Fictionwise Takes A Chance on The Baton by Biff Mitchell

Summary: Biff Mitchell goes over the top in The Baton, his recently released novella about a serial killer who eliminates all those people who the author claims “we all wish we could strangle,” but the Dollar Download ebook still finds publishers.

“I didn’t think anybody would ever publish it,” said author Biff Mitchell about his novella The Baton, which was recently released at Fictionwise.com through US publisher Echelon Press. “But Karen Syed at Echelon was adamant the she wasn’t going to back away from flack a controversy might bring on.”

Described by one reader as “Holden Caulfield on steroids, “The Baton is about a man who has had with telemarketers, people who butt into the front of the line or play their music too loud, cell phone bullies, and sidewalk spitters. “He hates them all,” said Mitchell, “just like we all do. So he starts following them. And then he starts killing them.”

“The original title was Killing Assholes,” said Mitchell. “But that gave the story away. So I changed the name to The Baton and started giving the story away in media releases. I think, though, that there are people we all wish we could strangle – people who seem to exist for the purpose of making everyone around them feel inadequate, used, or miserable. There are entire websites dedicated to people who are proud to be called assholes and their numbers are growing.”

The Baton was picked up by Echelon Press, an aggressive independent publisher in Maryland, and published as a Dollar Download ebook. “I liked the concept,” said Mitchell. “Selling short pieces of fiction individually seemed like the days of Dickens when you could by a single printed short story for half a penny, except now their sold electronically for people to read on their computers or PDAs.”

According to Mitchell, one of the biggest catalysts in what appears to be “a renaissance in short fiction” is Fictionwise.com. “They started publishing individual short stories alongside novels so that people could download a good read just long enough for a morning bus commute, something that could be ordered, downloaded and read on a wireless handheld device while in transit – and usually for less than a buck.”

“It seemed natural that a short fiction innovator like Echelon would form a distribution partnership with Fictionwise,” said Mitchell. “And it appears to be working well. The Baton is my second Echelon novella to be posted at Fictionwise, but I’m particularly happy this one made it. There’s a lot of violence, strong language and downright nastiness in The Baton, but it’s not meant to just shock. I think it has something to say to everybody in an increasingly crowded and intolerant world.”

According to Barry Hunter’s review in Baryon Online, it’s “a satisfying short tale that makes you look at life a little differently.”

“It was my teenage daughter who suggested I write it,” said Mitchell. “She said she was tired of listening to me complaining about all the inconsiderate store clerks, maniacal car drivers and noisy people in theatres and dared me to write something about them. So I did.”

“But I’m still surprised that any publisher would take a chance on that story,” said Mitchell. “I think I let a lot of strong feelings flow into it – feelings what surprised me as I was writing the story.”

The Baton is available for less than a dollar at: Fictionwise.com