Short Stories and Shorter Stories

Even though I originally posted the news a couple weeks ago on my FaceBook page, I'm keenly aware that not everyone (meaning all but maybe two people) follows ALL of my outlets so I like to sprinkle the news over sci-fi-like timelines of no particular order.

Ever since the anthology, that saw published my first marketed short story, came out, I've been wondering what I might do with it after its one-year run is up. More short stories based on it? I thought of maybe making it a three-part story, coming it at a sort of 50-60K novella length. Which I might still spin-off the idea in the future, but I've always had the niggling urge to do a sort of sampler of my two published series but with wholly original entries.

Well, one night a couple of weeks ago, I'd sat down to do a quick outline of one of those spin-offs and within a handful (I'm ableist trash so that's five) of hours, I'd ended up with an almost 10K word draft for a The Truth about Heroes spin-off story. Whether you're new to the series or you've actually read it already, the story follows my star-crossed Bryfolk characters, Dinsch and Seles, and their rather unconventional love affair before they parted ways. (Think Song of Solomon, written by an atheist, and with all the juicy parts uncensored. Also, they're not married and it's not a happy ending.) Because it's a sort of prequel to where the books' events take place, the spoilers are actually few and may give you a different sort of appreciation than the reader that read them in a different order.

Either way, it inspired a new idea-- to maybe write some other spin-off stories for my adult collection. There will be triggering themes, but the playground is still in made-up worlds so it won't be my intent to include any current events parallels, just some nice adult fun. While some of my stories can be romance-centric, it's never the entire reason for the plots, every generic piece revolving around sex. In the same vein, there's plenty of sex. Why? Because I find there are powerful psychological motivations in even the most seemingly casual encounters and it's another layer to our growth as people.

And this coming from an asexual, in case you missed me saying that ever. Despite my own disinterest in a physical partner, I don't have trouble understanding, appreciating, and enjoying the intimate human connections and how they drive people. In the same way that I understand why people embrace religion, even being an atheist, it doesn't mean I don't have parallel drives to balance morals, observations, and moods just like anyone else. In fact, if there's anything I have difficulty understanding, it's how people can enjoy lying. I've never liked the taste of one myself. If I can't be honest, I shut the hell up.

Despite the stick-up-your-ass wannabe gatekeepers throwing sex into the category of literary trash though? Eh, fuck 'em. And fuck the people who are swear-Nazis while we're at it. The idea that I'm somehow simpler or baser or unsophisticated for 'going there' is ignorance. I deal with enough of that when people treat me like I'm retarded when they find out I'm high-functioning. At least until I'm dropping that knowledge. Sure, if I was some kid flexing my rebellious right to swear and fuck, I'll even agree it's tacky. It doesn't change the fact that many adults are capable of using adult themes to a story's advantage. I like to think I'm one of them, but those people will find any reason to be right so I'll let them gnaw on their wheat crackers and call it a cookie.

Ahem, anyways, I've mentioned the idea of UnNamed spin-offs before and I may pick a couple for this teaser anthology in the future. Insofar, the prevailing theme is just adult fantasy, so anyone who appreciates my mix of adult romance and far-reaching fantasy themes will be right at home with this one. If I have to cite any influences in this work, think of it in the vein of writers like Karen Marie Moning and Laurell K. Hamilton, only not so much only urban-ish fantasy since insofar, only Gretel's Gift flirts with real-world parallels. All the same, I'm a woman who likes deep and sexy and supernatural/mystical themes, so that's the nearest comparison I could throw at you.

Personally, I'm a fan of Moning's Fever series (even though her other titles fell flat for me) and Hamilton's Anita Blake series, though that one fell off after the fifth book for me. All the same, they use a lot of investigative themes, who-dunnits if you will, that also appeal to what I like to write, so that's where you'll see my influences. Other than that, compare at your leisure.

The biggest challenge in maintaining a blog is that they're absolutely nothing like what I enjoy as a novelist and it's harder than I make it look to figure out how much to talk about myself, how much to claim any proficiency, how closely I should bother sticking to a topic. I like the organic flow and the rambling here and there, if only because it's a departure from weaving words I care to edit over and over and over again before slapping a price on it.

I do delight in what I'm learning about short stories. I like the way it challenges me to get right down to the point, to cut that beginning, middle and end down from my usual epic build into a complete story that might tempt the reader to imagine beyond it on their own.

So far, I have Gretel's Gift and Drawn to Perfection. Haven't thought about working titles for the other possible stories, but I'm thinking of calling the anthology Sword Romance. No, I'm not; I'm just fucking with you. I really haven't thought of a cohesive title and won't until I've gotten all of them drafted at the very least.

You're welcome to use Sword Romance as your title. But seriously, it's super lame. Probably don't do that. Even if your Sword Romance becomes an international best seller, I'm just going to make fun of the title. Promise.

Weekend Reading

I don't normally publish three posts in one day, but I just finished reading the anthology and I wanted this post up ASAP rather than scheduling it.

After finally getting my copy of The Magical Book of Wands, I got to start my weekend off with a magical bout of reading and I'm eager to share my thoughts.

What I love most about this mix is we somehow managed to cover a lot of ground without consulting on things such as sub-themes or age group. I can't say I'd recommend the whole book for all ages, but it's certainly subgenre diverse. My own entry blends dark fantasy and sizzling romance. Yet, it does show a vast array of styles and unique voices.

You don't have to take my word for it. I have a horse in the race here, but once it's pulled from the anthology's limited time run (one year), I'm going to repackage it in my own short story collection that branches off from this entry. I really enjoyed this short trip and I'd like to write some new characters and new adventures with the dark Fae theme linking them. Short stories are nice project dividers and a different challenge altogether.

Indie authors are a hard-working lot, so we really rely on people giving us a chance to grow. Readers are in the unique position to critique and encourage and support the authors they choose. They are given agency to consume stories that may not have been out there otherwise, to not settle for what agents and publishers whittle down for the masses. That's not to say indie authors can't grow bigger, be involved in movies or TV shows. I've said it before but those who think the market was airtight before are deluded. Not to mention, an open market makes it more possible for non-readers to find some guilty pleasure and change that.

I can't say enough how proud I am to be an author. Someday I'll wrap my head around marketing, but really, these years of writing and growing have been too amazing to fret about that. I try to read my stories dispassionately but I get sucked in again and again. Not because I wrote them even. I don't always like myself very much. Even when I try to hate myself, I look at what I've done and say 'damn, chick, you're the shit.' These stories consistently resonate with themes I love, games and books and movies and dreams that have had an impact on me. Stories written by me that I can still be surprised by.

I'm seriously in danger of tooting my own horn, but what I really want to talk about is the anthology line-up. I'll give you a short run of what to expect in my own words. Some might be easier to sum up than others. Let's give it a go!

The Enchanted Sword/ Raven M. Williams: A quick twist on Cinderella. Ashby is a young boy at the mercy of his wicked stepbrothers, trying to protect his father's legacy, all while charming a princess.

The Wand of Luminance/ Rick Haynes: An old wizard spends decades of his life patiently repenting for his crime against a goddess. He is determined to return something of hers, no matter the cost.

Gretel's Gift/me: When an old man returns from his wife's funeral, the anniversary gift she never got to give him holds the key to a secret she kept.

The Dragonbone Wand/E.P. Clark: Year after year, a recruiter comes down the mountain to find the ones worthy to become dragons. Convincing a young healer to go through the test, she is drawn into the blessings and curses of what being a dragon truly entails.

The Wand Whisperer/J. Steven Young: It has always been believed there is more to magic than a wizard choosing a wand. When a bumbling wizard discovers he can hear the voices of the wands, he learns that wands have more influence than anyone thought possible.

An Ill Wind/Devorah Fox: A young woman returns to her home after a hurricane tears her city apart. When she finds a box containing a neighbor's effects, she discovers that kindness contains its own magic.

A Wand Needs a Witch/Victoria Raschke: An accomplished magician, remembering his mother's words when he first discovers the wand that had so much impact on his life, takes on three young sisters who have the potential to be great witches someday.

The Keeper of Callister Space/Shakyra Dunn: Two sisters stumble on the journal of a mysterious witch making a bold claim. Curiosity wins over practicality as they brave dangers to find out if the claim is true.

The Long Way Home/Guy Donovan: U.S. history meets spectacular fantasy as a man journals his struggle from orphaned laborer to hard-working inventor that discovers a secret... and struggles with the burden of it.

Magen/Edward Buatois: Rylen is marked as the typical goth weirdo with a hobby for witchcraft. His practical older sister, Naia, raised him but tires of his passive attitude towards being bullied and his delusion about the existence of magic. When they are violently separated, Rylen meets an elf woman who seems eager to help him find his sister even though they don't speak a common language.

Spellbinders: Judas Mirror/ Bryan Rainey: In a world parallel to our own, magic is par for the course. Yet when a dinner between a newlywed couple goes sour after an attempted murder, the aftermath is anything but usual.

The Smallest Spark/Nils Nisse Visser: It's a sci-fi dystopia where names are meaningless strings of numbers and colored marks are rewards and punishments on the spreadsheet of life. A grandmother (Jill) remembers a time when nature was green and renewable and wonders if all that waits for her granddaughter (Sally) is a brown, poisoned future. Although books are forbidden, one of the gifts she can give her daughter are the remembered fairy-tales of her youth. But perhaps there is more after all.

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It's a good exercise, throwing out some hooks for these stories. As you can see, it's a very eclectic mix of fantasy and written from many points of view at that. I truly enjoyed finally being able to read through these. It's been in the works over the course of a full year, everyone turning these in for publication.

A thanks is in order, of course, for Raven M. Williams, who led the charge and consulted with us via group communications concerning cover design, information gathering and ultimately, the formatting. She also runs a Mystic Realms Curio Shop and writes her own novels while creating jewelry inspired by her books, aside from running yearly anthologies. Another multi-tasker like myself, so I know the struggle and commend her for all the hard work.

Feel free to preorder The Magical Book of Wands, available October 31, and check out these 12 short stories. You'll find links to these authors and you can find these authors and more available for Virtual FantasyCon (November 4-10), an annual FaceBook event gathering where you can find great fantasy authors and interact with them.

For any of my author friends, the cut-off date for being a participating author has passed this year, but if you're interested in being on future rosters, there is no cost to join unless you choose Option 2, which just adds your discounted books to a vendor section for more exposure. Authors and readers alike can always get more details from the VFC Reader's Corner, a public group on FaceBook.

Upcoming Anthology: The Magical Book of Wands

In case you're not hip. myself and 11 other talented fantasy authors have teamed up to contribute our short stories to an anthology with the theme of 'wands'. At this point, I don't have the actual order the stories are compiled in but I do have the author and story names to share with you.

The Tiniest Spark - Nils Visser

Spellbinders: Judas Mirror - Bryan Rainey

Magen - Edward Buatois

The Long Way Home - Guy Donovan

The Keeper of Callister Space - Shakyra Dunn

A Wand Needs a Witch - Victoria Raschke

An Ill Wind - Devorah Fox

The Wand Whisperer- J Steven Tasicas-Young

The Dragonbone Wand- Ellen Pedigo Clark

Gretel's Gift - Krista Gossett

The Wand of Luminance - Rick Haynes

The Enchanted Sword - Raven M. Williams

As far as I know, this is the final roster. The anthology will be up for preorder soon, to be released October 31st. There will be both paperback and digital versions available. Remember, these anthologies are only available for one year. After that, permissions are released back to the original authors for us to choose a more permanent home. Many of these are spin-offs of the authors' series but some are standalone entries. It's a great way to get a huge bargain and decide if you'd like to see more from indie authors.

I'll be excited to post more teasers and information as they become available. I will be posting across many accounts, but if you have questions about the anthology, contact me via email, comment or PM and I'll do my best to answer it.

Mark your calendars for October 31st!

Is It That Time Already?

Yesterday marked the deadline for submissions concerning the fantasy anthology I will be a part of. Wow. In a couple of months (on Halloween), it becomes a thing. Because I've really only been working on my long game, it will be the first officially published short story I've done. I've free-published a lot of things over the years, but there's always something special about doing more than just poking at a keyboard and hitting the Publish button (coughbloggingcough). That's not to say blogs can't be researched and well-edited, but it's not the same beast.

If you flip through my many posts on self-publishing-- formatting, covers, etc. it still only covers the tip of the iceberg. I had to go through a lot of processes to make sure the quality was to my standards.

Namely from the time I finally finished my first series (I had decided early on that I wouldn't publish them until I'd written and edited them all meticulously), it took at least a month per book to get them all publishing ready. While a lot of that was learning, correcting, and trial and error, getting better at it really only shaved minute amounts of time off of the process. 

The first big hitch in my process came in formatting, the very first place I started. I've talked about it in detail before so the short version is that Word HATES imported text and styles and makes a mess of it. I did a lot of transferring the file to different versions of Word or mobile word processors without realizing that I confused the hell out of them. The first three books suffer from this problem since they were in various stages of completion over the ten years I started them and poked at them half-heartedly. Even when I've had to go back and reformat them for Smashwords Premium or do some minute edits, they've consistently been uncooperative. The best solution had been to import them into a generic text program to strip the formatting before pasting them into a clean file and NOT messing with the Normal style to create new body and header texts. (I'll paste the links for my tutorials at the end here since I'm bringing them up more than once.)

Editing is where a lot of people lose confidence or just get frustrated, but it can be enjoyable once you develop some effectiveness for the process. I know this goes against most "rules" writers are fed, but the first edit is usually more creative than my first draft. I'm taking everything I was wobbly with at first and refining it, developing the characters and story, and so on. If I ever ask anyone to read my work, I've already done two or three basic content edits by that time. My first draft is more like 1/8 of a treasure map and not one with the location on it. I usually develop the most confidence in my story well into the second draft, if not the third. Editing about 80K words take approximately 2-3 full days or a week with more of a part-time dedication. This includes content, grammar and corrective edits. If I end up having to add entire scenes, it can take another week. (Sometimes I consider this more drafting than editing since it's new content that I'll have to pass through editing.)

Design. It is what I went to school for, but graphic design also took me through formatting (I had to do catalogues, pamphlets, package design, copyediting-- so it's not just making collages and doodling). Book design carries a number of factors. Marketing or vision or both, it's creative control and also substantial time spent in the designing itself. The font and placement factors aren't such a huge deal with time, but remembering that the image will need to leave room for them is important (something I didn't much consider in the beginning-- oops).

Eh, for the hell of it, I'll share one of the first book designs I did for school.

Not bad for a beginner, but it's a tad bit cheesy and I'd use less glow and more textured backgrounds these days.

This tends to be where a lot of writers decide to outsource, but when you're an artist first, it just seems like a missed opportunity to improve that skill. If you do decide to go for it, I'd say it can take anywhere from a few days to a couple weeks to make a decent cover. Sometimes I do a cover design while writing the book and decide to tweak it or redo it, which throws the time off from any window of certainty, but I tend to be a quick though quality designer. While interning, I heard that a lot so it must be true.

The hamster wheel. Even when you're sure you have everything formatted, edited, and designed, self-pub services aren't perfect. They'll flag you for correction of weird and invisible mistakes, not auto-adjust an image that is 1/32" off-- fun stuff, you know? Every time, you must go through approximately ten minutes of uploading a new file. Smashwords gave me so much shit over my third book, the ebook constantly making odd sections of text bold when this anomaly wasn't showing up in anything but the epub file. I eventually fixed it, but it was an odd one that took a couple of weeks to iron out. Smashwords records all old and new updates so anyone can view the many times it took me to fix that.

To put it into perspective, I was finished writing all nine books by May 2017. The first was published August 7, 2017. The final one was published July 11, 2018. It seems 'fast' (when you consider most authors publish one book a year) but fast writers actually finish books in about 2-6 months on average. This is actually considered the slower part of the process since it entails most of the editing, formatting, wording process. However, you can expect about a solid month of aftercare, if that's also a fulltime+overtime level of dedication. One year is both ambitious and generous for a new writer. If you do take the six month deadline, then it's probably best to spend the next six months marketing.

Marketing... yup, I'm still not there yet. But props to my friends/fans for dropping my name here and there while my head is still in the writing game.

I could add more but the weather is making me lazy about hanging out on my desktop to blog these days, so I want to surround myself with sketchbooks and notebooks on my floor instead. I'll throw my technical links below for easy use. 

Cover Design at a Glance

So You Want to Get Technical? Formatting 101

Where to Self-Publish 

Self-Publishing: A Process (This one takes you through some steps and requirements)

I've done tons of blogs dabbling in editing and method so it would be tricky linking those specifically. I've gone over some methods as I 'discovered' their use through trial and error to see what best fit any story I was working on. Most of these weren't described in great detail, but I might condense that into a post later, just some editing methods, what they were useful for and why. Editing is one I haven't specifically focused on, other than the mentality you can use to turn it into something fun rather than the chore some people make it out to be. I have picked up quite a few tricks to content and grammar editing. I'll have to bullet-point this one to hash it out best, but what is editing if not effective organization?

From time to time, I'll repost those links, but I'm going to tag this post with 'book links' for easy access.