Low Down Dirty Vote Vol. 3: The Color of My Vote is OUT

The third volume of the Low Down Dirty Vote anthology is out, and, as one of the contributing authors I can assure you that it's a doozy, from cover to cover! Here's a quick summary pulled from the IndieBound site (where you can also buy a copy from your favorite indie bookstore):

This charity anthology includes 22 stories of crime and suspense by 22 authors: many award-winners, some publishing for the first time in a short story anthology. The publisher donates 100% of the proceeds to Democracy Docket, an organization that is successfully fighting against voter suppression in the United States.

Authors from the US, India, Germany, and the UK have crafted visions of the past, present, and future of democracy with tales that range from comic to tragic and from cozy to noir. You'll also find a few stories blended with science fiction, horror, and fantasy. Each author shares their take on the theme: the color of my vote. We know it shouldn't matter, but somehow it still does.

Cover by Devyn McConachie

Click on the links below to learn more about the anthology, its stories, and its creation:

• Contributing author David Corbett's provided a post on Writing Wrongs: The Color of My Low-Down Dirty Vote at Writers Unboxed.
• Editor Mysti Berry talks about Editing for Voice over at Blood Red Pencil.
• Contributing author Camille Minichino notes that there is "something for everyone" in her post at Dru's Book Musings.
• BookLife Reviews gave the anthology a "lightning bolt" designation (essentially two thumbs up!) and declared it an Editor's Pick for its outstanding quality. 

Finally, you can view the two Crowdcast videos recorded on book-launch day, May 15, in which some of the authors talk about their stories and why they wrote them: 

• Global Launch Session #1 (from noon PDT)
• Global Launch Session #2 (from 3 p.m. PDT)

These sessions were recorded and are now available for viewing.

For more information about the three anthologies and buy links, check out the Low Down Dirty Vote site.

P.S. My modest offering for this third anthology is a story titled (ahem) "Winning by a Whisker: A Paw-litical Tale." Yes, puns abound in this little narrative about dog owners and cat owners squaring off in a (purely fictional) small town over an upcoming mayoral election. 

The Voice of the People by Guest Author Camille Minichino

Please welcome my guest this week: author and long-time friend, Camille Minichino.

Camille received her Ph.D. in physics from Fordham University, New York City. She is currently on the faculty of Golden Gate University, San Francisco and teaches writing throughout the Bay Area. Camille is Past President and a member of NorCal Mystery Writers of America, NorCal Sisters in Crime, and the California Writers Club. Camille has published over 20 novels and many short stories and nonfiction articles. For more about her and her works, please visit her website: http://www.minichino.com/index.html

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Franklin Delano Roosevelt lived down the street from us in Revere, Massachusetts. He was the best friend our family had. Or so I thought growing up in the early 1940s.

"Roosevelt gave me this job," my father would say, tapping a small brown envelope of cash, his week's wages.

"If it weren't for Roosevelt and the WPA, you wouldn't be getting new shoes for school," my mother would remind me.

I pictured a benevolent Mr. Roosevelt driving the old truck that picked up my father and his cronies, day laborers, from the corner of our street, taking them to the construction site of the day. I imagined the WPA, whoever they were, helping my mother shop for my school clothes.

My parents, as well as our neighbors and friends, were acutely aware of House Speaker Tip O'Neill's All politics is local. My father's (metal) social security card was a prized possession.

It seemed to me that every year was an election year, every election important to us. My mother especially was always campaigning, urging people to sign this or that petition, to vote, vote, vote. Our front window was never without a sign, RUSSO FOR MAYOR, AVALLONE FOR COUNCIL, SIEGEL FOR SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT.

And it all came together on the Fourth of July. Independence Day and Voting Day were the biggest holidays in our lives, competing with Thanksgiving and Christmas, but better because there was no back-breaking food prep or lugging a tree up the stairs. My father died on July 4, 1981—I've always felt that he timed it that way, going up with the glorious fireworks on Revere Beach.

Following politics, debating issues, voting, are still a priority for me. Being invited to contribute a story to LOW DOWN DIRTY VOTE has been a highlight of my year. Thanks to Mysti Berry and the grand array of colleagues in this anthology! And thanks, Ann Parker, for giving the Independence Day slot to me!

I'm thinking of making a poster of the LOW DOWN DIRTY VOTE cover, and propping it on my lawn.