Tag Archives: vacation

August 23, 2021 · 6:00 am

Random News from the Industry

The indie writing community lost a gentle soul this last week with the sudden passing of Jeffrey Cook. A co-founder of Clockwork Dragon publishing, Jeff was a beloved fixture at all the major sci-fi/fantasy conventions. He could always be found working the Clockwork Dragon table with co-author and publisher Lee French.

MyWritingLife2021B My sincerest condolences, along with those of the entire Northwest writing community, go out to Lee for the loss of such a good friend. Jeff was an integral part of both her business and her writing life.

I first came into contact with Jeff when I joined NIWA, the Northwest Independent Writers Association. Jeff wrote steampunk and fantasy. In collaboration with Lee French, he co-wrote superhero novels.

IndieGuideCover Lee French and Jeffrey Cook co-authored the book, Working the Table: An Indie Author’s Guide to Conventions. If you are new to the world of conventions and bookstore signings, this book is for you. Their tips will help you successfully sell your books at conventions, which in turn leads to eBook and paperback sales through all the major online outlets.

Working the Table: An Indie Author’s Guide to Conventions

The Blurb:

Because books won’t sell themselves.

In these times when it’s easy to self-publish but hard to get
noticed, conventions offer a solid, feasible option for the
independent author to start on a path to financial sustainability.

But becoming a professional denizen of the dealer’s room has
its challenges.

In Working the Table, two veteran indie authors
spill their secrets to help you not only survive but thrive in
the book-event environment.

Also in the news, this last week saw the 101^st anniversary of Ray Bradbury’s birth. The New York Times referred to Bradbury as the writer most responsible for bringing modern science fiction into the literary mainstream. Indeed, we who write any genre or subgenre of speculative fiction follow in his footsteps, imagining worlds as they might be, sometimes getting it wrong, but often getting it right.

Sci-fi writers, if you are curious about the metaverse and the role of Facebook, an article appeared on August 29, 2021, for the website WNP What’s New in Publishing, explaining what that is: Facebook and the metaverse: What you need to know.

Earning a living is tough for an author, whether you go the indie or traditional route. Many writers have turned to podcasting as a way to keep food on the table. In the same edition of that ezine was an interesting piece on Apple and the mess it has made out of subscriptions, which are the bread and butter of the podcaster. How has Apple dropped so many subscription balls? The Media Roundup.

Publishers Weekly reports that unit sales of print books declined 1.3% in the week ended August 14, 2021, from the comparable week in 2020, at outlets that report to NPD BookScan.

So, it’s not just us indies; even the big kids are seeing a dip in print sales.

And finally, in the news, I direct you to Jane Freidman’s article, The Value of Book Distribution Is Often Misunderstood by Authors. She and her website have good information for us all.

On the homefront, I’m in the process of unpacking our beach gear and doing laundry from our vacation. Also, we’re preparing for a visit from a granddaughter and her husband.

The Ruins of Abeyon, the novel I accidentally wrote during NaNoWriMo 2020, is ready to go to the editor for the final edit. She has a project in progress now, but Ruins is up next on her schedule.

powerwordsWordCloudLIRF06192021 Work continues on the outline for a new novel, the sequel to Ruins, another novel that I hadn’t intended to write. Which makes sense, considering that Ruins sprang into existence on November 5^th, shoved my other work aside, and consumed my attention for the next six months.

By November 30^th, I had the basic story written and knew how it was going to end.

Even a month ago, I was convinced their story had ended.

But then my sister, who beta reads for me, said the thing and asked the question that always starts the craziness: “I love this novel. What happens next?”

KiteFlying2018 Such is NaNoWriMo—you never know what will happen during that month of madness and hilarity. I’ve been participating since 2010 and a Municipal Liaison since 2012, and every year is different. Some years I can only churn out short stories and poetry; other years, I’m cursed with novels.

So, now I am prepping the outline so I can hit the ground running on November first.

Also, progress is happening regarding my attempt to write a decent query. More work is required before I show this hinky mess to anyone, as queries are tricky. I’ve had success in writing them for short stories, and the basics are the same.

Fortunately, I have the support of a brilliant writing group, close friends and great authors who are happy to help me in all aspects of this process.

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Filed under writing

Tagged as indie publishing, Jeffrey Cook, NaNoWriMo, podcasting, publishing industry news, Ray Bradbury, vacation, writing

August 14, 2015 · 6:45 am

Under the Oregon Stars, a State of Being

Moonless Meteors and the Milky Way
Image Credit & Copyright: Petr Horálek courtesy NASA

In fragile folding chairs we sit watching the fire, listening to the music of the surf. We form a circle of people bound by blood somewhat, but in reality bound by that strongest of cements—love. Some are children of my body, given to me as gifts from the universe. Others are the children of my heart, given to me when I married their father.

All are my children—mine, do you hear me? Each one is my precious, my dearest earthly treasure, and I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love them with all the meddling, coddling love a Cancerian brings to motherhood.

I think about how it hurt to see these people grow to adulthood and leave the nest, but over and above the sense of loss at their fledging I was proud that I was a part of their lives. They are who they are, separate from me, better, and unique.

As it should be.

We are blessed to have a family where love is thicker than blood, and if you cut one of us, we all bleed red. It is the friendship, the camaraderie, the need to be with each other that forges this blended family.

Our genetics may differ but we are the unit of us—a family united widely by marriage, closely by adoption, yes, some by birth. We are a melange of “inlaws and outlaws,” and that is okay. New spouses enter the group under duress and with trepidation, but soon find themselves at ease, and we all make new memories.

There are many passports into this family, and blood is only a small part of it. Sometimes we go a while apart but memories of lazy summer vacations and stressed-out Christmases, and the challenge of making Thanksgiving menus work for everyone (even the vegan) draw us back together. Dietary dramas fade when unconditional love is applied to the injury.

That connection, these traditions, this path that leads us to each other is the core of a state of being that is hard to define, a concept we call family.

We are not all around this fire tonight. In low voices we talk about how we miss those who couldn’t make the journey this year. We laugh about their youthful antics and how we miss them. We understand well how being an adult means you can’t get time off when you want it, even for a traditional week of family rest and renewal.

Beneath the Oregon stars, my grandchildren run wild and the dunes echo with their laughter. Tonight I am contented, blessed in a way everyone should be.

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Filed under Humor, Publishing, writer, writing

Tagged as blended family, Essays, family holiday, how I spent my summer vacation, Oregon, Oregon a state of being, summer vacation, vacation, what is a family

August 15, 2013 · 9:41 am

Stormy Weather

Amaranthus and Savvy at the needles by haystack rock cannon beach Haystack Rock Cannon Beach ©cjjasp 2012

We are on holiday in Oregon, at a little town called Cannon Beach. This is a wonderful place, famous for the rock formations and caves, and the scenery was featured in the film, The Goonies.

Even in August, the northeastern Pacific Ocean on the Oregon Coast is cold and frequently cloudy and rainy. But when the sun shines, it is amazing.

Watching the storms roll in from the safety of the porch of the condo is nothing less than awesome. The beach is uncrowded, and Amaranthus and Savvy can play to their heart’s content, running wild the way cousins have always done since time began.

Amaranthus digs bunkers, and wades waist deep in Ecola Creek where it runs into the ocean. He rides his skim-board along the edge of the ocean like a pro, using his skate-boarding skills to the max. When he steps onto the porch, he is chilled to the bone, and his 6 foot tall, 14 year-old frame is shivering. His lips are blue from the cold, and he doesn’t even have to be told to take a shower–he’s a man now. He knows what to do.

Leah and Christy Cannon Beach 2012 © cjjasp 2012

Savvy is bright-eyed and deeply interested in creating marvelous sculptures of sand, just like her mother, my daughter Christy and her Aunty Leah. All our children were keen sandcastle engineers! The girl also rides her skim-board and stays out until she is blue from the cold.

It’s a family tradition.

Savannah is 11 and she’s a girl, so she also doesn’t have to be told to warm up. She wants only to sit in the Jacuzzi when she finally has to abandon her sand castles.

Sandcastle Sam 2010

Nephew Samuel is 16, and is fixated on riding his bike the length of the beach, from Rockaway Point to Ecola Creek as many times as he can fit into the vacation. He is also a sand castle excavator, bringing spades, a pick-axe and many other large implements for proper excavation. No matter how cold, blue and near death from hypothermia Sam is, he won’t take any advice on how to get warmed up, preferring to sit in a corner looking like death-warmed-over. Did I mention Sam is 16?

This year I’m here resting up, recovering from my surgery, and writing intense scenes for the revised version of Julian Lackland’s story. This is the perfect environment for me, and with everyone else checking out the caves on Rockaway Beach and trudging down to Haystack Rock, I have the perfect combination of peace, quiet and beautiful scenery to motivate me. Throughout the rest of the year I live for this week of writer’s paradise.

Local legend says Ursula K. Le Guin spends time writing here in Cannon Beach, which seems right since she lives in Portland, 1 hour and 45 minutes away. I know that this place inspires me more than any other place we go.

The Needles at Cannon Beach ©cjjasp 2013

The weather is frequently awful, but we know it, and we plan for it. But there will be two days of glorious skies of a blue impossible to adequately describe.

The moods of the Pacific Ocean are anything but peaceful. It is a wild, beautiful thing, that is never the same two days running. The waves crashing against the sea stacks and the cries of the sea birds combine with the wind to clear my mind, and at last I am free to just write.