Category Archives: Publishing

September 4, 2013 · 6:00 pm

WorldCon: The Aftermath Part II: Constructive criticism

A good night’s sleep really does wonders, especially after a WorldCon.

So yesterday I talked about what a great time I had, and all the people and the moments that made it an amazing experience. And all of that still holds true. But today I want to take a more critical look at the con, and share some thoughts about what struck me in a less-than-squee way.

Before that, however, I want to recognize the immense amount of hard work that the all-volunteer staff put into making LoneStarCon 3 a success. Nothing a newbie con-goer might say will ever take away from that, and they deserve recognition and thanks for their herculean efforts. This is constructive criticism, and I hope it’s taken in that spirit.

I also recognize there is a strong fan subculture at work here. Some of the things I say here may go against the grain. I understand and respect the history and traditions of that subculture, but with that said, I’m gonna throw stuff out there anyway. Evolution can be a good thing.

All right, here’s some observations and ideas:

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September 3, 2013 · 6:00 pm

WorldCon: The Aftermath Part I

Dear Lord, where do I even begin?

To be fair, attending WorldCon, a.k.a. LoneStarCon 3 in San Antonio, was not a life-changing experience. Becoming an author was, for sure, and the con was more part of that than anything else. (There are other experiences, by the way, that do rank much higher than becoming an author. Like becoming a husband and a father. Priorities, people!)

That said, my first WorldCon — my very first SF/F convention, in fact — was an excellent thing. If I were in a video game, there would’ve been an authorial “achievement unlocked” icon popping up over my head every five minutes. The SF/F community is supportive, welcoming, kind, funny…and can get its collective drink on like you wouldn’t believe.

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August 25, 2013 · 10:25 am

Virtual reading and Q&A this Tuesday night!

I’m back from California…and about to turn right around and head to San Antonio for the 71st annual WorldCon. (My schedule’s here, by the way.) But before I head out for five days of geekery, I’ll be doing a virtual Shindig event this Tuesday night for those who either can’t make it to San Antonio or who simply just can’t wait.

The Shindig event starts at 9 p.m. EDT on Tuesday. All you have to do is click here to RSVP; you’ll get an e-mail reminder just before the event itself. Then all you have to do is surf on over and say hi. (You’re gonna need a Flash-enabled device to participate…sorry, iPad users.) I’ll be talking about The Daedalus Incident and reading a never-before-read-or-excerpted part of the book just for Shindig participants. This will also be your first chance to ask about The Enceladus Crisis, the sequel to Daedalus coming out this spring.

You can also ask about the whole Night Shade Books brouhaha that delayed Daedalus from its previously scheduled May 7 launch, though I think I did a pretty good job covering that in this guest post on Stefan Raets’ blog. I’ve been wanting to do a big what-the-heck-happened piece on the Night Shade/Skyhorse thing, and when Stefan expressed interest, I figured it was as good a time as any. So check out the post, and if you still have questions after that, come ask them Tuesday night!

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August 18, 2013 · 7:30 am

Daedalus acknowledgements

After a very long, long wait, The Daedalus Incident is finally available in stores and across formats. It’s been such a long wait, in fact, that I signed a deal to write two sequels while I was waiting…and the acknowledgements for Daedalus I wrote nearly six months ago should probably be updated. I didn’t get a chance to do that before the book went to press — we really wanted to meet our deadlines — but hey, that’s why the Internet is awesome. That, and cat pictures.

Below is the acknowledgements that appear in the back of the book. After that, you’ll see an addendum for all the folks who helped bring this book out during some very interesting times….!

***

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August 15, 2013 · 9:59 am

The quest to find my book in a store

Well, of course, I had to make a pilgrimage to see my book in the wild, as it were. The fact that I waited a day shows, I think, a strong sense of restraint.

Yesterday, my daughter and I went to the Barnes & Noble in Glendale, Calif., (a retail Mecca if there ever was one) and made a bee-line for the Science Fiction & Fantasy section. I scoured the new releases shelves…

…nothing.

Then we looked through the rest of the section. Nothing.

Well, OK, I thought. Maybe they haven’t put it out yet.

“Or maybe it already sold out,” Anna said. That made me feel slightly better, but I had my doubts.

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August 13, 2013 · 12:03 pm

Today, Daedalus finally sets sail

Sure, lots of folks have already gotten copies of The Daedalus Incident in bookstores and online, but since today was the last announced release date — for a book that has had many such dates come and go — I’m calling it. THIS IS THE DAY.

That means Daedalus is now available in print, e-book and Audible audiobook. The latter is new today, and I’m particularly happy with how it’s been received — it’s even been charted as a “hot future release” on the U.K. Amazon site. To all of you who ordered whichever edition, thank you so much. You’ve made this debut author very happy.

So how am I celebrating? Well, for one, I’m guest blogging today at the Big Kahuna of all guest blogs — The Big Idea on John Scalzi’s Whatever. John has been paying it forward for years, helping newbies like me get the word about about their work. Thanks for having me, John.

Also, I’m on the Skiffy and Fanty podcast, talking about Daedalus. (It was recorded before news of The Enceladus Crisis and its sequel broke, so no spoilers there, sorry!) Shaun Duke and Paul Weimer were awesome hosts, and it was a really great, really funny interview.

Tonight, my wife, kid and I are heading out to dinner here in L.A. to celebrate the final launch, as well as the announcement that I get to write two more. L.A. is a fantastic restaurant town — better than New York in some respects. Joints here are generally more creative, laid-back and less expensive. And mighty tasty, too.

And finally, I’ll be cracking open my 2006 Brooklyn Brewery Monster Ale, which I’ve been saving for something special. In fact, I brought it all the way to L.A. from Jersey for the occasion. Given that it’s a 10.1% alcohol-by-volume adult beverage, that’ll be the last thing I do, most likely, before calling it a day. A very good day, in fact.

#SFWApro

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August 11, 2013 · 7:30 pm

Announcing The Enceladus Crisis! (and another book, too)

I’ve been sitting on this for a while now, which has been hard given that most interviews I’ve done for The Daedalus Incident have included that wonderful “what’s next for you/what are you writing now” question.

I’m writing…The Enceladus Crisis. And it’s coming out spring 2014 from Skyhorse Publishing, along with a third book due out late next year.

As Publishers Weekly reported over the weekend, I’ve “re-upped” with Skyhorse for the second and third books in what is now the Daedalus series. If you’ve read The Daedalus Incident (or just skipped to the very end), you know I ended the story therein quite affirmatively, but left open the possibility of much, much more. Now I get to keep playing in the odd little sandbox I’ve created, and that brings me a lot of joy.

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August 9, 2013 · 5:30 pm

Publishers Weekly Radio and Girls in Capes!

Got a couple of really fun items that went live today. First off, Rose Fox and Mark Rotella interviewed me on the latest edition of Publishers Weekly Radio. We talked about The Daedalus Incident, heroic science fiction, and some of the stuff that went down at Night Shade Books — and why I’m grateful for how it all turned out in the end. Click on the link above to give it a listen; I come in about 11:30 into the podcast.

Also, I’m a guest over at Girls in Capes today, where I wrote about creating female characters as a male author. As I said up front in the piece, I don’t have all the answers, but I’d like to think I gave it my best shot. Girls in Capes is a really great, thoughtful site dedicated to women, men and minorities in geek culture. Be sure to check it out.

There’s only a few days until the official release date of The Daedalus Incident, and I’m really gratified at the response the book has gotten. With Amazon and B&N shipping the book already, it’s already been spotted out in the wild, but Tuesday is still the official date. That’s when the Audible audiobook becomes available, and ideally you’ll start to see it in stores. It’ll be a great end to a long road.

I also have some nifty things coming up next week to celebrate, so be sure to check back here!

#SFWApro

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August 6, 2013 · 5:30 pm

One week until Daedalus sets sail

One week from today, the print edition of The Daedalus Incident is officially released into the wild! It’s been quite the trip with this book, so it’ll be a very gratifying thing to see.

Of course, given the meandering path to publication Daedalus has gone through, it’s not entirely surprising that Amazon and Barnes & Noble are both reporting it in stock and available for online purchase. Folks who’ve ordered it say they’ve been notified that it’s been shipped. So…yeah, if you like, go for it and order!

As far as I can tell, the audiobook will still be released on Aug 13, and I haven’t seen the print book stocked in stores, so I assume those are still on for next week. Of course, you can get the ebook version for the Kindle, Nook and Kobo right now if you prefer pixels to print.

Despite the rather staggered nature of this release, I’m still treating Aug. 13 as The Daedalus Incident‘s official release date, even if it’s kind of arbitrary at this point. There comes a time when you gotta stick a candle in the cake and say happy birthday, so that’s my day, and that’s when I’ll be cracking open my 2006 Monster Ale from Brooklyn Brewery to celebrate.

I’ll actually be celebrating in Los Angeles, since I’ll be traveling for work. I’ll also be doing an event on Saturday, Aug. 17, at 2:30 p.m. at the Mysterious Galaxy bookstore in Redondo Beach, Calif. If you’re in the area, come on out and support a great local store.

In addition, I have a series of cool, interesting things coming up over the next few weeks, both on this blog and elsewhere, so stay tuned!

And now, since it’s probably been years since this song was stuck in your head, I present…”One Week.” You’re welcome.

#SFWApro

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July 17, 2013 · 10:25 am

Civilian Reader interview, plus more events!

Stefan over at Civilian Reader has an eclectic mix of genre stuff on his site, all of which is fun and awesome. He has great taste, which makes me doubly excited to be interviewed there today. There’s some new tidbits in there, so be sure to surf on over and check it out.

Meantime, if you look on the right hand side of this page, you’ll see there’s been some changes to the events calendar. It seems that the audiobook of The Daedalus Incident will now release the same day as print, on August 13. On the bright side, I’ve seen that if you’ve already purchased the Kindle version, Amazon may cut you a deal on the audiobook. (For me, it’s showing $3.99, which is a steal.) Something to think about, folks…!

I’ve also added a reading at Singularity & Co. in September, arranged by the good folks at Skyhorse. Singularity is a great bookstore, dedicated to all things SF/F. It’s fun to visit, so be sure to come out and see me!

And remember to RSVP for my virtual reading and Q&A on Wednesday, July 24, at 9 p.m. EDT. It’s free to participate, and if you show up, I’ll drop a brand new excerpt of The Daedalus Incident on you. I may even talk about what comes next, since I’ve been writing up a storm this week while on vacation.
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