K.M. Alexander's Blog, page 69

200 More

A little over a year ago I hit my two-hundredth post on I make stories. Yesterday, I hit number four-hundred. For the sake of tradition, I figured it’d be a good time to pause and reflect on where I am now. The intent of this blog has always been to document this journey. Share whatever it is, whatever it becomes, with whoever wants to read it.

Two-hundred posts ago I had just released The Stars Were Right and I was about to face a series of weeks without any book sales. I still was months away from handing a manuscript of Old Broken Road over to Lola, my editor. Early spring of 2014 was rough, despite my brave face.

Here I am fifteen months later. I now have well over a thousand books sold. I have three conventions under my belt. I’ve done a couple of live readings. Red Litten World is in Lola’s hands and trucking right along. I’m nearly done with with my new project: O.D.E. and I’ve started outline The Bell Forging Cycle Book IV which has a title (you’ll have to wait for that.) Things aren’t fully sustainable, not just yet. I still work a day job, writing is still a side project, but each day gets me closer.

I know new challenges lay ahead. I’ll face new struggles in the years to come. But I have faced struggles before. I can’t tell you how many times in the past that I have considered giving up. So many times I have felt beat down and exhausted. I have been afraid, angry, and frustrated. But I didn’t let any of those things stop me. I kept going. I kept writing. I kept blogging. I kept releasing. I kept at it.

A big thanks should go out to my readers, you’re the reason I do this. Thanks to everyone who supported me for the last few years. Thanks to everyone who bought my books. Thanks to all of you who helped spread the word, and those of you who spent the time to leave reviews. It means a lot. I wouldn’t be here without you.

I’m not going to dwell for long. There are another two-hundred posts ahead of me and another two-hundred beyond that. Milestones are meant to be passed. I’ll see you at six-hundred.

Filed under: News Tagged: Conventions, o.d.e., Old Broken Road, reflection, the bell forging cycle, The Stars Were Right, writing

#TriggerWarning

“But so much of what we read as adults should be read, I think, with no warnings or alerts beyond, perhaps: we need to find out what fiction is, what it means, to us, an experience that is going to be unlike anyone else’s experience of the story.”

—Neil Gaiman, Little Triggers

I absolutely loved this line. I highly recommend you read the full essay here. You can pick up Neil Gaiman‘s newest collection of stories, aptly title Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances, pretty much everywhere.

Filed under: Quotes Tagged: experience, fiction, Neil Gaiman, reading, trigger warning

Fan Art Highlight – John Martel

Over the weekend I was able to watch the evolution of some fan art from illustrator John Martel. John took a crack at Cybill, the monstrosity from my book The Stars Were Right. Since the book has been out a while I think we’re past the moratorium for spoilers but to be on the safe side I hide his illustrations beneath a break.

If you haven’t read the book yet you can nab it for less than $2.99, however if you have continue onward…

I was shocked at the strangeness of it. Undulating like badly set clay, hundreds of globular eyes emerged from the surface at one end and cascaded across the sides like engorged ticks. They grew smaller near the middle and faded before meeting at the opposite end…

—Waldo Bell, The Stars Were Right, Chapter 23

“Cybill” line work by John Martell

I was blown away right from the start. There’s something terrifying about the way John rendered the creature. The way the eyes hang to the thick lumps of flesh. I also find it fascinating how each illustrator who has drawn Cybill has their own interpretation for how she looks. (There’s no wrong way.) You can see the others and compare them all over on my Fan Art Pinterest board.

…The lower half was composed of fat, chiseled tentacles and odd, spindly appendages in relief that reminded me of the legs of harvestmen spiders. More tentacles moved up the side, sculpted as if they were tangled and knotted together like stone intestines. On the top of the slab, surrounded by a swarm of eyes, a jagged, parrot-like beak beveled out from the rock, wide open as if Cybill was shouting at the tunnel’s ceiling.

—Waldo Bell, The Stars Were Right, Chapter 23

“Cybill” coloring progress by John Martell

The coloring adds a great a bit of depth and makes her seem more alive. I thought he was finished, but nope…

“Cybill” by John Martell

The final coloring is fantastic. The viscous saliva is a nice touch and I really like how one leg is pulling on a fold of skin exposing more eyes. It’s perfect… I mean it’s terrifying, but in that perfect sort of way.

I really enjoyed seeing the process as John posted these on Instagram. Huge thanks to him for not only making this, but posting it, and being willing to let me share it on here. I’m flattered my book provided the inspiration for such a cool piece.

As you can see John is an amazing illustrator. You can view more of his work on his website: johnathanmartel.com. Make sure you check out his tumblr and follow him on Instagram and Twitter as well. John is available for freelance projects and commissions.

So what do you think? How does John’s vision of Cybill match up with your own? Let me know in the comments. I’d love to hear what you think!

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Do you have some fan art you want to share? I’m going to keep highlighting art from Bell Forging Cycle fans and readers and would love to share it with everyone! If you have any fan art submissions please email them to me at: hello@kmalexander.com with the subject line: “Bell Forging Fan Art”. Include any links to a website showing your work so I can share that as well and let me know if people can buy your piece/prints/etc.

Filed under: Art, The Stars Were Right Tagged: cybill, Fan Art, first, Illustration, john martell

Friday Link Pack 05/01/2015

Happy Friday! It’s time to share a few links I’ve found over the last few days. Some of these I mention on Twitter, if you’re not already following me there, please do! Have a link I should feature in the upcoming link pack? Click here to email me and let me know! (Include a website so I can link to you as well.) Let’s get to it…

Writing:

A Question About Editing

Interesting post from Hugh Howey about editing, today’s reader, and the modern expectation of perfection in writing.

The State Of Storytelling In The Internet Age

A quick overview covering how amazing things are to how much of the industry is in flux. It’s now so much easier to reach so many people, and the internet has opened up so many new channels for creators, but new struggles have emerged.

Little Triggers

I am wary of the phrase “trigger warning”, and I’m glad to see Neil Gaiman is with me. I highly recommend checking out this post from his new book Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances. In this excerpt Neil explores how fiction is supposed to push us, teach us things, and help us grow.

The Story You Want to Read

Fellow author and writing group pal, Michael Ripplinger, explores a specific story arc—the return of an ancient evil—that attracted him to writing. It’s always fun recognizing these sort of things in our writing.

A CthulhuCon Debriefing

Last weekend we didn’t have a Friday Link Pack because I was heading down to Portland for CthulhuCon. How did it go? Fantastic! I break it down in this post, hit the highlights, and share a few pictures.

Art:

Artist Transforms The 12 Zodiac Signs Into Terrifying Monsters

I love monsters. Who doesn’t? So I was on board when I saw Damon Hellandbrand‘s take on the familiar zodiac signs. Libra is my favorite.

Catch My Fade – Seamus Conley

So one of Kari-Lise and my favorite artists is Seamus Conley. There’s something so emotional in every one of his pieces. His latest series, Catch My Fade, currently being show at the Andrea Schwartz Gallery in San Francisco, California is nothing short of amazing.

Re-Covered Books Contest: ‘The Old Man and the Sea’

I really enjoy these recover contests that the Fox in Black does occasionally. They’re really handy for indie authors to get some good ideas on cover designs, plus you always find some really beautiful pieces. April’s contest for re-covering Hemingway’s The Old Man and The Sea is no exception.

Random:

The Dezeen Guide To Brutalist Architecture

Not everyone is a fan of brutalism, but I am. There’s something so combative about the buildings, something arrogant. I love the brash unapologetic retro-future style. In this article Dezeen Magazine explores brutalism architecture, and discusses how we should preserve the legacy.

It’s Time to Retire “Boob Plate” Armor. Because It Would Kill You

I think we’re all well aware at how ridiculous (and often sexist) “boob plate” armor can be, but armor’s job is safety, and in this article for Tor.com writer Emily Asher-Perrin gives us the best reason to avoid it: it would kill the wearer. [Thanks to Spencer for sharing this.]

18 Delightfully Artistic Vintage STD Posters

These vintage PSAs from the U.S. Army shows their focus of stamping out VD. They are amusing, terrifying, and well… a bit strange. It’s interesting how it seems to point the finger at women and not the male soldiers who were the guys actually doing most of the sleeping around. Ah, good ol’ sexism solidly alive and well in postwar America.

The Wikipedia Entry For Guam, Retold As A YA Novel

The fake-wikipedia article you always wanted to read. Tropes delightfully abound. [Big thanks to Christine for sharing this one. Hilarious stuff.]

Random Wikipedia Article of the Week:

The Hyphen War

“The Hyphen War (in Czech, Pomlčková válka; in Slovak, Pomlčková vojna—literally “Dash War”) was the tongue-in-cheek name given to the conflict over what to call Czechoslovakia after the fall of the Communist government.”

Lovecraft Story of the Week:

The Other Gods

Barzai the Wise and his disciple Atal climb a mountain to gaze upon the gods of the earth and discover more than they bargained for.

Gif of the Week:

Filed under: Link Pack Tagged: brutalism, cover design, cthulhucon, damon hellandbrand, editing, gotta go fast, h.p. lovecraft, Hugh Howey, little triggers, Neil Gaiman, seamus conley, Storytelling, trigger warning

CthulhuCon PDX Vendor Room Romp

Want to hear my book pitch? Well, last weekend I was lucky enough to be recorded giving my pitch alongside other vendors in the Dealers Room at CthulhuCon PDX. You can watch it below:

I come in around 5:28. Big thanks to Cat from the Northwest Horror Podcast for putting this all together and sharing it with the internet. She’s posted the full list of vendors with links to their site over on their blog and you can check it out here. (Also, you should subscribe to their podcast via iTunes or Stitcher. It’s a lot of fun.)

Filed under: Con Reports Tagged: book pitch, cthulhucon, northwest horror podcast, portland, the bell forging cycle, vendor room

A CthulhuCon Debriefing

The Spring is apparently convention season for me. Norwescon was at the beginning of April and I just wrapped up a weekend in Portland at CthulhuCon PDX. I really enjoyed myself. The convention is an official spin-off from the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival & CthulhuCon it had a lot of great guests and I was honored to be apart of the festivities.

Left to Right: Lockhart, Pugmire, Klinger, Komoda, Alexander, Steele, Hoade.

This was my first time at a convention doing more than just slinging books from behind my table. I not only did I do a reading, I also spent time signing books at the author’s signing, and I participated on a panel. This crowd was different than other conventions, there was zero cosplay which was surprising, and the crowd definitely skewed older. I also received some of the toughest questions I have ever been asked which was fun. You could really see the passion from the attendees. I really appreciated everyone’s excitement for weird fiction.

Reading the Prologue from The Stars Were Right on Saturday evening.

Books sales were solid, especially for such an intimate convention. If it had lasted four days like Norwescon 38, I would have sold out again. Still, even with the shorter time frame sales exceeded what I had expected. It was great to meet so many new readers and it was cool to see folks get excited about the world of The Bell Forging Cycle. It really made me eager to get Red Litten World out into the wild.

On to the highlights:

Having the first person I talked to tell me they saw my book on the Lovecraft eZine , had already picked it up, and were excited to read it. If you’re a mythos fan and you’re not reading the eZine you should rectify that now. Mike Davis is a great guy and runs a good site.
Doing my reading on Saturday night. This was my first Con reading and I loved it. I read the Prologue from The Stars Were Right  in all its grisly detail. Afterward I had a reader approach me afterward and tell me it was not only beautiful, but it also encouraged him to pick up a copy.
New friends and readers! Thanks to all you amazing people who picked up my book. Enjoy! Feel free to email me when you finish and let me know your thought. Also, please tell your friends and leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads they help a lot.
Meeting and talking with Matt and Cat from the Northwest Horror Podcast . Good folks. Cat recorded me doing my pitch, which was fun. I’m now a subscriber and working my way through past episodes.
I loved being a member of the “Creating a Mythos” panel. Ross Lockheart was an excellent moderator and it was an honor to be up there with folks like Wilum Pugmire , Leslie S. Klinger , Paul Komoda ,  Justin Steele , and Sean Hoade . It was a fun discussion. Wish we had a lot more time for questions from the audience but we were all long winded. I know the panel was recorded, if it gets uploaded I’ll be sure to post it here.
Hanging out with the other writers at the Carbload for Cthulhu signing. It was fun, and a nice change of pace.
All you people who picked up on all the mythos references throughout Stars and then came and talked to me about them. I tend to Easter egg a lot of little details like that and it’s awesome when folks find them.
The art show was fantastic. A lot of really great pieces. Thanks to my buddy Sky for dragging me away from the table. Was totally worth it.
While I didn’t get a chance to see him live, Kari-Lise really liked Leeman Kessler’s Ask Lovecraft segment. Mr. Kessler is a wonderful actor and scholar and very entertaining. If you haven’t seen his portrayal of ol’ Howard Philip I encourage you to check out his youtube channel .
Portland food. In particular Tiny’s coffee , Teote’s plate of pork belly, and Montage’s late night martini’s and macaroni.
Portland people. Especially Sky and Zach, good dudes. Thanks for hanging out.
I leveled up my table. (See the photo below.) I think the new banner looks real nice. Wouldn’t you agree?
Having a guy stop by and buy a Bell Caravans patch  specifically for his new OC cosplay. Looking forward to seeing what he comes up with.
All the compliments I receive about the quality of my books. It’s really good to hear. I put a lot of time and effort into each of them so when it stands out to folks I get really excited.
Hanging out with the lovely people in the The Mall of Cthulhu.
Talking  Machen with a fellow fan. Love the Machen.

Overall I came away really happy. Nice to see so many folks come together out of a love for a small segment of literature. Over the course of the con I had several times people asked me if I had read Neil Gaiman’s Hugo winning short story: A Study in Emerald. I haven’t! However, I will be rectifying that tonight. (For those who don’t know it’s a mashup of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes and Lovecraftian Mythos originally published in the anthology Shadows Over Baker Street.) It’s available to read it for free from Gaiman’s website.

I will be back. It was an honor to mingle with some of the greats and introduce a few folks to my own brand of Lovecraftian stories. I cannot say enough how exciting it is to see so many fans come together around a small microcosm of speculative fiction. It’s time now to forge ahead. Convention season isn’t quite over for me. In a few weeks it’ll be time for Josh Montreuil and me to descend upon Lilac City Comicon. In the meantime I have more books to write.

Filed under: Con Reports Tagged: cthulhucon, lovecraft ezine, northwest horror podcast, Old Broken Road, oregon, panel, portland, readings, the bell forging cycle, The Stars Were Right

My CthulhuCon Schedule

Since we’re now less than a week away from the start of CthulhuCon in Portland, Oregon. Since I’m an active participant I figured it’d be handy for me to post my schedule. All this is penciled in, and meant only as a guide. Stuff can change. However, I’ll try to stick to this as much as I can.

[UPDATE 4/22] – I’m now doing an author signing on 10am in Bellmont B and I’ve also gone ahead and updated my schedule with room information as well.

FRIDAY:
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm — Hello, Portland!

I’ll arrive Friday afternoon and I’ll be around. There’s a party that night, but the con really doesn’t kick off until the following morning. But, if you see me, stop me and say hello!

SATURDAY:
10:00 am – 7:00 pm — Hanging out in The Mall of Cthulhu [Bellmont C]

I’ll be in the Dealers Room, selling and signing books all day. The dealers room isn’t large, so look for my big black banner. I’ll have copies of The Stars Were Right and Old Broken Road, as well as a ton of free swag.

Along side me you’ll find a lot of other awesome folks selling their wares. You can see the full vendor list here →

8:00 pm – 9:00 pm — Author Reading 3 [Foyer]

I’ll be joining fellow authors Jim Smiley and Christine Morgan in the Foyer reading an excerpt from The Bell Forging Cycle, Book I: The Stars Were Right.

SUNDAY:
10:00 am – 10:45 am — Author Signing [Bellmont B]

Me and the fourteen other authors attending the convention are going to be hanging out in Bellmont B signing our books.

11:00 am – 12:00 pm — Creating A Mythos Panel [Bellmont B]

Join me and names like: Leslie S. Klinger, Ross E. Lockhart, Wilum H. Pugmire, Justin Steele, and Sean Hoade as we discuss the pluses and minuses of working within a mythos. Full description below:

“One of the mainstays of Lovecraft’s legacy has long been the Mythos he created. Many authors, both before and after Lovecraft, have created a Mythos of their own: Pugmire’s Sesqua Valley, Chambers’s King in Yellow stories, Barron’s Old Leech universe, Dunsany’s Pegana, Clark Ashton Smith’s Hyperborea. Some have outgrown their creators and have opened their doors to many authors to contribute. What is the allure of a Mythos? What are the benefits of writing in one? What are the pitfalls?”

12:00 pm – 4:00 pm — Hanging out in The Mall of Cthulhu [Bellmont C]

After the panel I’ll be found back by my table in the Dealers Room until the end of the convention at 4:00pm.

So there’s my schedule. This weekend my lovely wife, Kari-Lise, will be joining me, so anytime I’m not in the dealer room she’ll be at my table.

Really looking forward to meeting folks and discussing Lovecraft, Mythos, the Territories, weird fiction, and anything else that comes up! I can’t wait, see you at the convention!

Filed under: Reading, Upcoming Appearances, writing Tagged: Conventions, cthulhucon, Old Broken Road, oregon, portland, Swag, the bell forging cycle, The Stars Were Right

A Spring Update

It’s been awhile since I’ve done a news update. Looking back the last time I updated everyone on the progress was back in December. So yeah, time to rectify that. A lot of things have been happening and I am excited about 2015.

The Bell Forging Cycle, Book III — Red Litten World

We’re so close! I can almost taste it.

TEASER SITE IS LIVE

The teaser site for Red Litten World has been live for a while. But I haven’t really called attention to it. You can see what’s happening over on redlittenworld.com. We’re going back to Lovat, people.

COVER REVEAL IS COMING

You read that right. I have finalized the cover of Red Litten World and we’ll be doing a big ol’ cover reveal very soon. I’ll be making a bigger blog post around the coming cover reveal and revealing the date a little later. Subscribers to my newsletter get the first glimpse. So if you’re not a member, sign up today. Just click here to sign up →



MANUSCRIPT HAS MOVED TO EDITING

We’re getting close! As of a week ago I handed the manuscript of Red Litten World over to my editor. Now the hard/fun part begins. The manuscript topped out at 105,823 words which makes this the longest in the series so far. But, I’m sure a big chunk of those will get cut. (That’s a good thing.) Really excited getting into this portion.






CthulhuCon Next Weekend

I’m planning a post about my CthulhuCon schedule later this week. But since it’s coming I did want to hit on some highlights.

I’M DOING A READING

I’m going to be reading the Prologue of The Stars Were Right one evening at CthulhuCon. Come by, say hello, and listen in. (If you want a sneak peek, check out the reading I did this last weekend on Periscope.)

I’M ON A PANEL

I’m going to be on a panel! I will be participating in the Creating a Mythos panel, alongside some incredibly talented people. Names like: Leslie S. Klinger, Ross E. Lockhart, Wilum H. Pugmire, Justin Steele, and Sean Hoade.

AND OF COURSE… BOOKS & MORE

As with every con you’ll be able to pick up copies of The Stars Were Right and Old Broken Road, and I’ll have Bell Caravan patches available. Likewise I will have a bunch of free swag: buttons, stickers, and a ton of bookmarks. Come on by my table in the dealer room and say hello and grab a copy of a book!

Another Vague O.D.E. Updates

So I have been pretty quiet on O.D.E.. So quiet in fact I haven’t really revealed the title! But that’s all going to change real soon. I’m nearly finished with the first draft, and the cover is coming along, and I am pretty excited about the project as a whole. It’s refreshing to write a standalone story.

As I have mentioned in the past, this is much different from The Bell Forging Cycle but it’s a cool world with some engaging characters wrapped up in an intense story, I think you’ll dig it. More to come later.

Introducing: The Faults of Man, A Bell Forging Novella

If you’re a watcher of my project tracker, you’ll have noticed that I am working on a novella title: The Faults of Man. This is intended to be a short story set in the Territories but not told from Wal’s perspective. I’m keeping a lid on the plot right now (you’ll have to wait until Red Litten World arrives) but the idea is this will take place during the events of Red Litten World and will focus on some familiar characters.

Tuesday Tales? Wednesday Words?

So over the weekend I did a reading. I had a lot of fun doing it, and got a pretty warm reception. Kari-Lise suggested I keep doing it, and I thought it’d be fun to make it a weekly thing. Maybe read through The Stars Were Right. I mention it here to really judge the reception of that. If you think it’s something I should do, shoot me an email or leave a comment below. If there’s enough interest we’ll make it a regular thing.

So there’s the spring update. My writing is all in a weird spot, as you can see there is a lot of things coming, but nothing is quite here. That said, a big part of writing is pushing through, and I’m going to keep on pushing. Thanks to all my readers and fans for sticking around, it’ll be worth it.

Filed under: News, O.D.E., Old Broken Road, Reading, Red Litten World, The Bell Forging Cycle, The Stars Were Right, Upcoming Appearances Tagged: Conventions, cover reveal, editing, novella, panels, readings, Teaser, the faults of man, tuesday tales

Watch My Reading Of The Stars Were Right’s Prologue

As I promised on Twitter yesterday here’s the video of me reading the prologue of The Stars Were Right. I had a lot of fun doing this. (Though I was pretty nervous initially.) When it was over I was happy to see that almost 100 people tuned in! How awesome is that? If you missed it live, don’t worry. I’ll do it again real soon, might even make this a weekly occurrence.

Apologies for the portrait mode in the video. For now Periscope doesn’t give you a landscape option. Enjoy the reading!

More information on The Stars Were Right can be found at thestarswereright.com.

Paperback copies are available from: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or My Store.

Ebook copies are available for: Kindle, Kobo, Nook, iBooks, GooglePlay, or buy a DRM-Free ePub from My Store.

Filed under: Reading, The Stars Were Right Tagged: periscope, story time, the bell forging cycle, twitter

Live Reading – 4:00 PM (PST)

As mentioned earlier this week, I am going to be doing a live reading today at 4:00 PM from my first book, The Stars Were Right. To watch, just follow me on Twitter and I’ll tweet when my stream goes live. Or you can watch from your Apple iPhone by using the Periscope App. (My username is kmalexander.)

Those using Periscope can ask me questions. While I won’t be able to see the questions during the reading, once it’s over I’ll happily answer any questions folks may have.

See you at 4:00 PM PST!

Filed under: Reading, The Bell Forging Cycle, The Stars Were Right, writing Tagged: live, periscope, story time, twitter