From Emily Skrutskie, Oaths of Legacy, Book 2 in the Bloodright Trilogy, to be published later this year. Note: this review is based upon an ARC furnished to me for free by NetGalley. It’s always a joy when a second book in a series surpasses the first, and Emily Skrutskie does that and more with…
Read More Review: Oaths of Legacy, by Emily SkrutskieFrom here I cannot see two oceans. Standing astride this ridge, one foot Touching sunset The other, night. On each side, cool winds taste the same. From here I see no difference between Factory or farm, trailer or mansion, No hint of hand or ideology behind The lights that in distant valleys bloom. Thrumming…
Read More Continental Divide‘I should have died the day I learned my father’s name. I would have, but for the second of three gifts I inherited from him, and one I took from my mother. I think—I did die. I just didn’t stay dead. After 25 years, several titles, and several false starts, I’m rewriting and fine-tuning the…
Read More Light On Water, rebootedThis one started, as have the others, with an olive-drab jacket I found at Goodwill. This is what it looks like now: The Venezia-brand jacket was US size 15-16, with solid seam detailing and strong cotton fabric. It came with antique silvery buttons, and silver and antique copper studs on the collar and pocket covers.…
Read More Olive Venezia TailcoatFinished! Inspired by Tarnhelm legends, the myths of Hermes, and the Celtic (not Viking) winged helmet, this wearable art cap softly shimmers with bronze ribbon and metallic bead accents. I had a few false starts with the beadwork, and I’ll be getting a clearer picture of the front. But in general, I’m really happy with…
Read More Dieselpunk Valkyrie capIt is that lovely time of the summer when the Hugo Awards are happening. In just a few minutes, we’ll see what kind of debacle this will be. Livestreaming here: http://www.ustream.tv/hugo-awards Added: congratulations to the deserving winners, the deserving nominees, the suffering announcers, and the sweaty audience of Hotel Debacle. And jeers to the sad…
Read More 2016 Hugo AwardsI may or may not be there, depending on: Heatwaves. Seriously, folks, it’s going to be 120F on Saturday. I’ve lived here for nearly 30 years. It would take extraordinary enticements to make me brave even crossing the street in central Phoenix if I’m not absolutely required to do so. I will probably be lurking…
Read More Phoenix Comicon begins today!This tweet from IngramSpark is getting a category in Filigree’s Rule, but I thought it should have its own blog post, too: *** IngramSpark@IngramSpark #Selfpublishing is a great way to promote your new book, even if you plan to use a traditional publisher in the future. *** For one, it’s wrong. Wrong wrong wrong wrongity…
Read More Oh hell, no…or bad IngramSparkBecause no project is truly done. Not as long as I can get my grubbies back on it to correct earlier mistakes. I posted these on my Tumblr first, so I thought I should do it here, too. I have more about these pieces here.
Read More Rebuilt Rain GlovesThe short version is “To be a writer, you must write”, which I quote here from James D. MacDonald’s excellent ‘Uncle Jim’ posts on AbsoluteWrite. Also: “Rejection is nature’s way of telling you to write a better book.” For those of you starting out, or struggling along in the middle of something, it’s worth reading…
Read More More advice on how to be a writer…Day 13 of the Tour of the Universe! If you like science fiction romance, hit the button above to visit the Bitten By Romance site, and Corrina Lawson’s entry for today.
Read More Tour of the Universe, day 13Wow. Ten days in, already! That means the virtual lecture hall/dance floor over at Bitten By Romance belongs to Sabine Priestley for the day. Stop in for some intriguing introductions to science fiction romance. Comment. Maybe win prizes…
Read More Tour of the Universe, day 10The Snarkology blog catches up to author Sydney St. Claire today, as she shares her by-the-bootstraps journey to publication, and the changes she’s noticed in the publishing industry since the pre-Internet days. Her writing career started when she wrote a single compelling scene in a genre she loved to read – Native American romance – and made…
Read More Paths to Publishing – Sydney St. ClaireWarning: I put on my pro-science hat here. Thanks to a friend’s generosity, I attended the February 1, 2014 ‘Parallel Realities’ discussion at Arizona State University. This is part of an ongoing series of lectures and other events called The Origins Project: “…an exciting transdisciplinary initiative that fosters new research and dialog, partners to transform…
Read More The Origins Project and sad little realitiesI’m not, yet. Not that I know of. But it’s only a matter of time. In June, apparently driven by pressure from the resurgent Russian Orthodox Church, Russia passed sweeping anti-homosexual legislation essentially making it a crime to even talk publicly about LGBTQ topics. It’s another ‘think of the children’ outcry, spuriously ignoring the many…
Read More Banned in Russia?(I loaded these snippets as part of a four-day online celebration in tandem with the GayRomLit 2012 retreat. Now that the conference is over, the Moro snippets are going back into the outtake vault.) If a blank space bothers you, imagine daffodils:
Read More ‘No Pouting’ Party, day three: character interview, R rating for sexual content(Now that GayRomLit is over, these snippets are going back in the outtake vault, where they may or may not show up in finished manuscripts.) If a blank space bothers you, imagine lilies:
Read More “No Pouting’ Party Day 2: Attack of the Snippets