In July 2018, I completed the first draft of Assassin
in New Marl City totaling 99,981 words and 36 chapters. Completed pre-draft two
(30 chapters long) in December 2018 at 89,072 words. Finished draft two edits
for Chapters 26 and 27 in August, chapters 28, 29, and 30 in September, and chapters
19 and 20 in October. I reviewed chapter 21 in November and chapter 25 in December
to complete the draft two edit. I will start the third draft edits in March
2020.
In January, I submitted chapters 25 and 26 of Assassin
in New Marl City to the Novel Writing
Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.
In January, I submitted the story “Hannibal
Washington’s Fall” to the Introductory Writing
Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.
I made five posts on my Goodreads account in January.
In the past, I submitted the stories The Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, Get to
the Point, LARP Film noir, and Sleeping Sickness to magazines.
I submitted “Popular Mechanics Re-brewed” to Daily
Science Fiction online magazine in January.
Magazine submissions for 2020 are; 1 different story submitted 1 time with 0 accepted, 1 pending, and 0 rejection.
Events
from January 2020
I attended the ConFusion Conference in Novi, Michigan from January 16 to
19, 2020. The Ann Arbor Science Fiction Association Sponsors ConFusion.
I plan to write five blog posts for garydavidgillen.com
including my Writing Progress Report for February 2020.
I plan to work
on third draft edits for Assassin in New Marl City using comments from the Novel
Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio. In July 2019, I started the third draft edit
for Chapter One and used it at the first pages workshop at Confluence 2019. I
plan to complete third draft edits for chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4 in March 2020.
Polish and submit the stories Caliburnus, Space-Dog
Confession, White Bracer, Mage Squad, I Shall Not Return, Prisoner of Tarnal, and Kay-Eye for submission to short fiction
magazines.
Submit the Four Humors,
Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, LARP Film noir, Sleeping Sickness, and Popular
Mechanics Re-brewed to other short fiction magazines.
Put the novel, Assassin in New Marl City, into the writing
program, Scrivener.
Buy an e-book cover for Assassin in New Marl City from
Fiveer.
Write a story for the Introductory
Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.
I plan to make five posts on my Goodreads account;
update the information on my Facebook and Twitter accounts and update all the
pages of my website in February 2020.
Planned
Events for February 2020
The next conference I plan to attend is Cleveland ConCoction on March 20
to 22, 2020.
This is a link to the Cleveland ConCoction website.
I attended the SF Conference Marcon Columbus 2017 on
May 13, 2017. They held the conference at 350 North High Street Columbus, Ohio 43215
at the Hyatt Regency Columbus. The drive
was two-plus hours taken in the morning and back in the evening. I also attended
Marcon in 2018 and 2019. The 2019 convention was from May 10 to 12,
2019 and I realized when I wrote a recap for that conference, I had not posted
a recap for the 2017 conference. This is my recap of the 2017 conference. I
attended five panels at the 2017 conference.
Dystopias 2: this
is the way the world ends, a panel with Karen Dollinger, Courtney Bliss, Joaryn
Bailey, Donald Haynes, and Alyssa Pence.
The discussion was
about dystopias. You don’t need an apocalypse to get a dystopia. Someone benefits
from a dystopia. The story helps us to question how things are now. Books in
this genre are a lens for social commentary. Human nature is not to be static.
Recommended books are Newsflesh by Mira Grant, The City of Ember by Jeanne
DuPrau, and 1984 by George Orwell.
They held the
panel in the McKinley Room with 15 attendees.
Saturday,
May 13th at 1 PM
Humorous Science Fiction
and Fantasy, a panel with Addie J. King, Kandi Hopkins, Deb Wallace, and L.
Anne Wooley.
Who does humor well?
The answers were Terry Pratchett, John Scalzi, Christopher Moore, J. K.
Rowling, Robert Asprin, Spider Robinson, and Jim Butcher.
What makes it
work? If you find it funny, then you may be able to write it. Use humor to
break up the serious parts of your novel. Give the readers a break by using
humor. Try not to over-explain the humor or it will lose its impact.
They held the panel in the McKinley Room with 16 attendees.
Saturday,
May 13th at 2:30 PM
Antiheroes: When
the main character could easily be the villain, a panel with Denice Verrico,
Karen Dollinger, Faye Malcolm, Erin Reilly-Sanders, Van Siegling.
There is a
spectrum of characters from the worst villain Sauron from Lord of the Rings to
the best hero Dudley Doo Right. An antihero works as long as the protagonist is
more hero-like on the spectrum than the antagonist. An Antihero rejects the
norms of society. Examples of antiheroes are Dexter, protagonists in bank heist
stories, Walter White, Saul Goodman, and Scarlett O’Hara.
They held the
panel in the McKinley Room with 21 attendees.
Saturday,May 13th at 4 PM
The
Difference Between Story and Plot, a panel with Shannon Eichhorn, Charles
Ebert, Addie J. King, Linda Robertson, Scott M. Sandridge.
The
story is how you get there and the plot is the mechanics of the story. Ask yourself,
does the plot move the story along? Read what you write. You need to be in love
with your story as you are writing it. Write what you want too in the first
draft but be prepared to kill your darlings in editing to strengthen your story.
When constructing a story understand if your genre expects a series.
They
held the panel in the McKinley Room with 11 attendees.
Saturday,
May 13th at 5:30 PM
Cursed Children
and Fantastic Beasts, a panel with Karen Dollinger, Hannah Blosser, Emily
Lydic, Leah Nicola, and Amanda Caskey.
The panelists were
experts in all things Harry Potter. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts One
and Two is a stage play of the theater production. They held the stage
production on July 30, 2016, and the book was released on July 31, 2016. The panelists
talked about both presentations. They released the movie named Fantastic Beasts
and Where to Find Them on November 18, 2016. The panel talked about the movie
and the expected four sequels.
They held the
panel in the Harrison Room with 12 attendees.
Recommendation –
Conclusion
I had a great time at Marcon Columbus 2017. My star of
the con was the panel on Cursed Children and Fantastic Beasts. I had read the
printed stage play for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and watched the movie
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, so I understood the panel and enjoyed
what they had to say. I also attended
Marcon in 2018 and 2019 and plan to return on May 9, 2020.
Links
Recap for SF Conference Marcon Columbus I attended on May 12, 2018, at the Hyatt Regency in Columbus, Ohio. I attended four panels and two game shows.
Recap for SF Conference Marcon Columbus on May 11, 2019. They held it at Crowne Plaza – Columbus North. I also attended Marcon in 2017 and 2018. This year I attended four panels, a performance, and an interview.
I attended the SF conference Cleveland ConCoction 2017 at 5300 Riverside Drive Cleveland, Ohio at the Sheraton Cleveland Airport Hotel from March 10, 2017, to March 12, 2017. The 2019 convention was from March 1 to 3, 2019 and I realized when I wrote a recap for that conference, I had not posted a recap for the 2017 conference. This is a recap of the 2017 conference. I attended three panels, two author showcases, two performances, the state of the con panel, and the closing ceremony. I also volunteered in the ConSuite for twelve hours.
Cleveland
ConCoction 2017 Program Guide Cover. Even though the cover has 2016 listed,
this was the 2017 program. The theme was Grimm’s’ Fairy Tales.
Picture of my
badge from Cleveland ConCoction 2017
Summary
Friday,
March 10th from 4 PM to 9 PM
I volunteered in the
ConSuite Department for five hours on Friday. The ConSuite was in a back bar at the Sheraton Hotel.
Friday, March
10th at 9 PM
A concert by the
Blibbering Humdingers
This
duo played what they called wizard rock. Most of the songs in this concert
dealt with themes from Harry Potter. The songs played were “Love Song of Sirius
Black (Dementor in Love)”, “Voldemort made me crap my pants”, “Lily’s Worst Memory,”
“Best Game Ever,” “Hot Girl in the Comic Shop,” and “Awkward Hug.” I thought “Best
Game Ever” was the best song they played at this session.
They held the concert
in the Orion A Room.
Saturday,
March 11th from 9 AM to 4 PM
I volunteered in the
ConSuite Department for seven hours on Friday. The ConSuite was in a back bar at the Sheraton Hotel. During this time,
I was helping to make Rice Krispy blocks used in patterns. When I did that, I saw
the coffee session with Glen Cook, but I didn’t hear much of the conversation.
Saturday,
March 11th at 5 PM
Author Showcase
(Session 4)
Four authors read
from their works in the showcase.
Brent D. Seth read
from his novel named Shortfuse.
They held the showcase
in the Lyra room with 8 attendees.
Saturday,
March 11th at 6 PM
Common Problems
New Writers Encounter, a panel with Shannon Eichhorn, Sara Dobie Bauer, J.
Thorn, and James Barnes.
J. Thorn outlined
his process. He recommended the book The Story Grid by Shawn Coyne. Know what you
need next he suggests. Look into getting a developmental editor, a line editor,
a copy editor, and then beta readers. Other suggestions for new writers from
the panel were as follows. Write what you are passionate about. Don’t have a
fear of breaking rules. Be cautious of giving too much back story and info dumps.
Know your genre. Books used as examples were Pet Semetary by Stephen King and
The Road by Cormac McCarthy.
They held the
panel in the Pegasus room with 13 attendees.
Saturday,
March 11th at 7 PM
Elevator Pitch Tutorial
Session, a panel with Addie J. King, James Barnes, J. Thorn, Mary Turzillo, and
Linda Robertson.
An Elevator Pitch explains
the essence of a novel. The idea is to give
the pitch to someone who could be interested in representing your book in the time it would take an elevator to go six
floors. In the pitch, you want to describe what your book is about. Think about
your ideal customer when you are designing the pitch. Think about how you would
describe your book to an editor. The Pixar Pitch is a six-line template that can
tell the story of your work developed by Emma Coats. You can find the pitch in Daniel
H. Pink’s book named To Sell Is Human. The pitch fits for the Pixar movies but
can be adapted to any written work. Linda Robertson gave out a handout. In it
the main points were that you need a concept, a premise, ask questions, and
understand the character’s stakes in your story. The concept and the premise
when read together is your elevator pitch.
They held the
panel in the Lyra Room with 7 attendees.
Saturday,
March 11th at 8 PM
A concert by the
Blibbering Humdingers
I
liked the first concert, so I came back to see them again. This duo played what
they called wizard rock. Most of the songs in this concert dealt with themes from
Harry Potter. The songs I saw played in this session were “Hufflepuff Sandwich,”
“Zip Me Up,” and “Natural 20 (a song about playing the Dungeons and Dragons
Game).”
They held the concert
in the Orion A Room.
Sunday,
March 12th at 10 AM
State of the Con Q
and A
The Con Chairs talked about how Cleveland ConCoction 2017 went this week and about plans for 2018.
They held the
panel in the Orion A Room with 10 attendees.
Sunday,
March 12th at 11 AM
Post-Apocalypse–How
Will It End?, a panel with J. L. Gribble, Weston Kincade, and Brent D. Seth.
The panelists
talked about the novels Flood by Stephen Baxter and The Road by Cormac McCarthy.
They also talked about the TV show called The 100.
They held the
panel in the Lyra Room with 3 attendees.
Sunday,
March 12th at 2 PM
Closing Ceremonies
The Guests of Honor were presented and thanked for Cleveland ConCoction 2017.
They held the
panel in the Orion A Room.
Recommendation –
Conclusion
I had a great time at Cleveland ConCoction 2017. It was my first time at this con. I worked twelve hours in the ConSuite and I don’t plan on doing that again because I missed events I wanted to see. My star of the con was the Blibbering Humdingers. I liked both of the concerts they performed. My other highlights were the Elevator Pitch panel and listening to eight authors who read their work in two showcases. I attended Cleveland ConCoction in 2018 and 2019 and I bought my pass for 2020.
Links
I attended Cleveland ConCoction 2019 at 600 North Aurora Road Aurora, Ohio at the Bertram Inn and Conference Center from March 1 to 3, 2019. Attended the opening ceremony, four panels, and the closing ceremony. I also volunteered in the Programming Department for four hours and in the ConSuite for four hours. This is a link to my conference recap.
I also attended Cleveland ConCoction at 600 North Aurora Road Aurora, Ohio at the Bertram Inn and Conference Center from March 9, 2018, to March 11, 2018. Attended the opening ceremony, five panels, two author showcases, a performance, and the closing ceremony. I also volunteered in the ConSuite for eight hours. This is a Link to my conference recap.
Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells. All Systems Red (Book
1), Artificial Condition (Book 2), Rogue Protocol (Book 3), and Exit Strategy (Book
4)
Introduction
The Murderbot Diaries are a series of four novellas that complete a self-contained single story. I have reviewed the first novella called All Systems Red. The review is linked to the link section of this review. I will review the other three novellas in this review. The protagonist of the diaries is a SecUnit (Security Unit), a partially organic and partially mechanical cyborg, or as she calls herself a Murderbot.
Summary
Summary
of All Systems Red (Book 1)
The SecUnit (Security Unit) for the PreservationAux survey group has hacked and disabled her governor module during her last contract. The hack lets her follow the Company’s programming or to ignore it. SecUnits are built by the Company and must be used by every survey team for protection. The PersevationAux group surveys a planet to decide if they want to bid to the Company on building a colony there.
The story’s complication occurs when they lose contact with the DeltFall Group survey team, the only other survey team assigned to their planet. Dr. Mensah, the leader of the PreservationAux Group, investigates at DeltFall’s habitat despite the SecUnit’s suggestion they leave the investigation to the Company. What they find at the habitat changes their perspective on the Company and on their SecUnit’s behavior.
Summary
of Artificial Condition (Book 2)
The SecUnit leaves Dr. Mensah and the PreservationAux Group, but she doesn’t remember all that happened during her contact with the DeltFall Group. She takes passage on a research vessel she names ART. ART has more intelligence than most bot ship drivers and it finds out she is not on a contract. They become friends and ART helps her look more human so she can go back to Ganaka Pit, the place where her memory was purged. What she finds there sends her on a mission to discover the truth behind what happened at Ganaka Pit.
Summary
of Rogue Protocol (Book 3)
SecUnit learned from her last mission that the GrayCris corporation was involved in what happened at Ganaka Pit. She takes a transport ship to a planet named Milu to investigate what GrayCris did at a terraforming station they have closed down and sold. SecUnit unravels their plot and looks for incriminating evidence against GrayCris. She is helped on her mission by a bot the humans treat as a pet named Miki.
Summary
of Exit Strategy (Book 4)
SecUnit heads back personally give the information she
discovered to Dr. Mensah. GrayCris has kidnapped Dr. Mensah to lure SecUnit
into a trap.
Recommendation
This is great. The Murderbot Dairies read like a long
episodic novel. The action moves and SecUnit is an engaging protagonist. All she
wants to do is re-watch episodes of The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon, but
her past intrudes on her watching. Those pesky humans always have to be
protected, and she does it well with snark, at least in her inner dialogue.
Fortunately, we are there for the ride. I want to read the Murderbot novel, Network
Effect, that is scheduled to be released on May 5, 2020.
Links
This is the link to the Goodreads page for All Systems
Red by Martha Wells.
Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan. Book three of the Wheel of Time series.
Introduction
Dragon Reborn by Robert
Jordan is the third book of The Wheel of Time series. Perrin and Moraine
follow Rand to Tear. Mat, Egwene, Nyneave, and Elyane follow the Black Ajah to
Tear. They meet at the Stone of Tear and Rand meets his destiny with the sword
that is not a sword named Callendor. Can
Rand wield Callendor to prove he is the Dragon Reborn and defeat Ba’alzamon?
Summary
Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan begins
soon after Great Hunt by Robert Jordan ended. The battle at Falme is over and
Rand unfurls the Dragon Banner. The Dragon banner group hides in the hills
considering their next move. Moiraine, the Aes Sedai, and her warder Lan protect
the group. Perrin, the wolf brother and Min, the lady of prophecy, and Loial,
the Oglier are members of the group. Something unexpected happens and Rand
leaves the protecting hills and the group follows him but is one step behind
him on their way to Tear. Callendor, the sword that is not a sword, is
found in Tear. The prophecy is that the Stone of Tear will fall and the one who
can wield Callendor is the Dragon Reborn.
Meanwhile, the rest of the cast
is in Tar Volan. Egwene, Nynaeve, and Elayne are training under the tutelage of
the Aes Sedai. They have brought Mat, the trickster, to Tar Volan for the Aes
Sedai to heal him. They hope the most powerful of the Aes Sedai can heal Mat
from the curse of the dagger he took from Shadar Logoth. The Black Ajah makes its presence known. The members of
the Black Ajah are Aes Sedai who follows the dark one. Egwene, Nynaeve, and
Elayne head to Tear to fight the Black Ajah.
Both
groups travel to Tear and Rand proves his worth.
Recommendation
The Dragon Reborn is
another great novel in the Wheel of Time series. It was a great idea to limit
Rand’s POV chapters and having him as a mysterious force that the group
follows. Bringing almost everyone in the cast to Tear worked well. I enjoyed
Mat’s story the best. His story feels like a spy thriller. Perrin faces his
main dilemma of whether to take up the blacksmith hammer and a non-combat role
or the war ax and a combat role. The best moment of the novel comes at the end
when Rand responds to the climax of the novel. It is a perfect reaction and
Moraine states the truth that will propel Rand, Perrin, and Mat in the novels
that follow. I am looking forward to watching the first season of the Amazon
Prime Video adaption of the first two novels of the series in 2020.
Links
This is the link to the
Goodreads page of Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan.
In July 2018, I completed the first draft of Assassin
in New Marl City totaling 99,981 words and 36 chapters. Completed pre-draft two
(30 chapters long) in December 2018 at 89,072 words. Finished draft two edits
for Chapters 26 and 27 in August, chapters 28, 29, and 30 in September, and chapters
19 and 20 in October. I reviewed chapter 21 in November and chapter 25 in December
to complete the draft two edit. I will start the third draft edits in January
2020.
In December, I submitted chapters 23 and 24 of
Assassin in New Marl City to the Novel
Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.
In December, I submitted the story “The Past Under
Glass” to the Introductory Writing
Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.
I made five posts on my Goodreads account in December.
In the past, I submitted the stories The Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, Get to
the Point, LARP Film noir, and Sleeping Sickness to magazines.
Final statistics of magazine submissions for 2019 are;
1 different story submitted 1 time with 0 accepted, 0 pending, and 1
rejection.
Events
from December 2019
The next conference I plan to attend is ConFusion in Novi, Michigan from January 16 to 19, 2020. The Ann Arbor Science Fiction Association sponsors ConFusion.
I plan to write five blog posts for garydavidgillen.com
including my Writing Progress Report for January 2020.
I plan to work
on third draft edits for Assassin in New Marl City using comments from the Novel
Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio. In July 2019, I started the third draft edit
for Chapter One used at the first pages workshop at Confluence 2019. I plan to
complete third draft edits for chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4 in January 2020.
Polish and submit the stories Caliburnus, Space-Dog
Confession, White Bracer, Mage Squad, I Shall Not Return, Prisoner of Tarnal, and Kay-Eye for submission to short fiction
magazines.
Submit The Four Humors,
Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, LARP Film noir, Sleeping Sickness to other
short fiction magazines.
Put the novel, Assassin in New Marl City, into the writing
program, Scrivener.
Buy an e-book cover for Assassin in New Marl City from
Fiveer.
Write a story for the Introductory
Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.
I plan to make five posts on my Goodreads account; update
the information on my Facebook and Twitter accounts and update all the pages of
my website in January 2020.
Planned
Events for January 2020
The next conference I plan to attend is ConFusion in Novi, Michigan from January 16 to 19, 2020. The Ann Arbor Science Fiction Association sponsors ConFusion.
Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi is the second book in the Old Man’s War series. The Colonial Defense Forces created Jared Dirac for a specific purpose. He is a member of the Ghost Brigades who are the elite troops of the CDF. Jared is a clone of the mad evil scientist Charles Boutin and was made because Boutin has betrayed humanity enabling three alien civilizations to ally against humanity. The CDF wants to understand Boutin’s motivations by studying Jared and defeating Boutin and the aliens. Will Jared help the CDF when Boutin’s memories become his own memories?
Summary
Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi starts with Lieutenant Sagan interviewing a captive alien. The alien gives its view on humanity. He sees three kinds of humans. There are the unmodified humans that colonize unclaimed planets. The main members of the Colonial Defense Forces are older unmodified humans who have their minds transferred to young clone bodies. The CDF creates the third human from human DNA. They are the Ghost Brigades of the CDF. They make Jared Dirac from Boutin’s DNA. When he gains consciousness he doesn’t have any of Boutin’s memories. The CDF trains him in the Ghost Brigades and sends him out on missions. On his missions, his memories are triggered, and he has memories of being Boutin. He must understand why Boutin did what he did and Jared must forge his own path to save humanity.
Recommendation
This novel is a great sequel to Old Man’s War. Old
Man’s War was about the second humans, the members of the CDF. Adding the Ghost
Brigades ratcheted up the tension in the sequel. Jared Dirac was a great character
to show the reader the methods of the Ghost Brigades. Charles Boutin seems like
a mad scientist from an old school space opera but he is more than that. I
appreciate that the author took an old trope and made it new. The author sets
up the next novel in the series at the end of this novel. I am looking forward
to reading book three of the series, The Last Colony.
Links
This is the link to the Goodreads
page of Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi.
In Redshirts by John Scalzi, they assign Ensign Andrew Dahl to the starship Intrepid. Crew members on away missions die at an alarming rate, but not the officers. Dahl must discover the unbelievable truth, or he will die like the other Redshirts. This is the link to my review.
Worlds of Wonder by David Gerrold is his non-fiction book on the craft of writing, subtitled how to write science fiction and fantasy. The most famous work that he wrote was the episode of Star Trek (the original series) called “The Trouble with Tribbles”. He also wrote scripts and directed episodes of other Star Trek series. He wrote novels in the science fiction and fantasy genre. This book tells about his writing path and gives examples from his works to help aspiring writers. Where should you start as a new writer? Use this book.
Summary
Worlds of Wonder by David Gerrold starts with two of his college instructors who taught him valuable lessons. The first instructor told him he would never make it as a writer. That rage against failure fueled him to do well. The other instructor stressed the importance of structure. David Gerrold took that advice to mean he should learn from the masters of his chosen genre of science fiction and fantasy to see how they were successful. He realized that a story is about a person’s problem solving and the lessons learned through that experience.
Ask yourself If questions to invent the wonder of your story.
Find your hero and your hero’s problem. Your hero will face crises and challenges.
Set the stage and build your world. The first line is important to hook the
reader and keep them reading. He gives examples of love scenes from his novels When
Harlie was One and A Method for Madness. He goes over each structural
device for writing. Discipline is important because real writers write. Use the
idea that your first million words are for practice. If you end up selling any
of your first million words, then that is a bonus for you. He ends the book
with ten pieces of good advice.
Recommendation
Worlds of Wonder by David Gerrold is a useful book about writing. It is short and easy to read. The author has a conversational way of writing. The advice is sound but like other books I have read. I remember reading the author’s novel The Man Who Folded Himself when I was in high school. I also remember that he was the writer of “The Trouble with Tribbles”. David Gerrold was a panelist and an interviewee at Marcon in Columbus Ohio on May 11, 2019. I had planned to read this book but because of the conference, I read it sooner than I planned. I am glad that I did.
Links
This
is the link to the Goodreads page of Worlds of Wonder
by David Gerrold
Recap for SF Conference Marcon Columbus on May 11, 2019. They held it at Crowne Plaza – Columbus North. I also attended Marcon in 2017 and 2018. This year I attended four panels, a performance, and an interview. My star of the con was David Gerrold. He was engaging in the panel and the interview that I attended with him.
Save the Cat Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody takes the books of Blake Snyder and applies his teachings to writing novels. She presents complete beat sheets and genre breakdowns of current and past novels. This is the link to my review.
Another similar book on writing is How to Write Best Selling Fiction by Dean Koontz. This is the link to my review. It’s from 1981, but the advice is still great.
Raven Tower by Ann Leckie is a fantasy novel from an award-winning science-fiction novelist. The Raven Lease is the speaker for the god known as the Raven and the Raven Lease is missing. Mawat is the heir to the Raven Lease and returns from wars in the south with his aide Eolo. Eolo learns secrets about the Raven and must decide what to do with that knowledge. The novel’s one-line preface is “there will be a reckoning”. What reckoning will take place?
Summary
Raven Tower by Ann Leckie begins
with an unknown narrator speaking in the second-person to Eolo. The narration
is like the narrator telling a story to Eolo after the events have occurred. Eolo
is returning to Vastai, the capital of Iraden. Eolo is the aide to Mawat, and they
have been at war in the south but must return to Vastai because Mawat is the
heir to the Raven Lease. The Raven
Lease is the speaker for the god known as the Raven and the Raven Lease is
missing. Mawat tries to figure what happened to his father and what is going on
in Vastai. Eolo can learn about the situation easier than Mawat could. The
narrator influences Eolo and helps Eolo learn secrets. As the novel proceeds,
the narrator tells stories that may or may not be told to Eolo. The stories
read like parables. Eolo must decide what to do with the secrets learned. There
will be a reckoning.
Recommendation
It was ambitious to write a second-person story in a novel-length. I was skeptical of this choice as I read the novel, but I understood the choice and the necessity to write the novel this way after I read to the end of the novel. The identity of the narrator is the whole point of the story. There will be a reckoning. I thought there were unanswered questions that a sequel could answer, but the author has tweeted that she intended the novel as a standalone novel. https://twitter.com/ann_leckie/status/1101144602181025800?lang=en
I enjoyed reading the Raven Tower and think it was the best book I read
in 2019.
Links
This is the link to the
Goodreads page of Raven Tower by Ann Leckie
I attended the Gotham Writers Conference in New York City, New York on October 25, 2019, sponsored by Gotham Writers Workshop. This was the first year for this conference. It was at the Ace Hotel on 20 West 29th Street, New York City. There were five panels and presentations at the conference. Day two of the conference on October 26, 2019, was for pitching roundtables. The roundtables had a group of picked authors pitching their work to two agents in their genre. I did not get picked for the roundtables, so I did not participate.
The Gotham Writers Conference opened with a welcome from Gotham President Alex Steele. He related the story of how the genesis of the conference occurs. Josh Sippe’s job is to go to other writer’s conferences and report back to Alex. Josh asked why don’t we do a con? Alex replied that it was a “terrible” idea, so of course, they put on a conference.
This is the swag
bag we received at the conference. It said “Write” on the back of the bag.
This was the badge
I used at the conference.
Summary
before Lunch
Friday,
October 25th at 10 AM
The
Writer’s View: If I can do it, you can too, a panel with Seth Fried, Kody
Keplinger, Joselin Linder, and David Seigerman (moderator)
The
authors had different backgrounds. Kody is a fiction novel writer, Seth started
with Literary Magazines, and Joselin writes non-fiction using proposals. The
moderator asked questions about their process and experience. There were many
interesting comments. I will detail three of them here that I found
particularly helpful. Use comp titles that have been released in the last
twelve months for your queries. Social media is part of your job as a writer.
Being a professional means you meet deadlines because writing is a job.
They held the presentation
in the Basement of the Ace Hotel with about 160 attendees
Friday,
October 25th at 11:25 AM
Embracing
Rejection, a lecture by Kim Liao
She said to shoot
for rejection instead of acceptance because that puts your fears in a box. Then
you won’t be paralyzed by fear to submit your work.
She asked the
attendees to take three minutes to answer two questions and put our answers
down on paper. What are your biggest hopes and dreams as a writer? What stops
you from achieving those hopes and dreams?
She then asked a
series of five questions to the attendees. Five things to do in the next year
to accomplish your goals or dreams. Four things to do in the next six months.
Three things to do in the next two months. Two things to do in the next month.
One thing to do before next Friday. The questions were helpful to help
prioritize tasks to be completed.
They held the presentation
in the Basement of the Ace Hotel with about 160 attendees
Friday,
October 25th at 12:25 PM
Weike Wong is
interviewed by Gotham President Alex Steele
Alex
had Weike read a passage from her novel Chemistry. In the passage, the unnamed
main character is given a proposal of marriage from her boyfriend. That event
starts off the novel leading to the main character’s dilemma and change.
Weike
wanted to write a novel without shocking turns of events. She wanted a
character-driven story and chose to find other ways to create tension in the
story.
Alex
had Weike read another passage from the novel. The main character is a grad
student in Chemistry. She a psychologist to help her understand why she feels
the way she does.
It
was Weike’s choice to write a first-person novel with no names except for the
boyfriend, Eric. It is a short novel with no chapters. Weike’s advice is to
have a vision and stick to it.
They held the presentation
in the Basement of the Ace Hotel with about 160 attendees
Summary
after Lunch
Friday,
October 25th at 2:45 PM
The Agents View:
What We Talk About When We Talk About You, a panel with Kurestin Armada, Suzie
Townsend, Jim McCarthy, and Susan Breen (moderator)
Susan
asked a series of questions to the panel and they responded. Who was the latest
client you signed and why? They talked about searching the slush pile and
related that it feels like panning for gold. What do you like to see with a
platform? They said it is essential for non-fiction writers but is up to the
author for fiction writers. How quickly do you know you love the book you are
reading? They say within the first few pages. She asked about pay and they said
the going rate for agents is 15%. Is finding an agent only the first step? They
talked about the agent must be a partner you trust and trusts you and that it
is some kind of magic when a book works.
The
panel ended with a question and answer session with the attendees.
They held the presentation
in the Basement of the Ace Hotel with about 160 attendees
Friday,
October 25th at 4:10 PM
The Agent Game
Show with J. L. Stermer, Noah Ballard, Alec Shane, Jeff Kleinman (host), and
Alex Steele (fill-in host)
Jeff was late
because of a time mix-up to Alex filled in as host of the panel. Alex ran the
Game Show by having the agents answer questions and having the attendees vote
on their favorite responses.
Alex’s questions were
the most awkward situation, most uplifting experience, most challenging book
you sold, worst pitch for a book, and name an author you would love to represent.
At this point, the audience favored Noah’s answers.
Jeff continued the
questioning. He asked about elements of a great query letter, is platform
important to you, and after the sale is made what do you do as an agent. Jeff
gave out gag gifts to the panelists at the end with input from the audience.
They held the presentation
in the Basement of the Ace Hotel with about 160 attendees
Recommendation
– Conclusion
I enjoyed attending the Gotham Writers Conference.
Thanks to Josh Sippe for getting me into the conference at the last minute due
to a late cancellation. The Conference was packed with eager writers looking
for advice from the pros. I wish I had gotten my novel presentation completed
in time to try to earn a spot at the pitching roundtables conducted on October
26, 2019. Hopefully next year there will be another conference and I could
submit my novel then. My star of the Con was Alex Steele. He gave a great welcome
speech, conducted an interesting interview with Weike Wang, and filled in admirably
at the Agent Game Show. The conference was well worth the time invested and I
would like to attend next year.
Links
A similar conference I attended this year was the Indie Author Conference in Parma, Ohio on October 12, 2019, at the Parma-Snow branch of the Cuyahoga County Library at 2121 Snow Road Parma, Ohio 44134. The Cuyahoga County Library sponsored the conference for the fourth time. There were three presentations in the morning and a local author fair in the afternoon. The focus of the conference was for writers and authors to learn more about self-publishing. They featured thirty-one authors in the showcase. The listed authors all had at least one published book in either 2018 or 2019 for sale.
