S.L. Viehl's Blog, page 161

Pass the Sketchup

For those of you who like to build virtual models, the free version of Google Sketchup is an "easy-to-learn 3D modeling program that enables you to explore the world in 3D. With just a few simple tools, you can create 3D models of houses, sheds, decks, home additions, woodworking projects - even space ships. And once you´ve built your models, you can place them in Google Earth, post them to the 3D Warehouse, or print hard copies."

I personally downloaded this one, and while I definitely need to watch all of the tutorials it seemed a bit more friendly than Blender. I also like that you can access galleries of models built by other users and download them (and don't quote me on this, but I'm pretty sure you can even modify them to suit your needs.)

Waiting at the Finish Line

I always have at least one reward waiting for me at the novel finish line, and this time around it's Lucidity , our blogpal Raine Weaver's latest release, which is available in most e-book formats at all the major online retailers (also currently on sale at Samhain for $3.15.)

Here's the official copy:

He’s found the woman of his dreams—in the midst of his worst nightmare.

Carlotta Phelps never considered herself special, except for a peculiar ability to control the course of her dreams. Other than being a handy cure for nightmares, it’s a pretty worthless talent. Until she’s recruited for the One Hundred, a team of lucid dreamers whose combined visualizations have been proven to affect reality.

With a giant asteroid hurtling straight toward Earth and the scientific technology to avert it uncertain, the dreamers are the fallback—the last line of defense. And the man who’s been assigned as her bodyguard is messing with her focus, big time.

Ex-Special Ops soldier Parker Munroe has no idea why he’s been assigned to protect the luscious, gentle-eyed Carly. She’s a frustrating temptation, but he’s a hard-core realist. The only power he believes in is brute force.

Then he learns that his charge, who practically lives in lacy negligees, wields an awesome power—and an even bigger responsibility. She and her kind are being hunted by an enemy he can’t even identify, against which all his skill with weaponry is useless. If he can’t find a way to protect her, the world is as doomed as the heart he’s already lost.

This one had me at Hello. I mean, come on -- a lucid dreamer, an ex-spec ops bodyguard, and a planet-killer asteroid hurtling toward Earth? I am so reading this.

Also, I don't know who is doing Samhain's art lately, but whoever is responsible for putting together this gorgeous, classy cover should be given a raise. A very large one.

Deadline Week

At the moment I have a novel to wrap up and send off to one editor, a proposal to finish for another, and (possibly) an offer in the works from a third. Family is also descending for a visit, so things are likely to be a bit sketchy around here for the next week. I'll try to check in and post something of interest when I can.

Do you know you can make a word cloud from any blog by feeding it to Wordle? Go to the create page and in the second search box (just below the top text box) enter a URL for any blog, blog feed or any other web page that an Atom or RSS feed. Once you've done that, click on submit and Wordle will generate a word cloud based on the content. It's an interesting way to get a quick profile on what you (or your favorite bloggers) are talking about at any given time. Here's one for PBW, one for The Presurfer (my favorite link goldmine), and one for author Marjorie Liu's blog.

Eau d'Olde Books

Do you ever wonder why old books smell the way they do? Here's a helpful video from AbeBooks to explain why:



(Video link swiped from Gerard over at The Presurfer)

Reading Speed

Do you know at what rate you read? Take this quick reading test over at Staples and find out.

My results:



The passage I was given to read was unfamiliar, but I answered the comprehension questions 100% correct, so I'll call that fairly accurate. How did you guys do? Let us know in comments.

(Reading test link swiped from Gerard over at The Presurfer)

Paying to Win

Yesterday I jotted down a list of thirteen URLs I found in The Writer's Chronicle submit pages for what I thought were no-fee submission calls, which I thought would produce a solid list of ten sup ops. After checking each web site and reading the particulars, I had to cross off eight of them because turns out they did require an entry or reading fee.

I don't like recommending anything a writer has to pay for in order to have a chance at publication or winning an award because 1) I firmly believe you should never pay a dime to get published; 2) most writers can't afford it; 3) it's a subversive but very common way for obscure publications and presses to make money off other people's hopes and dreams; and 4) before I turned pro I was nearly a victim of a scam dressed up like a real sub op.

That said, you'll probably be surprised to hear that a month ago I paid a fee to enter a novel contest. I wasn't happy about forking over that money, but I did it for a couple of reasons: the genre isn't one I've published in yet, and winning virtually guarantees publication. This may result in a decent opportunity for me to try my luck in another corner of the market.

Will I win the contest? Honestly, I have no idea. What I most liked about this one is that the judging is blind (meaning the judges won't know who wrote the entries until after they pick their winner.) Everyone who enters will be evaluated solely on the quality of their work. Which means it's not a popularity contest, no one can campaign or schmooze their way to a win, and thus I have the same chance as everyone else. To me that's the only way it can be fair.

If you're contemplating any contest that requires an entry fee, you should first realistically evaluate your chances of winning. For example, if the contest is open to every writer on the planet, you're probably going to have considerable competition. If the contest is restricted solely to writers who live on top of mountains in Colorado, naturally the odds are better. Also look at what they want for entries. For novel competitions, most any writer can produce a partial; I have a filing cabinet full of them. Fewer writers will have completed manuscripts to enter, so a contest requiring finished books offers a better chance.

Some people say the amount of the entry fee determines what sort of writer enters, in that a high fee will discourage the untalented. I don't agree with this; plenty of terrible writers enter contests no matter what the fee is because they're convinced that they're great writers and it's just a matter of time before their genius is recognized and they go on to make millions. Most contest entities encourage and even bank on this kind of self-delusional mentality; it makes them a lot of money.

If you're a member of a writing organization, you have the chance to enter plenty of the fee-required contests they run. Some can be helpful as long as you're in a position to win. Are you a popular member, and does most everyone in the organization like you? Also, are you allowed to in some way campaign for the award? If yes, you've probably got a real shot. If no, don't waste money you could be using for office supplies and postage.

Finally, be prepared not to win. One of the reasons I've avoided contests is that early on in my career I saw what losing them did to other writers. Losing a contest can be worse than rejection, especially if the winner got their trophy for reasons other than the quality of their work.

What fee-required contests do you think are fair and/or offer decent awards? Please share them and any links you have in comments.

Added: I've also been pitching this particular novel for awhile, and just this morning I received word from my agent that an offer is in the works for it (ah, the irony.) But even if the interest does result in a contract, I don't have to pull the entry out of the contest. According to the rules, which I read carefully before I entered, I can still compete as long as the offer for the ms. comes in after the entry deadline.

Tuesday Five

Five Things About Submission Opportunities

Arroyo Literary Review is looking for a wide range of submissions: "Arroyo Literary Review seeks poetry, fiction, flash fiction, creative non-fiction, personal essays and memoir, and translations. We will consider short plays and drama. We do not publish book reviews. We only consider previously unpublished work. We accept multiple prose pieces at a time, up to 4,000 words each, and multiple poems of no limit. Simultaneous submissions are welcome, though notify us immediately should your work be accepted elsewhere. (Any submissions received before or after this reading period will not be read and we will recycle them immediately.)Payment: "Contributors will receive two copies of the issue in which their work appears." [PBW notes: so no money, but a decent publishing credit.] No reprints or electronic submissions, see guidelines for more details. Reading period ends May 31, 2012.

Hayden's Ferry Review has an open call for their upcoming darkness-themed issue: "We do a lot of things in the dark: feel fear, make love, tell stories. We spend at least a third of our lives with the lights off, dreaming. In the dark, we imagine shadows and movement where there may be none, we picture stormy nights and power outages. We see amorphous shapes that we cannot identify, and the whole world goes colorless. Sometimes, we feel left out or lost, and though it may be the middle of the day, high noon, we say we are in the dark. Sometimes we don't even know the things we don't know, don't know that someone, somewhere, is thinking about how in the dark we are--unaware of unfaithful love, of eyes trained on us from a distance, of surprise parties being plotted. Darkness is also used to make things seem brighter. In painting, for instance, a brushstroke here brings out the color there, illuminating the illumination. Our theme for issue #51 of Hayden's Ferry Review is In the Dark. We want your stories and poems about darkness, about being and doing and feeling in the dark. Turn the lights off. Make shadow puppets on the wall. Leave something out. Tell us what happens when the screen goes black. Blindfold us and take us by the hand. Lock us in the trunks of cars. Take us to attics, basements, graveyards. Find a darkness that hasn't been found." Payment: "Contributors receive two copies of the magazine and a one-year gift subscription to HFR." [PBW notes: another gratis op but I liked the theme.] No mention on reprints, electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details. Deadline: June 1, 2012.

The Imagination & Place Press has an open call for their upcoming cartography-themed anthology: "The Imagination & Place Press seeks poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and essays for a fifth book in a series of anthologies, to be titled Imagination & Place: Cartography. We are interested in maps and mapmakers of all kinds. Interpreting imaginatively, your submission should focus on a particular bioregion (e.g., desert, wetlands, mountain, plains, grassland, etc.) that you clearly identify and discuss in your piece." Length: up to 7K; no mention of payment [PBW notes: this may be for the credit or a gratis-copy thing, but again I thought the theme was interesting.] No electronic submissions, see guidelines for more details. Deadline: August 31, 2012.

Graywolf Press has an open call for submissions for their annual nonfiction prize: "A $12,000 advance and publication by Graywolf will be awarded to the most promising and innovative literary nonfiction project by a writer not yet established in the genre. The 2012 prize will be awarded to a manuscript in progress. The Graywolf Press Nonfiction Prize emphasizes innovation in form, and we want to see projects that test the boundaries of literary nonfiction. We are less interested in straightforward memoirs, and we turn down a large number of them every year. Before submitting your manuscript for the prize, please look at the books previously published as winners of the prize for examples of the type of work that we are seeking." Eligible: "Any writer who has published at least one previous book (in any genre) and resides in the United States is eligible." Lenth: minimum 100 pages (25K) from a manuscript in progress, no reprints, electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details. Deadline: August 31, 2012, and they are open to submissions only during the month of August 2012.

Prime Mincer Press Bromance has an open call for their buddy anthology: "Prime Mincer Press, publisher of Prime Mincer literary magazine, is seeking submissions of short fiction for an anthology titled The Man Date: 15 Bromances, to be published in early 2013. The editors are looking for original, unpublished short stories ranging from 1,500-6,000 words concerning bromances—work that in some way comments on or deals with male friendships and relationships, and/or plays on the idea of the buddy story. The final selection will be a mix of emerging and established writers including Rick Bass, Pinckney Benedict and Alan Heathcock, among others." Payment: "Payment will be in the form of contributor copies an d a percentage of royalties." [PBW notes: another interesting -- and pretty rare -- theme, and I think this one would be a decent publishing credit as well.] No reprints, electronic submissions only, see guidelines for more details. Deadline: June 1, 2012.

First Look

I'm still off hammering away at my deadline, but I thought my German readers might like to see this:



This is the LYX edition of Stay the Night, Darkyn book seven, and a lovely wrap-up for this translation of the series. My German is terrible, so excuse me if I'm wrong, but I believe the retitle is End of Darkness, which seems quite appropriate, if not entirely accurate.

Unplugging

I've got a mountain of work and grief to deal with, so I'm going to unplug for a couple of days. For you guys, and all the mountains you're climbing, here's a view from above:

Monica

Yesterday author Monica Jackson passed away from complications during surgery. Most of you from the old days know that Monica was an incredible novelist, a beautiful soul, and a good friend to me from almost the first day I began this blog.

I know when we lose one of our own we're supposed to say gentle and supportive things, and my heart and prayers do go out to her family, friends and everyone who loved her, but right now all I can think is Damn it, not Monica.

Even after Monica shut down her blog and left the online writing community, she and I kept in touch by e-mail. The last note she sent me arrived just after I lost a loved one. She always kept an eye on me, I think, and in that one she wrote Ah, as we age and our own transitions near, it seems as if we start losing the things of this world faster...

You left us too fast, Monica, and too soon. God keep you safe on your journey.