Victoria Janssen's Blog, page 56
July 25, 2011
Janet Mullany on Time Travel
Please welcome my guest, Janet Mullany!
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Time Travel
A woman wiser than myself—my agent—told me I had a contemporary voice and although I didn't believe her, I gave it a shot and ended up with a two-book contract for contemporaries for Harlequin Spice. The first one, Tell Me More, is on sale at the end of the month; it's about what happens when fantasy and reality collide, and the erotic lure of storytelling. Find out more at spice.janetmullany.com.
After the initial elation the shock—you m...
July 24, 2011
"Lines Written in Surrey, 1917," George Herbert Clarke
Lines Written in Surrey, 1917
A sudden swirl of song in the bright sky—
The little lark adoring his lord the sun;
Across the corn the lazy ripples run;
Under the eaves, conferring drowsily,
Doves droop or amble; the agile waterfly
Wrinkles the pool; and flowers, gay and dun,
Rose, bluebell, rhododendron, one by one,
The buccaneering bees prove busily.
Ah, who may trace this tranquil loveliness
In verse felicitous?—no measure tells;
But gazing on her bosom we can guess
Why men...
July 22, 2011
I have a guest on Monday!
Be sure to stop by the blog on Monday, when my guest, Janet Mullany, will be her usual brilliantly funny self.
July 21, 2011
More Readercon 2011 Links – and Bittercon!
If you've written a convention report, the Readercon LiveJournal community is asking that you post a link in the comments here.
Sherwood Smith proposed an online Bittercon for those unable to attend Readercon. AttackFish has an essay on "Are We Not Men – Human Women and Beast-Men in Paranormal Romance" with some in-depth comments. There's a long discussion of the same topic in comments over at Sherwood Smith's LiveJournal. Also from Bittercon, Why We Love Bad Writing.
So far as...
July 20, 2011
Some Readercon 2011 Reports
There are far too many Readercon reports proliferating on the internet for me to link them all, but here are a few of interest!
A report in The New Scientist.
A report on Classic Non-Fiction: The Jewel Hinged Jaw, "a concise review of Samuel R. Delany's career in the literary criticism of SF."
There's a video of Michael Swanwick's interview of Guest of Honor Gardner Dozois, taken by Scott Edelman.
Joy Marchand's Report – she most enjoyed the non-panel events.
July 17, 2011
"In the Trenches," Hewlett
In the Trenches
As I lay in the trenches
Under the Hunter's Moon,
My mind ran to the lenches
Cut in a Wiltshire down.
I saw their long black shadows,
The beeches in the lane,
The gray church in the meadows
And my white cottage—plain.
Thinks I, the down lies dreaming
Under that hot moon's eye,
Which sees the shells fly screaming
And men and horses die.
And what makes she, I wonder,
Of the horror and the blood,
And what's her luck, to sunder
The evil from the good?
'T was more than I...
July 14, 2011
At Readercon 22
I'm at Readercon 22 this weekend.
You can find me at these panels and discussion groups:
Saturday July 16, 10:00 AM G
Victoria Janssen (leader), Alaya Dawn Johnson, Toni L.P. Kelner, Kate Nepveu, JoSelle Vanderhooft.
In science fiction, aliens are often used to explore aspects of otherness in our own society, such as gender and race. How are the mythical creatures of paranormal romance and urban fantasy being used to explore these same issues? What are the ...
July 13, 2011
Readercon 22 Schedule
The full schedule for Readercon 22, including program item descriptions, is now available.
July 11, 2011
What I'm Up To
I haven't posted a lot about writing lately – that's because I haven't been doing much writing!
Part of that is because I needed some time for family and friends, and part of it is that I desperately needed some time off. However, I've also been busy with the business side of writing, mostly networking, which doesn't translate well into interesting blog posts (unless you like name-dropping). I attended the IASPR and RWA conferences, and later this week will be attending Readercon. I...
July 10, 2011
"Courage," Dyneley Hussey
Courage
Alone amid the battle-din untouched
Stands out one figure beautiful, serene;
No grime of smoke nor reeking blood hath smutched
The virgin brow of this unconquered queen.
She is the Joy of Courage vanquishing
The unstilled tremors of the fearful heart;
And it is she that bids the poet sing,
And gives to each the strength to bear his part.
Her eye shall not be dimmed, but as a flame
Shall light the distant ages with its fire,
That men may know the glory of her name,
That ...
