Friday Cat Bloggin, Midway Edition

I believe Kelly is out of town, so I'll be stepping in for the usual cat blogging.


Mz. Peep sez: "What the frak?"


Mz. Ball sez: "What the frak?"


Kittez sez: "OMG, there's a baby in teh condo!"

LEGO Silliness

If you ever really wondered how stay-at-home authors spend their time -- This is what *my* family does on the weekends:

Author Interview–David J. Williams

More from my SFNovelists peeps:

A tale of 22nd century espionage, David J. Williams’ MIRRORED HEAVENS has been described by Stephen Baxter as “Tom Clancy interfacing Bruce Sterling,” and is in bookstores now.

Tell us a little about MIRRORED HEAVENS.

My agent sold it as “John LeCarre on SF crack”; I’ve never managed to get my hands on any such drug, but I suspect if one took it one would see visions of spaceplane hijacks and maglev train chases while various spies, handlers, and agents ran desperate missions and double-crossed/triple-crossed each other.

Who are your antagonists?

The mysterious terrorist group Autumn Rain. They blow up the world’s space elevator about ten minutes into the book, and vow that further strikes are imminent. It becomes evident pretty quickly that their real goal is to infiltrate the U.S. government, replace the president, and give orders in his name: i.e., they’re takeover artists. Someone's gotta stop them, and that leads us to…

Who are your protagonists?

It’s complicated:

• Claire Haskell, the data-thief who gets reunited with wet-ops specialist Jason Marlowe, her first love—even as both of them start to suspect that their spymasters are manipulating their memories for reasons unknown…


• Strom Carson, the operative assigned to hunt down his onetime mentor, Leo Sarmax, a legendary assassin believed to be in league with Autumn Rain and last seen on the Moon, deep in the wastelands of the lunar South Pole mountains.



• Lyle Spencer, the mercenary who escapes from the ultimate prison with the secret of the Rain and a price on his head.

Who’s your biggest inspiration?

That’s easy. Judge Dredd. I grew up on him: not the lame-ass Sylvester Stallone version, but the original, cool-as-hell British comic icon. Dredd took on everybody from aliens to the mafia, dispensing deadpan witticisms while he was doing it. Little did I know, but he was also teaching me how to write SF the whole time…

What are you working on right now?

Well, I’ve been finetuning my website at www.autumnrain2110.com, which features all sorts of cool geopolitical and military data about the world of the early 22nd century. And I’ve turned in the sequel THE BURNING SKIES to Bantam, so now it’s on to the last book of the trilogy. Which is a very weird feeling…

Realms of Fantasy, R.I.P.

Bleah.

http://sfscope.com/2009/01/realms-of-fantasy-closing.html

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

I'm nearly done with the revisions of HONEYMOON OF THE DEAD's first 2/3rds, and looking at yesterday's word count in our race just makes me ill. I probably removed 3,000 words yesterday, and the fact that I ended up in the positive means I really kicked butt.

With nothing to show for it.

Okay, except, hopefully, a better novel.

I don't know if Kelly is having this problem, but I know that sometimes when I write this fast I also write a lot more "fat" into scenes that I should. I rush forward without really thinking things through, thus this whole, messy revision in the middle of the race forward.

Oh You Kid(s)!

I know it's already circulating elsewhere on the newsfeeds and the blogosphere, but I thought it worth mentioning here as well.

Neil Gaiman has won this year's Newbery Medal for children's literature for "The Graveyard Book." (Read the NY Times article here, and Neil's reaction here.)

Not sure if he reads our humble blog or not, but congratulations to Neil for yet another fantastic achievement!

Coffee On Me!

Wyrdsmiths has a tradition that when anyone sells a short story or makes a book deal they have to buy coffee for everyone at the next meeting. It's supposed to help assuage the feelings of jealousy that often accompany the business-side of the life of a professional writer.

So the coffee is on me next time.

As of Friday, my agent sold three-books in a new series! It's a YA (young adult) about a fifteen-year old girl living in Saint Paul who has a vampire prince for a dad and a mom who's a real Witch. The proposals have a lot of the light, humorous tone of a usual Tate Hallaway novel, so I hope they'll be fun and quick to write... especially since the deadline for the first one is October '09.

Yep, that makes THREE deadlines for Tate/Lyda in 2009. I've got HONEYMOON OF THE DEAD due May 1; RESURRECTION CODE due June 1; and now TO DIE FOR (ALMOST!)due October 15.

I'd complain, but we should all have such problems!

LJ Meme

So, I picked this up from michaeldthomas and thought it would fun to answer. I'm not sure I'm up to asking questions at the moment, but here are my responses.


1 - How did you get involved with Renaissance Faires?

It was a girl...it always is, isn't it. My friend Dayna, who had already gotten me involved with SCA said, "Hey let's go try out for the Ren Fest." Being in theater and having a bit of a thing for Dayna. I said, "Sure." She stayed 1 year. I stayed 8 and ended up doing a little bit of circuit riding. We fell out of touch not long after she quit. Life is funny that way.

2 - As a Writers of the Future winner, are you ever bothered when people criticize the contest because of its Scientology connections?

Not at all. I think that as a contest for new writers it's a great thing, and that they do a very good job of keeping the contest separate from the C of S, and that's as it should be. WotF treated me very well but I'm not a big fan of the
C of S.

3 - Do you miss acting?

That's a tough call. Most of the time not at all. But every once in a while I find myself thinking of how much joy there is to be had in a good show. About ten seconds later I generally remember all of the reasons I quit and the nostalgia ends. The joy-to-poison ratio just doesn't work for me.

4 - What's your favorite non-genre book?

Very tough question, and tougher because you didn't specify fiction. Probably "Adventures in the Screen Trade" by Goldman. But ask on a different day and you might get Diamond's "Guns, Germs, and Steel," or McCullough's "First Man in Rome," or Stephenson's "Zodiac."

5 - How prepared are you for the zombie apocalypse?

As ready as I'm going to get. My misspent youth probably prepped me better than most in terms of mad survival skillz, but at the same time, I'm a big fan of civilization. There's nothing like having spent multi-month stretches living in a tent to make you really appreciate light-switches and flush toilets. And I'd probably wither away completely after two weeks away from my laptop at this point.

Friday Cat Blogging on Friday

What other cat?



If only I had thumbs I could get into the treat drawer.



Well you brig me sub chken soub, please.



I always wanted to be a turtle!

Friday Cat Post (on Thursday), the Midway Edition

Here's Ms. All Ball discovering she has a TAIL, giving it a good pouncing on, and then retiring as though all of it is so very ho-hum. Such a kitty!

Why Kelly Will Win

My writing process is FAR too messy.

I was driving home from taking my kitty, Ms. All Ball, to the vet this morning and I had one of those epiphanies I always seem to get right about two-thirds of the way through a novel. This is what it was:

I don't know where I'm going.

Oh, you say, really, Tate (Lyda)? Again?

Yes, again.

Look, I just have to surrender to this moment because it seems to be part of my process. I always seem to end up here, no matter how much prep I do before I write a novel (and, despite appearances, I do do SOME. I at least have a completed proposal, which is supposed to be a rough outline of the plot.) My biggest "problem" is that I'm a very organic writer. Things just sort of come out in the process of writing, and, unlike Kelly (or at least what I understand of his process -- he can, no doubt, correct me if I've mischaracterized him), I don't "fire" characters that stop behaving the way I'd planned. I just... run with it, and that can lead all sorts of weird and unexpected places that then fundamentally change the course of the novel.

And that's kind of where I find myself today.

In fact, my writing process is a lot like this post. It's rambling. It's messy, and full of parenthetical phrases (subplots), and in great need of revising.

So my plan for the day is to do some re-reading. I'm going to read what I said I was going to do in my proposal and compare it to what happened so far in my novel. Then I might have to do a little thinking about how to adjust the two so that a novel I can live with comes out at the end.

My word count may be in the negative numbers tomorrow.

Ode to Joy.

Inauguration

I'm unilaterally suspending my half of the writing competition for the day in favor of watching history unfold. I can always write 2000 words tomorrow, but Obama will only take the oath of office for the first time once.

Author Interview—David B. Coe

So another friend of mine from SFNovelists, the smart and thoughtful David B. Coe has a new book out in two days. I'm going to post about it today so that it doesn't get eaten by inauguration news. Take it away, David:

David B. Coe is the Crawford Award-winning author of ten fantasy novels and several short stories. A refugee from academia, David has a Ph.D. in history and has taught at the university level. In a life prior to that prior life, he was a political consultant. The Horsemen's Gambit is the second book in his Blood of the Southlands trilogy. It is to be published on January 20, 2009, which is good because there's nothing else of importance happening that day to draw attention away from the book's release....

Q) Can you tell us a bit about The Horsemen's Gambit and the Blood of the Southlands series?

DBC) Blood of the Southlands begins with The Sorcerers' Plague as a sort of medieval medical thriller. An old woman named Lici has set out to avenge a injury done her decades before by conjuring a plague. Before long though, the plague spirals far beyond her control, and in The Horsemen's Gambit, the damage done by the plague to the Qirsi, the sorcerers of the Southlands, convinces their enemies, the Eandi, to attack Qirsi lands in the hopes of winning back territory lost during the Blood Wars. Along the way there's political intrigue, some romance, and a web of personal interactions tinged with all this ethnic baggage.

Those are the basic plot points. In a larger sense this series, like my five-book Winds of the Forelands sequence [Rules of Ascension, Seeds of Betrayal, Bonds of Vengeance, Shapers of Darkness, Weavers of War], which is set in the same world, deals with issues of race, ethnic identity, and prejudice. My characters, particularly those who seek to control the chaos unleashed by Lici's curse, are constantly fighting against the destructive power of ancient hatreds. Ultimately this newest book -- like those that came before it and the one that remains -- is about overcoming history and transcending bigotry.

Q) Race, prejudice, ethnic identity -- That all sounds pretty familiar. Is Blood of the Southlands set in a created world or our own?

DBC) It's definitely a created world, but as with all my work, Blood of the Southlands touches on issues of great importance in what we call, for lack of a better term, the "real" world. My LonTobyn series [Children of Amarid, The Outlanders, Eagle-Sage] touched on ecological themes. Winds of the Forelands and Blood of the Southlands deal with race. I have another project that I'm working on that focuses on drug addiction. I write books that I hope will entertain. I strive to make them fun -- as I said, there's lots of action and intrigue, romance and even humor. But they also deal with serious issues that resonate with social concerns in our own lives. I do this because I find it more interesting to write books that grapple with big questions. And if some of my readers come away from the books thinking about race or ecology or substance issues in a new way, all the better.

Q) What is it about fantasy that attracts you?

DBC) Well, in part I'm drawn to fantasy precisely because I can create worlds that then serve as mirrors for our own world. Admittedly, these are imperfect mirrors, but they're mirrors nevertheless. I can make the Forelands/Southlands universe and create racial tensions that are complex and compelling, and yet different enough from the racial problems in our own world that no one will be offended by the books. Speculative fiction offers us a unique opportunity to look at ourselves through a lens that both distorts and magnifies. The distortions allow us to distance ourselves and perhaps examine an emotionally fraught issue without so much emotional heat. The magnification can make us see things that we might otherwise miss.

I'm also drawn to fantasy, as well as science fiction, and dark fantasy, and horror, and all the other subgenres in our field, for the simple reason that they're so much fun to read. I love magic. As a friend of mine wrote elsewhere just the other day, I believe in magic on some level. And being able to write magic into the lives of my characters, giving them the ability to shape their world in ways that I can only dream of doing myself, is enormously entertaining.

Q) Why did you decide to make Besh, one of the protagonists of Blood of the Southlands, an old man?

DBC) Well, let me start by saying that I'm not certain I "make" any of my characters, any more than I'm certain that I control their actions. My characters present themselves to me. They clamor for my attention, and when I finally turn my mind's eye on any one of them, he or she tells me his or her story. When I first started conceiving of the Blood of the Southlands trilogy, Besh was the first character I met. I didn't know at the time why it was important that he tell so much of the story, but I trusted him and also my instincts as a writer, which told me that he was crucial to the entire series. I think I was drawn to him, at least in part, because he was so different from other protagonists I'd written and other heroes I'd encountered as a reader. Yes, he's old. He's also got that stubborn sense of "I know myself, and I know the world, and by God you're going to listen to me," that we sometimes find in our elderly friends. He's not particularly strong physically, and he wields little influence or political power. But he's clever and wise and uncommonly brave. He has a profound moral sense and is intensely loyal to his people and his family. Over the course of writing the three books of the Southlands series he became just about my favorite of all the characters I've ever written.

Q) You've been a historian, you've worked in politics -- it seems you came to writing relatively late in life. How did it happen?

DBC) I suppose I did come to it a bit late, but the irony is that I've wanted to be a writer since I was a kid. I wrote and illustrated my first books in first and second grade -- and given the quality of my illustrations, it's a good thing I can write. I went to college with every intention of majoring in creative writing, but got sidetracked by concerns with practical considerations, like making a living. I tried political consulting, but found it disillusioning. So I went to grad school, got my degree in history, and applied for a bunch of teaching positions. But the summer after I completed my degree I found myself with lots of free time on my hands. My grad work was done, but the academic jobs hadn't been listed yet. And my wife said to me, "You know, since the day we met you've been talking about writing a book. You have some time now. Why don't you spend the summer writing?"

I did, and by the end of the summer I had several short stories written (none of them has ever seen the light of day, and none of them ever will) as well as the first five chapters of what would eventually be Children of Amarid, my first novel. A friend of mine agreed to act as my agent and he shopped the book around while I applied for teaching jobs. I got the perfect academic job offer -- teaching environmental history in Colorado -- and my first nibble from Tor Books within 24 hours of each other. I chose writing and have never looked back.

Q) Aside from writing, what do you do for fun?

DBC) Well, I'm a husband and a dad, which are the two things that mean the most to me. My daughters are 13 and 9, and a lot of my non-work time is taken up with stuff I do for or with them. I've been a Soccer Dad, a Swim Dad, a Dance Dad, a Music Dad, and a Theater Dad. And because my wife is a full-time college professor, I do most of the grocery shopping, a fair amount of laundry and house stuff, etc. IN addition, I' active in my community -- I run a local food cooperative, I'm on the parents' council of my older daughter's school, and I'm on the town council here in our little village. But when I'm not doing any of that I have quite a few outside interests. I like to hike and birdwatch. I'm a dedicated amateur photographer and actually had my first one-man exhibit in 2008. Nature and landscape photography mostly. I play guitar and sing -- folk, rock, a bit of bluegrass. I listen to music all the time. I look at butterflies and run a local butterfly census here in my home town. I'm a bit of a political junkie, and I'm confident that my professional output will be greater in 2009 than it was last year, simply because I won't be checking political web sites every 3 minutes.

Q) What's a typical day like for you?

DBC) A typical day? I'm not sure there's any such thing -- did I mention that I'm the father of a teenager? My routine looks something like this: We're up at 6:30 am. I make lunch for my younger daughter and do what I can to get the girls moving. After my wife and I get the girls to their schools, I go to the gym for an hour or so. Exercise is crucial for me; without my morning workout I'm not sure I could function. I get back, have a light breakfast, check my email, and begin the day's writing. I shoot for 6-8 manuscript pages a day, which translates to about 1500-2000 words. I'm not a particularly fast writer, but if I can write 35 to 40 pages a week, that's a book every 6 months or so, which isn't too bad a pace. I might have to pick up one of the girls from school or take them to dance or sports practice, but I can usually get back to work for a while longer. I knock off around 5:00 or 5:30 and the rest of the evening is family time. I don't work on weekends, and I don't work many nights. I work at home, so it would be very easy to be sucked into working all the time. To prevent this, I set strict boundaries. I have work time and family time. I'd probably get more written if I was less strict about this, but that's a choice I'm comfortable making.

Q) What are you working on now?

DBC) The third and final Blood of the Southlands book is finished and handed in to my editor (it's scheduled for release in January 2010). I'll have revisions to do eventually, but for now I'm working on a new project that is completely separate from anything I've done before. It's alternate world fantasy set in a place that's roughly analogous to early Renaissance Europe. There's a magical element and each book is a stand alone mystery with recurring characters. I don't generally like to talk too much about works in progress until I'm further along than I am with this series. Suffice it to say that I'm very excited about this one. I hope to see the first book in print sometime in 2010.

David B. Coe's personal website can be found at www.davidbcoe.com. He blogs with some regularity on both LiveJournal and WordPress, and he is part of the MagicalWords.Net writing blog with fellow fantasy authors Faith Hunter, Misty Massey, and C.E. Murphy.

The Horsemen's Gambit, book II of his Blood of the Southlands trilogy, can be purchased through Amazon.com. (Release date: January 20, 2009)

Saturday Morning Funnies...

I haven't done this in a long time, but I thought I'd go back to posting bits of the truly awful (hopefully so awful it's funny) stuff I wrote before I was published. Here's an excerpt from a beaut I called (cleverly) "Niles to Go." Try not to laugh yourselves sick....

Donna Clark knew she was dead. She knew the instant the wheels slid on the slick pavement and the car swerved into the oncoming traffic. The thundering crash was deafening, but Donna felt little pain. It all happened so quickly. There was sudden impact of the steering wheel, then everything was blackness.

When her vision cleared, she found herself standing at the entrance of a tunnel. The ceiling was low and the walls felt damp. It was dark and there was a close, musty smell in the air. Donna crinkled her nose at the odor. This wasn't what she had expected. But ahead, she could see a light. She smiled. Just as she had read in that book Life After Death, she thought, hiking up her torn skirt, there it wasthe light at the end.

With one hand on the cool stone wall, Donna made her way up the sloping tunnel. Without hesitation, she stepped into the light. She found herself standing under a hot sun. Sand stung her face, as a strong wind attempted to untangle the tight braid that held her hair away from her round face. Heat made sweat prickle under her armpits. Looking out across the open desert, she saw a figure approaching.

Putting up a hand to shield her eyes from the sun, she watched him glide easily across the sand. His skin was a black as night. That surprised her. All the pictures Donna had ever seen of angels showed them as white and very, very blond. Shaking her head, she tried to banish the racist thought that crept into her mind. It wouldn't do her any good to be thinking like that here of all places, she reminded herself.

Still, he wasn't dressed like an angel, either. The only clothing he wore, it seemed to Donna, was a kind of ornately wrapped towel around his waist. Around his neck was a heavy golden necklace that reminded Donna of something she had seen before but couldn't place.

As he drew nearer, she began to realize there was something very strange about his head. It was thin and too long. Pausing, he turned his head to the side, as if sniffing the wind. Donna gasped at the sight. He had the head of a thin dog. The man that approached wasn't human at all, but rather something part animal.

Donna started to panic. Hell, she thought, I must be in hell. She had to get away. Maybe she could still go back and live a better life. Scrambling back towards the tunnel, Donna jumped when felt a strong hand grip her shoulder.

Turning around, Donna screamed, "No, no, let me go back. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to think anything bad about the color of your skin. Please give me another chance!!"

"I am Anubis," the dog headed man said, cocking his head at her.

Friday Cat Blogging--25 Below Edition

Hey look, a cat on a radiator:



And another one:



I'm sensing a theme here:



And a cat in a fleece basket on a radiator:



Meg, of course, has to be different. Cat in a down comforter:

Uh... Thanks?

Google Alerts found this gem for me: Review: Tall, Dark & Dead and Dead Sexy.

A line at the end made me laugh out loud. Though this reviewer is British*, it could have been written by a Minnesotan: "you could certainly do worse [than read these books]."

To which I reply: Uh... wow. I feel extra warm and fuzzy now. Although to be fair, the review, up to that point, is really quite nice. And, in context, the whole bit about doing worse is really quite positive. Still...I feel like calling my publicist and yelling, "Stop the presses! I need that tag line on the cover my next book: 'Could do worse!'"
-----
*By "British", I meant to say Australian. Oops!

All About the Markets

Another one from BU I thought I should pass on to y'all:

Comet Press is current taking submissions for an extreme horror anthology to be published in mid-2009. Deadline is February 28, 2009. We are also taking artwork submissions, and a title contest!

Guidelines are here.

Smart Things--Heaps

A lot of people are saying smart things about writing and the book biz.

Kaigou on the bookstore end of the biz.

Diana Peterfreund on writing synopses.

Elizabeth Bear on writing people who are not just like you.

Agent Kristin on cover consultation and, agent workload and picking up new authors. Plus more follow up on that query.

Justine Larbalestier on everything: Getting published. On characterization with an assist from Sarah Monette. On getting started. There is no wrong way to write a novel. On one character in search of a story. On insertion of backstory. On somebody else just published my WIP.

Finally, this has nothing to with writing, but it's way cool: Using ecoli to make a better fuel.

A Fun, New Market (from BU)

This from Broad Universe. It pays, but not a lot. I thought mostly people might be interested to check in once they start running the winning articles of their "Write What You Know" columns... it might make for a good writing resource:

In November, my husband and I started a monthly Science Fiction and Fantasy magazine.

At Crossed Genres Magazine, we're all about genre-blending, and we are currently accepting submissions for the Science Fiction/Fantasy and CRIME issue. The submissions guidelines and compensation for fiction, non-fiction,and art are slightly different, so please read the submissions page carefully. (http://crossedgenres.com/submissions.htm)

We are also having a contest this month; The Write What You Know Contest. From the Website: "Share with us the subject that you know most intimately and meticulously. Present your knowledge in a way that a reader could use it to portray the subject accurately in a tale. Who knows? Maybe your article will inspire someone to write a brilliant story! "The best three articles will be selected and published (one at a time)in the next three issues of Crossed Genres (Issues 4, 5 & 6, March, April & May 2009). The writers will receive our standard compensation($10 flat rate plus 25% discount on purchases of the issue, 2 copies max) PLUS an ad space on the site FREE for one (1) month!" (http://crossedgenres.com/contest01.htm) Visit Crossed Genres Magazine at http://crossedgenres.com/

Thank you!
--K.T. Holt

If you fall off the wagon, get up and get walking--the trip's not getting any shorter while you lay there on the ground.

Hi. My name is Sean M. Murphy, and I have a problem.

I have a singular example of a common ailment among writers, namely, that we each have periods of time during the year that are always extremely busy, during which writing becomes very difficult if not nearly impossible. Whether it be holidays, kids out of school, the annual migration of the trumpeter swans and the ensuing twenty-four-hour-a-day bird-watching that must accompany it, or (name your illness here), life does happen somewhat cyclically, and I am no exception to that.

This past year, as we approached one of my down times--the Jewish High Holidays, during which I become nearly catatonic as I manage a synagogue, and everyone in the world suddenly needs something done right now ohmygod--I was aware that I had a secondary busy period following hard behind the first. The Coen Brothers had agreed to shoot scenes for their next movie at my synagogue, and while yes, that is very cool, it was also extremely busy, and happening during the three weeks immediately following the holidays.

Which meant twelve weeks in a row of more-or-less non-stop work, culminating in several 70-90 hour work weeks.

Not to blow right past that, but once it was over, my brain was fried. I needed almost a month of down time before I even started to feel like I could do anything other than sleep and lounge on the couch. But--and here's the rub--after a while, I began to suspect that I no longer needed to be resting, but that I simply was being lazy. The longer it went on, the more that realization became a certainty. Not that I was doing anything about it. I was going to writers' group, hanging out with friends, watching TV, sleeping in... doing dishes... er, dusting all the book shelves for the second time that week... ummmm... hmm.... ooo, straightening the pictures on the wall! Defragmenting the hard drive! WOOT!

And definitely not writing.

A couple of weeks ago, this got the the point of perturbing. I became actively aware that I was purposefully avoiding any potential writing time, and I realized that I had developed a bad case of inertia. So I decided to kick my own ass. I banished myself from the interwebs, from hanging out with friends, from attending writers' group--basically all the fun things that I associate with being a writer, other than the joy of story. Until I got going again and finished a short story that had been "in process" since July, I simply wasn't going to be allowed to do the reward things that come with being a writer.

That, and the fact that I'm a highly social person, was a definite impetus to action. Last week I started getting up at 5:00 am again, writing for a couple of hours in the morning before heading ot work. (I cannot express how much I like this arrangement. Not only do I get coffee and a sense of accomplishment early in the day, but it puts the dream-state energy straight into creative avenues, rather than wasting it at work. Plus, I'm fully awake by the time I get to the day job, which helps me perform more acutely.) In two days flat (that is, three hours and ten minutes of writing time) I had knocked out 2,500 new words and edited another 500, giving me a short story of just over 8,000 words.

And the right to get back into my social network.

I'm not sure if this technique would work for any of you out there. I think any of us would have to analyze what drives us, what our pleasures in life are, but I figured if I could identify my own carrots, I could dangle them in front of myself. And now my inertia has more of the momentum, a state I intend to maintain. A writer in motion, etc...

Keeping it Simple, Stupid

Okay, to keep the "race" simple, I did some very not-so elegant hmtling over to the right. If one of the other Wyrdos wants to improve on my KISS method, please do.

Wordcount Race

I believe that Lyda needs to lay down about 59,000 words to hit her mark by the end of February. I need 66,000. That seems pretty fair all things considered.

If someone who does word count bars wants to point out a good one for blogger, then I will probably set side by side bars up on the front page. Otherwise it will have to be occasional updates as I intend to write, not mess around with finding bit of code that will show that really, I'm writing. In the meantime, I've got words to put on the page. That being the case, don't expect much in the way of blogging from me. Words come first, critical editing tasks second (I've got two shorts and a novel I need to read for folks), every other task falls somewhere after that.

BTW, if I can manage this it will mean a beta (near finished) draft of a novel in 3 1/2 months with the holidays chewing a big chunk out of the middle of that window. Oh, and I'll almost certainly lose a couple of days in there to galleys.

TTFN

Friday Cat Blogging

Oh, hey, take my good side.



Don't you wish you were as pretty as me?



Those are just big bones, buddy!



Do you think the dog will get out of that pit?



I really love you guys!



Plus bonus pic from a typical Wyrdsmiths' critique session:

The Gauntlet Has Been Dropped!

In a caffeine induced haze last night, I perhaps somewhat foolishly challenged Kelly to a duel of words. Since we're both racing to try to finish a novel by the end of February, I said, "Ha! Do you want to engage in a bit of friendly competition??"

We haven't yet talked details in the sober light of morning, but as it happens we're both still game. The competition will start on Monday, January 12. As that annoying advertisement said a long time ago: Watch This Space!

More Smart Things + Follow Up

First a couple of follow up posts on Agent Kristin's query post. The first, wherein the author give her take on the exact same query. The http://pubrants.blogspot.com/2009/01/editor-letter-for-proof-by-seduction.html, wherein Agent Kristin shows you what she does after taking on the book in terms of her own letter to the editors. Together these make for a great dissection of the whole query process.

Jay Lake saying smart things about the issue of cultural appropriation and speculative fiction--much of interest in the comments as well.

J. Steven York on vanity publishing and how even when it's a success it's generally a lot more work than the traditional route for a lot less reward. A blog in three part 1, 2, 3.

Polish Version of Many Bloody Returns

So Tate, who is busy writing right now, asked me to post this on her behalf. It is the Polish version of the anthology she appeared in, MANY BLOODY RETURNS:



Actually, the whole web site of the Polish publisher for MANY BLOODY RETURNS is kind of trippy, if you want to check it out: Fabryka Slow

Great Heaps of Smart Things

Lots of smart things this week. Justine Larbalestier alone has three of them. She's doing a series of posts on the craft of writing this month so it's worth your while to just stop by periodically. I don't agree with everything she says, but one of the great charms of writing is that there are as many right ways to do it as there are successful writer. Here she is on choosing the right POV, generating ideas and getting past the sticky places. David Coe is also talking about POV: multiple vs. singular. Agent Kristin is talking about successful queries with a real live example. And archivist extraordinaire Lynne Thomas is saying really important things about not letting your livejournal posts go "fap" should the possible implosion of lj actually happen.

Okay, Mr. Wet Blanket, Explain this One...

Once, I might concede is a coincidence, but twice...?

So there I was, there I was... at the keyboard, writing a scene in HONEYMOON OF THE DEAD in which Sebastian is explaining to Garnet that he's got this stalker who is convinced he's a member of the Illuminati. I'd written the scene in because I personally think the Illuminati Watchers are a bit kooky and tend to think anyone rich (which Sebastian, in my universe, is rather) is part of an attempt to establish a new world order and, you know, world domination.

But, it occurs to me that my editor will probably want me to put in a brief explanation of what the Illuminati are supposed to be, so I go to Wikipedia, and what do I find?

The historical Illuminati started where?

That's right: Bavaria. Which, if you didn't know (I certainly didn't), at several points in its history mingled with... that's right: AUSTRIA.

Sorry, my friend. This is just magic, plain and simple.

Author Interview—Jim Hines

Last year, Jim C. Hines finished his humorous goblin trilogy with GOBLIN WAR, which made the Locus Bestseller list the month it came out. January 6 marks the release of THE STEPSISTER SCHEME, the first in a new series of butt-kicking princess tales. This one has earned advance praise from the likes of Esther Friesner and Jane Yolen. Jim is currently in full book-release freak-out mode, but took some time to answer a few questions about the new series.

Q) Tell us a little about THE STEPSISTER SCHEME.

A) I think just about every author does a fairy tale retelling at some point. The thing about fairy tales and so many of the retellings is that our heroines often end up being symbols rather than fully developed characters. I wanted to make my three princesses real people, with strengths and flaws and depth and personality. I've described the book as Charlie's Angels crossed with fairy tale princesses, but more than that, it's a story of three women working together to save a prince and fight evil and generally kick some ass. Also, it's got the best use of silverware in hand-to-hand combat of any book I've ever seen.

Q) Can you introduce us to these characters?

A) Danielle Whiteshore (Cinderella) is our viewpoint character. She's a little overwhelmed by all the changes in her life since she married Prince Armand. She's in heaven with a loving husband and a family who doesn't treat her like a slave ... even if the palace staff look at her a little funny for chatting with the doves and the rats. Talia (Sleeping Beauty) and Snow (White) both serve Queen Beatrice after fleeing their respective homelands. Snow is a bit of a flirt as well as a bookworm. She inherited her mother's gift for magic, as well as the magic mirror, making her quite the powerful magician. Talia is the fighter of the group, both physically and emotionally. Her fairy gifts of grace and skill turn her into one of the deadliest warriors in the kingdom.

Q) What sort of research did you do to write this book?

A) Mostly I read a lot of fairy tales. There are so many versions of the different stories, which allowed me to pick and choose elements from each when building my characters and their backstories. Then there were all the details: castle blueprints, wardrobes, medieval glassmaking, how far a horse can travel in a day, fairy myths, weapons, 16th century houses, hazel trees, and everything else you don't think of until you're midway through a scene and realize you have absolutely no idea how to describe what your characters are seeing.

Q) Are there any interesting scenes or ideas that didn't make it into the final book?

A) Snow White wears a choker of gold wire and small glass mirrors. In her original incarnation, Snow was blind and used those mirrors as her eyes. To be totally honest, I don't remember exactly why I changed that, except that it just didn't feel right for her character. I posted a deleted scene on my web site that shows Snow as she was in that first draft.

Q) What's next for your princesses?

A) I turned in the revisions for book two, THE MERMAID'S MADNESS, a month or so back. If you read the Hans Christian Anderson story "The Little Mermaid," the mermaid's prince chooses another, and she's faced with a choice: either allow the sea witch's spell to kill her, or take her prince's life to save her own. In the story, the mermaid oh-so-nobly gives up her life for her prince. My version makes a different choice. I'm currently working on the third book in the series, RED HOOD'S REVENGE.

Q) What do you really think about "happily ever after"?

A) In real life, your story doesn't end until you're dead. Even then, your actions and your life continue to influence other people's stories. The idea that these three women could go through what they did, with murderous mothers (and why is it always the mothers?) and curses and poisons and betrayals, but then they have a good night at the ball and suddenly everything is happy from then on? That's the real fairy tale.

Q) Who is your favorite author?

A) The answer changes from day to day, depending on my mood and what I've been reading. Today, I think I'm going to say ... Snoopy. His prose isn't always the greatest, but as an author, he's quite the inspirational little beagle. He never lets rejection slow him down, and he knows the most important thing is to drag that typewriter onto the doghouse and just keep writing.

Q) Any closing thoughts?

A) Thanks to everyone who read this far! The most important thing with my writing has always been to try to tell a good story. I hope folks will take a look at the preview, or at the very least, check out the cover art Scott Fischer did for the book. I absolutely love the image he came up with. I have a larger copy here. Scott actually used my daughter as a model for Talia, the princess on the right. Best. Cover. Ever!

---

Read the first chapter of THE STEPSISTER SCHEME

Jim's blog.

Jim's home page.

Purchase link.

Monday Open WIP - New Year's Edition

Welcome to the first Monday of 2009. For today's WIP post, I'd ask not only what are you working on, but what writing goal or milestone do you wish to accomplish in this brand-spanking new year?

For myself, I am celebrating the kids being back in school by doing some tweaks to the ending of one book and more plot work on the most current WIP. And, since the kids are gone, I should also try to, you know, get some of the household things that have been ignored for the last two weeks done as well.

As for this year's longer-term writing goals, I want: to have one book represented and out to the publishers (working on that); the current WIP done and in polish mode; and finally, finally, *finally* put together a course on practical sword-work for writers and teach it at least one at a Con.

So, what are you all trying to accomplish, both now and over the next 360 days?

Author Interview—Joshua Palmatier

My friend Joshua Palmatier has a paperback release tomorrow for the third book in his Throne of Amenkor series. In preparation for that, here's an interview on the subject:

1) What was your inspiration for writing The Vacant Throne?

Well, The Vacant Throne is the sequel to The Skewed Throne and The Cracked Throne, so part of the inspiration was to continue the story already begun. But the main idea behind The Vacant Throne—that there’s a second magical throne out there, one that’s twin to the Skewed Throne seen in the first two books—actually came out of discussions between me and my editor while we were discussing the revisions to the first book. I’d already written about the existence of a second throne at the end of the first book, and my editor began asking me about particulars regarding that throne: Where is it? What is it for? How does it relate to the Skewed Throne? She got my mind working on the back story of the second throne, and that back story ended up giving me the setup for the plot behind The Vacant Throne.

2) Who are your favorite authors and books now and when you were growing up?

My favority authors while growing up were Andre Norton (who was my introduction to fantasy and science fiction), Terry Brooks, and Katherine Kurtz. I didn’t have a particular book from either of them that I’d rate as a favorite. I loved Brooks’ “Elfstones of Shannara” and the Camber books by Kurtz. Currently, I’d say my favorite authors are Tad Williams, Guy Gavriel Kay, and Stephen King.

3) What is it about fantasy/science fiction that attracts you?

I think it’s the boundlessness of it all. In fantasy and science fiction, you can do anything. There are no limits. You can push and push the bounds of believability, and then you can push it some more. Of course, you have to structure the fantasy or science fiction so that the reader is willing to push along with you or you won’t have any readers, but that’s part of the challenge. I think that an excellent writer can craft any story, no matter how unbelievable, so that the majority of readers WILL take that trip with them, and I think that most writers in SF and F are trying to become such an excellent writer.

4) Why did you decide to make Varis an assassin?

The initial vision for The Skewed Throne had Varis on a boat in the harbor of the city of Amenkor, a common person, someone living the ordinary life, and suddenly this mysterious White Fire—obviously magical in nature—sweeps out of the west and touches her. However, when I sat down to write the book, I’d started thinking about Varis, about her situation and where she came from, and realized that she needed to be in more dire straits if I was going to make her story believable. At that point, she became someone trapped in the slums of Amenkor—like many others in the city—and fighting to survive, fighting to find a way out. Her desperation to escape her situation is what drives her to become an assassin when given the chance, and it’s what pushes her to do things that she wouldn’t normally do, perhaps. Her being an assassin was also a way to take a common person in the society and get them involved in the world events—the politics and maneuverings—that are going on at the same time. Also, I’ve always wanted to write about an assassin; one that actually kills people during the course of the book. *grin*

5) What (besides writing) do you do for fun?

Besides writing and reading, I also teach a spinning class at my local gym and take other spinning classes as a way to keep fit and get some exercise (something writers don’t have a tendency to do as part of their job). I also collect crackle glass and go to numerous flea markets and antique shows looking for cool and interesting pieces, mostly related to the 1950s and the Art Deco era. And for real fun, I try to get friends together to play board games such as Ticket to Ride, Settlers of Catan, and Alhambra. Puzzles can also be fun.

6) What sort of research did you do to write this book?/What kind of
preparation do you do when you are writing?

I generally don’t do any research ahead of time for my novels . . . but that’s because I don’t know what I need to research yet. The way I write novel s is more or less by the seat of my pants. When I start, I have a vague idea of what I think the book is going to be about. This usually amounts to one or two scenes scattered throughout the book, including something near the end and a scene or two in between. (I always have the initial scene in mind.) Then I start writing. I keep notes along the way, and write down things I need to research as I go. Sometimes, if I hit something that’s important to the plot, I’ll pause in the writing and do research on that at the time, but most of the time I save the research until the book is finished and I’m getting ready to do the revisions. So the amount of research varies with each book, and depends on where the book decides to take itself. In The Vacant Throne, most of my research involved ships and in particular, how ships fought while at sea.

7) Varis loves her knife. Is that your favorite thing too?

Um . . . no. For Varis, having her knife close at hand is a security issue. She feels safer when touching the knife, knowing that with it handy she can protect herself. It comes from living in the slums of the city and knowing that at any moment someone or something bad could happen. I (thankfully) don’t live in that kind of world and so I don’t feel the need to have a knife handy. *grin*

8) If you were a character in The Vacant Throne and had the option of touching one of the thrones (and thus gaining access to its power), would you do it?

I don’t think so. Obviously it would depend on the need for that power at the moment. If there is no dire need, then why would I want to accept the power along with all of its consequences? For example, if you touch one of the thrones, then you’re tied to the throne, which means that you can never leave the city (or at least never pass outside the influence of the throne itself). That’s a fairly strong restriction, and I don’t think I could handle being tied to one place like that. There are other consequences of touching the throne that I couldn’t live it as well. So, assuming no dire need, I think I’d pass on having access to all of its power.

9) What are you writing now?

I’ve handed in the first book—called Well of Sorrows—that’s the start of a new trilogy set in the same world as the Throne of Amenkor books, but at a different time period and involving different characters. The new series will eventually connect up with Varis’ storyline, although how it will connect up won’t be obvious in the first book. So I’ve got the two sequels to that new series that I’m working on. I’ve also started the first book in another fantasy trilogy that’s not associated to the Throne of Amenkor books and hope to have the proposal for that finished (and hopefully sold) in 2009.

10) Did you always want to write? Or did you stumble into it? How did you get where you are now?

I’ve wanted to be a writer since the eighth grade, when an English teacher wrote on a short story that the story was good and I should continue writing. That was the first moment that I realized that all of those books I’d been reading were actually written by someone. And that someone could be me! From that point on, I started working on short stories and eventually started a novel. The first draft of that novel was HORRIBLE, but it taught me how to be a writer and I hope that it will eventually see print (although a completely revised version of course). As to how I got to where I am now . . . lots of hard work, numerous drafts, lots of rejection, and a metric ton of persistence.

11) What does a typical writing day look like for you? How long do you write, that sort of thing?

My writing days fall into two categories: days when I have to work (I teach mathematics at a local college), and days when I don’t. On Days when I teach, I usually only get an hour or two maximum to work on writing, if I get any time at all. Basically, I sit down and write for that hour, usually brand new material, without looking at the old material, because my time is limited. On days when I don’t have to teach, I start writing in the morning and reread the old material, making minor changes/revisions, and then get on with new stuff. I break for lunch, and write after lunch until I have to head to the gym. On these days, I get in about six hours of writing. If I have errands to run or other writerly activities (such as answering interview questions, emails, talking to my agent, talking to my editor, etc) then I try to get at least four hours of writing in.

12) Where do you write?

I write on my laptop at a desk with a notebook to one side for writing down any plot thoughts that strike me, as well as to keep track of names of characters, places, things, etc. I also have a stack of CDs that are “writer friendly,” meaning I can play them without the music interrupting the writing flow. Other than that and a glass of water, there’s not much else in my writer space.

13) What is easiest/hardest for you as a writer?

The hardest part of writing is just getting myself to sit down and write, damn it! *grin* Seriously. Once I’m writing, the hardest part is to work in the emotions of the characters without those emotions sounding stilted or fake or over the top. I also have to work very hard at the dialogue, since it has to sound real, and yet it can’t actually BE real, since if you listen to most conversations, they’re long and boring with lots of unnecessary wordage. The easiest part of the writing for me is probably the world itself. I can sink myself into the character and their situation enough that the descriptions take little effort, yet still get across the effect of having the reader there, living that particular scene.

14) This isn't your first book; tell us a little bit about what else is out there?

I have three books out and available in stores at the moment, all in both hardcover and paperback. They comprise the Throne of Amenkor series which consists of, in order, The Skewed Throne, The Cracked Throne, and The Vacant Throne. The new novel, Well of Sorrows, which starts a new trilogy, will be released sometime in late 2009, although I don’t have a set release date yet.

15) What is the purpose of fantasy/science fiction, if any?

I think the purpose of fantasy and science fiction is to keep our imaginations alive. In order to keep advancing scientifically, you have to be able to dream and the SF and F field allows writers and readers alike to dream big, to dream the impossible. Some may think this only applies to science fiction, but I think it’s true for fantasy as well, since both ask the reader to open their minds and consider other possibilities, other alternatives, even those that might not initially make sense, and that ability is necessary to keep ourselves from falling into the same rut.

To summarize, GO FORTH AND BUY THE VACANT THRONE! *grin* The entire “Throne of Amenkor” trilogy is now complete in paperback, so go check it out and see if it’s something you might like. It’s full of assassins and thieves, murder and mayhem, cats and dogs living together . . . er, well you get the picture. There’s blue people and magic and insane furniture. But most of all it’s a series of rousing stories in a world full of danger where everyone is simply trying to survive, some at the expense of others. Here are the links for Amazon.com for all three books: The Skewed Throne, The Cracked Throne, The Vacant Throne

For excerpts from Chapter One from each book, and other information about the series, check out Joshua's website and for entertaining tidbits about the author and his life, check out his blog.

Friday Cat Blogging--Last Minute Edition

These were taken as I found them after realizing I hadn't posted yet. Feel free to supply your own captions. BTW, does it say more about them or me that the two I had the hardest trouble finding were in the same room with me?

Ringing (or Faxing) the New Year in Right

I faxed off the corrections for DEAD IF I DO today, and, last night, as I was finishing reading them I had an epiphany about the book I'm working on now, HONEYMOON OF THE DEAD. I realized that, in many ways DEAD IF I DO is about the trauma of GETTING married, and that HONEYMOON OF THE DEAD should be about the trauma of BEING married.

Except, of course, with ghouls and goblins and zombies, as usual.

Happy Bear

WebMage has joined Cybermancy and CodeSpell as an ebook. Those are the Kindle links, but they're also out for most of the other formats. Now, if I could just convince them that WebMage should be released for free in a no DRM version as a promo when MythOS comes out...