Josh Lanyon's Blog, page 89

Notes on GhosTV

I've been trying to read more. For a while there I was only writing or doing manuscript evaluations, and that's not exactly refilling the creative well. I mean, we generally decide we want to be writers based on our love of reading. And yet reading is one of the first things that gets crossed off the list once one becomes a successful writer and has less and less free time.

So we've started a monthly reading challenge over at my Goodreads group. First up, it's Rowan Speedwell's Finding Zach. I read that today -- I was supposed to be writing, working on Mummy Dearest, which has a bit of fleshing in to do, but...that's kind of the cool thing about this new schedule. A work day can be anything from all the promo blogs I have due for next months' releases, or it could be working on a book trailer, or it could be writing. It just depends because all these things need to happen this month.

Anyway, I read Finding Zach and now I'm reading GhosTV, which is the latest in Jordan's PsyCop series.

To start with, I love the little graphic on the contents page. But that's neither here nor there.
Story begins deep in POV, clean, tight writing and...we're in. I'm hooked. Jordan knows how to write and she knows how to tell a story. Not always the same thing, but when those two synchronize, it's such a pleasure to be a reader.

I've been thinking a lot about dialog lately and how many m/m writers settle for cliches instead of genuine, interesting dialog that establishes character or moves the plot along or simply amuses and entertains. It's got to be one of the hardest things to do well. I hear so many writers talking about how they love writing dialog and then they offer some bits of their own as proof and usually the dialog is just...not very good. The fact is, most writers aren't very good at dialog. Most writers write place-keeping dialog and that's pretty much it. Truly good dialog is so easy to take for granted. It's one of those things you only notice by its absence. Anyway, Jordan does dialog very well. All the dialog. Not just the dialog between Vic and Jacob, but the dialog between all the characters. It's not filler. It's not cliche or someone's painful idea of how men talk to each other (apparently forgetting years of listening to men -- and other people -- talking to each other).

I think the key is to allow characters to have interesting conversations about stuff other than Our Relationship. And of course that's one of the big advantages of writing mystery or crime or adventure. It gives the characters something interesting to talk about.
 
And Jordan has plot. I do so dearly love it when someone can write an actual plot that has more than two guys waltzing around each other.

She's funny when she intends to be, and her sex scenes are hot, and...it's just a relief to read her work.
And this is only page 16. :-D

[Just Joshin] The Currency of Democracy

Information is the currency of democracy.
Thomas Jefferson

Last weekend there was a message on one of the discussion lists I
belong to directing us all to a post regarding the Ebook Reader’s Bill
of Rights -- with the addendum to take our blood pressure medicine. I
read the post, and frankly -- although if this surprises you, you don’t
know me very well -- I agreed with nearly every point in it. Libraries
and librarians are not the enemy, Mssrs. Macmillan and S&S. Far from
it. Libraries are a good and valuable thing, both for readers and for
writers. I support my local libraries in every way I know -- with
monetary donations, with free books, and with my time.

the fact that I need to say this indicates to me how truly confused
matters have become in the publishing world. Blame it on technology.
The reason I’m not linking to that Ebook Reader’s Bill of Rights post,
and that I can’t actively get behind it and support it, all comes down
to one small, but I think crucial, passage. It was an afterthought for
the author (a librarian -- clearly a thoughtful and conscientious
fellow), but it’s kind of an important one for me as someone who makes
a living writing fiction.

My primary concern is less about re-selling and more in regard to
people being given control over their own reading content. While I’m
hesitant to engage in what may be construed as hyperbole, I appeal to
you to consider the emotional connections to your own personal
libraries and the importance of every book that you have selected to be
a part of it. I would implore authors to consider how they would
consider outside removals or modifications on your own book
collections. Ownership matters, quite frankly, and it is an expression
of intellectual pride.

Now the blogger is looking at this as a librarian. That’s not a
criticism, he’s not a pirate and it probably hasn’t occurred to him
that there’s serious money to be made in illegal third party reselling
-- and that it comes at the expense of the author. What I did detect --
what I frequently detect in these discussions -- is a kind of
impatience with authors who have problems with being pirated. In fact,
the post that I responded to was an additional post directed at writers
spelling out for them (in a somewhat chiding tone) why wholesale
sharing of their work was actually a great idea.

I think the jury is still out on whether wholesale sharing -- viral
sharing -- is a good thing or not. Viral sharing that doesn’t
eventually lead to book sales is not a good thing for authors who need
to make a living at their writing. The whole argument in favor of
allowing libraries and readers to share is supposed to be that it will
bring new readers to an author. But if those readers are not -- at some
point -- paying for the work, then it doesn’t actually do the author
any good.

You see, while authors do write for themselves and for the pleasure of
writing, part of the decision to publish -- to put ourselves through
the hell of the publishing process -- is to make money at writing.
Otherwise we would be content writing for ourselves and a handful of
friends. If we are merely writing for the love of writing, there is no
need to share our work with the rest of the world. None. I mean, I’ve
got as much ego as the next artist, and I love to hear from readers,
but I also need to pay the mortgage.

I’ve actually seen discussion threads on torrent sites where irate
pirates say things like (apparently with no sense of irony) if authors
are just in it for the money, fuck ‘em! There are plenty of other good
authors and good books out there.

Yes! Please. Please shower your attention on other good authors and
other good books. Because if all the sharing ultimately leads to more
sharing…in the not-so-distant-end, the only people writing books will
be amateurs and the independently wealthy.

That’s the part that gets to me. I’m not seeing any long term
consideration of what unlimited mass sharing might mean for authors. In
fact, it feels like I’m being told to shut up and get back to work. But
if it affects authors…hello! It affects readers. Whether you choose to
believe it or not, authors are the integral piece of this puzzle. You
remove authors from the equation, and all your other concerns become
moot.

For a long time I bought into the idea that ebook pirating wasn’t
really a problem. And it is true that a large percentage of downloaded
books are never read, the goal is simply to share and acquire. But I’ve
also seen threads where readers are bewailing the fact that my work has
been removed from various torrent sites. As in…my life is over, what
will I do now that I can’t get Josh’s books?

No, I’m not kidding. The fact that my books are for sale everywhere was
apparently not even a consideration. PAY FOR BOOKS????? Why not just
advocate child labor in third world countries and killing baby seals?
I’ve seen my work -- my entire body of work -- carefully scanned and
collected in a digital file and sold on different sites. Sold. As in
offered multiple times on mirror sites.

I’ve seen and heard people boasting that they never pay for books.
Never.

(And that fills them with pride…why? Since when is stealing from
artists a noble act?)

I’m not blaming libraries for any of this, my point is simply that
authors have legitimate worries and that those worries need to be
addressed, not dismissed as the fantasies of over-inflated egos or
paranoid delusions of the misinformed. Just as libraries are not the
problem, neither are authors. I think authors and libraries are on the
same side, even if they don’t always realize it. But technology has
changed a lot of the rules we used to play by, and it’s going to take
some rethinking -- and a little imagination -- on everyone’s part to
get what we all need to survive in this brave new world.

The Currency of Democracy

Information is the currency of democracy.Thomas Jefferson

Last weekend there was a message on one of the discussion lists I belong to directing us all to a post regarding the Ebook Reader's Bill of Rights -- with the addendum to take our blood pressure medicine. I read the post, and frankly -- although if this surprises you, you don't know me very well -- I agreed with nearly every point in it. Libraries and librarians are not the enemy, Mssrs. Macmillan and S&S. Far from it. Libraries are a good and valuable thing, both for readers and for writers. I support my local libraries in every way I know -- with monetary donations, with free books, and with my time.
Let me say this again. Libraries and librarians are not the enemy. And the fact that I need to say this indicates to me how truly confused matters have become in the publishing world. Blame it on technology.
The reason I'm not linking to that Ebook Reader's Bill of Rights post, and that I can't actively get behind it and support it, all comes down to one small, but I think crucial, passage. It was an afterthought for the author (a librarian --  clearly a thoughtful and conscientious fellow), but it's kind of an important one for me as someone who makes a living writing fiction.
My primary concern is less about re-selling and more in regard to people being given control over their own reading content. While I'm hesitant to engage in what may be construed as hyperbole, I appeal to you to consider the emotional connections to your own personal libraries and the importance of every book that you have selected to be a part of it. I would implore authors to consider how they would consider outside removals or modifications on your own book collections. Ownership matters, quite frankly, and it is an expression of intellectual pride.
Now the blogger is looking at this as a librarian. That's not a criticism, he's not a pirate and it probably hasn't occurred to him that there's serious money to be made in illegal third party reselling -- and that it comes at the expense of the author. What I did detect -- what I frequently detect in these discussions -- is a kind of impatience with authors who have problems with being pirated. In fact, the post that I responded to was an additional post directed at writers spelling out for them (in a somewhat chiding tone) why wholesale sharing of their work was actually a great idea.
I think the jury is still out on whether wholesale sharing -- viral sharing -- is a good thing or not. Viral sharing that doesn't eventually lead to book sales is not a good thing for authors who need to make a living at their writing. The whole argument in favor of allowing libraries and readers to share is supposed to be that it will bring new readers to an author. But if those readers are not -- at some point -- paying for the work, then it doesn't actually do the author any good.
You see, while authors do write for themselves and for the pleasure of writing, part of the decision to publish -- to put ourselves through the hell of the publishing process -- is to make money at writing. Otherwise we would be content writing for ourselves and a handful of friends. If we are merely writing for the love of writing, there is no need to share our work with the rest of the world. None. I mean, I've got as much ego as the next artist, and I love to hear from readers, but I also need to pay the mortgage.
I've actually seen discussion threads on torrent sites where irate pirates say things like (apparently with no sense of irony) if authors are just in it for the money, fuck 'em! There are plenty of other good authors and good books out there.
Yes! Please. Please shower your attention on other good authors and other good books.  Because if all the sharing ultimately leads to more sharing…in the not-so-distant-end, the only people writing books will be amateurs and the independently wealthy.
That's the part that gets to me. I'm not seeing any long term consideration of what unlimited mass sharing might mean for authors. In fact, it feels like I'm being told to shut up and get back to work. But if it affects authors…hello! It affects readers. Whether you choose to believe it or not, authors are the integral piece of this puzzle. You remove authors from the equation, and all your other concerns become moot.
For a long time I bought into the idea that ebook pirating wasn't really a problem. And it is true that a large percentage of downloaded books are never read, the goal is simply to share and acquire. But I've also seen threads where readers are bewailing the fact that my work has been removed from various torrent sites. As in…my life is over, what will I do now that I can't get Josh's books?
No, I'm not kidding. The fact that my books are for sale everywhere was apparently not even a consideration. PAY FOR BOOKS????? Why not just advocate child labor in third world countries and killing baby seals?
I've seen my work -- my entire body of work -- carefully scanned and collected in a digital file and sold on different sites. Sold. As in offered multiple times on mirror sites.
I've seen and heard people boasting that they never pay for books. Never.
(And that fills them with pride…why?  Since when is stealing from artists a noble act?)
I'm not blaming libraries for any of this, my point is simply that authors have legitimate worries and that those worries need to be addressed, not dismissed as the fantasies of over-inflated egos or paranoid delusions of the misinformed. Just as libraries are not the problem, neither are authors. I think authors and libraries are on the same side, even if they don't always realize it. But technology has changed a lot of the rules we used to play by, and it's going to take some rethinking -- and a little imagination -- on everyone's part to get what we all need to survive in this brave new world.

[Just Joshin] Testing

This is a test.

**Woohoo** It worked. No need to respond! :-)

Before I Was So Rudely Interrupted

So when we last left intrepid Josh Lanyon...well, to make a short story long, we're currently piggybacking off our neighbors' unsecured network while we continue to pay ATT and exorbitant fee to not be on the Internet. That's one reason my presence here has been scarce.

The other reason is I had a book due in lines on the 4th and two weeks to write it. So that was...that. 46Kish in approximately two weeks and to say that the stress level rose around the ole plantation would be putting it mildly. But This Rough Magic is basically done except for the test of endurance that is lightly known as copyediting in some circles.

The hunt for a priceless Shakespearean folio leads tough guy PI Rafferty and handsome playboy Brett on a crazy caper from the mansions of Nob Hill to the dark underbelly of Chinatown. (Due from Loose Id April 26thish.)


So in theory this is where that new saner, calmer, more reasonable schedule kicks in. About a month late, truth, but still. Better late than never -- which is what it was starting to feel like.

I'm sure there are all kinds of th--OH! Remember when I ran that contest for a new cover for the re-release of In a Dark Wood? Well, In a Dark Wood is now available on Kindle -- or as a PDF or Epub book from my own site -- but what I actually wanted to say was I'd promised everyone who submitted a cover for the contest would get a free copy of the book when it finally came out. So if you artists can drop me a line and let me know your entry number or your name or whatever you submitted under -- and let me know what format you wanted, I'll be very happy to send that along to you. And once again my thanks to all who participated.

I started a new blog. It's...not meant to replace Live Journal exactly. What I was trying to do was get it to feed into LJ so that I could still stay connected here, but I think it looks like it's going to work the other way with LJ feeding into Blogger? I don't know. Anyway, it's here.

It seems like I should have more to share but that's the problem with the writing life--especially the way I do it (did it, because I am REFORMED, I tell you). There basically is nothing but the stories. Hopefully they continue to keep you amused.

One other thing. Spammers have been hitting the blog on a regular basis so if you're not a friend, your comments get screened first.
So long as you're not spamming or writing in a language incomprehensible to me, your comment will go through. Otherwise you'll be deleted and my ill wishes will follow you into that dark night...and when stuff keeps going wrong for you? That's me saying hiya! Yeah, it does work that way, actually.  

 

 

Operator, Operator, I've Been Caught Off!

We've been having problems with our internet connection off and on for nearly two weeks, and it's increasingly worse, so my responses to email and comments here (and everywhere else) are sketchy at best. At this point we'd dearly love to pack in good old ATT but it's no small task with everything attached to my particular email address, so we're trying a few final things.

If you don't hear from me for a bit, that's the deal. The intention is not to ignore anyone! Sorry.

I'm going to set this to no comment because (you know me) I'm already overwhelmed with all the email I can't respond to.

Recalculating

I just don't feel ready for this new year. I'm already racing to catch up thanks to a couple of projects left from last year -- and then an untimely bout of flu which has me sounding like a cross between Lauren Bacall and end stage emphysema. But so many of you have been kind enough to ask what this year's schedule looks like, so here's how 2011 is shaping up...

Snowball in Hell reprint - Carina Press - April 4th (see the neato new cover?)


This Rough Magic - Loose Id - Aprilish
This has undergone a change or two since I first envisioned it. It's now 1930s hopefully madcap comedy about engaged San Francisco socialite, Brett Sheridan, who hires tough, down-on-his-luck PI Neil Patrick Rafferty to find a missing Shakespearean folio of The Tempest. 

Come Unto These Yellow Sands - Samhain - May
Very angsty mystery about a Maine College Professor and ex-poet (and recovering addict) who helps a student and then learns the student is suspected of murder.

Dangerous Ground4: Night Moves - Loose Id - July
Taylor visits Will in Paris and finds Will's former lover, Lt. Commander David Bradley also on the scene.

Mummy Dearest - Samhain - September 30
Halloween-themed contemporary comic romance. It’s October 31st and Dr. Drew Larson has arrived at the Lasse Dime Museum in Walsh, Wyoming to examine the mummified remains of the Princess Merneith -- only to learn that museum curator Dr. Solvani has authorized reality TV host Fraser Fortune to film a segment of his popular show The Mysterious on the same day. 

Green Glass Beads - Blind Eye Books - December
Actually, the title is tentative. This is a fantasy novella for a four author collection with stories by Nikki Kimberling, Ginn Hale, Astrid Amara and me. The stories all deal with a law enforcement agency known as The Irregulars whose job it is to hunt down dangerous artifacts of magical power.

Jack of Swords - Loose Id - December
First book in an action-adventure fantasy series about reformed treasure hunter and now museum curator Adam Halliwell and his former lover, soldier of fortune Jack Griffin who both want the same thing: King Arthur's fabled dagger Carnwennan.

There's also a Petit Mort story in there somewhere, details yet to be hammered down.

Also planned but not yet officially proposed or contracted (because I don't have time to write the damned proposals) is:

About the Author, book three in the Holmes & Moriarity series. Kit and JX are setting up house together in San Francisco. While JX is off at a writer's conference, Kit unpacks a moving crate and finds a body inside.

Shadow on the Sun - 2nd book in the Doyle & Spain series (sequel to Snowball in Hell) -- Nathan looks into the disappearance of a Japanese American college friend after he and his family are interned.

 

Am I forgetting something? I think that's pretty much it for the year. Trying to keep it very light, but it already looks pretty busy, doesn't it?

Still on vacation BUT

To celebrate the release of All She Wrote I'm visiting with  otterdance  (Lynne Flewelling)  today over at her LJ. Feel free to stop by and say yo!

Hope you're all having a lovely holiday week.

All She Wrote - Coming December 28th

Just a quick note about this since I'm going to be signing off for the rest of the year following the legendary dialog tag post (coming up shortly).

So here's the final sales plug of the year. All She Wrote , second book in the Holmes & Moriarity series, is now available for preorder through Amazon Kindle and B&N Nook. Otherwise you can purchase it when it goes live at Samhain on December 28th. This is my final release until possibly April, so...I might seem a little over-anxious. I might even be a little over-anxious.

(The print edition will not be out until next fall -- sorry about that. Samhain waits 9-11 months for the print releases. But it will be out eventually, so take heart.)

Meanwhile, here's the book trailer for All She Wrote. Happy Holidays to you all!

More of This Than That

Remember that His for the Holiday promo? You know, I was going to give away a couple of downloads to those who guessed correctly who chose what songs for the His for the Holiday soundtrack? Well, no one guessed correctly.

BUT all is not lost because it was just for fun anyway. So I went ahead and randomly selected a couple of names from those who took a guess and I came up with  thelastaerie  and werereader  .


And for those of you who were curious -- here's the proper order of songs and who picked what. 

Carol of the Bells - TransSiberian Orchestra (ZAM)
The Rebel Jesus - Jackson Browne (Josh)
Baby It's Cold Outside--Cast of Glee  Chris Colfer and Darren Criss (LB Gregg)
A Fairytale of New York -  the Pogues (Harper)                               
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Judy Garland (ZAM)
Can You Stop The Cavalry -  Jona Lewie (Harper)
All I want for Christmas Is You - (from Love Actually) (LB Gregg)
Snow - Bing Crosby (Josh)
What are you doing New Years - Rufus Wainwright (Josh)

And if you want to buy this weirdly festive playlist for yourself, just head on over to this page for the artwork and link.

So what else is new?

I'm being interviewed at Jessewave's today. Stop by and leave a comment if you're so inclined.

Blood Heat just went live at All Romance Ebooks. 

Oh, and it's Open House over at Carina Press. Lots and lots of authors and prizes and stuff happening. 

That's pretty much it for the updates. I'm throwing a little party for my (real life) writing group tonight, so I need to get cracking. I don't know why the heck that can't be satisfied with cyber goodies, but... 

I'm going to be doing a post on dialog tags shortly, so if you have any questions about dialog tags, go ahead and post them. There's a great deal of confusion here in ebook land about the proper use of tags, and I feel it's time to tackle this directly. We've got too many copyeditors who apparently learned their "craft" at eHow or Suite 101. Sheesh.