Good Publicity

When "Rocket" came out, I sent a few press releases out to local newspapers in the East Texas area. The news release was the basis of the little blurb which ran in the September issue of the Texas Press Association newsletter, the TPA Messenger:

"Lou Antonelli, editor of the Bowie County Citizen’s Tribune, recently broke into the pro fiction writing ranks with publication of “A Rocket for the Republic,” in Asimov’s Science Fiction magazine. Antonelli mentions Nacogdoches, Corsicana, Tyler, Malakoff, Athens and Eustace in the story, which is a monologue by the 200-year survivor of the world’s first space shot."

I just learned (via a Google search) that the editor-in-chief of the Tyler Telegraph also used the info in his column this past Saturday, Nov. 5:

"Science fiction with a bit of East Texas flavor?

That was a winning combination for Lou Antonelli of Bowie County in East Texas, who recently broke into the professional fiction writing ranks with the publication of the tall Texas tale, "A Rocket for the Republic," in Asimov's Science Fiction.

"Asimov's, named for science fiction writer Isaac Asimov, is the second-largest science fiction magazine in the English-speaking world.

"Antonelli said he began work on the story while editor of the Malakoff News in East Texas in 2003. The story was published in the September issue of the magazine.

"Tyler, as well as Malakoff, Athens and Eustace, all are mentioned in the story, a monologue by the 200-year survivor of the world's first space shot.

"Antonelli also had four stories recognized with honorable mentions in the 2005 edition of "The Year's Best Science Fiction," published by St. Martin's Press of New York City.

"The writer said he came up with the idea for "Rocket" while day- dreaming about how a community once was named Science Hill in Henderson County. An alliterative title and a desire to write a story with a Texas "voice" led to the first draft, which was written while he still lived in Eustace.

"The story is set in the early Texas frontier and also mentions Corsicana and Nacogdoches."

When I had my reading at the New Boston Public Library Oct. 18, one of the attendees said she had seen the same article in the Nacogdoces paper, so it was apparently used there, also.