Susan Spann's Blog, page 80

An Interview with Anna Lee Huber

Please welcome mystery author Anna Lee Huber, who’s joining us today to celebrate the release of her second Lady Darby Mystery, MORTAL ARTS (Berkley Trade, September 3, 2013)!

Anna Lee Huber is the award-winning author of the Lady Darby historical mystery series. She is a graduate of Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN.  She currently resides in Indiana with her family, and is hard at work on the next novel in the Lady Darby series.  Visit her at www.annaleehuber.com.

 

Scotland, 1830. Lady Kiera Darby is no stranger to intrigue–in fact, it seems to follow wherever she goes. After her foray into murder investigation, Kiera must journey to Edinburgh, but the city is full of many things Kiera isn’t quite ready to face: the society ladies keen on judging her, her fellow investigator–and romantic entanglement–Sebastian Gage, and ultimately, another deadly mystery. Kiera’s old friend Michael Dalmay is about to be married, but the arrival of his older brother–and Kiera’s childhood art tutor–William, has thrown everything into chaos. For ten years Will has been missing, committed to an insane asylum by his own father. Kiera is sympathetic to her mentor’s plight, especially when rumors swirl about a local girl gone missing. Now Kiera must once again employ her knowledge of the macabre and join forces with Gage in order to prove the innocence of a beloved family friend-and save the marriage of another…

MORTAL ARTS promises to be another fantastic adventure, and I’m so delighted to have Anna Lee Huber here with us today! And so, with no further ado, on with the questions!

Where did you grow up? Will you share a favorite story from your childhood?

I was born and raised in a small town in northwest Ohio. I’m the second of six children, and all of us had very active imaginations. We loved to reenact or improve upon our favorite movies and TV shows. Star Wars was at the top of our list, and we would run around our yard in snow boots and our mother’s old nightgowns tied with belts, swinging those long, skinny plastic baseball bats as light-sabers. We were also big fans of The A-Team, and pretended our riding lawn mower was the van. Somehow, I always ended up being Hannibal. “I love it when a plan comes together.”

What inspired you to start writing?

I started writing my own stories at a fairly young age. I’m not certain now what got me going, but I think it was just a desire to capture all of the wonderful stories I was already making up in my head. Later, after college when I began to seriously pursue the idea of a career as a published author, I think it was the remembrance of all the fun I’d had when I was a child crafting my own worlds and characters. I wanted to recapture that feeling.

If you could go back in time and share one writing lesson with “new writer you” before starting your first manuscript … what would that be?

I wish I could hammer into my head the lesson that you need to start in the middle of the action. It took me a long time for that to truly sink in. I kept thinking my stories needed all of this set up for readers to understand. That I had to lay out the backstory right away or they would be lost. So not true. It’s so much more fun to jump right in to the action, and feed mysterious little chunks of backstory as you go along. Only reveal what’s absolutely necessary. Once I finally “got” that, it made all the difference in the world. And I’ve never looked back.

Your new novel, MORTAL ARTS, is the second in the Lady Darby mystery series, which features a female sleuth (the aforementioned Lady Darby). What inspired you to create a female detective in a time when women rarely performed this role?

I think the inherent conflict that brings. Females were marginalized for so long, and to some extent still are, but they have so much to offer, and I love exploring that. Not to sound crazy, but honestly, it all began because Lady Darby started talking to me in my head. She was just there, already fully formed, and I just needed to ask her questions for the knowledge to come to the forefront. Once I understood her backstory—her role as a gifted portrait artist, and her marriage to a famous anatomist who forced her to draw his dissections for a textbook he wished to write—I knew she would be the perfect sleuth. There is so much meat to her character, so much to explore just in terms of her growth as a person. But she also has real skills to bring to an investigation, not just acute observation or the right connections. She doesn’t come to the profession easily. She resists it. But as time goes on, she begins to realize how fulfilling it is, and that she has an important decision to make, whether to continue to assist Mr. Gage or move on with her life in other ways.

Do you have a favorite author, book, or genre? If so, who (or what) is it, and why?

I love historical mysteries with a dash of romance, which is why I chose to write them. But there is also a special place in my heart for Gothic suspense novels. Mary Stewart is my favorite author, and every one of her Gothic suspense novels are a gem. I simply can’t choose one over the others. I love the darkness and mystery, the uncertainty, the atmospheric settings that leap off the page. The handsome, shadowy, dangerous men, and the love that triumphs in the end.

In MORTAL ARTS, Lady Darby finds herself in Edinburgh, Scotland, investigating a girl’s disappearance in order to clear the name of a family friend. How did the move to a city setting impact your plot, and did you find it easier or more difficult to set a mystery in a more populated environment?

The majority of MORTAL ARTS actually takes place on an estate and in a village just north of Edinburgh—an area that today is part of the city proper, but in 1830 was not. So while the area is more populated than the Highlands, it’s still not as jammed with citizens as Edinburgh was. I enjoyed switching up the setting. It allowed for more ease of movement from place to place, and a greater variety of characters for Kiera and Gage to encounter. In many ways, I had the best of both worlds. The advantages listed above that you would find in a city, and also the isolation and wildness of a more remote environment when I wanted it. I tend to gravitate toward the countryside, just because it fascinates me and I love utilizing new and different settings. But city scenes can also be fun.

Do you have a favorite scene or section from MORTAL ARTS? If so (and if you can tell us about it without revealing any spoilers!), what makes that scene stand out for you?  

I think that scene that stands out the most for me is when Kiera encounters William Dalmay for the first time. The entire plot of MORTAL ARTS grew from that scene because it was the first that came to me. Once I imagined it, I knew I had to answer the questions it generated. Who was this man? Why was he drawing on the walls? What is his relation to Kiera? And why is there such an air of sadness and despair permeating it? As soon as I started filling in the blanks I was hooked, and it became a story I absolutely had to tell.

What is the last book you read, and why did you choose to read it?

Oh, my goodness. The last few months have been such a whirlwind. I haven’t had nearly enough time to read as much as I would like. The last book I finished reading (I have about six I’m partway through) was The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley. Kearsley is one of my must-read authors. I adore everything she has written. And she is one of the kindest, most gracious authors out there. An amazing person!

Writing a series involves special challenges for the author. What did you find most difficult—and most fun—about solving a second mystery with Lady Darby?

I think the most difficult thing is keeping the continuity. I found myself worrying that I’d forgotten things from the first book, or that Kiera’s voice had changed, or that the psychology of the characters was not carrying over correctly. I’d written THE ANATOMIST’S WIFE as the first book of a series, so I’d purposely left some details about the characters and their backgrounds hazy and mysterious so that I didn’t write myself into a corner I later wished I could change. I know some series authors struggle with that.

The best part of writing a series is that you get to live with your characters for longer. You get to delve deeper and move slower, really getting down deep into their psyches and making sure their psychology and growth is correct. I don’t like it when a character’s development and healing feel rushed and unrealistic. If they’re coming from a dark place, they aren’t going to be magically healed in a few days. Writing a series allows time for those characters to really deal with their issues at a more accurate pace.

Do you have any upcoming signings or readings? 

I have several book signings and appearances coming up. An entire listing of them can be found on my website at http://www.annaleehuber.com/events.php. The most recent are this weekend.

I’ll be discussing and signing my latest novel at the Lake Forest Book Store in Lake Forest, IL (outside Chicago) from 7-9pm CT on Friday September 13th.

I’ll also be signing books, along with the fabulous Susanna Calkins, another historical mystery author, at the Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore in Forest Park, IL from 11am-1pm on Saturday September 14th.

And now, the speed round:

Plotter or pantser?

A plotter with wiggle room.

Coffee, tea, or bourbon?

Tea

Socks or no socks?

Depends on the shoes and the weather. With boots and tennis shoes, yes.

Cats, dogs, or reptiles?

Cats

For dinner: Italian, Mexican, Burgers or Thai?

Okay, now you’re just making me hungry. Ummm…depends on my mood. But if I had to choose…probably…Italian?

Thank you, Anna, for joining us today! I’ve already got MORTAL ARTS in my reading pile, and it’s one no fan of historical mysteries should miss.

You can find out more about Anna Lee Huber at her website, or find her on Twitter (@AnnaLeeHuber) or on Facebook.

MORTAL ARTS is available in ebook and trade paperback formats at all national and independent booksellers (in the real world and through Indiebound), at BooksAMillion, at Barnes & Noble, and on Amazon – in other words, just about everywhere!

The Beauty of “No”

As summer draws to a close, many writers will spend the autumn waiting for answers from agents and editors who requested pages at conferences or from queries during the last few months.

Some will eventually get “the call,” but for the overwhelming majority, waiting will lead to “no.” (Or, in some lucky cases, “No, thank you.”)

That “no” is something you never get used to. It never ceases to hurt. You’d think that after twenty, or fifty, or maybe a hundred rejections, a writer could build up a callus sufficient to keep that “no” from knocking the wind from her gut.

You might think so, but you’d be wrong.

Today, I want to address a different side of that wrenching “no.” To explain what it looks like from this side of Alice’s looking glass. To show you that, sometimes, that “no” is the best response an aspiring author can hear.

It was for me, though it took me a decade to understand why.

My very first manuscript placed in the finals of a major writing contest. It earned me requests for full reads on 8 of 12 queries. I sent the manuscript off with stars in my eyes and high expectations – only to have them crushed when every agent rejected me.

That started a cycle of “wash, rinse, and repeat the rejection” which lasted nine years and earned me a set of emotional stripes that would make a zebra jealous.

Time after time, I nursed my wounds and cried the bitter tears that come from watching a dream go up in smoke. Time after time, I picked myself up when I thought my strength was gone. Without writing, the core of me would cease to exist. That–and only that–made it worth the pain.

During those nine long years in the Land of No, I struggled to understand the craft of writing. With each manuscript, I tried to improve. Perhaps, I thought, I’d find the keys that opened the gates to the Kingdom of Yes.

I read. I wrote. I learned to accept critique and to give it.

I studied. I focused. I learned my craft.

And then (as you probably figured out) I found the “magical looking-glass” that leads from the Land of No to the Kingdom of Yes.  Looking back from the other side, I realized something startling: the crossing wasn’t magical at all.

All those years of work and pain had made me a better writer. Moving on and writing more books made me infinitely better than I would have been if I’d stuck to my guns and simply revised the same one over and over. One or more of those early books might have been good enough to publish (I don’t know, and I no longer care). But I can tell you that none of them was nearly as good as Claws of the Cat. More importantly–I didn’t have the skills to write Claws when I started. I needed to write and move on from the other ones first.

“No” made me a better writer.

“No” forced me to focus and learn.

“No” taught me to understand the value of yes, and the importance of stretching yourself and your writing, not only until publication but with every single word you put on the page.

Seen from that perspective, all that “No” is a beautiful thing.

Now, that doesn’t change the suffering that accompanies rejection. It doesn’t make it easier to get up and try again. It doesn’t guarantee your beloved manuscript will see publication–any more than a mother can promise her child will become an astronaut.

But it is an important lesson learned from this side of the looking-glass, and one I hope that you will take to heart.

“No” doesn’t mean you will never make it.

“No” doesn’t mean you suck.

“No” is an invitation, and also a challenge.

An invitation to learn and grow, and a challenge to become better than you ever thought you’d be. When you accept it, and rise to that challenge, you too can find the magical door that leads through the looking-glass.

And when you do, I’ll be here, waiting to welcome you home.

Copyright Formalities: Tuxedos Optional (Part 1)

In the United States, the term “copyright formalities” refers to two different actions: placing a copyright notice on creative works and registering copyrighted works with the U.S. Copyright Office. Today, we’re taking a closer look at the copyright notice.

Copyright “formalities” are requirements for obtaining certain types of protection and damages (for example, statutory damages for infringement) but do not affect the  existence of the copyright.

Copyright attaches to qualifying works automatically and at the moment of creation (assuming the works are properly fixed in a tangible medium” as we discussed in more detail last week). Use of a copyright notice is not required for obtaining or maintaining your copyright. However, use of the notice entitles the author (or copyright owner) to certain remedies which aren’t available for unregistered and unmarked works.

A valid Copyright Notice consists of the word “Copyright” or the copyright symbol, © , the publication date, and the name of the copyright holder.

For example, this post is  © 2013, Susan Spann.

You can flip the order of the name and year if you choose. That has no impact on the notice. Where the content changes regularly, for example a website or blog, the copyright notice often takes a slightly different form. For example: © 2011-2013, Susan Spann – where the first year represents the year the blog was started and the last year represents the current year.

Originally, U.S. copyright law required the notice in order to establish proper copyright, but that is no longer the case. The current law does not require a copyright notice on copyrighted works. However, Congress encourages “voluntary notice” to put people on notice of the owner’s claims to copyright.

This has two important consequences for authors and bloggers:

First, you must assume all written works are subject to copyright whether or not they bear a copyright notice.

While older works, and copyright released works, may be in the public domain,  “knowledge” is not an element of infringement – which means you can be legally liable for copyright infringement even if you didn’t know the work was subject to copyright. The solution? Assume all works are copyrighted until accurate research proves otherwise.

Second: you should always place copyright notices on your works. The copyright notice (and proper registration) entitle the copyright holder to claim certain statutory damages if the work is infringed. These statutes do not require a showing that the author lost money or was otherwise “measurably harmed” by the infringement. This means that failing to include a proper copyright notice can keep you from receiving all the damages you might otherwise receive if your work is infringed.

Don’t let that happen.

Protect your rights.

Pay attention to the formalities.

Research all written works before copying or using them yourself, and include proper copyright notices on your own work when you publish in any form.

The manuscript-sized tuxedo is optional.

An Interview with “Gusto” Dave Jackson!

Please welcome “Gusto” Dave Jackson, author of the upcoming novel TATTOO RAMPAGE (Curiosity Quills Press, September 15, 2013). I met Dave through the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers and his blog, Chiseled in Rock.

Not your typical author, “Gusto” Dave Jackson started writing in his constant pursuit to become a Renaissance man. Then he fell in love with the art form. Comedy remains as one of his many passions. He writes and performs skits as well as stand-up. Also a songwriter and guitarist, he has composed over 300 musical titles.

Tattoo Rampage, Dave’s debut novel, is represented for film by Hotchkiss and Associates, the same agency that saw Secretariat, The Kite Runner, and recently Joe Hill’s Horns from novels to movies.

Evangelina Marquez-James gets her first tattoo, a symbol of courage to carry on after her husband dies in the line of duty as a police officer. The skin art is of an elite yet obscure super heroine created by a forgotten 1940s artist.

A solar disturbance triggers a metamorphosis in her new ink, enabling Evangelina with the ability to transform into the embodiment of the character complete with powers. She sets out to wage war against the types of vermin who murdered her husband.

Acid, a sociopathic killer who can assume the form of his warlord tattoo, seeks the artist’s original sketchbook. When Evangelina comes into possession of the drawing pad, Acid not only tracks it down, but her family as well, forcing her into a standoff with his nightmarish army born of ink.

Thank you, Dave, for joining me here at the blog today to tell us a little more about TATTOO RAMPAGE! And now, on with the questions:

Where did you grow up? Will you share a favorite story from your childhood?

Thanks for having me, Susan! Oklahoma. I’m a country boy, but moved off and received a little refinement through world travels and college. I like to tell kids about when I climbed way up in a towering black jack tree and grabbed a dead branch for it to snap off and send me hurling toward my death. The branch saved my life. I always say that my guardian angel is overworked, considering that incident and my ‘wild’ days.

What inspired you to start writing?

I’m an artist…was always involved with theater, drawing, and music. I simply had to write.

If you could go back in time and share one writing lesson with “new writer you” before starting your first manuscript … what would that be?

Great question. To take advice mostly from writers who are published. When I started out, I attended critique groups like an addiction, utilizing every suggestion I could to sharpen my writing. The problem was that most of the groups were comprised of unpublished authors. Don’t get me wrong. They were great for turning me on to the basics. I came to a point, though, when I needed to move on, trust my instincts, and simply bounce a few pages off of published friends.

Your new novel, TATTOO RAMPAGE, involves tattoos which imbue their owners with the ability to assume the tattoo’s form and powers. For your heroine, Evangeline, that means becoming a superhero. For human-turned-warlord Acid, it’s super-villain. What inspired you to take this unusual spin on ink?

All I can say is: I can run off to the woods and just dream up the most bizarre stuff.

Do you have a favorite author, book, or genre? If so, who (or what) is it, and why?

Any genre, although horror is my favorite when it’s done right…and that’s extremely difficult to pull off. Elmore Leonard, Jodi Picoult, Ken Follett, Esri Allbritten (she lives close by in Denver and everyone should read Chihuahua of the Baskervilles), Alan Dean Foster, Stephen King, William Peter Blatty, Robert Harris…those are just for starters. There are books that pound through some words and you dutifully read. Then there are those that getcha. The aforementioned authors know how to do that in most cases.

Your novel’s protagonist, Evangeline, acquires her tattoo as a sign of courage after her husband’s death, but wasn’t expecting the powers that went with it. Tell us about an element of TATTOO RAMPAGE (or the process of writing it) which came as a surprise to you.

Evangelina can extend the ink on her arms to perform different functions. One of those functions is blades made out of her tribal flames (see cover). When her mentor is teaching her how to get those to stick out, he associates it to lifting weights like bench press and ‘squeezing’ that last repetition out. Evangelina couldn’t identify with that, but thought about child birth, which did the trick. Lady friends who’ve read Tattoo Rampage say that they love this. I have no idea how I stumbled onto this comparison. Surprise. All I know is: I think child birth is the most amazing thing in the world and probably the most strenuous.

Do you have a favorite scene in TATTOO RAMPAGE? If so (and if you can tell us about it without revealing any spoilers!), what makes that scene stand out for you?

There’s a country girl in it named Felicity. She walks into a bar to meet our heroine and makes quite the impression with the Texans. She’s a spit fire, beautiful, and stubborn. Even though she and Evangelina are nothing but friction at first, Felicity becomes quite a champ in the end.

What is the last book you read, and why did you read it?

Feeling Good by Dr. David Burns. Some life storms caused me to seek something uplifting.

How did you push yourself to get past difficult moments in writing and editing TATTOO RAMPAGE? Do you have a favorite place to write or to edit your work?

Nothing was difficult. I write anywhere.

And now, the speed round:

Plotter or pantser?

Plot.

Coffee, tea, or bourbon?

Java.

Socks or no socks?

Bare footin’.

Cats, dogs, or reptiles?

Puppies.

For dinner: Italian, Mexican, Burgers or Thai?

Cheeseburger in Paradise.

Thank you, Dave, for joining us today! TATTOO RAMPAGE sounds fabulous, and I’m really looking forward to reading it as soon as the book releases.

You can meet Dave in person at the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers’ Colorado Gold conference on September 20-22, or find him online on Facebook (where he has both a personal page and a fan page for Tattoo Rampage)!

 

 

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish

My year as a Debutante ends today.

I’ve had a wonderful time getting to know the other debut bloggers (Amy, Dana, Kelly and Kerry) and blogging at The Debutante Ball. It’s difficult to sum up what a year like this means (especially since my novel only released last month) but I can say without reservation that I’ve enjoyed the experience thoroughly.

I thought it appropriate to end the blogging year at the Ball in the same way it began: with the fish.

Click here to see the rest of the story…

Originality and Fixation in Copyright Law

Today, #PubLaw looks at two more required elements for copyright protection: “Originality” and “Fixation in a Tangible Medium.”

COPYRIGHTABLE ORIGINALITY

As the title of this post demonstrates, the threshold for copyrightable originality is so low as to be almost nonexistent.

Legally speaking, the copyright requirement for originality boils down to “the author didn’t just copy the work from somewhere else.” Independent creation is the standard, and it means that as long as the author actually created the work, brilliance is not required.

Authors need to remember that “illegal copying” includes more than “cut and paste.” Plagiarism, the act of copying someone else’s content or ideas and passing them off as your own (by cut and paste or by close paraphrase) can also constitute copyright infringement. Ethically, plagiarism is wrong even when it doesn’t rise to the level of copyright infringement. Remember to use proper citation and give credit where credit is due.

That said, copying non-copyrightable elements of a work does not constitute infringement. (Whether or not it’s good writing or ethical practice is a separate, and situation-specific, question.)

FIXATION IN A TANGIBLE MEDIUM

To receive copyright protection, a work must be “fixed in a tangible medium of expression and capable of being communicated or reproduced.”

The fixation must be “permanent” – but case law says a file saved on a computer is “fixed” for this purpose. The fixation can be accomplished either before or simultaneously with transmission to a recipient, but transmissions (such as radio interviews) are protected only if simultaneously recorded.

A curious offshoot of this rule: infringement can occur only where the infringing party reproduces a copyrighted work in a fixed form.

“Fixation” can take any permanent form: you can fix a work in writing, in audio or video recording, or as a computer file. As long as you “save a copy” in a form that someone else COULD see or hear, it’s “fixed” for copyright purposes. Fixation is a low threshold, but important to keep in mind, and also a good reminder: always save your work!

Thank you for joining me for today’s #PubLaw on Originality and Fixation in copyright! Have questions about these or other copyright issues? I’d love to hear from you in the comments!

Flame On!

Last weekend I brought home an unusual and beautiful new specimen for the reef: an electric flame scallop.

For those who have never seen one alive, this is what it looks like:

I brought the creature home with some misgivings, because I know they don’t survive very well in most aquariums. They’re filter feeders, subsisting on a diet of phytoplankton and planktonic bacteria (bacterioplankton), neither of which is present in large enough quantities on the typical reef.

The scallop in question had spent three weeks in the fish store. It looked healthy and open, and since I know my reef is better suited to delicate organisms than many others, I decided to take a chance.

We’ve named it Tesla.

The thin bluish line across the center of the orange mantle actually pulsates, giving the “electric” flame scallop its name. I’ve filmed some video, and will try to post it here soon.

Since arriving in the tank, Tesla has demonstrated another unusual characteristic of scallops: unlike clams, which close up tightly when molested, scallops often get irritated and clap their shells to drive the intruders off.

Tesla gets a surprising amount of force behind this “clapping.” The current created was strong enough to blow an unwary peppermint clean off the shell and into the open water. (Which, I have to admit, was one of the more entertaining moments I’ve had with the reef.)

Ultimately, the shrimp came back, though it learned the back of the scallop is a safer place to sit than out in front.

Earlier this evening, Emo the clownfish also found himself an unwitting victim of Tesla’s rage. The clown decided he didn’t like the scallop’s position on the rocks (scallops can swim, so Tesla picked his own location upon arrival in the tank). Emo responded by flapping his tail to send a jet of water toward the scallop–whereupon Tesla reciprocated by shooting water back much harder than Emo could manage. Emo swam away and ‘sulked’ on the opposite end of the reef. The victorious Tesla trailed his tentacles like streamers.

Flappy finds the scallop somewhat scary (and by “somewhat,” I mean “creature out of nightmares”) so, for now, he tends to keep his distance.

It’s hard to say how well the scallop is settling in, but for now, Tesla seems fairly “happy” and I’ll do my best to keep him so. (And no, I don’t really know whether this flame scallop is male or female, but the original Tesla was male, so I’m taking a page from the scallop’s book and going with the flow.)

A Little Monday Pillow Talk

Writing novels is like breaking in a pillow.

You pick out a story, fresh and new, from the rows of similar stories piled high on your mental shelf. Some start out harder, others squishy, and some seem stuffed with rocks.

Price might play a factor. Bargain-basement stories cost only mental pocket change, while the ultra-special ones stuffed with soft-feathered dreams cost quite a bit more, in spirit and in time.

You could change pillows after a night or two of sleeping (and some folks do), most of us commit to at least a year and sometimes more. Just like a novel.

When you bring the new pillow home, you put it in a special case and rest it on the bed. You plump it and smile, anticipating the moment when you can justify a rest. (A hint: don’t bother waiting. It’s always nap time somewhere.)

New stories also beckon: “Spend time with me. Let’s leave the world behind for a while.”

But the promise of new feather pillows doesn’t always bring sweet dreams the first night out. Your head and the body are used to the old one. The new pillow feels foreign–nice, but strange, and sleep refuses to come.

Every writer knows the pain of a newly-minted story. It’s joyful, yes, but writing is difficult work. Adjusting to new worlds, characters, story-lines, and conflicts takes some time. It’s tempting to shuck off the new and return to the old, familiar story–even when we know that one is finished and out on the bookstore shelf.

Change is unpleasant, even when you choose it.

But stories soften up with time and use, like pillows do, until they feel as cozy and welcoming as the ones that went before. The “new” becomes the “old,” and most of the time we can’t even tell when the change occurred.

Books and pillows are on my mind because I’m changing both. My old, beloved pillow finally reached the stage of flatness when even the cat refuses to call it “useful” anymore. My debut novel, Claws of the Cat, is on bookstore shelves.* I love the book and I’m finally comfortable wearing the author skin. But, at the same time, I’ve just learned that the second Shinobi Mystery, Blade of the Samurai, is “cleared for takeoff” and heading into production. Copy edits are coming soon.

Fortunately, I’ve grown to love the second book as much as I loved the first one. Possibly more. But it did take time, and work–and it made me realize that it’s not only pillows and people which need our patience.

Our stories need it too.

*For those in the Sacramento area, please join me Wednesday night (August 28) at 7pm at the Barnes & Noble in Birdcage Center (Sunrise Boulevard, across the street from the Sunrise Mall) for a signing and reading from Claws of the Cat! I hope to see you there!

An Interview with Linda Grimes, Author of QUICK FIX

Please welcome Linda Grimes, author of the new release QUICK FIX (Ciel Halligan Series, #2)(Tor Books, August 2013):

 

Linda Grimes is the author of In a Fix and Quick Fix, the first two books of Tor’s light urban fantasy series featuring aura adaptor Ciel Halligan. She currently resides in northern Virginia with her husband and a host of imaginary people who fuel her writing.

Ciel Halligan, an aura adaptor with a chameleon-like ability to step into the lives of her clients and fix their problems for them—as them—is working a job at the National Zoo with her maybe-sort-of boyfriend, Billy, and his ten-year-old sister, Molly. It’s supposed to be a quick fix, giving her time to decide if it’s wise to pursue the romantic relationship her charming scoundrel of a best friend wants, or if she should give longtime crush and CIA agent Mark Fielding a chance to step up to the plate. But the quick fix gets complicated when Molly accidentally takes on the aura of a baby orangutan—which isn’t supposed to be possible—and then deadly when Ciel tries to figure out who’s been experimenting on Molly and why someone is trying to frame Billy for murder. Can Ciel fix Molly and keep Billy out of jail long enough figure out if he’s the guy for her?

I met Linda through the The Debutante Ball blog – Linda was a member of the debut class of 2012, and I’m a soon-to-be-departing member of 2013′s debutante class. Linda visited the blog last year to talk about her debut novel, IN A FIX, and I’m delighted to have her back today to talk about the sequel, QUICK FIX!

And so, with no further ado, on with the questions!

According to your website bio, you spent a semester studying in Stockholm. What prompted you to study abroad, and why did you choose that city for your studies?

My mom is Swedish—born and raised in Stockholm—and I have relatives there. My junior year of college seemed like the ideal time to get in touch with my Viking roots. So, yes, my roots really are blond. ;)

What inspired you to write a series involving an aura adapter who can “become” a person other than herself?

Well, to tell you the truth, Ciel just sort of showed up in my head with her ability as an integral part of her. I knew right off the bat that she liked to help people. What better way to do that than to become them and fix their problems as them? So much simpler than doling out advice and waiting for it to be ignored.

In your new novel, QUICK FIX, aura-adapter Ciel must not only fix a client’s problems but uncover the truth behind a young aura-adapter’s ability to shift into animal forms as well as human ones. What prompted you to expand the series in this interesting direction?

What makes you think I had a choice? *grin* I was just minding my own business, writing a scene set at the National Zoo (because I happen to like the National Zoo), when Billy’s little sister Molly touched an orangutan. Voila! Orange happened.

I actually tried to fight it at first—it didn’t go with the “rules” of my aura-adapting world—but, as usual when it comes to arguing with my plotting muse, I lost. “Molly-O” was too strong for me.

My theory is, my subconscious likes to write me into awkward corners so it can laugh as I scramble to write myself out of them. It’s sadistic that way.

What do you find most challenging about writing a series?

I’m drafting the third book now, and finding it rather challenging to work in the necessary back story without being so repetitive that I risk boring the readers who’ve already read the first two. Also, I have to make sure I don’t, in a sudden burst of creativity, contradict something I’ve established as fact in the previous books. Continuity can be a real…um, witch. (What’s this blog rated, anyway?)

Reversing that question: what do you enjoy most about series writing?

Getting to spend more time with these characters. I’ve become really attached to them—I know it will be a sad day for me when it’s time to leave them behind.

Do you have a favorite scene from QUICK FIX? If so, and if you can tell us about it without giving away any spoilers, what makes it stand out for you?

Gosh, it’s hard to choose just one favorite—I had fun with so many of them. I am rather fond of the “Come as You Aren’t Party” scene—there’s a lot going on there, with people switching auras all over the place. It was a real challenge to write.

What is the last book you read, and why did you read it?

WITCH, by Barbara Michaels (aka Barbara Mertz and Elizabeth Peters), who died recently. I was so saddened to hear of her passing. I wanted to reread something by her as a remembrance of all the hours of reading pleasure she’s provided me over the years. WITCH holds up incredibly well.

Where do you write? Do you have a favorite place to work?

I do most of my writing in our den, on my laptop. Since it’s a laptop, it’s easy to pick it up and move someplace else—like the living room or the deck—if I want a change of scenery.

What is your favorite movie, and why?

It’s tough to narrow it down, but I do love Galaxy Quest—it’s sooo funny. Plus, it appeals to the Star Trek nerd in me.

Do you have any upcoming signings or readings?

My “launch” event will be at the Barnes & Noble at Tysons Corner, a big mall in McLean, VA. Here’s a link to the event page, if anyone is interested in more info:

http://store-locator.barnesandnoble.c...

If you’re in the neighborhood, I’d love to see you there!

And now, the speed round:

Beef, chicken, or fish?

Beef.

Tattoos or hair dye?

Hair dye. But only the temporary kind. I have commitment issues when it comes to my hair.

Beer, lemonade, or scotch?

Um, bourbon? Preferably mixed with sweet vermouth and a dash of bitters, and garnished with two cherries. (Why, yes, that would make it a Manhattan.)

For breakfast: eggs, waffles, or oatmeal?

Eggs in the summer, oatmeal in the winter. (Or cold cereal any day I’m feeling too lazy to cook.)

Thank you for inviting me to share your blog space today, Susan!

Thank you, Linda, for visiting! It was fun to have you back!

To find out more about Linda, visit her website or find her on Twitter (@Linda_Grimes) or on Facebook.

You can find QUICK FIX at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, IndieBound and everywhere books are sold.

What Can I Copyright?

Today, we’re continuing the new #PubLaw series on Copyright with a brief look at a threshold copyright protection issue:

What is “Copyrightable Subject Matter”?

To obtain copyright protection, a creative work must consist of “copyrightable subject matter,” as that term is defined by applicable law.

In the United States, that law is 17 United States Code section 102(a), which states that “Copyright protection [exists] … in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later developed, from which they can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a machine or device…”

Hooray for legalese!

Or not.

Let’s translate to English:

In order for copyright to protect your work, it has to be (a) original, (b) a “work of authorship,” and (c) fixed in a tangible medium which can be viewed, communicated to others, and reproduced.

The two fundamental criteria are originality and fixation.       

Note that there is no requirement that the work possess any artistic merit. However, the level of protection provided by copyright gets narrower as a work becomes less original, and copyright applies only to the original, copyrightable elements of the work.

So…WHAT IS COPYRIGHTABLE?

Short answer: anything that complies with these criteria and meets the legal definition of “copyrightable subject matter.”

Longer answer: here’s an exemplary (but not complete or exhaustive) list:

Literary and creative written works – including everything from short stories to novellas to novels, and even multi-volume works. Anthologies are included in here also.
pictorial, graphic & photographic works
sculptures and sculptural works
architectural works (though the architect’s copyright does not include “standard or functional features” like windows and doors and cannot prevent people from taking photographs of the finished building or prevent the owner from performing modifications, construction/renovation, and/or destruction of the building)
dramatic, pantomime, and choreographic works (stage plays, radio plays, scripts, etc.)
musical works and sound recordings (But once released, music is subject to compulsory licensing under another federal law. More on that another day.)
recordings of performances
motion pictures & audiovisual works
derivative works (works based on copyrighted works or on elements of copyrighted works – again, more on this in a future #PubLaw post)

As you can see, the list is long and extensive … and it includes some items that don’t appear here. In fact, copyright protects any creative work as long as it meets the threshold elements set out above.

Things which DO NOT receive copyright protection include:

“words, slogans and phrases” (these are the realm of trademark law)
ideas, procedures, processes, systems, methods, concepts, principles or discoveries (where appropriate, these are protected by patent law).
“building blocks” of creative expression, archetypes, and basic character types (for example, “an E.R. doctor,” “a corrupt lawyer”, “a boy wizard”).
“themes” or “solutions to problems”
blank forms designed for recording information.
facts (historical or otherwise)
works created by or under contract for the United States government (but the U.S. Government can legally own copyrights assigned to it by third party creators)
useful articles, including those where the otherwise copyrightable function of the object is inseparable from the object’s artistic elements

In addition, the “Merger” doctrine says  that where a topic permits or requires only a limited range of expressions or explanations, copyright becomes weak (and in some cases, nonexistent) with regard to the terms for which merger applies.

An example of”merger” would be the way a character uses a telephone.

If your protagonist picks up the handset, dials a set of numbers (either with physical buttons or virtual ones on a screen) , and raises the handset to her ear to listen to the call, you probably can’t copyright the “mechanical” aspects of that activity. It’s the way most people place a phone call. And since the idea of “making a phone call” permits only limited manners of expression (at least in the non-science fiction context) copyright on those necessary elements of the process is thin to nonexistent.

What is said on the call, however, is probably copyrightable, at least if it’s fiction.

Lots to absorb in one day, but hopefully this gives at least a starting idea about the difference between copyrightable subject matter and things that don’t receive copyright protection.

Next week, we’ll move on and take a look at originality, ownership, and copyright in jointly-authored works. In the meantime, if you have questions about this or other copyright issues, please feel free to ask me in the comments!