S.L. Viehl's Blog, page 132
March 14, 2013
March 13, 2013
The Never-Read Library
This morning a friend asked me to describe my professional methodology in ten words or less. At first I did it in seven: Pitch, sell, write, edit, polish, submit, publish. Then I had to fiddle with it and rounded it out to ten: Create, pitch, sell, write, edit, polish, submit, revise, promote, publish. I would have liked to pen something more lyrical than a string of ten verbs that sound like the instructions on a shampoo bottle, but to me the path to publication is not an especially poetic experience. Being a professional writer is a job. You do these things -- you do the work -- or you don't publish.
I felt almost a hundred percent happy with my response, and my friend liked it a lot, too, but something was still missing. I figured out what last night while Mom was watching Jeopardy, her favorite game show. I sat down to keep her company and play Fourth Contestant to amuse her. As long as there are no sports categories I can usually guess about 85% of the responses correct (and last night I went 100% correct for all the answers to both the Alcohol- and Hittite-related categories, which I'm pretty sure most writers would probably nail.)
Then came the Final Jeopardy question, the category for which was British Novels. As soon as the relatively simple clue about a Thomas Hardy book went up I knew the answer: Tess of D'Urbevilles. Everyone has read that book, I thought, so everyone would get it right.
No one got it right. One guy came up with Jude the Obscure, the lady answered Clearwater, and the champion didn't even bother to guess. As Mom nagged me for the thousandth time about trying out for Jeopardy (she's sure I'd be the show's all-time greatest contestant; I'm sure I'd get nothing but sports categories) I smirked a little. How could three grown adults not have read Thomas Hardy? I mean, Tess of D'Urbevilles may not be as widely read as A Tale of Two Cities or Jane Eyre or Cantebury Tales, but it is a classic. This trio were young but obviously college-educated; the lady was some kind of teacher. How do you go to college and not have dudes like Thomas Hardy pounded into your skull?
In one sense I could understand their ignorance. I never cared for most classic literature, and I've gone to a great deal of trouble to avoid reading some of it. Not all; Shakespeare and Chaucer were decent, and aside from The Grapes of Wrath, which I still wish I could burn from my brain, Steinbeck was okay. Conrad and Chekhov were ghastly, though. Faulkner puzzled me as much as Melville repelled me, but I plowed through them. Attempting James Joyce is like trying to read when you're seriously inebriated, but I do try once a year, and he's actually helped with understanding Faulkner. I developed an infantile fascination with Poe in high school that I eventually outgrew, but I still have some moments when I ponder the psychic bruising Hawthorne inflicted. I loved Austen, loved Charlotte Bronte, and went wild for Wilde, and still read them all the time. So if I'd been on the show last night I would have wagered everything in the final round because I am well-read, and if I hadn't read the book in question I would have figured it out.
Which is exactly what happened last night, because while I got the right answer I've personally never read Tess of D'urbevilles. I did the exact same thing a few nights before with the Final Jeopardy clue about Classic Lit Novels. I guessed Anna Karenina as the correct answer even though I've never read the book (the reference of the train in the clue made me think of all the movie posters I've seen with Anna standing next to a train.)
My triumph didn't last long as I began to wonder just how many classics I've been consciously avoiding reading, and why, so I wrote up a list of the first that came to mind:
Anna Karenina -- Russian literature seemed so depressing that after the compulsory Chekhov-Cherry-Orchard assignment in school that I dodged as much of it as I could.
David Copperfield -- They made me read A Tale of Two Cities in the ninth grade and that was enough Dickens to last me forever. AToTC is also the only book by Dickens I've ever read, so add the remainder of his backlist.
Gone with the Wind -- Grandma loved it, Mom loved it, I haven't even watched the movie. I still don't think anything about the Civil War is even remotely entertaining.
Moby Dick -- they forced us to read Billy Budd in school; I think that was the tenth grade. That was such a revolting experience that when it came time to read the whale book I decided getting an F was better. One of my fondest memories of school, in fact, is remembering the look on that teacher's face when I turned in my book report, which consisted of four words: I didn't read it.
War and Peace -- Too long, lousy title, and again the mental scars left by Chekhov.
Wuthering Heights -- Too many girls in school worshipped this book for me to do anything but run from it as fast as I could. Until the cat cartoon came out I always thought Heathcliff was a stupid name, too.
Aside from my natural aversion to Gone with the Wind and my reluctance to join the Wuthering Heights herd, I think school ruined me for classic lit. While I now appreciate that most teachers want to instill a love of reading in students, the majority of the books they demanded my generation read were too depressing, wordy, heavy, ponderous or simply boring. What kept me from hating all classic literature was the public library. There I discovered on my own Austen and Shakespeare, Bronte and Thoreau -- I read classics all the time. This was due to my method of browsing at the library, by starting at the A shelf in fiction and gradually reading my way to Z. If I came across a book that was too difficult to understand or that didn't engage me, I just put it back and went to the next author.
I also know that my mental blocks have kept me from discovering some great books. Case in point: Chekhov truly did ruin Russian literature for me; I wouldn't voluntarily read any Russian author until I picked up a book with a strange cover, didn't look at the author's name and was spellbound by the tale of what it's like to spend one day in a Soviet labor camp. That novel, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, remains the one book I think everyone in the world should read.
Which brings me back to the fact that I knew the answer to the Final Jeopardy question without having read Thomas Hardy's book. Over a lifetime I've acquired a mental Cliff-notes type library of knowledge about books that I've never read, basically so that I never have to read them. My Never-Read classics library is pretty good, too; I've had long conversations about Gone with the Wind with unsuspecting folks who remained unaware that I've never once read the book or watched the movie.
Feeling superior to three Jeopardy contestants who had no knowledge of Thomas Hardy when I'm really no different from them makes me feel like a cheat and a bit of a hypocrite. The reason for that? Goes back to the one word that I left out of my professional methodoloy, the eleventh word that I believe is absolutely vital to any writer's process: READ. Read anything and everything. There is no cheat code for reading, either. You have to get a book and sit down and read it.
So today I am ordering a copy of Tess of D'Urbevilles. Yes, I'm going to read the damn thing. Cover to cover if possible, or as much as I can stomach. Then I think once a month (or as often as I can stand) I'm going to try reading all the other classic lit I've been avoiding since school. I'm not expecting any life-changing experiences, and it's likely that I won't finish a lot of them, but I will give them a try. Maybe that will help me empty the shelves of my Never-Read classics library and someday shut the place down for good.
So now it's your turn: what's on the shelves of your Never-Read library, and why? Have you ever considered overriding your natural inclinations to read any of those titles? Let us know in comments.
I felt almost a hundred percent happy with my response, and my friend liked it a lot, too, but something was still missing. I figured out what last night while Mom was watching Jeopardy, her favorite game show. I sat down to keep her company and play Fourth Contestant to amuse her. As long as there are no sports categories I can usually guess about 85% of the responses correct (and last night I went 100% correct for all the answers to both the Alcohol- and Hittite-related categories, which I'm pretty sure most writers would probably nail.)
Then came the Final Jeopardy question, the category for which was British Novels. As soon as the relatively simple clue about a Thomas Hardy book went up I knew the answer: Tess of D'Urbevilles. Everyone has read that book, I thought, so everyone would get it right.
No one got it right. One guy came up with Jude the Obscure, the lady answered Clearwater, and the champion didn't even bother to guess. As Mom nagged me for the thousandth time about trying out for Jeopardy (she's sure I'd be the show's all-time greatest contestant; I'm sure I'd get nothing but sports categories) I smirked a little. How could three grown adults not have read Thomas Hardy? I mean, Tess of D'Urbevilles may not be as widely read as A Tale of Two Cities or Jane Eyre or Cantebury Tales, but it is a classic. This trio were young but obviously college-educated; the lady was some kind of teacher. How do you go to college and not have dudes like Thomas Hardy pounded into your skull?
In one sense I could understand their ignorance. I never cared for most classic literature, and I've gone to a great deal of trouble to avoid reading some of it. Not all; Shakespeare and Chaucer were decent, and aside from The Grapes of Wrath, which I still wish I could burn from my brain, Steinbeck was okay. Conrad and Chekhov were ghastly, though. Faulkner puzzled me as much as Melville repelled me, but I plowed through them. Attempting James Joyce is like trying to read when you're seriously inebriated, but I do try once a year, and he's actually helped with understanding Faulkner. I developed an infantile fascination with Poe in high school that I eventually outgrew, but I still have some moments when I ponder the psychic bruising Hawthorne inflicted. I loved Austen, loved Charlotte Bronte, and went wild for Wilde, and still read them all the time. So if I'd been on the show last night I would have wagered everything in the final round because I am well-read, and if I hadn't read the book in question I would have figured it out.
Which is exactly what happened last night, because while I got the right answer I've personally never read Tess of D'urbevilles. I did the exact same thing a few nights before with the Final Jeopardy clue about Classic Lit Novels. I guessed Anna Karenina as the correct answer even though I've never read the book (the reference of the train in the clue made me think of all the movie posters I've seen with Anna standing next to a train.)
My triumph didn't last long as I began to wonder just how many classics I've been consciously avoiding reading, and why, so I wrote up a list of the first that came to mind:
Anna Karenina -- Russian literature seemed so depressing that after the compulsory Chekhov-Cherry-Orchard assignment in school that I dodged as much of it as I could.
David Copperfield -- They made me read A Tale of Two Cities in the ninth grade and that was enough Dickens to last me forever. AToTC is also the only book by Dickens I've ever read, so add the remainder of his backlist.
Gone with the Wind -- Grandma loved it, Mom loved it, I haven't even watched the movie. I still don't think anything about the Civil War is even remotely entertaining.
Moby Dick -- they forced us to read Billy Budd in school; I think that was the tenth grade. That was such a revolting experience that when it came time to read the whale book I decided getting an F was better. One of my fondest memories of school, in fact, is remembering the look on that teacher's face when I turned in my book report, which consisted of four words: I didn't read it.
War and Peace -- Too long, lousy title, and again the mental scars left by Chekhov.
Wuthering Heights -- Too many girls in school worshipped this book for me to do anything but run from it as fast as I could. Until the cat cartoon came out I always thought Heathcliff was a stupid name, too.
Aside from my natural aversion to Gone with the Wind and my reluctance to join the Wuthering Heights herd, I think school ruined me for classic lit. While I now appreciate that most teachers want to instill a love of reading in students, the majority of the books they demanded my generation read were too depressing, wordy, heavy, ponderous or simply boring. What kept me from hating all classic literature was the public library. There I discovered on my own Austen and Shakespeare, Bronte and Thoreau -- I read classics all the time. This was due to my method of browsing at the library, by starting at the A shelf in fiction and gradually reading my way to Z. If I came across a book that was too difficult to understand or that didn't engage me, I just put it back and went to the next author.
I also know that my mental blocks have kept me from discovering some great books. Case in point: Chekhov truly did ruin Russian literature for me; I wouldn't voluntarily read any Russian author until I picked up a book with a strange cover, didn't look at the author's name and was spellbound by the tale of what it's like to spend one day in a Soviet labor camp. That novel, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, remains the one book I think everyone in the world should read.
Which brings me back to the fact that I knew the answer to the Final Jeopardy question without having read Thomas Hardy's book. Over a lifetime I've acquired a mental Cliff-notes type library of knowledge about books that I've never read, basically so that I never have to read them. My Never-Read classics library is pretty good, too; I've had long conversations about Gone with the Wind with unsuspecting folks who remained unaware that I've never once read the book or watched the movie.
Feeling superior to three Jeopardy contestants who had no knowledge of Thomas Hardy when I'm really no different from them makes me feel like a cheat and a bit of a hypocrite. The reason for that? Goes back to the one word that I left out of my professional methodoloy, the eleventh word that I believe is absolutely vital to any writer's process: READ. Read anything and everything. There is no cheat code for reading, either. You have to get a book and sit down and read it.
So today I am ordering a copy of Tess of D'Urbevilles. Yes, I'm going to read the damn thing. Cover to cover if possible, or as much as I can stomach. Then I think once a month (or as often as I can stand) I'm going to try reading all the other classic lit I've been avoiding since school. I'm not expecting any life-changing experiences, and it's likely that I won't finish a lot of them, but I will give them a try. Maybe that will help me empty the shelves of my Never-Read classics library and someday shut the place down for good.
So now it's your turn: what's on the shelves of your Never-Read library, and why? Have you ever considered overriding your natural inclinations to read any of those titles? Let us know in comments.
March 12, 2013
Quilt Show Goodies
I'm still off writing, but I did want to mention that I'm holding a giveaway over on the Disenchanted & Company blog that runs through Friday night. Stop in if you get a chance, enter the giveaway and you might win the contents of Her Ladyship's hat box:
March 11, 2013
Ninja Texting
I'm off today to do some writing. While I'm gone, here's a new and very cute way to text:
Want to have a tiny little ninja do some texting for you? Go here.
Want to have a tiny little ninja do some texting for you? Go here.
March 10, 2013
Sub Ops Ten
Ten Things About Submission Opportunities
Eibon Vale Press has an open call for their Caledonia Dreaming antho: "Glaikit, mockit, droukit, drouthy, couthy, scunner, thrawn – the Scots language is rich with words too gallus not to glory in, dialect terms that deserve better than to be boxed away as precious oddities. For us, those words aren't quaint parochialisms of a past preserved in amber; they're wild wee beauties, straight razors slashing keen to the quick of meaning. We want stories that wield them as weapons for today, for tomorrow. We want you to pick up one of these words and flick it open to gleam in the light of the 21st century. Play with it, work with it, give us a story that riffs on it with relish – the sound, the sense. Run wild with it, ye ramstouger rannigants, and send us the result." According to Ralan.com, payment is £15-£20; length is 1k-12k, no reprints, and electronic submissions only. Submission deadline is 31 May 2013.
White Cat Publications is looking for good quality fantasy stories for their bi-annual Conjurings: "We are interested primarily in good quality writing in the fantasy genre. We will consider stories of any variant of this genre. We do not accept poetry at this time. We desire First English Language serial print, audio and digital rights so that we might present your work in all formats within the magazine." Length and Payment: "Short Stories and flash fiction: We accept stories up to around 5,000 words in length, three cents per word up to 5,000 words. Reprints are paid out at one cent per word." Electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details. Winter deadline: December 20th, 2013.
Eggplant Productions wants to see some spec fic novella submissions: "All types of speculative fiction (fantasy, science fiction and horror) are welcome and reprints will be considered; however, you should query first with story and publication information before submitting a reprint. Short story collections, full length novels (40,000 words or more), poetry collections or non-speculative fiction novellas will not be considered for open submissions." Length: 20-40K; Payment: "$250 (USD) advance + 25% royalty of list price." Query on reprints, electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details.
The Fiction Desk is holding a ghost story competition: "Most of the stories we publish at The Fiction Desk are more or less realistic, but we try to stray outside that from time to time: some genre fiction should be part of any balanced reading diet. One genre that we'd like to feature more of in our pages is the ghost story. The competition is open now, to all English-speaking writers at the age of 16 or over. There's a first prize of £500, and a second prize of £100; both winners will also be published in an upcoming Fiction Desk anthology." Also: "Entries should be between 2,000 and 5,000 words in length. The entry fee is £6 for one story or £9 for two stories submitted together, and the closing date is 31 May 2013." [PBW notes: I'm not happy about the entry fee requirement but it's not outrageous, and the prizes are decent, so I thought it was worth listing.]
Goldfish Grimm is accepting short fiction submissions: "Short stories are like sushi. Sometimes, they make delicious appetizers. Other times, they’re a full course on their own. For all discerning tastes, Goldfish Grimm aims to please. Everything is on the table, so serve up your best. From hard sf and space opera stories to fairy tales and medieval yarns, we’ll consider it all. Don’t be afraid to take risks and show us something new. Cursing, sex, and violence will not offend us. Just make sure it has a point, okay?" What they want: "Goldfish Grimm’s Spicy Fiction Sushi wants fantasy and science fiction stories ranging from 100-7500-words. Each month we’ll be accepting two stories: one 1,000-words or less, one 1,001-words or more. Stories that fall around the 1,500-word mark will be published as flash or as the longer story based on the editor’s judgment and the overall theme of the issue. Preferred length for longer stories is somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000 words." Payment: "$10 for flash fiction; $25 for longer works." See guidelines for more details.
The Lakefly Literary Conference is holding three different no-fee fiction contests for authors who reside in, attend school in Wisconsin, or register for the Lakefly Literary Conference May 10-11, 2013. Rather than list all the details I'll let you few who actually meet that criteria go to the submissions page and have a look.
Montag Press is accepting novel submissions: "Of primary interest are the following genres and sub-genres: Speculative fiction •Science fiction •Horror fiction •Subversive fiction •Utopian and Dystopian fiction •Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic fiction •Experimental fiction •Urban Fantasy •Dark Fantasy •Existential Horror •Paranoid fiction •Ex0-Fiction •Xeno-Fiction •Altered States [PBW notes there is a lot more they're willing to look at, too; go to this page for the full list.] Length: 40K+; Payment: "$100 advance; 30% net." The web site says no reprints but Ralan notes okay "if self published" [PBW suggests you query.] Electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details.
Stone Skin Press has an open call for an upcoming Gothic-themed anthology: "The Gothic is the most enduring literary tradition in history but in recent years friendly ghosts and vegetarian vampires threaten its foundations. This will be a collection of short stories which revisit the core archetypes of the Gothic, the rambling, secret-filled building, the stranger seeking answers, the black-hearted tyrant, and reminds us not to embrace but to fear the darkness. The focus of this anthology will be on fear and atmosphere, rather than graphic horror or full out action, and will draw on the themes of the Gothic so if you’re not entirely familiar with them, the wikipedia entry is a good place to start." Length: 3-6K; Payment: to be negotiated. No repints, electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details. Deadline: April 30th, 2013.
Sword and Laser has an open call for their first anthology: "Sword and Laser’s first anthology is intended to be a celebration of scifi and fantasy fiction. What are we looking for in a story? Diversity. Not helpful? OK. Here are some better guidelines. Interesting characters. They can be evil or nice or mean or stupid, but they should be worth spending time reading about. Original settings, point-of-view, and voice. Not necessarily within your story, although that’s important too. But we want lots of different kinds of stories in the anthology. Hard for you to manage when you’re not reading all the other stories, but suffice to say if you’ve seen a story like yours before, it’s less likely to get chosen. Unique experience. We’re not going to ask you to ‘write what you know’ and also expect stories about aliens and dragons... form most of you... but situations and reactions drawn from your unique experiences that expose us to something new, will definitely be a plus. Stuff happening. Believe it or not, some people write stories where nothing happens. Please don’t be one of those people. Have a central, compelling idea or conflict. We want exciting ideas and character growth. At least a little. Love, laughs, fights, philosophy, insight are all also welcome. It needs to be in the genres of science fiction and fantasy. We define this pretty loosely of course. Not every story has to have spaceships or castles. We hope they don’t! But the farther you stray from the center of the sword or laser styles, the less likely we’ll want the story. That said, you’re not restricted in how you tell your tale. All styles, all settings, and all tones are welcome. Write the very best story you can, and do your best to surprise us with a new take on the genre!" Length: "We recommend a length of 1,500 – 7,500 words. We may choose to print shorter or longer stories in some cases, but this should be your target word count." Payment: "We pay $200 (US) upon acceptance." No reprints, electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details. Deadline: May 15th, 2013.
Third Flatiron Publishing has an open call for an upcoming themed antho: "We are now seeking stories for the Summer 2013 anthology, which will have a "Playing with Fire" theme." [PBW notes: there's very little info on this op, but I found the following description on another page at the site: "Fires and backfires from inventions (Greek fire?), culture clashes, climate change, comets and meteors, Hephaestus, and so forth." Also, the editor detailed the sort of stories she'd like to see in a blog interview here.] Length: up to 3K; Payment: "Please note that we've raised our pay rate to 3 cents/word." Appears they don't want reprints and I'll assume they want electronic submissions only. Deadline: March 31, 2013.
Eibon Vale Press has an open call for their Caledonia Dreaming antho: "Glaikit, mockit, droukit, drouthy, couthy, scunner, thrawn – the Scots language is rich with words too gallus not to glory in, dialect terms that deserve better than to be boxed away as precious oddities. For us, those words aren't quaint parochialisms of a past preserved in amber; they're wild wee beauties, straight razors slashing keen to the quick of meaning. We want stories that wield them as weapons for today, for tomorrow. We want you to pick up one of these words and flick it open to gleam in the light of the 21st century. Play with it, work with it, give us a story that riffs on it with relish – the sound, the sense. Run wild with it, ye ramstouger rannigants, and send us the result." According to Ralan.com, payment is £15-£20; length is 1k-12k, no reprints, and electronic submissions only. Submission deadline is 31 May 2013.
White Cat Publications is looking for good quality fantasy stories for their bi-annual Conjurings: "We are interested primarily in good quality writing in the fantasy genre. We will consider stories of any variant of this genre. We do not accept poetry at this time. We desire First English Language serial print, audio and digital rights so that we might present your work in all formats within the magazine." Length and Payment: "Short Stories and flash fiction: We accept stories up to around 5,000 words in length, three cents per word up to 5,000 words. Reprints are paid out at one cent per word." Electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details. Winter deadline: December 20th, 2013.
Eggplant Productions wants to see some spec fic novella submissions: "All types of speculative fiction (fantasy, science fiction and horror) are welcome and reprints will be considered; however, you should query first with story and publication information before submitting a reprint. Short story collections, full length novels (40,000 words or more), poetry collections or non-speculative fiction novellas will not be considered for open submissions." Length: 20-40K; Payment: "$250 (USD) advance + 25% royalty of list price." Query on reprints, electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details.
The Fiction Desk is holding a ghost story competition: "Most of the stories we publish at The Fiction Desk are more or less realistic, but we try to stray outside that from time to time: some genre fiction should be part of any balanced reading diet. One genre that we'd like to feature more of in our pages is the ghost story. The competition is open now, to all English-speaking writers at the age of 16 or over. There's a first prize of £500, and a second prize of £100; both winners will also be published in an upcoming Fiction Desk anthology." Also: "Entries should be between 2,000 and 5,000 words in length. The entry fee is £6 for one story or £9 for two stories submitted together, and the closing date is 31 May 2013." [PBW notes: I'm not happy about the entry fee requirement but it's not outrageous, and the prizes are decent, so I thought it was worth listing.]
Goldfish Grimm is accepting short fiction submissions: "Short stories are like sushi. Sometimes, they make delicious appetizers. Other times, they’re a full course on their own. For all discerning tastes, Goldfish Grimm aims to please. Everything is on the table, so serve up your best. From hard sf and space opera stories to fairy tales and medieval yarns, we’ll consider it all. Don’t be afraid to take risks and show us something new. Cursing, sex, and violence will not offend us. Just make sure it has a point, okay?" What they want: "Goldfish Grimm’s Spicy Fiction Sushi wants fantasy and science fiction stories ranging from 100-7500-words. Each month we’ll be accepting two stories: one 1,000-words or less, one 1,001-words or more. Stories that fall around the 1,500-word mark will be published as flash or as the longer story based on the editor’s judgment and the overall theme of the issue. Preferred length for longer stories is somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000 words." Payment: "$10 for flash fiction; $25 for longer works." See guidelines for more details.
The Lakefly Literary Conference is holding three different no-fee fiction contests for authors who reside in, attend school in Wisconsin, or register for the Lakefly Literary Conference May 10-11, 2013. Rather than list all the details I'll let you few who actually meet that criteria go to the submissions page and have a look.
Montag Press is accepting novel submissions: "Of primary interest are the following genres and sub-genres: Speculative fiction •Science fiction •Horror fiction •Subversive fiction •Utopian and Dystopian fiction •Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic fiction •Experimental fiction •Urban Fantasy •Dark Fantasy •Existential Horror •Paranoid fiction •Ex0-Fiction •Xeno-Fiction •Altered States [PBW notes there is a lot more they're willing to look at, too; go to this page for the full list.] Length: 40K+; Payment: "$100 advance; 30% net." The web site says no reprints but Ralan notes okay "if self published" [PBW suggests you query.] Electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details.
Stone Skin Press has an open call for an upcoming Gothic-themed anthology: "The Gothic is the most enduring literary tradition in history but in recent years friendly ghosts and vegetarian vampires threaten its foundations. This will be a collection of short stories which revisit the core archetypes of the Gothic, the rambling, secret-filled building, the stranger seeking answers, the black-hearted tyrant, and reminds us not to embrace but to fear the darkness. The focus of this anthology will be on fear and atmosphere, rather than graphic horror or full out action, and will draw on the themes of the Gothic so if you’re not entirely familiar with them, the wikipedia entry is a good place to start." Length: 3-6K; Payment: to be negotiated. No repints, electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details. Deadline: April 30th, 2013.
Sword and Laser has an open call for their first anthology: "Sword and Laser’s first anthology is intended to be a celebration of scifi and fantasy fiction. What are we looking for in a story? Diversity. Not helpful? OK. Here are some better guidelines. Interesting characters. They can be evil or nice or mean or stupid, but they should be worth spending time reading about. Original settings, point-of-view, and voice. Not necessarily within your story, although that’s important too. But we want lots of different kinds of stories in the anthology. Hard for you to manage when you’re not reading all the other stories, but suffice to say if you’ve seen a story like yours before, it’s less likely to get chosen. Unique experience. We’re not going to ask you to ‘write what you know’ and also expect stories about aliens and dragons... form most of you... but situations and reactions drawn from your unique experiences that expose us to something new, will definitely be a plus. Stuff happening. Believe it or not, some people write stories where nothing happens. Please don’t be one of those people. Have a central, compelling idea or conflict. We want exciting ideas and character growth. At least a little. Love, laughs, fights, philosophy, insight are all also welcome. It needs to be in the genres of science fiction and fantasy. We define this pretty loosely of course. Not every story has to have spaceships or castles. We hope they don’t! But the farther you stray from the center of the sword or laser styles, the less likely we’ll want the story. That said, you’re not restricted in how you tell your tale. All styles, all settings, and all tones are welcome. Write the very best story you can, and do your best to surprise us with a new take on the genre!" Length: "We recommend a length of 1,500 – 7,500 words. We may choose to print shorter or longer stories in some cases, but this should be your target word count." Payment: "We pay $200 (US) upon acceptance." No reprints, electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details. Deadline: May 15th, 2013.
Third Flatiron Publishing has an open call for an upcoming themed antho: "We are now seeking stories for the Summer 2013 anthology, which will have a "Playing with Fire" theme." [PBW notes: there's very little info on this op, but I found the following description on another page at the site: "Fires and backfires from inventions (Greek fire?), culture clashes, climate change, comets and meteors, Hephaestus, and so forth." Also, the editor detailed the sort of stories she'd like to see in a blog interview here.] Length: up to 3K; Payment: "Please note that we've raised our pay rate to 3 cents/word." Appears they don't want reprints and I'll assume they want electronic submissions only. Deadline: March 31, 2013.
March 9, 2013
Sea of Colors
Sorry I'm late posting today, but I have a really good excuse:
March 7, 2013
Peru in 2:36
Take a gorgeous 2-1/2 minute tour of Peru with Cole Graham (some background music, for those of you at work):
a few weeks in Peru. from Cole Graham on Vimeo.
March 6, 2013
Handy Mystery
Today I'm over at Disechanted & Co. talking about how this artwork solved a big problem for me -- to find out more, stop by.
March 5, 2013
The Write Stuff
I'm always looking for unusual writer junk, and on my last office supply run I made some neat little finds that I wanted to share.I picked up this quartet to the left at BAM. Here are more details on each, clockwise starting at the little green journal:
One Word A Day Mini-Journal by Knock Knock -- This is a palm-size hardcover that gives you 365 opportunities to "choose any word to describe your day and write it down." Journaling doesn't get any simpler or more concise than that, and there's even enough room to write a few more words if you want to say more; $12.59 with my discount card.
Small Edgewise Journal by Orange Circle Studio -- this flocked turquoise little beauty of a journal has 144 white and soft pastel ruled pages, interesting edge tabbing plus an elastic ribbon to keep it closed. The binding allows it to lay flat as you write in it, and it's small enough to tuck in a purse or a large index card holder; $3.60 (on sale at 50% off.)
Origami Sticky Notes by Suck UK -- 100 sticky notes imprinted with picture diagrams so you can fold them into ten different origami critters. Office notes will never be the same; $3.59 with my discount card.
A Year of Fortunes (without the cookies) by Knock Knock -- I bought one of these little hardcovers during the holidays to give to a family friend; it contains 365 preforated, dated fortunes with wry sayings on one side and lucky numbers on the other; $14.85 with my discount card.
I also rummaged around the bargain bins at BAM and found two unusual journals:
You have to peek inside to see wwhy they're unusual:
The Tri-Coastal Script Journal offers widely-spaced ruled pages that give you about twice the writing room as a standard journal (perfect for scribes like me who don't have tiny handwriting); the Pepper Pot journal on the right with the starburst cover design has graph-ruled pages with color-striped edges. The fact that I got them for $4.50 and $6.73 (50% with an extra 10% off for my discount card) respectively was a nice bonus.
From BAM I went to Target to look for some notebooks and binders and see what they had on sale. They have a new line of "Sunwashed" office supplies under their own brand that I really liked with dreamy photo designs and lovely colors. When I'm working on a particular project I like to color-coordinate my writing stuff so I can find everything with a glance, so I picked up a binder ($4.99), legal pad/clipboard padfolio ($8.99), journal 3-pack ($5.99) and pencil box with pencils ($4.99):
I also found a lot of notebooks and journals marked down for clearance, and scored an 8" X 6" 80-page Mead notebook with those lovely dot-gridded pages instead of lines ($2.65) as well as a slightly smaller, 80 page Horizon groovy hues ruled notebook with a front pocket and an elastic closure ribbon ($1.98):
I got an additional 5% discount off everything for using my Target Visa at checkout. Target also had every 2013 pocket planner, desk blotter, wall blotter and so forth heavily discounted, and clearance prices on some nice smash book and scrapbooking supplies, so if you're in the market for any of those it maybe worth a trip to check them out.
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