2017 has been a big year! I'm happy to say that more Joe Prosit short stories were published in 2017 than any previous year. But it didn't happen in a vacuum. I've met a lot of cool people this year and made some awesome writing friends. Plus, I finished the first and second draft of my work in progress, the science fiction novel, "99 Town." So before diving into the future, lets take a moment to celebrate the highlights of the last twelve months.

My first publication of the year came from the good people at Freedom Fiction. "Slaves to the Grind" is a sordid tale of how bad things can get when the wrong man doesn't get his morning cup of joe. You can read it for free at www.freedomfiction.com/2017/03/slaves-to-the-grind-by-joe-prosit/. 

In April, I made my first trip to the bizarre town of Dead Oaks. And I brought a monster with me. "Monster Mike Goes to the Dentist" hit the podcast airwaves and was a big hit! If you thought getting a filling was bad, just listen to this: www.deadoakspodcast.com/2017/04/dead-oaks-monster-mike-goes-to-dentist.html.

In November, Chantwood Magazine, Issue 11, featured the SciFi tale "The Thin Man," the story of a man you sacrifices everything to see the future, and doesn't like what he sees. That is available here: chantwoodmagazine.com/issues/. 

November also saw my return to Dead Oaks with more monsters! Feel that churning in your stomach? It feels you too! "Vomit Monsters" crawl into your ears at soundcloud.com/deadoakspodcast/vomit-monsters.

And December brought us one more blast of audio anguish, check out "The Hum" from No Sleep Podcast. This is worth a listen. But beware! Once you hear The Hum, you might never not hear it again. www.thenosleeppodcast.com/episodes/s10/10x05

If that's not enough short fiction for you, don't worry. My next publication comes at the strike of midnight on New Years. Start 2018 off right by checking out "Versions of You" in the Channillo short story collection at channillo.com/series/2017-short-story-contest-finalists/.

But 2017 wasn't only about short stories. My big project this year was my upcoming SciFi novel, "99 Town." This is still in 2nd draft phase and won't be ready for publication for sometime. But it was a blast to write, and I learned and grew each morning I sat down and added to the word count. I have no idea when or if it will ever be good enough to get picked up, but the journey of "99 Town" started here.

Speaking of learning and growing, that surely doesn't happen alone. I spent a lot of time over in the Litreactor.com workshop. Some great friends and peers helped me hone my rough drafts into something good and sometimes publishable. Also, Twitter, Reddit, Scribophile... I can't say enough about the support and encouragement I've received from my fellow writers. If you're an aspiring writing, I highly recommend getting involved in some of these online communities, as well as any local writing group you can find!

Who are some of these great people I've met over the year? Well, I recommend you check out that "7 Questions With..." tab in the upper right hand corner of your screen. There you'll hear from awesome writers Bill McStowe, Repo Kempt, Sonya Craig, and Christopher Waltz! In October, the awesome Kelly Weiss interviewed yours truly. You can read that interview at 
www.kellyfumikoweiss.com/my-writing-experience/writersquick5-meet-sci-fi-horror-psycho-fiction-writer-joe-prosit. Thanks Kelly!

As we close out 2017, I'm all the more excited for the year to come! I can feel the momentum and excitement growing around me. The pump is primed and you can expect more SciFi, Horror and Psycho Fiction coming your way. I'm just getting started, peeps. See you in 2018!

The first and second drafts of my novel-in-progress is complete. Now its out in the hands of beta readers, hopefully being torn to shreds, but also enjoyed in at least some redeemable way.

In the meantime, it's back to the short story racket. Watch for more fiction coming your way!