Monica Valentinelli's Blog: booksofm.com, page 104

[Recommended Link] On Failure

There's a great post written by author J.M. McDermott (Last Dragon) about failure on the Apex Book Company blog about failure.

He talks about how failure is a natural occurrence and then touches on how people perceive successful authors:

People perceive authors with book deals — multiple book deals — and awards-nominations, if not awards, as successful writers. It feels odd to encounter that when I'm out and about. I don't feel like a successful writer. Every project is a struggle to get out into the world. Every story is a wrestling match against all the distractions of the world. How many times in a day I fail is amazing to me. How many times in a year that I fail makes me want to drink absinthe until the world blurs into a haze if I think about it too much. Fortunately, I don't think about it too much. — SOURCE: People Fail All the Time at Apexbookcompany.com

I feel that this post is one every aspiring writer should read, because McDermott's words are extremely honest and grounded. To quote the cliché: success is in the eye of the beholder. When I was younger, I used to feel embarrassed whenever I talked about my failures. Later on I found there was no reason to feel that way. After all, if you don't fall down — how can you get back up? How can you learn? Grow? How do you know when you're successful if you don't fail?

The other reason why I recommend this post, is for any of you who are feeling a little down in the dumps. McDermott offers some words of advice to help you get through the tough times. So when you have a chance, pop on over and read: People Fail All the Time at Apexbookcompany.com.

Related posts: An Open Letter to "New" Writers

Day 17 of 100: Dust Bunnies in a Silent Cone

I'm a happy girl today. I've been looking for a way to legally watch Red Dwarf again for a while now and Netflix offers all nine seasons for streaming. So, yay! *bounce bounce*

And a tenth season! Double yay!

Since the episodes are super short, I can put them on in the background. "Appreciate what you've got. Because basically, I'm fantastic."

This news counteracts the pain…the suffering…the millions of dust bunnies crying out in fear…

Yep. I'm in the middle of spring cleaning. Only it's snowing outside. So I'm late Winter cleaning. Oh, and organizing. And planning. And planting.

Which, no doubt, requires looking things up. What to save. What to toss. How to follow directions.

Some of the more unusual things I've discovered, besides the pile of floppy disks I have no way of reading, is my fascination with particular objects I have to buy more than one of. Blank journal and small notepads are at the top of that list; pens and other unusual writing implements are right up there as well. Next comes the obligatory "What did I buy this for again?" With a look of confusion and wonderment.

I feel like I've been getting more done because on my writing breaks, instead of hopping on Twitter or Facebook for seconds at a time, I'm focusing for longer periods of time. Once I'm at a natural break, I can then attack my dust bunnies vigorously. I've even gone so far as to (shockingly) label boxes so I know what I organized. Other than the mountain of paperwork crawling up through the bowels of our house. Eesh. Paperwork. The worst part is that I know I have file folders lying around somewhere, I just can't figure out where they are.

Now that I've been off social media for over two weeks, I can definitely say if I ever want a break from the noise, ten days is about the time when I stop feeling so inundated with information. Now that it's been over two weeks, I feel like I'm in a cone of silence. Have no idea what's going on–especially with some of my friends overseas–and feel like it's impossible to find out without hopping back on. I can remember Twitter handles and Facebook identities, but not people's websites.

When I read something people shared, I never paid attention to where I was reading the information, just what the content was. To me, that's pretty significant. With all of this information being thrown at us, how much do we retain? What can we remember?

And more importantly, what should we remember? What's missing?

Related posts: Day 5 of 100: Social Media is More Than Noise
Day 3 of 100: When Systems Fail
Day 2 of 100: On News and Sharing Links

The First Genre Novel I Read Is…

On Paul Jessup's website today, I read about how he's going to participate in a 30 days meme for genre books. It sounded like a lot of fun, so I thought I'd chime in.

Today's the first day and I'm talking about my first genre novel.

Okay, so even though this is part of the meme, the truth is I don't remember the first genre novel that I ever read. I can tell you I was more enamored with mystery novels as a kid than any other genre. I was into series moreso than individual books; Encyclopedia Brown, Meg, Nancy Drew, Sherlock Holmes, the Hardy Boys.

Although I can't remember which came first — I remember being very enamored with the Rats of NIMH and The Hobbit — I do recall the first tie-in novel I ever read. It was a book called Splinter of the Mind's Eye by Alan Dean Foster and it took place in between Star Wars: A New Hope and Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. For me, this book was the gateway drug to other science fiction novels and series, in part because I was drawn to the mystery of Darth Vader and whether or not Luke and Leia could escape.

From this novel, I branched out into science fiction by way of Ray Bradbury, Robert Heinlein and Philip K. Dick and…of course…back to Star Wars and Star Trek.

Years later, after I read so many other science fiction novels, I went back and read Splinter of the Mind's Eye again. This time around, it was interesting because the romantic tension between Luke and Leia means something different now, but then? Only Lucas knew who Leia was going to choose.

Not bad for a first novel. After all, it was this book that opened the door to many other fantastic and otherworldly tales.

Related posts: [New Release] Read "The Message" at Bewildering Stories
Do You Need Your Own Website? Read My New SFWA Article
Read my Guest Blog Post at Apex Books

Gencon 2011: DriveThruRPG Booth and Yours Truly

Hi everyone,

I have just confirmed I will be attending GenCon: Indy 2011. This year, I have been drafted volunteered to work the DriveThruRPG.com booth.

What's that you say? But you thought DriveThru only offered e-books?

This year, DriveThruRPG is debuting the fruits of its print program at GenCon, working in tandem with White Wolf Publishing, who will have their own presence at the show. I'm not a hundred percent sure what the layout will look like; geometry was never my strong suit. I do know that yes, White Wolf will be there and yes, they'll be selling books. Rumor has it there will be a print edition of the Vampire Translation Guide and an exclusive hardcover convention edition of the Exalted graphic novel. No word yet on the print edition of Paths of Storytelling, but I am crossing my fingers on that one.

In addition to DriveThru's partnership with White Wolf, you can also buy/support games from a handful of awesome publishers. They are: Malhavoc Press, Necromancer Games, Nocturnal and Eden Studios.

Now, I know you may think I'm a little crazy, but it's also my understanding that Ghosts of Albion and The Fear-Maker's Promise for Changeling will be available IN PRINT at the DriveThru booth as well.

If you like to get your books signed, the one (the only) Monte Cook will be floating around along with several other freelancers, game designers, developers and persons extraordinaire.

Am I chained to the booth? Hah, hah. Is that even possible? Wait. Don't answer that! I will be available for appointments and signings, but primarily I'll be on the floor talking about why you should buy these publishers' games. In all honesty, DriveThru is the reason why I'm able to come back to GenCon this year, so I'm going to do my best to work hard and have fun. If you want to get together with me at GenCon, feel free to either a) drop by the booth b) e-mail me ahead of time to set up an appointment or c) watch my blog for a space-y announcement.

That is all, game-lings.

Oh, before I go… If you have any questions about DriveThruRPG.com, their booth, White Wolf or anything I revealed in my post, please contact these companies directly. I'm merely trying to relay my role at GenCon this year. Once it gets a little closer to GenCon, I'm sure I'll be able to reveal if there's truth to the gossip.

Thank you!

Related posts: GenCon 2009 and the Writer's Symposium Wrap-Up
My GenCon 2009 Writer's Symposium Schedule
How to Run a Booth at a Con

WisCon 2011 Panels

Hi everyone,

Wanted to drop in and provide you my panels for WisCon 2011. This year the guest of honor is Nisi Shawl, a fine author who often gives workshops on writing the other. She also likes to smile. A lot. What's not to like?

Attendance is capped at 1,000 people, so if you're thinking about going, I'd register now.

Monica's Panels at WisCon

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Living In The Long Tail: Forging A Path To Your Audience Through The Internet Friday

Time: 4:00–5:15 p.m. Location: Conference 5

Moderator: Heather Whipple.

Panelists: Heather Whipple, Lori Devoti, Jennifer K. Stevenson, Monica Valentinelli

"The Long Tail" refers to the retailing strategy of selling a large number of unique items in relatively small quantities. Much of Amazon's success relies on exploting this strategy. What are the possibilities of authors and artists marketing their own works directly to audiences through the Internet? Does the Internet represent a medium of exchange that can bring creators together with audiences who are hungry for works that represent and speak to them? How can we find each other?

Group Reading

Time: Saturday 2:30–3:45 pm Location: Michelangelo's Coffee Shop

Liz Argall, Keffy R.M. Kehrli, Margaret Ronald, Monica Valentinelli

Self-Publishing: Should You? Could You?

Time: Sunday 10:00–11:15 am Location: Senate B

Moderator: Susan Ramirez.

Panelists: Susan Ramirez, Anna Black, Alexandra Erin, Neesha Meminger, Monica Valentinelli

A variety of websites and services make publishing your own e-books and paper books simpler and less expensive than ever. What are some of the best? What are some to avoid? What are the benefits and drawbacks of becoming an indie writer? What tips do you have to help other indie writers self-publish successfully?

Cooperative Promotion

Sunday: 1:00–2:15 pm Location: Room 634

Moderator: Jacqueline Houtman.

Panelists: Jacqueline Houtman, Lori Devoti, Howard Andrew Jones, Alexandra Erin, Monica Valentinelli

Authors need to do more and more of their own promotion. This panel will focus on ways that authors can work together to help promote their books, whether formally (via 2K Classes, Tenners and Elevensies, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and other organizations) or informally, such as social networking. What about group websites or blogs? Group giveaways? Group presentations, signings, and other events? We will present some ideas and work together to come up with more.

Related posts: WisCon: the Recap
Visit Me at these WisCon Panels
Visit Me at OddCon During These Panels

Day 10 of 100: What I Don't Hear (About Books)

Well, it's been ten days since I forced myself to go dark on social media and this is the first day I'm noticing a huge difference. Huge.

It's quieter. In my head. A lot quieter. Already, I feel like I'm disconnected because now I have to rely on news and updates by either a) going to a website I already trust or b) getting news from an outside source via e-mail. When I go to a website, I don't have to guess. I am spending more time browsing, poking around, seeing what is what. However, there is a significant lack of variety, as Twitter and Facebook allows me to discover things more often.

When I wanted something fun, I defaulted to icanhazcheesburger. When I wanted something cool, I headed over to Boing Boing. When I needed to feed my head with industry news, I went to a handful of sites I knew or read a e-newsletter I signed up for. When I had to ask someone a question, I shot them an e-mail. Even then, I don't feel compelled to check my e-mail as often, which might be a direct result of not being on information channels that throw constant information at me. Is it a brains thing? Not sure, but I suspect it may be.

On a typical day, with Twitter open, I'll see news about three, maybe four book releases. Yes, that is per day, every day. I couldn't tell you what those book titles were or who published them, just who Tweeted about them. In the past ten days? I've heard about zero. Zip. Nada. Nilch. Instead, I discovered the works of LaShawn Wanak and John Jackson Miller through a convention. Oddly enough, I've spent more time with people in the past ten days than I have in the previous month.

Not hearing about book releases and author news really struck me because it's something relevant to me and happens way too often for me not to notice. This caused a series of revelations and questions to pop off in my head. To understand where I'm coming from, take a look at the picture of book covers below. How many of these did you recognize? Of the ones you remembered, did you know I wrote for these titles? Do you know the publisher? Don't worry, I'm not going to be upset if you didn't remember all–or any–of them. It's what I expected your answer to be.

My questions range from the frustrating to the mundane. So what happens when someone isn't on Twitter to hear about The Zombie Feed, Volume 1? How do they find my story unless I blog about it? What happens when I miss them on Twitter and Facebook? What happens when they don't have any idea who I am? Does this mean older releases, like Pie in Buried Tales of Pinebox, Texas, are new again? New to new people who are new to me? How do I find said new people? What about old people that have been following my work since the beginning? What are they looking for?

I have to tell you, I knew I was cutting down on the noise, but I didn't know just how close to home this would hit. Not hearing a single word about any book release tells me that Twitter and Facebook are only valuable to people on Twitter and Facebook. Even then, Twitter and Facebook are important through the people who are connected to me and reading my updates at that particular time.

Additionally, the fact that I haven't retained said news about other people's books is a cause for great concern on my part. This has split my mind in two. First? I'm damn happy I'm blogging more on my own site because this is content I can link to at a future date. This is also content that is easier to find than a Tweet or an update. Second? The value of Twitter and Facebook is misleading as hell. What good is one voice? I'm guessing not a whole heck of a lot. How many voices would it take to spread the word? Not just on Twitter or Facebook, but online period? And, at what point, will consistent followers like myself get annoyed with regular updates about the same title? But–and here comes the clincher–how much promotion do I really need to be doing?

What I am beginning to suspect, and again this chills me to the bone, is that the success of a book has nothing to do with how much an author or publisher promotes it. What matters then, is whether or not the book touches the reader in such a way they talk about it. With the lack of book covers on the backs of e-reader devices, how much harder will an author–not a marketer–have to work to ensure their readers will spread the word? In other words, how powerful must the story be that someone goes… "Oh yeah, that was awesome. Not only that, I'm going to tell all my friends."

This is the part where I scratch my chin and raise my eyebrow. This is also the part where I'm thinking about writing a story and releasing it during this 100 days just to see what would happen.

Hrmm…much to ponder on this front. I wonder what story people would want to read…

Related posts: E-Books Are Not Liquid Gold
Weighing in on E-Books
Read my Guest Blog Post at Apex Books

Family Games: the 100 Best is an Origins Nominee

Hi everyone, I am excited to share with you that FAMILY GAMES: THE 100 BEST is up for an industry award. If you read my previous post where I listed the essay list for FAMILY GAMES: the 100 BEST, you might recall that I wrote about GLOOM, which is one of my favorite card games.

Since writing the essay, I managed to pick up a few expansions and indoctrinate cajole encourage new fans to play this fun game. I've also learned that this particular tome is a favorite of librarians everywhere. (Note: librarians are awesome!)

What are the Origins Awards?

The Origins Awards are presented annually by the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design to recognize outstanding achievement in design and production of games and game related products.

The nominees were voted on by hobby game retailers at the GAMA Trade Show in March 2011 from a short list in each category determined by a jury of hobby game professionals and knowledgeable enthusiasts. The winner of each category will be determined by the votes of attendees at the Origins Game Fair in Columbus OH, June 22nd-26th. — SOURCE: The Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design Announces 37th Annual Origins Awards Nominees

At Origins this year, convention attendees will vote for their favorite games and, in this case, books related to gaming. To have made it this far, in the category of Best Game-Related Publication, is pretty darn awesome. Edited by James Lowder, the book is a fine collection and a great way to revisit or learn about classic family games we've all enjoyed. There's some tough competition this year, so who will win is anyone's guess.

For more information, please read: The Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design Announces 37th Annual Origins Awards Nominees.

Good luck to all of the nominees! Happy gaming!

Related posts: Buried Tales of Pinebox, Texas is up for an ENnie Award
Family Games 100: Essay List Announced
Hobby Games: The 100 Best is an Origins Award Nominee

The Queen of Crows: a One-Year Retrospective

It's been a little over a year since I announced the The Queen of Crows debut, so I thought it'd be a good time to take a look back and share with you some of the highlights and low points from releasing it.

The full color edition was first published on DriveThruHorror.com in early March 2010. Released as an e-book, we designed it in a PDF format because that allowed us the flexibility to provide a full color illustration from Leanne Buckley, period artwork, and a magazine-style layout. We did not release a low-res version for the Kindle or the Nook, in part because we had to reformat the entire piece and strip out all the images. That heavily influenced where the book was going to be available for purchase; DriveThru simply allowed me the opportunity to do what no other site would.

The Price of Innovation

I went back and forth about pursuing the black-and-white, low-res edition, but at the time it felt like an afterthought, so I waited until this Fall to put it out. The novelty of the book, which was a selling point for a few reviewers, decreased significantly when I eventually formatted it for the Nook and the Kindle. The Queen of Crows at Amazon.com fared better than the version of The Queen of Crows at Barnes and Noble, but not by much.

Combined, I feel that the release of The Queen of Crows pre-dated "what e-books can do" in both the minds of readers and leveraging new technology by a year, maybe even two or three. Remember, at the time the iPad and the Nook Color wasn't even out yet. So people weren't thinking about enhanced e-books at the time, not until highly experimental things like the Alice in Wonderland iPad app came out. The lesson I learned was that while e-books and e-book readers continue to evolve, what can be done with an e-book far exceeds the technology at this time. e-book publishing still, even with what's available now, has a long ways to go.

The Importance of Reviews

Reviews and interviews did help out tremendously getting the word out about The Queen of Crows. I've included a list of what's out there at the moment at the bottom of this post so you can see the evolution. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten many reviews on Amazon or Barnes and Noble, which I know has affected the sales.

Reviews are becoming more and more crucial from a reader's perspective because it helps get the word out about a book and ensures them that a product — in this case creator-owned — is a quality one. I've had several people tell me that this past weekend at OddCon. Which was bizarre, because some readers were saying that authors can just bypass a publisher directly and sell a thousand copies (not exaggerating on that number, by the way). Even if that were the case, priced at $4.99, an author would only make roughly $3,500 off of a book that sold that many copies. Remember, retailers get their cut, too, which right now teeters around the thirty percent mark. So in order to break poverty level, which is around $18,000 a year, an author would have to publish–not just write–six novels a year and expect they'll sell that many copies. I know a lot of authors talk about word count and whatnot as a way of measuring scale, but remember authors aren't robots. While we continue to write, it's impossible for every author to maintain that frenetic pace and not have their work suffer as a result. Some authors are more prolific than others; some, like myself, don't write the same word count every day. We're all different and the answer to the publishing industry changes shouldn't be to work harder and add marketing acumen on top of all of that, too.

Other readers were way more realistic and understanding, advocating that the publishing industry as a whole is still important to readers because of its ability to ensure a baseline of quality. With creator-owned publishing, there's no guarantee the book won't be rife with typos, grammatical errors and other issues.

Emotion Trumps "Buy My Book"

What fascinated me about these discussions, and I'll talk about this more in an upcoming post, was that the readers were less likely to try any creator-owned product if they had a couple of bad experiences with self-publishing. I feel this dovetails into what I've been saying about book marketing all along; you can tell someone until you're blue in the face how awesome your book is, but it's not as powerful as when another reader shares their connection to the book in some way.

That emotional connection is what I had hoped to achieve with the book trailer for The Queen of Crows. The music was composed by James Semple, a professional in the entertainment industry who has scored movies and games. For example, James has composed soundtracks perfect for gaming including Four Shadows: Music for Trail of Cthulhu and Dissonance: Music for Esoterrorists through Pelgrane Press. In the video, which falls at the bottom of this post, I scripted the trailer to create that sense of identification with the main character, Tse. James breathed life into his plight with music.

Niche Product, Unique Genre

Mind you, the e-book incorporates the Native American Navajo from the 1860s, which is a niche for storytelling. It's also one of the reasons why Lori Devoti recommended that I create an alternate cover for The Queen of Crows so that people aren't turned off by the Native American theme before they open the book.

I knew that this project was going to be unique when I wrote it. To a point, I'm a big believer in market research. Here, I specifically created this e-book for a reason. The Queen of Crows is the origin story for Mahochepi, who is a central character in my modern urban fantasy novel, and it's a preview of things to (hopefully) come. Yes, I have been revising my urban fantasy novel for a while now. Here's why. First, I knew I was writing on spec, so I prioritized my life and career accordingly. Then, day job didn't get in the way, but emotional mojo did. Now, I'm saying "Screw you, Mojo Jojo" and working on it regardless of what I'm doing and what schedule I have. I want, very much, to give an agent or editor the best story I possibly can. I want to pen a tale many people will love.

Look Back to See Ahead

And we're back to the retrospective. One question that continues to come up from readers is: "I love the short story, could you please write a sequel?" I've thought about this a lot, because in my mind readers are the kings and queens of ages past. The short answer is that I want to, but I'm not sure if writing a trilogy of tales — which is what it would have to be — would be best for me right now. The bulk of the marketing has been on me for this project, and I've done a lot to spread the word, but now I need to scale back a bit. I have to focus on readers, not marketing, and to do that I need to write like hell, have fun, and hope something comes out of it. Offering another creator-owned property for me right now may not be the best route to go, but I'm not sure. For something like that, Kickstarter might come into play.

A sequel isn't out of the picture, it's just not something I plan on doing right now — unless a large portion of you storm this post and demand one. The funny thing is, the "Will there be a sequel?" question tends to pop up with a lot of my short stories. It certainly did with Pie in Buried Tales of Pinebox, Texas and it just did with Tomorrow's Precious Lambs in The Zombie Feed, Volume 1. Um, yeah…and I expect that'll happen with Fangs and Formaldehyde, too. These requests are awesome, because it tells me a reader wants more, more, more. Well, I'd like to fulfill that request. Plenty of new stories in the old noggin, so we shall see.

The Queen of Crows has taught me a lot. Timing is important, but so is a self-awareness of where you are as an author. Readers are royalty, no matter what anyone else says. Market research is crucial to understanding what your expectations should be. Collaboration, when done well, can turn out awesome and amazing things. New marketing campaigns for new books work better than existing ones, because people want the shiny.

And, of course, this experience has reaffirmed my faith in my own work. I'm a pragmatist by nature, but I have to tell you, I have dreams. Big dreams. No idea how or when or what or where, but it doesn't matter. One day I believe I'll get to where I want to go, even if it takes me a lifetime to do it.

Here's hoping it doesn't take that long.

A Word of Thanks

Before I leave you all, I would like to say a few words of "Thanks." For everyone who purchased, reviewed, spread the word or interviewed one of us for The Queen of Crows, thank you. Thank you from the bottom of Mahochepi's ancient and crusty heart. Your support is deeply appreciated.

Leanne, James, and Shari if you're reading this post, know that I never forget a kindness. Ever. Hopefully I've made some headway in that regard. Matt? Thank you for helping me to continually move forward. It is your encouragement and faith in me that has allowed me to be who I am today and dig deep into my storytelling.

The PR Round-Up

Now that that's over with, I leave you with a round-up of interviews, design notes, reviews and the trailer. Thanks for reading my one-year retrospective on The Queen of Crows. For those of you who haven't picked it up, I hope you'll do me the honor of reading it some day.

Interviews and Design Notes

Interview with author Paul Jessup
Interview with Suvudu.com
Interview with composer James Semple on FlamesRising.com
Design notes by Monica Valentinelli on FlamesRising.com
On Writing a Historically-Accurate Paranormal Short Story
Setting Music to The Queen of Crows e-book trailer
Reviews

Review of THE QUEEN OF CROWS by Janette Dalgliesh – "Valentinelli gives us a lyrical yet chilling encounter at a crucial point of America's history."
Review of THE QUEEN OF CROWS by Jason Thorson – "Valentinelli's writing is well-researched and vividly executed. Her world pulls itself from the pages of history books and comes to life, fully realized and described in concrete detail."
Review of THE QUEEN OF CROWS by Steven Dawes – "Anyone who purchases the Queen of Crows should be arrested for piracy. For all you get in this book, the measly price tag of five clams is plain stealing in my eyes!"
Review of THE QUEEN OF CROWS by Charlie Von Eschen – "I have spent a lot more money for stories that were much much less enjoyable. I recommend the Queen of Crows. And now I have to pay attention to the Violet War too."
Review of THE QUEEN OF CROWS by Jess Hartley – "I'd recommend The Queen of Crows for anyone who has a soft spot for hard topics, who likes their historic fiction a bit on the dark-and-yet-beautiful side or who is looking for a glimpse into the creation process of a darned-good read."
Review of THE QUEEN OF CROWS by Bill Bodden – "Buy this ebook for the story; you won't be disappointed. Consider the additional features a very large bonus, making the pittance paid for this work seem trivial indeed."
Review of THE QUEEN OF CROWS by Preston DuBose – "Having read the final (much different) original story, some readers will be fascinated to read the original and see how much has changed, while others will undoubtedly wonder why they'd be expected to read anything other than the final, most polished version. In other words, if you're the kind of person who eagerly consumes all the bonus content on a DVD then you're likely to enjoy this book. If not, you'll still enjoy the short story but you'll likely skim over the extra content."
Review of THE QUEEN OF CROWS by Stephen Jarjoura – "This just screams "fearless author" to me, someone who's not afraid to say "here's my story, here's my inspiration, here's some character notes, and here's an early draft so you can see how far it's come."

Promotional Trailer

Watch the promotional trailer for THE QUEEN OF CROWS e-book. Music was composed by James Semple.

Related posts: Alternate Cover for THE QUEEN OF CROWS
The Queen of Crows is Now Available for Your Kindle, Nook, iPad and More!
It's Nice to be First Sometimes

Thank You, OddCon!

Over the weekend, I attended OddCon here in Madison, Wisconsin and moderated a bunch of panels. This convention also gave me the chance to sit down and chat with familiar faces and get to know new people, too.

On the industry side, folks included the illustrious and fabulous: Lynne M. Thomas, Michael Damian Thomas, Matt Forbeck, Steven H. Silver, Sarah Monette, LaShawn Wanak, Jim Frenkel, Alex Bledsoe, Kenneth Hite, Will Hindmarch, Jason L. Blair, John Kovalic, Bill Bodden, Matt McElroy (DriveThruRPG.com, DriveThruComics.com and FlamesRising.com), Kelly McCullough, Robin Laws, John Jackson Miller, Lori Devoti, Richard Chedwyk and so many more.

I had a really good time this year and felt everyone was incredibly friendly and open. My moderation style was a bit more crazy on Saturday than Sunday, due to an unforeseen impromptu illness that affected my thought-linking connection. This convention was good for me on many levels, and I'd like to give a shout out to Paul Wiesner who did a great job coordinating the events and panel schedule this year.

The panels were really good this year and I felt that John Jackson Miller was an incredible attention to the line-up. Not only is he knowledgeable about comics and the literary process, he's also a successful tie-in writer, too. (In short, I think John is made out of awesome.) I was happy to have other, very knowledgeable individuals on the panels with me. Robin Laws was an excellent choice for guest-of-honor because yep, he is that smart and yes, he's a fine author to boot. He read his short story from Stone Skin Press's upcoming anthology Shotguns V. Cthulhu.

The three best surprises I had this year were:

Surprise Number One: My Reading – Having a full room for my reading with LaShawn Wanak. If you may recall, I mentioned I was going to read Tomorrow's Precious Lambs from The Zombie Feed, Volume 1. Not only did people like my story, they asked me if there was going to be a chance to see more of Officer Francis in either a novel or a continuing tale. How awesome is that? Then LaShawn brought down the house with her reading of She's All Light , which you can read for free at Daybreak Magazine. It's a science fiction story set in a believable future. For those of you who follow my blog that love Eclipse Phase, I think you'd really dig this story!!!

Surprise Number Two: Our Cthulhu Panel – For our Cthulhu panel on Sunday, I brought along some prizes for the audience including an autographed hardcover copy of Shadows Over Filmland and a few Nox Arcana CDs. The best part, though, was that Kenneth Hite crashed the panel. Chicago-based, Ken is extremely knowledgeable about Lovecraft and has written books like Cthulhu 101 and Tour de Lovecraft. So many people in this crowded room were not aware of how this unique American author became so ingrained in our contemporary culture. He was a fine addition to the panel and the audience had a great time.

Surprise Number Three: BARCON! – The bartender at the Radisson was my kind of guy. He was incredibly entertaining and really made the weekend soooooo much fun. Barcon was a blast. We playtested a new game from John Kovalic — of course Robin won — exchanged stories, had a Final Fantasy moment (Thank you, Laura. You rock!), got to tell a few of my more embarrassing college drinking stories, talked shop and heard the Smelt Festival recap.

Overall, OddCon XII was an absolute blast, which is probably why I'm so tired today. I was really happy to see so much gaming going on this year and was sad I didn't get the chance to play Midnight Munchkin.

Special thanks to Richard Russell, Brian Curley, Paul Wiesner, Sean McConkey and so many others for your enthusiasm and your smiles. Happy people makes for some great convention time and you really highlighted my weekend.

So thank you, OddCon!

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[Video] Cat + Dolphin = Win

I missed Caturday! So, I thought I'd share with you this really cool video of a cat playing with a dolphin from YouTube! Fascinating stuff. As an animal lover, it's interesting to me to see how different species interact with each other.

Well, that and perhaps I may want to become a guardian for another non-cat pet some day. Hoping to get a dog at one point. Dogs and cats! Living together!

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