Do you ever have those moments where you're suddenly jarred from your quotidian routine and you realize that everything you do—even those rare moments of enjoyment spent in the company of friends or the people you love, those too-infrequent times when you're out of an evening and it seems like the dawn will never come, the increasingly isolated occasions when something you do at your job gives you that satisfying feeling of accomplishment—is essentially insignificant and without worth, that life is suffering and in the end everyone who ever knew you will die and any trace of you or your memory will vanish from the face of the earth? Those 3 A.M. crying-in-the-bathroom with a razor blade held close against your wrist attacks of desperation? Well, you might be able to make some money off of it!

The story site Common Ties has been publishing personal stories on a wide range of topics since October 2006 and will begin posting audio stories in August 2007. Among its themes, Common Ties is seeking stories about suicide. Stories are due by July 10 and selections will be made on July 12.

While suicide tends to be a taboo subject, chances are you know someone who has attempted it, even if you do not know of the attempt. In the US, for example, nearly 3 percent of the population has attempted suicide. In 2004, 32,000 people in the US actually killed themselves, 80 percent of whom were male. Worldwide, one million people commit suicide every year.

We are looking for any stories about suicide, whether they focus on someone pondering it, attempting it, or actually committing it. Stories can be written using your byline or a pen name.

Common Ties will shell out up to $200 for your tale of existential despair, with the possibility of another $150 if they have you record the story. Give it a shot! (The story we mean.) We'd do it ourselves, but something about the idea just makes us want to bring a sharp knife into a warm bath.

Seeking Suicide Stories [Craigslist]

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