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Gears of War: Anvil Gate Written by Karen Traviss
Trade Paperback, 464 pages | Del Rey | Fiction - Science Fiction | $16.00 | August 31, 2010 | 978-0-345-49945-5 (0-345-49945-X)
Continuing the saga of the bestselling game series!
With the Locust Horde apparently destroyed, Jacinto's survivors have begun to rebuild human society on the Locusts' stronghold. Raiding pirate gangs take a toll—but it's nothing that Marcus Fenix and the Gears can't handle. Then the nightmare that they thought they'd left behind begins to stalk them again. Something far worse, something even the Locust dreaded, has emerged to spread across the planet, and not even this remote island haven is beyond its reach. Gears and Stranded must fight side by side to survive their deadliest enemy yet, falling back on the savage tactics of another bloody siege—Anvil Gate.
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Game of Cages A Twenty Palaces Novel Written by Harry Connolly
Paperback, 352 pages | Del Rey | Fiction - Fantasy - Paranormal | $7.99 | August 31, 2010 | 978-0-345-50890-4 (0-345-50890-4)
A SECRET HIGH-STAKES AUCTION
As a wealthy few gather to bid on a predator capable of destroying all life on earth, the sorcerers of the Twenty Palace Society mobilize to stop them. Caught up in the scramble is Ray Lilly, the lowest of the low in the society—an ex–car thief and the expendable assistant of a powerful sorcerer. Ray possesses exactly one spell to his name, along with a strong left hook. But when he arrives in the small town in the North Cascades where the bidding is to take place, the predator has escaped and the society's most powerful enemies are desperate to recapture it. All Ray has to do is survive until help arrives. But it may already be too late.
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Clearly influenced by children's adventure manga like Dragon Ball, The Law of Ueki and Rave Master, B. Ichi is a cheerful but derivative work.
The world of Deverry: an intricate tapestry of fate, past lives, and unfathomable magic. With A Time Of Exile, Katharine Kerr opens new territory in The Deverry Saga, exploring the history of the Elcyion Lacar, the elves who inhabit the country west of Deverry. It is years since the half-elven Lord Rhodry took the throne of Aberwyn. When Rhodry's lost lover, Jill-now a powerful wizard-comes to Aberyn and tells him it's time he accepted his elven heritage, Rhodry faces the most difficult choice of his life. But with Jill's help and that of a human wizard named Aderyn who has lived for years in the westlands, Rhodry begins to understand how his life is connected not just to his own people, but to the Elcyion Lacar as well. At last, destiny begins to unravel its secrets, revealing Aderyn's true purpose among the elves-and the god' deeper design behind Rhodry's dual heritage.
A Time of Exile
Written by Katharine Kerr
The Second Siege Book Two of The Tapestry Written by Henry H. Neff
Trade Paperback, 512 pages | Yearling | Juvenile Fiction - Action & Adventure; Juvenile Fiction - Legends, Myths, Fables; Fiction - Fantasy - Epic | $7.99 | August 24, 2010 | 978-0-375-83897-2 (0-375-83897-X)
A fast-paced, genre-blending adventure—now in paperback!
The Tapestry series continues to weave threads of fantasy, mythology, science fiction, and mystery into a wholly original adventure that appeals to fans of everything from Harry Potter to Lord of the Rings to The X-Men. Genre-blending and fully illustrated, The Tapestry novels have caught the attention of middle-grade and young adult readers alike—and the series is only getting bigger.
In this second book of the series, grave forces are converging to seize control of the Book of Thoth, a hidden artifact whose pages hold the key to creating—or unraveling—the very threads of existence. Max McDaniels and David Menlo embark on a quest to protect the book from the demon Astaroth, who would exploit its secrets with dire consequence. And with Astaroth free after centuries of imprisonment, the world outside Rowan's gates has already become hostile.
Far from home, cut off behind enemy lines, Max and his allies must journey across Europe, descend into the fabled Frankfurt Workshop, brave the tangled corners of the Black Forest . . . and cross beyond the veils of our very world.
"After devouring this title, young fans will be clamoring for more."—Kirkus Reviews
Visit www.rowanacademy.com for original content, exclusive artwork, and more!
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Writing Fantasy - A Creative Apaproach to World Building
by Will Kalif
Before you can get your fantasy world to come alive in your readers mind you have to first get it to come alive in your own mind. It has to be tangible and real. And you have to see it before you can expect your reader to see it. So how do you do this? I have three suggested methods for bringing your vision of a world to life.
Draw maps of your world
If you read a lot of epic fantasy chances are you have looked at the maps that come with many of these books. They are a wonderful addition to the writing. They bring a visual reality to the world contained in the novel and they are not an afterthought to the novel. They are a valuable part of the novel reading experience.
Maps are not just for the reader though. They can serve a very useful function to you as a writer. Chances are good that your main character or main characters have to travel around the world you have created. Where are the rivers? How far apart are the cities and towns? What are the main features of the landscape? Are there mountains? How long would it take your character to walk from one place in the world to another place in the world. A good map can help you answer all these questions.
Too often maps are almost an afterthought. The story is written and then the map is drawn to fit the story. You should turn this approach on it's head and draw the maps early in the writing process.
A map or even a series of maps can ground your story in a sense of reality. It can also spur new ideas in the story. The visual layout of a map can bring out new ideas. Does the map feel like it is missing something. Does it feel natural for a lake to be at the base of a mountain? Draw it in and see if it brings a new chapter to your story. Are there two rivers that meet? What should be at this meeting point? Is there a city? Maybe there is a dark forest. Maybe these new terrain features will play a role in your story.
Maps are something that a reader often refers to. A map is a bonus in a novel and whenever there is a map in a novel that I am reading the map pages are deeply dog-eared. It brings a different part of the readers brain into the story. Don't neglect maps and don't save them as an afterthought. Use them to their fullest potential. Even if you don't have much skill with drawing, your map may be good enough to actually use in the final print version. It is the roughest maps that look like they are hand-drawn that are the best accompaniment to a fantasy story.
Make 3d scenes and dioramas for your world
I am a diorama maker. I love creating little scenes with wizards, barbarians and all sorts of evil creatures. When I wrote my first novel I took on the ambitious project of creating a tabletop diorama for one particular area of the world I had created. It was a project that covered a custom built table that was seven feet long and four feet wide and it took a lot of time to build but the reward for this project was also big. Having an actual layout of a scene in the novel allowed me to breathe life into the novel. I could now see the terrain and the characters as they moved over it. I could envision the weather and the plant life. It made it much easier for me to draws pictures in my reader's minds. You don't have to do a project as ambitious as the one I did, you could just do a small scene but this type of world building in a visual sense will add a sense of depth to your writing.
Create a video game that you can walk around in
This sounds like a lot of work, and a couple of years ago this was not an option for a hobbyist; but today the technology and tools are here that allow you to actually create some pretty amazing worlds in just a few hours. There are plenty of free resources that allow you to make indoor and outdoor worlds without spending a penny. You just need to invest some time. The technology has developed to the point where it is almost plug and play. Let me give you an example. You can sketch out in a world building tool a city. You can make it a certain size, place terrain and buildings in it then add all sorts of pre-made extras. In a weekend you can have a small and complete world that you can actually use a pre made character to walk around in your world.
There are two distinct benefits to putting the effort into doing this. First of all you can build a pseudo realistic rendition of an area of your story and this can help you to visualize it better. And visualizing it better means you will describe it to your reader better. But secondly, and even more importantly, the process of creating this world in a medium other than pencil and paper will take your imagination and creativity to new levels. As you are building your world you will see it in a new way. This will bring you new ideas, ideas that you would have never thought of with just a word processor.
I have worked with several different software suites for creating worlds and one of the new ones is the Kaneva game platform. I haven't used it yet but it looks very appealing and very user friendly. If you use this platform to make a world you can even invite other people to come and explore it with you. Wouldn't that be something? You can tell them it is the world that your novel takes place in.
Epic fantasy and fantasy writing is, by its very nature, a creative art form. But too often we as writers in the genre tend to focus too much on either the physical action or the social interaction in the story. You must never forget that your story takes place in a world you created. And this world is the ground to which your whole story is tethered. It must be solid as stone and be clearly envisioned by you. And it must be clearly and vividly expressed to your reader. Building a physical representation of your created world brings it to a new level and helps you convey its sense of reality to your reader.
Will Kalif is the author of two epic fantasy novels and is currently working on his third. You can check out his novels, his blog, and his podcast. or see his fantasy dioramas and get good advice on how to make your own video game worlds at his website:http://www.stormthecastle.com creativity with attitude
You can also check out his site devoted to epic fantasy at: http://www.epic-fantasy.com
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| The Name of the Wind |
Elemental: Destiny's Embers Written by Bradley Wardell
eBook, 256 pages | Del Rey | Fiction - Fantasy; Games - Video & Electronic | $16.00 | August 24, 2010 | 978-0-345-51788-3 (0-345-51788-1)
At a frontier outpost on the fringes of the civilized world, an orphaned messenger named Xander witnesses the destruction of all he knows at the hands of the Fallen, the great enemy thought vanquished during the War of Magic.
Abruptly, Xander's life is changed forever. Now he must seek out an ancient artifact of legendary power in the hopes that it can stop the Fallen hordes from destroying the entire kingdom. Little does he realize that the hope of all mankind rests on his young shoulders, as powers of unimaginable might set out to stop him at all costs.
Aided by his friend Genica, a mysterious thief named Vreen, and a crafty Sion of unknown loyalty, Xander journeys into the heart of the world, where long-hidden secrets will be revealed that could shatter the delicate balance established by the great Cataclysm a thousand years earlier.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
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The Evolutionary Void Written by Peter F. Hamilton
eBook, 736 pages | Del Rey | Fiction - Science Fiction - Adventure | $28.00 | August 24, 2010 | 978-0-345-52301-3 (0-345-52301-6)
An innovator praised as one of the inventors of "the new space opera," Peter F. Hamilton has also been hailed as the heir of such golden-age giants as Heinlein and Asimov. His star-spanning sagas are distinguished by deft plotting, engaging characters, provocative explorations of science and society, and soaring imaginative reach. Now, in one of the most eagerly anticipated offerings of the year, Hamilton brings his acclaimed Void trilogy to a stunning close.
Exposed as the Second Dreamer, Araminta has become the target of a galaxywide search by government agent Paula Myo and the psychopath known as the Cat, along with others equally determined to prevent—or facilitate—the pilgrimage of the Living Dream cult into the heart of the Void. An indestructible microuniverse, the Void may contain paradise, as the cultists believe, but it is also a deadly threat. For the miraculous reality that exists inside its boundaries demands energy—energy drawn from everything outside those boundaries: from planets, stars, galaxies . . . from everything that lives.
Meanwhile, the parallel story of Edeard, the Waterwalker—as told through a series of addictive dreams communicated to the gaiasphere via Inigo, the First Dreamer—continues to unfold. But now the inspirational tale of this idealistic young man takes a darker and more troubling turn as he finds himself faced with powerful new enemies—and temptations more powerful still.
With time running out, a repentant Inigo must decide whether to release Edeard's final dream: a dream whose message is scarcely less dangerous than the pilgrimage promises to be. And Araminta must choose whether to run from her unwanted responsibilities or face them down, with no guarantee of success or survival. But all these choices may be for naught if the monomaniacal Ilanthe, leader of the breakaway Accelerator Faction, is able to enter the Void. For it is not paradise she seeks there, but dominion.
From the Hardcover edition.
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Bearers of the Black Staff Legends of Shannara
Hardcover, 368 pages | Del Rey | Fiction - Fantasy | $27.00 | August 24, 2010 | 978-0-345-48417-8 (0-345-48417-7)
Written by Terry Brooks
For more than three decades, New York Times bestselling author Terry Brooks has ruled the epic fantasy realm with his legendary Shannara series. With each new novel the mythos has deepened, ever more fascinating characters have arisen, and increasingly breathtaking vistas of magical adventure have emerged. Now the evolution of one of imaginative fiction's most beloved worlds continues in the first book of the new series Legends of Shannara: Bearers of the Black Staff.
Five hundred years have passed since the devastating demon-led war that tore apart the United States, leaving nothing but scorched and poisoned ruins, and nearly exterminating humankind. Those who escaped the carnage and blight were led to sanctuary by the boy savior known as the Hawk—the gypsy morph. In an idyllic valley, its borders warded by powerful magic against the horrors beyond, humans, elves, and mutants alike found a place they believed would be their home forever.
But after five centuries, the unimaginable has come to pass: The cocoon of protective magic surrounding the valley has vanished. When Sider Ament, the only surviving descendant of the Knights of the Word, detects unknown predators stalking the valley, he fears the worst. And when Panterra Qu and Prue Liss, expert Trackers from the human village of Glensk Wood, find two of their own gruesomely killed, there can be no doubt: The once safe haven of generations has been laid bare and made vulnerable to whatever still lurks in the wasteland of the outside world.
Together, Ament, the two young Trackers, and a daring Elf princess race to spread word of the encroaching danger—and spearhead plans to defend their ancestral home. But suspicion and hostility among their countrymen threaten to doom their efforts from within—while beyond the breached borders, a ruthless Troll army masses for invasion. And in the thick of it all, the last wielder of the black staff and its awesome magic must find a successor to carry on the fight against the cresting new wave of evil.
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Author says he will write one more book featuring the child criminal mastermind, and reveals rough storyline for his final adventure
The child genius Artemis Fowl, whose criminal schemes have powered seven children's novels to bestsellerdom since 2001, selling 20m books around the world, is under a sentence of execution. His creator, Eoin Colfer, has revealed to the Guardian that this summer's outing, The Atlantis Complex, will be his teenage mastermind's penultimate adventure.
"One more book, and then that'll be the end of that," he said. "He will be faced with a choice where he can be kind to somebody and he won't gain anything, or he can be unkind and he will find a million dollars in a suitcase, and he will choose the nice way, and that will be the end," he explained. "That's how I'm going to finish it, on a very simple choice."
The child mastermind has changed through the series, Colfer continued, from being "pretty much your standard bad guy ... kind of two dimensional", to someone with "a bit of a conscience". "He's gone from being this horrible bad guy to being more of a Robin Hood kind of guy, where he does commit crimes, but you feel they're kind of warranted," he said.
Like Peter Pan, Colfer explained, Fowl will put away the magic, the childish things, but he will also do something "that could be considered very human". "There's not going to be any huge battle, and going up the stairs to heaven, it's not going to be that kind of finish." he added. "There will be the big adventure, but the end will be in a little epilogue. End of story."
The manager of children's specialist bookshop Tales on Moon Lane, Georgina Hanratty, said she'd be disappointed to say goodbye to Artemis Fowl. "Artemis is one of our key series for 9-12 year olds," she said. "The combination of action and adventure, strong male and female lead characters and Eoin's brilliant humour make them perfect for a wide range of readers, and the feedback has always been fantastic." New titles are always "eagerly anticipated", with Fowl's inclusion in Puffin's 70th birthday celebrations showing "a big upturn in sales in the last couple of months as new readers discover the series". "I'd be sad to see him go," she concluded. "He's a really great character. But when it's over, it's over."
The author also admitted to a pang at bidding farewell to a character whom he said was inspired by a picture of his brother Donal dressed up in his Sunday best, and took on more and more of the characteristics of Colfer's own son. "I've grown fond of Artemis," Colfer said. "I'll be reluctant to leave that world."
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Dragongirl
Hardcover, 512 pages | Del Rey | Fiction - Science Fiction | $26.00 | July 27, 2010 | 978-0-345-49116-9 (0-345-49116-5)
Written by Todd J. McCaffrey
Young Fiona, rider of the gold queen Talenth, has returned from the past, where she and a group of dragons and riders fled so that the wounded could heal from their previous battles with Thread and the younger dragons could safely grow to fighting age. Gone only three days, yet aged more than three years, Fiona is no longer a child but a woman prepared to fight against the Thread that threatens to destroy her world.
Fiona's life takes a pivotal turn when a shocking tragedy thrusts her into a position of authority. Now she finds herself leading weyrfolk who have a hard time trusting a senior Weyrwoman who is both young and an outsider.
But even greater challenges lie ahead: Thread is falling and there are too few dragons to stem the tide. Many have died from the recent plague, and even with the influx of newly mature dragons from the past, the depleted fighting force is no match for the intensifying Threadfall. Fiona knows that something must be done, and what she proposes is daring and next to impossible. But if her plan succeeds, it just might save them all.
With a cast of familiar characters from previous Pern novels—including Lorana, who sacrificed her own queen dragon so that all the dragons of Pern would have a chance to survive, and Kindan, the harper Fiona has loved her whole life—Dragongirl is another triumph for Todd McCaffrey, and a riveting new chapter for the Dragonriders of Pern.
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Ebook selling is an infamous source for many writers who want to make a fortune off the Internet just by writing. Affiliate networks provide those writers the ability to easily sell their ebooks and attract affiliates to promote their products in a click of a button. In order to get equivalent pay from ebook selling, one must think about the responsibilities of ebook selling and how to apply effective marketing techniques to start making and not the other way around, and affiliate networks provide just that consistency for ebook writers.
Ebook Marketing
Ebooks are like any other online market, it takes promotion and time, however, the only difference are that ebooks are digital supplements and it takes little to no maintenance in order to sell ebooks. Not only does ebook marketing have a broader range for promotions, they can be listed basically in any auction site. Whether it be from affiliate networks or from online auction sites, they have the capability to sell if you have the rights behind the content.
The first dizzy glimpses of Tron are unveiled, authors relate the values of peanut butter confectionery to writing, and Angelina sticks to her script. It's a successful first day at Comic-Con
In pictures: the sights of Comic-Con 2010So there we all were, on our first full day at Comic-Con, packed into the black-curtained, dimly-lit, 6,500-capacity Hall H, which is like outer space only bigger and, less generous observers might say, further from sentient life. We had queued. Oh, how we had queued. And that was just to cross the road (I'm not exaggerating). It was the promise of exclusive footage from Tron: Legacy that had drawn us to Hall H. Never mind easing fans in gently, this was like kicking off a meal with a knickerbocker toffee fudge longboat. Surely everything that followed would resemble braised cabbage by comparison?
Well, yes and no. The Tron event was entertaining, thanks largely to the panel's moderator, the US comic Patton Oswalt. "Is there really something called the Comic-Con Fulfilment Room?" he winced. "I do not wanna go near the carpeting in there." The cast and crew trooped out, including a tanned and silver-maned Jeff Bridges (who is reprising his role from the first Tron, and getting to play opposite his younger self in the sequel), as well as Michael "Tony Blair/Brian Clough/Kenneth Williams etc" Sheen.
I'd already experienced a particular American attitude toward Britishness when, on my first day here, a security guard who was supposed to be giving me directions had indicated instead a group of women I should talk to: "Go on, man, you got that accent, they love that!" Oswalt made a more eloquent fuss over Sheen, telling the audience: "He's British, he's adorable, he flew here in a magic teapot, he's sleeping under a giant dandelion leaf in the city." Sheen did nothing to dispel this impression of one nation united in whimsy. Thanks to him, a sizable wedge of the west coast now thinks we all say "bejinkies" (as in: "Bejinkies, there's a lot of you here today").
So how's Tron: Legacy looking? Shaky – but then I wasn't handed any 3-D glasses on the way in, so I watched the entire eight-minute sequence (in which impressively cheekboned heart-throb Garrett Hedlund is zapped into a world of life-or-death computer gaming) as if through the haze of a light concussion. I could see enough to know it's snazzy; and the director, Joe Kosinski, announced that Daft Punk has composed the soundtrack, which is music to these ears.
The big news revealed during the presentation had nothing to do with Tron. First we were treated to a specially recorded clip from Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow, on the set of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, in which he promised "zombies, cut-throats, mermaids and the vicious and vivacious Penelope Cruz", and ended by calling for "Bloody Marys all round". When the next announcement referred to a new film of The Haunted Mansion, the ecstatic crowd reaction cooled, at least until the director involved was revealed to be fantasy cinema demi-god Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth), who popped up on stage to promise a live-action, 3D, Eddie Murphy-free take on the movie. "It'll be scary fun," he said. "But the scary part will be scary."
It was a hard act to follow for the next presentation, even with the participation of Angelina Jolie. In the new wham-bam thriller Salt, she plays a CIA agent accused of spying, whereas on stage she suggested instead a superstar who could be accused of sleepwalking. She trotted out by-the-book answers, while her co-star, Liev Schreiber, entered into the cheeky spirit of Comic-Con. Quizzed about what determines whether or not he performs his own stunts, he went for deadpan. "There's a lot of factors. How long am I gonna sit with my feet in a bucket of water afterwards? Is anything fast going to come at me? Will my face or head get bumped or banged in any way?"
My afternoon ended with two literature-related panels. In "Twisting Genres", novelists debated the matter of what draws them to combine apparently incompatible genres in their work. The two analogies that cropped up most often involved Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and sexual intercourse, though not at the same time. (What a party that would make.)
Naomi Novik, whose Temeraire series imagines dragons in the Napoleonic era, brought up the confectionery: "For me, it's that unlikely magic – chocolate and peanut butter together? Oh yeah! The Napoleonic era and dragons? Sure! It's about taking familiar elements and making them new." Daryl Gregory (The Devils Alphabet) admitted he finds it hard to stay in genre. "You start with a couple of ideas, then your ideas have sex with one another and strange babies emerge. Don't those babies deserve a book too? They may be unmarketable babies, but so what?"
Britain's China Mieville (Kraken) allowed a light shower to fall on this parade. "Unfortunately, awesome plus awesome doesn't necessarily lead to more awesome," he pointed out, before making himself very unpopular with the audience by casting aspersions on the utter bliss of the Reese's formula. "Above all, genres are marketing categories. Even what's described as literary fiction is a genre; in Britain, it's just the result of a very successful marketing campaign to persuade readers that it's not a genre. But even if you think genre is a marketing idea, that isn't to say it doesn't have its own integrity and protocol. If you set really stupid, rigid rules for yourself, you can rise to the occasion."
Asked whether there were any elements which should never be combined, Keith Thompson, who wrote the Leviathan trilogy, quipped: "The only really bad idea would be a drivers' manual with an unreliable narrator."
Meanwhile, "Writing Queer" assembled writers whose comics had tackled LGBT characters and issues. The wise and wonderful Howard Cruse, author of the seminal gay graphic novel Stuck Rubber Baby, revealed that he came out through his work. "My first gay story was in 1976 but that didn't commit me to being gay. I could've just been a straight liberal." He said the remnants of his Deep South upbringing had fallen away "after a lot of acid trips", but recalled drawing an autobiographical panel which hinted falsely that he had a girlfriend. "Most of us who are gay have those moments in our past when we were teetering back and forth, in and out of the closet." He later laid the memory to rest by redrawing the offending panel with the gender corrected.
Paige Braddock, the author of Jane's World, gave an insight into the primness of syndicated comic strips. "I didn't realise it until I drew a shower scene," she said. "Apparently I showed a little too much frivolity, and it was pulled. Now there's a running joke if there's a glitch with my blog and it doesn't appear online: everyone just assumes I wrote in another shower scene."
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Have you ever thought, "I wish I could make a living at writing".
Here's a NEWS FLASH: Even mediocre writers can make a living writing! But writers who fail usually do so because they lack training – or they just plain don't want it bad enough. However, there is one more reason why you may fail, and that's because you want to live higher than your means.For the sake of argument, let's say you are not encumbered with such debt, and that you would be satisfied with making a moderate living at writing. The question then becomes, how do you do it? Believe it or not, the answer is relatively simple once you understand the system.Most articles don't sell the first time out, so let's pretend you submit an article to a magazine three times before it is accepted. Since each submission takes about three
months response time, you have nine months tied up in that one article. The publisher will usually pay upon publication, which will be another three to six months of waiting. That's a 12-15 month wait for one article. That's why magazines cannot be a full-time writer's primary source of livelihood.The secret lies in selling articles to newspapers for $15 to $20 a shot, plus $5 extra for each picture. The articles will be shorter and quicker to write. Newspapers aren't as picky. They don't care if your article has already been published elsewhere. Further, there is an inexhaustible supply of newspapers to sell to. Check them out at:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_newspapers_in_the_United_States_by_circulation, and pick the ones with big circulation. They buy faster, print daily or weekly, and pay immediately.Keep the articles rolling constantly, and RESELL the ones that have sold already. That's another big secret. Over a period of time, you'll get to know the editors by name and you'll know more of what they're looking for. Almost every article will sell on first submission. And, while you're making a living that way, you can submit to magazines in your spare time.Some writers have heard of this before, yet there they sit, still wishing they could write full time. Why is that? Maybe it's because writing for a living isn't as romantic as it sounds. Maybe it's because it's very hard work. Maybe it's because most wouldn't be satisfied to barely eek out a living.Or maybe it's because they're still saying, "I can't do that," when what they really mean is – "I choose to do something else."About the Author:Deborah Owen has established the first mentored writing school on the net – Creative Writing Institute. Students can expect full-time tutoring throughout the eight-week term. Check it out athttp://www.creativewritinginstitute.com.
Rather than risk ruining your break with a big book you don't get on with, why not spread your risk with the novella?
If I manage to get away on holiday this year, two of the books I shall be taking with me are Thomas Mann's Death in Venice and Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. Admittedly, their subject matter (cholera, ageing, homoerotic paedophiliac obsession, the depths of depravity the human spirit is capable of sinking to when cut adrift from civilization) may not be everyone's idea of holiday reading material, but they do brilliantly capture the singular state of mind induced when journeying away from the familiar comforts of home, travelling among strange company, customs and climates.
This is a state of mind which naturally bleeds into the reading experience, making even the rereading of a well-loved novel unique, and capable of colouring the entire holiday – or at least your recollection of it. My overriding memory of one trip to New York is of reading Saul Bellow's Herzog one sunny, hungover morning stretched out by the fountain in Washington Square Park, while all I can remember of a childhood caravanning holiday in Cornwall is being happily lost in Ian Livingstone's Deathtrap Dungeon for what seemed like the entire week. In both cases the internal world of the books are recalled now just as vividly as the places.
Obviously, then, the choosing of one's holiday reading material is of vital importance. And, as I discovered last year while on holiday in Berlin with Thomas Mann's Dr Faustus, if you choose the wrong book you could be in serious trouble. Not that there's anything "wrong" with Dr Faustus. The problem was simply that my unfamiliarity with the novel's many classical music terms and allusions was more than my concentration was up to. I had to abandon it, mid-read, mid-holiday, with no back-up book in sight. "The horror ... the horror" indeed. Now, before I'm rightly condemned to the Don't Know You're Born wing of the Marcel Proust Memorial Home for Sensitive Lambs, I'll quickly point out that I'm not saying my failure with Dr Faustus ruined my holiday. In fact, I'm sure you'll be relieved to hear that I still had a lovely time (swimming in lakes, going to the zoo, and so on). All I'm saying is that a particular aspect of the holiday I was greatly looking forward to wasn't there.
To this year then, and no more throwing caution to the wind by taking along a single doorstop novel. No! This year I intend to sally forth with a carefully selected collection of novellas.
I don't know why this has never occurred to me before. After all, as Richard Lea pointed out on this blog only last week, a good novella can be just as rich and rewarding as any novel, but can be read relatively quickly – in a day or two at most. And even if one particular novella fails to satisfy, very little reading time has been squandered – besides which, here's another one ready to go. Another fun bonus could be found by suggesting to one's travelling companions that everyone brings a selection of novellas which can then be swapped and discussed at length over the course of the holiday. Obviously some sort of spreadsheet will have to be employed here to ensure there are no duplications, short novels masquerading as novellas etc. (Never let it be said I don't know how to have a good time.)
What then, are the essential novellas that any travelling bibliophile shouldn't be without? A couple more spring immediately to mind: Henry James's Daisy Miller and Truman Capote's Grass Harp both stay loosely within the theme of travel and could act as a pair of palate-cleansers after the doom and gloom of Messrs Mann and Conrad. But we don't need to limit ourselves to novellas about travel here: a list of classic novellas can only be a good thing for this underappreciated art form I reckon. All recommendations greatly appreciated.
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When it comes to fantasy, I don't mind if a writer ignores reality. This shouldn't be that odd. Fantasy is, by definition, an escape from reality. Or, if not an escape, at least a chance to see a world that might have been. The important element is that, either way, fantasy is just reality as we know it with a tweak here or there that allows the impossible to happen.
I go into fantasy with eyes wide open, knowing that reality can be, will be, discarded if it allows a human to teleport or an invasion of space robots. I don't need a justification beyond this is fantasy, and that's what makes it awesome.
I know writers who work hard to justify fantasy. Just the other day, someone told me that if they were going to write a story with someone who turned invisible, they'd have to come up with a reason why that person wasn't blind at the same time. It's a legitimate question, or it would be if becoming invisible was something that could actually happen in real life. But it can't, and unless the goal of your invisible man story is to make someone think being invisible would stink, then it's counter productive.
This is the "Superman would kill Lois" fallacy. It comes from a well-meaning place, but it misses the point. Superman (and much of fantasy) isn't meant to be realistic. Superman, like most superheroes, is not intended to be a horror story about a superhuman who accidentally crushes to death everyone he loves. It's a mistake to approach it from that angle, even if to do so is with the best of intentions.
This is why I prefer fantasy to science fiction. Even my science fiction stories are fantasies. I can't give you a reasonable excuse for death rays, robots, and alien life forms. I just know that they're neat, and that's really all I need to know.
Fantasy elements should have limits, but those limits don't need to come from reality itself which already has the biggest limit of all.
I'm sure if I tried very, very hard, I could come up with a semi-believable reason for why getting bitten by a radioactive spider would give someone superpowers. I know there are writers who strain to justify integalactic travel against the unforgiving limit of the speed of light. And if anyone thinks there will ever be an even remotely scientifically plausible justification for telepathy, Hulking out, or dragons breathing fire, they're more optimistic than I.
Just in case you were wondering why we (and many other publishers) keep going back to Vinnie Chong for cover artwork, take a look at the finished piece that'll be adorning our limited edition of Rio Youers' debut novel, End Times, due for release later this year:
Click through to Vinnie's site to see the full piece, front and back, sans typography. Gorgeous work as ever, Mister Chong. :)
Written by Drew Karpyshyn
eBook, 336 pages | Del Rey | Fiction - Science Fiction - Adventure; Games - Video & Electronic | $7.99 | July 27, 2010 | 978-0-345-52206-1 (0-345-52206-0)Humanity has reached the stars, joining the vast galactic community of alien species. But beyond the fringes of explored space lurk the Reapers, a race of sentient starships bent on "harvesting" the galaxy's organic species for their own dark purpose.
The Illusive Man, leader of the pro-human black ops group Cerberus, is one of the few who know the truth about the Reapers. To ensure humanity's survival, he launches a desperate plan to uncover the enemy's strengths—and weaknesses—by studying someone implanted with modified Reaper technology. He knows the perfect subject for his horrific experiments: former Cerberus operative Paul Grayson, who wrested his daughter from the cabal's control with the help of Ascension project director Kahlee Sanders.
But when Kahlee learns that Grayson is missing, she turns to the only person she can trust: Alliance war hero Captain David Anderson. Together they set out to find the secret Cerberus facility where Grayson is being held. But they aren't the only ones after him. And time is running out.
As the experiments continue, the sinister Reaper technology twists Grayson's mind. The insidious whispers grow ever stronger in his head, threatening to take over his very identity and unleash the Reapers on an unsuspecting galaxy.
This novel is based on a Mature-rated video game.
From the Paperback edition.
It's a lot harder to get cheated on a short story than it is on a novel. And the stakes are lower, usually, too. You probably haven't spent years and years tooling and retooling a short story. Whereas a novel--that's something that can take more time than raising a child.
Take a good look at any contract you're offered and do your best to gauge what's standard and non-standard in any contract you're considering for a novel. You're an adult, just check things out and go into them with your eyes open.
http://www.sfwa.org/for-authors/writer-beware/
You can also check out Preditors and editors. And the forums on Absolute Write can also be consulted...
I'd also suggest staying away from "fee" contests in the short story.
Not that I'm an expert or have a dozen novel sales to quote from as experience. I'm as new to the game as everyone else with "no sales."
Antarctica
eBook, 672 pages | Bantam | Fiction - Science Fiction | $7.99 | July 21, 2010 | 978-0-307-57185-4 (0-307-57185-8)
Written by Kim Stanley RobinsonFrom the award-winning author of the Mars Trilogy comes a thrilling new novel....
Kim Stanley Robinson, author of the Hugo and Nebula award-winning Mars trilogy, is one of the most original and visionary writers of fiction today. Now, in his latest novel, he takes us to a harsh, alien landscape covered by a sheet of ice two miles deep. This is no distant planet--it is the last pure wilderness on earth.
A stark and inhospitable place, its landscape poses a challenge to survival; yet its strange, silent beauty has long fascinated scientists and adventurers. Now Antarctica faces an uncertain future. The international treaty that protects the continent is about to dissolve, clearing the way for Antarctica's resources and eerie beauty to be plundered. As politicians and corporations move to determine its fate from half a world away, radical environmentalists carry out a covert campaign of sabotage to reclaim the land. The winner of this critical battle will determine the future for this last great wilderness....
From the Paperback edition.
2010 Orbit Promotional Poster
Check out our fabulous new Orbit poster, which will be in Australian bookshops from July onwards. We've re-worked the classic Orbit UK poster from many moons ago (1998), so it now showcases the current bestselling stars on our list, for example – Iain M. Banks, Arthur C. Clarke, Robert Jordan, Charles Stross, Elizabeth Moon, Brent Weeks, Pamela Freeman and lots more…
Orignal Orbit Promo poster
