Monthly Archives: January 2010

Le Guin’s Lavinia Up for British Science Fiction Award

Posted on January 31, 2010 by

Ursula K. Le Guin’s novel Lavinia is on the short list for the British Science Fiction Association Award. The U.S. edition (seen at left) is published by Harcourt and can be ordered from Powell’s. The British edition (right) is from … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in Announcements, awards | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Amazon’s Response to Macmillan

Posted on January 31, 2010 by

I must admit, I find the breast-beating about MacMillan having a monopoly on the product they produce — as if books were a natural resource dug from the ground and MacMillan were cornering the market — a bit…disengenuous. Dear Customers: … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in eBooks, Publishing | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Writers on Writing . . . I’m Flat!

Posted on January 31, 2010 by

When Jane Yolen bought my first book over twenty years ago, she told me that she loved my story-telling, but my prose was  . . . flat. Flat! Wail! Flail!  But . . . but . . . didn’t she … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in Writers on Writing | Tagged , , | 18 Comments

Bead Creatures

Posted on January 31, 2010 by

Time for a bit of a change, a breather. Here are a few new bead creatures (created before my stint as a Lesser Tree Sloth, when the opposable thumb was happier and I was in primate mode). Here’s an anemone … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in Book View Cafe | 2 Comments

Macmillan’s Letter about Amazon’s Removal of Books

Posted on January 30, 2010 by

From John Sargent: This past Thursday I met with Amazon in Seattle. I gave them our proposal for new terms of sale for e books under the agency model which will become effective in early March. In addition, I told … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in Announcements, eBooks, Publishing | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Amazon Fires New Salvo in Ebook Price War

Posted on January 30, 2010 by

I have a few rules I try to live by: Always read the fine print; if it sounds too good to be true, it is; and never attribute to malice what can be easily explained by stupidity. So, when on … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in eBooks, Publishing | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Confessions of a Games Designer: A Leg Too Far

Posted on January 30, 2010 by

1974 was a productive year for me (note to all students: you get far more done if you avoid going to lectures) – in between raising an army and invading the country next door (see Free Cornish Army) I invented … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in Humor | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Ways to Trash Your Writing Career: Delayed on Account of Research

Posted on January 29, 2010 by

I love a well built world. Doesn’t matter if it’s SF or fantasy or historical (all of which require world-building–not necessarily world-creation, but the layering of detail to make a believable place in the mind of the reader).  I love … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in Book View Cafe | 2 Comments

Brave New (Writing) World: The Entrepreneurial Writer

Posted on January 28, 2010 by

If I were a young person just starting out to build a career as a writer, I’d be tempted to sign up for the City University of New York’s master’s program in journalism. What got me thinking about this was … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in Publishing, Writers on Writing, Writing life | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

My Mountain Community

Posted on January 28, 2010 by

In building story world of Lacing Up For Murder I had to figure out why I was so fascinated with the resort community.  There are three levels to any neighborhood.  First you have the permanent residents, the people who anchor … Continue reading →


Share
Posted in mystery | 3 Comments