Archive for December, 2007
December 31st 2007
In Praise of Formula Writing
In my alternate life as Tate Hallaway, romance writer, I often hear non-romance readers complain that romance is all just a matter of “the formula,” which they are convinced we all receive by mail from romance publishers. While, it’s entirely possible those things still exist somewhere, most writers I know, romance or otherwise, make stuff […]
December 28th 2007
That word again
Genre.
The Encarta World English Dictionary that came loaded on my iBook gives one definition of “genre” as “one of the categories that artistic works of all kinds can be divided into on the basis of form, style, or subject matter. For example, detective novels are a genre of fiction.”
What triggered that interest in the definition […]
December 27th 2007
Baseball as an analogy for the writing game…
I was thinking about the post I wrote last month (http://www.sfnovelists.com/2007/11/27/david-vs-goliath/), and the interesting discussion that erupted in the comments, and realized — too late, of course — that there might be a decent analogy for ‘breaking into the writing business.’
It’s akin to breaking into professional baseball.
Yeah, yeah, I know: “Oh no! A […]
December 24th 2007
Post-Holiday Book Suggestions
I find that December tends to leave me with a handful of gift certificates to Barnes & Noble, Borders, Amazon, and so on. I know I’m not the only one. So it occurred to me that this might be a good time for a book recommendation thread.
Of course, the temptation is to start out the […]
December 23rd 2007
Dark Nights of Despair
The Dark Night of Despair…sooner or later, everybody gets there.
December 21st 2007
Are You a REAL Writer Yet?
One of the hardest parts about being a writer is never getting that sense of validation other professions have. For instance, after years of medical school, you’re conferred a doctorate and you get a nice certificate to hang on your office wall. What do writers get? Nada. Well, okay, eventually, you get your name on the […]
December 20th 2007
No, Really, I’m Working
More on work that doesn’t look like work. Sometimes, I work in my sleep. No, really.
You see, I have very vivid dreams, but only if I’m between writing projects or it’s been a couple of days since I’ve written.
This is either a subconscious manifestation of something my wife, Laura, calls “leaking weirdness,” or leaking weirdness […]
December 18th 2007
What is Work?
I am a full-time writer, whatever that means. What it doesn’t mean, at least in my case, is that I report to an office space for a specified time, let’s say 9 to 5 with or without overtime factored in, to fulfill specified tasks. I do go to a desk (my office) to […]
December 17th 2007
Between books
I skipped my date with the SFNovelists blog last month because I was up to my neck in my NanoWrimo 2007 effort. (Also, Diana’s posting date usually coincides with mine, so I felt like it was covered.)
But this month I’m not writing, I’m not editing and I’m not even thinking about being an author. In […]
December 17th 2007
When an author “changes”
I’ve read a lot of fantasy. I have been a voracious reader of most any kind of words since first grade. I would go to the library and the bookstore and snatch most anything off the shelves that even looked like fantasy. And recently, some comments by readers of my new book have reminded […]
Author Information
Lyda Morehouse
Lyda Morehouse is the author of the science fiction AngeLINK series. She's won the Shamus and the Philip K. Dick Special Citation for Excellence (aka 2nd place). Her books have also been nominated for the Romantic Times Critics' Choice and preliminary Nebula ballot. She lives in the deep-freeze of Saint Paul, MN with her partner of twenty-odd years, their son, and lots and lots of cats (and fish!) Visit site.
Kristine Smith
I'm a scientist by day, spec fic writer by nights and weekends. Author of the Jani Kilian SF series. Owned by two overgrown puppies. Visit site.
S.L. Farrell
S.L. Farrell is a Cincinnati author with 21 novels and several dozen short stories published. Booklist called his latest book "Good enough to cast in gold." He teaches creative writing at Northern Kentucky University, and is a frequent speaker to writers groups. Visit site.
Jim C. Hines
Jim C. Hines is the author of the goblin trilogy from DAW Books. The third book, GOBLIN WAR, came out in March, 2008. THE STEPSISTER SCHEME will begin a new series in January of 2009. He made his first professional fiction sale in 1998 with "Blade of the Bunny," an award-winning story that appeared in Writers of the Future XV. His short fiction has since appeared in over 30 magazines and anthologies, including Realms of Fantasy, Turn the Other Chick, and Sword & Sorceress XXI. Jim lives in Michigan with his wife and two children. He's currently hard at work on a sequel to THE STEPSISTER SCHEME. Visit site.
Gregory Frost
Gregory Frost's latest book is SHADOWBRIDGE volume I, from Del Rey (Random House). In their review, Publisher's Weekly praised it as "a sparkling gem of mythic invention and wonder," and Booklist in a starred review said, "Frost has created a world containing all manner of fantastic story." Gary K. Wolfe in Locus Magazine added: "Surpassingly lovely prose...Frost could be on his way toward a masterpiece." Volume II will be out in June. His short story collection, ATTACK OF THE JAZZ GIANTS & OTHER STORIES (Golden Gryphon Press) was hailed by Locus as "a notable collection, likely to stand as one of the best of 2005" and Publisher's Weekly once again,in a starred review (!), went even further in saying, "Frost demonstrates his mastery of the short story form in what will surely rank as one of the best fantasy collections of the year." Other recent works include the novel FITCHER'S BRIDES (Tor Books), an International Horror Guild Award and World Fantasy Award Finalist; "Ill-Met in Ilium" in The Secret History of Vampires; and "The Fortunate Dream" in the YA anthology Magic in the Mirrorstone. Visit http://www.gregoryfrost.com for excerpts, publishing info and appearance dates. Blogs at http://frostokovich.livejournal.com/ and http://gregoryfrost.blogspot.com More on Shadowbridge at http://www.randomhouse.com/delrey/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780345497581 For more information on Attack of the Jazz Giants, visit http://www.goldengryphon.com Visit site.
Lyda Morehouse
Lyda Morehouse is the author of the science fiction AngeLINK series. She's won the Shamus and the Philip K. Dick Special Citation for Excellence (aka 2nd place). Her books have also been nominated for the Romantic Times Critics' Choice and preliminary Nebula ballot. She lives in the deep-freeze of Saint Paul, MN with her partner of twenty-odd years, their son, and lots and lots of cats (and fish!) Visit site.
Kelly McCullough
Kelly McCullough's first novel, WebMage, was released by Ace in 2006. Three sequels, Cybermancy, Codespell, and MythOS are slated for release in '07, '08, and '09. He lives in Western Wisconsin with his physics professor wife and a small herd of cats. Visit site.
Kate Elliott
Kate ElliottKate Elliott is the author of multiple fantasy and science fiction novels, including the Crown of Stars series and the Novels of the Jaran. She's currently working on Crossroads; the first novel, Spirit Gate, is already out, and Shadow Gate will be published in Spring 2008. Visit site.
Simon Haynes
Simon is the author of the Hal Spacejock series, featuring intergalactic loser Hal and his junky sidekick, Clunk. His website contains a number of articles on writing and publishing, and he's also the programmer of several freeware apps including yBook, BookDB and yWriter. In his spare time(!) he helps to run Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine. Visit site.
Diana Pharaoh Francis
Diana Pharaoh Francis has written the fantasy novel trilogy that includes Path of Fate, Path of Honor and Path of Blood. Path of Fate was nominated for the Mary Roberts Rinehart Award. Recently released was The Cipher, first of The Crosspointe Chronicles, which will be followed by The Black Ship in November 2008. Diana teaches in the English Department at the University of Montana Western, and is an avid lover of all things chocolate. Visit site.
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