Philly Fiction 2 is now out!

Don Ron Books is excited to announce the release of our second publication, Philly Fiction 2. This is the second volume of stories, all by writers affiliated with Philadelphia, which draw upon the city for inspiration, showing it in all its grit and glory. We were very fortunate to receive such a positive response to the first Philly Fiction—from writers, from critics, and from Philadelphians in general. Thanks to everyone who made a second Philly Fiction possible.

Our deepest gratitude goes to the writers who contributed to Philly Fiction 2, both those whose works are published within and those whose stories we were unable to publish. The 19 authors range from first-time writers fresh out of Philadelphia colleges to established authors with several novels in their catalogue. The stories are equally diverse, set in neighborhoods across the city and touching and topics both uniquely Philadelphian (Italian hoagies, the Phillies) and intrinsically universal (love, alienation, the Philllies).

Two authors from the first Philly Fiction return with contributions to the second: celebrated local novelist Elise Juska revisits the Great Northeast with her story “Northeast Philly Girls,” the setting of Jon Petruschke’s “560 Degrees” is a little more sinister—most of the action takes place at the old Byberry mental hospital. We welcome the following authors to the Don Ron Books family: Benjamin Matvey, Marc Bookman, Jan Kargulewicz, Christine Flanagan, April Dobbins, Susan Balee, Kelly McQuain, Lizz Kerr, Annie Wilson, John Carroll, Joshua Roberts, Emily Brochin, Sandra Novack, Rachel Toliver, Justin St. Germain, and Beth Goldner. See phillyfiction.com/pf2 or click on the names for bios of all the authors and more on their stories.

We are particularly honored by the presence of Bruce Langfeld’s story, “Give and Take,” which kicks of the collection. Bruce passed away in 2007 before we had a chance to tell him we had accepted his wonderful—and wonderfully Philly—tale. Philly Fiction 2 is dedicated to Bruce. Although he lives on in his stories and songs and in our memories, his presence his sorely missed by anyone who had the pleasure to meet this generous-hearted Philly stalwart.

Amazing local artist Theron Warren is back with another great cover. The cover of the first Philly Fiction depicted artistic representations of Ben Franklin and a Septa train, the new volume displays some more Philadelphia icons in the Rocky statue and the LOVE sculpture. Local graphic designer Bill Horan contributed little Liberty Bells as section breaks and story markers to bring even more Philly to your fiction. Freelance designer Jeff McKay assisted with layout.

Thanks to the crack editorial team: Josh McIlvain, Christopher Munden, Greg November, and Tracy Parker. They were assisted by Christine Ma, who gave valuable insights as we selected the stories for this volume. Proofreader Scott Wiser gave the manuscript his close attention and language wiz Savannah Cooper-Ramsey shared her unique knowledge with the editors.

Philly Fiction 2 is on sale at the following establishments:
Joseph Fox Booksellers, 1724 Sansom St (www.foxbookshop.com)
Penn Book Center , 34th & Sansom, (www.pennbookcenter.com)
Head House Books, 619 South 2nd St (www.headhousebooks.com)
Artist and Craftsman, 307 Market St. (www.artistcraftsman.com)
Book Corner, 311 North 20th St (next to the Free Library and Whole Foods) (www.libraryfriends.info)
Germ Books, 2005 Frankford Ave (Fishtown) (www.germbooks.com)
Hideaway Music, 8612 Germantown Ave (Chestnut Hill)
and others, just ask at your favorite store.

Pick up a copy of Philly Fiction 2 at one of these great stores or online at phillyfiction.com. We hope you enjoy this book even more than the first.