K.M. Alexander's Blog, page 93

Recent Bookquisitions

I always have a queue for the books I am reading. Anytime something strikes my fancy I buy it and add it to the stack or else I’ll forget and then miss out. Well, my pile has grown larger and I thought it be fun to share some of my recent acquisitions:

Pallitine Rising by Roderick Davidson

I haven’t read any fantasy in a while and I’ve only heard good things about Roderick Davidson‘s first novel so I picked this up. (It’s on sale right now so nab it while you can.) Adventure, knights, dragons, and creepy cults? Sign me up.

Hawkeye, Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon by Matt Fraction

Hawkeye had always been a fringe hero and kind of worthless in my opinion. (Sorry die-hard Hawkeye fans… all six of you.) However word on the street is Matt Fraction‘s treatment is amazing, hilarious, and a must read that completely revitalizes the character. Okay. I ain’t going to lie… I read this the moment I got home. Everything I wrote was true. If you read comics pick this up.

Jagannath by Karin Tidbeck

After I posted my recommendation of Elizabeth Bear’s short story Shaggoth’s in Bloom a few weeks back fellow blogger Matt Rice over at Books, Brains and Beer recommended this collection of new weird stories. Looking forward to diving in.

So that’s the most recent editions to my queue. These three will be joining the seven other in the stack. What’s about you? Bought anything good lately? Anything you’re excited about? Leave a comment and let me know! I’m always looking for a good book.

John Kenn’s Monsters

This work is just way too awesome not to show you guys. Make sure you click to see it all enormous. It’s incredibly detailed and a little bit creepy. Check out more of John Kenn’s work here. He has an Edward Gorey vibe I really dig.

Unititled by Don Kenn

Okay, now back to work…

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Writing, Editing, Updating…

National Novel Writing Month is in full swing, and if you’re participating I hope everything is trucking along for you. Those first few days are fun. Stick with it, even when the going gets tough. I know when I first participated I learned a lot about how I work and what need to do to be successful – that said, I have never “won” NaNoWriMo. You know what? That’s okay. The important thing is I am writing.

As with the years before I am participating. I’m working on a new title (it’s the unnamed one in the right hand tracker) I had a bit of a jump on it, but I was able to complete 6300 words over the weekend. Not as much as I wanted but sizeable and it puts me on course to finish the 50k word goal at the end of the month.

Things are still going great for “The Stars Were Right” sales are steady. With the exception of Nook (which has become a huge thorn in my side) the book is now available in every major eBook store, and is getting great reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. So if you haven’t bought it yet, pick your poison!

Kindle
iBooks
Kobo
GooglePlay
Direct

Physical copies of Stars are getting real close. I am real excited. I have a pretty cool promotion worked up, I think you all will love it. More to come on that a later. I will also have some updates on “Old Broken Road” coming soon. Until then it’s back to work!

Scrivener

Often I am asked “what do you write in?” It’s a question one a lot of writers are asked and one I am very eager to answer: I write with Scrivener on a Mac, and I absolutely love it.

Scrivener is a hard program to really explain. Everyone uses it differently. In a lot of ways it’s like Photoshop in that it becomes what the user needs it to be. If you’re writing a screenplay it can accommodates that, if you’re working on a novel and like working scene to scene it can work with that as well, if you’re like me and write in chronological order Scrivener allows that as well.

It’s an organizer. A note keeper. A name generator. It can be just input (like the screenshot above) removing all distractions and allowing you to focus only on your words. It can also be an alarm, notifying you know when you have hit your word count goal. In short: it’s incredibly powerful.

Like most customizable programs the learning curve can be a bit daunting. Rather than rehash what has been written about time and again, I’ve collected  links by folks like me who use Scrivener, people who have converted to Scrivener, and why you might want to  consider it for your own writing:

Michael Hayatt: 5 Reasons I Switched to Scrivener for All My Writing


3 reasons I’m a Scrivener fan
If Scrivener was a man, I’d marry it.
Write to Done: How to Write Faster and Get Organized with Scrivener
The Creative Pen: Scrivener: 3 Reasons You Should Use It For Your Book
This Itch of Writing: Why I’m a convert to writing with Scrivener
While the Kids are Sleeping: The New Love of My Life: Why Using Scrivener Makes Writing a Book So Easy

Since we’re on the eve of NaNoWriMo I should add: if you don’t use Scrivener and are participating in NaNoWriMo I wouldn’t encourage switching to any new program. Not yet. For now write what you’re comfortable in and come to Scrivener when you able to spend some time to learn a new piece of software and aren’t trying to put up 1613 words a day.

Visual Inspiration by Gustavo Mendonca

I love cityscapes. Those of you who have read “The Stars Were Right” will know instantly why I am attracted to these concept pieces by Gustavo Mendonca for the now canceled Star Wars 1313 video game. There’s something in these three pieces that captures a seedy and gritty part of a sci-fi city while still remaining grounded and feeling like people live there. (Something missing from the prequels, if you ask me.) It’s a shame this game will never get to see the light of day. These even more over on Gustavo Mendonca’s portfolio I would encourage you to take a look. As always click any of the following to see them larger:

Star Wars 1313 Street Detail by Gustavo Mendonca

Star Wars 1313 Alley by Gustavo Mendonca

Star Wars 1313 Alley II by Gustavo Mendonca

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Black Heart Magazine Review and iBooks Update!

Busy, busy, busy! I’ll be keeping this short but there is a few things I wanted to share:

Over the weekend Black Heart Magazine reviewed “The Stars Were Right” — if you missed it on twitter fret not! You can read the review right here.
Secondly, “The Stars Were Right” is now available on iBooks! FINALLY! Took longer than I wanted but I was able to work out the kinks over the weekend. So those of you waiting for the iBooks edition, have at it!

That’s all for now, my fighting with the Nook’s formatting bugs continue, and I’m still hard at work on “Old Broken Road.” I remain on schedule for the physical release for “The Stars Were Right.” As always: if you have read Stars make sure you leave a review and tell your friends!

Do you have any comments, questions, or just want to say hello? Email me at: hello at kmalexander.com and let me know what is on your mind.

I want to live in Guillermo del Toro’s “Bleak House”

Well, maybe not live, but I’d love to spend a few hours (days) writing there.

Friday Link Pack

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! I’m always looking for new links if you have any suggestions, let me know.

Writing:

The Best Symbols to Throw Some Scare into Your Story

I am a huge fan of symbolism. I think it can add an extra layer of depth for the readers willing to do the leg work. It also creates a richer experience overall. In this post Lauren Sapala shares a few spooky symbols you can add to your own writing.

Hell Hath No Fury Like a Superfan Scorned (Warning: Divergent series spoilers)

“Allegiant”—the last book in Veronica Roth’s Divergent series (this years Young-Adult juggernaut)—has landed and it didn’t end the way fans expected or wanted. This has lead to over three-hundred 1 star reviews on Amazon, shocking reactions from the fan community, and some pretty shameful behavior as well.

Every First-Edition Ian Fleming James Bond Book Cover (1953-1966)

I debated between putting this in Writing or in Art. Decided it worked better here. As the title suggests it’s every single one of Ian Fleming’s covers for the James Bond series. Live and Let Die is probably my favorite. What’s yours?

Art:

The Shopkeep and the Umbra

Once again, if you missed Sean Cumiskey‘s fanart for my own book “The Stars Were Right.” Make sure you give it a look. It’s awesome.

Enki Bilal at Musée des Arts et Métiers

My good friend Jimmy lives in Paris and he blogs about being an expat. His recent post highlights a recent art exhibit by comic book artist Enki Bilal and it’s pretty dang rad.

Random:

Meme Scenery

The backgrounds of famous internet meme’s extracted and show by themselves. They feel so … lonely.

Sex, Drugs, and Broomsticks: The Origins of the Iconic Witch

Atlas Obscura, one of my favorite blogs, tracks down the origin of the icon witch: the pointy hat, the broomstick, etc. (Note: if nudity in classical painting offends thee you might want to skip this one.)

Nuance

Dance + light + music + awesome cinematography = um … just do yourself a favor and watch this.

Lovecraft Story of the Week:

The Cats

A short little poem for your Friday. Some good (and creepy) mental imagery.

Farewell Gif(s) of the Week:

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What do we have here?

Yep, “The Stars Were Right” is getting real paper books! Here’s the proof in my first video post! Let me know what you think in the comments.

Fan Art Highlight – Sean Cumiskey

“The Shopkeep and the Umbra” by Sean Cumiskey

Do yourself a favor and click on the image above or click here and see this illustration larger. It needs to be see at full resolution. This piece of fan art comes from Sean Cumiskey and is entitled “The Shopkeep and the Umbra” and as you can see it’s incredible.

His attention to detail within this piece is astounding and the charcoal style really captures the mood of the prologue. (Which you can read right over here.) Note the reverse name of “Russel & Sons Optics” in the window, the way the umbra is holding the straight razor, the details and highlights in Thad’s eyes, and even the rain on the windows. It’s so well done!

Huge thanks to Sean! I love seeing readers artistic interpretations of Stars. Make sure you check out more of Sean’s work at his website: seancumiskey.com. Sean is also available for freelance projects and commissions. As you can see he’s incredibly talented.

Here’s a video showing how he created this scene. Make sure you view it full screen and in HD:

Let me know what you think of “The Shopkeep and the Umbra” in the comments! Does it match with your imagination? What’s your favorite part?

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I’m going to keep highlighting art from “The Stars Were Right” fans and readers and sharing it with everyone! If you have any fan art submissions please email them to me at: hello@kmalexander.com with the subject line: “Stars Fan Art Highlight.” 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.