'Nathan Burgoine's Blog, page 97

Writing Wednesday – Typa Typa Typa.

This last week has been much, much better. Wordcount is flowing, even I’m starting to get sick of the rain, and my books arrived for Romancing the Capital, which is in less than a month and oh wow, that’s really soon.

The other thing that will happen this week is the Flash Fiction Challenge, from NYCMidnight. I made it to honourable mention in the first round of the earlier contest, which… isn’t far. But it’s a challenge and it makes me stretch, so I’m in again. It all starts Friday, and tomorrow is the last day to register if you want to join me.

Exit Plans for Teenage Freaks

I am back on track with my new word count goals, and although I’m still fighting through inertia (man, this book doesn’t want to flow at all, every scene is like walking uphill), I’m still supported by the magic that is friendship. Camp NaNoWriMo is helping.

Plus side? I got a scene drafted I’m quite proud of: this is Cole “landing” in the bedroom of his boy-crush with an errant teleport-gone-wrong when he is escaping some bad guys.

“Hey, hey, Cole…” Malik said. “Are you okay? Do I need to call someone? What happened?” All the while, he ran one hand over my back in a small circle, pulling me against him with his other arm. It felt warm, and safe, and I slowly got myself under control.

“Sorry,” I said again. My voice was rough. “I’m having a really bad night.”

Malik let go, and reached up behind him to his bedside table. He handed me a box of tissues. I used a couple to wipe my face.

“What happened?” he asked.

“I got snatched,” I said. It just came out.

It felt so good to tell the truth.

“What?” His voice rose, and we both flinched. We waited a couple of seconds, but no one came to the door.

“I got grabbed. They took me somewhere, and…”

“Wait,” he said. “Who? Who took you?”

“I don’t really know. There are a few of them. I’ve seen them around a few times now, and they said they’ve been watching me.” I shook my head as Malik shook his head. I sounded like I was insane. “I got away.”

“And climbed up my house and through my window?”

“No,” I said. I bit my lip. “No, that’s not how I got here.”

Malik frowned. I could practically see him deciding I was a lunatic.

“You’d never believe me,” I said.

“Try me.”

I took a deep breath, and used one last tissue to wipe the last of my meltdown off my face. How did I even start? The people who’d taken me were obviously like me: a teleporter. That guy had grabbed me and yanked me through a door with him, and we’d ended up in his creepy-ass cell.

“There’s something happening to me,” I said. “And, actually, it goes back to the locker thing.”

I looked at Malik, and he nodded, once. His dark eyes didn’t leave mine. It was really distracting to have him looking at me like that, so I stared at the floor.

“It’s going to sound insane,” I said. “And I can’t think of a way to say it that isn’t insane.”

“Just say it,” he said.

“I teleported.”

Malik blinked. “What?”

“I can teleport. It keeps happening. I start to go through one door and I end up coming out of a different door.”

He scowled. “Cole,” he started, voice low and annoyed.

“I dove though a window where the guy had taken me and came out through your window. I was aiming for my own bedroom. I guess I missed.”

“You missed.” Malik crossed his arms.

“It’s actually tougher than you think it is,” I said, annoyed. “I’ve only been at this a week.”

Of Echoes Born

Typa, typa, typa. Juggling the stories, the YA novel, and crafting my “Cards Against Humanity” game for Romancing the Capital (yeah, you read that right).

Open Calls for Submission

Every Wednesday I try to include my list off all the various open calls for submission I’ve found and/or am trying to write for. If you know of any others, by all means do drop them in the comments and I’ll add them to the list. If this is helpful for people other than myself, it’s even better.

July thus far? Nothing yet, but the Flash Fiction Contest will be a new submission on Friday.

Previously this year thus far: January was: 6 submissions (4 reprints, 2 new), 1 acceptance; in February was bare minimum: 1 submission (1 new); March brought 1 rejection, and 1 submission (new); April say 1 submission (new) and 1 acceptance; May: 1 submission (new), 1 acceptance. June: BUZZ! (Let’s not talk about that).

Chicken Soup for the Soul – Various titles, various themes, various deadlines, 1,200 word count limit.
Clarkesworld – Currently open for art, non-fiction, and short story submissions.
Cast of Wonders – Young adult short fiction market, open to story submissions up to 6,000 words.
Totally Entwined – Many calls, various dates and lengths.
Erotic Short Romances — Carina Press, an ongoing call for 10k to 17k word count limit.
The Witching Hour – Mythical creature visitation theme; deadline July 30th, 2017; 10k to 40k word count limit.
Holiday Stories – Ninestar Press is seeking queer holiday tales; deadline July 31st, 2017; 5k to 30k word count limit.
Haunted — Erotic stories centered around the theme of haunted, Mugwump Publishing; Deadline August 5th, 2017; 1k-5k word count limit.
Flint Charity Anthologies – Organized by Vicktor Alexander; deadlines throughout September, 2017; 5k to 20k word count limit.
Futurescape Contest – “Blue Sky Cities” theme; 8k word count limit; deadline October 13th, 2017.

Writing Wednesday – Let’s Just Pretend June Didn’t Happen, Okay?

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June? Not so great. July? Turning out to be awesome.

So. June.

Two things happened in June. Thing the first? Renovations. Casa Smith needed an upgrade, and unfortunately it needed a major one. Hence why no visit to New Orleans this year for my fave literary festival. The roof needed to be replaced. So did some windows. So did the siding. Oh, and the parging. Oh, and the eavestroughs. Oh, and…

Well, you get the idea.

So. Why do I bring this up? Because BANG-BANG-BANG-Whirrrr! You know what I don’t do well? Write while construction noises are blasting me from all sides. And I didn’t escape much, as said construction noises were also driving poor Coach a little mental, and I felt bad about leaving him behind to suffer with the noise. Most days he sat right beside me, leaning against me, with this look on his face that said, Why aren’t you making this stop?

So. My “write and submit something every month?” Nope. My word-counts for June? Nope. And that sent me into a pretty bad spiral of writer’s block and self-loathing and… Yeah.

Plus side? Triad Soul launched, and launched pretty darn well. Response has been solid, so I used my daily productiveness on blogs, podcasts, and generally tooting my own horn (which doesn’t come naturally).

And now?

Now I get back on track.

Also? Today I received my copy of Wilde Stories 2017, and I have to tell you getting into a Wilde Stories anthology is a checkmark on a literary bucket list for me. I’m so stoked.

Exit Plans for Teenage Freaks

I am back on track with my new word count goals, and not looking behind me. In fact, thanks to CampNaNoWriMo, I’m feeling shored up by the awesomeness of some other writer friends, and I hope to reclaim the ground I lost, but like I said—looking forward, not behind.

Of Echoes Born

The three Ian Simon stories are going well. I’m jumping between the three of them, back and forth, and that’s been good.

Open Calls for Submission

Every Wednesday I try to include my list off all the various open calls for submission I’ve found and/or am trying to write for. If you know of any others, by all means do drop them in the comments and I’ll add them to the list. If this is helpful for people other than myself, it’s even better.

July thus far? Nada. And ignoring the cataclysmic June, here’s the rest of the year:

Previously this year thus far: January was: 6 submissions (4 reprints, 2 new), 1 acceptance; in February was bare minimum: 1 submission (1 new); March brought 1 rejection, and 1 submission (new); April say 1 submission (new) and 1 acceptance; May: 1 submission (new), 1 acceptance.

Chicken Soup for the Soul – Various titles, various themes, various deadlines, 1,200 word count limit.
Clarkesworld – Currently open for art, non-fiction, and short story submissions.
Cast of Wonders – Young adult short fiction market, open to story submissions up to 6,000 words.
Totally Entwined – Many calls, various dates and lengths.
Erotic Short Romances — Carina Press, an ongoing call for 10k to 17k word count limit.
The Witching Hour – Mythical creature visitation theme; deadline July 30th, 2017; 10k to 40k word count limit.
Holiday Stories – Ninestar Press is seeking queer holiday tales; deadline July 31st, 2017; 5k to 30k word count limit.
Haunted — Erotic stories centered around the theme of haunted, Mugwump Publishing; Deadline August 5th, 2017; 1k-5k word count limit.
Flint Charity Anthologies – Organized by Vicktor Alexander; deadlines throughout September, 2017; 5k to 20k word count limit.
Futurescape Contest – “Blue Sky Cities” theme; 8k word count limit; deadline October 13th, 2017.

 

Happy Canada Day (and a Giveaway over on Diverse Reader)!

[image error]Hey folks! Just a quick note today to let you know if you hop on over to Diverse Reader you’ll see my wee little author interview and spotlight, complete with a shot at earning yourself some free e-pubs of Triad Blood, Triad Soul, and “Three,” the short story that started it all.

Hope to see you there, and—in keeping with the day—Happy Canada Day! From Kieran, Sebastien, Luc, Curtis, Anders, Andy and James (and all the rest of my Canucklehead characters) and me: I hope you have a great time, eh!

It’s possible to feel multiple ways about something at once; and that’s how I feel about Canada.

It’s a pretty amazing place to live for me, and I am proud to have become a citizen.

That said? It’s also got a history that’s full of colonialism (and everything that entails) that casts a shadow still today. You don’t have to go far to see how Canada fails its indigenous people, or how the immigration system is overwhelmingly ableist. This isn’t a perfect place, and one can say that and still be proud of what has been accomplished, and forward movement attained.

I hope we continue to head in the right direction. I hope we listen—instead of complaining or feeling threatened—when those with less power, less voice, and less protection speak out. I hope we will use the power, voice, and protections we have to extend our hands downward and lift others up.

Cover Reveal for Of Echoes Born

I don’t think I’m going to shock anyone here by admitting that short fiction is my first (and still strongest) writing love. Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy reading and writing novels and novellas. I’m not going to stop, either (though I’ll admit part of that is knowing that I couldn’t make a writing career out of only writing queer short fiction).

Why do I bring this up, though?

Feast your freaking eyes on this:

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This. Is. Perfect.

So, Of Echoes Born will be my very first short fiction collection. I have a due date for the stories, but I don’t have a release date yet. I do, however, have this cover, and I don’t think I can properly explain how perfect this cover is.

The guy on the cover is my character Ian Simon. If you’re not sure who that is, that’s not a surprise. He’s got a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo in my very first published short story, “Heart,” from Fool for Love. He is one of my first characters. I’ve been working on his stories since I began writing. I can’t wait to introduce him to you all.

And his eyes, his face, his goatee, the way the world around him is shattering..?

Perfect.

This cover’s magic is at the hands of Inkspiral Book & Cover Design.

Freedom, Chosen Families, and Queer Strength

[image error]I’m over at the Bold Strokes Books author blog today, chatting about Triad Soul and the main themes of the Triad books. Where Triad Blood was much about tradition (and how tradition can be turned into a weapon of exclusion), Triad Soul is explores another piece of queerness: the chosen family.

Head on over and check it out here.

Also, Bold Strokes Books does a thing every month where they list off all the individual titles releasing on Facebook, and if you share/like any of those release notes, you get entered for a free e-book of your choice. Go here to check that out, and maybe like/share a title (or eleven). Free is always a great price!

 

Triad Soul is Officially Released (Everywhere)!

It’s officially June 20th, 2017, and that means my third novel, Triad Soul, is now available through any of your retailers of choice. Brick and mortar, e-tailer, or direct from the publisher, you can join Curtis the wizard, Luc the vampire, and Anders the demon try to stay brave in the face of a killer, a mystery, and Valentine’s Day.

Okay, maybe “brave” is too strong a word for how they feel about Valentine’s Day.

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The law of three is everything: three vampires for a coterie, three demons for a pack, and three wizards for a coven. Those alone or in pairs are vulnerable to the rest. Luc, Anders, and Curtis—vampire, demon, and wizard—sidestepped tradition by binding themselves together.

When something starts brutally killing demons in Ottawa, the three find themselves once again moving among the powers who rule the city from the shadows—this time working with them to try to stop the killings before chaos and blood rule the streets.

Hunting a killer who seems to leave no trace behind, the triad are forced to work with allies they don’t dare trust, powers they barely understand, and for the good of those they already know to be corrupt.

They have the power of blood, soul, and magic. But they have to survive to keep it.

As always, a huge thank-you to anyone who pre-ordered or took advantage of the early release date from Bold Strokes Books (where, all month, by the way, you can get 15% off the June release titles in-print, including Triad Soul. Just click, or look here for all the titles this deal includes.) If you haven’t yet signed up for the Bold Strokes Books newsletter? It’s a great way to find out of about the daily deals, flash sales, and new releases from the most awesome LGBTQ publisher that ever there was (there may be some bias on my part). You can sign up right on the front page of the website.

Also, check out the nifty (updated) trailer from Inkspiral!

Early reviews have been really good, and I’m super-chuffed people are enjoying the guys. And yes, to answer the question I’ve been getting the most: Once I’ve got my next project completed, the book I’m pitching after that is absolutely Triad Magic.

Not Normal, Just Common

I’ve bumped into something a few times recently, so I thought it worth taking some time. And also, hey, it’s Pride Month, so what better time to remind folk about the difference between normal and common?

So, what is it I keep bumping into? Folk fighting the term “cisgender.” Or, as it’s often shortened, “cis.”

Now, before I start, I want to be clear that I’m speaking from a cisgender point of view, and I’m a cisgender male. I’m hopeful I’m not screwing up any of the basics here, and if I am, please let me know and I’ll amend.

But the sudden rapid increase in the whole reaction to “cis” among cisgender folk makes me think the discussion might be overdue.

Cis? Cisgender? What’s that?

For me, the prefix cis- was one I bumped into years ago back in the lovely world of organic chemistry. It meant that things had bonded on the same side (specifically isomers, I think, but chemistry was literally decades ago, so yeah… I remember “same side” and that’s about it). The prefix trans-, on the other hand, meant those things had bonded on an opposite side.

You probably see how this translated into discussions of gender.

Applying the latin prefixes to gender, we get cisgender and transgender. Now, if you’re on my blog, you likely get what transgender means (if not, as a quickie: transgender people have a gender identity or gender expression that differs from their assigned sex). But what does cisgender mean, then?

Well, cisgender people have a gender identity or gender expression that is the same as their assigned sex. Y’know, like me. At birth, the doctor said, “it’s a boy,” and nothing in my heart, soul, or thoughts thus far has come into conflict with that assignment. I’m queer, yes, but I’m a cisgender male, and that’s it.

Assigned what-now?

Yeah, okay. So that comes up, too. When I say the doctor assigned me male at birth? That’s on purpose. Because there’s a lot of crap transgender folk face on a regular basis, and one flavour of that crap is all about confusing bodies (and their various parts) with gender. “Assigned sex” takes that out of play. There’s an assumption there, on behalf of the folks who get to fill in birth information on official paperwork, but saying “assigned sex” reinforces that is indeed what’s happening: the official people have assigned a sex to the newly born individual.

Whether or not it’s correct? That remains to be seen.

(This may also be a good time to remind everyone that being trans and straight is a thing. Cisgender males can be gay; transgender males can be straight; both are still queer, for example.)

I don’t get why we need cisgender. I mean, isn’t not using transgender the same thing?

It’s not, though I can see where it might seem to be, at first glance. If discussions talk about, say, the male experience, and then make note of transgender male experience, there’s a kind of false dichotomy going on, and there’s also a problem of the weight of the word “male” vs. the weight of the word “transgender.”

Let me start with the false dichotomy thing.

Transgender males are male. Cisgender males are male. Both are male. But when someone speaks of “male” or “transgender male” the idea that transgender males are “qualified” males, or “kind-of” males, or “sort-of” males is reinforced, since the other group, “male” has no qualifying adjective.

In reality, those discussions have three facets: in discussing “male experiences,” one could be discussing something about the male experience (“As a man, buying clothes is generally cheaper for me”), something about the cisgender male experience (“I see myself represented as the hero all the time in movies”), or something about the transgender male experience (“Finding a trans-positive doctor was important to me.”) All those experiences are male. None of them is more male than any other. But some are cisgender male (but not transgender male) experiences, some are transgender male (but not cisgender male) experiences, and some are both.

If you divide discussion between “male” and “transgender male,” that false dichotomy of “there’s male, and then there’s transgender male” is unintentionally made.

Common, Not Normal.

The prefixes, cis and trans, also serve to do the same thing prefixes like hetero, bi, pan, a, demi, and homo do with sexual. I imagine if you’re on my blog, you’re probably not going to be too surprised when I say that heterosexuality isn’t normal, it’s common. The vast majority of people would probably describe themselves as heterosexual. That’s cool beans. No harm, no foul. Sexuality has a lot of variance, and most of the time, most of the people I speak to get that. Homosexuals are less common, but they’re just as valid as heterosexuals. Bisexuals have experiences that differ from them. They also have experiences that are in common. The same can be said of asexuals, demisexuals, pansexuals, and so on and so forth. Having the terms lets us discuss and explain ourselves, and find each other, especially for those of us who are outside the most common identities. Because the most common identity is almost ubiquitously explained, represented, discussed, demonstrated, and assumed.

The same is true of discussions around gender. Saying cisgender male and transgender male helps solidify that while, yes, cisgender is more common, it is not more male. It is not more normal, or natural, or correct.

It also works as much with trans as it does with male and female. Discussions can be all the more specific around nonbinary or agender individuals as well, as trans is inclusive of these identities as a larger term in the same way: trans includes nonbinary individuals, and agender individuals, and transgender men, and transgender women; all of whom can share trans experiences. Trans is not just an prefix of gender applied to men and women.

So, if someone refers to cisgender people (or cisgender men, or cisgender women) and you’re not sure what that means? Well, now you do. It’s meant to specifically denote those who were assigned a gender at birth whose identity and expression match said assignment. That’s it. That’s all.

It’s not a slur.

Now, I’ve also heard a few people say “people have been attacking me with the word cis,” or “it sounds a lot like sissy, I don’t like it.”

Okay, to the second part? For the “it sounds like sissy” thing, I’m not really sure what to say. Honestly, I think this’ll just have to be withstood. There are queer people who dislike (and don’t use) queer, but the reality is that’s the most inclusive term we’ve currently got, and it’s the one that’s used. Cisgender is a technical term, with latin roots that has nothing to do with the word sissy.

As for the first, I understand that sometimes people suck. As a queer guy, I get that, believe me. I’ve had all manner of words aimed at me in a hateful way, including one I use all the time: queer. Now, I’m honestly not sure how cis could be tossed around in quite the same way—I’m unclear how the power dynamic would work here—but it might be worth stopping and considering the source and the current temperature of the discussion at hand.

I know there have been times where I, as a queer guy, have said some uncharitable things about non-queer folk. Often that’s because I’m just coming off of something pretty wretched, or I’m having the same queer 101 talk and my blood sugar is low and someone has asked the same damn question I’ve answered a billion times, or says something well-meaning (but totally dismissive) like, “love is love, we don’t need labels.”

If that’s what’s going on, honestly? I’d ask you to consider being patient. Generally speaking, cisgender people have more power. The world is so incredibly designed for cisgender people (in relation to how the world is not designed for transgender people). That’s exhausting. Sometimes, even the nicest among the queer folk will lose their patience, and snap out a generalized “cis people are so freaking clueless!” when what they might mean is “I’m exhausted by bumping into yet another reminder that the world thinks I’m abnormal and less-than!”

Above all else? Resist the urge to drop some variation of “not all cisgender!” in response.

Able-Bodied People Speaking ABOUT Disabled People

Derek is on point here. I cannot tell you how many times I have been told to try “relaxing” “stretching” or “have you considered yoga?” for my freaking migraine-induced seizures.

Also, as a general rule? If you’ve going to have a panel on a group of people, getting the panel members to be of that group is kind of a basic, 101 consideration. I’ve totally been the only queer person on the “queer topic” panel, and it’s torture.

Dis(abled) Embodiment

By Derek Newman-Stille

Far too frequently, able-bodied people feel that they have a place to talk about disabled people. They use different justifications for this act of narrating our bodies to us, but the bottom line is always the same. There is an assumption that our bodies are open to public debate, that we are resigned to expertiseism about our bodies not only by medical practitioners, but anyone who feels that they have a stake in narrating us.
I see this most commonly when it comes to medical practitioners, whose power to narrate our bodies is so strong that we have to depend on their assessment of our bodies to get access to basic accommodations. Our own narration of our bodies is never considered enough to guarantee that we will acquire everything we need. In university I observed this with the accommodation letters that I was forced to bring to…

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An Acceptance, and the last day for Triad Blood at 40% off

It’s Sunday, and I’m about to head out to the gallery for the afternoon, but before I go, I wanted to mention some happy news: I got an acceptance for the holiday “chosen family” novella I’ve been working on for ages.

It’s current title is “Homemade Holidays” (though if the publisher wants a different title, I’m down with that, as we all know how confident I am in my own titles).

[image error]It was picked up by NineStar Press, and I’ll obviously offer more details as they become available. I’m really chuffed, though, that Nicky and Haruto will get to tell their story over fifteen holidays. It’s based not-so-loosely on my own ornament tradition, which I talk about every year, and so this one is pretty darn close to my heart.

Anyway. More news as events warrant.

Of course, this week is still all about Triad Soul, and today is the last day for the Triad Blood deal. What’s that, you say? To celebrate the release of Triad Soul, right now, from June 1st to June 4th, Bold Strokes has Triad Blood, the first Triad novel, on 40% discount in all e-book formats for a “catch-up” sale. So if you missed Triad Blood, or are just bumping into me now, click here for that deal. It ends tonight, so take advantage.

Celebrating Pride Month over at Romance Eh? Canadian Style…

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Superheroes during Pride? Well… define “superhero.”

Hey folks! I’m over at Romance Eh? Canadian Style today talking about Pride Month. If you’ve in the mood, hop on over. I go back to the beginning: my first Pride, and also my first novel, which is set during Pride here in Ottawa.

I’ve got new release news I’ll be talking about tomorrow, and of course, this week it’s all about Triad Soul, which just released at the Bold Strokes Books web-store. It’s a great month to celebrate putting more queer urban fantasy out into the world.

Also: To celebrate the release of Triad Soul, right now, from June 1st to June 4th, Bold Strokes has Triad Blood, the first Triad novel, on 40% discount in all e-book formats for a “catch-up” sale. So if you missed Triad Blood, or are just bumping into me now, click here for that deal. It ends tomorrow, so take advantage.