Links and Things
It’s end of the month catch-up-time here. I spent the weekend revising a big batch of poems I wrote during November Poem-A-Day–yes, I’m that behind on things. The next order of business will involve sending out poems (poetry editors: brace yourselves). I have a month until Phoenix Comicon (my panel schedule is online!) followed by the release of Clockwork Crown, so life will soon escalate in craziness.
And hey, there’s a lot of other cool stuff to share, too.
– Have you ever wondered what a literary publicist actually does? One of my fellow Harper Voyager authors interviewed our publicist!
– Author Teresa Frohock invited me to her blog, where I discuss medicine and magic in “The Deepest Poison” and The Clockwork Dagger series. If you want to read about World War I medicine, I list the books I used as sources!
– Editor Rhonda Parrish revealed the cover for B is for Broken. I have a flash story in here for the letter K. There’s also a Goodreads giveaway to win a copy of the book.
I have two new, very different interviews up:
– AFE Smith asks me about the books and goodies I’d bring to a desert island.
– Rhonda Parrish questions me about my story in the FAE anthology over at World Weaver Press.
Tomorrow is the release day for “The Deepest Poison!” Whee!
Read MorePublication Flood
I’ve commented before that publishing events seem to happen in odd little bursts. I’ll hear nothing for months, then have a torrent of acceptances/rejections. The same goes for publications. Up until last week, I had zero stories published in 2014. Then in about a week, I had three out, two of them pro. Plus two poems.
Need to procrastinate and read? Well, here you go:
– My story “Bread of Life” is up at Nature. This is my third story in Nature, and the tale is… appropriately me. There’s also a blog post with the story behind the story.
– Daily Science Fiction published “From the Ashes,” one of those rare, uplifting post-apocalyptic stories.
– At Fantasy Scroll Magazine you can read my longer story, “My Brother’s Keeper.” It features southern-fried magic, family love, and pie.
As for poetry:
– Devilfish Review published “The Migration of Winged Jukeboxes.” More poetry should mention Steve Perry, I think.
– Kaleidotrope has a more whimsical poem, “Squished Things.”
I’ve also popped up elsewhere online:
– I took part in an SF Signal Mind Meld on The City and Epic Road Trips.
– I had a new recipe at the Holy Taco Church: Bacon Fat Chocolate Chip Cookies.
– I also asked one of my favorite authors, C.E. Murphy, about how she plotted series. She answered, and it’s interesting stuff.
Read MoreMe! Baen! Hockey!
I’ve been in a lot of amazing anthologies and magazines, but I confess, this one just boggles my mind. My story “Minor Hockey Gods of Barstow Station” has been accepted to Galactic Games, an anthology to be published by Baen during the Rio Olympics next year. The table of contents includes people like George R. R. Martin, Seanan McGuire, and Mercedes Lackey. You can see the full holy-moley list over here.
This was an especially challenging story to write, too. Basically, it took me three months to psych myself up to start the first draft. The world-building was daunting–alien cultures, plus a far-future Earth with substantial changes–but there was also the matter of hockey. We’re a hockey family. We’ve been season ticket holders for the Arizona Coyotes for several years. I’m decently conversant in the sport and players, but not to the deep technical level that the story required. My husband was a huge help. He helped me hone my scenes and even sketched out a rink to illustrate who does what. He is awesome.
I’ll talk about this story more into next year as the release date nears. Yippee!
Read MoreShort Stuff Published in 2014
I figured I should do a post on what I had published in 2014. I know I didn’t write as many new stories, though a number of my older ones found homes. What I didn’t realize was how many poems I had published. Wow. Dude.
So here’s the full list of my short works published in 2014. If you’re bored, maybe you’ll take a gander. (And I don’t mean you should thieve a goose.)
Short stories:
- “A Mother’s Touch,” Perihelion Science Fiction
- “Hatchlings,” Daily Science Fiction
- “Post-Apocalyptic Conversations with a Sidewalk,” Nature Magazine
- “The Cartography of Shattered Trees,” FAE; on Amazon and Barnes & Noble
- “Degrees of Starvation,” Every Day Fiction
- “Bad Snake Day,” Every Day Fiction
- “Sanctified Ground,” Trust and Treachery: Tales of Power and Intrigue
- “Measures and Countermeasures,” Daily Science Fiction
- “Cold Beyond White,” Stupefying Stories Showcase #13
Podcast stories:
- “Red Dust and Dancing Horses,” Escape Pod; read by Marguerite Kenner
- “Reading Time,” Cast of Wonders; read by Dave Thompson
- “213 Myrtle Street,” Toasted Cake; read by Tina Connolly
- “La Rosa Still in Bloom,” Comets and Criminals; read by Catherine Smith
- “Frail Men of Metal and Bone,” Every Day Fiction; read by Folly Blaine
Poetry:
- “How a Modern Green Man Grows,” NewMyths.com
- “Sorry,” Mobius: The Journal of Social Change
- “Time Traveler’s Seance,” “Thank Hecate for Insurance,” and “From Grandma, With Love,” Star*Line 37.4
- “Grandfather and Granddaughter (Age 5),” Devilfish Review
- “Nisei” and “Seeds” (reprinted), Mythic Delirium Anthology; available in all formats
- “Mama Bogey’s Advice,” “The Time Traveler’s Buttonhook,” “The Time Traveler’s Pants,” “The Time Traveler’s Gratitude,” and “Advice on Befriending a Siren,” Star*Line 37.3
- “To Walk Upon Clouds,” NewMyths.com
- “Suddenly, a Unicorn,” Grievous Angel
- “Mad Scientist’s Lament,” Lakeside Circus
- “Quercus Californica,” Tales of the Talisman Volume IX Issue 4
- “Unanimous,” Star*Line 37.2
- “Authentic Mother Version 2.6,” Star*Line 37.2
- “Barstow,” Spark Volume V
- “Cogs,” Apex Magazine Issue 59
- “Nisei,” Mythic Delirium Issue 0.4
- “Bird Girl,” Niteblade Magazine
- “Cloud Catcher,” Tales of the Talisman Volume IX Issue 2
- “Seeds,” Mythic Delirium Issue 0.3
Nonfiction:
- “Believing in Unicorns,” Blood on the Floor: How Writers Survive Rejection
- “Welcome to the Navy” and “All About the Balloon,” Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Cat Did What?
Still $1.99
The ebook sale for The Clockwork Dagger is ongoing through Christmas! It’s for $1.99 at:
In other news this week, I have a new story published at Perihelion SF: “A Mother’s Touch,” a story of medical advancement, dragons, and death with dignity.
I’m also over at Rhonda Parrish’s blog with a very true cat Christmas tale.
If you’re looking for more recipes for this week, I might be able to help. Not only do I have a lot here on my site, but on Pinterest I have over 6,000 pins, many of those being recipes. That includes a board of my Bready or Not recipes, a collection on non-baked desserts, and a full repertoire of sweets that require glorious, glorious maple. Plenty of om-nom-noms to be had.
Read MoreWherein I share a ToC with Neil Gaiman
I LIVE.
I survived World Fantasy Con and had an absolute blast. I managed to complete a Poem-A-Day and make slow progress on my Clockwork Crown copyedits even during the con, which made me feel like a real writer. Fun fact: real writers are also sleep-deprived.
[Me working on copyedits on the flight to DC.]
One of the nifty things about being at a convention is that you get told about good news. I knew I had a reprint story that had been requested for inclusion in Twelfth Planet Press’s Year’s Best YA Speculative Fiction 2013, but the full Table of Contents was announced the day I was mostly offline as I flew cross-country.
So I was pretty gobsmacked to find out I’m sharing the book with Neil Gaiman. And my story follows his. Gulp.
The full ToC:
Selkie Stories Are For Losers – Sofia Samatar
By Bone-Light – Juliet Marillier
The Myriad Dangers – Lavie Tidhar
Carpet – Nnedi Okorafor
I Gave You My Love by the Light of the Moon – Sarah Rees Brennan
57 Reasons for the Slate Quarry Suicides – Sam J. Miller
The Minotaur Girls – Tansy Rayner Roberts
Not With You, But With You – Miri Kim
Ghost Town – Malinda Lo
December – Neil Gaiman
An Echo in the Shell – Beth Cato
Dan’s Dreams – Eliza Victoria
As Large As Alone – Alena McNamara
Random Play All and the League of Awesome – Shane Halbach
Mah Song – Joanne Anderton
What We Ourselves Are Not – Leah Cypess
The City of Chrysanthemum – Ken Liu
Megumi’s Quest – Joyce Chng
Persimmon, Teeth, and Boys – Steve Berman
Flight – Angela Slatter
We Have Always Lived on Mars – Cecil Castellucci
—
The book should be out in just a few weeks! Pretty darn good note to end the year on, I think.
Read More
