Category Archives: Writing

Analog Magazine, November 2012

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Yes, that really is my name on the cover of the November issue of Analog Science Fiction & Fact, which goes on sale next week.

And yes, I am still stunned every time I look at it:

It seems so strange, seeing my name there. I am honored, and humbled, and overwhelmed.

My novelette, “SEAGULLs, Jack-o-Lanterns, and Interstitial Spaces,” began as my entry in the Codex Writers Group Halloween contest. The story prompt was a set of quotes from five different sources, following a meme that had been making the rounds during National Book Week of selecting certain lines from specified pages of nearby books. Just to be obstinate, I used each of the sources in some way, even if only a phrase or a name.

Finally, yes, I am also stunned because the story has a fetching illustration by Vincent Di Fate, one of the all-time-great SF&F artists. Last year he was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame, which is part of the EMP Museum in Seattle.

The whole table of contents is listed in this SFScope post.

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My Story, The Second Engineer, in Asimov's Science Fiction

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if you want to read my novelette, “The Second Engineer,” it’s in the October-November issue of Asimov’s Science Fiction which goes on sale next week. Ask for it at your local bookseller.

The history of this story demonstrates how s-l-o-w-l-y I write. It began as an entry in a contest to write a short story in a weekend. I didn’t finish the story that weekend; in fact, it took almost 18 months — and wise council at a con — to produce the version that was a “Writers of the Future” semi-finalist, and another few months of subsequent clean-up to get to this version.

For the contest, the story prompts were, “Think of a human body part and a physical object that should never, ever come into contact. Write a story about the day when they do,” and selections from three poems, one of which was Sylvia Plath’s “Tale of a Tub” which includes the lines “when the window, / blind with steam, will not admit the dark.” I can’t remember how my brain went from there to here … but there is a window in the story that won’t admit the dark.

The entire table of contents is laid out in this SFScope post.

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Honorable Mention No. 8

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In today’s news, the results of the 2nd Quarter of the Writers of the Future contest are out, and I earned my eighth Honorable Mention.


(Image from the Writers of the Future web site.)

You can see all the results here. I recognized several names from the Codex Writers Group, and noted a sizable representation from here in North Carolina.

According to the contest rules, and as verified to me by the contest director, my forthcoming publications in Analog and Asimov’s will render me ineligible to enter the contest any more. But because the issue dates on the magazines are October and November, if I get a story submitted by September I’ll have one more shot. So guess what I’ve been working on the last week or so?

One last thing, while we’re here …

In space history, 40 years ago today — August 21, 1972 — Orbiting Astronomical Observatory 3 (OAO-3) was launched by an Atlas-Centaur from Cape Canaveral. It was the “second successful spacecraft to observe the celestial sphere from above the earth’s atmosphere,” and operated until February 1981.

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Yes, You Can Nominate for the Pegasus Awards … But Not For Long

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Nominations for the Pegasus Awards close in less than two weeks!

The Pegasi are annual awards for filk — generally, folk music with science fiction or fantasy elements — given by the Ohio Valley Filk Fest. Categories include Best Song, Best Classic Song, Best Writer/Composer, and Best Performer, plus two special categories for this year: Best Gaming Song and Best Travel Song.


(Pegasus Award logo.)

I submitted my nominations yesterday. Here’s the online nomination form, if you’re ready to go.

Unsure whether you can nominate? You probably can.

First, you don’t need to be a member of the filk festival itself to nominate or vote. That said, according to the official rules “the purpose of the Nominating process is to poll members of the filk community for their independent opinions of each category.”

Unsure whether you’re a member of the filk community? The rules cover that, too:

Anyone who exhibits an interest in the filk community can be considered a filker. Exhibiting interest can be shown by, but is not limited to:

  • Filking at sf/fantasy conventions
  • Attending filk conventions
  • Attending house sings
  • Participating in online boards/discussions/mail lists/webrings pertaining to filk
  • Discussing filk and filk related issues with other filkers

That last category is pretty broad, but if you and I ever discussed filk in one way or another then it seems as if you’re in.

Curious about what songs, songwriters, and performers are available to be nominated? The friendly folks at OVFF ran a “Brainstorming Poll” to take suggestions for each category; check it out for recommendations, or just to get a feel for the wide variety of filk and filkers. (Something of a shameless plug: As I blogged when the brainstorming results came out, my original song “The Monster Hunter Ballad”* was suggested in the “Best Song” category. Surprisingly, I was also suggested in the “Best Performer” category.)

Who did I nominate? I don’t usually nominate-and-tell (or vote-and-tell), so I won’t go into it category-by-category here on the blog. I will say it was hard to narrow down the choices! In the end, I nominated a number of different people, and some more than once, including Danny Birt, Alex Boyd, Tally Dueshane, Jonah Knight, Michael Longcor, Mikey Mason, Madison Roberts, Carla Ulbrich, and Scott & Kirsten Vaughan (aka The Blibbering Humdingers). Contact me directly and I’ll tell you exactly who I nominated for what.**

So, ready to nominate now? Once again, here’s the online nomination form. You have until midnight on July 29th — go for it!

___
*Inspired by the series of books by Larry Correia. (Full disclosure: I work for Baen Books, which publishes the Monster Hunter novels.)
**And, if you ask nicely, I might also tell you which of my other songs fit the special categories.

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Space History Today: Scott Carpenter and Mercury-Atlas 7

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A half-century ago today — May 24, 1962 — astronaut M. Scott Carpenter became the second American to orbit the Earth when he launched from Cape Canaveral.


(Mercury Atlas 7 launch. NASA image.)

Mercury Atlas 7, also known as Aurora 7, carried Carpenter on three orbits before returning him to splash down in the Atlantic Ocean.

During the mission, Carpenter solved a mystery that had occurred on John Glenn’s earlier spaceflight. Glenn reported seeing what he described as “fire flies,” and Carpenter reported the same thing after he “accidentally tapped the wall of the spacecraft with his hand.” This led analysts to conclude that the “fire flies” were particles of frost dislodged from the reaction control system.

Interestingly,

The pilot was originally planned to be Donald K. Slayton but was changed to be M. Scott Carpenter after a medical examination of Slayton revealed an irregularity in his heartbeat.

“Deke” Slayton is an important historical figure in my alternate history story, “Memorial at Copernicus”, from the August 2010 issue of Redstone Science Fiction. You can listen to the story here, if you like.

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My ConCarolinas Schedule

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My summer science fiction & fantasy convention schedule starts the first weekend of June, when I’ll be at ConCarolinas at the Charlotte Hilton University Place (in Charlotte, of course).


(ConCarolinas program cover by Artist Guest of Honor Robert Luedke)

In addition to “Filking the Night Away” Friday and Saturday nights at 10 p.m., I’ll be on several panels and will also help out at Allen Wold’s writing workshop:

Friday, June 1

Saturday, June 2

Sunday, June 3

Should be fun!

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Retreating … to Write

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Beginning about midday, I’m taking myself on a writing retreat. As we used to say in mobile C2, I’ll be at an “undisclosed location.” (Thank goodness for Marriott Rewards points.)


(TYPEWRITER by HeavenlyCabins, on Flickr, via Creative Commons.)

Over the next couple of days, my goal is to write the improved opening I thought of for my novel. Wish me luck.

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Analog's July/August Issue

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I’ve had my copy for a couple of weeks, but the new issue of Analog Science Fiction & Fact that includes my short story, “The Song of Uullioll,” should be available on newsstands soon. (So to speak; I don’t suppose there are many actual newsstands anymore.)

Yesterday the good folks over at SF Scope posted the table of contents for the issue.

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New Stories Accepted by Asimov's and Analog

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May Day was very good to me! For the first time in my writing career, I received two short story contracts on the same day.

The contracts are signed and will shortly be in the mail, so I feel as if it’s safe to broadcast the details.

After a minor rewrite a couple of weeks ago, Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine accepted my novelette “The Second Engineer.” I posted news of the story acceptance on Facebook, but didn’t identify the magazine because I didn’t want to get ahead of the paperwork. So yesterday the contract showed up in my e-mail …

… along with a contract from Analog Science Fiction & Fact for my novelette “SEAGULLs, Jack-o-Lanterns, and Interstitial Spaces.”

So on the same day I got contracts for my second story for Asimov’s and my third story for Analog. My head is still spinning.

On a Related Subject: My short story “The Song of Uullioll” is in the July/August issue of Analog Science Fiction & Fact, which has been mailed to subscribers and should be on newsstands soon. (I’ll post the cover when I get the image file for my web site.)

Color me overwhelmed!

___

P.S. I understand “The Second Engineer” is scheduled to appear in the October/November issue of Asimov’s. GWR

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Filk Award Brainstorming is Open

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If you like filk — generally, folk music with science fiction or fantasy themes — you may be interested to know that the Brainstorming Poll for the 2012 Pegasus Awards is now available on-line.


(The Pegasus Award Emblem.)

As the site says, the Brainstorming Poll is not an awards ballot. It’s “a poll to help generate ideas for the 2012 Pegasus Awards.”

The filk-related Pegasus Awards* are presented by the Ohio Valley Filk Fest, which is “the world’s largest fan-run filk convention.” (The Blibbering Humdingers, who also live in my current hometown of Cary, NC, are the Interfilk guests this year.)

You don’t need to be a member of the OVFF convention to nominate and vote, but you do need to be part of the filk community, which is broadly defined as “anyone with an interest in filk.” Do you enjoy songs with science fiction or fantasy references? Then you probably qualify.

The OVFF folks will compile the results of the Brainstorming Poll and attach them to the Nominating Ballot, which they will release sometime next month. The nominating period runs for a few weeks, and then the Final Ballot will be released during the summer.

The Brainstorming Poll will close on May 5th.

// Shameless Plug Follows //

This post has been brought to you by “The Monster Hunter Ballad.”

___
*There is also a set of “Pegasus Awards” for non-broadcast media (video) production. Those awards haven’t even been around for 10 years yet, while the OVFF Pegasus Awards started in 1984.

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