Fri - November 2, 2007Happier News: Stardeep PublishedHey, guess what? My novel
Stardeep is
published and now available! You may recall I published stardeep.net to
promote the book and to provide additional resources,
including:
1) a reading of the first couple pages by the vocally talented East Hill Players. 2) a free email address with stardep.net as the domain name. 
Also, if you want to discuss Stardeep with other readers, Candlekeep is hosting a book club for Stardeep, where you can discuss the book with others as you progress through the novel. Candlekeep Book Club Discussion, Stardeep Chapters 1-6, 7-12, 13-18, 19-24, and 25-29. Stardeep is part of the Dungeons series, but like all the Dungeons series, it is a stand-alone novel that takes place in and around a dungeon environment. Though it truly is a stand-alone novel, it turns out Stardeep is a prequel to a novel trilogy pending in 2008, the first book of which is nearly through its first draft; 73,000 out of 90,000 words are complete, but I can't disclose the title or topic quite yet. If you read Stardeep, it's possible you will be able to guess. Posted at 12:51 PM Sun - September 16, 2007Stardeep Audible Sample Now AvailableThose of you who are already daily visitors at
stardeep.net probably already know this news,
but for all the rest of you, the first audible sample for the upcoming
Stardeep novel
has gone live here!
Posted at 04:55 PM Thu - September 13, 2007Mon - July 23, 2007Realms Of WarPaul
Kemp notes that the story anthology
Realms of War
is now listed on Amazon. I bring this to your attention because I contributed a
short story to the compilation. Moreover, it is a short story I'm happy with.
That's saying a lot for a short story. Short stories are hard! Luckily, Dee had
a great idea I ran with. So I owe her thanks, her and Abraham Lincoln.
Posted at 12:50 PM Wed - May 16, 2007Home TodayThis is day three of three of a little vacation
from work, which I took to stay at home and write a short
story.
The going has been pretty good... but I still have a couple thousand words to write by day's end. The first draft of this story is due Monday. I am not sure how well I would do if I worked at home, either as a telecommuter or a full-time writer. The idea of it really draws me; you know, a writer's life. Unfortunately, I've discovered something else draws me, too: the pantry! If I were to become a full-time writer, I'd have to get a lock on the fridge and pantry, else every hour I'd be down there browsing for (partially-hydrogenated oil-free) crackers, bread, fruit bars, whatever. You know, now that I think of it, I'll be right back... Posted at 03:00 PM Fri - April 20, 2007Tue - February 13, 2007And the Writing CommencesRegarding my next freelance project, the Monday before
last I began putting actual words on paper (well, shuffling electrons on a thin
film of cobalt alloy... you know what I mean). Because I have an exceptionally
long deadline on this first book, it turns out I only need to write 450 words a
day to make my 90,000 word deadline.
Easy!
But, on days 1-3, I accomplished nothing more than to dance a cardboard man on a popsickle stick down a set made from a decorated shoe-box on its side. I felt like I was running through mud. But each day, I went through the previous text to add, snip, and expand minor points, until by last Friday, I actually had a real start. A "real" character with cogent thoughts and concerns that a reader might actually care enough to follow. Or so I hope. Anyhow, we are well and truly launched. Only 87,000 words to go on book one :-). Posted at 09:53 AM Thu - January 11, 2007Actual Outline CompleteNot long ago I crowed about figuring out the direction I was going to take
in writing an outline for an upcoming book. Now, I've actually completed the
outline for book one of the three book trilogy, plus I finished the (much
briefer) story arc for books two and
three.
I've never been too big a fan of outlines. I've always felt better writing as I go along, trusting that everything will turn out well in the end. But sometimes outlines are demanded. Strangely, when asked to submit an outline, a part of me that is much more anal than you'd expect if you knew me drives me to write a complete several page outline in numbered chapters hitting every plot point. This practice places pressure on me to come up with essentially the entire novel in a relatively short period (I have traditionally given myself a week to do this, taking the whole period off from game design). It's taken awhile, but I've learned two really nice things about doing outlines this way when writing my previous four books. First, when the time comes to actually write, I can put more effort into putting evocative words on the page without worrying whether everything will tie together in the end--I've already done all that heavy lifting when I wrote the chapter-by-chapter outline. Second and more importantly, I know that I can veer wildly from the outline if a new character or idea bubbles up during the writing phase, and adjust the outline on the fly. This second part is really important, because as I initially noted, I really have never liked outlines--I always felt that they walled me in, requiring that I adhere to pre-set limitations. Thankfully, I've learned that doesn't have to be true. Posted at 06:18 PM Fri - December 29, 2006Outline of an OutlineYes! I've just completed the outline for an
outline! With this in hand, I can construct the real outline (a chapter by
chapter synopsis) for 'book one' that my editor will accept. Dear readers, I'm
doing the 'dance of doneness' because I really had only the vaguest notions of
where I wanted to take this novel trilogy I'll be writing freelance over the
next 3 years.
But, now I HAVE a notion, and some characters, and major plot points for all 3 books. It all just sort of crystallized out of the notes I've been taking for the last six or so months. I was counting on that magical moment happening, but yet at the same time afraid that this time around it wouldn't. But, thank you subconscious mind for doing all the heavy lifting for me, once again. I'm afraid I can't be more specific on the trilogy, other than to say it'll be set in the world of Toril, on (and sometimes under) the continent of Faerûn. Ok, I can also tell you this. Minor plot threads introduced in Darkvision (1) will see expansion in another novel coming out next fall (2), and finally be realized in all their epic glory in the trilogy. The trilogy for which I've just completed the outline of the outline :-). 1 Purely as easter eggs. 2 The name of which I can't reveal since it's not yet in the catalogue, though the 2nd draft is over the wall. Posted at 11:17 AM Tue - November 14, 2006Jack WilliamsonJack Williamson, long-time prolific author of
science fiction, passed away. As Rich Baker points out, he sold his first
publication to Amazing Stories in 1928. He published his last novel, the
Stonehenge
Gate last year, when he was 97 years
old. I read it, and many of his earlier stories, but among the many, several of
which I quite enjoyed, one stands supreme (for
me).
At age 11 I read Brother to Demons, Brother to Gods by Williamson. I suppose all books you read at such an impresionable age blow you away and become a personal standard of comparison, and this novel is on that list for me. I'm sure I've reread it more than five times over the last 27 years, though not recently. Through his literature Jack Williamson helped shape my imagination with his visions of far futures and strained realities. 
Posted at 09:54 AM Thu - November 9, 2006GorgonWith my XBOX 360 malfunctioning and its status in
limbo, my portal on that particular alternate reality remains dark. In the
meantime I've been doing more reading, which has turned out to be a very good
thing.
Thanks to Rich Baker, one of the books I recently finished was Gorgon: The Monsters That Ruled the Planet Before Dinosaurs and How They Died in the Greatest Catastrophe in Earth's History. This book provides a glimpse into the age of 'mammal-like reptiles' that was every bit as thick with life as the age of dinosaurs AFTER it; in fact, this extinction was even more encompassing than the one that killed the dinosaurs 200+ million years later. Wow. It's also a story by and about local Seattle professor Peter Ward's experiences over last few decades unraveling the Permian extinction mystery in the harsh African Karoo desert. His many trips to the region occurred during the period overlapping apartheid and Mandela's subsequent release. Posted at 09:01 AM Tue - September 12, 2006Darkvision ReleasedSeptember 12th marks the release date of
Darkvision, by
yours truly.
An excerpt: Qari reached out from the glow into the darkness where Ususi trod and said, “Take my hand, sister. You shouldn’t be so afraid of the dark, you know. Darkness is my constant companion. It doesn’t terrify me. I’ve learned to make a friend of it.” Posted at 10:35 AM Mon - September 4, 2006Darkvision Audio (podcast) PrologueWith the aid of Julia Martin and Corey Macourek
at Wizards of the Coast, I recorded an audio clip to introduce the publication
of my novel Darkvision.
Darkvision
is the third novel in the "Wizards"-themed Forgotten Realms quadrilogy (though
Darkvision
stands completely on its own, being related to the others only in that the main
character is a wizard). If you'd like to download and give a listen, go here:
-http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Wizards/?doc=fr_darkvisionprologue 
Posted at 04:32 PM Thu - August 17, 2006Book Review: Language of God(Via Pharyngula) Sam
Harris sees Language
of God
as triumph of ignorance over
death:
"If one wonders how beguiled, self-deceived and carefree in the service of fallacy a scientist can be in the United States in the 21st century, "The Language of God" provides the answer. The only thing that mitigates the harm this book will do to the stature of science in the United States is that it will be mostly read by people for whom science has little stature already. Viewed from abroad, "The Language of God" will be seen as another reason to wonder about the fate of American society. Indeed, it is rare that one sees the thumbprint of historical contingency so visible on the lens of intellectual discourse. This is an American book, attesting to American ignorance, written for Americans who believe that ignorance is stronger than death. Reading it should provoke feelings of collective guilt in any sensitive secularist. We should be ashamed that this book was written in our own time." Posted at 12:41 PM Tue - August 1, 2006Library ThingThe site LibraryThing
seems destined to succeed. If you have a book collection of any size and a
desire to catalogue it, check out this website. If you're like me and already
bought a catalogue program (Delicious LIbrary in my case), LibraryThing still
has potential, as you can import library files of all
types.
The cool thing about this online library catalogue is that you can cross index by other people's collections. That basic interactivity seems pretty cool to me. I only have about a quarter of my books in Delicious LIbrary (not counting game books), so even with the import feature, the library I'm showing LibraryThing is no where near complete. Ah well. -http://www.librarything.com/ Posted at 10:48 AM |
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