C.H. Clepitt's Blog, page 9

New Female-Driven Sci-Fi Web-Series Launches Indie-a-go-go Campaign

You may remember back in 2017, we had the pleasure of interviewing a visitor to Earth, Lex Kepler.

Despite the current planetary situation, they are still here, and hoping to raise money to document their time here as a web series! Find out more below!

Award-winning women writers and founders of She-Fi launch “My Human Experience” web-series crowdfunding campaign, representing diverse characters, and women (alien and human alike) in STEM careers.

Monday, August 26th, 2019 – San Diego, California and (Sara’s city), Ohio will be the launch points of an online crowdfunding campaign to raise $15,000 to launch “My Human Experience,” a sci-fi web series created by Aimee Dansereau and Sarah Cooke. Dansereau and Cooke run She-fi a sci-fi fan page on Facebook and Twitter focused on women and underrepresented voices in science fiction media. Their script placed as a finalist (one of the top 10) in the Creative World Awards Screenwriting Contest, and quarter-finalist in the Screencraft Pilot Launch Competition.

The series stars Lex Kepler, an alien physicist and explorer sent to Earth on a serious mission. Lex hopes to study the great minds and scientists of the human race—but instead is sent to a college campus to study relationships with her lackadaisical co-worker, Xalax, who received the prestigious Earth assignment by being the admiral’s son. The series portrays women in STEM fields and diverse characters as Lex and Xalax meet and date people who help them find their humanity.

The series takes a look at human society and the human condition from an outside, alien perspective. Each season, Lex and Xalax study different aspects of our human world: relationships, social media, current trends, pop culture, families, friendships, racism, LGBTQ+ discrimination, and so on.

Already attached to the series is Jenn Page and her team Heart on Fire Productions. Page is an accomplished, multi-award-winning feature and series director recently selected by

TaketheLeadWomen.com as one of the “Women Who Can Change the World in Media Entertainment.” She’s filmed projects for/with internationally known brands such as Marvel’s Agents of Shield, The Mindy Project, The Voice, and more.

Updates will be available on the My Human Experience fan page https://www.facebook.com/MHESeries and the MHE twitter @MHESeries

as well as on Lex Kepler’s twitter @Lex_isanalien – where Lex comments on the happenings of Earth and her “outsider” perspective.

To support the “My Human Experience” Campaign, please visit https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/my-human-experience/x/7664292#/, or  mheseries.com

7 Questions

Today’s 7 Questions are with author of paranormal historical romance, A L Lester. When they’re not writing and spending time with their family, they are keeping geese and making beer! They’ve taken some time out from their hectic schedule (and school holidays) to chat books and badgers with us!

 

1. So, let’s start with the most important thing, tell us all about your childhood badger.

My childhood badger was, in fact, my mother’s badger, before I was born. The law in the UK changed to protect badgers in 1973, but before then, farmers dug up their setts and killed them. Back in 1960s, a chap who was sweet on my mother saved her a cub from a dig. It’s mother was killed and Mama stepped in and raised it. It had a large pen in the garden and spent a lot of time in the house. Apparently they used to have to wear wellington boots at meal-times because it liked to play under the table and nip people’s toes to make them jump. They used to go for walks together on moonlit nights and catch worms moon-bathing, where they lie half out of their casts at night. Eventually Stripey spent more and more time away from home and must have got a mate. She never settled completely in the wild though and would come back and visit, once when she had a broken jaw that she needed to recuperate from. I am really sad that I was born after she left and sometimes think I would like a pet badger myself, but of course they are much better left in the wild and protected from people killing their parents.

2. Two and a half degrees? What about these inspired you to become a writer?

I think studying the past- my first degree was history and archaeology- gives you a good grip on humanity, if you do the right reading. I was always more interested in the day to day stuff about how people in the villages lived rather than politics. And I’ve always been interested in sci-fi and fantasy, so that led to the courses I did as a mature student. And I’ve always written. So it was more a process, building toward having the confidence to show other people and the time to actually finish things. I think reading probably pushed me in to my academic choices rather than the other way round. I discovered Dorothy Dunnett in my teens and the meticulous detail of her books definitely pushed me both toward history and toward writing.

3. What is it about historical fiction that appeals most to you?

I like playing in worlds that aren’t my own. Historical fiction is just another fantasy world, when it comes down to it. Writers mostly don’t tell stories about syphilis and being cold and hungry and afraid because the Vikings are coming to burn your house and you might die in childbirth. Or if we do, as romance writers it’s definitely in passing, setting up the premise for a happy ending. It’s a pre-made world to play in. I like learning about other cultures and writing and reading historical fiction allows that, if it’s done well. I hope I do it well- I try and be as accurate as possible in my historical world-building so that I can go bonkers creating impossible portals to other worlds and having monsters pop out and non-cis, non-straight people having innocuous happy endings.

4. Do you prefer writing about men, or has it just turned out that way?

It’s just turned out that way for these first two books I think. In retrospect, Lost in Time and Shadows on the Border seem to be part of my journey to working out that I’m non-binary, exploring my own concept of masculinity. Plus writing about men in a 1920s police environment is more straightforward than writing about women detectives- there were so few. And I knew that I wanted to write about the different experiences between someone who had fought in WW1 and a contemporary-era person of a similar age who travelled back in time (CLUE: THEY’RE HUGE DIFFERENCES). The MCs of one of my current works in progress are both born women, and one is non-binary. And in a further sequel to Shadows, Fenn, one of the MCs, is non-binary, although in an elfy, alien-being kind of way rather than a human one.

5. What can we expect next from you?

I’m working on a few things all set in my Lost in Time universe. I’ve got two main works in progress on the boil at the moment – a sequel to my short story The Gate, which I’m serialising every month in my newsletter and aiming to turn in to a full length novel and publish when I’m done. And a book set in the Himalayas in the 1780s between a female botanist and a non-binary archaeologist who are trying to work out how the archaeologist’s father died with the working title The Flowers of Time. I am learning a lot about both the era and the area and am doing things like making my own butter and my own lamps and pressing flowers as hands on experiments.

6. Describe your ideal sandwich?

Gluten-free! I rotate between sausage (with red sauce, please), crisps and butter (chips, for you US-ians), and a pie. You take a pie (usually a Cornish Pasty) and you place it between two slices of bread and VOILA! a pie sandwich. Food of the gods. Please don’t judge me.

7. Which of your books are you most proud of?

Crikey. Erm. I honestly don’t know how to answer this one. I have rubbish Imposter Syndrome and tend to think everything I have published is just an accident because the relevant acquisitions editor wasn’t concentrating when they read the manuscript. I guess I feel immensely proud of anything I actually manage to finish- managing my own health issues and caring for my daughter and actually having some sort of family life around all that leaves me very little time for writing. So being able to type ‘the end’ on anything is a huge achievement.

And if this inspired you to find out more, you can find A L Lester all over the interwebs…


http://allester.co.uk
Twitter/Insta: @CogentHippo
Facebook: @ALLesterAuthor
And read excepts from books here: http://www.allester.co.uk/lost-in-time/

Guess the Movie

We were super pleased with the response we had for last week’s “Guess the Movie” quiz. The answer was, of course E.T.

We had a lot of correct answers, and we will be working through and creating your mythical creatures, but below is the first correct answer, where we turned Jenny’s guinea pig into a “piggycorn”.

I you would like an equally impressive interpretation of you or your pet as a mythical creature, have a go at the quiz below! Can you guess the movie? Answers in the comments!

7 Questions

Today’s 7 Questions are with Spanish Author, Antonio Heras. He is the author of queer novels including historical fiction and vampires and erotica. At the moment he only has one short story translated to English, but as lots of you speak Spanish, you can go and check out his books!

 

1. Working in a museum sounds fun, would you say it inspired you to write historical fiction?

At the time I wrote “Your non-sense words” (Tus palabras sin sentido), my neo-Victorian novel, I wasn’t working at museums; I was kind of obsessed with Jane Austen, Henry James, DH Lawrence, so it was pretty natural for me to write about characters located in England, XIX.

But since I’ve started this job I’ve found a lot of inspiration, ideas for short stories, maybe another novel… Being surrounded of art and a peaceful environment is quite a blessing for me, if I’m being honest.

2. Vampires are great, because you can include history and fantasy, what sort of twist will you be putting on yours?

Buffy the Vampire Slayer is my mayor inspiration for my incoming vampire novel. I want it to be a gay version of Twilight, but with a lot of sex and adventure. It will be titled “Hidden” (Oculto).

3. Do you have any plans to translate your work into English?

I’ve been thinking a lot about it. Two of my short-stories are translated already, one for a magazine and the other one for my blog. Maybe if I find a good (and cheap!) translator I will do it, because some people have ask me already about it. My rusty English is not good enough! (crying emoji).

4. Describe your ideal sandwich.

Yummy! Let’s think about it… It will have a spicy sauce for sure. And meat. And salad. And onion. Plus green pepper. Add more spices. Oh, wait… It’s a DONNER KEBAB…

5. What would win in a fight between a vampire and a werewolf?

In movies, most of the time the werewolf is the winner and I just cannot stand it! I will be always #TeamVampire! But in my ideal fight, they will start fighting and then they look at their eyes, found the beauty in the other and kiss, embrace, and a lot more of things I can not explain now because it is too kinky.

6. Who is your favourite author?

Jean Genet and Dennis Cooper. One dead, one alive. Both so amazing, creative, self-destructive and talented. Immense talent for the construction of language, style, composing words as it was the first time a human do that.

7. What are your writing plans for the future?

Finishing Hidden (Oculto), my vampire novel; keeping my blogs active with, at least, one post per month; adding 9 short stories to my ebook of erotic fiction, An Easy Target (Un blanco fácil); and, with a bit of luck, finishing the script of a internet series (I also make short movies).

If you enjoyed this interview you can find Antonio all over the web!

 

MY AMAZON PAGE: https://www.amazon.es/l/B0795T4NCD?_encoding=UTF8&redirectedFromKindleDbs=true&ref_=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1&rfkd=1&shoppingPortalEnabled=true

MY PERSONAL BLOG: https://antuanausten.wordpress.com/

MY PORN/ARTISTIC BLOG: https://gayumbosezine.wordpress.com/

MY TWITTER: @armaimpaciente

MY ARTISTIC FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/armado.de.impaciencia/

MY VIMEO https://vimeo.com/user2970644

MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL https://www.youtube.com/user/peyreffite

Badger’s Guess the Movie Quiz

Annie’s Guess the movie quiz is still one of our most popular posts, so we thought we’d bring back the Monday quiz, with a series of “guess the movie” quizzes.

If you think you’ve got what it takes to guess the movie, pop your answer in the comments! If you guess correctly, we will draw a picture of you, or your pet as the mythical creature of your choosing. How exciting is that. Bet you’ve never been drawn as a mythical creature before! You can guess in the comments section here, or get in touch through any of our social media channels.

Good luck Nibblers.

 

Martin’s Fashion Weekly

Yes, we skipped a week, but fear not, Nibblers, we have the info, just a bit delayed. So, here is indie author and friend of Newsnibbles, Martin Frowd’s last two weeks of outfits:

Week 1:

Definitely wearing clothes today.

A New and Exciting Magazine for Writers

Friend of Newsnibbles Claire Buss recently dropped us a line to tell us about an exciting new project she’s involved in. Speaking to our reporter she said:

Write On! Magazine is a great community initiative designed to bring together diverse writers from across Barking & Dagenham, Newham, Redbridge, Southend and beyond. Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been writing for years, Write On! aims to be a platform for individual writing voices as well as a writing resource.

See the press release below for more details.

Publishing lies at an intersection of entertainment, information and education and is the method by which we record our culture. Our culture is shifting and diverse communities such as the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, supported by the Arts Council under the Project Banner Pen to Print, are creating structures that ensure everybody can participate.  Write On!  is a new quarterly magazine published by Pen to Print, that links local writing communities into the publishing industry by showcasing the work of emerging writers.



Sue Williamson, Director for Libraries, Arts Council England, said:

“The Arts Council is delighted that the Pen to Print project, run by Barking and Dagenham Libraries, is launching Write On! magazine in print and online. Pen to Print is being funded as one of the six new library National Portfolio Organisations (NPOs) in the Arts Council portfolio and we believe that Write On! provides a great platform for the excellent work that is being done to support writing talent in the community.

We are keen for the UK’s literary landscape to become more representative. Write On! catalyses outreach and opportunity by showcasing homegrown voices, built with expert support from their local community. We are hopeful that by inviting engagement from other emerging writing communities, Write On! will encourage the publishing industry to engage further with underrepresented grass roots writers.”

A projected 30,000 readership comes from the 10,000 copies of the magazine to be distributed directly through Libraries and other community spaces in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham as well as Havering, Newham, Southend, Redbridge. National and international communities are reached via an online publication on pentoprint.org. The volunteer editorial team is drawn from local writing communities, including Wilbur and Niso Smith adventure writing finalists.

Pen to Print’s ethos is simple, by growing local writing communities, communities are built. The diversity of our changing world is captured by emerging storytellers who  Write On!  is connecting into a formal platform that allows them to be heard. This new magazine is a vehicle that makes it possible for the publishing world to connect with diverse, and sometimes alienated, communities. It doesn’t just showcase people, work and ideas, but invites publishing and business communities to participate by offering real value in the terms of engagement.

In the words of Barbara Nadel, best-selling author and Pen to Print Mentor:
“I’m from the East End and believe that we East Enders are natural storytellers.  Pen to Print builds on this by creating a bridge between an informal storytelling community and the main stream (and sometimes very exclusive) publishing world.”

With mentors drawn from across the writing spectrum, Pen to Print supported authors like Claire Buss, have gone on to win industry awards and find agents.

A final word from Cllr Saima Ashraf, Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Community Leadership & Engagement, LBBD and Chair of the Pen to Print Advisory Panel.

“We believe that Write On! provides a unique meeting point, propelling writers from working-class and minority backgrounds with something to say into publication. An authentic storytelling platform inspires readers, writers and commercial entities to come together in new and innovative ways; building positive social change by helping our Borough record who we are now, while creating a blueprint for who we want to be in the future.”

We invite publishers and agents and the publishing press to engage with us, building on the platform Write On! provides to offer expertise and opportunities for local writing communities across the country. Further information and commercial opportunities see our the media pack. We also welcome partnership discussions.
 

 

For more information or further comment, please contact:

Madeleine White, Editor
Write On! Magazine by Pen to Print
madeleinefwhite@hotmail.com
+44 (0) 7904835188

Martin and Maria’s Fashion and Food Weekly

As you know, the very fashionable (and amenable) Martin Frowd has been sending us weekly fashion updates – and this week he has been joined by some friends. Regular contributor, Maria Riegger threw her hat in the ring, and some random woman on the internet joined in too, which is nice! Badger even took a fashion shot, seeing as everyone else was…

Martin

Black trousers and a black Raelynn t-shirt today – going to a Raelynn concert tonight, can’t wait! Are we doing good as well as fashion now?

Martin and Maria’s Fashion (and Food) Weekly

As usual, the lovely Martin Frowd has given us an update on his Friday fashion choice, and friend of Newsnibbles, Maria Riegger chimed in with her Friday food choice, to add some diversity to the section.

Martin:

Wearing my analyst t-shirt today: black t-shirt with white text “There are two kinds of people in the world:  those who can extrapolate from incomplete data”

He added when questioned:

Yes of course I have trousers on! My office isn’t *that* permissive. :p Black ones today. No jacket or hoodie b/c it’s hot here!

Well, the photo wasn’t clear, so we had to check…

Maria:

Now, first cup of coffee

Martin And Maria’s Fashion Weekly

This week, the lovely Martin Frowd (indie author and badger supporter extraordinaire) is joined by the equally lovely Maria Riegger (who has released a book this week, excitings).

They have taken time out from their busy schedules to tell us exactly what they’re wearing. Which is nice…

Martin:

Today’s ensemble: cream trousers, grey Cassadee Pope t-shirt (new acquisition from Monday’s gig), black Taylor Swift hoodie because the sun has vanished again, eaten by voracious clouds like sky piranhas.

Maria:

I just got back from the park with the dogs, so I’m wearing a T shirt and cargo pants

And if you would like to feature in next week’s fashion column, be sure to tweet us with a description and photo of what you’re wearing. Fame is literally a tweet away…