Karen's musings

Witches Inc progress ...

2008-05-13T10:01:56Z

Happy happy happy ...the Zokoutu word meter is back. Not that I'm not grateful to Writertopia for theirs, but there's just something about that happy little worm ...

My head is slowly but surely burrowing its way back into the world of Rogue Agent. A combination of lurgy and end of play rehearsal hysteria had made focusing very very difficult of late. But looming deadlines and a growing belief that I can actually write this sucker (sometimes the terror and doubts just will not go away) are mutating me into a writing fiend once again. There's a Jekyll and Hyde quality to the life of a writer ... about which, more anon.

In the meantime, there's my miserly progress to celebrate.

19,217 / 100,000
(19.2%)

Tomorrow I'm doing an interview with the wonderful guys from the Faster Than Light radio show in Perth. I'll put up the podcast details when they become available. And when I'm not doing that, I shall be romping on my treadmill and whacking down as many words as I can before heading off to our second last rehearsal. We have our first live audience next Monday night ... and the guys are ready. They did such great work at last night's rehearsal. I am so very, very proud of them!

I guest blogged!

2008-05-11T23:10:08Z

My my my, I'm in a chatty mood today.

I've just done a guest blog on the new Voyager blogsite. You can go read my ramblings -- and the ramblings of other fine folk-- here:

http://voyageronline.wordpress.com/

Enjoy!

The fun of Psych

2008-05-11T23:05:49Z

So I just got off the treadmill after a brisk 45 minute walk. Yes I know, it's crazy to walk on a treadmill with the Big Wide World out there beyond my front door ... but I find exercise quite boring, if you want the truth, so I like to distract myself. Yes, I could walk outside with my CD walkman and listen to one of the many many many many Lectures on CD from the Teaching Company that I have accumulated and not yet listened to (seriously. Many.) but therein lies another problem. Every time I listen to one of those I get an idea for another story and I have enough on my plate right now, believe me.

So I walk indoors, on my treadmill (I love my treadmill) and I watch an episode of something and thus work up a sweat while getting in some entertainment. Two birds, and so forth. And since the last few Season 3 podcasts of Battlestar were spoiled for me by the presence of someone else with Ron D Moore, whose solo podcasts I think are super spectacular, I had to put in a different dvd. So I decided to finish watching season 1 of Psych.

I really like Psych. I believe I've mentioned this before, but it bears mentioning again.

I really like Psych.

My dear friend ph8 expressed surprise when I told her I enjoyed Psych - and I can understand why. I mean, I also really like Dexter, and that can be a bit gory and bleak. And I wrote Empress (of Mijak) and quite a number of people now have commented in passing that it's a really, really, violent book. With a surfeit of blood. And violence. And Psych is ... pretty frothy. It's a bit like a meringue, compared to a really dense slice of mud cake.

Nevertheless, I really like it.

It's beautifully written. Seriously. Very very very witty. I can get quite weepy when I encounter truly fantastic writing. It's odd, you know. There's the kind of overall brilliant writing that you find in something like The West Wing, in Aaron Sorkin's best scripts. Exquisite constructions of language that awake, in me anyway, a visceral pleasure. Then there's a kind of duller brilliant writing that you get in Battlestar, where the overarching idea, the plot, the sheer weight and momentum of the story is the thing that excites me. I rarely get the same visceral pleasure from the actual construction of words in Battlestar, but the journey is magnificent, and there are some episodes that just flatten me every time I see them. Not because of the actual dialogue, but because of what happens. The emotional content is the star there, for me.

Of course with Sorkin you get frequently get both, but then Sorkin is a man apart. Except for Studio 60. I have no idea what happened there.

Anyhow, back to Psych.

Psych is about as deep and dramatic as -- as -- well, as a meringue. It's much more in the vein of Moonlighting than Wire in the Blood, shall we say, and the producers happily admit it. They even talk about using Moonlighting as an inspiration. And that's fine. That's brilliant. In fact, I celebrate that. Complaining about Psych not being deep and dramatic and criticising the writers/producers for it would be ridiculous. Like criticising Chinese food for not containing enough pasta. Psych is precisely what the producers set out to make it, a comedic crime show. To the point where there is never any real jeopardy, you can't actually take the crimes seriously, and -- for me -- it's almost impossible to bond emotionally with the characters because of the show's gloss of unreality.

Nevertheless, I really like it.

Because it's funny. Because it's witty. Because amidst the froth and banter there are a few little comments about relationships being made. And the cast know how to play with witty words. Dule Hill (Charlie in The West Wing) is a revelation. The other lead, James Roday, is also a wonderfully physical and cluey actor who knows comic timing in all its permutations.

Anything done well is a pleasure, I think, and Psych is done very well indeed. And even though I started watching it a while ago, and found it easy to walk away from, I've walked back -- literally -- and am charmed all over again. A dose of froth after a weekend of angst and drama (being decidedly off-colour all Sunday, I lay about watching megadoses of Without a Trace, and more on that anon. But it's quite emotionally sharp, that show.)

I have yet to see Psych on tv here in Australia, which means it's most likely an imported DVD job. But I can highly highly recommend it, if you like great writing and great acting. I think I said that before, too, but I feel it bears repeating.

It's fun, fun, fun. And sometimes all we want out of our entertainment is fun!

Awed and Humbled and Blown Away

2008-05-09T23:28:59Z

Via Poppy Z Brite's livejournal (http://docbrite.livejournal.com)

comes this amazing, fantastic YouTube video. As soon as I've posted this I'm going to donate. I hope you do too. And one day, I want to visit this woman. And may all the angels rain blessings upon her head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwM6f0liHpo#GU5U2spHI_4

Please ... help spread the word.

Back on Track

2008-05-09T03:25:32Z

I don't know about you, but when I get sick, rational thought seems to fly out of the window. Some people can write through illness but tragically, I'm not one of them. So in this last week and small change of being unwell, not being able to think straight, falling asleep at the drop of a hat, swallowing drugs like M &Ms, pushing myself to do stuff that I couldn't not do (like meet with my accountant and get to rehearsals) and glorming about like a drunk walrus the rest of the time ... of course I've been torturing myself.

I can't think! I can't write! I'll miss all my deadlines! This gloom and doom will never lift! I have no appetite for anything, my life is over!

Tragic, yes? But sadly true. I think they call it catastrophic thinking and I do indeed do this. I wonder if it's part of the creative psyche?

However, after one last viral assault on my body last night (no icky details, suffice it to say I was purged *g*) I seem to be sparking on all cylinders again. No headache. No sore throat. And a decent supply of energy. I've had errands I had to run, and have run them, and still feel good. No exercise today ... I'll give myself a couple more days to make sure I'm well and truly unviral before I push that one.

So many thanks to the kind folks who posted get well and cheer me up wishes in the previous blog entry -- I wasn't really up to replying then, and now the moment's passed, but I do want to say how much I appreciate the good thoughts.

Also to cheer me up, I got an advance copy of Hammer of God in the mail today -- and it looks lovely. I tell you, for so many reasons, this book was a killer. Even now I have little perspective on it. One of these days I'll talk about the process of producing my first trilogy, in the hopes the journey will illuminate things for other writers.

But, for better or worse, it's done. And my sights continue to train on upcoming projects, of which there are many!

In other news, the vagaries of life permitting, I'll be attending the Romantic Times Booklovers' Convention in Orlando, Florida, next April 22-26. I think it's going to be a lot of fun. It's a convention for readers and, yes, book lovers. People who don't sneer at popular commercial genre fiction. People who actively enjoy, celebrate and promote popular commercial genre fiction. In other words, my kinds of people, who don't complain because fantasy authors dare to continue playing in traditional fantasy fields. I don't know yet exactly what I'll be doing there, but when I know, I'll share it!

And in that vein, congrats to Richard Morgan, who wrote that wonderful piece about the nonsense that goes on in the spec fic community. He just won the Arthur C Clarke award for Black Man. Well done!

Sigh

2008-05-07T00:42:56Z

Not dead. Still lurgified. How boring.

In the meantime ... here are a couple of new interviews, in which I blather on. Both sites are wonderful resources for spec fic fans, so have a good look round while you're there!

http://otter.covblogs.com/archives/028609.html

and

http://www.specusphere.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=502&Itemid=31

My sincere thanks to both sites, who continue to be so enthusiastic and supportive, not only of me, but of our wonderful genre in general.

Taking a moment to say ...

2008-04-30T22:58:50Z

Bleah. And bugger. And uuurrggghhh.

Yes. I'm lurgified.

It's all my fault for saying my momentum would pick up. Ha! My momentum has come to a screeching halt.

Boo hiss.

I'm not completely bedridden. I can get about, which is useful, because I have lunch today with my globetrotting editor. But writing is hard, with the permanent headache. I can read a bit. So yesterday I read about airships, research for the next Gerald book. Wow. Who knew? I'll burble more in due course. But wow. When the fossil fuel runs out, I can totally see us going back to international travel via airship.

But right now I have to go take some Neurofen plus. Today I buy Codral. And then I soldier on. Sigh.

A brilliant article by Richard Morgan

2008-04-30T00:56:35Z

This is just the best, best article. This is brilliant. This sums up everything I've been thinking about the spec fic world ever since I started seriously getting involved in it. Richard Morgan isn't just a damned fine writer, he's an articulate and thoughtful member of the tribe who's got some serious moxie, coming out and saying it.

Thanks to LJer James Gilmer, for posting about this originally. And no, I still can't make the LJ icon thang work, either. Yes, I'm pathetic. Tell me something I don't know!

And then go read this ...

http://www.richardkmorgan.com/article_soundfury.htm

Wobbling along ...

2008-04-29T07:09:13Z

So Empress of Mijak (aka as Empress) has gone to reprint in Australia. That's very encouraging. And Innocent Mage went to another reprint locally a couple of weeks ago, and that's just as encouraging. Cue the author heaving a great big sigh of relief!

Ended up getting caught doing internet housekeeping chores this morning, but now I've finished another chapter of Witches Inc. I expect the momentum to pick up considerably from here on.

Also, the lovely people at Orbit posted me an SFX magazine review of Empress, which contains (among other things) this lovely quote:

'Miller's protagonists are memorable, her setting detailed, cohesive, and full of texture and original touches.'

The reviewer, one Barbara Davies, wasn't unalloyed in her praise. While she calls the book 'ambitious, impressive and intriguing,' she thinks it's too long, and finds Hekat a pretty tough customer. I agree with the latter, but not the former, but overall the review is wonderfully thoughtful and helpful to a writer still coming to grips with her craft and technique.

When a reviewer is as considered and judicious as this, I have no problem with some sour mixed up with the sweet.

A Question of Agents ...

2008-04-29T02:58:41Z

I've just updated the website with a new article on the Getting of Agents. Hopefully what I've said is useful. I'm putting a link in, since it's a long article and I still haven't mastered the whole LJ Cut thang ...

http://www.karenmiller.net/index.cfm?page=25

Have a read, if you feel so inclined, then perhaps we can chat about it here ...

A new week, a new agenda

2008-04-28T00:59:21Z

Well, no, actually it's more like refocussing on the old agenda. A log-jam got cleared up late last week, which means I can now proceed with the insanity of the next 3 months. And they really really really will be insane. But that's okay. Insane is starting to feel a little like Situation Normal, in my world. *g*

Not so much with the writing over the weekend. Got some done, but there was also lots of theatrey stuff. We have a set! Insofar as me attempting to create an 'in the round' feel on a proscenium stage can achieve that effect. But it's minimalist. Because the play is a series of 3 one-acts played with 2 people, who pretty much come on stage and don't leave until the end, the set is in fact the least important part of the production. It's all about the actors. The characters. So that's where all the focus has been placed. Of course, I could be screwing this up big time, but I live in hope ... *g*

It's twelve weeks, more or less, till Worldcon in Denver. I'm so looking forward to it. But in addition the mad writing schedule between now and then, I'm taking my physical well-being in hand and really putting some effort into getting fighting fit. Stay tuned for my moans and groans ...

Speaking of fighting fit, a passing comment on the Final 3 for Biggest Loser. How lovely to have three really great people in the final. There were some nasty types in this year's competition, so having those 3 lovely Blue members make it through is just so wonderful. I was very sorry to see Bryce go -- he really impressed me as a lovely person -- but he was very smart. And he looks so hot! *g*

And Jack won So You Think You Can Dance. Honestly, I wanted Rhys to win, but Jack's a great dancer. I hope all four finalists go on to have brilliant careers.

Last but not least ... a pointer to a new writing blog that's popped up. This one is hosted by a good friend of mine. We met through Stargate fandom, and quite simply, she's one of the finest human beings it's my privilege to know. In fact, the friends I made through online Stargate fandom are all spectacular people -- but that's another post entirely. *g*

So this blog is wonderful because it contains much insightful, articulate and intelligent discourse on the journey to becoming a published writer. I don't post there much because right now I have to pay more attention to the actual doing of the writing, but I always read it and I always come away informed and thoughtful.

http://chasing-the-muse.blogspot.com/

It'd be great to see some vigorous conversing start up there, so I'm doing my bit to get that going! And when I'm a little less buried beneath deadlines, I'm going to start talking some, too.

Now it's time to catch up on backlogged email, do the dishes, then knuckle down to getting another chapter of Witches Inc. taken care of, before I head off to rehearsal tonight.

Final final note -- as you'll see in the music tag, I'm listening to Enzso. Wow. This is such spectacular music. Split Ends with the NZ Symphony Orchestra, having rescored/arranged some of the Enz's biggest hits. If you've never come across this album, I highly highly highly recommend.

LOL!!!!! That's all I can say ...

2008-04-26T17:15:08Z

If you don't love cats, you won't get this. If you do love cats, enjoy!

Various and Sundry congratulations ...

2008-04-23T23:57:45Z

To the winners I know of from the recent Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Awards, which were announced last weekend at the annual RT Booklovers Convention.

John Scalzi scored for Best Science Fiction novel (The Last Colony), Elizabeth Bear and Sarah Monette scored for Best Fantasy novel (A Companion to Wolves), Patrick Rothfuss scored for Best Epic Fantasy novel (The Name of the Wind), and the delightful Rachel Caine scored for Best Continuity novel (Line of Sight - Athena Force).

I was up for Best Epic Fantasy novel with The Innocent Mage -- so I was in some very good company!

Congrats also to all the other winners, even though I won't know who you are until I get my copy of the magazine.

And now I must start work ...

A wibbly day

2008-04-23T06:30:28Z

Well, now that I'm getting organised and back on track, I'm back to putting proper words down on paper, or screen, or however you'd like to phrase it. The last few days have involved intense thinking and plotting for another project. I've discovered, as part of my process, that while I'm in that phase I can't do anything else but that. My brain won't give me any more room. But then I got that finally nailed and suddenly my brain is free again. A big relief!

So the morning started with the most amazingly surreal phone call, which I can't discuss, but trust me ... it was a real 'pinch me' moment. *g* Sometimes my life is too bizarre for the saying.

That was followed by not one, but two, instances of receiving cover art for me to check out. The main cover illustration for the Australian version of Rogue Agent #2 came in -- and can I just say WOW!!!!!!!! It's so beautiful, I want it hanging on my wall. Seriously. So beautiful I can't begin to tell you. It's just so beautiful. I'm all misty-eyed just thinking about it.

And then the rough art for the UK/US version of The Accidental Sorcerer -- and it's so different to the cover work for the Australian version, and yet just as amazingly striking and arresting. This is the fun part of the game, seeing how different artists/art departments/designers envision the same collection of words.

By the time all that stuff got sorted it was time to have some lunch ... during which I listened to a bit more of the director and writer commentary over the BSG movie Razor -- and wow! Ronald D Moore and I have exactly the same writing process, which gives us exactly the same result! (Not in terms of brilliance, but in balance of the work) It's so exciting, hearing someone I admire so enormously and I have some tiny weeny little thing in common. *g* Because I think he's a total genius.

And then, at last, the writing thang. I'm really revving up on Witches Inc, which is Rogue Agent #2. Certain amount of fear and trepidation with this one -- I'm terrified I can't recapture those voices, terrified I won't be able to bring the funny, terrified the first book was a fluke and that'll be that. But then some stuff happened, and I'm not quite so scared. Cross your fingers for me!

Witches Inc wordcount:

Words to live by, if you're a writer ...

2008-04-22T07:24:39Z

Burbling in the background as I type this is Foxtel's Sci Fi channel. They're playing Solitudes, one of my top 3 season 1 eps of Stargate SG-1. How much do I adore Brad Wright, who really gets that it's about the characters, stupid????

Brad Wright and Ronald D Moore. Two of the best working in the business today. I'm all excited about the second Stargate movie, Continuum, because Brad Wright wrote it. He is a god.

Anyhow, onto business. Through various nefarious means (and mostly thanks to the lovely Ron Serdiuk of Pulp Fiction books) I got sent this wonderful quote today.

"As soon as I see awkward prose on page one, I reject a book. You wouldn’t trust a clumsy surgeon with a scalpel. I don’t trust authors who aren’t in complete control of their environment. Sloppy work is sloppy work. Doesn’t matter the profession, I don’t want it."

The person speaking is Benjamin LeRoy, publisher of Bleak House books. You can catch a full interview with him here: http://www.leelofland.com/wordpress/?p=500

I just want to say this:

BRILLIANT! BRILLIANT! BRILLIANT!

And also, read the comments as well as the actual article, since Mr LeRoy expands on his theories. For my money he is another god in the pantheon of people who work in the writing biz.

I agree with everything he said, and I try to live by everything he said. I expect I fall short at times, but I really do try. And I will continue to try, with this timely reminder.

And now for something completely different ...

2008-04-21T00:50:07Z

This is so cool!

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Marshal Zeringue, who runs this really neat website, My Book The Movie. This is a site where authors get to talk about their books in terms of Hollywood casting and movie making. I'd never come across the site, so I was surprised to hear from him -- and very pleased. So I did a little blurb about Empress (of Mijak), and the casting thoughts I had while writing it. Because I do actually think about actors when I'm writing. For example, in my head, as far as The Accidental Sorcerer goes, Gerald is Ewan McGregor and Lional is Jude Law. And Kate Winslett is Melissande.

Anyhow, I can highly recommend that you drop on over to Marshal's marvellously entertaining website, where a fabulously diverse group of writers natter on about their books and movie stuff.

http://mybookthemovie.blogspot.com/2008/04/karen-millers-empress.html

Something to smile about ...

2008-04-16T07:05:32Z

Here's a wonderful clip from YouTube -- something from the new season of Britain's Got Talent. You might remember the amazing Paul Potts, last year's winner, who overcame various obstacles to blow the judges out of the water with his rendition of 'Nessun Dorma'.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9K2EA8SWhh8&NR=1

This kid is awesome. I love the judges' reactions. I love the fact that it's Simon Cowell's opinion that carries the most weight, because Simon has built a career on his Tough Love approach to critiquing. When he says something's good, you can pretty much know that it's really, really good.

And I love this boy, who's shown great courage. I know what it's like to be bullied. It sucks. So good on this boy, I hope he goes far.

Colour me Gobsmacked

2008-04-15T10:32:15Z

Empress of Mijak (Empress in the US/UK) and The Riven Kingdom have both landed on the honour list for this year's Tiptree Award.

I didn't even know I'd been entered! Sneaky Harper Collins!

The Tiptree Award is about gender and gender roles in speculative fiction.

I am so shocked, I can hardly type.

The full list is as follows:

The winner :
The Carhullan Army by Sarah Hall

The honor list:

“Dangerous Space”, Kelley Eskridge, (Dangerous Space, Aqueduct Press, 2007)
Water Logic, Laurie Marks (Small Beer Press, 2007)
Empress of Mijak and The Riven Kingdom, Karen Miller (HarperCollins, Australia, 2007)
The Shadow Speaker, Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu (Hyperion, 2007)
Interfictions, Delia Sherman and Theodora Goss (eds.) (Interstitial Arts Foundation/Small Beer Press, 2007)
Glasshouse, Charles Stross (Ace, 2006)
The Margarets, Sheri S. Tepper (Harper Collins 2007)
Y: The Last Man, written by Brian K. Vaughan, art by Pia Guerra (available in 60 issues or 10 volumes from DC/Vertigo Comics, 2002-2008)
Flora Segunda, Ysabeau Wilce (Harcourt, 2007)

So, congratulations to Sarah Hall, and to my fellow honorees.

I'm sorry. I am so discombobulated, you have no idea. My thanks to Glenda Larke, who gave me the heads up!

Witches Inc.: Rogue Agent #2

2008-04-14T07:12:49Z

Starting a new book is like getting into a hot bath. You dip your toe in the water gingerly, inching yourself into the heat, a little shaky, a little on edge.

Here's the first progress report on the second book in the Rogue Agent series, Witches Inc.

The road ahead is long and mysterious. Wish me luck, and a minimum of potholes!

Burblings ...

2008-04-14T03:11:33Z

So it's Monday, and time to get back into the Real Work. I picked up my new contact lenses today, what fun! I can look at a computer screen without the left-hand lens spinning round and round on my eyeball! And I'll be getting new glasses, too, with spiffy modern frames.

The last week was spent totally recovering from the beginning of the year, reading one manuscript for feedback and giving it, reading another one that affects something else I'm doing, finishing up that Stargate short story, finalising the outline for the next Stargate novel, working out something else for another project, organising more research items for the next Rogue Agent adventure, cleaning up my horrible house, coping with a major crisis in the play (the leading man quit 6 weeks from opening, what fun), exercising, a bit of shopping ... and that was a quiet week!

Also, I totally resisted buying a puppy. A really gorgeous black version of my late darling Baxter. I was strong, I did not succumb. But I really really wanted to.

On Saturday night I saw the first ep of Season 4 New Who -- I love Donna so much -- and the season opening for BSG's last chapter. Loved that too. And caught up with friends and ate way too much good Chinese food, so where was the bad????

And yesterday, when I wasn't working through play stuff with the new leading man, I was watching the first season of Psych. And loving it.

What is Psych, I hear you ask?????

Well, it's a comedic mystery/crime show starring Kevin Roaday, who I didn't know, and Dule Hill, who was Charlie in The West Wing, and Corbin Bernson, who was Arnie in LA Law. The only reason I took a punt on the first season, sight unseen, was because of Dule Hill. And it was a good punt!

(I know, I know, download the first ep for a suck-it-and-see. And I would, if I knew how to download stuff. I'll get there eventually.)

This is very very very witty tv. The premise is that the main character is abnormally observant, a combination of talent and training from childhood by his cop father. He keeps on phoning in tips to the local cops and helping them solve crimes. When he's accused of being a criminal accomplice, he claims he's psychic and that's how he knows stuff. And so the charade goes on. He's in cahoots with his best friend from childhood -- played by Hill -- and the heart of the show is their relationship. It's a lot of fun, and I recommend it highly. It's not a grim and serious crime show, it's more in the vein of Moonlighting.

Also, I spent some time reading the biography of Rudolf Nureyev that I bought. Best bit:

Nureyev was a tad demanding and temperamental. While he was working with the Australian Ballet Company he decided he wasn't going to dance a bit from Swan Lake as a coda to the main performance, he was going to dance Le Corsair. Robert Helpmann said no, no, he'd be doing Swan Lake. No! Nureyev argued. I will dance Le Corsair. Well, said Helpmann, you dance what you like, Ducky, but the orchestra will be playing Swan Lake.

I laughed and laughed ...

And now that I've burbled, I must away and really get my head down. Much, much work to do between now and August, yikes! And August will be here before any of us know it!

A Real Life Hero

2008-04-10T07:35:56Z

I write and read epic historical fantasy. One of the central elements of this kind of fiction is an heroic central character. Be they male or female, they are characterised by acts of great courage, of heroism, self-sacrifice and nobility that remind us of the best a human can be ... just as the villains, or anti-heroes, remind us how far we can fall from that ideal in our pursuit of power, or riches, or revenge. I read and write epic fantasy because I like to explore those themes, and dream of perhaps being a little bigger and better than I most often am.

But that's fiction. Sometimes, heroes stand up in real life. I've just learned about one of those people.

Michael Monsoor was a Navy SEAL, who died in Ramadi, Iraq, in September 2006. At that time, Ramadi was a particularly hostile environment, full of unsavoury types bent on as much indiscriminate murder and mayhem as they could achieve. Michael Monsoor and members of his Seal unit were in the field -- on the roof of a building -- and a grenade was thrown at them. It struck Monsoor on the chest, and tumbled away. He realised that due to their positions, while he could escape the grenade's blast, his team-mates couldn't. So he threw himself onto the grenade moments before it exploded. He died, and they lived.

The Iraqi Army scouts, whom this man helped to train, sent their unit's flag to his parents. There was a huge funeral for him in California, and many many many SEALs turned out to honour their fallen brother-in-arms. As they filed past his casket, they removed their SEAL insignia -- a golden trident -- from their uniforms and pressed them onto the walls of the coffin. It took nearly half an hour for the file-past to end ... and when it was finally over, the wooden coffin was covered in gold.

Michael Mansoor has just been posthumously awarded the US Congressional Medal of Honor, the highest decoration possible.

I read and I write about heroes and acts of selfless courage. It touches me deeply, and reassures me in a world full of senseless violence, that there are real-life good guys too. Humans can be and sometimes are more than weak, depraved, greedy, cruel creatures. I don't know if I would ever have the courage to do what Michael Mansoor did. But I take inspiration from his act, and believe that the next time I write a story about a heroic man or woman, in some small way I'm honouring the actions of this Navy SEAL -- and many more like him.

This'n'that ...

2008-04-08T05:15:58Z

So here's an interview I did with Australian Bookseller and Publisher, as K E Mills:

http://voyageronline.wordpress.com/

There are some typos in there that weren't in my responses! Not my fault, okay? *g*

I bought new glasses and new contact lenses today (I needed an upgrade in the worst way) and got my eyes tested with this amazing computer-controlled gizmo. And soon I'll have new contacts that don't spin on my eyes and drive me crazy. Always a good look.

Finally, I'm all chuffed because the latest season of Project Runway is now showing on Foxtel. How much do I love this show???? And given how challenged I am, fashion-wise (not because I can't dress well, but because either I've been too podgy or too tired or too whatever -- but I'm working on that!) it's odd how much I do love it. But I do. And now I've jumped ahead on Television Without Pity to find out who wins the season. I can't stand not knowing. I don't do suspense well. *g*

Finally, a Melbourne newspaper has called The Accidental Sorcerer 'Harry Potter for grown-ups' so now I don't know whether to be thrilled or terrified. I think I'm both.

Good deeds and whinging and life ...

2008-04-06T23:51:59Z

I have a sign over my house, I must do. Where ever that house might be, I have a sign. Or maybe it's over me. Anyhow, it says: Waifs and strays, come see her!

I walked out of the house yesterday afternoon to put some rubbish in the big bin and this frantic, well-fed and collarless Staffy bitch rushed up to me, eyes rolling, panting. I'd never seen her before, and neither had various neighbours. So she stayed the night. She was lovely, very friendly, the most gorgeous eyes. Obviously loved by someone, but the stupid someone had neglected to give her a collar and tag with a phone number I could call. I took her to the vet this morning and luckily she was microchipped, so she'll be going home.

Of course, now I'm worried that she was dumped for some reason, and even with a microchip no-one will claim her. She's too lovely to die a week from now in the pound. I'll have to make sure she's okay. I can't keep her, she's not cat friendly, but I'd like to make sure she's okay.

In the past I've kept the waifs and strays that have found me, but that's not feasible at the moment. After a quarter century of having many, many animals, I'm looking to stay permanently downsized.

And for my whinge, I'll just say that while I'm sure Ron Moore loves his wife very much, I wish she wouldn't get involved with the Battlestar Galactica podcasts. I want to hear him talk about the show without her interruptions and observations which, quite frankly, are not what I buy the dvds to hear.

Over the weekend I wrote the Stargate story for the magazine, and I'm pretty pleased with it, given I really don't do short fiction. I also finalised the outline for the next Stargate novel, Consequences, and that I am pleased with. Although the slash fans are going to hate my guts, if they don't already. Because -- shock horror! -- I intend writing about a relationship that is canon within the series. So shoot me!

In the next two days I have two manuscripts to read, for various reasons. And then I knuckle down to pick up with the next Rogue Agent novel, Witches Inc.

Busy ... busy ... busy ...

Spruiking Empress ...

2008-04-05T21:56:47Z

The ever-enthusiastic and supportive Chris Hyland, from the review blog The Bookswede, very kindly asked me to talk about my latest UK/US release, Empress. (Known in Oz as Empress of Mijak, btw.) So I did! And here's where you can find the interview ...

http://thebookswede.blogspot.com

Go have a read! It's fun! And it showcases Chris, one of the best supporters of spec fic out in Blogland.

Manuscript Presentation

2008-04-05T03:48:38Z

In response to a reader's enquiry via the website, I throw out these thoughts, for what they're worth:

The most important thing to remember when you’re getting a manuscript ready for submission to an agent or editor is the Keep it Simple, Stupid principle.

Editors and agents spend many, many hours reading. The last thing they want to be looking at is a manuscript that’s tricked out like an explosion in a font factory. Or a manuscript that’s travelled to them via a rainbow, and contains multi-hued pages. Or one that’s collected some interesting add-on bits and pieces. Trust me when I say that while these tactics might indeed attract attention – which is why some writers do it -- they do so for all the wrong reasons.

If you want to be treated like a professional you have to present like one, and that means playing it neat, clean, quiet and low-key.

In a moment I’ll explain how I present my completed manuscripts to my publisher. Before I do, though, it’s worthwhile noting that some publishing houses and agents have very specific guidelines for manuscript presentation, which are often posted on their website. When you’ve identified where you’re sending your work, check the relevant websites to see if they have manuscript presentation requirements and then FOLLOW THEM TO THE LETTER. It staggers me, the number of people who profess themselves familiar with the guidelines and then don’t follow them – presumably because they feel that rules don’t apply to them.

Trust me, this is not the way to make a favourable impression.

So, here is how I set up a manuscript:

A4 standard paper, plain white, set with the default margins.

My line spacing is 1.5.

My font is either Courier or Courier New, in 12 point.

I automatically indent my first paragraph to 0.5 cm.

I number on the top right hand side of the page, from 1- whatever, beginning to end – in other words, I don’t start over with a new #1 at the beginning of each chapter.

I include a header, which looks like: Miller/Empress- Godspeaker book 1.

And that’s it. Nothing fancy, nothing clever. Neat, plain, legible.

Like a lot of people, I now submit my work electronically, and the publisher prints it out for distribution to the copy editor. But when you’re starting, not every editor/agent will accept an e-submission. If you are submitting hard copy, make certain you’re using the best printer you can get your hands on. If you can’t use a laser printer, use a high-quality ink printer and don’t ever let the text get faded. Remember, your top priority is to make the reading experience pleasant, not a chore, for people whose eyes get very tired.

And that’s it. No big secrets, nothing fancy, nothing spectacular.

Remember, a writer needs to focus on what actually sells a manuscript: the quality of the writing. No amount of fancy, tricky presentation will hide a poorly written book. And attempting to add on all the bells and whistles only marks you as an amateur, and won't encourage the editor or agent to read your work.