Showing posts with label Thoughts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Thoughts. Show all posts
Monday, March 31, 2008
Waiting for the world to change
No letter of suck yet from Polyphony 7. I'll take that as a sign that I've maybe, perhaps, who in all of mighty Arda knows, survived the first round of readings. I could be totally jinxing myself here.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
All work and no play
Having wrapped up my WOTF story, which is ready to go out in the mail this weekend, I'm trying to decide what I want to work on next. I need to be working on something because all work and no play make Paul a dull boy. Hmm, okay wait. That quote doesn't make any sense. I like staying busy. Moving on...
The novel is still on hiatus while I try and wrap my head around why it isn't working for me. I'm toying with the idea to write a short story or two in its world, just to see if it holds up. Or to figure out what the bleep is actually going on in there. But I'm not (mentally) prepared for that move yet.
So I'm currently trying to finish up the civilized cannibals story. After that I need to review my WOTF critique for "The Lady of Jeweled Dreams" and see if I can't whip that piece into a stronger story. John O'Neill from Black Gate did mention he'd like to see more from me and that's the only other piece of high fantasy that I feel is submittable. We'll see what I can do to it when that moment arrives.
Eugie is sending me the latest issue of City Slab to review for The Fix Online. Looking forward to that. I find it so much easier to review print material than to read a large PDF file.
Oh, and I need to do some more work on the comics for Sandra McDonald's The Stars Down Under...
The novel is still on hiatus while I try and wrap my head around why it isn't working for me. I'm toying with the idea to write a short story or two in its world, just to see if it holds up. Or to figure out what the bleep is actually going on in there. But I'm not (mentally) prepared for that move yet.
So I'm currently trying to finish up the civilized cannibals story. After that I need to review my WOTF critique for "The Lady of Jeweled Dreams" and see if I can't whip that piece into a stronger story. John O'Neill from Black Gate did mention he'd like to see more from me and that's the only other piece of high fantasy that I feel is submittable. We'll see what I can do to it when that moment arrives.
Eugie is sending me the latest issue of City Slab to review for The Fix Online. Looking forward to that. I find it so much easier to review print material than to read a large PDF file.
Oh, and I need to do some more work on the comics for Sandra McDonald's The Stars Down Under...
Monday, March 10, 2008
This is a writing question, I promise
If you were to hide porn on your computer, what would you name the folder they'd go under so as not to warrant suspicion?
Again, check the subject line. This is a pertinent plot point here for the work-in-progress.
Again, check the subject line. This is a pertinent plot point here for the work-in-progress.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Tangent thoughts
This has been bothering me lately, but I'm not sure why, and I'm pretty sure no one else will know why either...
What happened to Tangent Online?
After being diligently run by Eugie Foster, Dave Truesdale came back in mid-September 2007 to reclaim his baby. Dismissed from her editing job, Foster strolled over to head up the revitalized Fix Online, where I now review short fiction and the like. There was no pressure to pick one site over the other or anything. Some said they'd stick withTO, others jumped ship and swam for a better fix (get it?), and a handful found it hard to side and chose to work for both review sites when the materials presented themselves. Fair is fair, but I've never dealt with Truesdale personally and only know what I do of him from online flamewars. So I went with the boss that I knew and trusted.
Within a month and some days, FO went live, downright swimmingly. The site has continued to publish reviews on a steady and excellent schedule, especially when one considers that this is a labor of love for reviewers, that their time and effort is spent because they know they have readers and a respectable place to post such thoughts. The site itself uses a Wordpress theme, looks very shiny, and does what it needs to do: get short fiction in people's faces. I'm fairly sure no one thought, "Gee, let's take five months to make the prettiest most elaborate site ever, that way when we post blocks and blocks of text it'll have a really nice border around it and people will love us dearly so!"
What has TO and company been up to since Truesdale's pillaging?
Nothing.
Not a single peep, unless you count an excuse-heavy post about what might or might not be happening in the future. Which is a shame, really. You ever have a friend that can kill a conversation immediately? That's what this feels like.
Truesdale says:
Okay, sure. Not arguing facts. But we're not living in the world that existed fifteen years ago. Things do need to be a bit speedier these days, and yes, there's irony there considering this is the publishing business and all, but come on. So long as the site is functional and not littered with Geocities ads then it is fine to continue posting reviews and such.
So much time has been wasted, so many missed opportunities, and for what? A little bit of "Mine! Mine! Mine!"
Thankfully, there is the Fix Online and even IROSF seems to have resurfaced. Sure, took longer than expected and it isn't completely finished, but they aren't worried about that. They want discussion, they want people's attention, they want to give something back. Not take it away.
What happened to Tangent Online?
After being diligently run by Eugie Foster, Dave Truesdale came back in mid-September 2007 to reclaim his baby. Dismissed from her editing job, Foster strolled over to head up the revitalized Fix Online, where I now review short fiction and the like. There was no pressure to pick one site over the other or anything. Some said they'd stick with
Within a month and some days, FO went live, downright swimmingly. The site has continued to publish reviews on a steady and excellent schedule, especially when one considers that this is a labor of love for reviewers, that their time and effort is spent because they know they have readers and a respectable place to post such thoughts. The site itself uses a Wordpress theme, looks very shiny, and does what it needs to do: get short fiction in people's faces. I'm fairly sure no one thought, "Gee, let's take five months to make the prettiest most elaborate site ever, that way when we post blocks and blocks of text it'll have a really nice border around it and people will love us dearly so!"
What has TO and company been up to since Truesdale's pillaging?
Nothing.
Not a single peep, unless you count an excuse-heavy post about what might or might not be happening in the future. Which is a shame, really. You ever have a friend that can kill a conversation immediately? That's what this feels like.
Truesdale says:
In all humility, Tangent and now TO changed the face of short sf/f reviewing for the *entire* field when it debuted in July/August 1993. That was almost 15 years ago. Even Locus, and then Locus Online changed demonstrably since Tangent came on the scene. Fact.
Okay, sure. Not arguing facts. But we're not living in the world that existed fifteen years ago. Things do need to be a bit speedier these days, and yes, there's irony there considering this is the publishing business and all, but come on. So long as the site is functional and not littered with Geocities ads then it is fine to continue posting reviews and such.
So much time has been wasted, so many missed opportunities, and for what? A little bit of "Mine! Mine! Mine!"
Thankfully, there is the Fix Online and even IROSF seems to have resurfaced. Sure, took longer than expected and it isn't completely finished, but they aren't worried about that. They want discussion, they want people's attention, they want to give something back. Not take it away.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Some changes, perhaps
In comparison to the thousands of other bloggers out in the e-world, I'm pretty terrible. I post sparingly, and generally it is just a long review that I'm mostly positive no more than three people read. And what's worse, I put a lot of time into them, really try and think about what I've read, and then worry what others will do to my feeble thoughts. Why? It doesn't matter, really.
With that said, I'm cutting back on reviews. I will continue with my gig at The Fix Online, but other than that I won't be taking on any more assigned (er, meaning promised) reviews. Just not worth the time and effort in the long run. Of course, I'll comment on stuff I'm reading when I can, but if it isn't some huge dive into the meaning of life and so forth then no biggie.
So, about being a bad blogger. I'd like to change that, post more interesting things, get a wee bit more personal, but there's a problem: I've already separated my personal life from Wistful Writings with my daily journal comic at MyLifeComics. I mean, I save most of the things that happen for over there, leaving this place to be the hot-spot for any and all things pertaining to my writings. Hah, I said hot-spot. As if.
But I'd like to talk more about things here. About music, about animals, about videogames, about food, about anything I feel like I want to.
I'm in a weird mood tonight. Might be the fact that I'm working on a short story about civilized cannibals (aren't they all?) and kidnapped little girl. Odd, creepy stuff. You know, my usual shtick.
Also, song lyrics will re-enter my life, just because...
You're the echoes of my everything,
You're the emptiness the whole world sings at night.
You're the laziness of afternoon,
You're the reason why I burst and why I bloom
You're the leaky sink of sentiment,
You're the failed attempts I never could forget.
You're the metaphors I can't create to comprehend this curse that I call love..
How will I break the news to you?
- "Hold Me Down" by Motion City Soundtrack
With that said, I'm cutting back on reviews. I will continue with my gig at The Fix Online, but other than that I won't be taking on any more assigned (er, meaning promised) reviews. Just not worth the time and effort in the long run. Of course, I'll comment on stuff I'm reading when I can, but if it isn't some huge dive into the meaning of life and so forth then no biggie.
So, about being a bad blogger. I'd like to change that, post more interesting things, get a wee bit more personal, but there's a problem: I've already separated my personal life from Wistful Writings with my daily journal comic at MyLifeComics. I mean, I save most of the things that happen for over there, leaving this place to be the hot-spot for any and all things pertaining to my writings. Hah, I said hot-spot. As if.
But I'd like to talk more about things here. About music, about animals, about videogames, about food, about anything I feel like I want to.
I'm in a weird mood tonight. Might be the fact that I'm working on a short story about civilized cannibals (aren't they all?) and kidnapped little girl. Odd, creepy stuff. You know, my usual shtick.
Also, song lyrics will re-enter my life, just because...
You're the echoes of my everything,
You're the emptiness the whole world sings at night.
You're the laziness of afternoon,
You're the reason why I burst and why I bloom
You're the leaky sink of sentiment,
You're the failed attempts I never could forget.
You're the metaphors I can't create to comprehend this curse that I call love..
How will I break the news to you?
- "Hold Me Down" by Motion City Soundtrack
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Not posting
I wanted to post something today. I really did. I have things to talk about, things to work out with words.
But I'm not going to now. Except for this little thing. How's that for cryptic?
But I'm not going to now. Except for this little thing. How's that for cryptic?
Monday, January 07, 2008
Homage is where the heart is
About a week ago when I announced that Aoife's Kiss was buying my short story "After Effects" I made a side reference that the piece contained "a teeny homage to the Robot Man." Since nobody asked me what that meant, I figured I'd talk a bit about what I like to do with my short stories. Namely, I like to put in little bits of adulation for writers, musicians, artists, and a thousand of others whose work I've come to respect over time.
This is why I absolutely lurve the show LOST. Details, details, and details, along with the quick a-ha moments where they show you something obvious yet make it so transparent that you don't realize what you are seeing. LOST absolutely bounces in delight when it showcases books (Carrie, Catch-22, Heart of Darkness, Rainbow Six, and Stranger in a Strange Land to name a few), makes light of philosophers (John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau), and lets slip those seductively damning numbers (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, and 42, in case you forgot). It cares about these things, making it important that they are mentioned, that they are carefully revealed with respect and attitude.
Sure, the producers must like it when a fan picks up on a reference...but whether they do or don't, it truly doesn't matter. The deed is done, and its meaning is out there for whoever to take it in. I like that. I like looking for those sorts of things, linking one and two to make three, understanding the why and how of a creator's intent.
Now where was I? Oh right. Homages. I suspect I'm not the only one.
I won't reveal all of my secrets now (I'll wait until I'm insanely famous for that, of course).
So, who is the Robot Man then? To me, that'd be Isaac Asimov.
And how did I bend my knee? I named the spaceship that the story's events transpire on The Foundation. Plus, there's some robots on board (though they do not adhere to the Three Laws of Robotics). There ya go.
This is why I absolutely lurve the show LOST. Details, details, and details, along with the quick a-ha moments where they show you something obvious yet make it so transparent that you don't realize what you are seeing. LOST absolutely bounces in delight when it showcases books (Carrie, Catch-22, Heart of Darkness, Rainbow Six, and Stranger in a Strange Land to name a few), makes light of philosophers (John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau), and lets slip those seductively damning numbers (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, and 42, in case you forgot). It cares about these things, making it important that they are mentioned, that they are carefully revealed with respect and attitude.
Sure, the producers must like it when a fan picks up on a reference...but whether they do or don't, it truly doesn't matter. The deed is done, and its meaning is out there for whoever to take it in. I like that. I like looking for those sorts of things, linking one and two to make three, understanding the why and how of a creator's intent.
Now where was I? Oh right. Homages. I suspect I'm not the only one.
I won't reveal all of my secrets now (I'll wait until I'm insanely famous for that, of course).
So, who is the Robot Man then? To me, that'd be Isaac Asimov.
And how did I bend my knee? I named the spaceship that the story's events transpire on The Foundation. Plus, there's some robots on board (though they do not adhere to the Three Laws of Robotics). There ya go.
Monday, November 26, 2007
"Truth & Consequences" thoughts
Well, Heroes is still slowly getting a bit more interesting while retaining all the shtupid sludge that is teenage love drama, stolen comic books, and overly dramatic one-two lines that needed to be scrapped as soon as they were conceived. Still, things I liked:
Meh, I just wasted too much time thinking about all this...
- Sylar killed someone! He's always more watchable when he's most primal
- A woman keeping a shotgun in her peaceful garden
- Elle spilling her slurpie, classic n00b mistake when staking out prey
- Adam Monroe and that sneaky smile he wears with pride, how can you not like him
- Mr. Muggles, watching quietly in the distance as HRG's ashes are laid to ocean, all while continuing to plot the end of Claire's stalker boyfriend existence
- Um, the New Orleans chick? Does she even have a point? Her powers and storyline have absolutely nothing to do with the big arc, and frankly, she's kind of annoying. No one steals comic books anyway. Those thugs really wanted Micah's kickass Jansport backpack. Duh.
- Nikki. Please, please, please let her take a needle to the neck in this short season's finale "Powerless"
- Alejandro's one little moment of speaking English, used to show the audience that darn it he means business
- HRG and his silly whining
- This episode needed more Mr. Muggles
- Maya hooking up with a mother-killing mofo, that's just kind of creepy, even by Sylar standards
Meh, I just wasted too much time thinking about all this...
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Trunked like an elephant
Tonight I trunked 29 stories.
Trunking, for the unaware, is the process of putting a story hidden away for an indefinite amount of time--the idea of it being forever, of course. There is always a moment though that happens years down the line where one might consider pulling the dusty metaphoric trunk out, popping it open, and seeing if anything good inside is salvageable.
Anyways, most of these pieces have just been sitting around. They haven't gone out to a market in some time, represent my struggles with writing, and just aren't anything I'm overly concerned with getting out there. I am fairly content with my done stories at the moment, and I'm sure newer, hopefully better works will be materializing at some point.
So, yeah. Trunking.
Unless any of you can think of a perfect place to send a dialogue-only story involving two old men discussing the pros and cons of vampires over afternoon tea? I still kinda like that one.
Trunking, for the unaware, is the process of putting a story hidden away for an indefinite amount of time--the idea of it being forever, of course. There is always a moment though that happens years down the line where one might consider pulling the dusty metaphoric trunk out, popping it open, and seeing if anything good inside is salvageable.
Anyways, most of these pieces have just been sitting around. They haven't gone out to a market in some time, represent my struggles with writing, and just aren't anything I'm overly concerned with getting out there. I am fairly content with my done stories at the moment, and I'm sure newer, hopefully better works will be materializing at some point.
So, yeah. Trunking.
Unless any of you can think of a perfect place to send a dialogue-only story involving two old men discussing the pros and cons of vampires over afternoon tea? I still kinda like that one.
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
First draft, finally
The Streets of the City
3,663 / 4,000 words. 92% done!
New words: 599
And we've landed on the planet Ferstdraaft. I'm still going to need to read through it one more time to make sure it all gels (and probably make a specific scene a tad more traumatizing), but otherwise it feels pretty solid to me. Still, this had been a tough piece for me, much more straining than anything else I've written and I don't know yet if that is a good or bad thing. Should writing be easy or hard? Does writing something easily inherently make it good? Does working hard and long ultimately produce a gem of a tale?
I can't come up with any compact answer. Whatcha think about it?
New words: 599
And we've landed on the planet Ferstdraaft. I'm still going to need to read through it one more time to make sure it all gels (and probably make a specific scene a tad more traumatizing), but otherwise it feels pretty solid to me. Still, this had been a tough piece for me, much more straining than anything else I've written and I don't know yet if that is a good or bad thing. Should writing be easy or hard? Does writing something easily inherently make it good? Does working hard and long ultimately produce a gem of a tale?
I can't come up with any compact answer. Whatcha think about it?
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Some shorts
I finished two short stories this week while also putting more words down on the novel (shh, which I'm not really talking about here). The shorts varied: the first is one I started about three months back, wrote all the way up to the final scene, and put away while I figured out what I wanted to happen in the end. That revelation came to me the other afternoon while getting my mail. Yeah, I can't explain. Anyways, that one is done at 3,500 words and waiting on First Reader comments. Hopefully it won't be teh suck.
The second one is just creepy fun at 1,200 words. Wrote it in two sittings. Creepy fun, you ask? Yes, it has old people sex in it. There, I said it! Hopefully it's more fun than creepy, but you never know with me...
I told myself I was going to just focus on the novel (shh!!!), but I can't seem to be away from short stories for too long without my brain wandering back to them. I'll probably start a third one this weekend, just cause I can.
Maybe I'm addicted?
The second one is just creepy fun at 1,200 words. Wrote it in two sittings. Creepy fun, you ask? Yes, it has old people sex in it. There, I said it! Hopefully it's more fun than creepy, but you never know with me...
I told myself I was going to just focus on the novel (shh!!!), but I can't seem to be away from short stories for too long without my brain wandering back to them. I'll probably start a third one this weekend, just cause I can.
Maybe I'm addicted?
Saturday, August 18, 2007
ASIM: Best of SF review
Check out my review for Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine: Best of Science Fiction! Some good stories, and some not-that-great tales. I'm slowly getting turned off by silly stories, especially in science fiction. Fantasy I'm more prone to accepting (I blame it on all those years reading Piers Anthony and Terry Pratchett). But if the premise of an entire story set in outer space is for the protag to scrounge up a cup of coffee then that story annoys me. Give me plot! Give me conflict! Give me dilemma! In other news, there's this post from Nathan Ballingrud. In it he talks about writing less, and paying more attention to the words one is writing so that they are ten steps above just being pumped out. I'm a fairly fast writer and I seem to never run out of story starters. I save my slowness for re-writing and the proofreading stage, where, to me, it matters most. Writing fast doesn't necessarily equal a bunch of dribble. Writing fast helps me stay focused, helps me stay in the scenes with my characters, helps me get everything down all at once before I lose momentum. But everyone has their own process, and mine is just this. At the moment, it works for me. Maybe later on I'll stop producing so much and devote more time to perfecting what I'm currently working on.
Also, this:
The word amateur comes from the Latin amator, or lover; its root is amare: to love.
I agree with wholeheartedly. I'm an amateur, and that's how I've stuck with writing and how I'll continue to stick with it for as long as possible.
Monday, August 13, 2007
WFA Nominations
World Fantasy Awards Nominations, stolen from Locus Online:
NOVEL
Lisey's Story, Stephen King (Scribner; Hodder & Stoughton)
The Privilege of the Sword, Ellen Kushner (Bantam Spectra; Small Beer Press)
The Lies of Locke Lamora, Scott Lynch (Gollancz; Bantam Spectra)
The Orphan's Tales: In the Night Garden, Catherynne M. Valente (Bantam Spectra)
Soldier of Sidon, Gene Wolfe (Tor)
NOVELLA
"Botch Town", Jeffrey Ford (The Empire of Ice Cream, Golden Gryphon)
"The Man Who Got Off the Ghost Train", Kim Newman (The Man from the Diogenes Club, MonkeyBrain)
Dark Harvest, Norman Partridge (Cemetery Dance)
"Map of Dreams", M. Rickert (Map of Dreams, Golden Gryphon)
"The Lineaments of Gratified Desire", Ysabeau S. Wilce (F&SF Jul 2006)
SHORT FICTION
"The Way He Does It", Jeffrey Ford (Electric Velocipede #10, Spr 2006)
"Journey Into the Kingdom", M. Rickert (F&SF May 2006)
"A Siege of Cranes", Benjamin Rosenbaum (Twenty Epics, All-Star Stories)
"Another Word for Map is Faith", Christopher Rowe (F&SF Aug 2006)
"Pol Pot's Beautiful Daughter (Fantasy)", Geoff Ryman (F&SF Oct/Nov 2006)
ANTHOLOGY
Cross Plains Universe: Texans Celebrate Robert E. Howard, Scott A. Cupp & Joe R. Lansdale, eds. (MonkeyBrain and the Fandom Association of Central Texas)
Salon Fantastique, Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling, eds. (Thunder's Mouth)
Retro Pulp Tales, Joe R. Lansdale, ed. (Subterranean)
Twenty Epics, David Moles & Susan Marie Groppi, eds. (All-Star Stories)
Firebirds Rising, Sharyn November, ed. (Firebird)
COLLECTION
The Ladies of Grace Adieu and other stories, Susanna Clarke (Bloomsbury)
The Empire of Ice Cream, Jeffrey Ford (Golden Gryphon)
American Morons, Glen Hirshberg (Earthling)
Red Spikes, Margo Lanagan (Allen & Unwin Australia; Knopf)
Map of Dreams, M. Rickert (Golden Gryphon)
ARTIST
Jon Foster
Edward Miller
John Picacio
Shaun Tan
Jill Thompson
SPECIAL AWARD, PROFESSIONAL
Ellen Asher (For work at SFBC)
Mark Finn (for Blood & Thunder: The Life of Robert E. Howard, MonkeyBrain)
Deanna Hoak for copyediting
Greg Ketter for Dreamhaven
Leonard S. Marcus, ed. (for The Wand in the Word: Conversations with Writers of Fantasy, Candlewick)
SPECIAL AWARD, NON-PROFESSIONAL
Leslie Howle (for her work at Clarion West)
Leo Grin (for The Cimmerian)
Susan Marie Groppi (for Strange Horizons)
John Klima (for Electric Velocipede)
Gary K. Wolfe (for reviews and criticism in Locus and elsewhere)
Nothing too out of the ordinary here. Banking my money on newcomer Scott Lynch to walk away with one for his novel The Lies of Locke Lamora. Glad to see two offerings up there from M. Rickert. Also, Lou Anders and Pyr seem to have gotten shafted. A damn shame, really.
NOVEL
Lisey's Story, Stephen King (Scribner; Hodder & Stoughton)
The Privilege of the Sword, Ellen Kushner (Bantam Spectra; Small Beer Press)
The Lies of Locke Lamora, Scott Lynch (Gollancz; Bantam Spectra)
The Orphan's Tales: In the Night Garden, Catherynne M. Valente (Bantam Spectra)
Soldier of Sidon, Gene Wolfe (Tor)
NOVELLA
"Botch Town", Jeffrey Ford (The Empire of Ice Cream, Golden Gryphon)
"The Man Who Got Off the Ghost Train", Kim Newman (The Man from the Diogenes Club, MonkeyBrain)
Dark Harvest, Norman Partridge (Cemetery Dance)
"Map of Dreams", M. Rickert (Map of Dreams, Golden Gryphon)
"The Lineaments of Gratified Desire", Ysabeau S. Wilce (F&SF Jul 2006)
SHORT FICTION
"The Way He Does It", Jeffrey Ford (Electric Velocipede #10, Spr 2006)
"Journey Into the Kingdom", M. Rickert (F&SF May 2006)
"A Siege of Cranes", Benjamin Rosenbaum (Twenty Epics, All-Star Stories)
"Another Word for Map is Faith", Christopher Rowe (F&SF Aug 2006)
"Pol Pot's Beautiful Daughter (Fantasy)", Geoff Ryman (F&SF Oct/Nov 2006)
ANTHOLOGY
Cross Plains Universe: Texans Celebrate Robert E. Howard, Scott A. Cupp & Joe R. Lansdale, eds. (MonkeyBrain and the Fandom Association of Central Texas)
Salon Fantastique, Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling, eds. (Thunder's Mouth)
Retro Pulp Tales, Joe R. Lansdale, ed. (Subterranean)
Twenty Epics, David Moles & Susan Marie Groppi, eds. (All-Star Stories)
Firebirds Rising, Sharyn November, ed. (Firebird)
COLLECTION
The Ladies of Grace Adieu and other stories, Susanna Clarke (Bloomsbury)
The Empire of Ice Cream, Jeffrey Ford (Golden Gryphon)
American Morons, Glen Hirshberg (Earthling)
Red Spikes, Margo Lanagan (Allen & Unwin Australia; Knopf)
Map of Dreams, M. Rickert (Golden Gryphon)
ARTIST
Jon Foster
Edward Miller
John Picacio
Shaun Tan
Jill Thompson
SPECIAL AWARD, PROFESSIONAL
Ellen Asher (For work at SFBC)
Mark Finn (for Blood & Thunder: The Life of Robert E. Howard, MonkeyBrain)
Deanna Hoak for copyediting
Greg Ketter for Dreamhaven
Leonard S. Marcus, ed. (for The Wand in the Word: Conversations with Writers of Fantasy, Candlewick)
SPECIAL AWARD, NON-PROFESSIONAL
Leslie Howle (for her work at Clarion West)
Leo Grin (for The Cimmerian)
Susan Marie Groppi (for Strange Horizons)
John Klima (for Electric Velocipede)
Gary K. Wolfe (for reviews and criticism in Locus and elsewhere)
Nothing too out of the ordinary here. Banking my money on newcomer Scott Lynch to walk away with one for his novel The Lies of Locke Lamora. Glad to see two offerings up there from M. Rickert. Also, Lou Anders and Pyr seem to have gotten shafted. A damn shame, really.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Novel gazing fun
Some people are musing about the first and last lines of their novels. I've started a bunch of those cruel beasts, but have yet to finish one. I'm working on changing that. So, for lack of anything better to post, here's the opening lines of several novels-in-progress.
From Fireworker (dark fantasy):
I was awake when the perfunctory whistle of acrid notes echoed throughout Taam Mur.
From Makahl (sword and sorcery fantasy):
Brown, sunless branches stretched and shrouded the protruding rocks that marked the entrance to Heakol Gulumn.
From Moonship to Morrow (futuristic sci-fi):
The liftshaft hummed and climbed fourteen floors.
From Summersong (space opera on speed):
The Kakien cargo ship, Summersong, docked on Rabb Four's sole landing field, a circular speck of desert that did little to stand out.
From The Periwinkle Prince (high fantasy):
"Blue?! Whaddaya mean he's blue?!"
From The Spellcrafters (high fantasy):
"Defend yourself, boy!"
None that really do much. I like to start with action and setting. Action is key, and possibly the best starting point as it ultimately leads to something else happening. The problem with some of these above is that they're fairly bland. They have action, and yet they don't really do anything other then get things going. I'm actually not a huge fan of novels opening with dialog so it'll come as no surprise that I really hate those last two listed. I also, apparently, like to namedrop. Ugh.
Lately, I've been feeling that everything I write is crap. I hope this is just a bump in the road. It's really slowing me down.
From Fireworker (dark fantasy):
I was awake when the perfunctory whistle of acrid notes echoed throughout Taam Mur.
From Makahl (sword and sorcery fantasy):
Brown, sunless branches stretched and shrouded the protruding rocks that marked the entrance to Heakol Gulumn.
From Moonship to Morrow (futuristic sci-fi):
The liftshaft hummed and climbed fourteen floors.
From Summersong (space opera on speed):
The Kakien cargo ship, Summersong, docked on Rabb Four's sole landing field, a circular speck of desert that did little to stand out.
From The Periwinkle Prince (high fantasy):
"Blue?! Whaddaya mean he's blue?!"
From The Spellcrafters (high fantasy):
"Defend yourself, boy!"
None that really do much. I like to start with action and setting. Action is key, and possibly the best starting point as it ultimately leads to something else happening. The problem with some of these above is that they're fairly bland. They have action, and yet they don't really do anything other then get things going. I'm actually not a huge fan of novels opening with dialog so it'll come as no surprise that I really hate those last two listed. I also, apparently, like to namedrop. Ugh.
Lately, I've been feeling that everything I write is crap. I hope this is just a bump in the road. It's really slowing me down.
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Blogging thoughts
I first created Wistful Writings to document and track my writing progression, noting submission statuses, rejections, and acceptances as they happened. I also used it to pimp the numerous reviews I do and occasionally rant on whatever needed ranting at the time. After some months I haven't felt the need to update with every rejection that I now get, cutting back a lot of potential posts (i.e., wah wah waaaaah editors loathe me!). This blog has been pretty linear since its birth. Well, things will probably start to change. I think. Maybe.
No, they'll be changing.
In order to keep things disconnected, I made Game Beliefs, a blog that would be devoted to any videogame-related topics. As I soon discovered, I do not have much to say about videogames. No wait, scratch that. I do have a lot to say about videogames, just not enough to keep a blog constantly updated with daily content. So now when I feel like complaining about how trite every RPG ultimately is or how awesome Kratos is with all his godly powers I'll just do it here.
I'm also a bit of a music junkie. You know the people that say, "Oh, I listen to just about everything...except country." Well, that's me. Except the "except country" part. I'm very open when it comes to tunes, and I always find a way to appreciate music in just about every form out there (Note: not American Idol). I can go from Underoath to Page France to Placebo to The Audition to Devon Sproule to Tom Waits to Daft Punk to Wilco to Cat Power to Alexisonfire to Kathleen Edwards to Gretchen Wilson to The Visionaries to The Pixies to Wolf Parade without missing a beat. Go ahead and Google some of those and see how much they vary, both in style, form, and presentation. Having used to review CDs and concerts in the past for my college newspaper and magazine, I've sort of missed it.
I'm not big on politics, but I do stay up-to-date with the current affairs of the world (it's the journalist in me). Besides, how could anyone ignore a story about a Wisconsin man having sex with a dead deer?
I guess in the end I want this place to be a hub for different topics and not limit my audience (if I even have one; hello? anyone? Bueller? Bueller?). So, be prepared to see some different posts over the new few weeks. Or if you have something to suggest, I'm all ears. My momma always said, "Life was like a box of bloggers, you never know what you're gonna get."
Okay, not my real momma. She doesn't talk like that.
No, they'll be changing.
In order to keep things disconnected, I made Game Beliefs, a blog that would be devoted to any videogame-related topics. As I soon discovered, I do not have much to say about videogames. No wait, scratch that. I do have a lot to say about videogames, just not enough to keep a blog constantly updated with daily content. So now when I feel like complaining about how trite every RPG ultimately is or how awesome Kratos is with all his godly powers I'll just do it here.
I'm also a bit of a music junkie. You know the people that say, "Oh, I listen to just about everything...except country." Well, that's me. Except the "except country" part. I'm very open when it comes to tunes, and I always find a way to appreciate music in just about every form out there (Note: not American Idol). I can go from Underoath to Page France to Placebo to The Audition to Devon Sproule to Tom Waits to Daft Punk to Wilco to Cat Power to Alexisonfire to Kathleen Edwards to Gretchen Wilson to The Visionaries to The Pixies to Wolf Parade without missing a beat. Go ahead and Google some of those and see how much they vary, both in style, form, and presentation. Having used to review CDs and concerts in the past for my college newspaper and magazine, I've sort of missed it.
I'm not big on politics, but I do stay up-to-date with the current affairs of the world (it's the journalist in me). Besides, how could anyone ignore a story about a Wisconsin man having sex with a dead deer?
I guess in the end I want this place to be a hub for different topics and not limit my audience (if I even have one; hello? anyone? Bueller? Bueller?). So, be prepared to see some different posts over the new few weeks. Or if you have something to suggest, I'm all ears. My momma always said, "Life was like a box of bloggers, you never know what you're gonna get."
Okay, not my real momma. She doesn't talk like that.
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