So, apparently I’m doing this thing called Pitch Wars next week. I have my first chapter reasonably polished, hammered together something that might pass for a hook, cooked up an 800-word synopsis, and achieved a query that didn’t make my current CPs barf. I am exhausted but happy. For people stalking my mms, there’s plenty…
Read More My Pitch Wars bioThis deserves a post of its own. Dan Koboldt has this reasoned and honest breakdown of last months’ #SFFpit Twitter pitch event. The Fifth SFFpit and Twitter Pitch Fatigue I’ve linked to it here, because it has some very good info for people just now querying science fiction and fantasy. Some mitigating factors include bad…
Read More An #SFFPit analysisA subtweety primer, for folks who ship stuff from online sales: If you are selling glass jars of honey over international borders, it doesn’t matter if you carefully wrap all jars in bubble wrap…if you push them against one side of a too-small cardboard box! Nor does the amount of air-packs and newspaper you stuffed…
Read More Packing and shipping for dummiesI say ‘first edition’ because I have several future paths for my first published novel, now that its association with Loose Id LLC has come to an end. Moro’s Price no longer exists as an ebook on Amazon.com, or on the Loose Id website. Over the next month or so, it will leave AllRomance Ebooks,…
Read More Moro’s Price first edition 2012 to 2016Delaney Green is one of them that don’t burn. Possessed of the Touch – with the ability to not only see the future but manipulate it – she’s been kept in an institution for most of her life. When the Salesman, a murderous entity with a connection to Delaney’s past, starts burning girls to death,…
Read More ‘Of Lips And Tongue’ by A.G. CarpenterSo a few days have passed. I did about as well in #SFFpit as I expected: one of the small publishers I know and trust liked my entries, as well as a few other people. It was a long shot with some hidden value beyond the pitch day, so I wasn’t that worried for the…
Read More #SFFpit: the epilogueI’m an Independent, and I am actually proud of the House Democrats today. They made some history by staging a fearless sitdown in the House, in protest over the Republican refusal to even *look* at upcoming gun control laws. When Paul Ryan booted out CSPAN and turned off the microphones and cameras, he forgot about…
Read More #SFFpit tomorrow, + how about them DemsAfter some hours of delay, assumed coding problems, and many thousands of panicked writers around the world…the 2016 Wattys are up and running. The Wattys are Wattpad’s *huge* annual writing contest, split among many countries, languages, and genres. It’s a fascinating way for me, as an American, to see some of the best of the…
Read More The Wattys are here…If you might consider looking at unagented work that has snagged an advance-paying commercial publisher’s contract offer. We’re a little tired of doing things this way: And we’re certain you’re tired of dealing with us. If you already share this? Thank you, bless you, may your authors win many awards and make truckloads of money.…
Read More Literary agents, please tell us…Basic, useful writing stuff first. Here is a quick shout-out to Kristen Lamb, who tells it like it is over on her blog…far better than I can. If nothing else, new writers should learn (and tattoo in glowing ink on the inside of their eyelids) that Editing Is Most Of The Damn Job. Some smug…
Read More The Reality of Writing and Diversity, 5-18-2016I’m not as precise or as disciplined about creating character hinterlands as this article suggests, but it’s pretty close to my process. Of course, this is only fashionable to admit if one becomes a success at it, I suspect. Otherwise, we are told ‘Don’t write so much backstory’, ‘You’ll never finish the actual story, will…
Read More Apparently this is how I writeFollow this link to my interview with the talented and tolerant Theophilia St. Claire, as we talk about the creative process, my experiments with contemporary M/M romance (aka my novella Maestro), and some ‘taboo’ writing subjects. Some purposefully vague news: If you’re interested in my debut novel Moro’s Price (a M/M erotic romance space opera)…
Read More Spotlight on Maestro, news on Moro’s PriceIn honor of The Sovereign and the Thin White Duke*, and as part of the Kids Need to Read charity’s events at the 2016 Phoenix Comicon, I will be donating ‘First Frost’, a black wire and crystal bead mask** inspired by that wonderful ancient fantasy flick ‘Labyrinth’. This is the second wire mask I’ve made…
Read More First Frost Mask, Phoenix ComiconNew feature on this blog: Etsy Showcase. I’m going to be looking at other artists’ work on Etsy, and analyzing pieces that I love, like, or think I could adapt. (I’m also going to try to find the ‘ultimate expression’ of that craft, if I can.) I did not make this crystal and river pebble…
Read More Etsy showcase #1: pebble pendantA PSA for writers in multiple genres with query-ready manuscripts (finished & polished): if you and/or your characters meet certain qualifications, you can participate in tomorrow’s #DVpit contest on Twitter. It’s being sponsored by agent Beth Phelan, and looks to include a lot of well-known literary agents and editors (usual caveats apply). This is a…
Read More Diverse Voices pitch contest 4-19-2016(Because usually I have the opposite problem, clocking in SFF tomes of 130K to 160K, which must all be pruned.) Anyway, I’m glad the reader liked the book. I was a little puzzled at first, when they mentioned, “The book is too short” And I fired off a generalized funny tweet about it. Dear reader,…
Read More Dear reader, I’m sorry my book was too shortThere are three large jewelry supply companies I have been buying from since 1979, 1983, and 1989, respectively. 1979 and 1989 were once known for high-quality merchandise and great customer service (at least in my dealings with them.) When I first found them, their catalogs, and their stores, I had never seen that many beads…
Read More Jewelry supply companies and co-op galleriesI hope so. Judge for yourself, and maybe come back here? What do you think, readers? Does it come too late to rescue the Romance Writers of America, as a vital professional organization? I hope not. I am not a member of the RWA. I’ve attended a few meetings, I have a fair number of friends…
Read More An apology from the RWA?In writing, art…really, in life, rejection happens. Sometimes, no matter how hard we try, our efforts don’t match with what the other side needs or wants. How we address those rejections can have a vast impact on our future efforts, our risk-taking, and well-earned self esteem. Here are some tips I’ve learned in some 30-odd…
Read More Rejections happen. What do you do next?In 199X, I sent a story into Marion Zimmer Bradley’s then-prestigious fantasy magazine. I eventually got back a form rejection notice with a handwritten note from the Great One herself, explaining, “Werewolves are done, over. No werewolf fics, please. Same goes for vampires.” I take a little comfort that the Paranormal Romance explosion was a…
Read More The shapeshifter dilemma