Jeff VanderMeer's Blog, page 66

ODD? Volume One Table of Contents

We'll be announcing the full roster of a new line-up of e-books under our new Cheeky Frawg imprint very soon. Most of them are reprints only, focusing on my own work to start. However, one project that kind of came to us in a flash of inspiration, launches a new e-book anthology series, featuring new and reprinted stories, along with new translations of favorite stories. ODD? will be out in May, and eventually followed by a POD version that will include most of the material in the e-book version.

The plan is to release ODD? twice a year and have it be a showcase for strong, hard-to-define fiction, some of which may be slightly disturbing. Eventually, once it's established, we want to bring it full-on back into the print world with a version that includes strange comics and art—basically an odd culture zine with high production values—while continuing to do the e-book version.

The cover is by Jeremy Zerfoss, and may change slightly before publication.

Here's the line-up for volume one…

ODD?

The anthology that poses the question, "Is this odd…or are you too normal?"

Amos Tutuola – "The Dead Babies"

Gustave Le Rouge – "The War of the Vampires" (new translation by Brian Evenson and David Beus)

Jeffrey Ford – "Weiroot"

Leopoldo Lugones – "The Bloat Toad" (new translation by Larry Nolen)

Mark Samuels – "Apt 205"

Michael Cisco – "Modern Cities Exist Only to Be Destroyed" (published only in a limited edition previously)

Nalo Hopkinson – "Slow Cold Chick"

Sumanth Prabhaker – "A Hard Truth About Waste Management" (revised since publication)

Hiromi Goto – "Stinky Girl"

Eric Basso – "Logues"

Edward Morris – "Lotophagi"

Karin Tidbeck – "The Aunts" (previously unpublished)

Jeffrey Thomas – "The Fork"

Rikki Ducornet – "The Volatilized Ceiling of Baron Munodi"

Amanda le Bas de Plumetot – "Unmaking" (previously unpublished)

Karl Hans Strobl – "The Head" (new translation by Gio Clairval)

Caitlin R. Kiernan – "A Child's Guide to the Hollow Hills"

Stacey Levine – "Sausage"

ODD? Volume One Table of Contents originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 20, 2011.

Shared Worlds / Single Vision: Applied Imagination

(Click here for a full record of John Coulthart's book design work; all images in this post copyright to John Coulthart.)

Now that I've had a little time to come up for air from projects and traveling, I wanted to go into a little more detail about Shared Worlds/Single Vision, the book on writing I've sold to Abrams Image and my editor there, Caitlin Kenney.

First off, the book will be designed by John Coulthart, who I think is a genius, and who has designed covers and/or interiors for previous books of mine like Booklife: Strategies and Survival Tips for the 21st Century Writer, Finch, The Kosher Guide to Imaginary Animals (co-written with my wife Ann) and The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide to Eccentric & Discredited Diseases, as well as many interior illos for my City of Saints and Madmen, The Steampunk Bible (with SJ Chambers), and the forthcoming The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities (co-edited with my wife, Ann).

It will also feature over 100 full-color illustrations, paintings, and other images, about 70 percent of it provided by John and the rest by a variety of creators. Abrams is exhibiting a humbling amount of trust in both John and myself in letting us work together directly to create the look-and-feel, but it's also very important to the final product to do so. The images are not just going to be eye candy, but fully integrated into the narrative for the most part—in some areas will replace narrative.

One simple example, without giving too much away, would be that our approach to exemplifying certain kinds of plot structures will not take the form of simple line drawings, as found in other writing books. But there will also be much more intricate ways in which image supports text and vice versa, as well. And, in the exercises section, the use of full-page paintings and photographs will help to show in concrete terms different approaches to writing imaginative fiction.

With regards to the text in general, I will be interested in making clear areas where writers of non-realistic fiction may require different approaches or patterns of thought and also what areas share commonalities with the writing of any kind of fiction. I am also interested in applying the idea of negation—which is to say, for any given "problem" in fiction there are usually multiple solutions and it is not useful to provide single or binary ideas on most subjects. In the section of the book on world-building, negation will play a huge role, for example, given that there are so many different thoughts on this subject, most all of them legitimate in a certain context. (Some of the larger sections or chapters will include beginnings, writing, rewriting, the bleeding edge, and writing exercises.)

Throughout, the approach will emphasize the importance of both playfulness and pragmatism, so that Shared Worlds/Single Vision can energize and motivate while also containing the practical, nuts-and-bolts information needed to improve as a writer. I will lso deconstruct and dissect certain aspects of my own work to demonstrate key concepts.

Aimed at creatives at the aspiring and intermediate levels, with some more advanced content, Shared Worlds/Single Vision will also include a comprehensive appendix of resources, as well as a section on the Shared Worlds teen writing camp (although the book is not specifically for teens, some of the camp's processes are of use to all writers).

Finally, the book will also feature sidebar essays by the following, or exclusive interviews (as noted):

—Iconic fantasist Neil Gaiman

—National Book Award finalist Paolo Bacigalupi, author of The Windup Girl

—NYT Bestseller George RR Martin(HBO series Game of Thrones; interview)

—NYT Bestselling author Karen Joy Fowler

—Diana Gill, editor-in-chief of HarperVoyager

—Karin Lowachee, author of the critically acclaimed The Gaslight Dogs and Warchild

—NYT Bestseller Lev Grossman, author of The Magicians: A Novel

—Crawford Award winner Karen Lord, author of Redemption in Indigo: a novel

—Michael Moorcock, among England's greatest living novelists

—Liza Trombi, editor-in-chief of Locus Magazine

—Nick Mamatas, author of the cult classic Move Under Ground

—Anthologist and Hugo Award-winning editor of Weird Tales, Ann VanderMeer

—National Book Foundation "5 Under 35" award recipient Charles Yu, author of the critically acclaimed How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe: A Novel

That is an incomplete list, and there are several surprises in store regarding the content for this book that I can't reveal now, but rest assured it will be an absolutely stunning work of art in addition to its value as a book on craft for writers.

(I should also note my two advisers on the text side will be my wife Ann and Matthew Cheney, both of whom will serve to test material and to perform the role of devil's advocate.)

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Shared Worlds / Single Vision: Applied Imagination originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 19, 2011.

VanderMeer European Tour: Finland VanderCon and Warsaw Weekend

Even though we're just back from the West Coast, we're already preparing for our European trip. We'll be in Amsterdam to visit family, but I'll also be going to Warsaw for a weekend (April 2-4) to do some events in support of the Polish edition of Finch, with my good friend and fellow writer Neil Williamson joining me for some events. I'll have more information on that soon.

But Ann and I are also spending a week in Finland for a traveling road show known as VanderCon, sponsored by Finnish fandom and a cultural grant. It's an awesome and amazing opportunity and we'll be taking every advantage of it to give something back by interviewing Finnish writers and blogging afterwards. Here's a description of our trip by the Finns:

The Amazing VanderMeers are coming to Finland and they want to see YOU! Follow the intrepid travellers as they roam around the countryside, conquer the Turku castle, jump from the Jyväskylä's skijump hill, wander the length and width of the Moomin Valley in Tammere as well as attend both the stupefying Escon in Espoo and the wondrous Tähtivaeltaja Day in Helsinki! Facebook has more info.

What's our schedule? We'll have the events listing soon, but for now, here's where we'll be, as documented by the VanderCon blog.

9th – VanderPersons arrive to Helsinki.

10th – Turku calling!

11th – More of Turku!

12th – Jyväskylä calling!

13th – Moomin Valley (Tampere) calling!

14th – Back to Helsinki! Speech at the University, followed by evening at the St. Urho's Pub.

15th – Escon.

16th – Tähtivaeltaja Day.

17th – The End.

We love the Finns, and there was a time in my career when I was better published in Helsinki than in the U.S., so I really feel indebted. We are also unbelievably humbled to be guests of honor for Tähtivaeltaja Day. Tähtivaeltaja is one of our favorite, favorite magazines—just amazing stuff—and it should be wonderful.

(Finnish fandom is extraordinary–I wish they'd bid for a World Fantasy Convention.)

VanderMeer European Tour: Finland VanderCon and Warsaw Weekend originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 18, 2011.

Community, Redux

We've just returned from about a week on the West Coast, first as honored guests with Ann at FOGCon and then at SF in SF, before winding up in Los Angeles on the Paramount lot, with Ann's son Jason showing us around the set of NCIS LA (which he helps cast, along with NCIS), followed by some meetings elsewhere that may lead to something.

FOGCon had some great programming and a great dealer's room. We enjoyed meeting a lot of interesting people. It's the first year of the con and they perhaps need to better deploy their "honored guests" at the social events, although we did enjoy ourselves greatly and were well-treated. The decision to brew VanderBeer was inspired!

But this post by our friend Morgan Dempsey probably sums up our feelings about the trip the most. We know a lot of amazing people in the community, in many creative fields, not just writing.

We had wonderful conversations with so many of them, old friends and new, and so many of them are high-energy and positive and forward-looking that it revitalized us and lifted us up. As many readers of this blog know, it's been a tough couple of years in terms of workload, and so it was nice to be reminded that there is a community out there, and that it's various and rich and smart and fun. This isn't an impression you always get just looking at the internet.

So, a thank you to everyone we met and talked to. I won't name you all—you know who you are, and that we love you.

(More later on books acquired, FOGCon panels, our upcoming European schedule, etc…)

Community, Redux originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 18, 2011.

FrawgCon, FrogCon, FOGCon: This Weekend

We'll be in San Francisco this weekend as honored guests of FOGCon, along with the wonderful Pat Murphy. Hope to see you there. You can check out our schedule here—although our autograph session from 3-4 Sat in the dealer's room isn't on it. (And here's a SF Signal interview mostly about my new nonfiction collection, Monstrous Creatures, debuting at FOGCon.) We'll also be doing a presentation at the SF in SF Variety Theater event on Monday night.

Blogging will be sparse for a bit, but if you're my friend on Facebook, you should see regular mobile updates from my about the convention. So if you're not my friend…maybe you should be…

FrawgCon, FrogCon, FOGCon: This Weekend originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 10, 2011.

The Steampunk Bible: In the House!

It won't be in bookstores until May 1st, but an advance copy of The Steampunk Bible , by me and SJ Chambers, made it into the house today, and it's gorgeous! Below the cut find a few images. and because this is a Wednesday full of riches, the formatted proof pages of The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities came today as well—I've included one photo of those at the end. You can pre-order The Steampunk Bible: An Illustrated Guide to the World of Imaginary Airships, Corsets and Goggles, Mad Scientists, and Strange Literatureand also The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities: Exhibits, Oddities, Images, and Stories from Top Authors and Artists. SB contributors will hopefully have their copies by the time it hits the stores. (A huge shout-out to Jake von Slatt on this project, btw–he knows why.)

Note the wonderful endpapers by James Ng!

And some awesome Cabinet pages:

The Steampunk Bible: In the House! originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 9, 2011.

I Dance Because You Care: Leviathan 5 Donations Dance

Yes, I followed through on my promise to dance–an interpretative dance based on my story "The Third Bear"–because you donated over $1,000 to the Leviathan 5 translation fund in February. Damn you all! (No, not really–thanks, even though I look like a complete fool.)

Um, didn't really mean to have a soundtrack in the background, but what you can hear is from Murder By Death's latest, which you can buy here.

I Dance Because You Care: Leviathan 5 Donations Dance originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 8, 2011.

Author David Erik Nelson on the Craft and Commerce of Writing

Today Omnivoracious ran a short piece on how to make a sock squid, with a short intro I put together. The project is part of David Erik Nelson's Snip, Burn, Solder, Shred: Seriously Geeky Stuff to Make with Your Kid. I thought it would be interesting to ask Nelson to give me some thoughts on the craft and commerce of writing for Ecstatic Days as a kind of behind-the-scenes piece about his featured book and the writing life (which also ties into this recent Booklifenow feature). Here's the insightful result…

THE CRAFT AND COMMERCE OF WRITING

by David Erik Nelson

Snip, Burn, Solder, Shred: Seriously Geeky Stuff to Make with Your Kids includes 24 projects, ranging from sewing a sock squid to building one-stringed electric guitars, milk-carton steamboats, FedEx kites, and so on. In each project you'll build something *awesome* while honing a skill (sewing, soldering, etc.), you'll spend less than $10 on supplies doing it. Many of these projects arose from classroom activities I used in my old life, teaching at an alternative school with many hands-on learners and few spare dollars.

I never set out to write a craft book—or, for that matter, to write business columns, or reference materials, or textbooks on teen sex and Chernobyl, or basically anything that's paid the bills over the last four years. I'd written for years, but it had been an after-hours art: Essays about technology and sexuality and Detroit's decay; stories about clockwork robots, haunted dogs, monster wives, and giant squid–the kind of stuff you gut out after dark; the kind of stuff you write for the consuming love of finding how to say it. The kind of stuff that's hard to sell.

I've always been a crackerjack essayist (honest; I won prestigious awards and everything), but in school I was never advised to seriously pursue a career in writing. In academia, if you write well, your lettered mentors will all advise grad school, and then some more grad school. Some folks might suggest you become a journalist or novelist, but not because these are practical career choices; it's just that when they think of writing, it's Newsweek and Stieg Larsson that jump to mind. Since I was a practical boy, I opted for a career as a classroom teacher, despite a complete lack of qualifications (professional, psychological, or otherwise). It was a poor fit; my son was born in 2006, and I quit teaching.

When you spend all day with a baby, and every night worrying about the gap between what your wife earns and what your mortgage company wants, it becomes increasingly easy to look at any work–especially work you can do from home at night, or while your baby naps—enthusiasm of a slat-sided dog spying an abandoned sausage.

Decent paying journalism and fiction work are thin on the ground; even the scraps are highly contested. But there are scads of "niche" writing gigs hiding in the nooks and crannies: local weeklies, free alternative monthlies, alumni magazines, Naturopathic Health Today, Hemp Life, The Osceola County Jewish News, and so on. These don't pay handsomely, but they pay fairly. Higher up the pay scale are all of the things that you never think of as having authors: Commercial web content, reference books, research databases, technical guides, textbooks, non-profit newsletters, annual reports, marketing materials. These need to be written by someone, and also need to be copyedited and proofread–work that most writers take to easily, since the sole requisite is a working familiarity with the Associated Press Stylebook, or Chicago Manual of Style, or Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, and good ole Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (11th edition). And it's all work that you can do while baby sleeps.

The folks charged with getting this material ready for the printer–the project managers and managing editors–are all writers like you. Getting this done is *their* day job; they want good writing, but are aware that they aren't offering Michelangelo-rates. They don't expect high art, just solid carpentry. If you do things well-enough and on time, they will come back to you over, and over, and over again: One article becomes two, then four, then a higher-rate piece that calls for a little panache. Copyediting becomes pitching an idea for a book, then writing that book, then another. You're sewing sock squids, then revising drafts, then cashing checks, then signing books.

This isn't the old after-hours keyboard pounding, isn't the vague dream of being an author-on-the-side, but as you shift into writing as a daily paid craft, rather than writing as an occasional, mysterious art, you don't just improve at finding the angle for writing up a gourmet dog bakery; you also find it easier to write and clean up (and sell) those weird stories, the haunted dogs and lovelorn squids. Your writing gets lean and sturdy, as neatly framed as a stud wall.

And, incidentally, you're making a living.

Author David Erik Nelson on the Craft and Commerce of Writing originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 8, 2011.

One Pill Will Make You Smaller: "Why the Silence, VanderFrog?"

Blogging's going to be a little erratic for awhile, because of several book review deadlines, figuring out when to do the Leviathan dance video, the start of new projects, and travel to FOGCon and then, in April, to Europe. Not to mention, coordinating the kick-off of Cheeky Frawg Books, a new e-book imprint Ann and I are starting up. It's going to include a new e-book anthology series called ODD? (more on that soon) as well as some reissues in maxi-single format (one main story and then additional material), original fiction, the Album Zutique antho, Secret Lives, and a few more.

Here you can see how me 'n' designer Jeremy Zerfoss have struggled with the covers. "Give me something subtle," I said and it came out too small–see above. "Correct it!" I said and it came out to large. Finally, on the third try it was just right.

Anyway, more soonish. In the meantime, tell me what you've been up to!

One Pill Will Make You Smaller: "Why the Silence, VanderFrog?" originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 7, 2011.

Proudly Bringing You Intelligent Mushrooms Since 1992

Over at the Everything Is Nice blog, Martin Lewis, an Arthur C. Clarke Award judge, has been compiling statistics about various aspects of the 55 novels put forward for awards consideration by publishers in the UK. As Lewis says himself not all of it is as scientific process-wise as normal statistical standards would require, but taken as a whole it is interesting information.

Most of it is Serious or Fairly Serious, but you'll forgive me I hope for snorting my coffee when I saw the graphic above, in which I am apparently sui generis in having intelligent mushrooms as a trope (Finch, nominated by Corvus).

Proudly Bringing You Intelligent Mushrooms Since 1992 originally appeared on Ecstatic Days on March 2, 2011.