How different or similar is releasing a short story collection versus a novel or an anthology?
JV: It’s a lot easier if you’ve got novels out, that’s for sure, because you’ve got a readership some percentage of which will pick up your collection. I’d say that releasing a story collection, the emphasis is different from the publisher. For one thing, they really need to get those library sales, and they sometimes have to be creative in getting attention for the book, since novels will naturally get more attention. Definitely, the publisher expects to sell fewer copies than on a novel. This doesn’t mean readers don’t like stories, though. They just have a smaller natural audience. Also, a story collection is a chance for re-evaluation. The most popular stories in terms of reprints and awards have been “The Third Bear,” “Fixing Hanover” and “Three Days in a Border Town.” But the two stories I think deserved as much attention, “The Situation” and “Appogg,” got none. So this is a chance for readers and reviewers to encounter them again. And then some stories, like “Finding Sonoria,” a
