Raima Larter's Blog, page 6

Annual Writing Report - 2021

 As the end of another pandemic year approaches, I am finding myself grateful for my writing, which has been central to keeping me sane and productive for almost two years now. 

I've just looked back at last year's "Annual Writing Report" and see that December found me looking forward to the publication of my book, Spiritual Insights from the New Science: Complex Systems and Life. I spent much of January and February finishing the manuscript, which then went through copy-editing, layout and final publication - in May, several months ahead of schedule. It has now appeared in hardcover, paperback and e-book formats. You can get it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, through your local bookstore (see BookShop.org) or directly from the publisher, World Scientific Publishing.

This book was nearly three decades in the making, so reaching this publication goal was truly the dream of a lifetime. It seems to have sold well, and was the #1 best seller on Amazon for new releases in Chaos Theory and Chaos & Systems for weeks on end. Very exciting!

I also had a few short pieces published this year: a humorous short story, "The Interview," published by Funny Pearls; another funny piece, "Assembly Instructions for a Love Triangle," published by Janus Literary; a short science fiction story, "Big Blue Marble," published by Utopia Science Fiction; and a short nonfiction piece, "Bedtime Stories," published by Washington Independent Review of Books.

In addition to all this publishing, I wrote a lot of new pieces. I finished a draft of a scifi novel and have started shopping it around to publishers and agents. I also finished another novel draft, but this one is still in first-draft stage and not likely to be done until at least sometime next year. 

I also wrote scads of short stories, flash fiction pieces and poems and have submitted them more than 70 times this year. So, I'm also happy to report that I've received many rejections...and, yes, I am happy about that, because it means I'm finishing things and sending them out.

Finally, I participated in NaNoWriMo for the eighth time this year, working on a story that involves one of the secondary characters in my earlier novel, Belle o' the Waters. This story, about Maggie McPhee, is likely to become a novella, if I can tighten it up and get it down to something closer to novella length. If I succeed, this would be my first novella, but hopefully not my last!

Two New Stories - Just Published!

 

Yesterday was a good day in my writing life; two stories were published on the same day! Utopia Science Fiction published my short story, Big Blue Marble, and Janus Literary published my hermit crab flash fiction piece, Assembly Instructions for a Love Triangle. The two pieces are very different from one another, so please take a look!

Two New Stories - Just Published!

 

Yesterday was a good day in my writing life; two stories were published on the same day! Utopia Science Fiction published my short story, Big Blue Marble, and Janus Literary published my hermit crab flash fiction piece, Assembly Instructions for a Love Triangle. The two pieces are very different from one another, so please take a look!

Special Offer!

 

My publisher, World Scientific, is offering my new book at 20% off the list price if you order directly from them. Use the QR code or this link with the Promo Code above to get your copy now! 

The book seems to be flying off the shelves. It's been ranked near the top of the list in Amazon's Hot New Releases in several categories and was #1 in Chaos & Systems last night:

Thanks to all of you that have already purchased your copy. Please leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads when you've finished reading. Thanks!!

Special Offer!

 

My publisher, World Scientific, is offering my new book at 20% off the list price if you order directly from them. Use the QR code or this link with the Promo Code above to get your copy now! 

The book seems to be flying off the shelves. It's been ranked near the top of the list in Amazon's Hot New Releases in several categories and was #1 in Chaos & Systems last night:

Thanks to all of you that have already purchased your copy. Please leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads when you've finished reading. Thanks!!

Publication Day!

 My new book is out!

My latest book, "Spiritual Insights from the New Science: Complex Systems and Life," has just been published by World Scientific Publishing. Order your copy today, and please leave a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads after you've read it. Books can be ordered directly from the publisher, on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or from your favorite local bookshop. Please spread the word!

Publication Day!

 My new book is out!

My latest book, "Spiritual Insights from the New Science: Complex Systems and Life," has just been published by World Scientific Publishing. Order your copy today, and please leave a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads after you've read it. Books can be ordered directly from the publisher, on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or from your favorite local bookshop. Please spread the word!

Pre-Order My New Book!

 

I'm very excited to announce that my next book is available for pre-order now! You can order your copy directly from the publisher, on Amazon, or through your favorite indie bookstore, through BookShop.org. 

Pre-Order My New Book!

 

I'm very excited to announce that my next book is available for pre-order now! You can order your copy directly from the publisher, on Amazon, or through your favorite indie bookstore, through BookShop.org. 

Book Contract!

 

The Lorenz Attractor
I'm thrilled to announce that I've just signed a contract with World Scientific to publish my book, Spiritual Insights from the New Science. This book has been "in progress" for almost thirty years and bringing it into the world has been my dream for all of that time--which means that this is, literally, a dream come true. 

World Scientific is a major science publisher based in Singapore, producing upwards of 600 books per year as well as almost 150 scientific journals. They also have a growing list of popular science titles, of which my book will be a part. We don't have a firm publication date, yet, but I'm guessing it will be in late 2021. 

Here is a description of the book:

Spiritual Insights from the New Science is both a memoir of a life in science and a guide to the deep spiritual wisdom drawn from one of the newest areas of science, the study of complex systems.  The author, a former research scientist with three decades of experience in the field of complexity science, tells her story of being attracted, as a young student, to the study of self-organizing systems where she encountered the strange and beautiful topics of chaos, fractals and other concepts that comprise complexity science. Using the events of her life, she describes lessons drawn from this science that provide insights into not only her own life, but all our lives. These insights show us how to weather the often disruptive events we all experience when we are growing and changing.

The book goes on to explore, through the unfolding story of the author’s life as a practicing scientist, other key concepts from the science of complex systems: cycles and rhythms, attractors and bifurcations, chaos, fractals, self-organization, and emergence. Examples drawn from religious ritual, dance, philosophical teachings, mysticism, native American spirituality, and other sources are used to illustrate how these scientific insights apply to all aspects of life, especially the spiritual. Spiritual Insights from the New Science shows the links between this new science and our human spirituality and presents, in engaging, accessible language, the argument that the study of nature can lead to a better understanding of the deepest meaning of our lives.

I am so grateful to all those who have helped bring this book this far--my critique partners, writing instructors, and all those who have cheered me on. When I first got the idea for this book, I had written nothing but scientific articles and memos for work, and did not have a clue about how to write this type of book. This is one reason why it's taken me almost 30 years to bring it into the world. 

The other is, of course, life, which has a way of intervening. I do think, though, that the experience I've gained over the last several decades in writing about science for the public and writing fiction has equipped me for this undertaking. I expect the book will be a lot better than it would have been back in the 1990s when I first started scribbling notes for it.

I look forward to posting more information about this exciting publishing adventure as it becomes available. Stay tuned!

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