C. Gockel's Blog, page 115
July 3, 2014
socialcyanide:
emmajoy6992:
socialcyanide:
gai-jin:
huffingto...
See all of the functionality of this amazing home unit here.
(Developed by MIT Media Lab)
I would feel like I was in the movie the 5th Element and I would never leave my house
This is so weird I can’t handle it. Does it look like he’s using the force to anyone else? This is so weird.
^I’m so glad I’m not the only one who thought of the force.
Seriously, how is he controlling it? o.O
I live in a condo with two children (boy and a girl). I love where we live. We moved in when it was cheap here—since then the elementary schools have gotten great, a Target has moved in 2 blocks away, the abandoned crematorium that made our home cheap has been turned into a beautiful park and Whole Foods is moving in up the street! I never want to move … but with a boy and a girl we’ll have to turn our office into a bedroom eventually.
… but with things like this! Wow! How awesome.
IN THE BALANCE: AN I BRING THE FIRE NOVELLA is on sale for 99...
IN THE BALANCE: AN I BRING THE FIRE NOVELLA is on sale for 99 cents for 24 hours at Amazon and Google Play.
Amy Lewis is sure she’ll never see Loki again, but when chaos is involved nothing is certain.
Called into ADUO’s offices to identify a magical artifact, Amy is taken on a journey beyond the Nine Realms. She comes face to face with the good and the bad of the forces of order and chaos, and has to chose for herself which of many imperfect paths to take.
The fate of the Nine Realms is in the balance. This time, it’s in Amy’s hands.
An I Bring the Fire novella that takes place after Chaos.
The I Bring the Fire series:
I Bring the Fire Part I: Wolves (FREE eBook!)
Monsters: I Bring the Fire Part II
Chaos: I Bring the Fire Part III
In the Balance: An I Bring the Fire Novella
Fates: I Bring the Fire Part IV
"Because so much of fantasy takes place in settings that in no way resemble the real world, featuring..."
Because so much of fantasy takes place in settings that in no way resemble the real world, featuring species that in no way resemble human, fantasy writers often have trouble dealing with regular people. This is something that, I think, isn’t as much of a problem for mainstream writers, because they can simply describe the world around them and come up with a reasonably accurate representation of humanity. They can also fall back on the plethora of real-world terms used to describe human beings, racially and otherwise. But using these terms makes no sense if you’re dealing with a world that doesn’t share our political/cultural context. You can’t call someone “African American” if your world has no Africa, no America, and has never gone through a colonial phase in which people of disparate cultures were forcibly brought together, thus necessitating the term in the first place.
That said, it’s equally illogical to populate your fantasy world with only one flavor of human being, which is what far too many fantasy stories default to. Granted, many fantasies take place in confined cultural spaces — a single small kingdom in a Europeanish milieu, maybe a single city or castle within that city. (But how did that castle get its spices for the royal table, or that lady her silks? What enemy are the knights training to fight? Even in the most monochromatic parts of the real Ye Olde Englande, I can guarantee you there were some Asian traders, Sephardic or Ashkenazic Jewish merchants, Spanish diplomats or nobles partly descended from black Moors, and so on.) I get that lots of countries on Earth are racially homogeneous, so it makes perfect sense that some fantasy settings would be too. But whiteness is the default in our thinking for Earth-specific cultural/political reasons. So while it’s logical for fantasy realms to be homogeneous, it’s not logical for so many of them to be homogeneously white. Something besides logic is causing that.
So. It’s a good idea for all fantasy writers to learn how to describe characters of color. And I think it’s a good idea to learn how to describe those characters in subtle ways, since they can’t always rely on Earth terminology. Now, doing subtle description increases the chance that the reader might misidentify the character racially — and to a degree, I think there’s nothing you can do about that. You’re working against a lifetime of baggage in the reader’s mind. But you can still insert enough cues so that when combined, they’ll get the idea across.
”-
N.K. Jemisin, blogging on Describing Characters of Color for Magic District. (via audreymgonzalez)
I think for fantasy writers, writing believable characters—motivations/interactions—is more important. It’s a lot easier to believe in the fireball your character is throwing, if you can believe his or her personality.
July 2, 2014
FREE BOOK ALERT … IN GENERAL, BOOKS ABOUT VAMPIRES AND...
FREE BOOK ALERT … IN GENERAL, BOOKS ABOUT VAMPIRES AND WEREWOLVES make me a little squeamish. They are so bad so often.
I liked this story because it wasn’t the story of the noble lord who becomes a vampire and spends hundreds of years being an emo-serial killer. It was a story of a Luna, a slave in pre-Civil War Mississippi who helps a vampire rediscover his humanity. Seeing the perspective of a slave really made the story. In the middle of the book their are “romantic misunderstandings” that in any other context would make me throw the book at the wall … but in this book, they were very logical. Luna can’t express her feelings because she’s had twenty some years of repressing them. And in that context it is a true survival mechanism, not some gimmick thrown in to draw out the plot. Sometimes I thought Avery got a little too puppy doggish, but that was a minor quibble compared to my enjoyment of the Luna’s POV.
Some of the other reviewers comment that it makes no sense that Luna would talk like a slave and write such an eloquent journal. But I think it’s pretty obvious she wrote the journal MUCH later in her existence, than what we see in the book. To unlearn speech patterns takes a lot longer than a few weeks.
Anyway, definitely buying the sequel. But not until the weekend. I have work to do …
Writing Depressing Stuff ...
Writing the ending of Loki and Sigyn’s relationship in the I Bring the Fire series. Sad. :-(
June 29, 2014
'The Punishment of Loki', 1925. Loki is a giant in Norse...
'The Punishment of Loki', 1925. Loki is a giant in Norse mythology, who is bound to a rock by the other gods and forced to have poison from a snake dropped on his face. His wife, Sgyn, tries to catch the drops with a cup. From “The Book of Myths” by Amy Cruse, 1925.
June 27, 2014
SCENES FROM THE CUTTING ROOM FLOOR: ABRACADABRA
This didn’t quite fit into Warriors (and it hasn’t faced a pro-editor for that reason). But in my head canon, Steve tries very hard to play yenta for Bohdi and Amy. His plans meet unexpected resistance
Team Building / Abracadabra
The bar is loud and packed. Steve had only been able to fit his team in by splitting them up over two different tables. Brett, Bryant, Laura, and Dale are at the table behind him. Steve, Bohdi, and Amy are at the other. Steve is between Bohdi and Beatrice. Directly across from, also between Bohdi and Beatrice, is Lewis.
Lewis, Steve has decided, either has an ethical aversion to makeup, or an allergy, because she never wears much, if any. The light above is washing her out, but at least tonight, she’s dressed like she cares. She’s wearing a v-neck sweater that’s on the dark-pink side of red. It contrasts against her pale skin and also shows off her impressive decolletage before nipping down to her waist. It’s probably not a coincidence that Bohdi’s barely spoken to Steve all night. He’s leaning very close to Lewis whispering something.
It suits Steve’s plan perfectly. Now to put the plan into action. Leaning towards Beatrice, Steve puts on his most charming smile. Pointing at her untouched beer he says, “Beatrice, I notice you aren’t enjoying your drink. Can I interest you in a game of pool?”
Beneath her perfectly straight gray bangs, Beatrice’s bright blue eyes narrow to slits. “No.”
Across the table Steve hears Lewis say to Bohdi, “I have a joke! I have a joke! So Heisenberg is driving down the road, when he’s pulled over by a cop. When the cop says, ‘Hey, ya know how fast you were going?’ Heisenberg says, ‘No, officer, but I know exactly where I am!’”
Steve feels his face fall. What the hell kind of joke is that?
Beside Steve, Bohdi spits out a mouthful of beer, crumples at the waist, and head plants on the table. For a moment, Steve thinks he might be choking, or has passed out. He’s drunk, but he can’t be that drunk, can he? That would spoil all of Steve’s plans. Steve drums his fingers on the table.
But then Bohdi starts to cackle. Lifting his head, Bohdi pushes his shaggy black bangs out of his face. He grins. “Dammit, that almost made me shoot beer out my nose!”
Steve’s lips purse. His eyes slide to Beatrice. Not meeting his gaze, she crosses her arms over her chest and glares at Bohdi. “Don’t look at me. I didn’t get the joke, either,” she says.
Turning on the charm again, Steve gestures towards the pool tables with a thumb. “Aww, come on, Beatrice.” He waggles his eyebrows. “One game?”
Beatrice turns to him, quick as a snake. Leaning close, she shakes her umbrella handle at him and hisses. “I know what you’re trying to do, Steve. And he’s no good for her. Forget it.”
Stifling his shock—had he been so transparent?—Steve puts a hand to his chest and plays dumb. “Pardon?”
“Stuff it,” says Beatrice, turning her eyes back to the two would-be-love-birds.
Across the table, Lewis giggles at something and Bohdi laughs. For a moment Bohdi sounds so much like his old self…Steve actually finds himself smiling. A little. The kid has not been himself since the trip to Nornheim. Bohdi’s been moody, and trigger happy—fortunately, only in the figurative sense. Steve’s not about to give the PTSD suffering incarnation of chaos a license to carry a gun.
Steve takes a sip of beer. He hasn’t confronted Bohdi about the whole incarnation of chaos thing. He’s been hoping Bohdi will tell him. But the kids not in the right mental state to talk about it …Hence Steve’s efforts to set him up with Lewis. Steve believes in romantic love about as much as he believes in the Easter Bunny. But he believes a stable relationship can calm a young man down and act as a stabilizing influence. And if there is one thing Bohdi needs in this life, and the last, it’s stability.
He drums his fingers on the table again. Beatrice aside, Steve’s not sure why his plans aren’t working. He felt sure that sending them to the Physics of Magic TED Talk would have been enough to do the trick. He even made sure they had rooms right next to each other, with connecting doors.
Beside Steve, Bohdi leans closer to Lewis and says, “Wait, wait, I have a joke I just made up!”
Lewis takes a sip of her beer. Bohdi’s gaze is heavy on her mouth as she lifts the glass to her lips. It’s so obvious he has a thing for her.
Steve believes in fate about as much as he believes in love. But he does believe that people with similar interests, and compatible personalities, have a better shot at making a partnership work. And Lewis apparently has a personality that is compatible with chaos.
Putting down her beer with a clumsy clunk, Lewis says, “Well, I’m waiting!”
Waving a hand dramatically, Bohdi says, “If a photon crashes into a tree in the middle of a forest, does it make any sound?”
Lewis scowls at him, and her head tilts to the side in a sloppy Scooby Doo like motion. She presses a finger to Bohdi’s chest. “You did not just make that joke up! That’s my joke!”
Bohdi grabs her finger and holds it close. “I did too just make it up!”
Leaning closer, Lewis says, “Uh-uh.”
Nodding, Bohdi smiles. Not releasing her finger, leaning closer to her, he says, “Uh-huh.”
And it’s on.
Turning quickly to Beatrice, Steve says, “So, are you going to make those sour cherry dumplings my mom’s always talking about for the inter-church Chicago revival meeting this weekend?”
Without bothering to look at him, she snarls. “You’re not gonna distract me, Steve.” She takes her umbrella and stabs it like a spear beneath the table in her granddaughter’s direction. Lewis sits up with a start and turns to Beatrice. Bohdi hastily drops her finger.
Beatrice smiles. “So, Amy, how did your date go on Thursday?”
Steve sags in his chair. Damnit. Outmaneuvered by superior intel.
Bohdi sits up straighter.
Twirling the end of her ponytail, Lewis says, “It wasn’t really a date, Grandma. It was just dinner with an old friend.”
Beatrice smiles at Bohdi. “An old friend that is a lawyer. Didn’t you say he seemed interested in you, dear?”
Beside Steve, Bohdi’s taken out his lighter. He flicks the wheel rapidly.
Picking up her beer, Lewis drains it and pounds it down on the table. “Yesh!” she slurs. “But I am not interested in him!”
She points at Steve, and then Bohdi. “Do you know why he broke up with his last girlfriend?”
She’s so drunk, Steve can’t repress a snort. Bohdi’s posture is so rigid, Steve thinks he might self-combust. Since Bohdi’s in no shape to talk—or possibly breathe—Steve says, “No, why don’t you tell us?” He takes a sip and smiles at Beatrice.
Lewis lifts her chin. Sniffing disdainfully, she says, “Because she couldn’t have vaginal orgasms.”
The beer promptly leaves Steve’s mouth in a cloud of spray.
Beatrice draws back in her seat. “TMI, dear, TMI.”
“That’s what I thought when hetoldme!” Lewis slurs.
Bohdi bumps his shoulder against Lewis’ and says, conspiratorily. “He thinks it’s a magic wand.”
Lewis guffaws and throws up her arms. “Abracadabra orgasms!” And then she and Bohdi both burst out laughing and slapping their hands on the table.
Beatrice puts a hand over her mouth and blinks at them. Steve sits back in his chair, eyes nervously going around the bar.
Straightening, Lewis says, “Seriously, though, I had a, well, kinda boyfriend, who technically had a magic wand, and even he didn’t think it was enough to—”
“Amy!” says Beatrice.
Steve’s beer slips from his hand. He catches it just before it falls over. “Hey, now—” he starts to say.
Licking his lips, Bohdi leans closer to Lewis. “I don’t have a magic wand. But I’ve been told I have a magic—”
Before he can finish, the beer that had been sitting neglected in front of Beatrice goes sliding across the table and splashes all over Amy’s beautiful sweater.
Lewis gasps. “Grandma!”
Hopping up and grabbing a napkin, Beatrice says, “Oh, I’m so sorry dear. I had a senior moment!”
Bohdi sits back in his seat, and turns just before he sneezes all over Amy. Instead he sneezes all over Steve. Steve skids back in his chair.
Handing the napkin to Lewis, Beatrice says, “I must have fallen asleep at my seat…we better go while it’s still safe for me to drive!”
Lewis stands shakily, dabbing her chest with the napkin—it soaks through instantly. “Okay.” The beer stain seeps down the sweater and spreads in every direction.
“Here,” says Bohdi, holding another another napkin towards Lewis. Beatrice snatches it out of his hand before Lewis can touch it.
Bohdi pulls back, “I wasn’t going to—”
“Hmpf!” says Beatrice. Steering a very drunk Lewis around, Beatrice gives Steve a sly triumphant smile. “Better luck next time, Steve.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Steve shouts over the noisy patrons.
Bohdi promptly sneezes all over him. Again.
June 24, 2014
CHAOS JUST HIT 55 REVIEWS--THANK YOU!
June 23, 2014
THE GREAT 99 CENT SECOND IN SERIES EXPERIMENT
I’ve noticed...
THE GREAT 99 CENT SECOND IN SERIES EXPERIMENT
I’ve noticed some fantasy writers like Terah Edun pricing their second in series at 99 cents and getting great results. So I decided to try it too and decreased the price of my second in series, Monsters.
Amazon gives you 35% royalties on books from 99 cents to 2.98, and 70% royalties on books between 2.99 and 9.98. So to make up for the lost revenue I’d need to sell seven times as many books at 99 cents OR sell a lot more of the second, third, fourth, and the novella in the series.
Did it work? The first day, without any advertising, I did very well (see first chart above). Then I went ahead and hit up every single low cost or free advertiser for 99 cent books I could. I didn’t recoup the cost of the advertising on the sales, but I did make significantly more sales on advertising days than I did on the same ebook before the 99 cent promotions.
Did I loose money? I made about $30 less in overall revenues for the period I was at 99 cents versus the same period the week before.
Was it a disaster? No. I didn’t spend a lot on this promo. I moved a lot of Monsters, my second in series. For a while I was #1 in my niche genre, which increased my visibility a lot. Decreasing the cost of Monsters gave me another book to promote at places I’ve probably already saturated with my FREE first in series. I did get a small spike in sales of the other books—and most importantly—In the Balance, the novella for the series, didn’t drop in the rankings. (I was concerned that decreasing the price of Monsters would devalue In the Balance which is normally priced at $2.99 while all the rest are priced at $3.99).
Selling more of Monsters means that I will now appear more frequently in Amazon’s “Also bought" section—a fantastic source of free advertising.
During the sale, I also got another review on Google Play, and increased my sell-thru rate to 10% at that vendor. I’m not yet established on Google Play, and my sell-thru rate there has been a dismal 1%. (Though thankfully, my sell-thrus from Monsters to Chaos, part Iii is about 90%, from Chaos to Balance 100% and from Balance to Fates 100%).
Will I do it again? Absolutely! But with a few changes: I will only do it for, at most, 3 days — UNLESS — I get a BookBub promotion, then I will let the promo last two weeks. With an ENT promotion, I might let it run a few days as well.
Now I’ve been slowly slinking down the charts, and I’m planning on raising the price. Ranking doesn’t matter as much as overall revenue to me!
You can see sales for all of my ebooks during the time in question above.
