward” in which each contributor recognizes an author or a book that inspired them. It could be someone living or dead, a short story writer or a novelist, an author friend or a literary idol from your childhood. I think it’s a wonderful series and look forward to each week’s spotlight.

So imagine my surprise when I wake up to find out that today, it’s ME! E.A. Aymar, the managing editor of The Thrill Begins and also my co-editor for The Night of the Flood, wrote a lovely, eloquent piece about me and I’m floored. He’s a sneaky little bastard. 🙂 Thank you, Ed.

He even managed to find my short story “The Donut Dealer” on Medium.

Wicked Cozy interview

/ Sarah M. Chen / 2 Comments

Today, Ed Aymar and I are being interviewed by Alan Orloff, a The Night of the Flood contributor. Thank you to Sherry Harris over at the Wicked Cozy website for making this happen!

And yes, Ed and I are still talking about this “novel-in-stories.” But this interview isn’t the same old, same old. Toward the end, we discuss our upcoming project with a similar “novel-in-stories” approach. It will have most of the same authors as Flood, plus a few new ones.

AND if you leave a comment at the end of the interview, you are entered to win a free copy of The Night of the Flood!

Alex Segura’s Stuff & Nonsense newsletter

/ Sarah M. Chen / Leave a comment

A big thank you to author Alex Segura for inviting Ed and I to chat about The Night of the Flood in his latest Stuff & Nonsense newsletter. We list 6 things we learned editing this anthology…and one thing I never did learn.

The newsletter also featured an essay from author William Boyle and his new book, The Lonely Witness, that will be out May 1, 2018.  It sounds right up my alley and I don’t know why I haven’t read him before.

If you’re not reading Alex Segura yet, you should be. His latest Pete  Fernandez book is coming out soon from Polis Books. You can preorder Blackout here!

Stuff & Nonsense

Sign up for Alex’s newsletter here!

Crime Syndicate Podcast

/ Sarah M. Chen / Leave a comment

E.A. Aymar and I are featured on Episode 3 of Michael Pool’s Crime Syndicate podcast. We talk about The Night of the Flood and other writerly issues that hopefully make us sound smart. We also read brief excerpts from our stories in The Night of the Flood.

There are some technical difficulties which I blame solely on Ed but if you stick it out for a few minutes, Ed won’t sound like he’s under water.

Thank you, Michael, for having us!

http://crimesyndicate.libsyn.com/episode-three

https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/crime-syndicate-magazine/crime-syndicate-podcast

 

Urban AMA “Editing & Writing for Anthologies” up on YouTube

/ Sarah M. Chen / 2 Comments

So the Q&A for Urban AMA was a lot of fun. Our stats were pretty good too! #2 on the app within that 24-hour period with over 21,000 views. (Ed and I made it to #1 within 72 hours). Not bad!

In case you want to view it in its entirety (or just want to view part of it), it’s up on YouTube for anyone to check out:

Urban AMA Wed 3/21 with E.A. Aymar “Q&A about Editing and Writing for Anthologies”

/ Sarah M. Chen / Leave a comment

Hey, I’ll be answering questions on this new platform (at least new to me) called UrbanAMA where you can “ask me anything”! You download the U13 app (but only with an iPhone. I had to borrow my ex-husband’s iPad to do this) and then send in your questions. Ed and I will be answering them tomorrow night Wed 3/21 at 5:00 PM PST. Or you can tweet us your questions using the hashtag #TheNightOfTheFlood. I answer the questions with a 40-second video (at least that’s the goal – I’ve never done this before, remember!)

So send in those burning questions…or send me adorable sea otter photos. Either works!