Ask the Author: Stephen Goldin
Answered Questions (8)
Stephen Goldin
Hi Jennifer. I'm happy to try answering your question, but please bear in mind that I'm answering from a position of ignorance. I'm not really knowledgeable about the British book scene and I haven't had an agent myself for well over a decade, contenting myself with self-publishing. I can only give generalized advice.
Remember that an agent only makes money if the client succeeds. An agent who isn't booked solid may indeed be looking for new talent, but she must be sure the prospective client will be worth the time and attention she'll have to invest in the newcomer. I'd suggest writing a proposal letter much the same way you would to an editor. Briefly describe yourself and your career plans, list any publications you have (even if self-published), what works you currently have available to sell, and possible plans for future work. Try to sound professional and realistic. (When CJ Cherryh was starting out, she says her proposal letters were like "Dear editor, I have just written a book, would you like to read it?" The answer, unsurprisingly, was always "No.")
Successful agents usually already have a stable of dependable writes. But sometimes a hole opens up in an agent's list for some reason. Sometimes a new agent will be seeking new clients to start her practice at thee same time, and you can grow in your prospective careers together. It's all a combination of luck and timing, not really some deep, dark secret.
As for finding names and addresses for agents to approach, I'm ignorant of British ones. In the US there's a book called LITERARY MARKETPLACE available in the reference section of most libraries. There are also some professional agent organizations. I'm not sure what's available in your section of the planet.
I hope these suggestions will be of some use, and I'm sorry I couldn't provide more concrete help. Best of luck with your future plans!--Steve
Remember that an agent only makes money if the client succeeds. An agent who isn't booked solid may indeed be looking for new talent, but she must be sure the prospective client will be worth the time and attention she'll have to invest in the newcomer. I'd suggest writing a proposal letter much the same way you would to an editor. Briefly describe yourself and your career plans, list any publications you have (even if self-published), what works you currently have available to sell, and possible plans for future work. Try to sound professional and realistic. (When CJ Cherryh was starting out, she says her proposal letters were like "Dear editor, I have just written a book, would you like to read it?" The answer, unsurprisingly, was always "No.")
Successful agents usually already have a stable of dependable writes. But sometimes a hole opens up in an agent's list for some reason. Sometimes a new agent will be seeking new clients to start her practice at thee same time, and you can grow in your prospective careers together. It's all a combination of luck and timing, not really some deep, dark secret.
As for finding names and addresses for agents to approach, I'm ignorant of British ones. In the US there's a book called LITERARY MARKETPLACE available in the reference section of most libraries. There are also some professional agent organizations. I'm not sure what's available in your section of the planet.
I hope these suggestions will be of some use, and I'm sorry I couldn't provide more concrete help. Best of luck with your future plans!--Steve
Stephen Goldin
John's landlord is evicting him. He has no moving boxes.
Stephen Goldin
Thank you very much, Lizzie! I'm not sure how the book managed to write itself, but I *think* I've corrected the problem now (the workings of Goodreads are strange indeed), plus I took the time to clear up a few other minor matters. I should do that every so often. My list can get so tangled so quickly. One of the problems of being too prolific.
Stephen Goldin
I'd love to visit Oz. I'd try to travel to all the lands--Gillikins, Quadlings, Munchkins, and Winkies--as well as the Emerald City, enjoying all the different colors and talking to, and gawking at, all the interesting people. Some perplexing problem would undoubtedly come up while I'm there, but they can always be solved with a good heart and a clear mind--unlike our problems here on Earth.
Stephen Goldin
Yes I do. Fortunately it's buried deep in a storage unit where no one will ever discover it.
Stephen Goldin
The "Family d'Alembert series" is today considered a "classic" in the field of space opera. Personally I don't feel old enough to be involved with creating a "classic" even though I admittedly started young, but for the moment I'll go along with that description. Let me explain here how I came to create the series, and the differences between the Family d'Alembeert series and the new Agents of ISIS series.
In the May 1964 issue of If Magazine, E.E. "Doc" Smith published a novella entitled "Imperial Stars." According to a letter he wrote to his friend Lloyd Arthur Eshbach, Smith intended to turn this novella into a series of books. Unfortunately he died before he could get around to it. He left behind no manuscripts, no story arcs, no further plot ideas or concepts of where to go next. He'd created a single novella and the concept for a prospective series, but not a series itself.
A decade later, I was commissioned to expand the novella into a full-sized book and then create nine more books in this universe, thus turning Smith's idea into what became known as the "Family d'Alembert series." I'd read and enjoyed Smith's earlier Skylark and Lensman series, so I was eagerly anticipating this assignment.
Unfortunately, it was not all I'd hoed for. The novella certainly had action aplenty, as befitted a Smith story, but the writing, the universe and the characters were hopelessly old-fashioned even for the 1960s when it was published, let alone the 1970s and later when I'd be writing the follow-ups. The text used bizarre words like "ultratoilsomely." The heroes were two-dimensional and way too goody-goody to be believable. The history and development of the universe were painfully naive, with an anti-communhist screed straight out of the 1950s McCarthy era. And while Smith was noted for the excellence of his villains, the ultimate bad guy here never once set foot onstage. Clearly this novella needed a lot of rehabilitation.
Having to stick closely to Smith's creation hampered me considerably, but I did as much as I could to make the characters and universe more believable, and I tried to come up with stories that were exciting enough to please Smith's legion of fans. I got letters of praise that told me I was succeeding, which was most gratifying.
Still, as decades passed, the initially creaky concept grew more and more outdated. Finally, in the mid-2000s, I decided to update the whole series. Since the original novella was the source of most of the problems, I tossed out "Imperial Stars" in its entirety. I created a universe without what I perceived as Smith's flaws, yet which could still accommodate the stories of books 2-10 that I'd created for the old universe. I wrote an entirely new first novel, Tsar Wars, to introduce the re-envisioned universe and slightly more believable characters. I made major modifications to the remaining 9 books to fit the new beginning.
The result is what I now call the Agents of ISIS series, something I feel is more appropriate for the 21st century. I make no pretense that the books are ultra-realistic; they still retain their space opera roots. But I've tried to make the characters a little more interesting. And unlike in the Family d'Alembert series, the heroes no longer have to find a pay-phone to make a call when they're out in the field--they can use their wristcoms.
I understand the attraction people have for a classic that's stood the test of time, so there'll be plenty of readers paying money for the books in the Family d'Alembert series. But as someone who's intimately familiar with both series, I must say that, because I'm a more experienced writer now, the Agents of ISIS books are better written and have more interesting characters.
The ten books in the new series are:
Tsar Wars
Treacherous Moon
Robot Mountain
Sanctuary Planet
Stellar Revolution
Purgatory Plot
Traitors' World
Counterfeit Stars
Outworld Invaders
Galactic Collapse
I hope you enjoy them.
In the May 1964 issue of If Magazine, E.E. "Doc" Smith published a novella entitled "Imperial Stars." According to a letter he wrote to his friend Lloyd Arthur Eshbach, Smith intended to turn this novella into a series of books. Unfortunately he died before he could get around to it. He left behind no manuscripts, no story arcs, no further plot ideas or concepts of where to go next. He'd created a single novella and the concept for a prospective series, but not a series itself.
A decade later, I was commissioned to expand the novella into a full-sized book and then create nine more books in this universe, thus turning Smith's idea into what became known as the "Family d'Alembert series." I'd read and enjoyed Smith's earlier Skylark and Lensman series, so I was eagerly anticipating this assignment.
Unfortunately, it was not all I'd hoed for. The novella certainly had action aplenty, as befitted a Smith story, but the writing, the universe and the characters were hopelessly old-fashioned even for the 1960s when it was published, let alone the 1970s and later when I'd be writing the follow-ups. The text used bizarre words like "ultratoilsomely." The heroes were two-dimensional and way too goody-goody to be believable. The history and development of the universe were painfully naive, with an anti-communhist screed straight out of the 1950s McCarthy era. And while Smith was noted for the excellence of his villains, the ultimate bad guy here never once set foot onstage. Clearly this novella needed a lot of rehabilitation.
Having to stick closely to Smith's creation hampered me considerably, but I did as much as I could to make the characters and universe more believable, and I tried to come up with stories that were exciting enough to please Smith's legion of fans. I got letters of praise that told me I was succeeding, which was most gratifying.
Still, as decades passed, the initially creaky concept grew more and more outdated. Finally, in the mid-2000s, I decided to update the whole series. Since the original novella was the source of most of the problems, I tossed out "Imperial Stars" in its entirety. I created a universe without what I perceived as Smith's flaws, yet which could still accommodate the stories of books 2-10 that I'd created for the old universe. I wrote an entirely new first novel, Tsar Wars, to introduce the re-envisioned universe and slightly more believable characters. I made major modifications to the remaining 9 books to fit the new beginning.
The result is what I now call the Agents of ISIS series, something I feel is more appropriate for the 21st century. I make no pretense that the books are ultra-realistic; they still retain their space opera roots. But I've tried to make the characters a little more interesting. And unlike in the Family d'Alembert series, the heroes no longer have to find a pay-phone to make a call when they're out in the field--they can use their wristcoms.
I understand the attraction people have for a classic that's stood the test of time, so there'll be plenty of readers paying money for the books in the Family d'Alembert series. But as someone who's intimately familiar with both series, I must say that, because I'm a more experienced writer now, the Agents of ISIS books are better written and have more interesting characters.
The ten books in the new series are:
Tsar Wars
Treacherous Moon
Robot Mountain
Sanctuary Planet
Stellar Revolution
Purgatory Plot
Traitors' World
Counterfeit Stars
Outworld Invaders
Galactic Collapse
I hope you enjoy them.
Stephen Goldin
My current project, INTO THE OUT, is a young adult science fiction adventure novel that's an homage to two of the writers who were the most significant influences on my work--Andre Norton and Robert Heinlein. Teenagers living on Mars go on a high school field trip.They discover a thousands-years-old buried spaceship and, before they know what's happened to them, are whisked away on an interstellar voyage into the unknown.
Stephen Goldin
QUIET POST, my most recent book, is an absurdist fantasy based on my early love of L. Frank Baum's Oz books and Lewis Carroll's adventures of Alice, plus my more adult fascination with the works of Terry Pratchett and surrealist artists. Escaping from a broken love affair, heiress Martia Rosenthal enlists in a diplomatic mission to the Quasiverse, a place where almost anything can happen and often does. Martia thinks she's prepared, but the people and adventures she meets surpass even her wildest expectations.
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