James Dorr's Blog, page 134

By Force Favorite Misfits Honor Official; Cave Computer Replacement On Line

This year, we launched a new initiative called THE SOCIETY OF MISFIT STORIES.  To celebrate we’re adding the “Misfits” to our Reader’s Choice poll.  Such was the beginning of November 2’s post announcing that my story “By Force and Against the King’s Peace,” late of ALFRED HITCHCOCK’S MYSTERY MAGAZINE for December 1999, appeared to have been voted favorite “misfit story” this year by a fair landslide, though no real announcement had been made.  Well, as of this week it’s official, for more of which one may press here (and, reflecting the relative importance vis a vis their other category winners — hey, they did say it’s for “misfit stories” — scroll down, and down. . . .  But as a bonus, you’ll find a link to Bards and Sages Publishing’s MISFIT STORIES page as well, where you can even buy a copy of “By Force” for yourself).  As for the prize, well, that’s still unsure (though these days simply being honored for anything is, in itself, something), but more will be posted here as it becomes known.

Then, moving on down to October 22, in a post announcing the up and coming Sonnet O’Dell pre-Halloween interview in DUSTY PAGES you may have noticed this buried toward the end:   In the meantime, alas, one of the local cave computers died last night, the one that takes care of bloggie business here, so I probably won’t be able to post until Monday afternoon, EDT, on a library computer.  Whatever works, yes?  And indeed for the next several weeks these posts were coming to you from the Computer Annex, a.k.a.The Monroe County Public Library.  But now, a consultation with a local computer repair guy having suggested the afflicted machine would do best to receive a peaceful burial, an all new reconditioned machine discovered on eBay is now up, running, and equipped with the appropriate software, and is bringing you this very post.  The same basic model as the one it replaces but of a slightly more recent sub-vintage, it seems to be working well and, if anything, may be slightly more sprightly than its predecessor.

Let’s wish it a long life!

Writer & Adolescent Muse Interview Is Live; Mystery Biographee Revealed

What drew me to writing?  What (if any) are recurring themes in my work?  How do I get in my characters’ minds?  All good questions — and, of course, a chance to say something about my new book, TOMBS:  A CHRONICLE OF LATTER-DAY TIMES OF EARTH.  These are a part of my latest interview, by Carrie Ann Golden, which is now live on her A WRITER & HER ADOLESCENT MUSE blog (cf. November 10).  What was the inspiration behind TOMBS? 

To find out all, one need but press here.

Thus the holiday weekend has ended, and a mystery has been solved as well.  One may recall November 4, in a post about Elder Signs Press’s just published anthology DARK HORIZONS, the mystery about the not-about-me biography under my name in the “About the Authors” section at the end of the book.  Sunday the secret was exposed, the man behind the biography is actually James C. Simpson (thus one “James” stands in for another, get it?) who has a story, “Branded for Hell,” in Elder Signs’s other anthology scheduled for this month, STREET MAGIC (September 18, January 22, et al.).  “Branded in Hell” appears in the contents, in fact, just after my own story, “Bottles,” to be in there too.  So the question now is if our bios will be reversed, or remain where they should be, or if a third or a fourth James will be found to substitute for one or the other.

The January 22 post also gives the full contents for STREET MAGICK for those who wish an early sneak peek, while those who check out my November 4 post can scroll down to “Comments” to see James Simpson’s mystery solution just as he sent it.

It’s About Time Makes Veterans Day Appearance; “Sound” to Be Rerun in Blood & Spades

As Editor Kathie Giorgio puts it (from the “Introduction”),  Think of all the words we have for time, phrases that many of us use and hear every day:

Time to go.  Time’s running out.  All the time in the world.  Time and tide waits for no man.  It’s high time.  A question of time, a race against time.  All in good time.  Ahead of your time.  The right place at the right time.  Better luck next time.  

Time dominates us and directs us.  We are ourselves timepieces, our hearts are our pendulums, beating out the seconds we have on this earth.

What time is it for you today?

Well, you get the idea:  IT’S ABOUT TIME.  Yes, that’s the anthology’s name, and yesterday, Friday, it made its appearance in ye olde mailbox to kick off the Veterans Day Holiday Weekend (yes, technically a postal holiday, but packages get special treatment).  And as might be inferred, quite the eclectic collection it is, with scads and scads of mostly short stories and poems of all aspects of time, so that even my story, a science fiction/romance including time travel, seems mundane and routine.  A reprint titled “Curious Eyes” (cf. September 20, et al.), it has been around, though, with four prior appearances starting with THE FICTION PRIMER way back in December 1988.

But to see more for yourself, press here.

Then speaking of re-appearances, today’s email also brought a confirmation from Marge Simon, editor of the “Blood & Spades” poetry column in the Horror Writers Association’s monthly NEWSLETTER.  We had been talking about reprint rights for my “It Begins With the Sound” essay (currently in the Autumn ILLUMEN, see November 5), and it is now officially set for the January 2017 issue.

But What About Giving Robots the Vote?

Or, as some may wonder these latter Election Week days, could they do any worse?  Or even, could they do any better?  But what about robots in general, even the ones on, say, an auto assembly line.  Should they have the right to form their own unions (or have human trade unions lost so much power that the question is moot)?  And, if corporations have “personhood” (or would a Trump Supreme Court roll that “right” back?), should not robots have it too, whatever “it” really is?

As it happens none of these questions are actually asked, at least not in those words exactly (well, one sort of is), in “10 Human Rights That Robots Deserve” by Stubby the Rocket on this week’s TOR.COM, but maybe they’re just being asked in the wrong way.  For instance, before asking about rights to vote, should we not first define a general right to self-determination?  But still, what might happen to our own rights if those of non-humans — especially ones we may have built ourselves — come into the mix?

It’s a sort of deep subject, with no easy answers, at least not given, but to read more about it press here.

Tombs, et al.: New Pre-Thanksgiving Interview Set for Monday

Speaking of fast work, Tuesday, while skipping some of the slow, slow reports of election results, I was finishing up questions for a new interview by Carrie Ann Golden.  No ducks walking into bars or early crushes in this one (cf. October 24), but good writerly questions still, seven in all, including a few on my upcoming novel-in-stories, TOMBS:  A CHRONICLE OF LATTER-DAY TIMES OF EARTH.  And even a comment on THE TEARS OF ISIS.  But here’s the thing:  We were looking toward a publication date prior to Thanksgiving, just a couple of weeks down the pike, but when I sent my copy in Wednesday early afternoon, Carrie was back to me by that evening.  “These [the answers] are wonderful . . . am planning to post your interview on Monday, November 14.”

But wait.  That’s this Monday, the one coming up.  Four days from today, today being Thursday.  Talk about quick work!  So anyway, just around the (as it were) calendar corner, I’ll be there on Carrie Golden’s A WRITER & HER ADOLESCENT MUSE blog, more on which, with link, we will see here on the 14th.

Bloodbond November Contents Announced

Late Sunday evening’s email capped the weekend with an announcement/listing from Alban Lake Publishing of the contents of the current (or very near future) November issue of BLOODBOND.  And, speaking of vampires, it is not berift of a piece by me (cf. June 22), a poem of the apprehension, yet joy of the newly “turned” titled “Her First Time.”  She imagined pilots/ with their first solo flight/ felt somewhat the same way,/ elation combined with fear –/ so much could go wrong –/ yet. . . . 

For this and more, one can check out Alban Lake’s “store” by pressing here.  And, for the other contents as well:

Stories

The Walri Project by Kendall Evans

A Helping Hand by Alison McBain

KAMY25V by Lee Clark Zumpe

Shooting by the Light of the Moon by Jeremy Hayes

Gordon by Joel & Angela Enos

Tail to Treasure by Olga Godim

Flash Fiction

Stealth by Karen Heslo

le souper a la maison d’ombres by Terrie Leigh Relf

Another Full Moon by Marge Simon

The Other Victorians by Justin Holliday

Companions of Dead Things by Matthew Wilson

Poetry

Featured Poet: Sandy DeLuca

The Carnival

The Crone’s Dream

Dracula

Conjuring Nosferatu

In the Hollywood Hills

Frankenstein by Ron Larson

Her First Time by James S. Dorr

Blending Scents by Marcie Lynn Tentchoff

Tomb of Wolves by Matthew Wilson

Young Love on Ascendant at First Sunday Prose Session for November

I had had to skip the open mike part of last week’s Last Sunday Poetry due to getting ready for early check-in for my “Raising the Dead” reading at that evening’s Ryder Film Festival (see October 31).  This week, however, all was on schedule for November’s “First Sunday Prose Reading and Open Mic” (cf. October 3, et al.) with local short fiction writer Tom Bitters and a tale of young love nearly torpedoed by an inflatable doll named Mistress Ping; poetry and prose performer Gabriel Peoples with the rambling and funny quasi-historical “The Story of Jack Daniels,” including audience participation; and First Sundays MC and co-sponsor (with host venue Boxcar Books) Bloomington Writers Guild member Joan Hawkins with more of young love, the “Ballad of Renee and Buzz,” and the start of a second piece, both examples of creative nonfiction.

The crowd was reasonably large at the start although, as sometimes happens, it thinned down to about half its size during the break, after which two people read at the open mike session, me and local poet and essayist and sometimes short fiction writer Tonia Matthews.  My piece this time was of young love also,”Smashing Pumpkins,” that of the vampires Aloysius and Vendetta in an adventure of Halloween, ice-blood (or is it “bloodcream”) cones, and rampaging clowns, all ending up with a trip to the polls on Election Day.

It Begins With Sound in Fall Illumen, Issue Received

The Autumn issue of ILLUMEN, received with Friday’s street mail, brings a new policy along with essays by poet and artist Marge Simon and by me.  As Editor Tyree Campbell explains, the focus remains on poetry, obviously.  But beginning with this current issue, in addition to poems, art, and articles, I’ll present writings addressed to readers, inviting them into — or further into — the joys and sorrows of reading poetry.  I firmly believe that one reason folks avoid poetry, or at best tolerate it, is that they don’t understand it, or are afraid they won’t understand it . . . a fear of being found out by their peers. . . .  A failed understanding, he goes on to suggest, that he feels may be nurtured by the way poetry is introduced to schoolchildren, as early as the third or fourth grade.

And so, now there will be a series of essays written by poets themselves to, as he continues, “demystify” poetry, some addressed to more experienced readers, some intended to reach a younger audience.  These essays will present the case for poetry; that answer The Question:  Why should I read poetry?

I was one poet Tyree reached out to for a possible essay (see October 8, August 31), Marge Simon — who also is a previous editor of the Science Fiction Poetry Association’s STAR*LINE — another, and so we are both featured in this issue.  Tyree bats first, ending his editorial with a short reflection on reading and language, then Marge with “Illuminating Poetry:  Why Bother” on how we may “know” poetry more than we thought, with examples from her own work on how it can speak to certain classes of readers, children, lovers, lovers betrayed, or mothers and sons.  Then, finally, my essay “It Begins With the Sound” recommends reading poetry aloud, reveling in the sound of the words and how they can amplify the meaning, and ends with two poems of mine, “Metal Vamp” with dancing and jazz (plus a review from STAR*LINE by Daniel C. Smith) and “La Méduse” (also, to give a quick plug, the foreword to my collection THE TEARS OF ISIS) with its series of s-sounds to, hopefully, echo the serpents that make up its subject’s hair.

Dark of the Moon, Dark Horizons Is Here

Stranded on an off-world base, a tech specialist seeks to outwit a confused AI before it kills him.  In the depths of space, a mining ship finds a vein of ore that will make everyone aboard rich — if they figure out what happened to the crew of the ship that was here before them.  Waiting for the unwary reader of this book are stories of madmen playing with science beyond their control, and alien creatures with malign intent.  Welcome to Dark Horizons, where the future is lost.  Featuring fiction by Jay Caselberg, Eric Del Carlo, Aaron J. French, and Christopher Fulbright.  And also me, which the Amazon text doesn’t state specifically, but you can’t fit everyone in a blurb.  And somewhat hilariously when you check out the”About the Authors” section in the book itself, is that the one that’s under my name (“. . . a mysterious recluse from the wild mountains of Pennsylvania . . .”) is not about me!  If anyone knows who it is about, I would be curious too.

But that’s not important.  What is are the stories, of which mine is the first in the book, “Dark of the Moon” (cf. September 18, 15, January 22, et al.), one of three that are reprints, originally published in CHILDREN OF CTHULHU (Del Rey, 2002) and later reprinted in FUTURE LOVECRAFT (Innsmouth Free Press, 2011; Prime Books, 2012).  “Dark of the Moon” is a tale of a lunar landing gone bad (they all go bad in a book like this, don’t they?), this one the first on the moon’s back side, the side that is always in the dark when it faces Earth.  In addition are eighteen other stories, all of which look like potential winners.

So yesterday DARK HORIZONS arrived with “Dark of the Moon” in the computer cave mailbox, sent in the dark, end days of October (the 29th by postmark to be exact, and never mind Amazon’s November 15 publication listing).  For more, just press here.

The Nine Billion Names of God, et al.

Of all the genres, science fiction and fantasy are the ones where humans can tackle their deepest societal problems and thought experiments. Because of this, it’s a natural place for people to explore ideas about religion, faith, and the meaning of life. . .  So begins Leah Schnelbach’s “19 Positive Approaches to Religion in Sci-Fi and Fantasy” on TOR.COM, brought via today’s post-Halloween email.  I thought it would be interesting to look at some examples of books and short stories that have tackled religious questions in respectful and positive ways, she continues and, yes, “The Nine Billion Names of God,” a short story by Arthur C. Clarke is included, as is his “The Star.”  Also there are Roger Zelazny with LORD OF LIGHT, A CANTICLE FOR LEIBOWITZ by Walter M. Miller, a couple of shorts by Ray Bradbury. . . .  Well, and many others, some of which I’ve never heard of myself but may now consider looking into.

But why religion?  That is, isn’t science fiction (at least) in some way opposed to that?  Maybe, maybe not, but I would suggest that even if not on the surface, the people in a future — or fantastic — society still will still have some unexplained beliefs, that rely on faith.  Perhaps it’s just custom, the way things are done, but for example (and yes, this is a plug, my novel-in-stories due out next year cf. October 31, et many al., and some stories in my other books as well) in my TOMBS stories there’s an implicit belief in the existence of souls, of some kind of life after death — there’s even some description of the nature of souls, how they themselves are made up of parts, and how souls of lovers might be later reunited.  Or in horror, if one accepts vampires or ghosts or other supernatural beings, again a subtext of belief is implied, whether in formal or informal terms.  So call it world building — or adding texture.  But even if not overt in a story, religious assumptions may lurk in the background.

And of course, in some, they may be in the foreground, for more on which (and don’t forget to scroll through the comments too) press here.