Happy New Year!

Back in 2011 I started posting an annual list of writing goals that I would try to accomplish in the ensuing year. “Goals” in this sense are things that I can accomplish through my own efforts and perseverance, as opposed to “dreams” which require the cooperation of others (for example, writing a novel is a goal; having a novel sell madly well is a dream).

So here are my writing goals for 2015:

1. Revise and polish the third novel of THE RED trilogy so that it’s ready for publication. (The first draft is already done.)

2. Write at least one novella set in an existing story world. I really want to write a novella, though I’m not sure why. Maybe because it feels like a novel, but doesn’t take so long? 😉

3. Write at least two short stories unrelated to anything else I’ve done. (One story is already commissioned, so I have an extra incentive to meet this goal at least halfway.)

4. Write at least three nonfiction posts that I feel comfortable marketing to high-circulation websites. (I copied this one from last year. Maybe this year I’ll do it.)

5. I almost forgot this goal: WRITE A NEW NOVEL. But I’ll go easy on myself and call this goal fulfilled if I have a new novel planned and well begun by the end of the year.

I should be able to do these five goals. Right?

At the beginning of the year I published my writing goals for 2014. Now it’s time to assess how I did. And in short… I made very few of my goals. But you know what? I’m giving 2014 a big thumbs up anyway, because it turned out to be a positive year for my writing career in other ways.

So here’s how I did on my planned writing goals for 2014:

1. Revise and polish the existing first draft of my next novel, The Red: Trials. Publication is tentatively scheduled for May.

Well. I did revise and polish it, and I had it all ready for publication…and then I sold the entire series to Saga Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. So The Red: Trials, now The Trials, will be published in 2015. Oh. And I also revised it one more time.

2. Write and finish two more Zeke Choy stories, bringing to an end the cycle that began with “Nahiku West” and continued in “Out In The Dark.” If I can pull it off, the last story will be long, maybe a novella.

Uh…nope. Didn’t even start on this. I think I’ve put this off for three years now, because all my writing time has been going to commissioned stories and novels. Expect to see this one reappear in my 2015 goals.

3. Write the initial draft of another novel. I’ve been debating what that novel should be, and though I haven’t decided yet, it will almost certainly be a sequel to something.

That was written by my younger self… and apparently I hadn’t decided yet if there was going to be a third novel in THE RED series. Well, younger self, there is indeed a third novel and I DID write an initial draft, and I am presently in the process of making that a presentable draft, so this goal gets a thumbs up.

4. Write at least three pieces of short fiction that are not part of the Zeke Choy cycle.

Nope. I wrote one short story at the beginning of the year and I did not like it. I refused to submit it to the requesting editor. 🙁 And the rest of the year went to novels. Well, I had a nice three-year run of short story writing. I was more prolific in 2011, 2012, and 2013 than I have ever been. Hopefully I’ll return to that in 2015.

5. Write at least three nonfiction posts that I feel comfortable marketing to high-circulation websites. (Nonfiction is very hard for me.)

Hmm…wanders off to check files…nope. No. I don’t think I wrote ANY. What was I doing with myself this year?? Oh, right. Working on three novels in various degrees of completion.

In summary, while I didn’t do everything I’d hoped, I’m pleased with what I did accomplish.

How did you do with your 2014 writing goals? Please comment. I’d love to hear from you.

Surf on over (does anyone still say “surf”?) to Book View Café, because from now through January 1, 2015, you’ll find a lot of ebooks on sale at 50% off, in many different genres.

Included are mysteries, historicals, romance, science fiction, fantasy, and probably a few others. Epub and mobi formats are available and everything is DRM free. Forty-eight authors are members of Book View Café, and most of them have something on sale.

I’ve got three books included in the sale: Memory (nominated for the John W Campbell Memorial Award), The Dread Hammer (scoundrel-lit fantasy), and The Bohr Maker (Locus Award – Best First Novel). Find them on this page.

So please visit! There are four pages of discounted ebooks. I hope you find something you love.

Here’s my first status report from the end of November.

When working with a traditional publisher, the basic stages of revision are:

1 – an editorial letter in which the editor requests changes in plot or character, or better explanations of motivation or background, etc.

2 – Once the final manuscript is accepted, it goes to the copyeditor, who goes through the manuscript in close detail, correcting spelling, hyphenations, punctuation, and noting inconsistencies. The manuscript then goes back to the author giving us a chance to un-do some of that careful work if we don’t agree with it, along with a chance to correct the inconsistencies. This is also a chance to make more minor revisions. Huzzah!

3 – The manuscript goes back to the publisher, the changes are added to the master file, and the manuscript is then “typeset” for ultimate printing. This is the stage when the pages look like book pages. A PDF file is generated and these “page proofs” are sent to the author, who gets to read the whole thing one more time — and make minor changes … which we do. But that’s it. This is the last chance to fix things up.

So where am I?

Book 1: I finished going over the page proofs a few days ago, and will be sending my changes back just after the New Year, when it’s back-to-business in the publishing world. And yes! I made some changes, despite that this book has already been published, reviewed, award-nominated, and re-revised. Writers are never satisfied. But the changes are minor and go mostly to clarifying and making this book consistent with the next one.

Book 2: Yesterday I finished my final read-through of the manuscript after addressing the editor’s requested changes and making a few of my own. The revised manuscript will go back to Saga Press on Monday, and if no more changes are requested, it will go to a copyeditor.

Book 3: The first draft is done and I already made a start on revisions, but now I’ve got only five weeks to turn in a reasonable draft. So it’s back-to-work on this one. (Must write faster…)

io9.com likes to come up with top ten lists. Today it’s the “10 Most Important Science Fiction Books About Superintelligence” — and one of my books is included!

My first novel, The Bohr Maker, comes in at #7.

Hey, it’s fun to be remembered! And that’s impressive company.

Last New Zealand post!

Tiritiri Matangi Island is an amazingly successful ecological restoration project. The island itself is one of the Hauraki Gulf Islands off of Auckland. It used to be farmed, but beginning in 1984, rodents on the island were killed off and replanting was begun — the beginning of an immense volunteer project. Today the island’s vegetation is mostly native, and is home to many native bird species that thrive in the absence of introduced pest and predators.

Both Ron and I are interested in conservation, and we were told multiple times that we must visit the island — but we almost didn’t go. The weather during our last few days in Auckland was cold, windy, and wet, and a visit to an offshore island where we would need to remain for most of the day was not all that appealing. But we gathered our courage, and went anyway on our last full day in the city. And we were so glad we did!

The western side of the island, where we docked, was cold, a bit wet, and very windy as expected, but once we left the shore and entered the shelter of the bush, the weather wasn’t bad at all.

The island itself is beautiful, again with those amazingly well-kept New Zealand trails! The walks are guided by volunteers, which is wonderful for learning about the island’s history and having help sighting the native birds, which were very active during our visit. So yes! If you’re ever in Auckland, consider a visit. This is a wonderful conservation project, a great way to spend a day, and the hiking is easy.

Here’s our transportation, docked at Tiritiri Matangi Island.

 
The western shore, a photo that does not communicate the fierce wind that was blowing and an imminent, if passing, shower!

 
An oystercatcher nesting on the beach. This is my only semi-decent bird photo, and only because the subject was considerate enough to hold still!

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I wanted to see the movie Maleficent from my first glimpse of the trailer. Yes, I’m an Angelina Jolie fan, and the trailer looked intriguing and beautiful, but I never did get around to seeing the movie in theaters. Then on my flight to New Zealand, after the battery on my netbook ran out, I started looking at the list of in-flight movies, and there it was. So I watched it — on a tiny screen on the back of the seat in front of me — and I loved it!

I didn’t know much about Maleficent going in. I generally won’t read reviews before trying a book or a movie myself. Once I’ve decided I want to experience either one, I want to do so with as few preconceived notions as possible, so that I can form my own opinion and gauge my own reaction. So with Maleficent, I’d seen the trailer and noticed a few positive comments on Twitter, but that was it. My impression was that the movie had not been successful — and I still don’t know if that’s the case or not.

Anyway, per usual, I’m not going to discuss the plot, but I will say that I really appreciated the evolution, complexity, and strength of the Maleficent character, and I loved the ending.

And since reviews are for reading after seeing the movie (or reading the book) I’ll say that I was surprised how the critical reception tended toward the negative. I roll my eyes at you, critics! Maleficent is a fairy tale. If you have no intrinsic objection to the fairy-tale format, then I highly recommend this movie.

Now — tell me if you liked it!

We took an overnight trip to Honolulu to share Thanksgiving with family there — and that is the last trip currently planned. I’ve really enjoyed our travels this year and I’ve been lucky to be able to go, but traveling while trying to meet writing deadlines is a little stressful. At this point, I’m eager to just settle down and focus on writing for a couple of months — which is convenient, because I have a lot of writing to do. The two big projects are Book 2 of The Red Trilogy, and Book 3 of The Red Trilogy.

* Status of Book 2: The Trials — I just received the editorial notes from Joe Monti at Saga Press. I haven’t even gone over Joe’s comments yet, but this has become the top priority.

* Status of Book 3: For the past few weeks I’ve been working on the second draft. There is much, much, much more to do. This is second priority, but still critical.

When all of this is done, I want to get back to writing shorter fiction for a while, but that won’t be until February at the earliest. I am definitely not going to meet my short fiction goal for the year. Oh well. We do what we can. :-/

It’s getting closer!

Back in July I posted about the anthology Operation Arcana, edited by John Joseph Adams. It’s an all-original anthology of military fantasy forthcoming from Baen Books and due out in March 2015 — and yes, one of the included stories is mine. That story is called “The Way Home” and it was a favorite of mine among the stories I wrote in 2013.

Details are below, but here’s the final cover art. The artist is Dominic Harman, with cover design by Jason Gurley.

Cover Copy

In the realms of fantasy, the battlefield is where heroism comes alive, magic is unleashed, and legends are made and unmade. From the War of the Ring, Tolkien’s epic battle of good versus evil, to The Battle of the Blackwater, George R.R. Martin’s grim portrait of the horror and futility of war, these fantastical conflicts reflect our highest hopes and darkest fears, bringing us mesmerizing visions of silver spears shining in the sun and vast hordes of savage beasts who threaten to destroy all that we hold dear.

Now acclaimed editor John Joseph Adams is sounding the battle cry and sixteen of today’s top authors are reporting for duty, spinning never-before-published, spellbinding tales of military fantasy, including a Black Company story from Glen Cook, a Paksenarrion story from Elizabeth Moon, and a Shadow Ops story by Myke Cole. Within these pages you’ll also find World War I trenches cloaked in poison gas and sorcery, modern day elite special forces battling hosts of the damned, and steampunk soldiers fighting for their lives in a world torn apart by powers that defy imagination.

Featuring both grizzled veterans and fresh young recruits alike, including Tanya Huff, Simon R. Green, Carrie Vaughn, Jonathan Maberry, and Seanan McGuire, Operation Arcana is a must for any military buff or fantasy fan. You’ll never look at war the same way again.

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The walk to Taranaki Lookout was our second New Zealand hike. This one was much, much shorter than the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, but very different and fascinating. We did this one the day after Tongariro… well, actually, in the last half of the afternoon. It was only about 6.5 kilometers total, round trip.

This one was a rainforest hike. We walked from the hotel, through the little village of National Park, to a gravel road in a forest reserve. Just walking on the road was fascinating. The tree below is, I believe, a native cypress. Note the epiphytic ferns where the trunk begins to divide.

And this is what the road looks like… on our walk we saw only one other person on the road, a young woman on a bicycle who happened to work at our hotel.

We were following a map that was part of a brochure given to us by the hotel. Here’s the map. Note the distance through the town. Note the distance on the road and then the trail. As it turns out, this was not to scale. I admit I did not actually read the brochure…so before long as we were walking on the road I started to wonder aloud, “Did we miss the trail? We must have missed it. It’s not nearly this far on the map!” As it turns out, the brochure clearly states it’s two kilometers to the beginning of the trail, but the map makes the distance look much, much shorter!

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