Editor Lou Anders just announced the pending publication of With Great Power, an anthology of superhero stories that will be appearing from Pocket Books in 2010–maybe in time for Comicon next May. As Lou says, these stories not parodies or pastiches, but prose takes on heroes and villains, by science fiction writers, comics writers, and writers who do both forms. Not only am I thrilled to have a story in the book, I’m thrilled I get to read it.
Some days, it’s good to be fanboy.
The TOC:
Introduction: The Golden Age by Lou Anders
“Cleansed and Set in Gold” by Matthew Sturges
“Where their Worm Dieth Not” by James Maxey
“Secret Identity” by Paul Cornell
“The Non-Event” by Mike Carey
“Avatar” by Mike Baron
“Message from the Bubblegum Factory” by Daryl Gregory
“Thug” by Gail Simone
“Vacuum Lad” by Stephen Baxter
“A Knight of Ghosts and Shadows” by Chris Roberson
“Head Cases” by Peter David & Kathleen David
“Downfall” by Joseph Mallozzi
“By My Works You Shall Know Me” by Mark Chadbourn
“Call Her Savage” by Marjorie M. Liu
“Tonight we fly” by Ian McDonald
“A to Z in the Ultimate Big Company Superhero Universe (Villains Too)” by Bill Willingham
Daryl Gregory 
So is “Message from the Bubblegum Factory” a story you’ve already written and have been trying to get published or is it something you are are being “commissioned” to write just for this anthology?
Paul
It was one that was commissioned for this anthology. It gives one a great feeling of confidence to embark on a story that is already sold — well, sold as long as I don’t mess up.