Guest Posters

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Character Post

February 4, 2012 in Guest Posters, Writing | 2 comments

I’m busy working on a short story, so I’m going to let one of my characters post for me today. Okay, guys, duke it out and the winner does the post.

Guess who? Like I would let anybody else do this.

Bud Blossom

Yeah, it’s me, Bud Blossom. “MomGoth” is writing a story with ME in it, finally, but she always has somebody else narrate it, so she doesn’t need me to be there, just Cosmo’s perception of me. She thinks I’m always wanting to be in her stories, but what I really want is for the stories to be about me. Less work, more glory.

If you don’t know me yet, I’m kinda-sorta Chinese-American. Own a restaurant on a houseboat on Cherokee Creek in a little midwestern town she made up. Indiana, I think it’s supposed to be. Yeah, Indiana. I talk all “no savvy Eengree” — you know, pidgin — when I want to irritate my servers, but really I talk just like everybody around me.

She made me up for “Blossom on the Water”, which sounds a helluva lot prettier than it is, since I’m the Blossom in the title. Then Cosmo’s mother needed a job in “Tara Incognita” and it turned out she worked for me. After that, MA stuck me into a story here and there. She thinks she’s wrestling me to keep me out of them, but the truth is, she’s the one who keeps bringing me up. That’s because she’s bone-lazy, and a strong character is easier to write about.

After she had a few stories about me, some of my employees, their friends and relatives, she collected them into THE KING OF CHEROKEE CREEK and self-published it. Some of the stories she had sold here and there and some of them were new. She could have used one of those for the anthology she’s writing for this weekend, but she gets a kick out of me, whether she admits it or not, and she wanted to write a new story. She gets a kick out of Cosmo, too, so he’s doing the grunt work and narrating the damn thing. Better him than me.

Well, I gotta get back to work. The staff should be coming in to do their side work for the lunch crowd, and Lonnie’s already in the kitchen. No, not that Lonnie. I’m imaginary, not stupid.

WRITING PROMPT: Let one of your characters write a blog post on the subject most on his or her mind at the moment. Him- or herself, for instance.

MA

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Creative Commons – One Man’s Use

January 30, 2012 in Guest Posters, Writing | 2 comments

Guesting today is the FAH-boo-loos James Hutchings. I recently finished reading James’ THE NEW DEATH AND OTHERS, a collection of short stories I can’t recommend highly enough. I asked James to share his thoughts and uses of Creative Commons and he shared:

Not James Hutchings

Many writers, whether published or just starting out, are very nervous that someone else will steal their work, whether that be another writer using their ideas in their own stories, or someone making pirated copies of their books. When I put out a collection of my writing, I specifically gave permission for anyone at all to copy my ideas, or even to cut and paste whole stories. I also contacted the Pirate Party, a worldwide network that wants to lessen copyright, and told them that I was giving anyone permission to put my ebook on file-sharing sites. In this post I hope to show why I went against common wisdom.

Creative Commons

I used a free service called Creative Commons. Creative Commons is useful for people who want to give the general public permission to use their work, but with restrictions. In my case I didn’t mind people using my work for non-profit purposes, such as posting on a blog, but I didn’t want to allow anyone to make money off it. Similarly I wanted anyone who used it to give me credit. I could have just listed these things myself. However I’m not a lawyer, and perhaps I would have worded it wrong so that someone could twist what I said to do more than I meant. Also I could have been unclear about what I was allowing and what I wasn’t allowing. Sure, someone could email me and ask, but the whole purpose of having a written statement is so that people don’t have to ask.

Creative Commons has a series of different licenses, which give permission to do different things. They’re all legally ‘tight’, and they’re all summarized in plain language. So all you have to do is go to their site and answer a series of questions, to get to the license that does what you want. In my case I used the Attribution Non-Commercial License.

Why?

That’s what I did. But why? Common sense would suggest that I’m giving something away for free that I could be selling. However I believe that, in the long run, I’ll be better off. The main reason is that I’ve seen how many people are, like me, trying to get their writing out there. Go to Smashwords and have a look at the latest ebooks. Then refresh the page ten minutes later, and you’ll probably see a whole new lot. The problem that new writers face isn’t that people want to steal your work; it’s getting anyone to show an interest in your work at all. If someone passes on a pirated copy of my work, it might get to someone who’s prepared to buy it – and that someone would probably have never heard of me otherwise. Even if they don’t want to pay for what they read, I might come out with something else in the future, and perhaps paying 99c for it will be easier than hunting it down on a file-sharing site.

Science fiction writer Andrew Burt tells the story of someone who disliked his book, and to get back at him decided to put a copy on a file-sharing site. The effect was that he got a small ‘spike’ in sales immediately afterwards.

I also have some less selfish motives. Many people would assume that the purpose of copyright is to protect authors and creators. Leaving aside the fact that someone else often ends up with the rights (how many Disney shareholders created any of the Disney characters? How many shareholders in Microsoft have ever written a line of code?), that doesn’t seem to have been the intention in the past. The US Constitution says that Congress has the power “to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries.” Note that protecting ‘intellectual property’ isn’t mentioned. The authors of the Constitution seemed to see the point as getting ideas out there where people can use them: almost the exact opposite of keeping them ‘safe’ and ‘protected’.

The original idea of copyright seems to have been a sort of deal: you have an idea, and we want you to get it out into the world where it will do some good. To encourage you to do that, we’ll give you a monopoly on its use for a limited time. After that, anybody can use it (it will enter the ‘public domain’).

A lot of people don’t know that copyright used to give a lot less protection than it does now, especially in the United States. In the US, it used to be that works were copyrighted for a maximum of 56 years. Today copyright in the US can last for over 100 years. In fact Congress keeps extending the time. In practice, they’re acting as if they never want ideas to go into the public domain.

This is great for the owners of ‘intellectual property’. But it’s hard to see how this “promotes the Progress of Science and useful Arts,” or how forever is a “limited time.” In a sense it’s a theft from the public. Anyone who publishes work has accepted the deal that the law offers, of a limited monopoly in return for making their idea known. Congress has been giving them more and more extensions on that monopoly, but doesn’t require them to do anything to earn it.

It probably doesn’t matter that much that Disney still owns Mickey Mouse, or that Lord of the Rings is still under copyright. But remember that these laws don’t just apply to the arts. Similar laws apply to science as well. So a life-saving invention could be going unused, because its owner wants too much money for it, or because it’s tied up in court while two companies fight about who owns it.

Conclusion

I’m far from an expert on either the law or the publishing industry. However I hope that I’ve given you, especially those of you who might be thinking about publishing some writing, a different take on the whole issue of whether authors should worry about their ideas being stolen. At least I hope I’ve shown you that there’s a different way of thinking about it, and that that way doesn’t require you to just give up on making money; in fact that it might be more profitable as well as better for society.

—

bio: James Hutchings lives in Melbourne, Australia. He fights crime as Poetic Justice, but his day job is acting. You might know him by his stage-name ‘Brad Pitt.’ He specializes in short fantasy fiction. His work has appeared in Daily Science Fiction, fiction365 and Enchanted Conversation among other markets. His ebook collection The New Death and others is now available from Amazon, Smashwords and Barnes & Noble. He blogs daily at Teleleli.

—

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License.

WRITING PROMPT: A character steals something and then learns that it was free anyway.

MA

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Guest Post by F. A. Hyatt on POV

January 9, 2012 in Floyd Hyatt, Guest Posters, Writing | 18 comments

POV, of course, stands for Point Of View or “Whose head are we in?” Here’s what regular guest poster Floyd Hyatt has to say about this element of fiction:

POINT OF VIEW
What you must know
by F. A. Hyatt

I have been reading several misleading (not to say ridiculous) “Guides” to Point Of View. While the subject can get complex, the important basics about Point Of View are simple.  

Point Of View indicates who the storyteller or narrator is in a particular work, or fraction of a work. That is, whose NARRATIVE PERSPECTIVE the story is told from. It is uncommon for this  perspective to change during a course of a novel. Usually, the entire work will be effected within at least the same CLASS of perspective, and common editorial advice is not to change perspective unless needed, nor more than once per chapter.

This is to keep the continuity of the reader consistent, and keep from popping him out of the story.  It is not a rule of English grammar; it is a style convention of novel and story writing. The general classes of POV are below:

First Person POV

The narrator is some agent detailing what he sees.  The pronoun ‘I’ features here: I said, I looked, It was apparent to me- these are all hallmarks of First Person Point Of View.  Narrative voice may be that of an observer, or of a character, (lead character or not; in the Great Gatsby, by Fitzgerald, the first-person narrator is Nick Carraway and not the title character Jay Gatsby himself). The fundamental feature is that this puts the reader behind only one set of eyes.  Narration may only disclose what is put before the narrator’s view, or reported to the narrator, and tagged as such. For example, a first person narrator would not be able to recount what is around some blind corner he is not in a position to see, or to report on what is behind a door that is closed to him. It cannot skip from head to head , to disclose the thoughts of others. (Unless of course the narrator is say, introduced as a telepathic being, but in order to be still considered First Person Viewpoint, this would have to be rigidly limited, and the character voiced  very strongly — this variation is sometimes called First-person Omniscient view.)

Second Person POV

This is the point of view used in text adventure games and children’s Halloween tapes. “You walk into a room. You see a jar on the table. You begin to sweat.” It is the voice of a narrator who walks behind only one person, and reports to that person his actions, or visualizations. Because it is a clinical and abstract viewpoint, its place in the novel  is very confined, and for good reason, not normally employed.

Third Person POV or Omniscient POV

This type of narrator can flit from character to character, describing scenes viewed by multiple characters, detailing their private thoughts and emotional states, even if not apparent to other onlookers. It can report on the contents of locked chests, the positions of assassins waiting hidden behind closed doors, and so forth. This is usually formal narrative. Rarely can this type of narrator be characterized. The voice is therefore largely neutral. It does not normally belong to a character, save when the narrator is cast as a storyteller, ‘Once upon a time’ fashion.  It is a neutral commentator in the root form.  It allows an author to detail actions that happen simultaneously in different story locations and to different characters from one consistent viewpoint.

Novels are commonly written in third person, some in first, almost none in second.   

There are several variations on these classes, often called VOICES. There is the Unreliable Narrator voice, for instance. – A narrator whose reporting is skewed by prejudice or belief, and who the reader understands to be making narration colored, biased, misinterpreted or wrong in perspective.

Choice of Perspective, or POV

One approach is to decide if your story requires knowing of simultaneous events occurring in different places.  If it does, First Person POV would mean having to use multiple narrators, possibly changing the narrating character too often. This causes reader disruption, what is called “Head hopping”. Alternately, it could mean writing much of the story in past tense, with the POV character reminiscing about things he learned of only later.  Often this could require frequent scene changes or short chapter sections. Third or Omniscient would commonly be the best choice of POV for such a work.

If you are writing a text adventure (quite out of  fashion in gaming, these days) then you will undoubtedly be writing in second.

If your story can be easily written from behind one set of eyes, such as is common in romances and detective stories, where identification with one hero or heroine is paramount, or where most events come before, or can be arranged to come before, one person, then First Person POV can be a plus, making for an easier identification with a particular character. Keep in mind that novels might be planned ahead to take advantage of multiple first person POV’s by making each Narrator’s section long enough to prevent head hopping.

The author should be aware that POV does not affect the necessity to be tense aware. Nor should the author confuse tense with POV.  Besides POV, most novels tend to be consistent in narrative TENSE, as well. Books that begin in a very immediate, present tense, will attract comment if the voice passes into another, more reflective tense.  Tense, unlike POV, is also a matter of grammar however, and must be adhered to as the prose dictates.

POV does not affect dialog.  Dialog is what is quoted, or spoken aloud, regardless of who reports it, or what POV a story uses.  In terms of dialog, think of the narrator’s commentary as an unquoted, disembodied voice announcing the commercials on the Price is Right.  Always consistent in tone throughout the show, but not necessarily involved in the game, or with the character’s interjected quotes. Even when writing in pure First Person POV, spoken character dialogs including the POV character’s dialogs, must be quoted,(“”) set off in their own paragraphs, and tagged as needed to identify the speakers.

Below is just one of any number of easily available descriptions of Point of View, and included here because it links to very good lists of classic works performed in each of the common styles, and validates to some extent, this summary.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narrative_mode

Terminology Generally:

It is common, in a critique, to point out unusual shifts in the narrative mode, or POV.  While important, be aware that not every reviewer will be a informed adviser in regard to POV.  One common mistake is to routinely confuse TENSE with VOICE, or either with POV.  Some may even confuse a change in writing style (another kind of problem) with a POV shift. In order to take advantage of review, it is important to know what these root terms are, and  how they are used, in order to evaluate what corrections to your work are needed.

Look up these terms and their full descriptions, and be sure you understand them, before abiding by the “will” of your critiques. Then you will be more enabled to use the opinions garnered to correctly guide your work, and offer better help to others.

Critiquing POV:

The point of establishing a consistent narrative, or storyteller, is to provide clarity for the reader, to minimize logical inconsistencies, and provide an uninterrupted, believable reading experience. Some authors can achieve this without severe POV interpretation. There are many sub-categories of POV, and many “gray” area uses overlap.  I am not overly mechanical when considering POV.  My standard is, “Does it work in the story?”  Does it bother, or confuse me?  If not, I may point out the mechanical problem, but admit it didn’t affect my experience of the story. Give a corrective example when citing a POV error.

These tips are offered to help establish some common basis for traffic between critique participants, not to limit the breadth of a critique. Look at them as a sort of basic vocabulary that can help you to better communicate what you see in a work to others.  

Thanks, Floyd! I’m sure you’ll have comments and questions, as always. Readers, if you leave a question or comment, please allow Mr. Hyatt a few days to respond. I promise you, he will. :)

WRITING PROMPT: Write a paragraph from First Person, Second Person and Third Person.

MA

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Guest Poster Russell Brooks

January 2, 2012 in Guest Posters, Writing | 10 comments

russpicbw copy

I know I said I would finish my movie review today, but I lucked into getting a post from the fabulous Russell Brooks, thriller/mystery writer, essayist, blogger, actor and damn good-looking guy.

His bio says:

Russell Brooks is a former Indiana Hoosier Track Champion and Canadian Track Team member in the 100 meters, the 200 meters, and the 4×100 meter relay. He has written several essays on his blog, The Big Picture, one of which was published in the online Op-Ed section of the National Post in early 2009. His debut novel, Pandora’s Succession, has received rave reviews from book reviewers, espionage and thriller fans. Unsavory Delicacies and the recently released thriller, Chill Run, have also been well received by thriller and mystery fans. Russell currently lives in Montreal, Quebec.

You can learn more about Russell Brooks at www.russellparkway.com.

The book description for Chill Run has one of the Best. First lines. Ever:

You know a publicity stunt has backfired when someone dies.

Starving author Eddie Barrow, Jr, will do anything to get a book deal with a NYC publisher. Even if it means getting caught by the media while engaging in S&M with a female celebrity as a publicity stunt. What Eddie gets instead are details of a billion dollar fraud scheme from a suicidal client who’s fatally shot minutes later. Now on the run from the law and the killers, Eddie seeks help from two unlikely friends—an alcoholic and a dominatrix. With few resources, Eddie races to clear his name, unveil the fraud scheme, and expose the killers before he becomes their next victim.

So here he is, ladies and gentlemen: RUSSELL BROOKS!

The Switch

Is there a rule that says that authors must stick to one kind of story? No. Well, at least none that I was able to find. Those who are familiar with my previous works, know that they fall in the espionage/thriller genre. So many might be wondering why I didn’t write another story dealing with spies, chemical weapons, government conspiracies, betrayal, and revenge? The answer is simple. I wanted to risk change.

“But aren’t you worried about losing your fan base?” No, my true fans will read whatever I write. Besides, this will be a great opportunity to show that I can write a different kind of thriller and attract new fans.

“But you’ve never written a mystery before. What experience do you have with that?” Let’s see, when I wrote Pandora’s Succession and Unsavory Delicacies, I never owned a gun (still don’t), shattered someone’s trachea with my bare hands, poisoned someone, or unleashed biological weapons on a country. Hell, I’ve never even worked for the CIA. So I didn’t have any experience with that genre either before I wrote those books. I had to research the relevant material and then let my imagination help me tell the tale.

Ironically, Chill Run was less difficult to write because I’ve gone through some of the dilemmas that protagonist, Eddie Barrow, Jr., went through. I’m sure many readers will be able to relate to a character who has problems paying the rent, who has a roommate that won’t pay their share of the bills, with a cheating girlfriend, and the list goes on. Everyone loves a Peter Parker-type character (aka Spiderman). Now take Eddie, an ordinary young man in his twenties with big dreams that are littered with roadblocks. He’s so desperate for success that he hopes to cash in on a BDSM scandal with a celebrity. It seemed like a good idea at the time, only he ends up being framed for murder after having learned the details of a billion-dollar investment fraud scheme.

Was I nervous about not releasing another espionage thriller? A bit. Do I regret it? No. Will I write espionage again? Of course. Will I venture away from espionage again? Most definitely. Some risks are worth taking. After all, variety is always good.

Thanks, Russell! I’m so pleased you stopped in to share your new book and your switch-up experience with me. In these days of “branding”, it’s nice to meet somebody else who just wants to write the story and THEN worry about where it’s going to be shelved. Short-sighted? Maybe. Commercially nonviable? I don’t even know what that means. ~sigh~ Anyway, glad to have you here, Russell, my friend.

Buy links to all three of Russell’s books can be found on the Store Page of his website.

WRITING PROMPT: How does your main character feel about variety? Write a scene between someone who likes variety and someone who does not.

MA

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Guest Poster Carol Preflatish on Conferences

December 26, 2011 in Guest Posters, Writing | 25 comments

SavedbytheSheriff_SM

One of my besties is with us today: Carol Preflatish, a long-time writer buddy. I first read Carol’s recipe-and-anecdote book, MASTERS & DISASTERS OF COOKING, which I highly recommend. Since then, she’s written and had published two romantic suspense novels, both of which have garnered much praise. The newer one, SAVED BY THE SHERIFF, has such a nifty cover that even I, who do not read romantic suspense, am attracted to it.

But here’s Carol, talking about Writing Conferences in general and one in particular.

Writers Conferences, Pro or Con

   I want to thank Marian for asking me here today. I enjoy reading her blog everyday and am honored to be a part of it.

   Occasionally, I’m asked about writers’ conferences and whether I think they can help a writer get published. For me, I’m definitely pro when it comes to conferences. I’ve attended only three conferences, because where I live there aren’t many close by. That means if I want to attend one, it involves a long drive or an overnight stay and as a part time writer with a full time job, getting time off from work can be difficult.

   My favorite conference of the three has been the Magna cum Murder Crime Writing Festival held each October in Muncie, Indiana. Magna is not a large conference, which for me, was the appeal of it. The smaller panel sessions afford the attendees the opportunity for more interaction with the panel members, other authors, and readers.

   Yes, I said readers. Many of the people attending are not authors, but readers of mystery and potential buyers of your books. However, there’s no segregation, everyone mingles with everyone for a great time. I met some wonderful authors at Magna that I had never heard of before and instantly became a fan.

   Panels are held on a variety of subjects and I found myself struggling to decide which session to attend. One of the things I really enjoyed about Magna were the perpetual author discussions going on in the glass enclosed pavilion. Authors are scheduled to come and go throughout the conference.

   I think attending Magna cum Murder gave a boost to my writing and the encouragement to continue writing mystery and suspense. Finally, I must tip my hat to Kathryn Kennison and her Ball State University staff who successfully put on a spectacular conference each year. I would encourage any writer to attend a conference and especially Magna cum Murder.

*   *   *

Carol is from southern Indiana and author of two romantic suspense books and one cookbook. Her current release, “Saved by the Sheriff” is available at Secret Cravings Publishing.

You can learn more about Carol on her blog.

Thanks for visiting with me, Carol! Hope to see you at Magna in 2012!

WRITING PROMPT: If you could meet your favorite writer, what would you say?

MA

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Guest Post by Floyd Hyatt – Online Critique Group Part 1

November 28, 2011 in Floyd Hyatt, Guest Posters | 14 comments

F. A. Hyatt, veteran of online critiquing, has sent a wonderful post on how to set one up. Here is Part 1:

Why Me?

The impetus to start your very own online writing circle is usually Manifold. Regardless of the availability of Writing Clubs in your area, having a small group of concerned and participating writers available online is its own blessing. Personal pride, of course, does not enter into it, and the ability to participate with other writers at liberty 24/7 rather than once a month or whatever, is irrelevant–sure enough. Plus, Yahoo groups are free of charge to Yahoo members. The process of creating one is accessible from the Yahoo main page, under “Groups”. It is well documented, and simple, So I won’t deal with most of that here.

However, the fact of group management and the idea of creating one, differ – somewhat.

First off, there are some mechanics. Although Group sites provide a format and some tools, these are general, if not remedial. Your group will need a structure specific to the needs of active writers. Do not assume the members will organically create a framework as they participate, or you will end up with a welter of difficult to manage and incompatible structures and site litter; I.E., a mess. Under the left side “Files” menu item, set up an area to contain folders for your writers. This is done by creating a Members File folder in that area. Have your members each establish their own work folder within the folder you create there. (Yes, you can have folders inside folders, just like on your PC) Ask that they place (upload) their Works-In-Progress into the folder they create.

The member’s file folder directory should look like a list of names at that point, with no documents peppering the folder directory itself. Each writer can then add, delete or change the work they store in these areas, and collect critiques in them, as they see fit, without dropping files at liberty hither and yon.

In fact, it is a good idea to establish a directory area for every aspect your club engages in. A review area to collect member reviews, an area to post announcements of author releases notices, whatever activities your site will specialize in. I find using the list’s general post area for any of this a bad idea. Usually work gets completely un-formatted in attempting such use – extremely bad for critique. Instead, use the post area for member Yak, as was intended. Besides, after going to the effort of uploading a document, who wants to have it available to the club for only a few hours until it scrolls down into oblivion? Be sure members have full rights to manage their own folder areas. This will save your assigned moderators (and you) a lot of maintenance work. All these setups are accessible from the main screen “maintenance” prompts, that appears magically on the owners and moderators menus when visiting the site. If you are currently a member of a Yahoo Group, you likely will not see these items, as you are not the Owner or a Moderator.

Here is Mr. Hyatt’s open group:
Established – for Serious and Casual writers, since 2007
Plotters of Dreams

WRITING PROMPT: Write about a critique group in which one member argues against any suggested revision and another member tries to incorporate every suggested revision, even if they’re contradictory. Your mission is to be neither of those members.

MA

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Bonus Follow Friday – MORE HOLLY!!

November 18, 2011 in FORCE OF HABIT, Guest Posters | 11 comments

Holly Jahangiri, the real one, has interviewed Holly Jahangiri, the character in my FREE story, “By the Book” (link below)! Read it and weep (from laughter).

I felt some trepidation about doing this interview, and the occasional creaking and banging from the underbelly of the space vessel St Gregory the Wonderworker – more commonly referred to by its young crew as the Uncle Gus – did nothing to calm my nerves. It is very disorienting to travel between alternative universes, and I could not shake the old Terran terror at the idea of causing some paradoxical calamity upon meeting myself in this one. Author Marian Allen assured me that the fiber of the universal matrix would not collapse and bring us some sort of cosmic-level mash-up, but having grown up with such urban legends and pulpy, hyperbolic sci-fi novels, I could not shake the feeling of impending doom and possible implosion.

“They are ready for you, Ven Jahangiri,” said the Gilhoolie woman, Tetra. She reached out to help me off the contraption known as a Floatachair, where I had curled up in a near fetal position without even realizing it.

“Yes, well, this ought to be fun,” I said, mustering a wan smile.

“Yes. It ought to be,” she agreed. Together, we made our way to the Transfer Dock. I balked at my first sight of the Transfer Module, wondering if this would be like the transporter in Star Trek or that horrid invention from The Fly. I didn’t want to end up with eight eyes, able only to eat and digest food I’d chewed and regurgitated first. “Come, stand over here,” said Tetra. “Everyone is a little nervous the first time. It will most likely be fine,” she added reassuringly. I turned to the nearest trash can and practiced the regurgitating part while the technicians pretended to fiddle with the nobs and pointedly did not notice my disgrace.

A few seconds later, I was standing in the parlor of a Llannonninn Living Library furnished, oddly enough, like an English boarding house, circa 1901. Anachronistic knick-knacks were scattered about on shelves, which were curiously devoid of books. A little woman whom I assumed to be the parlormaid held out her hand. Surely she did not expect a tip, having just wordlessly arrived and having done nothing to alleviate the disorientation I felt upon having just slid my particles through a wormhole. The least she could have done was to offer stiff drink.

“Your card?” she prompted.

“Oh! Yes, of course.” I fished about in my pockets and retrieved a slightly crumpled business card. Parlormaid Tambar Miznalia took it with a sniff and disappeared. A moment later, I came quickly down the staircase in front of myself. If I hadn’t felt disoriented a moment ago, I would be thoroughly gobsmacked by now.

“Me?” I gasped.

“No, me!” she exclaimed with an impish grin. “I have been so looking forward to meeting myself!” She motioned me over to a thickly stuffed armchair upholstered in a very flowery floral pattern.

I tugged a copper filigree recording locket from under my shirt and asked, “Do you mind? It’s much easier than taking notes the old fashioned way…”

“Oh, Self-from-a-Distant-Planet,” said Assistant Librarian Holly Jahangiri, “all this is just a setting, as you’d find in any good book! We do have computer technology here. And sometimes, I even wear slacks – I just enjoy dressing to fit my surroundings.”

Now I felt as if I’d stepped back into a Terran RenFaire, or a community theatre, and I had a sudden urge to examine the walls and search for blocking tape. From the chair next to myself, I smiled knowingly and almost blurted, “Stop that!”

Best to begin the interview, I thought, and pressed the button on my recording locket. “So, tell me, Holly, what is a ‘Living Library’?”

Assistant Librarian Holly Jahangiri nodded, expecting the question, and called to the kitchen, “Er, Three Men in a Boat, could you come here a second?”

My jaw dropped as a proper English gent wearing a ruffled pink cook’s apron emerged. “I say!” he exclaimed, upon seeing me there. “Do we have guests for lunch?”

“Only if Montmorency can refrain from adding freshly-killed water rat to the stew,” warned Holly. Her—the Llannonninn one, not me.

“Montmorency?” I asked.

“This, Terran Holly, is ‘Three Men and a Boat, To Say Nothing of the Dog.’ He is what we call a Living Book. Practically reads himself,” she added. “Montmorency is the dog we don’t speak of. Right, then, a guest for lunch – thank you, Three Men in a Boat.” The man returned to the kitchen, where much banging of pots ensued.

“I see,” I said, seeing nothing at all.

“I think she needs cake,” said Assistant Librarian Holly. When Parlormaid Tambar Miznalia reappeared with cake and tea, wearing the ruffled pink apron and blushing madly, I finally did see – quite clearly.

“Thank you,” I said.

“So, Assistant Librarian Holly Jahangiri, I understand that you are originally from the Meadow of Flowers?”

“How on Terra did you guess?”

“I didn’t guess, exactly. I mean, I did read Marian Allen’s excellent accounts of life on Llannonn – “By the Book,” and Force of Habit – but if I’d had to guess, I’d say the spikeflower behind your ear, and the purple feather boa draped over the divan, would be clues.”

I—she—applauded with apparent delight. “You read, too!?”

I didn’t know whether to laugh or sniff haughtily at the implied insult.

“I’m sorry,” said Assistant Librarian Holly. “It’s just…so many writers don’t, these days.” A small crowd of people in various period costumes had gathered at the sound of her applause and now stood nodding solemnly at me. “I think they would like to read themselves to you,” said Assistant Librarian Holly Jahangiri. The people continued to nod until they reminded me of bobble-heads on the dashboard of a ‘57 Chevy.

“I see. We’re never going to get this interview done, are we?”

“Probably not. Best you just recommend to your readers that they check out Marian’s story – ‘By the Book’ – and then, if that’s piqued their curiosity at all, they ought to read her seminal work on Llannonninn culture, Force of Habit. I highly recommend it.”

“Wait, you said ‘Buy the book,’ but isn’t it free?”

“No, silly Self, ‘By the Book’ is free. Force of Habit is THREE – as in three Terran dollars.”

“Actually, it’s only $2.99,” I said, double-checking the holographic stacks on my sat phone.

“A bargain!” I exclaimed. “And now, it’s time for lunch…”

 

Holly Jahangiri is a technical communicator, social media analyticator, children’s book author with 4RV Publishing (Trockle, and A Puppy, Not a Guppy), blogger, happy wife and mom living in Houston, Texas. She would really appreciate it if you would read her post, Good Goals Gone Bad on TheNextGoal.com.

WRITING PROMPT: Interview your main character. Now have your main character interview you. What would you want that character to know about you? What would you like to fudge or hide?

MA

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Interview With Elizabeth Loraine, of the Royal Blood Chronicles

November 14, 2011 in Guest Posters | 4 comments

I’m getting awfully vampirey around here. Cedric last week, now Royal Blood Chronicler Elizabeth Loraine today. I think it’s the increasing length of the nights that’s getting to me.

Ms. Loraine’s latest book is part of a new series, though: The Collier series.

Abigail Black, an heiress from Memphis is on the run from her abusive boyfriend, Dallas. In the process she finds out that there is a force pulling her towards something, and someone, that she thought only existed in her dreams.

Another page turning adventure from Elizabeth Loraine. Phantom Lives intertwines the modern world with the post Civil War world of Collier, a plantation Abigail had dreamt about her entire life. Now she is about to find out why. Another fantasy world of spirits and immortals is built in a way which fans of Ms Loraine’s will again thoroughly enjoy. Find out who Abigail was in the past and how it changes everything.

I “met” Elizabeth through our mutual acquaintance Bertena Varney. She was kind enough to answer these questions for me.

Can you say how your main character first occurred to you and how he or she evolved from that first spark to a full character?

Abbi is a character that had to have strength that she never knew she had. She has always let others make decisions for her, but finds that she can decide to take her life back. She evolves because she is thrust into a life that she never fathomed.

Did you choose your subject, or did your subject choose you?

I have always wanted to write a novel using past lives. I had the same dream over and over again as a child so it was natural for me to draw upon that to write this fantasy novel.

How do you work?

I am a pantser not a plotter, once I have an idea I do the research needed and then I just start to write.

Are you involved with email lists and/or social media? Why or why not?

No lists. I have my Facebook pages and I love talking to people about everything on it. I have a Twitter account, but I don’t use it that often.

If you could have an evening with one fictional character, your own or someone else’s, who would it be and why?

I would love to be invited to one of the royal parties that Katrina and the other Protectors attend in my vampire series, Royal Blood Chronicles. That would be fun!

Thanks, Elizabeth! Please visit Elizabeth’s web site for an excerpt from KATRINA and for buy links to her Royal Blood books.

PHANTOM LIVES is available for Kindle at the most pleasant price of $2.99.

WRITING PROMPT: What are the drawbacks of being made a vampire or otherwise unchanging as an adolescent?

MA

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Cedric Bares . . . er . . . TELLS All

November 7, 2011 in Guest Posters | 8 comments

Today, I’m pleased to welcome Cedric MacKinnon, Male Vampire Courtesan and Badass, to the dear old blog. Cedric is the point-of-view character in Denise Verrico’s latest Immortyl Revolution series, MY FEARFUL SYMMETRY. If you missed the excerpt yesterday, here’s a link to it.

Now, as more than one person has said, let’s get to Cedric.

Tell us a little about yourself.

Click to enlarge, click back arrow to return to post.

I was born in Scotland and lost my parents at an early age. I grew up in a children’s home and ran away to London when I was fifteen with dreams of becoming a rock star. Needless to say, that wasn’t a great idea. I made my living on the streets selling the only thing I could. To make a long story short, rent boys in London have a 33% HIV infection rate, and I became a statistic. I turned to playing my guitar in the underground to supplement what I got from the government, and one night I encountered this lovely Indian gentleman–or so I thought. Raj made me the man I am today. That is to say, a vampire courtesan turned assassin. Complete sociopath, Raj.

Aside from those dreary details, I’m a musician and play the guitar as well as Indian instruments. My prized possession is a vintage Stratocaster. I love all kinds of rock music. My favorite artist of all time is David Bowie. Flashy clothes, fast cars and the latest electronic gadgets are my weakness—and beautiful lovers. I believe in spreading the wealth, so to speak.

What do you like best about your work?

I’m an adept of the ancient arts, which is an Immortyl temple artist in service to the Goddess Kali, but we’re used as courtesans in political intrigues by the Chief Elder, Kalidasa. Hmm…the courtesan part was usually a drag, except for the singing and dancing. No one does a blues riff on a sitar like me. Music is my true passion. I’m in a new line of work now. Mia tells all about my exploits in Book Four, which we hope will be out in early summer. I take heads now instead of give…well you get the drift. I’ve had excellent teachers in New York. Mia is quite the swordswoman. Philip and Sheih have taught me martial arts. My dance training comes in handy here. They call me a living weapon. I rather like that.

It might be even more indelicate to ask what you like least about your work but, if there were one thing you could tweak … er … CHANGE, what would it be?

Too many uncongenial lovers, too many beds, too little rest. Lord Liu was the exception. He’s a gentleman and knows how to treat a boy right. My official duty was to serve the Goddess Kali and bestow Shakti’s blessings through an elaborate tantric ritual. During my training in the ashram, I told my guru and love, Sandhya, “I’ve been called many things in my time, but never a conduit of divinity”. She wasn’t amused and hit me on the back of the head with all her rings on. Ouch. Vampires aren’t known for being gentle. Well, maybe those sparkly, wussy ones. The worst experience was when I had an encounter with a bloke who was once with the Spanish Inquisition. No Monty Python fun here. Torture isn’t officially allowed on an adept, but with our new Rani, Giulietta, anything goes. The change I’d like to see is Giulietta’s head at the business end of my knife.

Is there a Special Someone in your life?

Well, there are currently two. With my omnivorous nature it’s rather difficult to settle. Mia is the earthly manifestation of Shakti in the form of Durga, and I’m her “tiger” servant. Grrr…we do get a bit rough sometimes. I love a strong woman. However, I must say that Lord Liu remains a powerful presence in my life. You’ve got to love a Chinese warrior from the former Han Dynasty turned scholar turned Immortyl elder. He’s deep. And dare I say sexy?

Where do you see yourself five years from now? 10? 25?

Still young and beautiful, of course, but hopefully wiser. With my new line of work, it’s hard to say whether I’ll be around in 10 or 25 years. I’m on a secret mission at the moment. So, I can’t say exactly what I’m about—or as you Yanks say—what I’m up to. If I survive this mad quest, I hope to aid Mia and Kurt in their mission to find a cure for this condition that makes us perish in the ultraviolet and addicted to blood.

Bonus question: Do you have any words of advice to young people wanting to go into your line of work?

Just say no. Don’t run away from home and live on the streets as a prostitute, don’t become a vampire and above all, don’t kill people for a living. I’d much rather be the front man for a band.

Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to speak with us today, Cedric. We hope to see more of you … I mean of your character.

A boy becomes a vampire and fights to become a man.

Title: My Fearful Symmetry

Author : Denise Verrico

Genre: Urban fantasy

Format: Print and multi format ebook

Links to buy:

Amazon: http://amzn.to/nu811n

Nook: http://bit.ly/qnnjaZ

B&N Paperback: http://bit.ly/qdm73e

Omnilit: http://bit.ly/p25o2x

Allromance: http://bit.ly/paIPje

Fictionwise: http://bit.ly/Oe

Link to trailer for first two books of the series:

http://youtu.be/OSGZ1yXXkSY

website: www.deniseverricowriter.webs.com

Blog: www.ImmortylRevolution.blogspot.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/deniseverrico

Facebook fan page: http://on.fb.me/pwZB5L

Follow Cedric on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/ozVCZq

Cedric on Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/cedricmackinnon

WRITING PROMPT: Who would your main character most like to kill?

MA

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Guest Post – Floyd Hyatt – Second Coat of Paint

October 17, 2011 in Floyd Hyatt, Guest Posters, Writing | 5 comments

Unless he sends me more (hint, hint), this is the last of the posts given to me by the fabulous Floyd Hyatt. I wish he had a web site I could recommend, but he says he’s too busy writing and critiquing to maintain a web site. Hmmmm…. Is there a lesson there for me? …Naaaaah!

Overall Visions of the Critique Process.

Second Coat of Paint, Paint, Paint…

F. A. Hyatt

Commonly, novel writers are told to get the story down on paper first, and then revise.  This is, I’ll admit, only partially the way I work.  Perhaps my outline was vague, or I found too many things in the world-build to explore.  Maybe I am just a poor example of a writer. (I like to think every writer  modifies the basics a little, so maybe I remain ‘under the curve’ of what’s average, in this respect.)  In either case, I will submit chapters for critique while still working on the first draft.  

I begin with a story outline or arc, and juggle my way through to the story’s end. I stay concerned mostly with line edits, but pay heed to my criticizer’s commentary on logic, cadence, and characterization.   When the draft is finished, I like to try it out on a few beta readers, who tend to look more at the whole, and provide general comments. In my experience, this can take a while.  

During this process, and as the reviews come back, I look at things like:

*Secondary story arcs.
Secondary arcs provide me an opportunity to deepen character development, adding interest and  breadth to the story.  No story should be without some of these.  When going to the circus, you generally expect to see more than one elephant, clown, or high-wire artist.  The concern is, that my sub-plots advance the story.  I want to deepen the reader’s understanding of the character’s motivation or personality, and provide drama.  When reading a book, you expect some story depth.  I know that piloting my lead character along like a train on a track makes for a boring book.  There need to be cracks in the arc’s roadbed.  Often, this opens opportunities for interesting secondary story arcs.  I layer in these, mindful of the above expectations.

*Shuffling the deck.
The logical Progression of  my masterpiece might, or might not, be improved by moving some scenes around.  This is a good time to try that. It’s also a good time to review the action ramping (I covered this in “The Action Ramp, Bane of New Writers” before)

*Opening hooks, titles, forwards or  prefaces.
No matter what my original intentions were, I often end up rewriting or changing the opening hook, and deciding on what preface material, if any, is needed.  Needed?  Yes.  Looking back on the full story as writ, tells me how to reinforce or highlight my opening, and how much (if any) of my first chapter  should be cut, and what else needs editing to support the theme smoothly.

*Butchering
 Cut?  Yes, cut.  All that glorious prose, that in the end does nothing but slow my plot down, or mislead the reader.  Like a parking lot attendant, the opening points the direction my story will take, or it doesn’t.  There is no better time for me to evaluate this then when the first draft manuscript is on the table.  I remind myself that a lot of movie footage ends up on the cutting room floor.  In writing novels,the process is the same, and part of a writer’s skill set.  Hanging on to that rationale, I cut with the zeal of a butcher; hack, slice, dice and shuffle until the road is smoothed, the tarmac repaired.

*Pushing the reader
Do my chapter endings push the reader forward?  Now is a good opportunity for me to hang a few cliffs, and make sure there is an unanswered question that encourages turning the page.

Another round, anyone?
The result of all this, gets me ready for a second round of line editing and beta reading.  Now that the tale is  reconfigured, it needs to be evaluated again.  With luck, this could end as a light sanding and touch-up, though in my world, that is seldom the case.  Usually, the manuscript comes back just as blue-penciled as the original draft.  Meantime, several other improvements have come to mind, so usually the “final” draft needs at least another round, before a decent product comes of it.

The better you get at this process, I am told, the quicker you can get off this particular carousel.  However long the ride, eventually I shoot the engineer and move on to the next project.

Thanks, Floyd! I always learn so much from you!

WRITING PROMPT: Write a character who doesn’t know when to stop tweaking something–a story, a recipe, a painting, a business presentation, a costume.

MA

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