Revising my comments on writing and publishing!
August 25, 2010
I have to say I was more than a little appalled the other day when I ran into someone who had attended a talk I'd given at the local library called "The Rocky Road to Publishing."
We were meeting in the parking lot of a fast-food restaurant, a sort of halfway point between our houses, buying a used saxophone for my son so he can rock out in the middle school band.
"Something you said really stuck with me," this longtime music teacher and would-be writer said. And then he hit me —over the head—with my own quote: "You have as much chance of getting published as a Little League team has of winning the World Series."
Boy, did I want to sink right through the asphalt, which was already spongy with the August heat. What a terrible thing to say to a bunch of writers. Had I really said that?
Maybe I did? This was a few years ago, so it's just awful that this is what this genuinely nice and talented individual came away with from this talk. I suppose it's a true statement, but not one that's particularly encouraging. It also has a ring of smugness to it that...
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Going digital with first Kindle book!
August 4, 2010
After some experimentation with the formatting, I've made one of my out of print books available as a Kindle ebook through the Amazon online store. Let's just say that REBEL TRAIN has left the station! This is a "what-if" historical thriller about Confederate agents who hijack the train carrying Abraham Lincoln on his way to make the Gettysburg Address.
I'm still a bit on the fence about ebooks, simply because I love good ol' books made out of paper and ink, but ebooks could be a great option for authors because our titles will now always be available. Some successful authors are even opting out of print books altogether -- notably J.A. Konrath -- because he does well selling his ebooks directly.
I'll be adding REBEL TRAIN to the Barnes & Noble store for the Nook reader as soon as the good people at B&N make that option available. This is all new territory, and they are a step or two behind the Kindle.
Kindle is now selling for $139 ... but you don't have to buy one to read an ebook. You can download the Kindle reader (or Nook reader) to your laptop, Apple itouch, or home computer for...
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Tags:
kindle book, rebel train
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A dose of '80s nostalgia
July 14, 2010
Every now and then I pick up a YA book in between reading other things and I really enjoy them. One recent standout was "Leviathan" by Scott Westerfeld, which is a steampunk romp during WWI. Fun stuff. Here's another one that just gobsmacked me for being such a great story. The review that follows was one I wrote for the Cecil County Library website:
“Born to Rock” by Gordon Korman. Leo Caraway might be somebody we’d have trouble being friends with – he’s a clean-cut Young Republican who tinkers with a mock stock portfolio and brags about his early admission to Harvard. Then his world comes crashing down when he discovers that his dad is not his biological father ... no, that turns out to be King Maggot, the world’s most famous and reviled punk rock icon of the ’80s. When Leo surprises himself by taking a stand in school to stick up for an outcast kid against a bullying teacher, he loses his scholarship to Harvard and finds himself working as a roadie on King Maggot’s reunion tour. Let’s just say Leo learns more about life and ultimately himself than he would in the Ivy Leagues. Oh,...
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New book Delmarva Legends and Lore has arrived!
May 19, 2010
When I heard the UPS truck pull up on the street and then the familiar thump of a large box being deposited on the front porch, I knew the big day had finally arrived. Finally, my copies of DELMARVA LEGENDS AND LORE were here! Or maybe I shouldn't say "finally" because this book really has been a sprint, from getting the contract just before Thanksgiving to having a finished book out by mid-May.
Thumbing through my copy, I am pleased to say it looks good, especially the cover. Many thanks to the team at The History Press for making it look fantastic. Here's hoping that readers will find the content the equal of the cover! We've had a spell of cool, rainy weather but this has really made the sun come out!
I will be talking about the book and the topic of legends and lore at the Perryville, Md., library on Thursday, May 20 at 7 p.m. Should be fun and hope to see you there.
Tags:
delmarva legends and lore, perryville library talk
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Flat vs. round characters
April 21, 2010
I've been revisiting some of Jim Kelly's essays regarding characterization. Jim -- better known on book jackets as James Patrick Kelly -- was one of my instructors at the Stonecoast MFA program. I've read Jim's excellent sci fi novel "Burn," which even folks who aren't sci fi fans can appreciate because, well, of the excellent characterization!
One essay mentioned E.M Forster's definitions of "flat" and "round" characters. Flat does not mean cardboard -- it simply means a character who can be summed up in a sentence. Jim's example is Gollum from "Lord of the Rings." Gollum is driven by his desire for the ring of power. Round characters are those that have the ability to surprise us in their decisions and actions by doing the opposite of what we might expect and we can accept that as readers because of the character's depth. If we're still looking at sci fi/fantasy, many of George R.R. Martin's characters come to mind in this regard. They never quite act as one might expect, which keeps things interesting, but does not seem contrived.
Then there are the "spear carriers" who march through stories, serving the wine or being household servants or the woman passing...
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Magic the Gathering and other adventures at the bookstore
April 20, 2010
Sunday afternoon found us at Washington Street Books in Havre de Grace, where I dropped off a stack of 1812: Rediscovering Chesapeake Bay's Forgotten War. The book always seems to be in demand there, and a nice fellow named Allen bought a copy as soon as I walked in. He was an Amtrak conductor, with almost 40 years running trains, which I found far more interesting than being an author! Once again, it just proves that the best part of writing books is a chance to meet so many great people.
The bookstore was hopping! Mainly because there was a tournament going on of Magic players in the back room, something like 35 of them. I'm not quite sure how one actually plays this game, but the cards are beautifully illustrated (my son has a few packs). We were surprised that many of the players were twenty-somethings or even thirty-somethings ... I suppose that as with most hobbies or obsessions, it helps to have some disposable income to really get into it. Most of the players were guys, although there was one young woman who had a kind of Goth look going on right down to the black tights and...
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magic the gathering, washington street books
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First Delmarva Legends and Lore talk planned
April 18, 2010
I am very excited the Perrville branch library staff was kind enough to invite me to give a talk Thursday, May 20 at 7 p.m. about DELMARVA LEGENDS AND LORE. This is the first "event" planned that's really about the book. I plan on discussing not only some of the better known legends and lore, but also a few of the "whoppers" I came across during the research. I may even be able to include a few anecdotes and photographs that didn't make it into the book.
Tags:
delmarva legends and lore, perryville library talk
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My picks for Best Books of the Decade
December 31, 2009
And so we come to the end. If 2009 were the last chapter of a book, I would probably toss it away in frustration. So this is how it ends! Unfortunately, the real world doesn’t have plots that wrap up neatly by December 31.
What a decade this has been. It has been ten years filled with a lot of violence, tragedy and uncertainty. And I’m a little worried about the upcoming “teen” years of the 21st century, considering that these same years in the 20th and 19th centuries were shaken by world wars that changed the previously accepted order of things. When you look at the forces arrayed against the relative peace and common sense brought about by the American Century, the future looks a bit bleak. I loved how one acquaintance put it “If you didn’t like American power, just see how you like Chinese power!”
I’ve been blessed to have so many good things in my life these past ten years. Family and friends, of course. But how much poorer we would all be in spirit if it hadn’t been a decade for some really good books. With all things digital getting all the attention, I think...
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best books of decade, george rr martin
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Seek out Legend of the Seeker
December 16, 2009
Thanks to my brother-in-law, we got turned on to the Roku Digital Media player, which lets us watch all sorts of shows via our Netflix account. After a hard day of writing, there's nothing like putting up one's feet and watching some good stories! There are a lot of great TV series on there, including one I'd been meaning to check out. LEGEND OF THE SEEKER. Hey, I'm a sucker for anything with swords and wizards. I expected this show to be pretty cheesy, but the special effects aren't bad at all. Now I'm planning to read the books by Terry Goodkind that the show is based upon, although the reviews of the books over at amazon.com are mixed. Hey, not everyone can be George R.R. Martin!
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Can't agree with New York Times columnist
October 24, 2009
As much as I (usually) admire Thomas Friedman's columns in The New York Times, I really disagreed with one he wrote this past week about the new class of "Untouchables." It was an odd choice for a descriptive term, since "Untouchables" also refers to the lowest class of the Hindu caste system. However, here Friedman means just the opposite ... the new group of people whose jobs will be safe in the new, broken economy that seems to be taking shape for the next few years. He seemed to make a case that those who have lost jobs brought it upon themselves by being, well, so much useless dead wood.
It seemed a harsh assessment that didn't take into account so many other factors, such as the implosion of easy credit and the housing market, or the way that so many corporations have overextended themselves. I'm not quite as ready as Thomas Friedman to dismiss so many millions of unemployed Americans who are ready, able, and willing to give "good value" to employers if given a chance.
Tags:
thomas friedman, untouchables
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