Monica Valentinelli's Blog: booksofm.com, page 78

National Flash Fiction Day! Read or Add Your Own!

This morning, I found out from author Saladin Ahmed this morning that it’s National Flash Fiction Day. He posted a link to his flash fiction piece which debuted on Strange Horizons called Doctor Diablo Goes Through the Motions.

I really like flash fiction because it allows me to sharpen my plots and prose in a confined space. When I’m short on time, it also forces me to stay grounded and focused, too. I’ve written a “few” pieces over the years for myself, publishers, and readers. In recent memory, the piece that I wrote titled The Message was a ton of fun. I enjoy secret codes and hidden messages and hope you will, too. What can I say? I’m a sucker for a good mystery.

To my recollection, there’s a few authors who post plot seeds for flash fiction. Chuck Wendig does this every Friday and I know Lili Saintcrow does this on occasion, too.

Hope you get the chance to enjoy National Flash Fiction Day! If you’ve got a favorite piece out there, whether it’s yours or something someone else wrote, feel free to add a link to it in the comments below.

Mood: Feeling a little behind.

Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: Two with a side of four.

Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Walkin’ with mah boots.

In My Ears: Nothing.

Game Last Played: Battle Nations

Movie Last Viewed: Harry Potter as part of a marathon

Latest Artistic Project: Cross-stitch

Latest Release: “Don’t Ignore Your Dead” included in Don’t Read This Book for the Don’t Rest Your Head RPG

Round-Up of My Freelancing Articles

It’s been almost a year since I’ve been writing about freelancing for Geek’s Dream Girl, so I thought I’d grab the links for you to read with a short excerpt from each article.

Calling all Freelancers! Adventure to Dice Castle: Before we head out on our quest to Dice Castle, there are a couple of things we need to figure out. First? We’re going to take a look at your character sheet to see what’s already there. Oh, and for those of you who decide to min/max this process? There will be some opportunities for that, too. You’re a Commoner at the moment, but with any luck you’ll be a Freelancer in no time. So sayeth the GM, so shall it be done.


Tools and Equipment: Adventure to Dice Castle: To become a professional freelancer, there are a few tools you’ll need (and some I suggest) that you’ll benefit from having. If you followed along last time, the hard part of building your character sheet is over. Today, all you have to do is run through this list and assess what you need, how much you’ll have to spend, and what equipment you already have on hand.


The Village of No-No: Adventure to Dice Castle: You adjust your shoulder bag and stroll into a village nestled in a lush valley. The first thing you see is a man and a woman arguing at the top of their lungs. From what you can make out, they’re pissed off about coin. The woman turns to you and says: “Don’t work for that guy, he’ll never pay you.” The man, who happens to be wearing a jerkin with an embroidered logo on the back, rolls his eyes and drones: “Don’t hire that freelancer, she’ll never hand anything in on time and it’s full of typos, too.”


Wizard’s Guidance: Adventure to Dice Castle: A commenter on the article correctly pointed out that our hero’s biggest problem was that he didn’t do any research on Lances-For-Hire, LLC. before he asked Tom for work. There are other issues with what our freelancer encountered, which is why the wizard decided to step in. He has taken you back to his modest hovel far away from the prying eyes of nosy villagers.


Where to Find New Jobs: Adventure to Dice Castle: I talked about how important it is to research the companies you want to work for. I also provided an allegory that (hopefully) highlights how employers view you. As a freelancer, you are essentially operating your own business. Self-employment — even if it’s part-time — is a real job. Freelancing for the hobby games industry just happens to be more creative than doing someone’s taxes or making copies all day.


Introductory E-Mail Doesn’t Have to LOL: Adventure to Dice Castle: When you’re a freelancer, you will need to communicate with people who don’t live in your area. That means you’re going to chat with them online or via e-mail. Unfortunately, e-mail doesn’t always work well to convey emotions. Sure, it’d be easier if we’d take a page from Dork Tower and color-code our text, but the reality is that when you e-mail? All anyone has is your words to go on. Having good communication is crucial to building a good relationship with someone. But what should that look like?


The Perils of Edition Wars: Adventure to Dice Castle: Hobby game edition wars exist because tribes form up around systems and settings. No matter how hard you may try, there is no possible way to convince someone who loves their twenty-year old system that it sucks. Companies know and understand that edition wars take place. Some turn a blind eye; others embrace them. However, companies have legitimate reasons why they want to update a game that has nothing to do with intentionally hurting fans. Maybe they want to modernize a setting. Maybe they’re hoping to engage existing players in crowdsourcing, like what White Wolf Publishing did for the twentieth edition of Vampire: the Masquerade. Or maybe? They want to attract new players.


To Speculate, or Not To Speculate. (Trap?) Adventure to Dice Castle: When you see a rumor or something you’re dying to know, take it up privately with your contact at the company. Tell them that you want to know if this is true because you were hoping to write more for them. Then, when they respond? Ask them if you can share that information as a quote. Trust me when I say that in some cases you do not want to ask forgiveness. Permission and manners will get you a lot further especially if you’re dealing with companies that have licenses and products slated for the next year or so.


Let’s Talk about Gold (I Mean Money): Adventure to Dice Castle: The terms of payment in a contract will say something like: “Payment after 30 days of publication” or “Payment upon receipt.” Payment after 30 days of publication means that you get paid after the project is available for customers to buy. If you’ve written a submission, that means the project still has to go through the line development process, playtesting, editing, and layout before the book sees the light of day. It is not uncommon for a project to get delayed, too, especially if licensing is involved. So, what that clause can mean, is that you may not get paid for six months, a year, or more.

The One Thing that Stops Me from Writing

Yesterday I wrote a post about where writer’s insecurity comes from. It’s only fitting that today I follow up with why I don’t write. In a word: b.s. Seriously. When I slow down, and there are gaps where the b.s. can slide right in, that wedges into my fingers and prevents me from writing.

Where does the b.s. come from? Publishing is a glorious business. A frustrating vertical. An industry full of unknowns, rollercoaster rides, and periods of stagnation. This uncertainty causes normally sweet and wonderful people to do very, very strange things. Sometimes those are extraordinarily nice things. Other times? Well, not so much.

Making the switch from full-time freelancing to writing on spec has been a huge one for me and that has created some periods of drag as I figure out what it is I want to write. Writing on spec is a significant change in business model. Significant. By the time I figured out what I was doing to self-sabotage, some zombie projects reared their rotting heads and I had a shiny new day job. But my lack of writing consistency wasn’t due to any business-related reason. I lost my way, my discipline went to hell, and I started to let the b.s. get to me. My priorities were screwed up because I recognized where I was in my career and how far I needed to go. Then? I whined about it. GAH. Then I apologized profusely about the whiny. You can see where this can get out of control really quick — especially since apologies are really only valid if you’ve done something wrong and the only person I should be apologizing to is myself.

Thing is, none of the b.s. — whether it’s crappy comments from an author or egomaniacs or contract issues or envy or convention management or whatever — should have any affect on getting the words down on the page. (That includes all personal b.s. too!) At the end of the day, we’re all responsible for our own manuscripts. Anything that prevents those words from landing on the page is toxic. Anything.

The trick is to recognize what those triggers are and that’s something every writer has to do. For me? Again, I know my misery is caused by not writing enough. The gaps is where the b.s. overcomes me. Too much b.s. equals not enough words.

Which is why I started a new training program last week to get more out of my day, focus better on all my spheres of work, head down to The Alliterates meeting, and plow blindly forward. Luckily, I’m starting to get support from like-minded folks and I know that I never, ever want to ever experience this feeling ever, ever again. Crazy business publishing. One minute you’re on top of the world and the next?

Well… I’m not that blind… Heh, heh…

Mood: Yay!

Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: It’s a blur.

Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Walk!

In My Ears: Henry Rollins

Game Last Played: Battle Nations

Movie Last Viewed: Harry Potter as part of a marathon

Latest Artistic Project: Cross-stitch

Latest Release: “Don’t Ignore Your Dead” included in Don’t Read This Book for the Don’t Rest Your Head RPG

Where Author Insecurity Comes From

Yesterday, I came across a New York Times article talking about how Writer’s Cramp: In the E-Reader Era, a Book a Year Is Slacking. I do think the article is worth a read, but only if you are thinking about how you want to build or alter your career. If not? If you’re solid?

Articles like these, my fellow authors, this is where insecurity comes from. One of the hugest culprits (or triggers if you will) that causes new writers to STOP writing or SWITCH gears is getting hung up on the state of the publishing industry. The thing is, articles like this have been around for as long as the publishing industry has existed. It is very easy to get caught up in promises of how you can make money before you actually have something to sell. Even then, every author and their career is different and I can’t stress that enough. There will *always* be doom and gloom. There will *always* be uncertainty. There will *always* be something to talk about in publishing where it’s the changing role of an agent, editor or author, what readers really want to read, what publishers are looking for, what technology is out there. Always.

Don’t fear the news; fear the empty page.

If something someone says de-rails you from whatever manuscript you’re trying to finish, makes you question that third/fourth/fifth re-write, or causes you to feel like a chump — ditch it. Seriously. Just toss it right out of the window and save it for that moment when you’re ready to think all these state of the publishing articles through or you’ll go mad trying to chase the system. When is that? NOT UNTIL YOU’RE DONE WITH YOUR CURRENT MANUSCRIPT.

Read what I wrote earlier about how the zeitgeist can jump off a cliff, then you’ll understand this next line. Say it with me: If you cannot trust yourself or someone else to do right by you, then Trust. The. Work. Trust the work. Fifteen rewrites. Ten. One. Four. Trust the work.

When you do that, when you FINISH what you’ve started, something magical happens. Your confidence grows, you stretch your limits, and suddenly you are able to do more with less effort because you know you can do it, because you already did.

If you’re still worried about what’s going to happen to you? Get a support group, go to church, read tarot cards, do whatever it is you need to do to get over your fear. Then tell yourself this: you do not have time to get hung up in b.s. because you are too busy writing. Eventually, you’ll let all the other b.s. go because you’ll love your work, it’ll love you back, and you’ll have a strong core of confidence to master your own destiny. It’s a hard, hard, hard lesson to learn but once you learn it, you’ll be a helluva lot happier.

Good luck!

Mood: Aristotle-y

Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: Um… Lost count.

Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Walk, a long one

In My Ears: The Birds. As in… actual birds.

Game Last Played: Battle Nations

Movie Last Viewed: Harry Potter as part of a marathon

Latest Artistic Project: Cross-stitch

Latest Release: “Don’t Ignore Your Dead” included in Don’t Read This Book for the Don’t Rest Your Head RPG

New Glasses and Bats

Dropping you a quick note today so you can see my new specs! Also: I made a new friend at the Wisconsin Bat Festival. Hee.

I don’t think my kitty cares.

Mood: Feisty

Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: THREE OH THREE

Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Walk

In My Ears: Harry Potter

Game Last Played: Battle Nations

Movie Last Viewed: Harry Potter as part of a marathon

Latest Artistic Project: Cross-stitch

Latest Release: “Don’t Ignore Your Dead” included in Don’t Read This Book for the Don’t Rest Your Head RPG

Training and the Trust Required

Today I begin training in multiple spheres. Will require long hours, lots of concentration, and a walk uphill in the snow without boots. Am I ready for it? You bet! What does it require?

Trust in my work. Hee.

Mood: Determined

Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: A paltry one.

Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Bah, laundry.

In My Ears: Movie

Game Last Played: Star Wars Battlefront

Movie Last Viewed: Harry Potter as part of a marathon

Latest Artistic Project: Cross-stitch

Latest Release: “Don’t Ignore Your Dead” included in Don’t Read This Book for the Don’t Rest Your Head RPG

An Ogre of a Thank You!

I just wanted to say Thank You. The Ogre Designer’s Edition project on Kickstarter was a huge undertaking by Steve Jackson Games and many, many long hours were put in by staff to accommodate the overwhelming number of questions and ensure fans were happy. Not only does our first Kickstarter now hold the record for the best-supported board and card game, we are hiring a line developer in Austin for Ogre, too!

Outside of that, I know how frustrating it can be to constantly read these updates on my personal accounts and blog and I appreciate your patience. This has consumed life at my fun Day JobTM and because of the fan enthusiasm I am anxious to play Ogre and enjoy the game everyone loves so much.

So, thanks!

The Zeitgeist Can Jump Off a Cliff

I read this rant from author extraordinaire Harry Connolly today about the era of the social artist and I was inspired to let loose the floodgates of my own angst. I’ve been wanting to say this for a while — namely, to talk about why I’ve stopped giving advice and totally dropped the writer’s platform and blah, blah, blah.

The reality of being an author is that you have to focus not only on words, but numbers. Where is your money coming from? If you have a steady job like I do, then you can afford to take risks, because you’re not relying on every word to pay or every book to sell. The number of Twitter followers you have does not pay you in dollars; that may have an intrinsic or extrinsic value, but you don’t *have* to be popular on social media to make money. In fact, there are many popular places online that solely survive on venture capital. Internet zeitgeist is (to be blunt) WRONG on many things. It’s a pretty dream, but the reality is that people can lose their shirts if they waste time on things that don’t pay.

Authors don’t have the luxury of venture capital anymore. Oh wait… That’s wrong… Why, yes there is a model in place to give authors some money to live while they write their next book. (This is what the publisher’s “advance” was intended to be. But even that’s changing.) So, to make money, what is an author supposed to do? Market while writing their book? Or market their book after the fact? Or both? Obviously, that depends on the writer and the publisher, but marketing is its own form of work.

The biggest problem a lot of folks have right now is that everyone is so focused on the immediate gain they are completely missing the long-term picture. We’re throwing the marketing onus on authors to reach readers, but the average reader doesn’t care about an author’s blog. It comes back to that beautiful lovely book they want to buy about “X.” Or does it? WITHOUT PROPER DATA IT’S IMPOSSIBLE TO KNOW WHAT SELLS BOOKS. Who has that data? You? Me?

*shakes head* No, the publishers do after a fashion and the eCommerce sites/retailers do because that’s what they specialize in. Even then, though, there’s long form data and immediate that comes from web analytics on a large, large scale. So the methodology or business model for the rest of us is “Let’s throw everything at the audience and see what sticks, because the internet is popular.” Yes, you can get anecdotal data, but you need direct numbers. I see these in almost every aspect of what I do and the conversion numbers would shock you. Every bit does help, but you need a lot of bits for them to matter!

A vocal minority of book lovers do absolutely love and benefit from all the effort and energy that is being dumped on them from author and publisher websites. And yes, I believe absolutely that these readers need to be nurtured, rewarded, and loved. (Yes, this is where some of these demands on an author’s time come from. Also, this is where a lot of the: “But you can do Kickstarter, this, that, etc. and you’ll be just fine!” beliefs originate from, too.) That doesn’t mean, however, that the general public or masses give a crap about your blog or your articles. Popularity can have an effect provided that persona has long-term sustainability and reach. Internet trends come and go very, very quickly once a particular topic or persona reaches an apex. It could take months of beating down blogs or sites to get a link on a popular site but guess what? That traffic isn’t always sustainable. These aren’t regular readers. These are people who are enamored by the topic of that one post. If you don’t have a good book then you don’t have ANYTHING. The work *has* to feed your platform and vice versa.

The uncertainty of the publishing industry, moreso than any other reason, is what is causing people to freak out and make demands. Sometimes, the people doing that are agents. Other times? Fans or authors or editors or family members (who don’t read) or whoever. But when your zeitgeist is based on confusion and not strong, supportive analysis then the acts you take can really and truly mess you up — even publishers!

Take me, for example. You want to know why I’m not pushing the marketing of self? Because I do not have the novels (plural) out there for readers to pick up. That’s why. Someone says: “What do you write? How can I support your work?” So far, in fiction I have published short stories, game material, and two novellas that I deeply and truly love — but it’s not like hooking a reader onto “a” book or “a” series. The short stories are my marketing tools, a sample of the range and depth and breadth of what I can do, but they aren’t a good way for me to support myself as an author. They’re just not as lucrative as novels.

Every writer has to make their own decisions about what is going to work for them. Same goes for every editor and every publisher, too. Do I believe the industry is evil? NO. Do I believe some publishers (and authors, too!) are having a hard time incorporating new technology and navigating the fluctuating changes? YES. Does any of this have an affect on my work? NO. Will it change what I do business-wise? DEPENDS.

Really, all this means is that I have to write more (and keep writing). Do I have a plan? YES. Will it require the sacrifice of neighborhood children and the summoning of an Elder God? Erm… Let me get back to you on that.

Everything else — including the zeitgeist’s demands on my time — is secondary.

Mood: Studious with a tough of magic.

Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: The bull is red. THE BULL IS RED.

Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Short walk.

In My Ears: The dryer.

Game Last Played: Star Wars Battlefront

Movie Last Viewed: Harry Potter as part of a marathon

Latest Artistic Project: Cross-stitch

Latest Release: “Don’t Ignore Your Dead” included in Don’t Read This Book for the Don’t Rest Your Head RPG

On the New Speak Out Guidelines

I’m having a little trouble with the new submission guidelines, so I need your help. The thing is, last year when Speak Out With Your Geek Out spontaneously combusted into being, we had some negative criticism based on how things were worded. There was a vocal minority of folks who didn’t like the mission statement. So, I want to do two things: a) reword the current mission statement and b) offer up a theme.

I have a few challenges writing up the submission guidelines for the theme of gratitude. First, I don’t want this to turn into an opportunity for religious, political, or otherwise inflammatory debate because of socially-charged topics.

Secondly, I can’t accept any submissions that reveals specific addresses or full names — especially of kids. First name and last initial is perfectly okay; I’d prefer that this site covers my butt and a few of my own basic privacy concerns. Whether that be an “at risk” clause in the submission guidelines or not, there has to be some -ese in this. Ugh.

This week-long celebration was supposed to be akin to  Geek Pride Day and not a chance for people to be beaten over the head with deep, serious topics and rampant negativity or criticism for simply wanting to be happy. It was, also, a way to point out and avoid yellow journalism within the context of being nerd bait or inducing nerd rage. Is it hard being a geek? Yes, because it doesn’t matter if certain topics are mainstream or not. If it’s mainstream, some of these awesome things will likely fade over time, because it’s capitalizing on a trend. Not to mention, if geeks were that accepted? Then there wouldn’t be any bullies lurking about and we all know that’s not true.

What we’re talking about here, is passion for what we love. That passion can manifest in a very positive way. I need to figure out how to get that message across in the simplest way possible but still make it firmly rooted in this thing called “geek.”

I’m attaching the original statement. What needs to change?

Take a stance against baiting nerd rage and stereotypes of geeks.

Post about how much you love your geeky hobbies or vocation from [Date] to [Date] on your blog, website, social media account or in a forum somewhere. Then come here and tell us about it. We’ll have a kick-off post where you can stand and be counted.

Let’s show the world why we’re awesome and why there is nothing wrong with being a geek.

What do you think about the submission guidelines? Thoughts?

Originally Published at SpeakOutWithYourGeekOut.com.

The One Thing I Want Out Of an E-Reader (And Why)

There are a lot of e-readers out on the market, but I am still not satisfied with the reading experience. I feel like the goal of e-readers now, is to get as many into the hands of people as possible, to get readers used to skimming through page after page in that particular format. Then, we’ll eventually see the format wars. As a friend of mine aptly pointed out, it’s just like what happened back in the days of Beta versus VHS.

The problem for me is not the format of the book, but the device itself. I feel there’s a huge component missing — the cover. Now, word of mouth advertising relies on interfacing with other readers online, but not in person. It’s easy to show someone a physical copy of a book when someone says “Hey, what are you reading?” Doesn’t work like that when you’re out in the wild. In fact, I’m less inclined to strike up that conversation now that the answer requires the person to stop reading and tell me what the book is. Since I spot books by their cover, it’s hard for me to remember names all the time — unless I specifically go out looking for one.

What I want, is an eReader that has a screen on the opposite side to display the book cover you’re reading by default. I picture this as a flexible image where you can add your own “book paper” when you’re not reading something. Imagine what that one image could do. No, I don’t want it to be full of advertising (ew!) but a picture can really add something to help boost a book’s visibility and facilitate conversation, too.

I feel that covers are very important and will become increasingly moreso as time goes on. Yes, this is one cover that is (usually) judged. So why not highlight all the great ones that are out there? Certainly, it would make the digital experience all that sweeter for me.

Mood: I’m a cliche.

Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: Going to drink my way through a barrel of coffee and then pass out into sweet oblivion.

Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: None due to a stupid, clutzy move.

In My Ears: Star Wars

Game Last Played: Star Wars Battlefront

Movie Last Viewed: Drive

Latest Artistic Project: Cross-stitch

Latest Release: “Don’t Ignore Your Dead” included in Don’t Read This Book for the Don’t Rest Your Head RPG