Putting Things in Order

Something that made me curious when I started submitting my writing was how editors decided on the order for anthologies.

Was there a technique to it, a method to the madness?

Or did they just make a list and you were placed where you fell.

I had other questions too: Why did my story make the cut over someone else's? Why was a story I thought was strong rejected, but stories I didn't like as much were accepted? How did I increase my chances of acceptance?

I never got the nerve to ask any of my editors, and I'm kind of glad I didn't. Because when we started Undertaker Books and got ready to put out our first anthology, I didn't feel bound by other people's ideas, and got to boldly make my own path.

When I'm selecting stories for an anthology, it's kind of like picking tracks for a mix tape. I know the songs I want, but putting them in the right order is as important as picking them in the first place. My goal is to keep the reader moving through the anthology, adjusting the pace and flow to keep them engaged and entertained, then leaving them on a note that will haunt them for, say, the rest of their life...

In our two published anthologies, Mortuary Edition and Judicial Homicide, the ending story has been the first piece I selected when moving from the short list to final acceptances, and both the stories are among my favorites. "Last Burn of the Day" by Kevin Higgins and "Death is Different" by Tommie Simmons are both haunting for different reasons, but are perfect as closing pieces that linger in a reader's thoughts.

My next pick is the opener. I'm looking for something that sets the tone for the anthology, that draws the reader in and hooks them. Second person stories are a favorite for this, like Nikki Kirsch's "You Are in a Motel Room" from Mortuary Edition. Other times, something unique, like Rebecca Cuthbert's narrative poem "A Curse Thrown From the Hanging Tree" in Judicial Homicide fits the bill.

Once I have the anthology bookended, I look at the "primetime spots," the third, fourth, and fifth spots. We've decided that Undertaker Books anthologies will have ten selections each (because Amazon only allows us to list ten authors on the book's page), so what I'm looking for here is pieces that will stand out to readers once they've been drawn into the book and keep building the momentum from the opener. This is the "heart" of the book, and I want stories here that will stay in the reader's mind.

Next, I circle back to the number two spot. Here, the main thing I'm looking for is something that offsets the opener and the number three spot. Lots of early gore? I'll probably go quiet horror here. A lot of slow burns? I'll speed it up here to keep the reader off balance. It can be the toughest story to choose, because I'm looking to keep the reader's momentum while mixing things up a little.

Spots six through nine are about keeping the reader locked in through the ending. In this block, I'm looking for stories that connect to the theme, but are varied and unique enough to stand on their own. I don't want to hit the reader with the same four notes in a row; I want to give different styles and ideas that look at the theme from new perspectives. At the same time, I'm setting the reader up for the killing blow, the ending I want to haunt them for as long as possible.

What I want you to take away from this is that there's a method to my madness. Every story I accept for the anthology has a purpose, and I always have to send rejections to some great stories I wish I could have taken. Where I put a story in an anthology isn't a reflection of the story's quality or lack thereof, but what I want to accomplish with the piece.

And in the end, we have awesome anthologies for our readers.