Raffle Winners!

Congratulations to our raffle winners! You'll be receiving an email shortly, and since we already have your address, the books will be going out this week.
Thanks to Seamus Bellamy for generously donating 3 signed copies of Lawrence Block's AFTER HOURS!

And the winners are:
Bracken MacLeod
Angela Walker
and
Gene Hogan!

Last day to win!

Today is the final day to buy Lost Children: A Charity Anthology to Benefit PROTECT and Children 1st and be entered into the raffle to win 1 of 3 signed first edition Lawrence Block books, donated generously by Seamus Bellamy.

Anyone who buys the anthology, either for Kindle or in paperback, is entered to win WHEN THEY EMAIL ME the Amazon or Createspace receipt to this address: tpluck+lostchildrenbooks@gmail.com

Amazon (US)

Amazon (UK)

Createspace

Watchung Booksellers
Indiebound (from your local independent bookstore)

According to the sales figures, we have at least seven buyers who didn't send me an email to enter. You have to be in it to win it, so please do so. The winners will be announced on Monday.

Lawrence Block signed books raffle!

We've had the blessing to work with many hard-working and generous people since we embarked on this project. One of them is Seamus Bellamy, who contributed the excellent story "Larry" to volume one of the anthology. Seamus purchased three SIGNED first editions of crime writing legend Lawrence Block's book After Hours, and we are raffling them off for the next ten days! 

Anyone who buys the anthology, either for Kindle or in paperback, email the Amazon or Createspace receipt to this address: tpluck+lostchildrenbooks@gmail.com to be entered into the raffle. There are three chances to win.

Amazon (US)

Amazon (UK)

Createspace 

Watchung Booksellers

Indiebound (from your local independent bookstore)

If you've already purchased the book, buy one as a gift. 

(The book is currently in the Kindle Select program, but if you require it in Nook or any other e-book format, I will e-mail you those editions upon request, and assist you with transferring it to your e-reader.)

From Seamus:

Anyone that buys Lost Children: A Charity Anthology between June 6th and Saturday June 16th will be entered in a draw to win one of three signed hardcover copies of After Hours: Conversations with Lawernce Block. They're first editions. Don't try and tell me you don't want one. 

In doing so, you'll be helping out a pair of great charities, wind up with a great anthology, and if you're lucky, a signed hardcover copy of a book that lets you take a boo at the mind of one of noir fiction's greatest living legends. 

It ain't no velveteen day, but it sure as hell ain't a poke in the eye either, now is it? Get to giving and good luck in the draw!

If you can't see your way to agreeing with me that stripping the innocence right out of an innocent kids isn't the worst kind of crime that this dogshit world of ours has to offer, then we've got nothing else to talk about.  While most of us bop through our days oblivious to the abuse inflicted on so many of the kids on a daily basis, a few tenacious souls are strong enough to do something about it. Tommy Pluck's one of those. Last year, Tommy and Fiona Johnson put together Lost Children: A Charity Anthology. It's a book that I was proud to contribute to, and one that you should be proud to buy. Y'see, all proceeds from the book are donated to PROTECT: The National Association to Protect Children and Children 1st Scotland --Two fine charities that work endlessly to protect the kids that the rest of us are too wrapped up in our own lives to keep safe or too damn oblivious to see as needing protection. 

Seamus Bellamy is a warlord, author and journalist who's work appears frequently in print and online. You'll find his portfolio and other undesirable things at www.seamusbellamy.com

Thank you, Seamus! 

-Tom and the LC crew

Lost Children: Protectors

I am very proud to announce that as of May 1st 2012, we have raised $1622.51 for PROTECT, Living Water for Girls, and Children 1st.
That includes the original donations by Fiona and myself, and if you go to our Donations page, you can see the breakdown. Fiona has been running around selling paperbacks and has raised a lot for Children 1st on her own.


Thank you to all the writers who contributed, and to everyone who has purchased the book or supported us in any way.

And a second announcement:
A second volume, with all new authors, is under way.


Lost Children: Protectors - An Anthology to Benefit PROTECT will be released in September 2012 in e-book and trade paperback.

Wayne Dundee
Ken Bruen
George Pelecanos
R. Thomas Brown
Josh Stallings
Tony Black
Nigel Bird
Ray Banks
Zak Mucha
Bill Cameron
Patti Abbott
Gerald So
Matthew C. Funk
Chad Eagleton

That's about half the roster, the rest will be announced in July.

Lost Children: An Anthology to Benefit PROTECT and Children 1st

Lost Children: A Charity Anthology collects thirty short stories from emerging hardboiled, transgressive, literary and noir writers to support PROTECT and Children 1st. PROTECT lobbies for stronger and smarter child protection laws in the U.S., and Children 1st deliver services to help children and families, and speak out for children's rights in Scotland.

Authors include Paul D. Brazill, Chad Rohrbacher, David Barber, Fiona "McDroll" Johnson, Ron Earl Phillips, Lynn Beighley, Susan Tepper, Thomas Pluck, Nicolette Wong, Benoit Lelievre, Seamus Bellamy, J.F. Juzwik, Nancy Hansen, JP Reese, Luca Veste, Sam Rasnake, Sif Dal, Veronica Lewis-Marie Shaw, David Ackley, James Lloyd Davis, Roberto C. Garcia, MaryAnne Kolton, Vinod Narayan,  Paula Pahnke, Susan Gibb, Ingrid K.V. Hardy, Gil Hoffs and Erin Zulkoski.

The book is available for as an e-book at Amazon, Amazon UK, Smashwords, the Apple iBookstore for the iPad, the Sony e-Bookstore, the Kobo Bookstore, and Barnes & Noble for Nook for $2.99

It is also available in trade paperback at Amazon and Createspace for $9.99
The trade paperback is available with free international shipping at The Book Depository.

You may also buy the e-book directly! We will mail it to you in PDF, Kindle mobi, and Nook epub formats. You can read it on your computer, or transfer it to your e-reader with software such as Calibre E-Book Management. This generates the largest donation. $2.99

Now available in Trade Paperback

The anthology is now available in trade paperback at Amazon and Createspace for $9.99
Free shipping worldwide at The Book Depository

Available for $2.99 in e-book form, for:

iPad in the Apple iBookstore
Amazon Kindle (read it on your computer with Amazon Kindle Cloud Reader, or on your phone with the Amazon Kindle App)
Nook at Barnes & Noble

Kobo, Sony e-reader and download as PDF, epub, mobi or Viewable Online at Smashwords

30 powerful stories from around the world to benefit two children's charities: PROTECT: The National Association to Protect Children (www.protect.org) and Children 1st Scotland (www.children1st.org.uk). 

Stories by David Ackley, Kevin Aldrich, David Barber, Lynn Beighley, Seamus Bellamy, Paul D. Brazill, Sif Dal, James Lloyd Davis, Roberto C. Garcia, Susan Gibb, Nancy A. Hansen, K.V. Hardy, Gill Hoffs, Fiona "McDroll" Johnson, J.F. Juzwik, MaryAnne Kolton, Benoit Lelievre, Veronica Marie Lewis-Shaw, Vinod Narayan, Paula Pahnke, Ron Earl Phillips, Thomas Pluck, Sam Rasnake, JP Reese, Chad Rohrbacher, Susan Tepper, Luca Veste, Michael Webb, Nicolette Wong and Erin Zulkoski.

It began as a flash fiction challenge when Fiona Johnson and Thomas Pluck donated $5 to PROTECT and £5 to Children 1st for every story at Ron Earl Phillips' Flash Fiction Friday and Fictionaut. Now we have collected the 30 best stories to benefit these two charities.

Join us and make a difference while you read 30 great stories genres by writers from the U.S.A., Poland, Hong Kong, Portugal, India, Scotland, England, Canada, and one told by a Lost Boy of the Sudan to his teacher.

Approximately $2 per e-book sale and $4 per print book sale, depending on retailer, are donated for each sale. The full royalty paid by the retailer goes to these causes (50% to each). Ordering from Createspace gives the greatest donation of $5.49, and Barnes & Noble the least, $1.94. The first week of each month, detailed sales and donation reports will be posted here.

If you don't have an e-reader: you can download the Kindle for PC or Kindle for Mac app, the Nook for PC App, Nook for Mac App or view it online at Smashwords, or download it as an Adobe PDF file. You can also read epubs on the Adobe Digital Editions reader for PC and Mac.
And of course, you can order a print edition!

Contributor Chad Rohrbacher interviewed

Chad Rohrbacher, who wrote "Outside the Dream" for the anthology was recently interviewed at the Crime Fiction Lover website:

Interview with Chad

He talks about the anthology and his book Karma Backlash which is due out next year.

No Rules, at Psycho Noir

Heath Lowrance, author of The Bastard Hand and the Psycho Noir blog, handed co-editor Thomas Pluck the microphone to spread the word about the anthology for his series No Rules.

Check it out: NO RULES

Now available in the iBookstore for the Apple iPad

The Anthology is now available in the Apple iBookstore for the iPad, so iTunes users can get it directly for the iPhone and iPad.

A print edition is in the works, and will be available through Createspace and Amazon soon.

Review by Wayne Dundee, author of the Joe Hannibal P.I. series

THE LOST CHILDREN is a collection of 30 stories that is noteworthy for two reasons: First, the quality and theme of the stories are powerful and important; Second, the proceeds from this undertaking all go to two worthwhile charities—PROTECT (The National Association to Protect Children @ http://www.protect.org/) and Children 1^stScotland @ www.children1st.org.uk). If you are unfamiliar with either of these organizations you should follow the links and check them out.

 The collection of stories presented here came about as a challenge issued by editors Thomas Pluck and Fiona Johnson on Ron Earl Phillip's (the third editor of this anthology)Flash Fiction Friday website. Pledges by Pluck and Johnson for each story submitted resulted in an initial $600 being generated for these worthy causes. The idea for this follow-up anthology soon materialized and THE LOST CHILDREN is the result. The haunting cover by Sarah Bennett Pluck and Danielle Tunstall instantly sets the tone and the flash fiction-style stories that follow are equally haunting and powerful and as painfully timely as today's headlines. The stories are not pleasant and few punches are pulled, but the message driven home again and again demands to be heard: The abuse and neglect of our young is not only horrific and damaging to them as individuals but, unchecked, it threatens the fabric of our souls and our future as a so-called civilized society.


Wayne Dundee is author of the new western Dismal River and the Joe Hannibal P.I. series. His website is http://www.waynedundee.com/

Get a taste with Seamus Bellamy's story at the Flash Fiction Offensive

David Barber, editor of The Flash Fiction Offensive and contributor to the anthology, chose Seamus Bellamy's crime tale "Larry" to showcase the book. It's a gripping tale and will give you an idea of the talent that contributed to our anthology.

Larry by Seamus Bellamy, at The Flash Fiction Offensive

Now available at Barnes & Noble for Nook

The anthology is now available for Nook users at Barnes & Noble:

Nook

I have also updated the original post.

a little about... Michael Webb

Michael wrote "Perfect Blue Buildings" for the challenge:

What inspired your story?

I'm not sure, honestly. I was listening to the song "Perfect Blue Buildings" by the Counting Crows, and musing about the prompt, and I had a mental picture of the John Hancock Tower in Boston, how it looks blue from the right distance and at the right angle. Then the whole story just occurred to me, a small kid left in front of the TV, told by the adult watching him that he'll be "right back" and never returning.


What makes this cause important to you?

That's hard to answer. What doesn't make this cause important? Anyone who's raised a child, or even been around one, knows how vulnerable they are. I don't think any feeling human can fail to hurt for a child who has been left behind.


Tell us a bit about yourself and where to find more of your writing.

Probably like most contributors, I've been writing for almost as long as I could write. I blog at innocentsaccidentshints.blogspot.com, which has become a repository for my short fiction.

a little about ... Roberto C. Garcia

Roberto wrote his story "One Night" for the challenge, and hails from Fictionaut:

What inspired your story?

My story was inspired by other stories, both mine and borrowed.

What makes this cause important to you?

I had a disjointed childhood but I was luckier than most of the kids in my part of town. Those experiences taught me how vulnerable children are and it angers me when they are mistreated, neglected or abused by adults. If by contributing fiction, I can help children get out of bad situations, then sign me up.

Tell us a bit about yourself and where to find more of your writing.

I'm working on an MFA in Poetry and Poetry Translation at Drew University in New Jersey. My poems and fiction have appeared in the Istanbul Literary Review, Poets & Artists Magazine, The New Gnus Literary Journal and Metazen. My work appears regularly for feedback and constructive criticism at Fictionaut, an online writers community.

My oft neglected blogs are www.themoodofthepeopl.blogspot.com and
www.themoodofthepeople.tumblr.com

I can be followed on Twitter at @thespokenmind

The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology now available

Available for $2.99 in e-book form, for:

iPad in the Apple iBookstore
Amazon Kindle (read it on your computer with Amazon Kindle Cloud Reader, or on your phone with the Amazon Kindle App)
Nook at Barnes & Noble

Kobo, Sony e-reader and download as PDF, epub, mobi or Viewable Online at Smashwords

$9.99 for trade paperback at Amazon and Createspace.

30 powerful stories from around the world to benefit two children's charities: PROTECT: The National Association to Protect Children (www.protect.org) and Children 1st Scotland (www.children1st.org.uk). 

Stories by David Ackley, Kevin Aldrich, David Barber, Lynn Beighley, Seamus Bellamy, Paul D. Brazill, Sif Dal, James Lloyd Davis, Roberto C. Garcia, Susan Gibb, Nancy A. Hansen, K.V. Hardy, Gill Hoffs, Fiona "McDroll" Johnson, J.F. Juzwik, MaryAnne Kolton, Benoit Lelievre, Veronica Marie Lewis-Shaw, Vinod Narayan, Paula Pahnke, Ron Earl Phillips, Thomas Pluck, Sam Rasnake, JP Reese, Chad Rohrbacher, Susan Tepper, Luca Veste, Michael Webb, Nicolette Wong and Erin Zulkoski.

It began as a flash fiction challenge when Fiona Johnson and Thomas Pluck donated $5 to PROTECT and £5 to Children 1st for every story at Ron Earl Phillips' Flash Fiction Friday and Fictionaut. Now we have collected the 30 best stories to benefit these two charities.

Join us and make a difference while you read 30 great stories genres by writers from the U.S.A., Poland, Hong Kong, Portugal, India, Scotland, England, Canada, and one told by a Lost Boy of the Sudan to his teacher.

If you don't have an e-reader: you can download the Kindle for PC or Kindle for Mac app, the Nook for PC App, Nook for Mac App or view it online at Smashwords, or download it as an Adobe PDF file. You can also read epubs on the Adobe Digital Editions reader for PC and Mac.

a little about... Ron Earl Phillips

Ron Earl Phillips runs Flash Fiction Friday, is an editor for Shotgun Honey, and may or may not be an undercover investigator. I met him and I was not quite sure. What I was sure of was that he is a fine human being and writes a good tale. His story "The Dog Catcher" was written for the challenge.

What inspired the story? 

My mother worked 33 years as a case worker for the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Services, and 10 of those 33 years she worked specifically with Child Protective Services. While she tried not to bring her home work with her, I would overhear stories growing up. Stories of abuse, both sexual and physical, and stories of abandonment and homeless. And unfortunately stories of unwanted children locked away like animals, cast off to live in their own filth. While I can only fathom the thought process of those Lost Children -- how they manage and adapt, move on with life -- I found myself wondering how it would affect those who found such horror. That moment of discovery was what I was attempting with "The Dog Catcher," to put the reader in that moment of revelation. 

What makes the cause important to you? 

Whatever definition you give to Lost Children, every child in the world today, no matter how sheltered, has the potential to become lost. If the horror found in my words can help prevent the reality, then what I've written is important. 

A bit about myself. 

Nestled in the foothills of West Virginia, Ron Earl Phillips lives with his wife, teen-aged daughter, and their three cats. When not attempting to keep a roof over their heads through the mundane and legal job as a web developer, Ron reads and writes crime fiction. He also acts as co-editor on the online flash fiction magazine, Shotgun Honey, and for the upcoming e-book charity anthology, The Lost Children. Ron also maintains the weekly writing prompt site, Flash Fiction Friday.

You can find out more about Ron Earl Phillips at his website, RonEarl.com.

a little about... Susan Tepper

Susan Tepper has four novels in print and wrote the powerful story "kid" for the challenge:

What inspired your story?

The challenge photo is one of the most devastating I've ever seen of a child. That tortured face is a map of every hideous deed done to ruin a child's life. It brought to mind a young girl I once saw in a soup kitchen line outside a church. She was early teens, very blonde, slender, and frightened looking. She stood out like a beacon on that NYC street amongst the more hardened, adult homeless in that food line. I was rushing to the subway, to get to work, but stopped there. I thought of approaching her, trying to help somehow. I didn't. This act of omission has haunted me some 20 years now.

What makes this cause important to you?

There isn't much to do in this world if it doesn't involve making things somewhat better for someone else. If someone feels better, there's a good chance they will spread it. It's the last saving grace for our planet.

Tell us a bit about yourself and where to find more of your writing.

I'm a fiction writer, poet, essayist and interviewer. Have been at this for 17 years. Have 3 books published and a 4th about to come out. Prior to the writing, I was an actor who worked at a series of jobs to pay my rent and buy my food. I didn't have a cushy life. I'm glad of that. It makes you appreciate what you do get and helps keeps your ego in line.

a little about... David Barber

David is the editor of The Flash Fiction Offensive, The Laughter Shack, and an accomplished writer in his own right. He wrote "Forgotten" for the challenge:

What inspired the story?

I asked myself what could be the worse thing that could happen to me as a father and I think the thought of one of my kids going missing would be the worst.  I then took it a bit further and put Elizabeth in the position of having a feeling that her daughter was still alive and somewhere else.  I didn't really want to go down the abuse/pedophile road.  That sickens me.

What makes the cause important to you?

If I can doing anything to help kids have a better life then I'm in.  Kids are the future and they need love and a good start in life.  The fear in the eyes of the young girl on the book cover says it all.  How anyone could look into those eyes and totally ignore that is beyond me.  If I had my way there'd be a death penalty in every country in the world for child abusers.

A bit about myself.

I'm a father of two beautiful girls.  I'm a self employed tiler by day and a writer at night.  I'm editor of The Flash Fiction Offensive and I blog at David Barber's Fiction World.

a little about... JP Reese

JP Reese wrote "The Lost Boy" for the anthology, sharing the tale of a Sudanese boy who survived the genocide there.

What inspired your story?

My story is a bit different in that the main character isn't a "character" at all. He was a student in my summer American Literature class who became one of my heroes after he told the story of his childhood in Sudan to me and to the rest of my class. I am a slow creative writer and knew I'd never have anything fictional or poetic in time to help, but after I heard of the generous offer Fiona and Tom were making in regard to the stories we produced, I knew I had to participate in some small way. David's true story of loss and redemption is my offering.

What makes this cause important to you?

There are so many problems in the world, almost to the point where one is overwhelmed when trying to decide how or where to help or even finding a way to do so. Clearly, any charity that affects the lives of children not only has an immediate impact on particular children, but also has a long term positive impact on society. Tom and Fiona are the heroes of this book. They pointed us in the right direction, and we simply followed.


Tell us a bit about yourself and where to find more of your writing.

I have been writing in some capacity for most of my life, but only began to write seriously again, after a six year hiatus, within the last two years. I have had poetry, fiction, flash, and creative nonfiction published both in print and online. I have an MFA in poetry and teach English at a small college in Texas. I am an associate poetry editor for Connotation Press: An Online Artifact www.connotationpress.com and THIS Literary Magazine www.thiszine.org. My work is compiled at Entropy: A Measure of Uncertainty jpreese.tumblr.com.

a little about... Fiona "McDroll" Johnson

Fiona issued the Lost Children flash fiction challenge for Flash Fiction Friday and donated £220  ($350 US) personally to Children 1st Scotland, £5 for each story submitted. Her story "Residual Flashbacks" appears in the collection.

What inspired your story?

Having set up the challenge for everyone else, it suddenly dawned on me that I’d need to tackle it myself.
Like everyone else, I love Danielle Tunstall’s photo and I dare anyone to look into the eyes of the child and not feel pain. It always worries me as a teacher that the children who sit in our classes everyday, year after year, will be experiencing some kind of abuse but while in school, where they feel safe, their suffering doesn’t show.

Only many years later do people realize that how they were treated was wrong. Often they have never shared their abuse with anyone but kept it locked away in a secure place in their mind. It’s one of those children that my story is about.


What makes this cause important to you?

There are so many children in society needing help. Abuse is not going away and Children 1st do such valuable work in Scotland but like other charities, they have to work so hard constantly trying to find funds for their projects. I hope through the LOST CHILDREN ANTHOLOGY, we can all help them just a little bit.


Tell us a bit about yourself and where to find more of your writing.

I live in Argyll, Scotland, which is one of the most beautiful parts of the world. I have two children of my own who love everything musical so I spend a lot of my time taking them from activity to activity throughout the week.

I’ve been teaching 3 – 11 year olds for the past 28 years but in the little spare time that I have I try my best to write crime / noir short stories. I’ve been fortunate enough to have stories published in Shotgun Honey and The Flash Fiction Offensive. Recently Trestle Press has published my first anthology of short stories, KICK IT. I’ve also got stories in two more wonderful anthologies that are coming out soon, OFF THE RECORD and BRIT GRIT TOO.

Thanks so much to everyone who has helped with THE LOST CHILDREN, now let’s make it a success by spreading the word.

Thank you.