Michael J. Martinez

Author: Michael J. Martinez

  • Hope

    My 12-year-old daughter was pretty wrecked this morning when we told her about the election results. Like many, we had told her that while Donald Trump was a bully who had leveraged people’s fears — fears about the economy, their values, the Other — but that there were many good people out there. We didn’t think he would win.

    He did.

    All the conventional wisdom and outdated polling methodologies told us he wouldn’t, but he leveraged those fears far better than we expected. The fact that more Americans voted against him than for him remains a comfort, and that isn’t a small comfort, at least to me. It means we’re not alone.

    So what do you tell a crying 12-year-old?

    You remind her that this nation was created with checks and balances, so that the Presidency does not become a monarchy. You remind her that many conscientious Republicans took a stand with us, and we need to support them in the fights to come, even if we don’t agree on everything. You remind her that we have freedoms unparalleled in the world, and that our voices and time and effort can make a difference.

    And you promise to do better.

    For the most part, I’ve avoided politics on this blog and in my public persona — whatever that is. I believed that others did a far better job, and that the backlash wouldn’t be good for me or my family, or that the time and effort wasn’t worth the potential return. But let’s face it…that was complacency. I wrote a check here or there and voted, and that was fine, right? Nope. It was not.

    I am not a woman or a person of color or LBGTQ+, but I want to support everything that they’ll be doing. My friend and fellow scribe Mike Underwood said it best on Twitter:

    https://twitter.com/MikeRUnderwood/status/796363293002727424

    In fact, Mike’s whole thread is pretty good and worth a read. Point is, folks like me can’t be Frodo. It’s not our job to carry the One Ring to Mount Doom. But we can help. We’re the Fellowship. We go to where we’re needed and say, “You have my bow. And my ax. What do you need?”

    And so I’m going to try to do that. For starters, check out this post from Jezebel about organizations that need your help. I also encourage you to use the comments below to throw some links out there to worthwhile organizations and efforts, and to find folks in your area fighting the good fight.

    And I’m going to continue to write. The MAJESTIC-12 series most certainly has relevant political undertones, and I may hit those a little harder in the books to come. Another idea, far more overtly political but still fantastical, may very well have jumped to the front of the to-be-written pile. You’ll see more thoughts on this blog in the days and weeks to come.

    This election is hard, man, but there are reasons to be hopeful. The civil rights and womens’ rights movement began in the Eisenhower years and were cemented in the Nixon era. My hope — and I believe it to be a grounded, realistic hope — is that this election will result in a similar wave of progress in the years to come. But it’s on us to make that happen.

    So I told my kid that’s what I’m gonna do. I want her to enjoy being 12, and to sew and draw and to create as she does so well already. I want her to focus on school, and to have fun with her friends. And I want her to know that I’m working for her future, not just by giving her individual opportunities, but by creating opportunities for everyone and to make the world a kinder place.

    I have hope. Let’s do this.

  • The Ditch Diggers podcast, and an explanation of an odd phrase

    Apologies for the dearth of posts, but I’ve been traveling pretty extensively for the day-job of late. But I’m back now, and I wanted to point out that I’m on the latest episode of the fantastic Ditch Diggers podcast, hosted by Mighty Mur Lafferty and Matt F’n Wallace, two excellent authors and really great interviewers.

    So what did we talk about? Ditch Diggers is about the writing life — well, the real writing life. This is not about journeys of literary self-discovery, beautiful introspection or writing-as-spirituality. This podcast is about the writing life that deals with getting the job done, getting published, doing the hard work and making sure you get paid for your efforts.

    And to do that, as I noted in the podcast, you have to get your shit in one sock.

    This phrase stopped my hosts in their tracks, first with laughter, then demands of an explanation. I mean, sure, I could see that, as on the surface of it, get your shit in one sock could very well describe a horrible misuse of laundry. But I didn’t remember all of the details on the podcast — but I did remember where I got it from.

    My cousin John Butnor, an environmentalist and U.S. Forest Service scientist up in the great state of Vermont, first introduced me to the hosiery-defecation bon-mot many years ago, and he got it from…well, here he is with the explanation.

    I was in high school, and in order to apply for ROTC or the service academies (which my father was more interested in than I was), I had to go to a recruiter to take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). The recruiter said that I passed with flying colors and he hadn’t seen a score like that.

    He asked what I was interested in and I said I wanted to work in in environmental protection and conservation.  He was caught off guard and suggested the Chemical Corps.  I was not impressed and said I wanted to to go to college and take a variety of subjects and not clean up after chemical or biological warfare.

    He said,  “Look, a smart guy like you doesn’t need all those classes, you HAVE TO GET YOUR SHIT IN ONE SOCK!!!”  (Enunciated in typical sergeant-speak.) I took this to mean that it was more advantageous, when shitting yourself, to have it soil only one sock or the other, because soiling both is terribly inefficient.  I since learned that a ‘sock’ is slang for a Navy duffel.

    Anyway, his solution to fit my shit all in one sock was: Nuclear power school.

    I could go on…it made an impression.

    Yes, yes it did…so much so that getting one’s shit in one’s sock has become a rather key family phrase in our house (though never within earshot of the child). Cousin John opted out of the military in favor of the Forest Service, and has surpassed the Lorax in his efforts on behalf of the nation’s trees. He’s also the most frighteningly competent person I know; he helped design and build his own home, can survive in the wild for weeks at a time, and is incredibly handy in most things mechanical.

    So when the zombie apocalypse comes — and it will — I’ll be piling the family in the car and heading to John’s house. If nothing else, I can scavenge for raw materials or something. Maybe just record John’s exploits as he single-handedly reboots human civilization. Because when the zombies come, you better have your shit in one sock. And he does.

    Anyway, the podcast is loads of fun, with many fine sock-shitting jokes throughout. Plus, we talk about the utility of dust jackets, how MJ-12: Inception came about, and my career with Night Shade Books thus far. Check it out at this link.

    #SFWApro

  • Endless Ages, the Vampire anthology, is now up for sale

    endlessagesJust a quick note: You can now head on over to DriveThruFiction and purchase your very own copy of Endless Ages, the anthology celebrating Vampire: The Masquerade in all its past and present forms, out today from Onyx Path.

    Yes, this includes my short story, “Tiger,” along with stories from so many other fantastic writers — Delilah S. Dawson, Na’amen Gobert Tilahun, Bill Bridges and Richard Dansky, to name but a few — all edited by the awesome Jaym Gates. I’m honored to be among such a great mix of original Vampire writers and new voices.

    Oh, and hey, if you do happen to click the sample link on the DriveThruFiction page, you’ll be able to read “Tiger” in its entirety. (I read it again today and, man, I’m really happy with how it turned out.) All I ask is that if you liked the story, please consider buying the entire anthology for more Kindred goodness!

    #SFWApro

  • I have a short story in the new Vampire: The Masquerade anthology!

    endlessagesYay! I sold another short story! And this one is near and dear to my heart.

    I spent many nights in college playing Vampire: The Masquerade with my friends, and the game stuck with me through the years; I’d venture to say that it’s one of the influences that led me to eventually try my hand at fiction. So when Jaym Gates — an awesome person and excellent editor — said she was doing a V:tM anthology for Onyx Path Publications, I raised my hand faster than the know-it-all kid in the back seat of class.

    I’m proud to say that my story, “Tiger,” leads off the new Endless Ages anthology, which includes fantastic stories from some of Vampire‘s long-time contributors as well as newbies like myself and other awesome scribes like Delilah S. Dawson. (Hi, Delilah!)

    And what’s “Tiger” about? Well, the good people at Onyx Path posted a little intro I wrote, along with a brief excerpt. So click here to check it out. Endless Ages drops on Wednesday, and excerpts are running all the way up until Halloween. I’ll update with buying links and whatnot when I get ’em.

    My thanks to Jaym and the whole crew at Onyx Path for letting me scratch another one off the authorial bucket list!

    #SFWApro

  • Worldbuilding overload is a real thing

    I had a colleague come into my office this morning with, as he put it, “a geek question.” Obviously, he’d come to the right place, but I couldn’t actually help. He was looking for a copy of The Fellowship of the Ring, but mine went AWOL years ago. (Note to self: Get new copy of LOTR.)

    We got to talking, as colleagues do when deadlines near and we don’t want to deal. He had just finished up The Hobbit and wanted to read the trilogy next, but was bracing himself for it somewhat. You see, J.R.R. Tolkien is absolutely the granddaddy godfather O.G. of epic fantasy writers. There is no doubt. But man, he loved his worldbuilding. A lot.

    So much so, he kinda shoved as much of it into his books as possible.

    (more…)

  • Not the lesser of two evils

    Fair warning here: This post is about politics, not something I normally do. If you’re sick to death of the Dumpster fire that is the 2016 elections, I wholeheartedly encourage you to bail, and hold no ill will. Good? Good. Also, all opinions are my own, and do not necessarily reflect those of my employer, publisher, family, mail carrier or bartender. 

    I studied politics and government in college. I covered politics at the state level early on in my journalism career, and later on I covered the intersection of business, politics and the judiciary with some regularity, and let me tell you, U.S. politics is unique across the globe. Part of that really is American exceptionalism: Our founding fathers did a pretty good job of setting up a system of government.

    But part of that is how the political class, across the ideological spectrum, is forced to reconcile the quest for personal political power with the need to show results and to be judged by the voters regularly. In other words, no matter how much you backstab, betray or belittle, you still need to go home and show your voters that you did something for them, and not just for yourself.

    Some politicians take this dichotomy in the spirit which, I think, the founding fathers intended. You go to the state house or Washington and you roll up your sleeves and get to work. You compromise with other representatives and try to craft laws and create new initiatives to improve the lives of your constituents. When you’re up for reelection, you go home and you tell folks what you did, and your opponent in the election gets to poke holes in your record. The voters judge, and you go back or you don’t.

    (more…)

  • Inspiration where you least expect it

    My day-job office is at Rockefeller Center, which is pretty awesome most of the time. (The Christmas tree is beautiful for about two days, then the throngs of tourists begin to wear on one’s nerves, admittedly.) I remember the first day I arrived, I saw this plaque in the elevator lobby.

    intrepid

    Pretty cool, eh? The office itself is pretty unremarkable now, but it’s nifty to think that a critical piece of the Allied war effort played out on the same floor where I drink coffee and talk football with my co-workers. And yes, I revisited this plaque more than once as I was writing MJ-12: Inception.

    Sir William Stephenson was a Canadian businessman prior to World War II. As war broke out in Europe, Winston Churchill asked Stephenson to open up the British Security Coordination office in New York. Room 3603 in Rockefeller Center was the place he rented. Officially, he was a passport control officer. Unofficially, he helped coordinate intelligence activities throughout North America.

    MJ-12-newcoverPrior to late 1941, part of Stephenson’s job was to try to sway public opinion in the U.S. in favor of aid to Britain. After the U.S. joined the war, his office in Rockefeller Center became a hub of activity, coordinating U.S., British and Canadian covert action against the Axis. He was the one who set up Camp X up in Ontario, where O.S.S. and MI6 officers trained during the war.

    Yes, the Camp X training manual was a real thing, and I used it in MJ-12: Inception as a guide to how Variants would be trained at Area 51. In fact, researching Stephenson led me to Camp X, which led to that key piece in the book.

    Stephenson was also instrumental in the creation of O.S.S., which would later become the CIA.

    After the war, Stephenson went back to being a businessman, and I haven’t found much more about him after that. It was sorely tempting to include him somehow in the MAJESTIC-12 series, but alas, I don’t think he’ll make in there. But it’s nice to know that a piece of history is right here in my office, and helped me discover more of the history that went into my work.

    #SFWApro

  • Writing books for fun and prophecy

    prophetThe cool online magazine Inverse has this great column called “Ask a Prophet,” which is an interview with science fiction writers about the genre and their ideas for the future. And, well…heck, I guess I’m a prophet?

    Sadly, all I got is Magic 8 Ball that I received almost two decades ago from a now-defunct e-commerce site…back when people called them “e-commerce sites.” And the 8 Ball, as you can see, is less than impressed with my prophetic skills.

    Anyway, Lauren Sarner chatted with me for the column, and it turned out to be a pretty nifty interview. We talked about the Daedalus trilogy, comic book movies and diversity in the genre.  Go check it out!

    #SFWApro

  • Practice makes perfect

    Sketch by Anna Martinez
    Sketch by Anna Martinez

    My daughter has always loved art. We joke that the was the first baby in the neighborhood to stop eating crayons and start using them. It’s been a constant throughout all the phases of her life so far, from toddler to elementary school to tween, and we’ve encouraged her explorations. (Those of you who have my books might flip to the author mugshots in the back for her first professional photo credits.)

    For her, art is fun and joyful, and since she has skills — objectively speaking, not just being a doting dad here — she already knows she wants to make a go of it somehow as a profession, with the current emphasis being fashion design. But there’s a difference between “fun” art and “professional” art, and that difference is training.

    She hates it.

    OK, hate is too strong a word, but as she goes into more advanced art classes, she’s now understanding the hard work, discipline and skill development involved. That’s made art less fun, at least for now, but it’s still necessary. Critical, even. There really is only so far you’ll go on raw talent alone. So now she’s doing a pure skills class in drawing, the result of which  you can see here. She also feels like that little guy after class sometimes, but hey, she’s 12. And that’s a good sketch.

    Practice, man. It’s hard. You write and write and write, and sometimes it’s just practice — the story isn’t gonna see the light of day. While it’s not a horrible story, because you have some innate talent (you hope), it’s still not good. I remember my first stabs at fiction, oh so many years ago.  I submitted some work to White Wolf and SJG back in the day — before the dot-com bubble burst, actually — and while the editors there were kind, well…I didn’t have it. It wasn’t good enough.

    And so I practiced. Now, I get to practice all kinds of writing because it’s my day job, and there’s a higher correlation between journalism, marketing copy and fiction than you’d think. I’m writing to convince people of something — whether it’s the importance of a news event, the benefits of a particular decision you’d like them to make, or the plausibility of your plot, setting and characters. There’s different aspects to each, but there’s still stuff to be learned no matter what I’m scribbling.

    Prior to writing my first novel, I’d already been a writer for nearly twenty years, and still that puppy needed so much work before it hit the shelves. My novels always need more work, even when I think I hit it out of the park. (Actually, I find the more enamored I am of a piece of writing, the more work it needs. Go figure.) Revision is a kind of practice, too; you’re practicing writing that scene or chapter or book several times over before you get it right.

    It can be frustrating to write something and know that it might never get published. Heck, my debut was rejected several times over before it went to Night Shade Books, and there were times when I wondered if the whole thing was just gonna be a weird lark. But I stuck with it, and I still write stuff that I’m not sure will ever get out there. It’s good to do that, to try new things, to expand the skill-set and keep plugging.

    And let’s hear it for guidance, too. Ross Lockhart turned my first novel around in so many ways. Cory Allyn is a fantastic editor and collaborator. Every editor I’ve worked with in fiction has given me valuable teaching moments and made me better, rather like how my kid’s art teacher is making her a better artist.

    I get a little frustrated when writers ignore the benefits of practice and guidance. They’ll rip on editors as folks who try to “commercialize” their fiction or deviate from the vision or whatever. They say revision and discipline is for hacks. They don’t think this stuff applies to them. It does. (There’s a reason the Guy In Your MFA is so popular, because every writer knows that guy.)

    So practice. Nobody’s gonna skate on raw talent when it comes to writing, or any kind of art. Practice and revise, seek out guidance and get better. That’s how it’s done.

    #SFWApro

  • Barnes & Noble SF/F blog reviews MJ-12: Inception, plus a shout-out from Kirkus

    MJ-12-newcoverI have long held that Paul Weimer is one of the most knowledgeable critics in science fiction and fantasy, and even when he dings my work, it’s always police and constructive and makes me think, “Huh. Yeah. He’s right. Dammit.” These days, Paul’s writing on behalf of Barnes & Noble’s SF/Fantasy Blog, and he had many lovely things to say about MJ-12: Inception. Such as:

    Michael J. Martinez’ MJ-12: Inception is a thriller that blends the best elements of Cold War-era spy stories, supernatural fantasy, and splashy pulp comics. … As a setup for a series, it works at an excellent pitch. I can’t wait to see if and how these characters will change the course of history as we know it. Is this a secret history or an alternate one? Only time, and more books, will tell. I look forward to finding out.

    There’s a lot more in the actual review, which you can read here. Again, Paul knows his stuff, so when he says he’s looking forward to more, I’m feeling pretty good about what I’ve done so far. Thank you, Paul and B&N!

    You may know Paul from his numerous contributions to the late, great SF Signal. But while that fine site is no more, former proprietor John DeNardo continues to write about SF/F for Kirkus Reviews, and he mentioned MJ-12: Inception as part of a roundup of the genre’s breadth and depth. Check it out here.

    As for what I’m up to, well…I think we’re just about done with the promotional merry-go-round for MJ-12: Inception. This is the first time I’ve embarked on a new book launch while in the midst of writing the sequel, and it’s been…weird. I’m usually quite excellent about being able to ping-pong back and forth between projects, but between all the travel and the promotional writing, I’ve not been able to devote as much time to MJ-12: Shadows as I’d like.

    But from here on out, that’ll change. It’ll also free up this space from constant updates and what not, and I’ll try to be more entertaining and thoughtful with posts, even as I post a bit less. Because MJ-12: Shadows ain’t gonna write itself. I’m not going to go completely dark, because the blog and Twitter entertain me even as they (hopefully?) entertain you. But let it be known, it’s time to hunker down.

    #SFWApro