Soulless Publication

No, that title is not a subtle slur on the publisher. Havok magazine is wonderful and I love it.

Here's a wee bit of self-promotion: I just got a story published in the aforementioned Havok magazine, a flash-fiction magazine for speculative fiction. This happened to be a contest issue. The featured author was Patrick Carr (A Cast of Stones), and the winner was Tina Yeager for a chilling sci-fi ghost story, Time Echoes. [SHAMELESS ADVERTISING INCOMING:] You guys should really consider buying the issue and reading it for yourselves!

I wasn't runner up or anything, just one of the finalists who got printed in the issue, which I'm quite happy with!

So the reason I called this 'Soulless Publication' is because Soulless was the title of my story, about a rogue who transfers his soul into a coin. Hopefully I'll get around to eventually posting it on this blog, but for the moment there would be some copyright problems with that. Thanks for reading my tidbit of news!

-Luke

Comfortably-classy Gentlemen-spies: opinions on Craig as Bond

This is mostly because I haven't updated in a few days and I feel guilty, but don't have time for a proper post. So, here are some random thoughts:

Why does my Bond look more grumpy than classy? Well, his name is Craig. I suppose we should expect him to have a craggy face.

In his iteration of Bond, Daniel Craig has given us some good and some bad. Let's not forget Quantum of Solace, folks. Even if Skyfall and Casino Royale were both fantastic movies, my opinion is that Quantum is a smear on the enterprise's good name. The thing is, Craig isn't classy. He's Bond for a generation that likes her spies rugged and serious, and that just isn't supposed to be (entirely) Bond. What happened to Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan, suave and stylish and popping quips faster than the bad guys could pop bullets? And give me back my freaking invisible car!

One of the reasons I loved Skyfall so much was the references. As a dabbling fan of classic Bond, I cheered with every wink and head-nod to the roots of this fifty-year-old franchise. Skyfall had an outlandish villain, it had gadgets, it had a rocket-launching car, it reincarnated Q. and other mainstays! The themes of old-fashioned patriotism and golden old-age were very fitting for this classic tribute.

Don't get me wrong: I'm glad Daniel Craig gave us another spin on the world's most famous spy. But the writing for him almost feels like a Jason Bourne wannabe, and they clearly picked a rugged, tough-guy actor to go along with that, rather than a suave one. In my opinion, it's time we returned to the gentleman spy. After all, Craig wears Polos. I happen to like Polo shirts, but not on my Bond. Put him back in a tux, and let's find an actor who looks comfortable in one rather than stiff no matter what he is (or isn't) wearing.

Part of all this musing comes from my anticipation of the Spectre movie releasing in November in the U.S. Looks like it'll also acknowledge Bond's roots, but no time for an analysis here (although I've never felt good about Bond movies doing direct sequels -- remember what happened when Casino  became Quantum?) Another part of my musings come from recently watching Kingsman: The Secret Service. Again, no time for much of an analysis, although there were so many things I did and did not like. But most of the references were wonderful, to everything from Bond to Bourne to the old Get Smart show! And it really captured the over-the-top gentleman-spy, in all his pinstriped glory.

I think people are right to love Craig: he makes a legitimately awesome character. But the character he portrays is not the character of James Bond, or even a version of James Bond, in my opinion. Maybe I'm just grousing, but to reiterate, Craig isn't comfortably classy. I'm excited to see who's next, hopefully soon! Let's put the classy back in Bond!

(Just for clarification, Craig is the Bond actor in Spectre. I just hope they eventually move on).

There. That's better. True class.

Writers Conference Advice #3:Materials!

Some of the materials I took with me to Write to Publish

I've been going into specifics with business cards and the like, but haven't yet provided a list of overall materials it's good to have at a writers conference. As always, my organizational skills are flawless. Here are some of the most essential materials:

Business Cards: 

Already discussed. I can't remember how many copies I had printed, but it was like forty, and I used almost all of them.

First Page of Manuscript:

In both my meetings with editors, I was asked for this. I had five copies prepared. Make sure it's as polished as it can be. I've heard that many editors don't even read past the first paragraph!

First Chapter:

Again, I had multiple copies of the first chapter prepared, although I probably killed several saplings with all the paper I used. Both editors asked for and skimmed this chapter, which is what got me requests for an emailed full manuscript proposal. Also, I marked up the chapter copies during critique groups. They say that the first chapter is what sells the book, and the last chapter is what sells the next one!

A "One-Sheet:"

I think I'll get into the particulars of this in a later post. Basically, this is a quick review of all the pertinent info about you and your novel. Word count, contact info, author bio, brief summary, how your book is relevant to and distinct from current marketing trends (basically how it will sell). Some people get really fancy and put pictures on it, but I think it's best to be careful to avoid cluttering. For mine, I left a space where I could staple my business card at the bottom, which had a picture of me and all my contact info. I printed multiple copies of the one-sheet.

Marketing Plan: 

If nothing else, this shows an editor that you've done your homework. I also intend to do a separate post on this topic, because I had opportunity to talk to some people who offered helpful suggestions. So I won't say anything specific here, except that editors really do like this -- I had some comment on it -- because it's a chance for them to see that you have a platform and have good ideas to actually sell copies. In the modern publishing industry, authors do most of the marketing!

Full Proposal: 

Going back to the conference, this is one thing I'd change. I thought I'd be fine not having an updated proposal, since I could theoretically put it together afterwards and email it to the various editors. But then an editor asked if I would be attending her proposal critique group, and I hadn't been, because my proposal was several months old! I had to stay up that night -- with a headache, while my roommates slept blissfully -- and stitch together some of the other things I've mentioned in order to make an approximation of a proposal. I intend to update this proposal soon, because I received tips in one of Rowena Kuo's classes on good proposal elements and a good order for them. I'll post some of the things I've learned about proposal making to this blog at a later date. But if I was going now, I'd be sure to have one physical copy with me!

One Page Summary:

Make sure it's polished! This is a chance to impress the editor both with your plot and your writing quality! Have several copies.

Actual Manuscript:

This is certainly not a necessity. In fact, I doubt many people bring full manuscript copies with them, especially since they should already theoretically have copies of the first page, summary, and first chapter. But when an editor saw that I had a full hard copy of the manuscript with me, she said she really liked that, and she asked to borrow it overnight! Boy was that a terrifying evening.

Disclaimer: never ask an editor if she will take a physical copy of your manuscript/proposal/chapter/etc. Said editor will not like you if you do such, as she is already getting similar offers from all sides, and as her packing space is probably limited. When I suggested taking multiple copies of certain items, that's more a just in case thing. I had editors ask to look at those copies, but they always gave them back, which is the norm. It was also helpful to have multiple copies so that I could mark them up with notes and suggestions. And when editors do offer suggestions, make a show of writing them down, even if you already know those things! I think they probably like that. At least, I would.

Writers Conference Advice #2: Business Cards!

This was the business card I used at Write to Publish. I censored the telephone and physical address for this blog, because the internet is a fickle place, my friends.

They may not seem important, but business cards are truly essential.

This is one piece of advice I nearly skipped over in my own preparations, but I'm glad I didn't. I accumulated maybe a dozen different business cards from contacts during my time at the conference, and handed out almost all the cards I printed. I often jotted down details about the person on the back of his or her card, which was helpful for later.

Not only will business cards help people remember you, but they look really professional if done correctly. I also really just enjoyed having a business card and getting to say, "Here's my card," in the most casual voice I could muster.

Some good elements for a card, in a proposed order of significance:

An email address. Because duh. Preferably not a silly one, like "superwriterman007@hotwriter.com." Or even one with a number like lukewildman01@gmail.com. The use of a number seems amateurish, to me. Something simple with your name in it is good, but I suppose that's all painfully obvious. Which leads me to question: why did I just write that? Why am I writing anything? Why am I HERE?

A picture. This is actually more important than anything else besides the email, in my opinion. When you just have a person's name, do you really think you'll remember them out of all the dozens of people you meet? But faces stick with us. If you want people to remember you even more, acquire some distinguishing characteristic, like a glass eye or a rugged scar on your left cheek, just slicing the edge of the lip! Kidding, of course. To clarify, I do not support corporal mortification or self-harm of any kind. Unless it involves having one's face removed by the kraken.

A website. This could be a blog or an actual website, if you're cool like that. I'm not. I gave this blog's address, which is actually one of the reasons I'm updating more regularly, heh . . . .

A phone number. Meh. This could be helpful. Might not be. Just depends on who you are, I guess.

A physical address. Again, it's really up to you, I think.

Well, those are my amateur suggestions. "You" generic probably knows a lot more about this than I do. But I really do insist on the picture: that's my story and I'm sticking to it! One of my stories, at least.

A last piece of advice: follow through afterwards. I know this also might seem obvious, but personally, my laziness often drives me into a lack of common sense. In 2013 when I was on a flight from Abuja to Frankfurt, having just graduated high school, my parents and I started chatting with another American expatriate who was returning to the states from a business trip. The man's son turned out to be a playwright in Chicago! He gave me his business card and told me he could hook me up with his son for an internship, but at the time I didn't realize the significance of what I'd just been handed! I failed to contact him for months, and then never heard back.

Suffice to say, after the Write to Publish conference, I wrote a quick note to each and every person from whom I received a card, just to establish contact. From the research I've done, it's a good idea!

Writers Conference Advice #1: Research!

Hi, friends! As I mentioned in my last post, in early June, I had opportunity to attend the Write to Publish writers conference in Wheaton. The conference was quite successful for me: I won the Editor's Choice Award from Brimstone Fiction, and also was asked for a manuscript proposal from the other editor I pitched to, Sarah Grimm of Harbourlight Publishing.

I am far from an expert on writers conferences, having only attended one of them in my life. But I did pick up a few things along the way, thanks in large part to the advice given me by more knowledgeable people. If anyone is interested, I'd like to pass some of that advice on in a series of blog posts.

Please note that most of my advice pertains to seeking a publishing contract, because that's the main goal I had in mind in attending WtP.

#1: RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH!

Besides doing everything I could to prepare my actual manuscript, this is the thing that helped me most. Research EVERYTHING.

When I was prepping for WtP, I started the in-depth work a couple weeks beforehand. My first step was reading several blog posts with general advice about writers conferences and writers conference prep. One really good venue for this is Cindy Huff's blog. The page I linked to has some general tips, but she also wrote a series of posts with in-depth info on everything from apparel to -- guess what? -- research! Honestly, it's probably more worthwhile to find her posts and read them than to continue following my advice on the subject. But just in case you ARE interested, here's some more stuff about researching!

Go beyond general research and move into specifics. Find a list of all the professionals who will attend your conference, then research each and every editor, publisher, and agent to decide who you want to pitch to. Research the freelancers, too, if that's what you're going for. Go to all of their websites and see what they publish. Look for their preferred form of submission and make notes on it. When I was preparing, I printing out the official list of attendees (with their pictures!) and jotted notes in the margins. I put a start next to the ones I REALLY wanted to pitch to, a question mark next to the ones I wasn't sure about, and other symbols to indicate other degrees of interest. Seriously, I can't stress enough how helpful this was. It enabled me not to freak out and blank when I was actually meeting with them.

Also, research the classes you're hoping to take, to decide on what's the best use of your time for your particular interests. And research other things to, from the correct format for a manuscript proposal to the correct format for business cards. Utilize the conference's website for all of this. It probably has some good advice and lots of links to the websites of the attendees. For Write to Publish, there were even a series of blog posts with general submission and interest information about the attendees. I wish I'd discovered that BEFORE I spent hours digging through the interwebs to find said information.

Have a good evening, friends! I'll hopefully be back with the next post either tomorrow or Wednesday.

Here's a picture of a llama freaking out because he didn't do his research. Bad llama!

Big News

So friends, I have news to share. I've been waiting to post it to this blog until the opportune moment, and I apologize to those of you who've heard all this before, perhaps multiple times. No need to read it if that's the case. After all, what follows is rather lengthy . . . .

Story, story. Stooory. Once upon a time. Time, time. (You'll get it if you're from Nigeria).

Earlier this month, I attended the Write to Publish conference in Wheaton. I went with the goal of pitching a novel that I've written, currently titled Days to Destruction. For those of you who follow this blog, you read a few chapters of an early draft under the titles Gods and Chaos and Days of Telenine. I'm still not sure how happy I am with the new title, for the record.

Before leaving for the conference, I researched all the editors, publishers, and agents who would be in attendance, and realized that I really wanted to pitch to Rowena Kuo of Brimstone Fiction. Unfortunately, I also realized that she would be judging the Editor's Choice Award, given annually at Write to Publish. Brimstone is a traditional speculative-fiction publisher (spec-fic is "weird stuff" for all you non-nerdy types), and I was especially excited that Brimstone targets the general market, not just Christian markets. The Editor's Choice Award comes with a publishing option and full mentorship, both of which are uber cool. But in the end, I was dissapointed that Rowena was judging it because I knew everyone would want to pitch to her, and that would make it difficult to find a time. But find a time I did, and the pitch went pretty well. She asked if I was planning to attend her manuscript critique group, one of the steps in the award process. She probably asked that of everyone with a decent pitch.

The critique group also went well. Then she asked if I'd be attending her novel proposal critique group. I hadn't been. My full proposal was several months old and badly in need of editing. But I figured that saying no was a bad idea, so I stayed up that night and stitched some things together. The next day, my tablet acted up in the middle of the session, so I decided to let it pass. But when the last person had finished, there were still a few extra minutes. So what the heck? Besides a little dignity, what had I to lose? As the tablet drained of its last battery in updates, I managed to present basically everything I wanted. Then Mrs. Kuo asked to borrow overnight the manuscript hardcopy I had with me. I hope you can imagine my anxiety as I said yes and spent a fretful night trying not to think about it. Felt like a dagger to the gut, I'm telling you.

The next day was the last of the conference, at the end of which would be the final banquet, where the awards are presented. I only saw Mrs. Kuo once, on a sidewalk where she offered my manuscript back. I asked if she had any input, and she said yes, but she'd like me to send it to her. That was really cool, but I confess I'd been halfway hoping that I had a shot at the Editor's Choice Award. Anyway, I went to get cleaned up, then made my way to the banquet. Such good food. I'm telling you, Write to Publish is worth it just for that chicken stuffed with spinach and dribbled in tangy orange sauce! But really. Good. Stuff.

When the meal finished, they announced the awards. The first two recipients of different awards weren't actually present, and then Mrs. Kuo went up to announce the Editor's Choice Award. She shuffled a paper out of a manila envelope. She spoke a name.

And it turned out that I won.

Me holding the award, standing with Rowena Kuo (left) and Cindy Huff, last year's winner of the Editor's Choice Award. Perhaps providentially, Mrs. Huff is actually the wife of the man who advised me in how to prepare for the conference. We were randomly assigned to be a "Paul and Timothy" mentoring pair beforehand. It worked! Also, I plan to write a blog post on preparing for Writing Conferences, but in the mean time, you should really check out Cindy's blog, located here.

Thanks for reading, friends! If you slogged through all that, you're really cool and I really appreciate that. Not that I wouldn't and you aren't if you hadn't, but I think you understand. smile emoticon Thanks. I'll be working with someone from Brimstone Fiction over the coming while to edit further drafts of my manuscript. Ultimately, the goal of publication lies at the end of the long darkness.

Oh, here's a short write-up about the award from my college, Taylor University.

Story over!

Glasswalker: Reflections

The Lie

Frankie struck the mirror. In his mind, he was thinking of the other mirror he'd just exited from. But he also held the memory of the mirror he'd just struck. Two mirrors, their memories held equally in his mind. Somehow, he felt his mind stretch. He gave a mental push. Something popped.

Steam misted, sound muffled, then he stumbled back out the other side. Two images were in his vision, like he was seeing cross-eyed. It brought a wave of nausea, but Frankie shoved it down. With that shove, he was back to seeing only one image . . . yet he could still sense the other, could still direct it in a tucked away corner of his mind.

There was the Parasite, standing directly ahead in the hallway. Not a mirror image this time; the real monster. And, beyond the Parasite, there was someone else. It was Frankie.

"You see the whole," Frankie said. "And I'm a part of that whole, so you can always see me. But now I've made myself two parts."

The Parasite shrieked: a wrathful, rising sound. "No!"

"Oh I'm sorry," Frankie said. "Was I not supposed to do that?" He gave his cheekiest of grins.

Honestly, he wasn't sure exactly how he had done it, or why. It had just felt right. Instinct. The instinct of the fae, perhaps. Could he do it again?

The Parasite launched itself at the alternate Frankie. Frankie's mind focused into that one's body; controlling it, he sidestepped. But the Parasite wasn't going for him. It struck the mirror, slammed itself against it, the mirror that this alternate Frankie had stepped from. A spiderweb of cracks shattered its face. The alternate Frankie exploded into jagged fragments of light that melted quickly into the air.

The real Frankie gasped. He mind zoomed back into his body, and he vomited from the inertia and the sudden sense of loss. His puke splattered the floor.

"No matter," the Parasite said to him. His chilling smile had returned. "I've fought those of you capable of making reflections. You weren't supposed to, but I can deal with this. It is nothing more than an annoyance."

"No," Frankie said. He gritted his teeth. "The mirrors are mine." He launched himself at another mirror, creating another reflection across the hallway from him. He reached up a hand; his fingertips met the fingertips of the reflection for the briefest of seconds. They both looked at the Parasite as he charged.

Frankie stepped back into the mirror. Another reflection, who stepped out behind the Parasite. And then again, creating another ahead of him. And another . . . and another . . . .

The reflections began to fight, Hammering the Parasite from all sides. He went for their mirrors, shattering them and their bodies. Sometimes he sank his claw-nails into a reflection's chest, and it shattered along with its mirror. As fast as he killed them, Frankie created them.

A purple bruise blossomed on the Parasite's cheek. Blood dribbled from his lip.

He ripped a reflection's heart out. Sank his teeth into a reflection's heart. Smashed one's head against its own mirror.

Frankie felt each death, like losing a part of himself. And he could still feel them. Phantom limbs: he'd heard them described this way. But he was gaining them quickly, and the birth of a new reflection did nothing to assuage the passing of an older one.

All the reflections closed in; the real Frankie joined them. An all-out assault, pressing against the Parasite, trying to crush him with bodies. Then he forced a circle of space around himself and he screamed.

It was like before, but the scream rose higher, raged longer, filled the labyrinth like a coursing river of ice. Mirrors shattered. Reflections vanished in blinding light. The real Frankie covered his ears and found himself yelling.

The Parasite's face drained even whiter, if possible, and he fell to his knees. He and Frankie locked eyes. Then Frankie stabbed him.

He left it in the eye socket: a broken fragment of glass. It had sliced the skin of Frankie's palm when he grabbed it. In a way, it was a sliver of one of his own reflections.

The Parasite tumbled over.

Frankie jerked gasping breaths into his lungs. He blinked, and the hallway returned to normal. All the mirrors were fixed. Little sign of the recent battle.

But Frankie's hand still bled. The Parasite's body still lay on the floor, blood pooling under it.

Frankie knew instinctively that he would be able to escape, now. He wanted to leave. But he had one thing left to do.

He stumbled down the hallways, not mirrorwalking, using his regular legs. The stench of rot grew stronger. Finally, he came upon the body of the girl. Another mirrowalker, the Parasite had said. A dead one. Although the stench was overpowering, Frankie stooped, hoisted her onto his shoulder, and slowly stood. She deserved a proper burial. Then, looking no more at the maze of mirrors, he stepped into the wall ahead of him.

He walked away from the Parasite's lair.

The Truth

All done with the mirrorwalker story. Thanks for reading! Sorry it took so long; another idea has seized me. It is simple and sad and insistent. I don't think I'll be posting any of it to this blog, however.

Whew! Have a good night.