Rapid changes in reading technology have transformed writing through social media. The move from e-mail to blogs to Facebook has been ever evolving, but one thing has remained constant – the need to tell our personal stories. The 70-million active bloggers, tweeters, texters and Facebook addicts who journal daily about their lives are poised to discover the next step in their evolution – the Memoir, Vol. 1 app from eChook, curated by award-winning, short story author Tessa Smith McGovern.
Taking the idea of the original chapbook – small, single-chapter books that were the latest technology in 16th-century England – Tessa Smith McGovern developed eChook Digital, a digital publisher that offers collections of linked short stories as digital chapbooks in apps and eBooks. She wanted to re-imagine the short story genre for a generation that does too much and rests too little. “Reading thoughtful stories makes us forget our lives and helps us relax so we can attend that next meeting, collect the kids or greet our families with more energy and joy,” McGovern says.
McGovern’s latest collection for eChook ncludes a mischievous tale of a girl who shouldn’t play with matches, a mother and daughter who settle their differences with a prom dress and a kugel, a one-night stand that takes an unexpected turn, the unforeseen powers of a crossword puzzle, a wayward father’s alternate reality, and two tales about those mysterious creatures known as writers.
The short stories in Memoir, Vol. 1 range from new discoveries to pieces by acclaimed writers. Among the popular authors featured, are:
- Ina Chadwick – Her work has appeared in many literary journals, including The Paris Review and The Antioch Review, and The New York Times. She holds several first place awards in editing from the New England Press Association from her years as a professional journalist.
- Jennifer Armstrong – The winner of numerous awards for fiction and nonfiction, and the author of more than 100 books for all ages. She is a senior writer for Entertainment Weekly.
- Eileen Elkinson – A prolific short-story writer and editor of the literary site Mezzozine.
eChook currently has three open calls for submission for published or unpublished fiction, memoir, or essays between 750 – 2,000 words. Cash prizes up to $550. For more information, visit eChook Submissions.
“I believe that everybody has a short story in them,” McGovern says.
