Because my summer has been very busy with lots of to-and-fro, exuberant gardens, and time spent protesting the potential destruction of my home by the gas drilling companies, I have been exploring writing short stories rather than diving into my next major novel as I had planned.
I am pleased to say that I have had success with two of my short stories. The first one “Helen of Troy” won an Honorable Mention in the WOW Spring 2012 Flash Fiction contest. My second one “The Obo Bird” won an Honorable Mention and will be published by Stone Thread Publishing in a Science Fiction and Fantasy Anthology dedicated to the memory of Ray Bradbury. Since Ray Bradbury is my all-time favorite writer of short stories I am just thrilled.
About the stories:
“Helen of Troy” is set in Greece and delves into the meaning of love in less than 700 words.
“The Obo Bird” was written as a practice piece in the Algonkian Writer’s Workshop and is set at a funeral in Ghana featuring the elaborate coffins of the Ga tribe.
“The Obo Bird” is in the e-anthology Body-Smith 401 available from Smashwords.com
Women, Words, and Wisdom 
Hi Joan, can I get to read these two stories. Are they on your blog and somehow I am missing them?
My stories are not on the blog. The Obo Bird is in an e-book anthology available from Amazon called Body-Smith 101. The other one I have submitted to an e-journal and I am waiting to hear.