Joshua Palmatier's Blog, page 29
January 19, 2014
Short Story Critique up for Auction for Charity
Fellow author and co-editor Patricia Bray and I are offering up a "read & critique" of a 7500 word (or less) short story to help with Patrick Rothfuss' WORLDBUILDERS charity auction. Details are at Pat's blog (just click through the link), but it's a fairly basic idea. Both Patricia and I will read and critique your short story and offer up some editorial advice on what we think might improve it. You'll get two separate critiques (and they may not agree). If you're interested, swing on by Pat's blog for the link to our specific auction. There are a bunch of other authors offering up various sorts of critiques (of the first parts of novels, of cover letters, of plot synopses, etc), so I'd swing on by regardless just to see what's up for grabs. Right now, the bid on Patricia and my critique is at $66. And again, everything goes to the WORDLBUILDERS charity. Feel free to link to this blog or Pat's blog to help spread the word!
January 6, 2014
Kickstarter: ATHENA'S DAUGHTERS (and APOLLO'S DAUGHTERS)
There's a cool kickstarter going on right now that will produce an anthology called Athena's Daughters, filled with short stories written by women about strong female characters. The kickstarter has reached a level where the publishers have decided to also produce a companion anthology called Apollo's Daughters with short stories about strong female characters written by men. One of those lucky men is me. . . . BUT only if the kickstarter reaches $35,000. (I wasn't included in the initial list of male authors.) In any case, I think the project is worth taking a look at. So if either of those themes intrigues you, head on over to the kickstarter page and check it out. There are some pretty good names in the pool of authors already, even if they don't reach the level where I'd get to write a story for them.
January 3, 2014
Book Review: "Vamparazzi" by Laura Resnick
This is the fourth book in Laura Resnick's Esther Diamond series. It's a light-hearted, humorous, and fun series about an actress in New York City who happens to run into various paranormal situations and the books continue to improve. I think switching up the type of paranormal activity that Esther encounters in each book is keeping it fresh.
In this book, Esther is part of a play called The Vampyre, playing a role opposite the lead who claims that he's a real vampire who drinks blood between shows to stay energized. No one takes him seriously until a fan, who attacked Esther after one of the shows, turns up dead by exsanguination. Suddenly, everyone suspects the lead actor, which Esther finds ridiculous. But all signs DO point toward a real vampire attacking the hordes of rabid fans that Esther has labeled vamparazzi . . . and Esther may be the vampire's next target.
As I said above, the books in this series have been getting much better in terms of quality and tightness of plot and this book was no exception. I think my favorite is still the second book Dopplegangster, but this one comes in an extremely close second. The plot was extremely well done, in particular, with the events of the story happening over the course of a few days and nearly all of it happening at or near the theater where the play was running. The writing was fluid and moved at a brisk pace, making the reading easy and enjoyable, and the humor was sly and perfect, making me quirk a grin in numerous places.
But I think the best thing about the book was the characters, as usual, and in particular how the relationship between Esther and ex-almost-boyfriend cop Connor Lopez played out. This all happened over the course of a few days, so there couldn't be major changes over that time, but the relationship was still there and played up well considering what happened in the previous book. It didn't shift that far away from where we left it at the end of the previous book, but I also don't think it could have shifted any further without breaking credibility. Connor aside, all of the other characters were fun and interesting, and I like that Max didn't play as huge a role as he has in previous books, in terms of resolving the plot, although we do get a significant glimpse of Max's past, which was interesting. In fact, a few of Max's quirked are finally explained in this novel.
Overall, what I'm saying is that this book had a perfect balance of plot, pacing, setting, and character. I think the only reason I liked Dopplegangster more was because the concept was fresher. This book dealt with vampires, which feel like they've been done to death at this point, but Laura Resnick does her own spin on these particular undead creatures that I found interesting, more realistic, and far fresher than any recent urban fantasy vampire I've read.
If you've never read anything in this series, pick up one of the books. It doesn't have to be read in sequence, but I think once you've read one, you'll want to read them all.
In this book, Esther is part of a play called The Vampyre, playing a role opposite the lead who claims that he's a real vampire who drinks blood between shows to stay energized. No one takes him seriously until a fan, who attacked Esther after one of the shows, turns up dead by exsanguination. Suddenly, everyone suspects the lead actor, which Esther finds ridiculous. But all signs DO point toward a real vampire attacking the hordes of rabid fans that Esther has labeled vamparazzi . . . and Esther may be the vampire's next target.
As I said above, the books in this series have been getting much better in terms of quality and tightness of plot and this book was no exception. I think my favorite is still the second book Dopplegangster, but this one comes in an extremely close second. The plot was extremely well done, in particular, with the events of the story happening over the course of a few days and nearly all of it happening at or near the theater where the play was running. The writing was fluid and moved at a brisk pace, making the reading easy and enjoyable, and the humor was sly and perfect, making me quirk a grin in numerous places.
But I think the best thing about the book was the characters, as usual, and in particular how the relationship between Esther and ex-almost-boyfriend cop Connor Lopez played out. This all happened over the course of a few days, so there couldn't be major changes over that time, but the relationship was still there and played up well considering what happened in the previous book. It didn't shift that far away from where we left it at the end of the previous book, but I also don't think it could have shifted any further without breaking credibility. Connor aside, all of the other characters were fun and interesting, and I like that Max didn't play as huge a role as he has in previous books, in terms of resolving the plot, although we do get a significant glimpse of Max's past, which was interesting. In fact, a few of Max's quirked are finally explained in this novel.
Overall, what I'm saying is that this book had a perfect balance of plot, pacing, setting, and character. I think the only reason I liked Dopplegangster more was because the concept was fresher. This book dealt with vampires, which feel like they've been done to death at this point, but Laura Resnick does her own spin on these particular undead creatures that I found interesting, more realistic, and far fresher than any recent urban fantasy vampire I've read.
If you've never read anything in this series, pick up one of the books. It doesn't have to be read in sequence, but I think once you've read one, you'll want to read them all.
January 1, 2014
New Year, New Books!
I've just posted the newest DAW Books over at the unofficial blog ([Bad username: dawbooks>)! This month, DAW has new Michelle Sagara (as well as a paperback release from Michelle West), new Diana Rowland, and new Irene Radford, all great authors with some great series. <a href=]Swing on by the blog and check them out!</a>
December 30, 2013
Kickstarter: ATHENA'S DAUGHTERS Anthology
There's a cool kickstarter going on right now that will produce an anthology called Athena's Daughters, filled with short stories written by women about strong female characters. The kickstarter has reached a level where the publishers have decided to also produce a companion anthology called Apollo's Daughters with short stories about strong female characters written by men. One of those lucky men is me. . . . BUT only if the kickstarter reaches $35,000. (I wasn't included in the initial list of male authors.) In any case, I think the project is worth taking a look at. So if either of those themes intrigues you, head on over to the kickstarter page and check it out. There are some pretty good names in the pool of authors already, even if they don't reach the level where I'd get to write a story for them.
Last Book Discussion of 2013!
I've just posted the last book discussion over at the DAW Books blog (
dawbooks
) for 2013! We're looking at the anthology Elementary edited by Mercedes Lackey, with stories by numerous authors set in her Elemental Masters universe. Swing on by the blog and see what it's all about! And if you've read the stories already, let us know which ones were your favorites.
dawbooks
) for 2013! We're looking at the anthology Elementary edited by Mercedes Lackey, with stories by numerous authors set in her Elemental Masters universe. Swing on by the blog and see what it's all about! And if you've read the stories already, let us know which ones were your favorites.December 27, 2013
Book Review: "The Bourne Identity" by Robert Ludlum
I'd seen the movie, knew it was based on a book, so decided that I should, you know, actually read the book to see what started it all in the first place. I also knew that the book was originally published in 1980, so I was curious about how the movie stacked up to the book, especially with the change in technology.
The basic premise is that a man is pulled from the ocean with amnesia, but with a microfiche embedded in his skin. The microfiche contains the name of a bank and a code. The main character, supposedly Jason Bourne, sets off to find out his true identity, but as he continues his search, and his unique skills begin to manifest themselves, he begins to suspect that perhaps his past is best left buried when it appears he may be an assassin known worldwide.
As I suspected, the biggest aspect that readers need to adjust to in the book is the significant technology gap between now and when the book was published. There were no cell phones, no computers on every street corner (let alone in every hand), no internet. All of this makes it imminently more believable that Jason Bourne can maneuver through the world, access the bank account, hide in Zurich and Paris, etc. It becomes obvious that it was much easier to "disappear" in the 1980s.
However, if you remove the technology aspects of the novel, the story itself still stands up over time, which is likely why we can have the (relatively) recent movies. This story isn't really about the assassin and the tech and the "action" of spies and supersecret groups within governments. The story is about this man searching for himself, not liking what he finds, then finding a way to change the situation. It's about discovery, about choosing who you want to be, not being what everyone expects you to be. That story will stand the test of time, and as seen in the movies, the tech can change with the story and the story will still remain true.
I probably would have given this book four stars out of five instead of three . . . except that, even without the tech issues taken into account, the ending of the book wasn't as satisfactory as I'd have liked. It's hard to say exactly why without spoiling the ending, but the books ends without a feeling of "this plotline is finished." It's obvious that there is more to come, and while you do get a resolution to the main question--Who is Jason Bourne?--that in an of itself wasn't enough to satisfy me. The main conflict of the story--between Jason and Carlos--isn't resolved, and I felt that needed a more solid resolution than what was given.
And that would be the only flaw I saw in the book. Jason's character, his struggle, how he and everyone else in the novel is manipulated, either by others or by their own machinations, is solid. I now need to rewatch the movie to see exactly how the plot was updated to include our technology advances, and to see how it had to shift in order for the story to make sense in our time.
The basic premise is that a man is pulled from the ocean with amnesia, but with a microfiche embedded in his skin. The microfiche contains the name of a bank and a code. The main character, supposedly Jason Bourne, sets off to find out his true identity, but as he continues his search, and his unique skills begin to manifest themselves, he begins to suspect that perhaps his past is best left buried when it appears he may be an assassin known worldwide.
As I suspected, the biggest aspect that readers need to adjust to in the book is the significant technology gap between now and when the book was published. There were no cell phones, no computers on every street corner (let alone in every hand), no internet. All of this makes it imminently more believable that Jason Bourne can maneuver through the world, access the bank account, hide in Zurich and Paris, etc. It becomes obvious that it was much easier to "disappear" in the 1980s.
However, if you remove the technology aspects of the novel, the story itself still stands up over time, which is likely why we can have the (relatively) recent movies. This story isn't really about the assassin and the tech and the "action" of spies and supersecret groups within governments. The story is about this man searching for himself, not liking what he finds, then finding a way to change the situation. It's about discovery, about choosing who you want to be, not being what everyone expects you to be. That story will stand the test of time, and as seen in the movies, the tech can change with the story and the story will still remain true.
I probably would have given this book four stars out of five instead of three . . . except that, even without the tech issues taken into account, the ending of the book wasn't as satisfactory as I'd have liked. It's hard to say exactly why without spoiling the ending, but the books ends without a feeling of "this plotline is finished." It's obvious that there is more to come, and while you do get a resolution to the main question--Who is Jason Bourne?--that in an of itself wasn't enough to satisfy me. The main conflict of the story--between Jason and Carlos--isn't resolved, and I felt that needed a more solid resolution than what was given.
And that would be the only flaw I saw in the book. Jason's character, his struggle, how he and everyone else in the novel is manipulated, either by others or by their own machinations, is solid. I now need to rewatch the movie to see exactly how the plot was updated to include our technology advances, and to see how it had to shift in order for the story to make sense in our time.
New Book Discussion!
I've posted the latest book discussion over at the DAW Books blog (
dawbooks
)! We're discussing Deborah J. Ross' second Seven-Petaled Shield novel Shannivar! Swing on by and check it out, and leave a comment if you've read the book or started the series!
dawbooks
)! We're discussing Deborah J. Ross' second Seven-Petaled Shield novel Shannivar! Swing on by and check it out, and leave a comment if you've read the book or started the series!December 20, 2013
First December Book Discussion: ALIEN RESEARCH by Gini Koch
I've just posted the book discussion of Alien Research, the eighth book in Gini Koch's Alien series, at the DAW Books blog (
dawbooks
)! Swing on by and check out this popular series, and leave a comment if you've read it!
dawbooks
)! Swing on by and check out this popular series, and leave a comment if you've read it!December 19, 2013
New Book Discussion (Finally)!
I've been in the midst of end of semester madness and finals week craziness, but that's now over. So here's a new book discussion, now up at the DAW Books blog (
dawbooks
)! Swing on by and read about DAW's most recent omnibus book, Tour of the Merrimack, Volume 2, which includes the 3rd and 4th books in the U.S.S. Merrimack science fiction series. I really enjoyed the first two books in this series, and look forward to getting to these as well.
dawbooks
)! Swing on by and read about DAW's most recent omnibus book, Tour of the Merrimack, Volume 2, which includes the 3rd and 4th books in the U.S.S. Merrimack science fiction series. I really enjoyed the first two books in this series, and look forward to getting to these as well.
