Ken Lizzi's Blog, page 67

Announcing “Thick As Thieves”

This seems as good a time as any for the official Ken Lizzi web log announcement: Thick As Thieves is out, published, and ready for purchase in print or digital format.

My third novel sees the light of day. It has taken a while. There have been a few false starts. But I think the work and the wait worthwhile. I mean, look at that cover. Pretty snazzy, right? My hat is off to Carrol Fix for her efforts in getting this to print. And I’d like to thank James R. Tuck and for reading the novel and providing the back cover blurbs. These are both worthy gentlemen and you should go check out their projects. (After you pick up a copy, or download a copy, of Thick As Thieves, of course.)

“Where can I purchase this masterpiece of modern pulp literature?” you may ask. And rightly so; that is an excellent question, indicative of a keen intellect, sound judgment, and exquisite taste. Allow me to provide answers.

Here are some links, catered to individual purchasing needs.

Amazon.

The publisher’s website.

Smashwords, in case anyone actually uses that site.

I hope you enjoy it. Though I’m confident readers of such discernment, perspicacity, and notable good looks will. Feel free to tell your friends. And remember, reviews are the author’s friend, especially Amazon and Goodreads reviews.

Eugene, Oregon

It never rains at Autzen Stadium. At least, it didn’t last night.

The drive down I-5 to Eugene, Oregon suffered from the typical bottlenecks that develop when both the University of Oregon and Oregon State University host home football games on the same day. Occasional squalls and heavy, lowering cloud banks hinted that the night’s game would be a wet one.

Steelhead Brewing is a comfortable place to await a football game. The taster tray provides a sampling of adequate to good beers. But the way to go at Steelhead is to order the Hopasaurus Rex. Or, if it is available, the Megasaurus Rex. There, valuable travel tips for you.

Oakshire Brewing is a somewhat less homey environment. Think picnic tables in a warehouse, rather than the more traditional pub layout of Steelhead. But having the menu consist of whatever the adjoining food carts offered is a fun touch. I wonder if a massive slab of breaded chicken dwarfing an utterly insufficient biscuit really counts as a sandwich. It tasted great, but sort of dispensed with the fundamental utilitarian purpose of the sandwich.

Autzen Stadium is a terrific venue for football. The atmosphere is vibrant. Everyone nearby is immediately your confederate and best friend. I’ve been to many games there over the years and it never disappoints. It certainly didn’t last night. The weather cleared up nicely. The game was exciting. The crowd was raucous (at least I was.)

If you’ve never been, consider adding a game at Autzen to your travel agenda. And, if you can, stop at Track Town Pizza afterwards for a pie and a pitcher. You can thank me later.

The Big Reveal

Imagine, if you will, a drum roll. Or a trumpet fanfare if that’s your preference. Got it? Great. Here comes the big reveal. It’s the cover for Thick As Thieves.

Galley proofs are en route from the printer. Once I check for typos or another sort of error that somehow made it through all the previous manuscript readings, I’ll alert the publisher. Shortly thereafter I’ll be able to announce the publication date. After which I shall experience much relief. Followed almost immediately by much beer.

What do you think?

Oregon is Burning

So, Oregon is on fire. I mean, not all of it but enough so you notice. Were it not for the Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico’s attempt to wash the southern tier states off the map, the Columbia River Gorge fire would probably get more press coverage.

I mention the fire instead of the usual minutiae that fills this web log because it affects me. I thought the worst of the smoke had cleared a couple of days ago. I could see blue skies and the air smelled like air again. The winds must have shifted, because the smoke has returned. It isn’t as bad today as yesterday when the entirety of the outdoors smelled like fresh ashes, like God was sweeping out his fireplace.

The forecast of rain over the course of the next several days is promising. Clean the air, aid the firefighters. Seriously, this thing has been going on for a couple of weeks now and it is still only about one-third contained. That’s a lot of burning.

And it’s a shame, too. I mean, it’s a shame anytime there’s a big fire. But we get them every year in Oregon (not to mention the rest of the West) and it’s usually scrubland east of the Cascade Mountains. That’s tragic enough for the ranchers losing grazing land and everyone else suffering. I don’t mean to diminish that. But there is — to me — a qualitative difference when what is going up in flames is something as scenic and beautiful as the Columbia River Gorge. Seriously, if you haven’t been, I feel sorry for you. I hope the view hasn’t been unalterably ruined, though I fear it has. The Gorge is one of those things we residents show visitors, along with Portland Rose Garden, Powell’s Books, Timberline Lodge, and Cannon Beach. Multnomah Falls is an essential stop. At least the firefighters saved the lodge.

Well, enough with the gloom. I hope next week to provide some more cheery news.

LA and a Writer’s Workshop

What a weekend. I’m writing from a hotel lobby in Los Angeles. I mentioned before that a creative organization was flying me down to LA to participate in a writer’s workshop. Well, that’s done. Now I can recap the weekend while waiting for my ride to the airport.

The flight down was fine. Enjoyable even. Shuttle van hell proved less joyful. Let’s just say the trip from airport to hotel required two hours. And let’s never speak of it again.

LA is warm. Did you know that? The blocks are too long and they radiate and magnify the heat. But the tacos are good. Thank you, Daniel, for the tour. Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive. Done and done. I’d come back for the tacos at Grand Central Market. The rest is fine, if you go in for that sort of thing.

Karl Strauss Brewing tells me LA’s beer scene is coming along nicely. I could ask for a greater concentration, but as a visitor I’ll humbly accept what I can get.

The workshop was a treat. The list of mentors, faculty, and speakers was — with the exception of yours truly — distinguished. In fact the roster of student/attendees was impressive. I’m not going to name drop, so you’ll just have to take my word.

My part of the proceedings went off without a hitch. I don’t believe I embarrassed myself. The conversations over the course of the weekend scintillated and entertained. Well worth the trip. Hard to believe I got paid for this. I mean, I’m going to cash the check, don’t get me wrong. But the weekend proved more pleasure than work.

I feel energized. I’m looking forward to opening the laptop again once I’m on the plane and letting the words flow. The goal: complete chapter two before Portland.

And in Other News

True, misfortunes may come not as single spies but in battalions. (Or something like that. I’m too lazy to look up the actual line from “Hamlet.”) On the other hand, good news can clump as well. I provided an update a couple of weeks ago on doings along the writing front. Now there is more.

Friday I received a contract for “Boss.” Knocking on wood, that would make four published novels. It’s early days yet, so of course I cannot provide a release date, or cover art, or anything really. But I thought I’d share the news with you

In celebration, I bought a bottle of beer.

Staying with the theme, I also brewed beer. That is in anticipation of a release party for “Thick As Thieves.” Still waiting on the exact date, but beer requires a certain amount of lead time, so I figured I’d better get to it. I hope that’s the extent of my laboring (other than over the grill) this labor day.

Happy labor day.

Appendix N, Margaret St. Clair

I’ve been reluctant to write this one. You know the ubiquitous maternal aphorism “If you don’t have anything nice to say, say nothing at all. “ And I dislike offering particularly critical opinions of other writers. After all, who am I to judge.

The first book by Margaret St. Clair I read was The Shadow People. I’m not going to offer up a single word concerning it. Understand?

But I’d read positive comments regarding Sign of the the Labrys. With my prior experience in mind, I had the library find a copy for me through inter-library loan instead of shelling out cash from my own pocket to procure a copy. I began it with somewhat higher hopes. Now, unfortunately, I have to offer an opinion. That makes me a bit uneasy.

What I’m going to do is provide my opinion in two sections. First, Sign of the Labrys as literature. Second, Sign of the Labrys as an Appendix N contributor to the development of Dungeons and Dragons.

Sign of the Labrys began on, for me, a rather ambiguous note. We appear to be in post-apocalyptic territory. That can be good or bad. In this case the rather banal narrator inclined my opinion to the negative. (In fact, most of the characters in Sign of the Labrys come across as more or less cyphers with little development or depth.) But things began to pick up once our ‘hero’ began his descent into the multi-level survival shelter, and especially once he encountered the living carpet of white rats. Things began to move more rapidly and I let myself be carried along by the action and sheer, gonzo developments. I was picking up notes of A Boy and His Dog, Logan’s Run, The Cornelius Quartet, Philip K. Dick, and Aleister Crowley, all filtered through a dystopian, post-apocalyptic, psychedelic Wiccan lens. Not really my bag, but for a while it carried me along nicely with a sort of throwback Weird Fiction vibe.

But it lost me. Despite its mysteries it grew dull. I’m afraid I’m not well enough versed in the whole Wiccan milieu, nor sympathetic enough to it, to really appreciate a Warlock’s Pilgrim’s Progress. And, near the end of the novel (luckily, a very short novel) it is revealed that one of the secondary characters had committed an act of such enormity, of such a morally repugnant nature that I was temporarily ejected from the suspension of disbelief. And then the other characters failed to respond with anything near the proportionate amount of revulsion — and these two were supposed to be the protagonists. Frankly, after that, the last twenty or so pages were an effort. And not really worth it for the pay off.

They say the speculative fiction is the literature of ideas and that such things as character development and literary style are irrelevant. I don’t buy that. But stipulating it for the sake of argument, if the idea is uninteresting, what are you left with?

So, Sign of the Labrys as literature? Can’t recommend it. Sorry. It might work for you, though. If so, great.

Now, the Appendix N analysis. I’m happy to report that here Sign of the Labrys comes through like a champ. You’ve got your funhouse dungeon complex with multiple levels. You’ve got secret passages, often leading from one level to another, even bypassing a level or two. You’ve got quirky encounters with odd beings who may or may not mean you harm. You’ve got magic, psionics, illusion, teleportation rooms. You’ve got people seeing through walls, methods to pass through walls or levels by manipulating the stone. You’ve got a variety of fungi with differing functions and effects. I can really see Gary Gygax farming this book for ideas.

So, for gaming history scholars I can recommend Sign of the Labrys. But for anyone else, I’d suggest considering options other than Margaret St. Clair. There is a misanthropy and an unpleasant sense of paranoia about her works. She’s an author with an axe to grind, and I find the shrieking of the whetstone irritating.

I did, however, get a kick out of the back cover. Check out this happy horseshit. Here’s how it reads:

“WOMEN ARE WRITING SCIENCE-FICTION!

Original! Brilliant!! Dazzling!!!

Women are closer to the primitive than men. They are conscious of the moon-pulls, the earth-tides. They possess a buried memory of humankind’s obscure and ancient past which can emerge to uniquely color and flavor a novel.

Such a woman is Margaret St. Clair…”

OK, that’s all of that nonsense I can manage.

Ode to an Eclipse

Ode to An Eclipse

Hello darkness, my old friend

Have you brought verities to an end?

At mid-morn you blot out the sun.

What other truths have you undone?

 

If it is black as night during the day

Must I for this item pay?

Might I not with glee set blood to spill?

Maim and torture. Bludgeon, kill?

 

Why not with fire return the light?

With arson’s hot gift regain my sight?

If sun shines not, what stays my hand?

Up is down, water is sand.

 

Yet what is this gleam? What do I see?

Does Luna retreat? Does Sol peek free?

Do the Gods of the Copybook Headings

Regain their feet, firmly treading?

 

The light returns, my compass points now true.

The verities remain, the universe their purview.

Goodbye darkness, my old friend.

(Come, see me soon again.)

 

Well, that got dark. Wasn’t expecting that. Those of you in the path of totality, be safe. Enjoy.

Currently Reading

I’ve mentioned before that I’m usually reading multiple books at any given time. (Not simultaneously of course. Let’s not be ridiculous.) I have a workout book, a lunch book, a book on the toilet tank, a book in my library, and one book on CD in each vehicle. Here is a rundown of the current books in progress.

My workout book is Dangerous Visions, the seminal 1960s anthology of science fiction. I’ve found some of these rather forgettable, some quite the opposite and I’m not quite half way through.

I just finished James Wells’ first novel The Great Symmetry, and have moved on to a re-read of The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. The stack of paperbacks in my office remains tall, courtesy of the annual library sale near my office.

At home I’m plodding through Little Big when nature calls and Stand on Zanzibar when in my library. Hitting the minor classics I suppose.

I’ve never read any Dean Koontz. So I picked up Relentless and am on the final disc. And in the other car I have the first book of Dennis L. McKiernan’s, umm — homage — to The Lord of the Rings, The Iron Tower trilogy. I’ve been curious about how close he paralleled Tolkien.

You’ll note I’m not offering up opinions. I do hold opinions (on the above and much more — some positive, some less so), but I’d rather not turn this into a review web log. And I have a general aversion to criticizing the work of successful, well-known authors. To me it often reads like sour grapes, or a yapping dog nipping at the heels of an elephant. Unseemly. But I’m happy to talk books in person. If you run into me at a convention, say hello and let’s talk literature. I’ll gladly praise — or yap and nip — over a beer.

All the Latest

“So, what is new with you, Ken?”

I’m glad you asked, fictitious interlocutor. A couple of items have firmed up since last time I wrote, so I’m more comfortable mentioning them. I’m never truly comfortable mentioning anything that smacks of self-promotion, but this is the gig. No point whining unduly.

The first item I’d like to mention is that I’ve been invited as one of the panelists for the 2017 Calliope Authors Workshop. The organizers are flying me down to Los Angeles next month and putting me up in a hotel. I’ll sit in on a panel with two other writers and a moderator and do my best to help advise the aspiring authors who’ve signed up for the workshop. You, in the back, stop snickering. Anyway, that will be the weekend of September 9, if any of you of reading this are in LA and want to say hello.

Second, I just signed a reprint contract for one of my short stories. If you missed “Mischosen” in the anthology “The Death God’s Chosen” you’ll have another opportunity when it is included in the Digital Horror Anthology. I’ll let you know the release schedule when I get it.

Another item hasn’t sufficiently cleared for me to mention here.

What else? MBW and I attended my 30th year high school reunion last night. When did they all get old? Do they not have a portrait in the attic handling such unpleasant aspects of time? Kidding, of course. Everyone looks great, happy, and successful.

Worked on the house today. I’ll just say that my home improvement skills make Tim “The Toolman” Taylor appear competent and efficient. Well, as a wise man once said, “A man has got to know his limitations.”