So I get a call from an editor who asks if one of my stories has been published yet. I tell him no, and he congratulates me for winning their annual contest. Then he says I can’t tell anyone until they make their announcement.
This doesn’t count, right?
Michael Mau’s short fiction has appeared in Fifth Wednesday, Mount Hope, Firewords Quarterly, Subtopian, Ferocious Quarterly, and other places. "An Open Letter to America From a Public School Teacher," originally published in McSweeney's, received national attention when it was picked up by several news outlets. His story "Little Bird" was selected by Lily Hoang as the winner of the 2014 Black Warrior Review Fiction Contest. "Best Launderette," chosen by Pam Houston for Fifth Wednesday, was recently nominated for a Pushcart Prize. He received his MFA from the Bluegrass Writers Studio in central Kentucky where he writes and teaches.