New Reviews for "When the Hero Comes Home!"

And very good reviews they are, too!

And I get a mention in both!

The Gloaming says this about When the Hero Comes Home:

...And it’s a really good anthology. It’s clear that Harbowy and Greenwood carefully considered their theme and the authors and stories that are its backbone. Every story is well-plotted and contains characters that leap off the page. Characters that feel, that make you feel along with them. When I got the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book, I was excited by the subject matter I’d heard so much about at Ad Astra. I popped it into my Kobo right away, and was glued.

And mentions my story here:

My Top 5:

• An Evil Not Forgotten by Erik Buchanan
• Brine Magic by Tony Pi
• The Legend of Gluck by Marie Bilodeau
• Ashes of the Bonfire Queen by Rosemary Jones
• Dark Helm Returns by Ed Greenwood

Yay!

The Left Hand of Dorkness says this about When the Hero Comes Home:

I love small presses. Really, I do. They are so much more likely to put out interesting anthologies, such as When The Hero Comes Home...

...Really, there are no lackluster stories in this collection, and I could easily sing the praises of each of them. Pick up a copy from Amazon and enjoy, or go to the Dragon Moon Press site to check it out.

And says this about my story:

Let me highlight some of the gems inside, in order of appearance. Erik Buchanan's What Evil Remains gives us a picture of a veteran of a wizard's defeat dealing with post-traumatic stress, a good man who served his community and bears the mental scars to prove it. Truly heart-wrenching.

Excellent reviews and very happy making. So, if you haven't picked up your copy of When the Hero Comes Home (Paperback or Kindle), I (and they) recommend you do so now!

Book Launch Day!!!!

Off to the "When the Hero Comes Home" Book Launch!

Yay!!!

Polaris Day 1

Friday night at Polaris and things are off to a great start. Marie Bilodeau and J.M. Frey were both in attendance, as was our lovely and talented assistant, Katrina.

We have a great spot for the table, and we sold a good number of books for a Friday night. And we're starting to get buzz for the launch. All in all, very happy making.

But I need to mention...

KINDLE!!!!

Small Magics is now available on Kindle!

Cold Magics is now Available on Kindle!

Coolness!

If you are a Kindle owner, please buy them and let me know how they look!

Back to Polaris:

I had my first panel tonight, "How to judge a book by it's cover, with the very intelligent and knowledgeable Julie Czerneda moderating and myself, Stephen B. Pearl and Nikki Stafford talking. Good experience, great information and a quite appreciative audience, which is a great thing on a Friday night.

Will be taking some pictures tomorrow and posting them when I can.

Thanks to those who were there for a great evening, and everyone remember the "When the Hero Comes Home" Book Launch and Champagne Brunch on Sunday!

"When the Hero Comes Home" Reviews!

The first are in, and so far, so good!

From Andrew Jack's Writing:

"When the Hero Comes Home edited by Gabrielle Harbowy and Ed Greenwood, was a real surprise. I expected it to be good, but I wasn't expecting it to be as moving as it was. This is a perfect example of how an anthology of stories should work, individual tales tied together by a cohesive theme"

Nice! And he even mentions my story, "The Evil that Remains."

You can also find that review on Amazon, where someone who bought the kindle edition said:

"I don't read short stories...usually. This one piqued my interest based around a cool theme. I thought it might have one or two good stories, then a lot of filler -- but fortunately, they were all top notch. The stories (by a mix of shared-world veterans and Cdn authors) are all excellent...such that I found I wanted to tell people about the plots or characters -- that special moment when you HAVE to share the experience with someone."

So, so far, so good, and I encourage everyone to get their own copy, either at the book launch, or on Amazon in paperback or Kindle, and write their own review!

"When the Hero Comes Home" Champagne Brunch and Book Launch!

On Sunday, July 17, 2011, we are launching Dragon Moon Press's new anthology, When the Hero Comes Home with a Champagne brunch at Polaris!

From the DMP website:

When the epic battle, the mission, and the quest are over, can a hero go home again?

When the Hero Comes Home, answers these questions with nineteen powerful stories by some of today's top and up-and-coming fantasy and science fiction writers.

Edited by Ed Greenwood and Gabrielle Harbowy, the anthology features new fiction by Jay Lake, Todd McCaffrey, Julie Kagawa, and an all-new Jig the Goblin story by Jim C. Hines.

The official launch will be at GenCon in Indianapolis but thanks to the generosity and time-shifting of the good folks at Polaris, and that most wonderful of publishers, Dragon Moon Press, we get to have our own Canada/Toronto book launch!

And by "we" I mean, me, J.M. Frey, Marie Bilodeau and any other of the authors that can make it.

We're spreading the word now, and as we get more folks, I'll let you know.

Here's the announcement from the Polaris Program:

When the Hero Comes Home Champagne Brunch and Book Launch

Join Dragon Moon Press at Ten Forward as we celebrate the launch of our new anthology, When the Hero Comes Home. What happens when the epic battle, the mission, and the quest are over? When the Hero Comes Home answers the question with 19 powerful stories by some of today’s top and up-and-coming fantasy and science fiction writers. We’ll have champagne mimosas and a continental brunch, readings by authors, prizes, and of course, chocolate! Copies of When the Hero Comes Home will be available for sale and authors J.M. Frey, Marie Bilodeau and Erik Buchanan will be ready to sign them for you.

Sunday, July 17, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Ten Forward.

So how can you get there?

Well, first, you have to go to Polaris. Here's all the details. Then just come on in. We'll have a mimosa just for you!

And if you just can't wait for the launch party to get your copy of When the Hero Comes Home, not to worry:

You can get the paperback here at Amazon.

And the Kindle version right here.

I hope to see you at the launch. It's going to be a great time.

Announcement - When the Hero Comes Home

Yay!

My short story "An Evil Not Forgotten" will appear in the new Anthology "When the Hero Comes Home," edited by Ed Greenwood and Gabrielle Harbowy.

Coolness!!!!

Below is the text of the official press release:

WHEN THE HERO COMES HOME, an anthology of fantasy and science fiction tales—co-edited by Bestselling author Ed Greenwood and Gabrielle Harbowy, Editor and Associate Publisher, Dragon Moon Press—will be released in August of 2011 by Dragon Moon Press.

When the epic battle, the mission, the quest are over, can the hero go home again? Is she too changed to resume where she left off... Is the life he left behind is no longer waiting for him?

In WHEN THE HERO COMES HOME, these questions are addressed in nineteen powerful stories by some of today’s top and up-and-coming fantasy and science fiction writers.

"We've been very pleased with the stories we've received. Strong storytelling featuring great characters, from both new voices and established writers. They’ve given us wildly different approaches to our theme—which is just what the title of the book says it is," says Greenwood.

"It's a thrill to be able to work with Ed and with so many other talented writers, and to have an opportunity to showcase some of Dragon Moon Press's up and coming authors. Each story gives the theme its own fresh, fascinating spin. Whether you're into swords and sorcery, science fiction, or urban fantasy, there are stories here that will grab you," says Harbowy.

The anthology features new fiction by Jay Lake, Todd McCaffrey, Julie Kagawa, and an all-new Jig the Goblin story by Jim C. Hines.

Title: WHEN THE HERO COMES HOME
ISBN-13: 978-1-897492-25-3
Release Date: August, 2011
Publisher: Dragon Moon Press
Format: Trade Paperback, E-book
Distributor: Ingram

For preordering and promotional information contact: eic@dragonmoonpress.com

Did I mention yay? Because, YAY!!!!

Geek Link! The Science of Social Networking

Apparently, a single new connection can dramatically increase the size of your social network. And here is why:

Beating the Competition: Scientists Discover how the Size of Social Networks can Skyrocket

Interesting little article, which explains how my facebook fan page can leap up in the numbers.

If you'll all just join it, that is...

The Green Hornet or, Dammit, They Said It Better than I Could!

I saw The Green Hornet last night and was trying to come up with a way to tell folks what a good movie it was. Loads of fun, completely irreverent, and a total hoot.

But while I was searching for a way to say it, I stumbled across io9's review, whose title alone said the whole thing better than I could:

"The Green Hornet is the rare stoner superhero movie that you can enjoy sober."

So read their review, which sums it up very well, then I highly recommend going to see The Green Hornet. I laughed myself silly, and the explosions were pretty good, too.

Science! Plastic to Oil in one easy machine...

Found this via Care2, a social action website. They have some interesting stuff on a variety of topics, so have a look if that's your thing.

Aniko Ito is the CEO of Blest, a Japanese company. One day, he wondered why we didn't convert the plastics back into oil and use them. So he built a machine that could.

Here's the article where I learned about it.

And here's the video:

Cool, eh?

The Truth About Writing Fantasy

Yep. That about sums it up...

Happy New Year!!!

It's a brand new year, and a brand new blog post!

I'm excited about this year. I don't have a new book coming out (damn this whole "life" thing with its busy "life-iness") but I've got one I'm working on and two others I want to start on.

I learned a while ago that one book at a time is the best way for me to write, so I have to hold back on the others for a bit. Still, it gives me motivation to hurry up and finish this one.

The day job that keeps me in beer and skittles is going along very nicely and I am enjoying my work. My daily schedule has resolved itself into something that I can live with and still do my writing and get some exercise (the latter of which fell desperately behind last year).

Now, because no post of mine would be complete without a shameless plug for my work, I will mention that the New Year is an excellent time to treat yourself to a new book or two. I recommend:

Small Magics

and

Cold Magics

But, then, I would. That said, check out the reader reviews. They're pretty darn good!

And Look, I got Interviewed!

(I was mighty busy when this came out, first with NaNoWriMo and SF Contario, then with Christmas, so I missed telling everyone about it at the time.)

While I was at Con*Cept in Montreal, I was fortunate enough to be interviewed by Denis Lalumiére of Cinemaniax and Sébastien Mineau of SithClan. This guys did a great interview and asked some really good questions. Thanks to both for an excellent time.

You can listen to the podcast here.

The introduction is in French, but the interview is in English.

And I have to say, the folks in Montreal are wonderful. Had a great time, and they even put up with my lousy (and I mean really, really lousy) French. Must also thank Dragon Moon Press author Marie Bilodeau, who went there with me and did most of the talking. It was a great weekend.

So Happy New Year to all. I look forward to a great year of writing, conventions, and telling everyone all about it.

Another NaNoWriMo Post

6271 words today. Not bad at all. Not the 10,000 I was hoping for, but I'm not going to complain too much.

The brain is not a muscle, as we all know, but it does share a certain characteristic with one's muscles. If it doesn't practice something, it stops being good at it. Whenever I've been away from the sword or martial arts for any length of time, I can feel the disuse on my muscles. The old nerve pathways are grown over, and I have to practice until the path becomes clear again.

Same thing with my brain. I've been out of the discipline of writing. It's been months since I engaged in any serious work. Too much of life going on. Moving, organizing a new place, looking after my little girl and changes at work all make it hard to focus on the big projects.

And as a result, the paths in my brain that give a clear line from the subconscious to the page have overgrown. And I needed to do something about it. That's why I went into NaNoWriMo: to get that focus back. And I must say, so far, so good.

This week I did fall down a bit. I had a busy start to the week and precious little sleep, so the writing levels were no where near what I had hoped for. As a result I am behind on the "suggested word count," which is 23,334. My word count is 16,14

My goal tomorrow is to do 3-4000 words, which will get me almost back on track. Then 2000 a day for the next 4 days. After that, it's time for SFContario, which I have been woefully neglectful in publicizing, but which I promise to do a blog post about in the very near future. Really.

"Winter's Bone" and NaNoWriMo

Too lazy to do two posts. Also, it is midnight and the alarm goes off way to early (yes, I have an alarm on the weekend. I am, in fact, odd).

Just finished watching "Winter's Bone" and if you did not see it in the theatre, I cannot recommend enough that you go rent it. It is incredible. Amazing acting, amazing camera work, amazing use of landscapes. Incredible use of suspense and one of the most truly horrifying scenes on film.

Way, way cool.

Meanwhile, on the other end of things, I did 2000+ words in a couple of hours today, which has me sitting pretty good for where I'm sitting. I am behind, of course. According the page I should be at 10,002 words by end of day Saturday, and I am only at 8,379. Not unexpected. I have my little girl with me this week, and we had a couple of low sleep nights - night terrors and a visit from a mouse. Oy veh.

But, the mouse has vanished and is hopefully holed up in someone else's apartment, the last two nights we both got great sleep, and I'm feeling very energetic, positive and upbeat about the whole thing. It's all good, at the moment.

And so, soon to head to bed, and visions of another 2000 words dancing in my head.

Twas the night before NaNoWriMo...

And all through the house,

Not a creature was stirring,

And no panic had set in.

Feeling pretty good about it, actually, which may just be denial, but hey, I'll take it. Not panicked, not worried. Just finishing up a nice Hallowe'en with my little girl and her Granny, and about 60 kids ranging in age from 2 to maybe 15 who came to the door. The cutest was the 3-year old dressed as a penguin.

Only a few of the kids noticed I had a skull under my arm. But then, they don't notice these things with adults, or possibly try to ignore them. One was impressed and said so.

So, the night before NaNoWriMo, and I'm feeling pretty good. Know the story, know the lead character, know the other main ones, have some idea of plot. It should all be good.

So, if I'm not posting much here, you probably won't notice the difference! (Yeah, I know I don't post enough). But seriously, I will try to get some posts up telling how it is going. I'm looking forward to it.

And now, soon to bed, to rest up for the big event.

NaNoWriMo!

Yep, I'm going to give it a shot.

I haven't written anything long since Cold Magics came out. Too busy moving, unpacking, working, and going to conventions. There was one period where I don't think I had a free day or evening in a month. So, while the writing bug has been biting me, and I've been working in fits and starts, there's been no consistent time or space to keep the drive alive.

Now, however, my time has sorted itself out as has my place and I've only got one convention to go to, SFContario, November 19, 20, and 21, at the Ramada Plaza Hotel, 300 Jarvis Street, Toronto. Got to love a home town convention.

For me, writing, like everything else, has to be made a habit to be done effectively. I find I need to be writing at least 5 days a week to really get in stride; 6 days a week preferably, and 7 when I'm reaching the end of a project. And when I get out of a habit, it takes some work to get me back in.

Fortunately, NaNoWriMo has the two things that help me most when I'm trying to get back on a habit: a challenge, and a deadline.

First draft of a new novel in month. I can do it. I've got the novel in my head, the general plot figured out, the main characters all sorted. Now I'm just waiting for the starting gun.

So, let's see how it goes, starting Monday.

Sunday Night: the Last Con*cept Blog Post (for now)

Well, that was a pretty good end to a pretty good weekend.

Spent most of the day in the dealer's room, selling books and getting one more chance to talk to people before they headed on their way. Sold a lot of copies of Small Magics and a fair number of Cold Magics. Had several people who'd bought Small Magics on Saturday come back for Cold Magics on Sunday, just based on their reading Saturday night. That was a very nice feeling indeed.

My panel today was "Killing Your Babies," which was all about editing and the joys of realizing that that amazingly cool scene/character/description/idea/philosophy that you just know was the perfect thing when you wrote it is the thing you need to cut from the book. And if ever there was a group of people qualified to talk about it, it was my fellow panelists. From closest to furthest from me (I was sitting on the end of the table and moderating! I was moderating this group! cool!), there was Tad Williams, Marie Bilodeau, Violette Milan, and Deborah Beale!

It was a wide-ranging discussion with lots of great audience participation and lots of great stories from the writers at the table. In the course of talking about editing, we shared some of our favourite/most horrifying story realizations, discussed the "Disneyfication" of popular culture and the many times all of us have either written or read something which we know needed to be cut out.

Great fun, and an excellent panel to end on.

Then, to make things even cooler, I got an interview with Angela Roberts from The Gloaming. She asked some great questions, and I hope I wasn't talking too much in my answers. Thanks, Angela!

And speaking of thank you's, my thanks to everyone at Con*cept for having me as a panelist and treating all of us so well. And my deep, deep thanks to Marie Bilodeau, my partner in crime and at the Dragon Moon Press table for the weekend, who kept us both laughing through the weekend, translated for those whose who spoke mostly French but still wanted to know what my book was about, and for finding us great breakfast spots two days running.

To everyone new I met, and to everyone I got to see once again, merci beaucoup, et au revoir until next time!

Saturday Night Con*cept Blogging, plus Time Management Basics

And here I am. Only 12:20 and already heading for bed. I swear I was a night owl, once...

Had an excellent day of selling Small Magics and Cold Magics and talking to people. Had a great time on the "But When Do I Write" panel, where myself and Rob St. Martin, Karen Dales and Glenn Grant all talked about time management and how important it is for a writer.

It was such a good discussion, with such excellent people that I want the share the highlights with everyone who happens to pop in and read.

First off: If you want to be a writer, find the time to write, no matter how busy your life is. If you can't, you really don't want to be a writer.

Steps to finding the time:

1. Organize your life. I use a system where everything that one is doing is divided into URGENT, NOT URGENT, IMPORTANT, NOT IMPORTANT (if you know whose system this is, let me know. It isn't mine and I can't remember, but would like to give credit where it is due). From there you can...

2. Prioritize the things that need to get done, in the order you need to get them done in.

3. Create a schedule that allows you to work on the important things (like your writing). Make sure you schedule your free time, so you don't feel guilty about it when you have it.

4. Build a community of people around you who support and understand your goals.

5. Reward yourself when you reach a a goal.

We also talked about the nature of change, and or trauma, and how either or both these things can really throw off your writing schedule. Unfortunately, both are part of life, and in either case, you have to let yourself and your life settle to the point where you can get back on your writing schedule.

It was a good day, and I'll looking forward to another good day tomorrow.

Con*cept Friday Night

Late night blogging from a nice little Con in Montreal. Had a good first evening and a nice book launch with lots of folks attending.

Marie Bilodeau and I are partners in crime for our Montreal launch. I'm launching Cold Magics, Marie is launching her new book, Destiny's Blood. Marie is an amazing reader and a great person, and I can't wait to read her book. It sounds really good.

Then a group of us went out for drinks and late night snacks at a nearby restaurant. It was a great way to end the evening.

So that's day 1. Looking forward to a great day tomorrow with 2 panels, a table to sell books at, and time hanging with fans and fellow writers.

Geek Link! Cool Cave in Spain

Tonight's Geek Link comes from Spain via the CBC, who have some great pictures of a cave containing the world's largest collection of helictites. Very impressive pictures.

Helictites, for those who don't know (which included me until I read this article), are eccentric crystallographic formations (yeah, I know, big help). This means that instead of forming vertically like stalactites and stalagmites, the crystals form in gravity-defying directions and shapes. They are very cool to look at:

(image taken from the CBC article)

So have a look. It's just plain neat, in a geological kind of way.

Pattern Recognition by William Gibson

Some books move us more than others, moving beyond entertainment to be come an experience. William Gibson's Pattern Recognition is one of those books.

This is the first book of Gibson's I have read that does not take place in his familiar and well-imagined cyberpunk worlds. Rather, it takes place in our world, in a post-911 reality of marketing and internet obsession, and of mystery spanning across the globe. It is a work of literary fiction of the highest orders

I'm not going to bother with a synopsis. You can read that on the Amazon page for Pattern Recognition, here. I will say, this is a spectacular book, and one that I highly, highly recommend you read.