A.G. Carpenter's Blog, page 11

Technical Difficulties

So. I received word that there may have been some sort of error with the ability to leave comments on the blog.

It may take me a bit to figure out why and how to fix it. Once I DO get that sorted out, I'll run the postcard giveaway again. (Or figure out a better way to collect entries.)

In the meantime, stay tuned for a (belated) 2013 wrap-up and goals for 2014.

WIP Wednesday: The Clockwyrm

In celebration of the holiday season, a bit from the opening of The Clockwyrm (which takes place between the winter solstice and Twelfth Night, more or less).


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Despite Sylvie's protests that there needn't be any greens hung for Winter's End, she emerged from the cellar to find the main hall glistening with freshly cut magnolia branches and Michaelmas perched atop a ladder to string a cranberry garland from the central chandelier. “Evening, Miss Sylvie.” “Didn't...

Postcard Giveaway!

That's right, I'm giving away two autographed postcards featuring the cover art from BRASS STARS.




Rules are as follows.


1. There will be two winners, to be drawn at random by an uninterested third party. Each winner will receive one autographed postcard via USPS First Class Mail.


2. To enter simply leave a comment below.

OR

3. Tweet a link to the Eggplant page for BRASS STARS. Be sure to include @aggy_c in your message so I see it.

4. If you want more than one entry, you can tweet once per day, eac...

WIP Wednesday

More from Thingbreaker:

“Hmm.” He looks at the paper again. It's so small, I can't imagine there is much there to read, but maybe he's just using it as an excuse to let another handful of minutes pass. Finally he tucks it into his pocket. “Are you nervous?”“Nervous?”“You're shaking.”I rub my palms across my trousers but it doesn't help. “I don't like being in chains.” His eyes get narrow, as though this is a sign of some sort of guilt. “And why is that?”“Because I associate it with bad things....

The Oxford Comma Can Kiss My Arse (But Details Matter)

I am not Oscar Wilde. I do not deliberate for hours over comma placement. Nor do I stress over whether I need more or fewer commas. I know that I tend to under-use the comma, but it's not something I lose sleep over.

Before BRASS STARS was released there was a round of copy edits. Not really an arduous task, but one thing was immediately clear. The copy-editor knew the proper use of the Oxford comma and he wielded it mightily.


Changes were made with only minor grumbling on my part. (Mostly to...

WIP Wednesday

More from Thingbreaker.

I come to spitting water and shivering. Rebekah hefts the bucket, as if considering whether or not to empty the second half over my head. “Are you awake?”I toss wet hair back out of my eyes. “Now.” A moment of fumbling before I realize my hands and feet are bound, coils of rope holding me fast in a heavy wooden chair. There's no prickle of magic from either chair or rope. Not charmed. Getting loose won't be hard once my magic wakes back up. At the moment it's burning sl...

All These Words Are Stupid!

The other day I pulled out my work journal and starting sketching out part of a scene from The Steampunk Novel. It's an addition to an existing scene and I wanted to get the bones of the new material down on paper before I forgot.


So, I wrote the following sentence.
Keira sat up and laid her hands on either side of his face.
Only it wasn't that simple.

From the very first word, I realized it was one of those days. You know, Those Days. When this little voice starts screaming in the back of your h...

Writing BRASS STARS: Influences

As a human being, everything I bump into on a daily basis has some influence - good, bad, subtle, obvious. Every book I read, every movie I see, every song that trickles across the radio, even billboards and conversations overheard at the gas station, they all filter through into the dark sticky space of my creative subconscious.


But some things have a more direct influence.


As a kid there was one brief year when we had cable, and I used to watch reruns of Bonanza, Big Valley, Gunsmoke and The...

WIP Wednesday

From a little novella that I love to death, but am struggling to finish.


All That Is Precious

“Stop this.” I put myself beyond his reach, rather than continue to fight. His breath is rough, the shake in his hands a signal of intense pain. “Are you that anxious for death?”“At least then I would be with Marcus.” He stops, biting the words off sharp enough to draw blood. The confusion I had put aside, rises. I thought I knew the challenges that would face me. Persuading a westerner to honor our tr...

Writing BRASS STARS: Dust, Sky and Religion in Space

The early drafts of Brass Stars (and there were two and a half before I got to the one that was published by Eggplant Literary Productions) didn't have much in the way of religion. Tashn wasn't much a believer in anything except revenge and it didn't seem necessary to develop a system of belief for the other characters who popped in and out of the story.


There was, of course, mention of the crucifix her mother had given her, but Tashn never put much stock in it. She carried it for two reasons....