If you don’t receive my newsletter, you may not have heard my big news so here it is:

Need a quick escape that doesn’t involve calories or committing to a long novel or a full-length film? I’ve got just the thing, and I’m super excited to tell you about it. As of this week, I have a collection of southern short stories out (ebook only) that I’ve written over the last ten years. The collection is called Grace, Grits and Ghosts: Southern Short Stories.  Reasons you might enjoy these short stories:

1. You like fiction, but you don’t have a lot of time to read.
2. You like stories that have a strong sense of place. You love to read about the landscape–from the southern coasts to the Appalachian mountains.
3. You like quirky characters that are sometimes bigger than life.
4. You like to laugh and also appreciate stories that have some depth.
5. You like writers like Harper Lee, Flannery O’Connor, and Eudora Welty.
6. You’ve read other books I’ve written and want to see what I’ve come up with now. Or perhaps you want to check me out for the first time.
7. You like samplers. Boxes of chocolate that don’t just contain one thing, but variety. At potlucks, you try a little bit of everything.
8. You like to read a full story before you go to bed.
9. You appreciate stories that contain diversity: people of all colors, young and old, rich and poor, sane and not-so-much.

Here’s the description:

This delightful collection of short stories from acclaimed writer, Susan Gabriel (The Secret Sense of Wildflower, a Best Book of 2012 by Kirkus Reviews), is rich in humor, as well as mystery and meaning.

 

Whether white or black, living or dead, down home country or upscale urban, Gabriel’s characters are quirky, poignant and deep. They include: A Gullah woman using folk magic to cast her latest spell. A girl coming-of-age dealing with death in 1940s Tennessee. A wealthy Savannah matriarch with gastrointestinal issues guarding family secrets. A good ol’ boy observing himself shortly after his death. An agoraphobic woman striking up a unique friendship with the girl across the street. And a band of seventy-year-olds finding healing in a mountain stream. 

 

Written in the tradition of Flannery O’Connor and Eudora Welty, the eight short stories in Grace, Grits and Ghosts: Southern Short Stories are all rooted in the southern landscape–from the steamy coast of Georgia, to the current day Atlanta suburbs, to the ancient Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina.  

 

Pull up a rocker on the front porch, take a sip of your sweet iced tea and lose yourself in these original stories of soulful southerners and their sultry landscape.

The Grace, Grits, and Ghosts ebook is only $2.99 and available at your favorite online retailer, Amazon, Nook (bn.com), Kobo and Google Play. I’d love to hear what you think of these stories!

With every good wish,

Susan

P.S. Check out all of my books here.

P.P.S. Please consider helping me spread the word by posting this announcement on social media: facebook, twitter, google+, pinterest, et al. Or by leaving an honest review on Amazon and goodreads. This really helps readers take a chance on a new book. Thank you! You rock!! xo