Galley Proof of Flank Hawk

I have been busy reviewing the galley proof of Flank Hawk sent to me by the managing editor at Gryphonwood Press. A time-consuming process. Fortunately, I am not finding much at all to correct. The goal is to be finished by tonight.

The scheduled release date for Flank Hawk is October 27th! I'm very much looking forward to it.

"Fictional History" published by Bewildering Stories

My short story "Fictional History" was published today by Bewildering Stories.

This story required more than a bit of research, most of which never found its way into the story's final version. That's usually how it works. But having sufficient background knowledge helps keep the relevant content accurate and flowing.

Click on over, give it a read and let me know what you think.

Link: "Fictional History"
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Sometimes It's a Matter of Perspective

Digging in and directing enormous effort on writing a manuscript, driving to get it finished can cause one to lose focus on the big picture. There is nothing wrong with dedication and making persistent progress toward completion, but sometimes a writer has to step back and get out of the weeds.

Getting too close, without an occasional step back can cause a writer to lose touch with the story’s direction. Dialogue becomes stilted, descriptions become wordy and ineffective, losing color, opportunities for effective characterization are overlooked, and the plot direction bulldozes ahead according to the established outline, often leading to a dead end. Some might call that dead end ‘The Wall’ or the dreaded ‘Writer’s Block.’ In any case the result is that the story stumbles off kilter until it utterly stalls.

What to do? Take a couple weeks off from the project. Work on something different and then come back, reread and revise, take a few notes, then move forward. If possible, have a crit partner or willing trusted reader give the manuscript in progress a look and provide insight and suggestions.

Then chances are you’ll be once again up and out of the weeds.

Book Review: Once Second After by William A. Forstchen

I learned about William Forstchen's novel One Second After while listening to the Neal Boortz Radio Show, and the discussion about EMPs (Electro Magnetic Pulse) on which the story’s plot is based caught my interest.

An EMP is a burst of energy that is a byproduct of a nuclear detonation high up in the atmosphere. It will wreck the vast majority of unshielded electronic devices, from a microwave oven and transistor radio to the computerized systems in the modern car and those that monitor and control a nation’s power grid.

The main focus of the story is the aftermath of a surprise attack from container ship-launched ICBMs whose nuclear warheads detonate above the USA.

One Second After chronicles the life and death struggles a local community and its individual citizens face as transportation, communication and emergency services come to a sudden, unexpected halt. It is a realistic scenario that doesn’t paint a pretty picture. Consider hospitals and nursing homes suddenly losing power. What happens to the patients? What about aircraft aloft whose electronic controls are instantly fried? How will crops get harvested, let alone transported to where the starving populations are? And those questions manage to only scratch the surface.

Consistent with the grim but truthful results of such an attack, there’s no immediate knowledge of what happened and no government emergency personnel and supplies to the rescue. Is it everybody for himself? How will individuals, families and communities face up to this crisis?

I know—a lot of questions, but Forstchen’s novel addresses those I put forth and more through his novel’s multiple, simultaneous EMP detonation scenario. And I don’t want to give away any answers that might lessen the enjoyment of your read. I personally had trouble putting it down.

One Second After is classified as a science fiction novel, but in actuality the threat is quite real. It could happen and we, especially in the West, are vulnerable.

Overall Submission Record: September 2009

As indicted in a previous post where I discussed statistics with respect to Total Words Published, I indicated keeping track of certain statistics is useful, at least to me.

I should note, keeping statistics on submissions is different than tracking submissions. Once an author begins sending out works, especially multiple stories, novels, articles, and poems (among other pieces), keeping track of markets, dates and acceptances is important. But that's a topic for a future post. What is important with respect to this post is that I draw my statistics from my submission tracking file.

The table's contents is pretty straight forward except for Other. That includes situations where for example, a market closed while a piece was under consideration or I withdrew a piece for consideration.

I've been writing with an eye toward publication for about ten years, so many writers have far more submissions. In addition, my early efforts focused on novels which take longer to write and also have longer response times from markets. After my first novel I began writing articles, and before finishing my second novel, I began writing short stories, so the number of times I've submitted a piece (Submission Total) has been climbing faster. It may once again slow down as I will be focusing less on short fiction and more on novel writing since Flank Hawk has been accepted for publication.

Really, the Overall Submission Record is simply a snapshot in a moment in time. The totals changes every time I submit a new piece or resubmit a rejected piece or a piece is accepted. If I broke the statistics down further, my best success (submission to acceptance rate) would by far be for articles, so that kind of skews the table a bit. But the Overall Submission Record helps me track successes and struggles. It motivates me while keeping me humble.

Book Review: Hocus Focus by Stephen Hines

Author Stephen Hines is one of the most creative and interesting authors I’ve run across. He infuses his experiences and perspective on life into his writing, providing an authentic voice that resonates with young adults who sometimes struggle to fit in—an audience often missed or overlooked.

Tween and teen readers will be drawn into Hocus Focus, a story that follows Lenny (a skate-boarding punk rock fan) as he struggles to find his way in a new school in a new town. Snobs, detentions, a band competition, friendships, a girl of interest all mixed with Lenny's troubled past and his effort to find his place.

The added twist is the contact lenses Lenny gets from the creepy local eye doctor, causing him to see weird images of teachers and classmates. Without giving too much away, it's what drives Lenny to understand who he truly is, vaulting him towards becoming the confident young man he never thought he could be—all this as time is running out to literally save his girlfriend, Pauline.Hocus Focus is a fun, unique read that shouldn't be missed.

Be sure to check out the book trailer: Book Trailor for Hocus Focus.
Hocus Focus is available in print at selected book stores as well as by special order, and through Amazon.com Kindle. See the author's website for details.

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