I just wrote 2k on the scorpion story - which brings us up to 24k. There's some epic emotions in there, and some of that was pretty damn intense to write.
So looks like the Ganesha is working. :) Have to find some sweets to offer to him, but fact is, we don't have anything like that in the house.
I cleared out one of the last few boxes in the library. We're getting there, clearly. There's only 2 boxes left now. Will have to hang clothes and shirts and vet some more stuff, but I'll soon be able to show photographs of the library.
Other than that, I've rediscovered my mad love for Hammerfall, and discovered Stratovarius. Will have to get an iTunes card and load up on them. Next thing I'll buy is a stereo system with a docking station for my iPod and an external harddrive for my music. Three weeks until I get paid. July is pretty damned long.
And I've started a new project.
Sunday, 11 July 2010
Friday, 9 July 2010
Heat wave
I'm languishing under the UK heat wave. It's the hottest day of the year, and there are public health warnings. I'm sticking to chilled coffees and to staying out of the heat. Our move didn't come one moment too early, since the new hhouse copes so much better with heat and now we have the garden to catch some air in the shaded areas in the back (decking, trees, roses, it's pretty damn nice).
Weekend will see me have to go shopping. I need a bunch of work shirts and a new pair of shoes. I just destroyed my last pair of work-suitable black leather shoes. Damnation.
I'm currently running a writing workshop, which, ironically, means I'm not writing myself (funny how that works). I'll be back to normal next week, but I'll make an effort to write at least a little today and a little more over the weekend.
Since my duties increase and I get more and more things to do, I assume I'm doing good in the new job. I have to edit a couple freelancer features and wrote two small features about pretty complex regulation stuff, so I think I'm set up well to write my long feature of 3-4k next month. It's easier to care about something that's more complex and keeps challenging you than an industry that runs very much along very similar lines. I'm not sure I fully grasped how perversely, deeply bored I was in the old job.
Also got invited to a couple chats with lawyers and then the World Sugar Conference thing in Cambridge this month. There's so much stuff going on that I could run from event to event and never cover it all. Pretty awesome, actually.
Will likely fly out to Moscow and New York this year, and then to the Windy City, too. Should be fun and I'm looking forward to that. Will also mean I'll get some reading/reviewing in in the meantime, as well as images and people and time for the writing.
It does seem like I'm turning into one of those famous journalist/writers. That was something I never wanted to be - but I think it is my niche and I'll be doing OK there. No more industry-hopping, no more fears I'm not doing what I should be doing. I'm enjoying myself and life can only get more awesome from here.
Weekend will see me have to go shopping. I need a bunch of work shirts and a new pair of shoes. I just destroyed my last pair of work-suitable black leather shoes. Damnation.
I'm currently running a writing workshop, which, ironically, means I'm not writing myself (funny how that works). I'll be back to normal next week, but I'll make an effort to write at least a little today and a little more over the weekend.
Since my duties increase and I get more and more things to do, I assume I'm doing good in the new job. I have to edit a couple freelancer features and wrote two small features about pretty complex regulation stuff, so I think I'm set up well to write my long feature of 3-4k next month. It's easier to care about something that's more complex and keeps challenging you than an industry that runs very much along very similar lines. I'm not sure I fully grasped how perversely, deeply bored I was in the old job.
Also got invited to a couple chats with lawyers and then the World Sugar Conference thing in Cambridge this month. There's so much stuff going on that I could run from event to event and never cover it all. Pretty awesome, actually.
Will likely fly out to Moscow and New York this year, and then to the Windy City, too. Should be fun and I'm looking forward to that. Will also mean I'll get some reading/reviewing in in the meantime, as well as images and people and time for the writing.
It does seem like I'm turning into one of those famous journalist/writers. That was something I never wanted to be - but I think it is my niche and I'll be doing OK there. No more industry-hopping, no more fears I'm not doing what I should be doing. I'm enjoying myself and life can only get more awesome from here.
Wednesday, 7 July 2010
Cover art: First Blood
Aaaaand, the promised cover for "First Blood", the sequel to "Clean Slate". Red is the main topic here.
Cover again by the amazing Paul Richmond!
Tuesday, 6 July 2010
Release day: Risky Maneuvers is out
Today, Barbara Sheridan's and my "Risky Maneuvers" is out from Loose Id. It's classed as a GLBT sci-fi, so, yeah, that's what you can expect.
I read it this morning on my mobile phone (and promptly boarded the wrong train, doofus) and it definitely shortened *my* commute - even if it was longer than normal. I skimmed some bits, but overall, I'm really happy with it. Good little story. Happy to write the sequel if people want it.
Job still kicks my ass in fifteen ways, but all of them good. I haven't been so engaged and alert at a desk for a pay cheque in a long time (granted, when the markets went to hell over the last 18 months, there was very little to report on). I'm learning my stuff, beginning to network, and overall I really enjoy this. The German sense of "law and order" has already reasserted itself. My desk is the only one in this area that's not strewn with papers, and I've just used a moment to throw away a couple geological layers of paper cluttering up our printer. I think over the next weeks I'll begin spreading my influence and order, doubtlessly recycling a medium-sized rainforest in the process.
I'm currently teaching creative writing (it's an on-off thing, three times per year for a few weeks), so I'm spending a fair bit of my writing time explaining some basics to some people. For money, yeah, but it does get in the way of the writing right now. I'm still thinking stuff through and I'm getting a handle on a couple projects. What I'd like now is a month off or on part-time for my fingers to catch up with the writing I've done in my head.
Landlord paid some of our deposit back. I'm glad to be gone from the clutches of that greedy a$$hole, but we won't fight the guy over the money. A waste of energy, even though he's making me want to warn everybody away from signing up to rent anything from that greedy super-rich bastard. Here's a real life vampire, no mistaking. Makes me wish his buy-to-let-and-then-bleed-tenants-dry empire would have come crashing down, but it didn't.
Still, the deposit is still a nice boost in a month where I'm incredibly tight with cash. So, yeah, the income from teaching writing will be good, and who knows, there might even be some royalties coming my way, since June is the end of the quarter. All good.
No writing at all since yesterday. I was planning to get up early today and write for an hour before heading to work, but my partner came home well past midnight, somewhat hung-over after a huge x-course work dinner, and there's no way he can sleep through me typing in the next room. The walls/doors aren't that thick, the study is right next to the bedroom. There went the writing.
I could do some writing on the netbook - if the Acer Aspire's battery pack hadn't been blown (I didn't use if for a while, so now it refuses to hold a charge). There's an expense that's not in the budget this month.
I've seen the final cover for "First Blood" and Paul Richmond did an amazing job, as usual. The theme of the series seems to be "red". One of my favourite colours. The other's teal. I'll have to do some "promo" for "First Blood" and update the website - all tonight once I get home (can't reasonably do that from work).
And now back to US regulation. Btw - that Wall Street Bill? Wobbly piece of wobbly wobble you can drive a truck through. I'm not a lawyer, but even I can see it (after having read a fair bit of it). Next financial crisis is just around the corner - funny when you let the "goat do the gardening", as we say in German.
But yeah, big news - Risky Maneuvers is out!
I read it this morning on my mobile phone (and promptly boarded the wrong train, doofus) and it definitely shortened *my* commute - even if it was longer than normal. I skimmed some bits, but overall, I'm really happy with it. Good little story. Happy to write the sequel if people want it.
Job still kicks my ass in fifteen ways, but all of them good. I haven't been so engaged and alert at a desk for a pay cheque in a long time (granted, when the markets went to hell over the last 18 months, there was very little to report on). I'm learning my stuff, beginning to network, and overall I really enjoy this. The German sense of "law and order" has already reasserted itself. My desk is the only one in this area that's not strewn with papers, and I've just used a moment to throw away a couple geological layers of paper cluttering up our printer. I think over the next weeks I'll begin spreading my influence and order, doubtlessly recycling a medium-sized rainforest in the process.
I'm currently teaching creative writing (it's an on-off thing, three times per year for a few weeks), so I'm spending a fair bit of my writing time explaining some basics to some people. For money, yeah, but it does get in the way of the writing right now. I'm still thinking stuff through and I'm getting a handle on a couple projects. What I'd like now is a month off or on part-time for my fingers to catch up with the writing I've done in my head.
Landlord paid some of our deposit back. I'm glad to be gone from the clutches of that greedy a$$hole, but we won't fight the guy over the money. A waste of energy, even though he's making me want to warn everybody away from signing up to rent anything from that greedy super-rich bastard. Here's a real life vampire, no mistaking. Makes me wish his buy-to-let-and-then-bleed-tenants-dry empire would have come crashing down, but it didn't.
Still, the deposit is still a nice boost in a month where I'm incredibly tight with cash. So, yeah, the income from teaching writing will be good, and who knows, there might even be some royalties coming my way, since June is the end of the quarter. All good.
No writing at all since yesterday. I was planning to get up early today and write for an hour before heading to work, but my partner came home well past midnight, somewhat hung-over after a huge x-course work dinner, and there's no way he can sleep through me typing in the next room. The walls/doors aren't that thick, the study is right next to the bedroom. There went the writing.
I could do some writing on the netbook - if the Acer Aspire's battery pack hadn't been blown (I didn't use if for a while, so now it refuses to hold a charge). There's an expense that's not in the budget this month.
I've seen the final cover for "First Blood" and Paul Richmond did an amazing job, as usual. The theme of the series seems to be "red". One of my favourite colours. The other's teal. I'll have to do some "promo" for "First Blood" and update the website - all tonight once I get home (can't reasonably do that from work).
And now back to US regulation. Btw - that Wall Street Bill? Wobbly piece of wobbly wobble you can drive a truck through. I'm not a lawyer, but even I can see it (after having read a fair bit of it). Next financial crisis is just around the corner - funny when you let the "goat do the gardening", as we say in German.
But yeah, big news - Risky Maneuvers is out!
Monday, 5 July 2010
Scorpion at 22k
After a fairly pathetic weekend in terms of wordcount (1,200 words), I've still hit the 22k mark, which equates to a third of a novel. Right now, it looks like it might be around 60-90k. First feedback from long-standing betas is enthusiastic, one even said that it's the best I've done so far. This is one of the weird things about this particular project. Not only is it pretty consuming - all good projects are, and even more when they are written solo - but I keep having that feeling it's a new "voice", or a new way to use my voice.
The main character's way of seeing things is pretty understated, which lends a lot more impact to what's going on. Proof that you don't have to toss out FIVE BIG DRAMATIC WORDS IN A SHATTERED GRAMMATICAL STRUCTURE SPICED UP WITH SOME EXTRA DRAMA AND SENTIMENTALISM to get an effect.
This begins to feel a bit less like m/m fantasy and a lot more like mainstream military fantasy with some explicit sex. (Okay, a fair amount of explicit sex). But in any case, I think I'm headed the right way and it's going to be a good book, overall. Timeline has changed, too. Despite the fact it's fantasy and I'm currently making things up as I go along, I might have to do some planning and world-building, so the idea is to finish this by year-end, sooner, if that works, but I'm definitely not rushing this.
I'm also, again, changing genres. I've always loved fantasy, and in a way I'm now heading back that way. I have a few more fantasy ideas (also with explicit sex), which want to be written. One of them might be the final - finally - incarnation of that age-old story I started at 19ish and that never got off the ground for several reasons. I'll finally concede defeat and accept that it's a sci-fi story, not a contemporary. It started as a cyberpunk story in the near-future, but I'd have to do a lot of extrapolation to make it work. Some themes of that - reverse racism - don't work, others, - treatment of "state-less people" work and are important, but not quite like I would have wanted. Sometimes, you gotta bend the story to reality, rather than the other way round.
Now that I've found my feet again, I start digging around in the boxes with "beloved and abandoned" written over them. All the novel attempts that I couldn't get to work, all the oh-so-ambitious and oh-so-literary things that I never managed to pull together because, frankly, I wasn't good enough for it, and there was no genre for them, either, can now come out and play and get finished. Unfinished business is a constant stressor in my brain, so that will help. Also, ideas I still love after 13-15 years probably have something going for them.
Lots of stuff in the pipeline.
The main character's way of seeing things is pretty understated, which lends a lot more impact to what's going on. Proof that you don't have to toss out FIVE BIG DRAMATIC WORDS IN A SHATTERED GRAMMATICAL STRUCTURE SPICED UP WITH SOME EXTRA DRAMA AND SENTIMENTALISM to get an effect.
This begins to feel a bit less like m/m fantasy and a lot more like mainstream military fantasy with some explicit sex. (Okay, a fair amount of explicit sex). But in any case, I think I'm headed the right way and it's going to be a good book, overall. Timeline has changed, too. Despite the fact it's fantasy and I'm currently making things up as I go along, I might have to do some planning and world-building, so the idea is to finish this by year-end, sooner, if that works, but I'm definitely not rushing this.
I'm also, again, changing genres. I've always loved fantasy, and in a way I'm now heading back that way. I have a few more fantasy ideas (also with explicit sex), which want to be written. One of them might be the final - finally - incarnation of that age-old story I started at 19ish and that never got off the ground for several reasons. I'll finally concede defeat and accept that it's a sci-fi story, not a contemporary. It started as a cyberpunk story in the near-future, but I'd have to do a lot of extrapolation to make it work. Some themes of that - reverse racism - don't work, others, - treatment of "state-less people" work and are important, but not quite like I would have wanted. Sometimes, you gotta bend the story to reality, rather than the other way round.
Now that I've found my feet again, I start digging around in the boxes with "beloved and abandoned" written over them. All the novel attempts that I couldn't get to work, all the oh-so-ambitious and oh-so-literary things that I never managed to pull together because, frankly, I wasn't good enough for it, and there was no genre for them, either, can now come out and play and get finished. Unfinished business is a constant stressor in my brain, so that will help. Also, ideas I still love after 13-15 years probably have something going for them.
Lots of stuff in the pipeline.
Sunday, 4 July 2010
Bullet time
I just updated my website with current projects and release dates. Looking back over the last six months, I did have a lot of releases. The last one, however, was in early May, and since then, I've been wrapped up in house and job things. It feels like I haven't published anything in years.
That's another good answer to the question "how do you publish/write so much?" - my sense of time is utterly screwed. It feels like I'm trapped in an eternal case of bullet time.
At the moment, though, there are only four releases with any certainty.
- "Risky Maneuvers" is going to be out this week.
- I hesitate to promise "Don't Ask Don't Tell" - that project has been bedeviled with so much bad luck, I fully expect the printer to burn down when it goes into production. If everything goes right (hah!), though, we're looking at a release this July. July 2011 is just as likely.
- "Lion of Kent" will come out from Carina Press in late August 2010.
- "First Blood" is due out in September.
And that's me done this year. So far. There might be a few stragglers here and there, but that's what I have contracts for right now.
But, bullet time. Bullet time says "it's been ages since you finished something/sold a story/got a contract". The other resolutions were to move into my own house and get a job that I like and pays a lot more. Yup, both are covered.
The next six months will be about finding a new routine and finishing 2-3 full novels - either hard editing or wrapping up.
Ah, next thing to happen - get that eagle/phoenix tattoo. But not in summer. And another tailored suit from my source. This time, we're looking at a three-piece. I might even get a watch on a chain.
That's another good answer to the question "how do you publish/write so much?" - my sense of time is utterly screwed. It feels like I'm trapped in an eternal case of bullet time.
At the moment, though, there are only four releases with any certainty.
- "Risky Maneuvers" is going to be out this week.
- I hesitate to promise "Don't Ask Don't Tell" - that project has been bedeviled with so much bad luck, I fully expect the printer to burn down when it goes into production. If everything goes right (hah!), though, we're looking at a release this July. July 2011 is just as likely.
- "Lion of Kent" will come out from Carina Press in late August 2010.
- "First Blood" is due out in September.
And that's me done this year. So far. There might be a few stragglers here and there, but that's what I have contracts for right now.
But, bullet time. Bullet time says "it's been ages since you finished something/sold a story/got a contract". The other resolutions were to move into my own house and get a job that I like and pays a lot more. Yup, both are covered.
The next six months will be about finding a new routine and finishing 2-3 full novels - either hard editing or wrapping up.
Ah, next thing to happen - get that eagle/phoenix tattoo. But not in summer. And another tailored suit from my source. This time, we're looking at a three-piece. I might even get a watch on a chain.
Saturday, 3 July 2010
On the right track
Germany makes the last 4. Here I was, head in the sand, expecting Maradonna's boys to demolish Germany. Well, yeah. Optimist =/= me. Now, though, having built so much momentum, I think our "Eleven" can make it all the way. Fourth World Cup? Adding another star to the three? Would be awesome.
Of course, Holland versus Germany could very well mean blood on the streets. There are some pairings that just spell trouble.
Amusing, how the Internet screams "Nazis" already. Klose is Polish. Ozil is Turkish. I think Podolski has Polish ancestors. Piotr Trochowski? Yes, that's a *really* German name right there.
The black kit? Awesome.
On the writing front, I've just pulled a story from a publisher that didn't give me an answer after three emails and subbed the story to one of my other pubs. It's not my favourite thing in the world to do, but there goes.
On the front of new writing, I've spent some time thinking about the scorpion story and talked things through with Gileonnen. After prodding at some elements that stand there and that I don't want to rewrite, I think I have enough plot to fill a full-sized novel. So that's what I'm now writing. It's grown to enough complexity go warrant that. If I can keep the intensity on that level, things are good. If I can't, well, at least I tried.
When push comes to shove, I never have any qualms about self-publishing, either. Editing is no big deal, I know several cover artist there (and would be happy to pay a pro, anyway). Which is to say I'm worried that this novel is too dark and too intense for most pubs. Casperian might be a good fit, I'm thinking, after they put out the brilliant Administration Series by Manna Francis, and The Rage of Achilles. But all options are open at this point. I just want to have paper copies of this one if I really do go the full 60-80k length.
Will have to check. But that's counting the chickens before they've hatched.
And I got through my first week at work alright. The only problem I'm seeing with the place is their very strict Internet policy. Means I'm not getting distracted by personal email, but also means I come home to 200-250+ emails every day. So I switched off several author loops that just consisted of a hundred one-liner emails every day, left some groups, put others on "web only" and several on "daily digest". That cut down my emails, so far, to around 50, which is manageable and doesn't kill off my writing time. I much rather focus on the communities like Goodreads and Facebook and Livejournal and direct personal email than read author loop mails all day.
This networking thing is a time-eater, and I have to be careful not to damage the writing.
Talking of which, I'm going to work on the scorpion story today. At the moment, the vibe I'm getting is way less m/m romancy and way more gay fantasy (with lots of explicit sex), but I'll see where it goes. So far, I'm pretty pleased with how it's turning out.
Of course, Holland versus Germany could very well mean blood on the streets. There are some pairings that just spell trouble.
Amusing, how the Internet screams "Nazis" already. Klose is Polish. Ozil is Turkish. I think Podolski has Polish ancestors. Piotr Trochowski? Yes, that's a *really* German name right there.
The black kit? Awesome.
On the writing front, I've just pulled a story from a publisher that didn't give me an answer after three emails and subbed the story to one of my other pubs. It's not my favourite thing in the world to do, but there goes.
On the front of new writing, I've spent some time thinking about the scorpion story and talked things through with Gileonnen. After prodding at some elements that stand there and that I don't want to rewrite, I think I have enough plot to fill a full-sized novel. So that's what I'm now writing. It's grown to enough complexity go warrant that. If I can keep the intensity on that level, things are good. If I can't, well, at least I tried.
When push comes to shove, I never have any qualms about self-publishing, either. Editing is no big deal, I know several cover artist there (and would be happy to pay a pro, anyway). Which is to say I'm worried that this novel is too dark and too intense for most pubs. Casperian might be a good fit, I'm thinking, after they put out the brilliant Administration Series by Manna Francis, and The Rage of Achilles. But all options are open at this point. I just want to have paper copies of this one if I really do go the full 60-80k length.
Will have to check. But that's counting the chickens before they've hatched.
And I got through my first week at work alright. The only problem I'm seeing with the place is their very strict Internet policy. Means I'm not getting distracted by personal email, but also means I come home to 200-250+ emails every day. So I switched off several author loops that just consisted of a hundred one-liner emails every day, left some groups, put others on "web only" and several on "daily digest". That cut down my emails, so far, to around 50, which is manageable and doesn't kill off my writing time. I much rather focus on the communities like Goodreads and Facebook and Livejournal and direct personal email than read author loop mails all day.
This networking thing is a time-eater, and I have to be careful not to damage the writing.
Talking of which, I'm going to work on the scorpion story today. At the moment, the vibe I'm getting is way less m/m romancy and way more gay fantasy (with lots of explicit sex), but I'll see where it goes. So far, I'm pretty pleased with how it's turning out.
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