K.M. Alexander's Blog, page 88
February 13, 2014
Hiatus
Starting tomorrow my blog will be on temporary hiatus. I will be traveling to Australia to accompany Kari-Lise to her solo show “Here Amid the Wild Woods” in Melbourne. Afterward we’ll be hanging around the city for a few weeks. There we will eat good food, drink good drinks, hang with good friends, explore the city (and surrounding Victoria.) Calling this a hiatus is probably bit disingenuous, I may or may not post depending on time/muse/weather/etc but my first goal is to unplug, not blog.
Friday Link Packs will still be posted! Fellow writer Drew Gerken will be picking up the slack in my absence. So make sure you head over to his blog on Fridays for the next three weeks to get your weekly fix of fantastic links.
In my absence there’s also four other blogs I’d recommend you check out:
The Shatzkin Files
Mike Shatzkin is by far one of the best sources for opinions and news on the publishing industry. It doesn’t matter how you publish, you should be reading his blog. Lots of insight.
Dave Farland’s Daily Kick in the Pants
Tips and trick on the craft. Farland is a speculative fiction veteran with a lot of solid advice. I’ve called out specific articles in the past but I’d recommend you visit him on a regular basis.
Lauren Sapala
My friend Lauren is a writing coach based out of San Francisco and she offers a lot though on the process of writing. If you’re looking for encouragement look no further than Lauren.
The Passive Voice
News, quotes, and opinion pieces collected from around the web. The Passive Voice is to writing and publishing what Engadget is to technology. A fantastic resource.
I’ll see you all in March.
Filed under: News Tagged: Australia, Dave Farland, Drew Gerken, Friday Link Pack, Hiatus, Lauren Sapala, Melbourne, The Passive Voice, The Shatzkin Files
And away they go!
Just sent the five signed copies of The Stars Were Right to the latest Goodreads giveaway winners! Excited to get it into their hands. Thanks to everyone who participated. As I said after the last one it’s humbling to see such an amazing turnout for these giveaway. My readers are the best.
Filed under: The Stars Were Right Tagged: Giveaway, Goodreads, The Stars Were Right
February 12, 2014
Signed Copies of “The Stars Were Right” Sold Out Again
Just a quick update: as of this morning I am sold out of signed copies of The Stars Were Right (again!) This is actually perfect timing since I ship everything myself and I am about to head off on vacation any orders would have been delayed by a few weeks which isn’t ideal. Sorry for those of you who missed out on this batch, I’ll get more signed copies back in stock when I return. Until then, you can always get a paperback copy from Amazon or Barnes & Noble and eBooks just about everywhere.
Filed under: The Stars Were Right Tagged: ebooks, Paperbacks, Signed Copies, The Stars Were Right
February 11, 2014
Sony Exits From The eBook Market
Sony has finally decided to exit the eBook space. While personally I have never been impressed with Sony’s readers, I do find this a bit sad as they were one of the eBook pioneers. However with strong rivals and little innovation on their part this really isn’t a surprise. Sony just doesn’t have the numbers to keep supporting development. According to their press release Sony will be transitioning Reader Store to Toronto based Kobo.
Shatskin has a really good write up on the whole thing over on his blog. He includes some links speculating that Nook will be shuttered by the end of the year. I’d recommend checking it out.
Filed under: News Tagged: eBook, Kobo, Nook, Reader Store, Sony
February 8, 2014
When the stars were right…
When the stars were right, They could plunge from world to world through the sky; but when the stars were wrong, They could not live.
—H.P. Lovecraft “Call of Cthulhu”
This is the Lovecraft quote where I took the title for The Stars Were Right, it’s also the epigraph at the beginning of the novel. If you haven’t gotten a copy yet, you should enter to win a signed version over on Goodreads. US Only. Winners will be selected on the 11th! Good luck!
(If you have gotten your copy and finished the book, go leave me a review. I’d really appreciate it.)
Filed under: Quotes, The Stars Were Right Tagged: Call of Cthulhu, Giveaway, Goodreads, H.P. Lovecraft, The Stars Were Right
February 7, 2014
Friday Link Pack 02/07/14
It’s time to share a few interesting links I have found throughout the week. 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 year? Let me know!
Giveaway:
The Stars Were Right Giveaway #2!
That’s right, I am doing another giveaway for five signed copies of The Stars Were Right on Goodreads. (US only.) There’s already a bunch of folks signed up, winners will be selected Feb 11th. Sign up today!
Writing:
Genre fiction and literary fiction
This was the best thing I read all week. Mike Carey, one of my favorite authors, makes some solid points in the whole genre vs. literary fiction discussion. Read it, it’s good.
The secret about advice is knowing when to ignore it
The National’s Bryce Dessner writes a great piece about when to embrace the advice of others and when to ignore it.
Art:
“Here Amid The Wild Woods” New Works by Kari-Lise Alexander
My wife, Kari-Lise, is having a show at Auguste Clown Gallery in Melbourne, Australia. If you’re in Melbourne on February 21st stop in a say hello at the opening, we’ll both be there.
The Art of Laurent Durieux
Mondo Gallery is showing some cool reimagined movie posters by illustrator Laurent Durieux.
Fore-edge paintings hidden in books
In a technique dating back to the 1650s artists hid beautiful paintings in the edges of old books. The results are stunning.
Random:
Real-Life Locations That Would Make Badass Supervillain Lairs
Mountain villas, bunkers, abandoned naval bases, and even a private islands, get inspired by these actual supervillainy locals.
35 Behind-The-Scenes Photos From The Original Star Wars Trilogy
Peter Mayhew who played Chewbacca started tweeting out these incredible photos because #nostalgia and #tbt. Great stuff.
Cashemonet.com
Just go there. (With headphones.)
Lovecraft Story of the Week:
Azathoth
“Of the name and abode of this man but little is written, for they were of the waking world only; yet it is said that both were obscure.”
Farewell Gif of the Week:
Filed under: Link Pack Tagged: advice, Cashemonet.com, genre vs. lit, Here Amid The Wild Woods, Kari-Lise Alexander, supervillains, The Stars Were Right
February 6, 2014
So create.
Why the lucky stiff, photo by Dave Thomas
“When you don’t create things, you become defined by your tastes rather than ability. Your tastes only narrow and exclude people. So create.”
—Why the lucky stiff (aka Jonathan Gillette)
My good friend Ben shared this on twitter the other day. I thought it was poignant and deserved a post here as well.
Filed under: Inspiration, Quotes Tagged: Create, Creative, Quotes, Why the Lucky Stiff
February 5, 2014
THE GAP by Ira Glass
THE GAP by Ira Glass from frohlocke on Vimeo.
Filed under: Inspiration Tagged: Beginners, frohlocke, Ira Glass, Taste, The Gap, Video
February 4, 2014
February 3, 2014
Why not you?
Yesterday, my hometown team, the Seattle Seahawks won Super Bowl XLVIII thrashing the Denver Broncos and leaving a final score of 43-8. Before the game I watched an interview with the Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and one of the comments I heard from him really resonated with me as a creative:
“I remember my dad asking me one time, and it’s something that has always stuck with me: ‘Why not you, Russ?’ You know, why not me? Why not me in the Super Bowl? So in speaking to our football team earlier in the year, I said, ‘Why not us? Why can’t we be there?’”
I thought that was a fantastic outlook and something every creative should try and emulate. Why not you? Why can’t you be a successful musician? Why can’t you teach yourself to program? Why can’t you sell your book to a publisher? Why can’t you become a singer?
Usually we make excuses. We try and talk ourselves out of achieving our goals. Fear plays into it, instead of throwing ourselves into the challenge, we fear failure. Sometimes we fear it so much that we never go for it. Our dreams remain in a desk drawer, or folded up and tucked away in storage, or hidden in a home office. You know what: failures and mistakes can be overcome.
There are people proving it every day. Wilson was the 12th pick in the third round of the draft and he just helped his team win a Super Bowl. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis turned down offers from major label and forged their own path and recently won the grammy for best rap album.
It can be done. It takes hard work and perseverance but it can be done.
So why not you? Why not now?
Filed under: Random Tagged: Broncos, Creative, Creative Process, Inspiration, Russell Wilson, Seahawks, Super Bowl XLVIII
