Turn out the lights, the party’s …

Not so fast. What a bunch of tripe. In my last post, I offered an amazing autographed copy of  “The Windup Girl” to anyone who could find it in their hearts to donate to my Clarion cause. Several did … BEFORE I offered up the book (If you’re one of those who did, THANK YOU!). But, I don’t think anybody contributed after, so that is why I haven’t made an announcement about who will receive the book.

Now, sometimes, records can get held up, unaccounted for, etc. And, I’m very much to blame because I didn’t push the deal, nearly sitting out the entire month of August with an upper respiratory infection. So, If you contributed to my Clarion cause post the Aug. 4 date, let me know, and I’ll confirm with the Clarion folks. Then, the book will be yours.

But, if no one can claim it, here’s what I’m going to do. The official Clarion write-a-thon party is over, but true to my style — as I seem to have my own timetable for things — I’m going to continue collecting donations through the month of September (There donation system is still open.). And, better yet, I’m going to sweeten the pot.

Not only will the person who contributes the largest donation in my name receive “The Windup Girl” — provided it is indeed not spoken for — but that person will also receive an autographed book from every author I interview at World Fantasy. And … that’s not all … I’ll also leave one of my Adventure in Scifi Publishing World Fantasy interview slots open for the winning person to select my final guest.

Now, I can’t guarantee that the author/agent/editor will meet with me. Weird things happen. In fact, just this last week, I lost an interview I was geeked about because the author had to cancel his trip entirely. BUT … I will give it my best effort to arrange the interview in the winner’s name. Worse comes to worst, I’ll score an extra autographed book for the winning contributor.

So, what do you say? I know you have a little coin in that purse.

Okay … so I’ve supposedly been doing this Clarion Write-A-Thon for the past several weeks. I think we’re on week 5 right now. Ahem … no, Brent, it’s week 6 … the final week. Though it clearly hasn’t been pretty, I have participated. I’ve been writing and editing my *#^ off, keeping up with — mostly — my goals (even done a fair job of staying away from Twitter). In the end, I think I’ll only owe Clarion about $80.

What I’ve been terrible about, though, is the fundraising aspects of the write-a-thon. So, I’ve decided to give it a final kick this last week. You have until Aug. 8 to donate, and if you do, there just might be something special in it for you.

See, each writer supporting Clarion came up with a goal and they’ve been soliciting donations. The money raised will help offset some recent funding cuts and ensure the storied writing workshop will  continue well into the future.

I stole my goal, I might add, from VP classmate Chia Evers (in my defense, I did modify it slightly). In short, I need to write an hour everyday AND send a submission every week or I owe Clarion $10 for every failed deliverable. So far, I’ve missed the mark five times and three of those were on the submission portion. I’m expecting three more failures this week because I’ll be getting certified for scuba diving.

Anyway, back to giving money to the Clarions … Over the next several days — you have until Aug. 8 to donate — I’m offering the person who submits the largest donation on my behalf a little piece of history.

This past month, I attended The Campbell Conference at the University of Kansas. As part of the conference, they award the John W. Campbell Award for best SF novel of the year. This year’s honor went to Paolo Bacigalupi for The Windup Girl. The novel had already won the Nebula and was named one of Time Magazine’s Top 10 books of 2009. I expect it has a good chance of picking up the Hugo, as well.

Anyway, you send the largest sponsorship donation in my name and I will gift you a bit of history. I had Paolo sign and date a copy of The Windup Girl. This will be a rare item, indeed, and it could be yours. Just donate!

If you do, THANKS!

Bringing science fiction and fantasy authors to your ears one podcast at a time.

Leave it to me to announce my first interview with Adventures in Scifi Publishing (AISFP) well after it’s been downloaded nearly 1,200 times.

Unfortunately, it just speaks to how busy I am in July. The AISFP gig — as well as the Clarion write-a-thon endeavor (donate, donate … more on that in a separate post that you’ll want to read) — has only happily added to the insanity. Case in point: I religiously set goals each month and July’s haven’t hit paper yet.

As for the first posted interview. It was such a treat to corner James Gunn for an hour. After speaking with him, it confirmed that The Center for Study of Science Fiction provides foundational resources for readers and writers of genre. The interview also provides some core themes for the forthcoming Campbell Conference discussions I have with two of the genre’s finest, so you’ll want to give it a listen.

Regardless, since I made my last post, where I tease my role of correspondent with the podcast and discuss how thrilled I am to be part of the AISFP 2.0 team, I’ve interviewed Paolo Bacigalupi and Kij Johnson at The 2010 Campbell Conference, as well as registered for Armadillocon in Austin, Texas, and World Fantasy (WFC) in Columbus, Ohio. And my first Advanced Reading Copy (ARC) for the show arrived in the mail last weekend — I’m thrilled to be reading Michele Lang’s Lady Lazarus. I’m set to speak with her in October at WFC.

I find it funny though, that I’ll be jumping directly from Ian Tregillis’s Bitter Seeds to Lady Lazarus. Not everyday you go from one TOR WWII novel to another.

Only four interviews in for AISFP and I’m hooked. The authors give so much to their craft. In particular, I can’t speak more highly of Paolo Bacigalupi and what he gave to our discussion. Several obstacles, subtle, yet invasive like the  scheming that is central to his award-winning The Windup Girl, tried to undermine our conversation. But, he refused to succumb and, more than 90 minutes later, we had a hell of a talk.

Now … off to edit … so you can hear. Though, after speaking with Shaun, he’ll have plenty of goodies from Comic-Con soon, too.

Here it comes ...

I’ve been waiting weeks to say something, so I can wait a few more to reveal the full details, but I’ll be contributing to Adventures in SciFi Publishing (AISFP). Listen to the short promo to get a taste of what’s to come.

I’m thrilled, as I’ve been a fan of the Parsec award-winning podcast and its host(s) Shaun Farrell (and occasionally Sam Wynns — no word yet if she’s returning) for several years, and I can’t wait to help out. In fact, I’m well on my way to contributing to Episode 92.  I credit AISFP for educating me on the genre and exposing me to other great podcasts. Without it, I’m not sure I would have attended Viable Paradise (VP) last year.

And, speaking of VP, Matt Hughes, a fellow member of VP’s Fighting XIII, will also contribute to show as a book reviewer. We’re just a few members of a new team of amazing people plugged in to genre fiction.

If you’re not familiar with the show, it’s featured reports from Comic-Con, Clarion, and Writers of the Future, and interviews with the likes of Ray Bradbury, Neil Gaiman and Brandon Sanderson. You can obtain the feed directly from the site or subscribe to the podcast on iTunes.

More to come … soon …

There’s less than two weeks to get your application in for the next Viable Paradise (VP), a one-week workshop in writing and selling commercial science fiction and fantasy, taught by professional authors and acquiring editors. If you don’t have a story you love, you can get another short story written. As I saw one of my VP 13 classmates say, in her best online Rob Schneider voice: “You can do it ….” And, oh, by the way, you should send it in, too.

The deadline is June 30.

And instead of chewing off your fingernails during the several-day agony to hear whether you’ve been accepted, I’ll offer you a distraction, summarizing a few things you can listen or read to not only fill your time, but also provide you a glimpse of what you might expect when you get there. For a wannabe speculative fiction writer, VP is many things. And while I can’t share, well, really anything about what takes place there, I can help by highlighting the pros that would teach you (in each his or her own way) how to be a professional author:

Elizabeth Bear (@matociquala on Twitter). Whether it’s her rejection-slip count, her WTF jacket (a career aspiration of mine to have my own and don wherever I please) or the way she goes about research, she’s an inspiration. Check out Bear’s interview on Adventure in Scifi Publishing.

Debra Doyle & Jim (Uncle Jim) MacDonald. These two contributed to my reading list getting A LOT longer. Two true working pros (no, not that kind), the master plotter and grammarian tell a tale of … “Once upon a time in a misty sea, there was a workshop.”  Jim Macdonald and Debra Doyle share VP’s mythic underpinnings.

Steven Gould (@StevenGould on Twitter). Definitely good for a chat about anything, his Twitter feed can attest to that, but especially about what bad things can happen to your book when translated to film. Shhh … I took a crappy book out of the Isabelle Beach House’s library and left a copy of Steven’s “Blind Waves” instead. Listen to an audio sample of Steven’s work and select interviews.

Laura J. Mixon (@LauraJMG on Twitter). Cherished, practical link to some serious Sci Fi pioneers and founding member of and sounding board for what Ian Tregillis calls “writing superheroes,” aka working parents who write. Check out last July’s “I Should Be Writing” (ISBW) interview with her about her Storytron project.

Teresa Nielsen Hayden (@tnielsenhayden on Twitter). Whether a person makes it to VP or not, one voice everyone should hear (amazing historian of craft and genre), but seems elusive in the podcasting world (Hmmm … maybe I should remedy that) ….  Her musings via her blog will have to suffice (not that there anything close to a lesser form; you’ll just have to read).

Patrick Nielsen Hayden (@pnh on Twitter). If you want to know the business, talk to Patrick. A wealth of knowledge and good counsel against publishing and writer myths (he offered me several tidbits that will keep me sane for years to come).  Patrick and former VP instructor Cory Doctorow discuss creative commons and electronic publishing.

John Scalzi (@scalzi on Twitter). John gave me the stink-eye glare every time I reached in the cooler for a Coke Zero. Before VP, I had met John twice. If you don’t make it to VP, visit John at a Con — he’s worth the price of admission. In this “I Should Be Writing” interview (originally at ISBW – March 2008)  John discusses how he got his start, how he doesn’t recommend it for others, and how to be a full time writer.

Discussion of ebooks and digital publishing is everywhere, but why do I get the sense that no one has still addressed the real opportunity, particularly in light of the recent release of the iPad, which has already captured an estimated 22% of the ebook market.

In fact, I’ve heard and seen some interesting ebook discussion over the past few weeks. None may be more interesting than the 16-author panel discussion, called the Decline of the Written Empire, that took place at ConQuesT 41 in Kansas City over the Memorial Day weekend. The ebook site TeleRead offers a thoughtful summary. Plus, if you’d like to listen for yourself, I’ve provided the entire panel discussion.

If you’re interested in digital publishing, you also should check out an interview with Tracy Hickman in Episode 91 of Adventures in SciFi Publishing (AISFP), where he and Shaun discuss the fascinating throwback to serialized release with the Eventide novel (now in audio format, as well). In short, Tracy and wife Laura will release a novel in a weekly subscription format and, at the end, the reader will receive a limited-edition signed copy.

Then, Friday, June 11, author Gail Carriger started conducting an interesting poll and discussion (or access the permanent link — requires a LiveJournal account) on the reasons for ebook readership or lack thereof.

Regardless, this isn’t a topic exclusive to today’s gadget-carrying youth. Mashable summarized a study done by Yahoo on the demographics of iPad users. Generally, they found that iPad owners are more affluent and of surprising generational makeup — and it’s not kids using them. Print hasn’t died, it’s evolved. And, I believe, the iPad will usher the older generations into ebooks and digital consumption.

If you’re not familiar with ConQuest, it’s Kansas City’s annual genre convention. Put together by the Kansas City Science Fiction and Fantasy Society, the con brings together science fiction and fantasy fiction, art, gaming and more. This is the third year I’ve attended and each year brings something a bit different to me personally.

In large part, this year’s convention felt like the most social — I spent at least two-thirds of my time eating or drinking at the bar with friends or holding conversations with authors and editors. Not surprising, considering I’ve become more involved in the community and I’ve made friends along the way.

Drinks with Michael Swanwick

What is surprising is that no sooner did I arrive at ConQuest, I was having drinks with several friends and … Guest of Honor Michael Swanwick. Of all the times I wanted to have my recorder on, it wish it could have been now (though first, not cool, and I wouldn’t have been able to post).

Michael shared some great advice and stories about unpublished writers submitting their work. One particular story included legendary editor Frederik Pohl and writer Gene Wolfe. I’ll butcher it if I try to recount the details, but the morals were simple: 1.) Have an envelope ready for your next submission if you receive a rejection; and 2.) Editors are human, hence they have good days and bad, so if you get a rejection, it’s possible that you hit them on a bad day. He didn’t say THAT IT WAS the reason, just a possibility.

In fact, if you’re sending stories out now, you need to read fellow Viable Paradise classmate Ferrett Steinmetz’s post on the steps for story submission.

Michael also talked about the maturation of the writer and how you’ll hate the stories, even if they’re published, from early in your career. He offered this advice, in particular, to my writers’ group friend Karin Rita Gastreich, who will have her novel Eolyn published next year by Hadley Rille Books.

Hadley Rille Books panel

In fact, my next stop was the Hadley Rille Book reading. The reading featured an intro from Hadley Rille Books owner Eric T. Reynolds and then readings from four authors featured in its collection, including Michael Swanwick (left), Chris McKitterick, Hadley Rille Books owner Eric T. Reynolds, M. C. Chambers and my writing group friend Karin Rita Gastreich.

You can listen to a full recording of the reading.

Over the next several days, I’ll post overviews of Day 2 & Day 3 activities, including some video of George R. R. Martin and Howard Waldrop reminiscing about the Wild Cards series.

This past week, a few of my Viable Paradise classmates (Ferrett and Cath) were sweating their upcoming first readings. I told them it couldn’t be any worse than me sounding like William Shatner doing spoken word in my first reading. Which is exactly what happened, as I had lyrics in the story — and I don’t sing!

Last August, The Dead Horse Society, the writers group I’m in, held its first group reading at Kansas City’s The Writers Place.

So, here’s the audio … of my super hero scene, 100 Beats. Enjoy the laugh.

One of the highlights of our recent trip to New Mexico was our visit to the Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary. They provide permanent, safe sanctuary for abused and abandoned captive-bred wolves and wolf dogs.

Today, nearly 60 wolves are receiving their care, and you can feel the wolf’s power when they begin to howl (the hairs on my neck stood when our guide explained the solitary howl). In this instance, our guide Brennan said the congregation was just gossiping, one of the many reasons wolves howl — though I doubt they were commenting on anyone’s shoes, as they were all covered in mud.

… than they really are.

Each of us is responsible for determining our own success. And that’s what makes this post so frustrating. I’ve not been as determined as I need to be. I’m not determined to kill my work.

In many ways I am blessed, fortunate for the things that I have in my life. Very fortunate. But when I arrived at a local social media interest group breakfast Friday morning to find a few members talk about fiction writing, it reinforced some things I’ve been harboring for some time. I’ve got to make a concerted effort to get published.

In many respects, talking writing is a favorite subject. My eyes light up when I get the chance, and often the other’s passion will rival mine, which only stimulates the conversation . It’s great. It’s great until they ask the question: Have you been published?

Cue my very large sigh.

“Uhhh…” I stammer. “I’ve sold a tweet.” Then I laugh. All the while I’m kicking the crap out of myself for this inadequacy I feel for not being published.

I spend the next several days trying to figure out what’s not right with me. Clearly, I don’t push enough submissions — I know I can count the number on my hands and feet, which is still a vast improvement because this time last year I could count them on one hand.  Regardless, it’s not enough. It’s like lamenting not ever having a date, but you never ask anybody out.

The problem is I need to commit as much to the submission push as I do to writing. Not only do I love to talk about writing, I love to write. Love it. You don’t write 50,000 words of the fiction in the month of November and thousands more during the rest of the year when your day job is writing, too, if you don’t love it.

Last October, when my head hit the pillow early the final morning I was at Viable Paradise, I knew I was a writer. That doesn’t seem to be the problem. I’ve been writing and finding joy with each piece I complete. And I complete them all. Many true writers know this alone is an accomplishment.

But something’s missing. And I don’t think it’s the validation of being published, which, as I understand it from friends who have been published, is fleeting and constantly elusive. This has something more to do with how I feel internally. Something more at the core of who I am.

It’s not that my marketing skills are terrible. They’re not the best, but I’ve got a university degree and spent years in the corporate world honing those, so I can adequately strike up conversation with peers and potentially develop an audience.

What I think I’ve discovered is that I’m not yet … a closer. And if not a closer, then a killer of manuscripts.

What does that mean? I truly respect my peers who develop a list of markets and work down that list until their piece is sold — or filed for all eternity as unsaleable. I haven’t been able to stake any of my babies on such an arduous journey. I’ll dangle a few pieces out to a couple key markets or, in the case of my novel, to a couple well-known agents. I get a few rejections and then I shelve it and go write a new piece. My stories sit in a form of stasis. At some point, I might let one out for a bit, make some revision and then send it out to the jungle for a couple skirmishes. Any hint of danger though and back in the bubble with you.

At Viable Paradise, I had the pleasure of spending some one-on-one time Patrick Nielsen Hayden and I asked him, “What else should I be doing that I’m not already doing.”

As part of the response to the question, he asked if I was a Locus subscriber (which I am). He told me that was good, but to be wary, as well, because each of the members of my class would succeed at a different pace (ahhh … the perils of timing and many other factors). I understood his point when we spoke, but I kind of laughed about it for the first month or so, having read a classmate’s Locus review during the flight home. I think I understand it even more now, almost as if my parents are hovering over my shoulder and telling me: “Stop paying attention to what your brother is doing and focus on yourself.”

So, here’s the score. It’s taken me two months to come up with my new year’s resolutions. It’s about time … and considering how I feel, here we go: This year I’m going to publish something that will pay me enough to at least fill my car with gas. But before I do that or,  maybe in order to that, I’m going to send my stories out to the jungle to fight.