Hello, Barn Burners! I met acclaimed writer Thomas H. McNeely at Inprint in Houston to record him reading his story, Tickle Torture. The story is from his collection, Pictures of the Shark, which I read and recommend for its powerful and relatable depictions of a tumultuous childhood.

In a starred review, Kirkus has called Thomas H. McNeely's book, Pictures of the Shark: Stories "an emotionally taut and often haunting  collection."  An East End Houston native, McNeely has published short  stories and non-fiction in The Atlantic, Texas Monthly,  Ploughshares, and many other magazines and anthologies. He has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts,  the Wallace Stegner Program at Stanford University, and the MacDowell  Colony.  His stories have been short-listed for the Pushcart Prize, Best American Short Stories and O. Henry Award  anthologies.  He currently teaches in the Stanford Online Writing Studio and at Emerson College, Boston. His website is www.thomashmcneelywriter.com and he can be found on Twitter @thmcneely. 

Are you a writer and want to have your short story on the podcast? You can reach me at barnburningpodcast@gmail.com!