Monica Valentinelli's Blog: booksofm.com, page 95

An Update on Working with Dork Storm Press

For the past couple of months, I've been working as a freelance consultant with John Kovalic, the cartoonist, illustrator, game designer and writer behind Dork Tower, Dr. Blink, Apples to Apples, and Munchkin. In July, I announced that I was working behind-the-scenes with Dork Storm Press, but wasn't ready to share with you what that role entails. Well, today I am.

Since John is a high profile individual within geek and gaming circles, I felt that it was in both of our best interests to take things slow. Fortunately, we both share the same business philosophy which has really helped our discussions. Those conversations began with a series of questions designed to make John think about what he wanted out of his career. After the first couple of meetings, it was clear to both of us that he had outgrown his modus operandi and he needed someone to help him shape both his short-term and his long-term goals.

As John's consultant, I'm not telling him what to do or cracking a ruler over his knuckles, I'm providing him with choices. At first, these options were to help him create a loose infrastructure for his business that fit both his original and contracted works. Now? I'm happy to report we've gotten the bare bones of processes and roles down that will accommodate the growth of his business along with developing a new web presence.

My role may adapt to fit the business as it grows, but right now I continue to fill the shoes of freelance consultant as his partner on the business-facing side. E Sophia will be managing the Army of Dorkness (which is what we call the fans of John's artwork) where she'll employ her endless enthusiasm to have fun with fans, run contests, etc. We are also exploring a mentoring opportunity for her, too, that John and I both hopes will be the first of many such opportunities.

There is a lot of Dork Storm Press-related news in the works and a lot more planned — but we're tackling the new website first. I can't wait to share with you what that will look like when it's all said and done.

Until next time… Or better yet? Go read Dork Tower.

Comment on These Logos for Speak Out with your Geek Out

It's been almost a day since we really started pushing this idea and already we have well over a hundred people signed up on the Facebook event to blog about their geeky hobbies and vocations during the week of September 12th. WOW.

Today, I need your help to comment on these logos provided by two, different individuals. The logos will be used to identify the event and will be free to share with everyone. We'll probably set up a Facebook fan page and a Tumblr account where people can aggregate their posts the week of, too.

The first is this one graciously provided by Suzanna Reeves.

The second and third are variations on a theme benevolently given by AJ Freemont from transcendingpixels.blogspot.com.











Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions?

Calling all Geeks: Post about Your Hobbies September 12th to the 16th

It seems like there's an internet gaffe every so often where geeks are the butt of all jokes. This time, the article was written on a site where the author gets paid-per-click. Do I understand that garnering negative press increases page views? Sure, but the writer's initial point — that we stereotype and make judgments as humans — was completely lost.

But alas, enticing so-called "nerd rage" inspires me to do something else. It reminds me of all the fun I have, of the fact that properties like Magic: the Gathering and World of Warcraft are incredibly financially successful and a huge part of the overall community, of the friends I've made and the hobbies I've shared. It makes me want to play Vampire: the Requiem in public or have a Doctor Who marathon. It forces me to put as much awesome as I possibly can in my next game-related assignment or story to make it that much more fun for readers and players alike.

And it encourages me to reach out to others who are passionate about "an" interest, to listen to their experiences, too. There is no one I'd rather reach out to right now than the demographic that bucks the stereotype, my fellow female geeks. (Edit: Based on feedback, this call is all-inclusive.)

Here's what I propose:

SPEAK OUT WITH YOUR GEEK OUT

Sometime during the week of Monday, September 12th to Friday, September 16th post about what geeky hobby you love. Then, tell us why we should try it, too. Leave your fears (and edition wars) at the door. Forget about your latest rant. Tap into that well of positive energy and share in the excitement of all things geek.

Let us invite those who would stereotype us to sit at our table and share our interests.

Thoughts? Complaints? Observations?

Sadly, I lack the graphic design skills necessary to come up with a small icon or logo, but I wish there was a way to "light up" the internet with this and truly see how far the rabbit hole goes. There is so much negativity online, that I'd love to see one entire happy week of the shiny, meeting new friends, and really tapping into that well of positivity and exuberance I know is out there. Sure, I'd love to solve something like world peace or get something for charity going, but we have to start somewhere… Right?

I leave it to you, my fellow coordinators and commenters… What say you?

UPDATE: Thanks, Angeli, for coming up with the tagline.

UPDATE: While the concept about a girl geek week was enticing to many people, several commenters have said we should take the idea of being positive and throw caution to the wind. So if you're a geek, speak out!

UPDATE: The Facebook event is public and live! When we get a logo, I'll update the event with that picture. http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=190025581068159

A New Munny… Because Art is Awesome

Picked up the last Munny from a local shop today. The accessories were fantastic. Hair, a cape, huge axe and a teddy bear. Just in time for Halloween.

Here's a picture of the one I did before. I had help with the basic lines from my friend Leanne Buckley, which was sorely needed since it was my first one and I was getting used to the materials. Pretty excited about this one because once I get a good design going, I can work on the one I REALLY want to paint… My blank My Little Cthulhu!

I'm really enjoying the opportunities I've had to dive into my artwork again. It's nice to catch a break from words every once in a while and have fun.

[New Release] "Tailfeather" in Apexology: Science Fiction and Fantasy

Hi everyone!

I am thrilled to announce the debut of my dystopian science fiction story entitled Tailfeather in Apexology: Science Fiction and Fantasy. Set in a far-flung future, you learn why Maria undergoes a series of invasive surgeries to become a cybernetic bird for the U.F.S. military. This is the second story that has been published in my ever-expansive setting and I'm happy to be a part of this collection. You can read a little more about the setting's high concepts in my post entitled Writing the Future, the Slow Creep of Ages.

The anthology is available in digital for $2.99 on Amazon.com, DriveThruSciFi.com and by buying direct from Apex Book Company.

I hope you will do me the honor of supporting my work.

Special thanks go out to fellow author Stephen Blackmoore whose dark fantasy novel City of the Lost debuts in January 2012 from DAW.

Take a peek at the table of contents below! Happy reading!

Apexology: Science Fiction and Fantasy Table of Contents
Dedalus and the Labyrinth – J.M. McDermott

The Imagination Hospital – Guy Hasson

Ride of a Lifetime – Patrick S. Tomlinson

The Komastu – Jennifer Brozek

Stinker City – George R. Galuschak

Tailfeather – Monica Valentinelli

Temple of Regrets – Maurice Broaddus

Haunted Empire – Deanna Knippling

And Night Swallowed the World – Paul Jessup

BollyWorld Gods, Bubonic Men, and the Cyberpunk Samurai – O.M.R. Anwar and M. Zak Anwar

Coming Home – Gene O'Neill

Extremum – R. Thomas Riley and Roy C. Booth

Ride the Wild Wind – Gill Ainsworth

In Her Image – Michael A. Burstein

Unicorn Gold – Alethea Kontis

Gemphalon – Elizabeth Engstrom

G-O-O-D-B-Y-E – Nick Mamatas

Covenant – Lavie Tidhar

100 Days Social Media Black-Out: A Post-Mortem

Although my experiment has ended, the experience continues to ripple through my work habits, personal life and discussions with other authors. If you're not familiar with the experiment, be sure to peer into my 100 Days: Social Media Black-Out Archives.

Several authors have come forward and told me that they were having the discussion about what social media was worth to them. A few of them, who are highly-visible, talked about the negative side effects of being too accessible, too.

Why am I telling you this? Because these conversations brought up a few, interesting points. The accessibility issue may be causing normally "sane" authors to act insecure with knee-jerk reactions or worse…sneaking doubts into the work itself. The sheer bombardment of information — both positive and negative — can be overwhelming, which is what happened when I wrote on the subject of insecurity and writing. Add opinions and snarky comments on top of that? It's clear to me that information overload has its effects.

When I first heard the idea that being connected all the time allowed feelings of insecurity to flourish, it made all kinds of sense to me. I could even see how that played into my misplaced belief that I needed to be online for my audience, which was taking the focus off of my work. Being hyper-connected doesn't work for me, so I've since figured out a better way to manage my time to focus on what's important.

Since I first talked about my experiment, a few other authors have hopped offline to see how the lack of connection would affect them, too. Check out The Juggling Writer for Christopher Gronlund's experiences. The kick-off post is entitled: The 50 Day Social Media Break.

That's the key, isn't it? When it comes down to it: there are no hard and fast rules about social media. You have to engage on a level you're comfortable with. Community pressure, more so than what you're doing right or wrong, is what drives social media gurus, experts and articles. The tools themselves aren't all that important, except for the level of interaction. It's your role within those interactions that creates a flurry of opinions and would-be facts.

Unfortunately, I feel this is something businesses, publishers and other professionals are still learning. The dollar signs people see when they talk about social media are starting to fade, as older, more relevant and direct forms of online marketing come back into style. The attitude is shifting from: Must be online twenty-four seven to monitor branding. To: Who cares if people are talking about your business? Guess what? People don't necessarily want you listening. Sometimes? They just want to talk without fear that someone else is snooping in.

'Course, the irony of that is that social media tools are still public, which is something even users haven't quite figured out yet.

Another thing I feel a lot of us are missing, is that there is no such thing as one, grand online community anymore. Think "micro-communities" and "suburbs." No doubt, one online community differs from one author to the next. An audience may be perfectly fine with the occasional "buy my book." Another? May be pissed off the author even brought it up. This, moreso than any Tweet or message update, is why the people that are hyper-connected (myself included at one time) talk about the rules in an authoritative fashion. Some of those observations could be pulled out on a higher level because there are some good insights to be gleaned from them. Some of those comments are complete b.s., like when people say "You have to…" When that happens, replace the "you" with "I have to…" and you'll better understand where that speaker is coming from.

Social media is a sociologist's dream, really, because this is an example of peer pressure at its best and worst. We're talking about tribalism here, not online marketing, which deeply affects creative individuals in different ways. (See: Tribes and Our Role as Writer for my take on the subject.)

I, for one, am happy with the rules I've established for myself, because I'm no longer a slave to the tools. That, to me, is more important than the "right" or "wrong" way to Tweet. To do that, I had to remove myself from the tools completely in order to figure out my "role" in the tribe and what I'm comfortable with. That may not be the case for you, but for me that's part of what has been so incredibly fascinating about watching social media to begin with. Hmmm… Though I'm beginning to think my childhood aspirations of becoming Indiana Jones-esque are really shining through.

Announcing Redwing's Gambit, a Novella for Bulldogs

Love science fiction? Have a soft spot for origin stories?

I am thrilled to announce I am polishing the final draft of Redwing's Gambit, a novella about a newly-formed crew for the Bulldogs RPG from Galileo Games. This story is about an ensemble cast who has been hired to transport a high-profile politician from one end of the galaxy to the other. The only problem is: there's a saboteur on board and they're way out in deep space.

Written as a science fiction mystery, Redwing's Gambit is the origin story for the ship's crew and clientele. The plot was designed to help readers get to know these characters and offer a glimpse into the expansive Bulldogs! setting. Oh, and there will be a little ass-kicking along the way.

The novella will debut Fall/Winter of this year. A firm publication date has not been set.

[Guest Post] Tools and Equipment for Dice Castle Adventure

My second installment in the Adventure to Dice Castle went live on Geeks Dream Girl recently. It's dubbed Tools and Equipment: Adventure to Dice Castle.

Here's one of the items I recommend:

8. Business Cards – You can find inexpensive business cards almost anywhere for first time buyers or through special deals. I wouldn't order a lot of them right off the bat, but having a business card is definitely better than not having one. When you give them out, try to get the business card of the person you're networking with. — SOURCE: Tools and Equipment: Adventure to Dice Castle

I really love writing this series because it's giving me the chance to put freelance writing for the hobby games industry in a fun context. While today's post is less of a parody than the one I'll write for next month, it's necessary in the sense that there are tools you'll need to write, play and design hobby games.

'Til next time!

[Guest Post] On Why Marketing Plans Fail

While I was at GenCon, I published an article over at the How To Write Shop that addresses why marketing tactics and plans fail.

Over the past, few years I've talked to a lot of authors experimenting with marketing using tools like: blogs, newsletters, social media, direct mailers and bookmarks, convention appearances, etc. When something doesn't work? They abandon it. Sadly, some of the tools they're leaving behind have real, tangible value. Newsletters, for example, take a long time to build but have a potential financial reward that can be directly correlated to its design and content. — SOURCE: The Number One Reason Why Marketing Tactics Fail

This article is tightly focused and was written with authors and game designers in mind. I know many, many people who do their own marketing, so I hope you'll check it out.

Announcing Strange, Dead Love for Vampire the Requiem

At GenCon: Indy, White Wolf 2011-2012 release schedule was announced. One of the projects on the list is a supplement for Vampire: the Requiem entitled Strange, Dead Love.

I'm happy to share with you that I'm one of the writers! The project is developed by Russ Bailey with co-developer Eddy Webb. Jess Hartley and Filamena Hill will be penning the other sections of this romantically-inclined supplement. Filamena will be coordinating podcast promotion for White Wolf bloggers, so please keep that in mind.

Here's a little more about the product in Russ's own words:

Strange, Dead Love will be available in PDF and digital print first, via our partners at DriveThruRPG. It will not be a standalone book; there just wasn't room in the schedule to do a new Vampire core. However, it should be fairly playable with one of our quickstarts.

This is definitely a book for people who like vampire romance. We're talking more epic emotions and dark action than the usual Requiem blood and asphalt. We're focusing on being true to genre, much as we did with the two Mirrors sci-fi books. — Russ Bailey on Google+

To be blunt: I am thrilled to be on this project because this is a subject matter I'm familiar with. For the last, few years I've been going to a romance writer's group where many talented people have been diving in and really educating everyone on the subject. It has been a great experience because they talked about things I never would have thought about. How relationships need to be plotted out. How there's a difference between writing about sex and establishing intimacy. How there's more than one emotion in any romance.

There's been some mention of Twilight and similarly-themed properties in player discussions. I can tell you that this is not a book about Twilight, this is a book about vampire romance. Twilight is one type of romance — and it's not for everyone. Believe me, there are many flavors. Kind of like ice cream, only…

Well, you get the idea.

Please, please do NOT hold me to any specifics. This project is in development.