R.S.A. Garcia's Blog, page 4

New Blog Post at Fantasy Book Cafe

I have a new blog post up at Fantasy Book Cafe for Women in SF&F month.

In it, I talk about the things I love and celebrate as part of this worldwide community of SF&F lovers. And a little about the things that made me, me.

You can read it here.

Hope you enjoy!

Till we meet again, stay thirsty, my friends, and remember the words of the Queen herself…

Book Birthday! The Best of World SF

Just a quick note to say that today a new anthology launched with my story, ‘The Sun from Both Sides’.

The Best of World SF is out for pre-orders in the US. I believe you can purchase in the UK.

The amazing line up for this collection comes from 21 countries and includes some of the best names working in SF today: Aliette de Bodard, Chen Qiufan, Vina Jie-Min Prasad, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Zen Cho, Chinelo Onwualu, Tade Thompson and Vandana Singh.

‘The Sun from Both Sides’ was originally published in Clarkesworld in 2019, and went on to make the Locus Recommended Reading List. It’s a distinctly Trini / Caribbean futureverse and one of my favorite things I’ve written.

If you want to read a prequel/sequel to it, you can check out ‘Philia, Eros, Storge, Agape, Pragma’ in January’s Clarkesworld.

Check out the collection and spread the word! And to all the other amazing authors in this TOC…

Awards Eligibility Post

It’s that time of year again!

I only had one story published in 2020, but it’s eligible for the short story category for awards such as the Nebulas, Hugos, World Fantasy Awards, and anyone else awarding for fantasy stories.

Fire in His Eyes, Blood On His Teeth was published in the Devil’s Ways anthology edited by Anna Kashina, from Dragonwell Publishing. A Caribbean tale of a woman taking unusual measures to get her heart back from a demon, I finished it in the aftermath of my mother’s passing, so it’s very personal to me.

The book is available for purchase here.

However, if anyone is judging for awards and would like a .pdf of the story, feel free to message me on Twitter or right here on my blog, and I will email a copy, no strings attached. And please consider buying the book as it contains many other wonderful, eligible stories.

Thanks for reading and for your consideration.

Have a great day!

New Novella at Clarkesworld!

So, I got the best Christmas present ever when, a few days before Christmas, I got the news that Clarkesworld Magazine would be publishing my first ever novella.

‘Philia, Eros, Storge Agape, Pragma’ is the prequel / sequel to my Locus recommended novelette, ‘The Sun From Both Sides’, about war, forgiveness and all the loves of our lives.

It’s also very dear to me because it’s a love letter to my country and my people, and I am so happy that Clarkesworld has given me the opportunity to tell this story to others.

You can read the novella here.

Feel free to spread the word and share the links.

Wishing you all health, wealth and happiness in the coming year. We all need and deserve it!

‘The Sun From Both Sides’ Has Two New Homes!

Hi Guys! It’s been a while, but everything’s sort of in suspension mode as I wait to see how the US election and Covid-19 shakes out. I’m mostly at home and masked when out, and hoping you’re doing the same.

In good news, Part 1 of my novelette, “The Sun From Both Sides”, has now been posted on Escapepod! Two more parts will be uploaded in the next two weeks. Take a listen, or read, today and remember to come back for the wild ride that follows!

The story was first published last year in Clarkesworld, and this is its first reprint sale. I’m very excited to be in my second pro market, and to have another beautiful podcast to reach out to new listeners.

TSFBS already has its second reprint sale though. It will be part of the anthology “The Best of World SF”, forthcoming from Head of Zeus and award-winning editor Lavie Tidhar next year. This is my first sale to a UK market and it means a lot to this Commonwealth girl!

In other news, the sequel for TSFBS is already out on submission, so cross your fingers that you get to see more of Eva, Didecus and Sister soon!

Thanks for stopping by and remember to stay safe and masked, my friends!

Hugo Awards and CoNZealand Fringe

So, in addition to becoming a bestselling author for the first time in my life, I found out the day after the Hugo Awards winners were announced that I’d been long-listed for the Astounding Award for Best New Writer. Very chuffed about that. Thank you so much to everyone who voted for me.

Congratulations to all the nominees and the winner, Rebecca F. Kuang for the incredible ‘The Poppy War’ series! Full results are here.

That same day, I had a surprise opportunity to participate on a panel at CoNZealand Fringe, which was providing independent European timezone scifi convention content while the World Science Fiction Convention was being held in New Zealand. The panel was The Best Parts of the Worst Year: Favourite Books and Media of 2020.

Click here to go to the YouTube recording.

Click here to enjoy all of CoNZealand Fringe’s awesome programming.

I’m late on this of course, but congratulations again to all the nominees and winners of the Hugo Awards! It was a fantastic list of worthy works and people, and I wish you all a long and successful career.

 

 

Thank You!

The sale on LEX TALIONIS has been a roaring success, and that’s entirely due to you, dear reader!

Over the last weekend, LEX TALIONIS was an Amazon bestseller in the US, Canada and Australia — and climbed the rankings into the top 10 in the UK as well — in both the broad science fiction category, and sub-categories like Space Opera and Science Fiction Adventure. A week later, I’m no longer in the top 100 of the entire US Kindle store, but I’m still in the top 100 of Space Opera and Science Fiction Adventure categories in Canada and Australia, and charting in the US sub-categories.

In other words, this Trini scifi author became an Amazon bestselling author! I think I’m the first to do so, and I’m thrilled!

The best part of this is I’ve had new reviews and ratings on both Goodreads and Amazon. This is so important for writers in spreading the word and keeping the momentum going, so they can justify writing more books in a series. I’ve been delayed on producing the sequel for some time, but it’s been incredibly encouraging to have readers reach out to me both here and on Goodreads to let me know how much they loved Shalon’s story.

I’m working on the sequel and hope to finish it this year, so to answer the most common question I’ve been asked, yes, there will be more books! So hang in there, readers. I’ve got you!

In the meantime, you can check out the links under Publications on my website for more of my stories. Added plus–most of them are free to read on sites like Clarkesworld Magazine, including my Locus recommended novelette, The Sun from Both Sides. I also highly recommend the anthologies that have published my stories, especially Devil’s Ways, a new anthology from my publisher Dragonwell Publishing with a new story from me, Fire in His Eyes, Blood on His Teeth. And please note, the sale on Lex is still going, so feel free to pass the word.

Have a great weekend and many happy readings!

Before I go, a little memento, so we never forget the awesome power of readers and stories…

 

 

LEX TALIONIS is a BookBub Deal!

Today, on all platforms and in all countries, you can get my novel, Lex Talionis for only US$0.99!

This BookBub deal will be available at least over the next few days, so pass the news on.

About LEX TALIONIS:

Vengeance is only the beginning…

On one of Earth’s planetary outposts, a young woman dies–and is brought back to life by a mysterious alien.  Inside a military starship, a wounded soldier is stalked by an unseen enemy.

When Lex reawakens in a clinic, she doesn’t remember who she is, or who killed her. All she remembers is a phrase she does not understand. Lex Talionis. The law of revenge. Stripped of her past, Lex focuses on the only thing she can. Retribution. She will find the people who murdered her and she will make them pay.

What Lex doesn’t know is that she’s being hunted. The alien who saved her and the soldier fighting for survival are the keys to her past…and her future. She must discover what they know before the hunter finds her. Every clue brings her closer to powerful enemies. Everything she learns draws her nearer to the person who almost destroyed her.

The only man she has ever loved.

You can click here to buy on Amazon. Links to other platforms and reviews are on my front page.

Thanks for reading and stay thirsty, my friends!

New Story Day!

My new story, ‘Fire in His Eyes, Blood on His Teeth’ is out today!

It’s one of the stories in the new ‘Devil’s Way’s’ anthology by Dragonwell Publishing and edited by the amazing Anna Kashina. Every story is inspired by the Devil and his many forms, and mine is about fighting your demons and features Queen Nanny of the Maroons and Tobagonian folklore.

Publishers Weekly liked what I did enough to feature my story in their excellent review for the anthology, which you can find here.

You can find the link to purchase the anthology here. For now, it’s hardcopies only, but I’m sure an ebook will be on its way shortly!

I should point out buying this collection is a great way to own new, wonderful stories by Nancy Kress and Michael Swanwick, among others. So please support if you can, and I hope you enjoy!

It’s Been One Hell Of A Year…

…and it’s not even half over.

It’s extra hard to figure out how best to say what I want to say, given all that’s going on in the world, so here goes. I’ll try to keep this to the point.

I’m lucky enough to be in a country that prepared for the pandemic and managed its response to a world class – by some reports, first in the world – standard. We’re re-opening, after weathering the storm with just over a hundred cases and eight deeply mourned citizen deaths. I’m on half pay, expecting government funds shortly, and working from home for now as I obey a stay at home request from my government.

No country is safe from this virus, however, so we remain on guard as we begin to cautiously allow the return of foreign based citizens. If you’re hunkering down, or working through this as an essential employee, I wish you health, safety and good governance that will do what’s best for your citizens lives and the future of your country.

As a black mixed race person, watching the BLM movement go global has been electrifying, validating and heartbreaking. That it took yet another black man’s death to do so is the horrific price black lives keep paying. To see the racists come out of the woodwork in my own multi-cultural country has been infuriating, but edifying. Thank you for outing yourselves. Hope you enjoy your consequences.

In publishing news, I have several updates:

I did not make the final ballot of the Locus Awards, but a few of my friends and colleagues did. Huge congratulations to them! The complete list of finalists is here. Good luck to you all!

My stories ‘The Anchorite Wakes‘ and ‘The Sun From Both Sides‘ will be translated into Czech and published in XB1 Magazine, a long running venue in the Czech Republic. You can find the stories here. Thank you so much to XB1 Magazine for giving me this chance to reach a new audience.

I have a new story in a new anthology, Devil’s Ways, coming out at the end of June. I finished editing ‘Fire in His Eyes, Blood on His Teeth’ in the wake of my mother’s passing, a very difficult time for me, so I was happy to see it positively highlighted in the excellent Publishers Weekly review for the collection. The anthology is available for pre-order now. Pre-order sales are very important, especially for small presses like Dragonwell, so please, support this diverse and eclectic collection if you can.

I attended my first two Cons EVER virtually. Thank you to the organizers of WisCon44 and the Nebula Awards Conference. WisCon had a free option that made my attendance possible, and the SFWA granted me a scholarship to attend the Nebulas. I can’t recommend both Cons highly enough. I learned a lot and made many friends, especially at the Nebulas. Thank you for making the Cons an inclusive and safe space for someone like me.

To all of my friends, readers and colleagues.

Black Lives Matter.

We WILL come out of this period with a better world once everyone understands this. But let’s not forget, Covid-19 is raging across this globe. Make sure you take what actions you need to as good citizens to make a safer, healthier world for you and yours.

So protest. Vote. Socially distance. Wear your mask. Wash your hands.

Don’t give up, no matter what.

And to everyone who’s stood with black people at this time. To everyone who’s doing what they can to protect their loved ones from the virus, and everyone working day and night keep citizens healthy, treat the sick, find a vaccine. To all those who have stood up for the right thing, from protesters in the streets to K-pop stans on social media…

Thank you. Love to you.

We’ll get through this together.