Daniel Sherrier's Blog, page 59
June 2, 2013
Need an editor?
I now offer editing services, and you can test me out with five pages for free.
Please see details here.
I’m happy to work with indie authors as well as those seeking traditional publication.
June 1, 2013
Sign up for the Blogger Book Fair!
(The following is contributed content from the organizers of the Blogger Book Fair. I’ll be participating. Will you?)
Check in to the Blogger Book Fair,
and book your trip to far away places!
July 22-26, 2013
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Authors and Book Bloggers,
Sign ups for the July 2013 Blogger Book Fair will close on June 15 at midnight central time, so get your registrations in to participate!
As of 5/31/2013, we have:
Authors: 89
Books: 233
Bloggers: 14
If you haven’t yet registered, you can find all of the information on the Blogger Book Fair page.
Check out the Code of Conduct
Fill out either the Author Sign Up form or the Blogger Sign Up form (Deadline June 15)
Kayla will match everyone with hosts and send out this information to you after sign-ups close
Check out the events–all authors are eligible to participate in the events, and if you have an event you’d like to host, just fill out the simple Event Sign Up Form–all of this information can be found on the Events! page (Deadline July 8).
If you’re interested in hosting a giveaway to drive traffic to your site, sign up via the Giveaway Sign Up form (Deadline July 15).
And if your book will be FREE or $0.99 for the duration of the Fair, you can sign up on the Free and $.99 Book Sign Up Forms (Deadline July 15).
Events:
as of 5/31/2013
Art Fiction Gala hosted by Lucie Smoker
Does your fiction promote the visual arts–through featuring an artist, painting, sculpture, performance art, etc? Then, consider entering Lucie’s Art Fiction Gala.
The Art Fiction Gala is a virtual celebration of fiction that highlights the visual arts. Dress up in your finest, pick up some friends–a bottle of wine–and sample mind-blowing fiction that crosses the line between literary and visual art. Plus a gallery of art featuring reading.
More information & entry instructions
Three Wishes hosted by Kirstin Pulioff
Introduce your characters to the world.
Kirstin Pulioff invites you to ask your main character, “If you found a magic genie lamp, what would be your three choices?”
More information & entry instructions
Flash Fiction Challenge II hosted by Thomas Winship
Get ready to exercise your flash fiction muscles.
For the Flash Fiction Challenge II, Thomas Winship will provide an opening line.
From there, entrants will craft a flash fiction piece of approx 500 words. Entries will be displayed on Thomas’ blog Vaempires during the BBF, spread out evenly across the five days, in order of receipt.
More information & entry instructions
Snapshot Synopsis Contest hosted by Fel at The Peasants Revolt
Challenge: chisel your synopsis down to 50 words or less.
Voting will be open throughout the fair for visitors to vote on their favorite Snapshot Synopsis.
More information & entry instructions
Reader’s Choice Awards hosted by Sherri at Shut Up & Read
All books registered for the Blogger Book Fair are automatically entered into the running for the Reader’s Choice Awards. Voting will be open from July 22 to July 25.
More information
Indie Soap Box Files hosted by Shah Wharton
Take a turn on the Soap Box.
Shah invites speculative fiction writers to write a guest post about being an indie (or hybrid) writer.
More information & entry instructions
Restrictions: Speculative fiction writers only
Monster Menagerie hosted by Noree at Trip the Eclipse
What’s your favorite monster or supernatural creature?
Feature your creature in a flash fiction piece (500-800) words to be featured on Trip the Eclipse. Visitors will vote on their favorite piece.
More information & entry instructions
Ways to Help:
Donate to the Blogger Book Fair via the BBF Donation Fund. To help get the word out about BBF, we would like to place ads on Facebook, Goodreads and other places, but to do, so we need a little help. We’d also like to have some BBF sponsored giveaways, so money donated would also go toward prizes. NO MONEY WILL BE KEPT BY ANY ORGANIZER OR PARTICIPANT.
Spread the word! Share the Fair on your social media accounts and show off the Blogger Book Fair logo in your blog’s sidebar.
Join us on:
Goodreads
Google +
May 30, 2013
Amena’s Imagination, #4
(New here? Please start at the beginning.)
Smart chickens. Yes.
Maybe on this other world, a type of chicken has evolved with larger heads housing powerful brains, and they’ve invented all kinds of advanced machines that do the most wondrous…
Ohhh. Chickens don’t have opposable thumbs. It would be hard to industrialize without those.
Well, Xxryzikakian chickens could have evolved to have hands with opposable thumbs, but what are the odds?
No. The life on Xxryzikaki, or maybe it’s Roandia, or Qualidadiania, or something I can’t even pronounce, but odds are good the lifeforms are like nothing anyone has ever imagined.
Challenge accepted.
To be continued next Thursday…
May 28, 2013
Get to Know…Wade Garret
Meet steampunk/ dark fantasy author Wade Garret. Welcome, Wade!
Tell us about your book.
“The true test of Man, is to see if he can stand naked before himself without blinking. The same trial of existence for a God, however, even one created, is if when he blinks, will he change or the world…”
Putting aside the flash—races, technology, action, fantasy, landscapes and so on—the heart of Genesis centers on the challenges and tragedies of unwanted, yet unquestionable power and to some degree, the long and short cost of denying it.
Since it won’t be out till later this summer, here’s a blurb:
After a year of laborious solitude and a conflict brought to the doorstep of his father’s house, Jak, a Southlander of meek circumstance, will be forced to see the world as it is. Through abilities unnerving to any Areht, against enemies rising in every corner of the planet, he’ll eventually resolve his destiny to be one of five that change the world.
Such selfless transcendence isn’t easy, nor simply the heroic result of dark revelations shielded from him since childhood now exposed; rather, it’s because of what’s undeniable to friend and foe alike. Like all great forces collected at the tip of the spear, the truth of his purpose and the price of his existence will quickly become self-evident—paid evenly across the backs of those who find themselves on either side of his path.
In the end, many of his choices will be seen as a curse. The corruption of everything they believed in, but he alone will bear the burden—His is the only way through the darkest hour before the dawn.
Where did the idea come from?
Genesis started out small. The idea, the original name escaping me just now, was for a video game. I love RPGs. I’d still be playing them today if I didn’t get motion-sickness from all the graphics. Tragic, I know. Anyway, that’s all I played. So, naturally, I wanted to write my own. I don’t exactly remember when it happened, roughly about the time I was really getting into Role Playing, comics—my passion for writing starting to keep me up at night—it became the start of my own world. And I’ve only just begun to explore it.
What’s the book’s opening line?
The story is told by a nearly omniscient narrator. The opening line of the Foreword is his introduction:
Zidarshan Zimran would be my name, if ever I should have one, and I am the teller of lost tales.
Following that, apart from an intercepted message the reader is privy to, the actual story begins with a prologue set before events of Chapter One:
The title of the prologue is
Faces in Shadow and Shadows with Faces
And the first line reads
Mr. Black and his travel-beaten horse cleared the bluff’s wood line.
The prologue can be found at http://www.darkmediaonline.com/genesis-novel-excerpt/
What do you most enjoy about writing?
The rhythm that eventually comes from transforming a blank page into something I can only otherwise see when my eyes are closed. I say eventually, because the process isn’t always pretty. If it weren’t for the damn trees I could see the forest!
Please share a writing tip you’ve found helpful.
No one can tell you how to write your story. I’m not talking about grammar or tone or diction or w/e. This is beyond the semi-cosmetic foundation people get wrapped up in. Many writers, myself included when I began, try to write a character or scene or w/e the way a particular person said would be best. It’s often a shock after doing so when yet another person disagrees. Secondary appeasement follows. This opinion-to-opinion cycle can cause confusion and a hell of a lot of frustrations and anger. So, pick your Editors, Beta Readers and Advisors well. Make sure they’re on the same page as you. Make sure they’re knowledgeable. That you value their opinions, but not to the point you easily overlook your own when you’re right and can prove it—as I was one time forced to, though that’s a fun story for another day. It’s not their book, article, poem or w/e. It’s yours.
What’s the appeal of steampunk to you?
The fact it’s being refurbished with vigor is very intriguing to me and central to many of Steampunk’s deepest themes. I like how you can pick’n’choose what’s possible via the lens of a particular world’s technological achievement—branches not always in lockstep with ours. Through such a unique framework, you can create a blend that doesn’t seem out of place. As an example: You can have a wireless computer being used by a gentleman dressed for dinner, aboard a transatlantic ship on its maiden-voyage to the Far East…and guess what, it’s OK. Why? The wireless computer doesn’t look like a MacBook; more like a clunky suitcase made from clock parts *perhaps bits of magic* and the battery, twice the size of the computer, has to be cranked by hand every time. With Steampunk, much of it revolves around visuals, setting, textures. It’s not Hard Science Fiction. You don’t necessarily need to explain every bit of technology and the fans are OK with it.
What’s your day job? How does it influence your writing?
Nothing really, except it forces me to better my skills so hopefully one day I won’t have to do it any more.
What’s your favorite book?
Dune!
I see on your website you’re a comic book fan. What are you currently reading?
Before Watchmen, The Dark Tower series, The Manhattan Project, Saga, Spaceman and soon Marvel’s Infinity. Since traditional Superhero stories are spread over several books, I often wait till they’re finally bundled into a single graphic novel. Then I pick it up. Yes, I cheat. I’ll admit it though. I wish I had more time and money to blow at my local comic shop.
Who is your favorite fictional character? (Any medium)
That’s hard, but I’ll have to go with my first love: Batman!
If you could have one super-power, what would it be and why?
Dodging the obvious choices everyone fancies at one time or another—the standard Superman-package. My true choice would be, without fault or failure, to see (all) past/present/future, at will. Every seamless eventuality. Why? “The first step in avoiding a trap, is knowing of its existence.”
What’s next for you?
While promoting myself and all things Genesis, I’m also working on the sequel, which is really going to shake things up. I also have a few short story projects I hope to shop around to Fantasy/Science
Fiction magazines for publication.
Where can people learn more about your work?
Wjgarret.blogspot.com. Wade Garret on Facebook. I’m active on Good Reads, BookTalk and hopefully sometime soon wggenesis.com will be up and running.
Tell us one fun fact about yourself.
Drinking habits while writing: Despite Guinness and Jameson being holy to me—St.Patricks Day obviously the greatest day of the year—I drink many Code Reds mixed with Five Hours and my wife, who is a nurse, hates it.
May 25, 2013
I’ll sign your e-books!
Thanks to huge advances in modern technology, signing digital books is now possible. Sort of.
You can find my books on Authorgraph. Through them, you can send me a request for a personalized inscription to place in your e-reader.
What will I write to you? You won’t know until you ask. Don’t be shy.
May 23, 2013
Amena’s Imagination, #3
Who/what else might be there…?
Oh! Oh! Oh! Of course!
Xxryzikaki could be packed with super-evolved insects!
I don’t mean monstrous giant insects like in the old B-movies. Giant insects would swarm the whole world in no time, the way they reproduce. I’m talking regular little insects, just without the competition from us bigger species, so they get the run of the place.
But there are so many kinds of insects. How would that work? Which would emerge as the dominant species? How would they get along? Would termites and cockroaches wage war against each other? I can see the bees and hornets going at it with their stingers. That would be a fun fencing match to watch, probably less so with the bees’ kamikaze tendencies.
And there might be a problem with someone like me visiting such a world. I’d be the giant monster from an alien planet. Gigantism is not a great way to make a good first impression.
I should have Sela invent a shrink ray, just in case.
You know, seeing insects from that perspective would kind of make them look like movie aliens, with their numerous eyes and limbs and antennae.
So really, you could pretend to be on alien planet anytime without ever leaving Earth. You’d just need a shrink ray.
Better to actually be on the alien planet, though. Our insects don’t make for pleasant company. And alien insects might be comically cultured. Just think—a centipede painter! Ants discussing philosophy! Grasshopper martial artists!
Why can’t Earth insects be like that? Because they don’t really have much room for brains in those little bodies, do they?
Alien insects probably wouldn’t either…
So if there is an insect-dominated planet, they probably are just battling for global domination. Or trying to eat each other. Something like that.
Yeah, I think Xxryzikaki can do better…
To be continued next Thursday…
May 21, 2013
Get to Know…Keith Yatsuhashi
Joining us this week is fantasy author and former figure skater Keith Yatsuhashi. Welcome, Keith!
Tell us about your book.
Kojiki is the story of Keiko Yamada, a young woman who tries to fulfill her father’s dying by going to Japan and complete a mysterious task in his place. Unfortunately for Keiko, he doesn’t give much in the way of specifics. Only that ‘her camera will show her the way.’ Once in Tokyo, she comes face to face with ancient Japanese Spirits who are on guard for the return of the most powerful of their kind—an insane Spirit of limitless power. The rest of the story is Keiko’s journey from orphan to finding a new family and a new place in a world on the edge of destruction. In grand anime fashion, I fill the story with gigantic beast-like Guardians, everything from dragons to sea serpents, thunderbirds, bat-like creatures, etc. Essentially I thought, hey! Earth’s myths had to come from somewhere, so I made sure I represented a few choice mythic creatures. I tweaked them for Kojiki, figuring man couldn’t have gotten it right, and worked them into the story.
Where did the idea come from?
I’m a longtime anime fan, so it was only natural for the story to take the shape it did. I toyed with the idea of writing a thriller, and way back when I was a teenager I started to write what will become Kojiki’s follow-up. The real inspiration came with the death of an eccentric aunt. At her funeral, my father’s sister-in-law started to relate some of our family history—things I never knew. She said our family was once part of the Imperial Court, back before the capital moved from Kyoto to Tokyo. That family history was enough to fire my imagination. My grandfather worked as an antiques dealer in Boston and came to the US as part of the Yamanaka Trading Company. My aunt became the inspiration for Keiko, who in the early drafts was actually 75 years old but with a whimsical child-like innocence. She really did have the camera and took it with her wherever she went.
What’s the book’s opening line?
Keiko Yamada lifted her battered thirty-five millimeter camera and held her breath. Its metal casing was cool against her feverish cheeks and smooth enough to slip precariously in her sweaty fingers.
Which actress would you cast as your main character?
Well, she has to be Japanese-American. I’m curious to see Rinko Kikuchi in Pacific Rim. She might make a good Keiko. The thing about Keiko is that she looks Japanese, but she doesn’t act it. She seems American to the core. At least at first.
What do you most enjoy about writing?
I love creating something, building a story that never existed and giving it life. I saw a meme floating around the Internet that says something like, ‘all stories come from the same 26 letters’. Isn’t that amazing? That’s part of the fun, choosing words, moving them around. When it’s done, I can point to it and say, “See that? I did that.”
Please share a writing tip you’ve found helpful.
I’ll give you two, one for writing, one for saving your writing. First, get over that first draft. With Kojiki I obsessed over every draft. It added so much unnecessary time to completing it. Only now–after multiple revisions, edits with Musa, and publication–can I see how little of the original prose remains. That was a great lesson. Just get the story down. It will change; don’t worry about it. The philosophy helped with my WIP. I picked up Dragon Software and dictated the first draft. I finished it in ½ the time. The second draft is slower, though, because I’m rewriting so much. Still, the ideas and scenes are there. It’s just a matter of fleshing them out and polishing. The second tip is to get an independent editor, especially if you’re just starting out. Unless you’re uniquely gifted, a summa cum laude English graduate, or other writing professional, you’ll need that keen eye and experience. I was fortunate enough to locate Lorin Oberweger of Free-Expressions.com. Kojiki wouldn’t exist if not for her. She took a very rough piece of rock and turned it into a diamond, all the while teaching me how to write, tell a story, edit, submit, etc. It’s an investment, true, but it will make you a better writer AND improve your chances of getting published.
What type of fantasy fiction appeals to you? Doesn’t appeal to you?
I like big, epic fantasy, with lots of magical elements, magical creatures, etc. Wheel of Time is pretty much my standard. Funny that Kojiki’s nothing like it. No medieval world, no horses, a couple of swords, but only because of the samurai—yes I DID say samurai. I tend to shy away from gritty realistic fantasy. Not sure why. I wasn’t much of a fan of A Game of Thrones—as a book. For some bizarre reason, I can’t get enough of the show. I want my books to take me to impossible places. I can get gritty intrigue from historical fiction. Why make it a fantasy if it doesn’t have fantasy elements? Admittedly, it looks like A Song of Ice and Fire has those as it moves along, but I like them to be more front and center.
Tell us about your figure skating days, please.
I could write a whole book about this one and probably will someday. I skated for ten years, starting at age nine and going through my freshman year in college. It was an incredible experience, and athletes aren’t kidding when they say nothing compares to athletic competition. Nothing. Bruce Springsteen sings about Glory Days, and that’s exactly what it’s like. You have to be good to reach the top, and I can’t even describe how it feels to have everything come together. To perform at your best, physically and mentally against a handful of peers who are just as good as you are. The competitions themselves—at the higher levels–are as much pageantry as competitive sport. You’re on display throughout, at practice, at the hotel, everywhere. Heady, heady stuff, especially for a bunch of teens. Private buses, press conferences, performances, tours, travel. By eighteen, I’d been all over the U.S. In the span of a year, I went to Sarajevo, Zurich, Tokyo, Bavaria, a month in Budapest, and then the Netherlands. Those last three from August-October of the same year. And keep in mind, for me this was at the junior level. The senior level takes it up a couple of notches. I went on to see a competitor win Olympic Gold. Incredible.
What’s your favorite book?
Well, as I said, the Wheel of Time series is high on my list. As is Harry Potter, and—talk about a radical shift—John Sandford’s thrillers. I think Shogun might be the best book I’ve ever read, and it still inspires me.
Who is your favorite fictional character? (Any medium)
That changes depending on my mood, but I’d have to say Doctor Who. He’s noble and irreverent, old and young, happy and sad, and seemingly omnipotent, if flawed. So many contradictions rolled into one character. I love him because he is hope personified. He’s incredibly compassionate, and he believes in the best in everyone, regardless of species, and tries to resolve disputes and issues without violence. Not that I’m opposed to violence in my stories, far from it. It’s just that the Doctor is unique in his ability to disarm and resolve without it. As if he’s greater than everyone else. God-like.
If you could have one super-power, what would it be and why?
Would omnipotence count? I have a tough time with the question because it reminds me of the Twilight Zone episode with Burgess Meredith and the glasses. Careful what you wish for, right?
What’s next for you?
I’m working on a follow up to Kojiki called Kokoro. It’s not a true sequel in that it will have different characters with a different story. Almost as if you went off to see what happened at another Wizarding School in Harry Potter. It will feel familiar, though. A couple of Kojiki’s characters play a major part, even if they don’t appear that much. Oh, and it will have the tried-and-true-anime trope: god-warrior mecha.
Where can people learn more about your work?
Several places. I have an author page on Goodreads, I’m on Facebook (facebook.com/author.keith.yatsuhashi), Twitter (@keithyatsuhashi), and my blog (kmyatsuhashi.wordpress.com)
Tell us one fun fact about yourself.
Supposedly, my grandmother is a direct descendant of a samurai who fought Kublai Khan’s invading navy when what was to be known as the Kami Kaze, or Divine Wind, destroyed the Khan’s fleet. Is it true? I have no idea, but I REALLY like to think it is.
Thank you, Keith!
May 16, 2013
Amena’s Imagination, #2
Continued from Part 1…
Okay, so there could be this planet, let’s call it Xxryzikaki. Yeah, that sure is an alien name, but to their tongue, “Earth” would sound just as crazy.
All right. Xxryzikaki. It’s the land of gas. Or not so much land as just air then, but sentient air, you see.
And I guess they wouldn’t have tongues either. No. Wait. Air could have a mouth? Sure, why not? It’s alien air! Alien air has every right to be weird, just as I’d be weird to it.
“You’re solid? Freak.”
“Well, technically, I’m mostly water.”
“You’re mostly water, but you’re solid? Weirdo.”
So the Xxryzikakians are cloud people, but not people-shaped. Why would cloud people need legs? They float. Really, they just need their heads and brains. Brains are always good to have. Every species worth its salt should come equipped with brains.
No, no, no! They can’t have mouths! Silly Amena. If they had mouths, they’d need throats and larynxes. Is that the right plural for larynx? Larynxseses…No, I was right the first time.
I suppose cloud people probably communicate by thunder and lightning, like a type of Morse Code lightning flashes, with thunder as the punctuation.
Now how would they see and hear all that? Special sensitivity to photons, maybe, and the hearing’s a no-brainer. They’d just feel the vibrations passing through them.
Hmm. But no nervous system, so no sense of touch…
And what would cloud people even do with themselves? Float around and thunder at each other? And what if two cloud people collided?
It would be really hard to remain an individual when other cloud people keep passing right on through you, mixing their molecules with yours…
Ew. I do not want the life of a cloud person. Now the ability to transform into a cloud for brief periods of time, that would be downright nifty, except, what would happen to my brain while I was all smoky?
What if our clouds are alive and we just don’t realize it? Do clouds think? What would they think about?
“Sure is cold up here in the stratosphere, or would be cold if I had nerve endings capable of perceiving temperature…”
So there might not be a planet of cloud people. But there very well could a planet called Xxryzikaki!
To be continued next Thursday!
May 14, 2013
Get to Know…Hugh B. Long
A science fiction and fantasy author joins us this week, and he’s also an accomplished martial artist! So let’s get to know Hugh B. Long. Welcome, Hugh!
Tell us about your latest work.
I’m actually working on a couple of things at the moment. My big project is the second book in my Tribes of Yggdrasil series, called “Fury of the Northmen”. The first book is titled “Dawning of the Wolf Age”. The Tribes of Yggdrasil series takes place 115 years after mankind makes contact with an advanced alien race called the Alfar. The Alfar, and many of the races in the series, are taken straight form Norse Mythology. The premise of the series is that the Norse Gods ‘seeded’ the Earth, and other planets in the Galaxy, including the Alfar.
The series follows mankind as he steps off his proverbial doorstep, and into the dangerous reaches of space. Which he soon discovers is filled with mythic enemies. The first novel follows the protagonist, Haldor Olsen, as Earth’s first colony is attacked by a vicious race of slavers – the Hrymar. They see humanity as ripe for the picking, and an excellent source of slaves.
This parallels our own history after the Romans left Britain, and the Anglo Saxons came to fill the void, taking over much of the country. Then, centuries later, the raiding was continued by the Scandinavians. (Next to Science Fiction and Fantasy, History is my next love.)
In the second novel, Fury of the Northmen, Haldor Olsen is pursuing a traitor and trying to exact revenge for the death of his family at the hands of the Hrymar. All of this is set against the backdrop of alien mysteries, and political intrigue with galactic consequences.
Facebook Page for “Fury of the Northmen”: https://www.facebook.com/FuryOfTheNorthmen
Amazon link for Dawning of the Wolf Age: http://www.amazon.com/Dawning-Wolf-Tribes-Yggdrasil-ebook/dp/B00AKIF65Q
Where did the idea come from?
My inspiration, like much of Science Fiction, began with the question – what if? What if there really were Norse Gods and Goddesses? And, what if they did somehow have a hand in our development (as the Norse myths tell us)?
Of course those questions could be answered in a Fantasy framework, but since I have a passion for science, I asked another question: What if I answered the first questions, and then advanced the timeframe a century or so? What might that look like? What Technology might these advanced being have?
So really, I’m blending my favorite things: Science Fiction and Norse Mythology. Of course this has been done before, to some extent. But not recently, and not on the scale I have planned. (The Tribes of Yggdrasil is planned to be a nine book series.).
Why do you gravitate toward science fiction and fantasy?
I suppose I enjoy those genres because they do away with pesky limits to my reality. And further, depending on my mood, the plot can be achieved by magic, or by pseudoscience.
Another draw for me, is that both of those genres allow the reader to explore new worlds. I suppose, had I been born a couple of centuries ago, I would have wanted to be an explorer. I could see myself tagging along with Charles Darwin on the HMS Beagle. But since we’ve explored almost every square inch of the planet, that leaves little for us restless souls to satisfy our curiosity. So I content myself with exploration through the worlds of literature, both as a reader and a writer.
What do you most enjoy about writing?
Writing allows me to explore, not only fictional worlds, but also boundaries. I can stretch my imagination and do things that I would never do in real life: I can explore new science, I can plan a murder, visit an alien city, or establish an empire.
Writing also allows the author to bring things to life. I can create people, even entire cultures. People joke about writers playing God, but in all honesty, it’s certainly flirting with the idea. How cool is that?
Please share a writing tip you’ve found helpful.
Give yourself permission to suck. You WILL get better. But only if you keep writing every day.
Write a bad First Draft, and don’t worry about it. Let your fingers scream across the key board and get it on paper, or on the screen. Then, and only then, do you go back and edit.
How does your Masters of Science degree influence your writing?
My Masters of Science Degree is in Management, so it was all about numbers, charts, trends, equations, etc. The Science of Business. This has certainly lead to me being a much more organized writer! Sorting, parsing and categorizing is just in my nature. I want to organize and describe the world around me.
That education comes out in my planning. When you read my work, you’d never know there were half a dozen spreadsheets behind the prose. My academic career prepared me to create a framework, but when I actually sit down to write, that part is completely organic. So I think all in all, it’s made me a better writer; it’s put structure around what natural talent I had, and made it that much better.
I also taught Graduate students for 5 years, so I’ve edited countless papers, and corrected a dizzying number of assignments – that’s made me a much keener self-editor. I still don’t edit my own final work (nor should anyone try), but it’s helpful to clean up the first draft.
Tell us about your martial arts experiences.
Martial Arts have been one of my driving passions in life since I was very young. Of course like most young boys of my generation, I grew up with Bruce Lee movies. And this is back when Chuck Norris was world Karate Champion. When I was fourteen I started studying Shotokan Karate, which is a traditional Okinawan form. It’s not very flashy, but it makes up for that in its brutal efficiency.
I continued to study Karate and Ju-Jitsu (the martial-art with all the nasty joint locks), finally getting a Black Belt in Shito-Ryu (another Okinawan form). I then moved to Washington DC, and took up Ju-Jitsu with a 6‘th Degree Black Belt instructor who taught Special Forces, FBI, Police Task Forces etc. This was amazing stuff! I got my Brown Belt in Budoshin Ju-Jitsu before work had me traveling around the globe and unable to continue taking classes.
Not content without Martial Arts in my life, I stumbled onto Historic European Martial Arts (HEMA). I had no idea that my European ancestors had such codified martial traditions. Sure, I knew there were Knights and all that, but people still practiced this kind of stuff? Yes they do!
So I began training with the German Longsword – two handed sword. It was a dream come true, truly. The cool thing about Historical Fencing (yep, they call playing with the big swords fencing too!) is that they practice with several kinds of weapons. First there are wasters – essentially wooden weapons that are used in day to day training. The Romans used these to train legionaries – although they were the single handed Gladius type swords. They also train with blunt steel swords, and also padded weapons for sparring. But the really cool part, is getting to cut with sharp swords. Commonly called test cutting, we used working replica swords to cut objects. It was surprising how hard it could be if your technique was off. If your cuts weren’t straight, you could bounce off the target.
There’s a great organization called the HEMA Alliance that can direct people to schools and like minded people to study with: http://hemaalliance.com
Needless to say, all this personal experience with Hand to Hand combat and weapons, has allowed me to portray combat scenes in my novels with uncanny realism. That said, I still try to balance that realism with my goal of presenting the reader with an exciting and dramatic experience. Alfred Hitchcock said: “Drama is life with the dull parts left out.” That’s my goal.
So you’ve written both fiction and non-fiction. How do the experiences compare? Why do you write non-fiction under a pen name?
Writing non-fiction versus fiction, is like being a moped mechanic versus a jet mechanic. I initially thought, “Hey this should be easy! I’ve written four non-fiction books, three of which are best sellers, and one of which is an aware winner.” Oh my! Was I in for a shock. My education and experience had all prepared me for non-fiction, which is really just organizing and presenting facts in an interesting and cogent way. Fiction, well, that’s a whole other ball of wax.
They really are completely different skill sets, and I didn’t appreciate that until I sat down and tried to create something. Every word has to come from your mind. With non-fiction, much of the time, you’re organizing extant information, re-wording, annotating, etc. Based on my success with non-fiction, I decided to make the leap into writing full time, and pursuing fiction. I realize now how naive that was.
But, if I’m anything it’s persistent and dogged. I wanted to do this. So what does a writer do when he needs to know something? Well, he reads, of course! And so I began studying the craft of writing. I read dozens of books on the craft, and even took a University Course in creative writing. I’m used to self-study, and that process worked well for me, but if you can, I highly recommend you take classes. Why? If only to have someone who can critique your work. It’s very hard to find good feedback.
I decided to write my non-fiction under a pen name, because I wanted to separate my business identity with my personal one. I had already published many technical articles (I wrote for a magazine for several years). My non-fiction work was all about Norse Mythology and related topics, which is a personal passion of mine. So really, it was all about branding. I had already established a business / corporate brand, and I wanted that to be distinct from my personal interests.
When I decided to write fiction full time, I decided to keep my non-fiction brand in place (Eoghan Odinsson), and to write my fiction under my given name (Hugh B. Long). So, I still have two brands.
The idea behind branding is that fans know what to expect when they read a book by Eoghan Odinsson, versus Hugh B. Long. Many authors do it.
What’s your favorite book?
My favorite book is “Walden” by Henry David Thoreau. For those who haven’t read it, it’s: “personal declaration of independence, social experiment, voyage of spiritual discovery, satire, and manual for self-reliance.” per Wikipedia.
Thoreau wrote it while living in the woods for two years in a cabin he built. The book talks about many of the societal ills that we’d find familiar today, as well as detailing everything that Thoreau observed over those two years.
I re-read Walden every year. It’s like therapy for my soul.
Who is your favorite fictional character? (Any medium)
Wow! Did I ever have to think about this one!
George R.R. Martin’s character Tyrion Lanister, from Game of Thrones. The wit and intellect Martin imbues the little fellow with, is absolutely charming and unforgettable. I really enjoy Martin’s prose, but I find the series ambles a bit too much for my taste, but his writing style – wow!
If you could have one super-power, what would it be and why?
Time Travel: I’d really get to play God! That would be fun. I’d see if I could re-engineer history to create a global utopia. In the end I’d likely make a mess of things and destroy the planet. That’s why people shouldn’t have super-powers!
What’s next for you?
It’s going to be full steam ahead! I’m working on Book 2 of a 9 book series, so that’s a big chunk of my writing time over the next few years. I’m also working on a monthly serial about Zombies in the Viking Era, called Draugr’s Saga. http://www.amazon.com/Draugrs-Saga-1-ebook/dp/B009Z1XQJW
And to keep things fresh, I’m developing a brand new series of genre bending short stories. If it goes well, I may turn them into another series of books. That’s all I can say for now – cant give too much away. Stay tuned to my website for updates. I think they’re going to be crazy exciting!
Where can people learn more about your work?
Fiction:
• Website: www.hughblong.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HughBLong.Author
• Amazon: www.amazon.com/author/hughblong
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/@hughblong
Non-Fiction:
• Website: www.eoghanodinsson.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EoghanOdinsson
• Amazon: www.amazon.com/author/eoghan
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/@eoghanodinsson
Tell us one fun fact about yourself.
I’ve worked in countries spanning the entire globe: All over North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia.
Thank you, Hugh!
May 13, 2013
Amena’s Imagination, #1
Welcome to the Amena’s Imagination, a weekly website-only series serving as a prequel to Earths in
Space.
Follow Amena Wharry’s insomniac mental ramblings on the night before the crew begins exploring other planets. Future installments will be posted at sherrierbooks.com every Thursday.
This is flash fiction — just quick, brief, stream-of-consciousness writing to help lubricate everyone’s imagination, myself included.
And now we turn things over to Amena herself…
Amena’s Imagination
So tomorrow I’m going to do this thing, just a little thing I like to call exploring alien planets.
Yeah. Alien. That’s something, isn’t it? Of course, when I go there, they won’t really be alien, not to themselves, not to their world. I’ll be the alien.
I’m going to be an alien! Always wanted to be an alien. And I don’t mean transforming into some other lifeform. Well, it would depend on the type of alien, and I’m sure there are many lovely aliens worth stepping into their shoes, or whatever they have, for a few minutes or so. But to be myself as an alien—yes. We should all be aliens once in a while. Keep things fresh.
Whit’s got this whole map of planets he’s convinced have life on them. Thing is, we can’t be absolutely certain what kind of life, not until we actually go there.
Could be anything out there, anybody. And I’m going to meet them!
There’s no way I’m getting any sleep, not tonight, so there’s only one thing to do.
Speculate endlessly. Or at least until the morning. Whatever comes first. I sure hope it’s not an endless night.
Anyway. Begin speculation!
To be continued…
