Tales from the Silver State II: Short Fiction from Nevada's Freshest Voices Paperback - 2015

The Las Vegas Writers Group A Brief History Founded by Jay MacLarty and Vic Cravello, the Las Vegas Writers Group has grown from its humble beginnings to become the premier writers group in Southern Nevada. Jay had travelled a long, hard road to publication which included 50 rejections before finally landing an agent and signing a deal with Simon & Shuster. The LVWG was a way for him to help others achieve what he had. His vision was a group that was a mix of successfully published and aspiring authors. It has grown far beyond what anyone expected. The group, originally known as The Literati, held its first official meeting in September 2004 with four writers attending. Monthly gatherings took place in a coffee shop and the group grew slowly through word of mouth. By January of 2007 the membership had increased to the point that the meetings moved to a local pub. Establishing an internet presence through Meetup accelerated the growth rate and the group sought out a larger venue to accommodate the increasing attendance. Today membership stands at more than 300 writers with monthly meetings typically attended by 70 or more people. There are a number of reasons for the success of the group. First there is no profit motive, the meeting fee is kept as low as possible and is used to cover the cost of running the group and putting on the meetings with any excess going toward the annual holiday party and producing this anthology. Second is the quality of the monthly program. Speakers are generally individuals with something valuable to share with the members regarding both the craft and business of writing. Past presenters have included Creative Writing Faculty from UNLV, authors from major publishing houses, Emmy Award winning screenwriters, Pulitzer Prize nominees, and most recently an O' Henry Award winning writer. lastly, and most importantly, the LVWG thrives due to the dedication of the volunteers who through there tireless efforts have helped make the group what it is today. The more than 300 members of the LVWG were invited to submit stories for this anthology with the best being selected to appear in these pages. These are their tales.