Raven Oak's Blog, page 49
November 18, 2015
Joy to the Reviews!
In the past week, I’ve seen a slew of reviews pop up for Joy to the Worlds, including one from Publisher’s Weekly. I figured I’d share some of this holiday cheer with you, so Joy to the Reviews!
Great review from Publishers Weekly
“Eight short stories by four authors glisten with holiday wonder, each one decorated in hues of legend, myth, SF, and quirky, joyful fun.”
Great review from San Francisco Book Review
“…an imaginative ride into the ‘what-if’. Drawing from traditional mythology and lore...
November 13, 2015
Flashforward Friday: Adventures in Space
In the past few weeks, multiple scientific breakthroughs have occurred, resulting in some fascinating discoveries.
It’s suspected that scientists have discovered a parallel universe leaking into ours. This information is based on data received from the European Space Agency’s Planck telescope.
If that’s true, it could confirm the possibility of parallel universes and could change how we think of time and time travel. Time travel is theoret...
November 11, 2015
Word Counts & Contracts
I figured it was time for a bit of an update on my “kick-my-ass-into-this-rewrite” November. I’m currently sitting at a smidge over 20K words, though if all were going according to plan, I’d be sitting at 36K.
So I’m behind schedule. What else is new?
I have a perfectly valid reason for it though!
Yep! On Monday, we finally had an offer on our condo! (The market slowed to a freaking trickle with the holidays approaching.) We spent most of the day going back and forth signing documents…to the tun...
November 6, 2015
Flashback Friday: NaNoWriMo
My first NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) was back in 2008. I wrote what would later become The Eldest Silence–a first draft of 61,870 words.
It was a mad dash that made me hold my breath and scream at the same time, yet it proved to me it was possible to write a rough draft in 30 days.
I continued year after year until the crazy year of 2011.
In 2011, I was still teaching English & reading (which meant working 50-60 hour weeks), but I was also comp...
November 5, 2015
Book Cover Throwback: The Stainless Steel Rat
What I Love about This Cover:Like most old sci-fi covers, this was abstract and intriguing. Made me wonder what this dude had to do with a rat. 
November 4, 2015
Justice is Biased, Blind, & Deaf
Today was my very first time in court to contest a ticket, and sadly, all it proved is that many who should be our heroes and defenders of justice are as biased, blind, and deaf as the rest of us. Sounds over-dramatic, I know, but in this case, I wasn’t guilty, and I truly believed justice would prevail.
I’m not going to get into too many details but suffice it to say, in October, I received a ticket for speeding through a school zone. Specifically, for going 30 mph in a 20. I should note that...
November 3, 2015
Analysis of Sex vs. Gender
Thanks to the awesome Winter Downs (who taped our panel), I can now share with you our panel from GeekGirlCon 2015!
Here it is: Analysis of Sex vs. Gender: Why, Where, & Going All the Way with Winter Downs, Jill Seidentstein, Janine A. Southard, Raven Oak, Fran Stewart. (There are two short gaps in the audio due to technical difficulties. Our apologies. Also, I was very, very sick and sound like a frog.)
The post Analysis of Sex vs. Gender appeared first on Raven Oak.
November 2, 2015
NaNoWriMo & MNG
Mondays are normally my Monday Night Gaming reviews, but for the month of November, those posts are going on hiatus. If you’ve read my post on NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), then you know that for me, every month is pretty much NaNoWriMo. I think most published or professional authors (be it traditionally or otherwise) write daily, but sometimes life does happen.
By the end of 2015, I’ll have 2 novels and 2 short stories in a collection published. If I want 2016 to be as successful,...
October 30, 2015
Flashback Friday: Halloween & Cosplay
I don’t remember my first Halloween costume, but I remember being a princess in 1st grade, a Care Bear in 2nd grade, and a cat in 4th grade. And no, I have no idea why I was a cat. I suspect it was cheap or on sale (I already owned the skirt, the leotard, and the tights.), which was a factor when dressing for Halloween.
For all that we were broke, I enjoyed dressing up for Halloween–something that followed me into adulthood.
When my husband and...
October 29, 2015
Throwback Thursday: Labyrinth
I know it’s not a book, but come on! It’s Labyrinth! With David Bowie!
What I Love about This Poster:There’s a mix of fantasy, princess-dreams, and a handsome bad guy. What is therenot to love?! I will also admit that as a child, I loved this movie because babies *are* annoying.
