The Aurealis Awards: The Last Stormlord shortlisted

Posted on by March 13, 2021
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My fifth shortlisting for the Best Fantasy Novel of the year, this time with The Last Stormlord. Every year I’ve had a book nominated because it was eligible, I’ve been shortlisted, which doesn’t actually encourage me to think I will ever win, but who cares? I am very, very happy!

Others shortlisted:
Peter M. Ball, Horn, Twelfth Planet Press

Trudi Canavan, Magician’s Apprentice, Orbit

K.E. Mills, Witches Incorporated, HarperVoyager

K.J. Taylor, The Dark Griffin, HarperVoyager

The only one I’ve read is the book I beta read – Karen Miller’s. (As usual, none of them are available here yet, that I have seen.) Nice to see a small press out there with a novel nomination.

And there’s lots of my pals out there in the other categories too.

Now this rates as a very good day.
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A bit of fun with Babelfish

Posted on by March 13, 2021
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This is the blurb on the French edition of The Aware … as seen by the free online translator:

Summary:
Braise Sangmêlé had been sworn never not to give the feet to Point-of-Gorth, den of all that the Glorieuses islands count of desperate, traffickers, swindlers and criminals without faith nor law, ready to kill father and mother for some piécettes.

But the Vigils, which reign as Masters on the archipelago, do not hear it this ear. Ember is the only one with being able to conclude a delicate mission for their account: to bring back most discreetly possible the castenelle one of Cirkase in escape.

Hardly unloaded, Braise realizes that something does not turn out badly: its investigation runs up against the dumbness of the sailors and a worrying odor of magic dyes with carmine seems to stick to least its steps. Because, in addition to being one fighting except par, army of a sword to the exceptional proportions, Braise Sangmêlé have the gift of Perspicacity which enables him to see the magic with work. Though very useful, this talent made of it a target of choice for the wizards of any hair who hardly appreciate that one interferes oneself their projects.

In other words, Braise was still put in dirty cloths…
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Who decides what you are?

Posted on by March 13, 2021
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You, right?
Well, not always. We’ve had a number of whacko cases here where someone else tells people what religion they are – and then punishes them when they don’t agree, by taking their children away or incarcerating them.

And today I read the sad story of a Malaysian woman married to a British man only to be told she has to return home and reapply for a UK visa from here. And The Star newspaper here has made a point of calling the woman “he” throughout the article, even though she is not male in her own eyes.

Her husband doesn’t think of her as male.
She doesn’t think of herself as male.
They why does The Star persist in referring to her as male?

Can’t we just agree that the person concerned knows best?

I wish Fatine Bahari Young all the best in her efforts to live with her husband in the UK. Here, of course, she’d end up in jail for daring to do so.

And I so wish we had a little more understanding from The Star.
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Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!

Posted on by March 13, 2021
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Ok, my NaNoWriMo total is now 50008 for the month! And two more days to go, too. Of course I did say that I was aiming for 60,000 in the month, which means that I now have to do 10,000 in two days…hmmm. Somehow I don’t think so.

And another milestone today: TWO-THIRDS of Stormlord Rising first draft is now completed.

Study table during a writing frenzy

Posted on by March 13, 2021
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Chaos. How I wish I had a PA. Or a maid. Or a nice domesticated wife.

And here’s how I organise my book – this being Book 3 there are so many characters, threads, themes and plot lines to come together. So I colour code, for characters and places and point of view and time. Every colour means something different. And then I have to have a decoder because I can’t remember them all…

NaNoWriMo total: 47150 at midday.

10 myths about writers and writing continued…

Posted on by March 13, 2021
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5.Writers lead a fun life.
Actually, writing is tough and it involves many, many hours sitting in front of a computer screen when other people are having fun, watching TV, playing with the kids, socializing, or whatever.
If you think it is all wonderful book tours, getting to meet fascinating TV personalities who are begging to interview you, cocktail parties and lunches with publishers, think again.

For most of us, it also involves many hours of self doubt and despair.

My latest book is 625 pp. If I told you to read it from cover to cover once a week over the next 3 months for a total of 12 times, would you be overjoyed? I doubt it. That’s what I will be doing over the next 3 months. Reading and correcting the same book, over and over. Fun, right?

(Actually, it is. But is is also a lot of solitary, lonely work. Will I ever stop? I doubt it. Writing is partly fun, but mostly it is fulfilling, rather than fun. And a writer’s life is about as much fun as everybody else’s. That is, it is sometimes. Fun is mixed in with work, despair, stress, woe, frustration – and sometimes joy.)

6. Published writers, publishers and agents hate wannabes and actively work to make sure they don’t get published.

This is one of the most peculiar beliefs that I have come across on the internet. There are actually people out there who believe this. I know so many writers who spend much of their free time helping others for no remuneration that I wonder how anyone can credit this kind of nonsense…

The latest silliness I heard was that agents were the ones who wanted the Harlequin Horizons affair to fail because they thought it might impact their income. Or something. They didn’t want writers to be able to circumvent agents… Huh???And the idea that publishers do their level best not to read good MSS from good new writer is even more laughable.

Other writers help me now, becoming beta readers, offering career advice – the list is endless.

7. Writing a publishable book is so easy anyone can do it.

You hear this one from time to time. “Oh, you are a writer? I’ve often thought if I had the time, I’d write a book too.” (Tell me, do airline pilots and heart surgeons hear the same thing? “Oh, you’re a heart surgeon! I’ve often thought I’d do an angioplasty on someone one day…” or …”Oh, you’re a commercial pilot!! I’ve often thought I’d fly an airbus to Europe one day. Just for the heck of it, when I have the time.”)

8. Wanting to be a published writer badly enough will make it happen. Being persistent will make it happen. Wishing will make it happen. Reading The Secret will make it happen. Praying a lot will make it happen.

Er… no. Sorry. Being a skilled writer who tells good stories is what will lead you to publication. My advice:

  • Read a lot and widely, especially but not exclusively, in your chosen genre.
  • Practice writing.
  • Show your writing to fellow writers who will critique you.
  • Read widely about how to write your particular type of story.
  • Attend writing workshops or similar.
  • Read more. And more still.
  • Be persistence about all the above.
  • Then be persistent about sending out your MS to agents or publishers.

The last two is where the persistence comes in.

9. I would love to have $US 100 for every time someone has said this to me: “Oh, your book would make a good movie…”
Hmm. Possibly. Possibly not. It is certainly unlikely to happen. There are several hundred thousand books published every year. Just how many movies each year are based on books? And not all good books would make good movies anyway.

10. The goal is to get published
Maybe, but it shouldn’t be. At least, only partially. The goal is to enjoy what you do. If that’s your only goal – and you do get published – what’s left to do?
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10 Myths About Publishing, Writing and Authors.

Posted on by March 13, 2021
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All of this has been said before, often. Yet if this Harlequin Horizons affair has showed anything, it is that myths are alive and well. Evidently, we can’t say this kind of thing often enough.

In no particular order the first five myths (5 more tomorrow):

1. Writers make stacks of money.
I wish. This is like saying that “all singers make fortunes”. It’s not true. Most singers eke out a living, singing far too infrequently to small audiences. Looked at as a whole, published writers more often than not hold down a second job to make ends meet. Few writers can write more than one book a year, and few will get more than USD 10,000 a year for their effort, especially for the first few years. Sure, there are the superstars out there, but they are the ones skewing the statistics.

2. You can’t get published unless you know somebody in the business first.
Ok, so then how did I do it?
I had never:
(a) met another fiction writer
(b) met a publisher
(c) met an agent
(d) been to a sff convention.
I had:
(e) no money to bribe anyone
(f) no access to the internet
(g) knew no one to ask about getting published
I was:
(g) living in a country that had no sff fiction-publishing industry

No one recommended me anywhere. No one had ever heard of me. And I still got published.

3. The best way to get published is to pay money to have your book published.
Yep, there are people out there who think authors pay to get their books into book shops. No, authors don’t do this. Publishers pay authors to write books and publishers pay distributors (or have their own distribution system) to place the books in bookshops and other outlets.

4. Publishing and printing a book are the same thing.
No, they aren’t. My publisher pays me an advance, edits my book, copy-edits my book (2 different things, btw), proofs my book – all with my input; they design the cover and pay the cover artist, pay for printing and binding the book, inform booksellers about the book, distribute the book to outlets for sale, market the book (to varying degrees); they arrange for the book to be reviewed, pay me royalties if it sells well, reprint it if it’s sold out…etc, etc.

Printers print and bind the book. If you are arranging this for yourself, they use the files you give them, and do some minimal formatting. You pay them. Pay a little more, and they will help you with the design. That’s all. They give you the number of copies that you asked for – and that’s it. Their job is finished.

5. Self-publishing and vanity publishing are the same thing and they are both great ways to get published.
Self-publishing and e-publishing have many advantages for certain kinds of books, especially non-fiction, niche market books.
–Grannie wants to a family history to give to members of her family, the local school and the local library? Ideal! It will cost her a bit, but the pleasure she’ll get out of it will be worth every penny.
–You have a hobby of growing pansies for perfume making and you want to tell other people how to do it? Self-publish, set up your own website and sell the book through the website. People will come because they will google pansies/perfume or whatever. Better still, sell the book in digital form through the internet for a lot less hassle.
–Self-publishing fiction is possible and has on rare occasions led to a more conventional publishing career, but only by people who read widely about how to do it first. If you do it well, it involves paying for editing, copyediting, proofing, printing, design, cover art, marketing and distribution.

Vanity publishing on the other hand is a rip off that will print (not publish) your book for you and charge you a whole lot of money for the privilege. Beware.

More myths tomorrow.