On January 3, 2013 I’ll be joining ‘The Next Big Thing’ blog hop with a post about Moro’s Shield, the sequel to Moro’s Price. In the meantime, take a look here at Missy Welsh’s blog, and her teaser TNBT post about her erotic space opera novel The Healing Touch! http://missywelsh.com/blog/
Read More Coming attractionsA lot has happened in the world since I last chimed in on this blog. I could talk about gun violence and mental health, in the wake of numerous high-profile and tragic shootings. But many people are already doing that, to far better effect. I can shake my head at the political gamesmanship over the…
Read More ‘My Turn’ and the end of an eraIt’s art. It’s marketing, full-on Mad Men style. It’s both, but cover art is actually a lot closer to marketing. The one thing cover art should probably never be is art therapy or uncritical self-validation. Starry-eyed would-be authors need to understand this sooner rather than later. In just the last year alone, I’ve seen several…
Read More Cover Art ConundrumsIn the late 70’s I was a Tolkien geek. I’ve mentioned this before. I wasn’t a Tolkien geek in San Francisco or New York or any other big city, where I might have seen ‘Frodo Lives’ painted on a wall, hung out with other Tolkien club members, and visited science fiction & fantasy conventions. Nope.…
Read More Middle Earth Merch‘Tis the season when I wax emotional about the folks who’ve made my writing life possible: My friends and family, who have put up with so much to get me to this place. My adversaries, who’ve added spice and determination to my life, tested my limits, and taught me the value of both humility and…
Read More Holiday gratitude…and can its marketing staff. Like many people, I don’t go to movie theaters anymore. I’m selfish. With access to a friend’s good satellite service and decent home theater, the only things I’m missing out on are screaming kids in movies too adult for them, people talking over the movie, overpriced tickets, even more overpriced…
Read More The flop that wasn’t, or why Disney needs to trust itself…Andrew Piper says that e-readers will doom the act of reading. He even has a new book out about it, from the University of Chicago Press, which I am fairly certain will also be available in digital form. Edited to add: yep, it’s on Kindle. He wrote a Slate article about it, too. I call…
Read More The death of reading?Last May, author Neil Gaiman gave a commencement speech portraying the artist’s life. “Walk toward the mountain,” he said, meaning do those things that will add to your chosen career. Give weight to choices that will help you become a better artist, not merely those which pay bills and siphon time and love. Really, I…
Read More Neil Gaiman explains why we are hereToday, the Supreme Court is hearing a case that almost no one in America has heard about, and everyone who buys and sells online SHOULD know! Ebay, Etsy, Craigslist, and even the old-fashioned garage sale are under threat from big business…who wants to make sure that consumers do not have the right to re-sell things…
Read More Kirtsaeng vs John Wiley & Sons, and why you should careCompiling plot change notes on COLD COMFORT. 18K that I’m happy with on MORO’S SHIELD, with another 11K to be condensed from notes. BLOODSHADOW in revision. I’m holding off on MASK and LEOPARD until I finish SHIELD. I kicked all short stories out of the way for now, since I don’t need any more plotbunnies underfoot. The…
Read More October 26 updates…so, I’m just going to post the link to Toni McGee Causey’s blog post about why we need ‘escapist’ fiction. http://www.murderati.com/blog/2008/11/23/comfort-reading.html Many times in my life, books have carried me through some rough real-life situations. Maybe they were not all brilliant literary examples. But they told me stories that transcended the world, for just long…
Read More I could not say this so wellThe Gods of Random (or at least the generators of Random.org) have declared two winners in this weekend’s comment contest: The necklace goes to Emily W. The ebook goes to Judi P. In Emily’s case, I’ll need a deliverable mailing address (no P.O. Box please). For Judi, I just need your preferred ebook format, since…
Read More ‘No Pouting’ Party contest winners!A quick break from the ‘No Pouting’ Party. Like every blog, this one gets spammed. Often. Most of the time the spam filters lock it up, but I go through occasionally to see if there are useful nuggets. If I get several dozen great ones, they might become further chopped up and turned into art.…
Read More The ongoing spam collectionAs GayRomLit winds down in Albuquerque, the ‘No Pouting’ Party seems to be puttering along with excerpts, comments, and contest wins. I’ll post two lists of entrants later tonight, and draw via Random.org tomorrow morning. (Hint, hint, there’s still time to put your name down for an ebook or a necklace.) I’m grateful for the…
Read More October 21 updatesI am not a brilliant artist. I’m a 20 year veteran of commercial art and decor, so I know some insider tips and tricks that make my attempts look better than they should. But like many writers, I want to know what my characters look like, even if it’s just for my own sanity. Sometimes…
Read More ‘No Pouting’ Party, day 1, artworkThe 2012 ‘No Pouting’ Party begins tonight at 12:00 am, Pacific Standard Time in the U.S. Most of the action will be centered around Selena Illyria’s Offerings Yahoo Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LoveRomancesCafe/cal There will be over 100 authors participating, with dozens of amazing prizes and exclusives. To celebrate with other authors who could not get to GayRomLit in…
Read More Revving up for the ‘No Pouting’ PartyPeter Salomon and the ever-wonderful, ever-incognito Authoress just sent me word that they mentioned me on Authoress’ blog ‘Miss Snark’s First Victim’. I’d written to the blog in July, just before Moro’s Price was published, thanking Authoress for indirectly helping me to refinine my loglines and query letters. I’d built the original story around a…
Read More some good news sharedCourtesy of Missy Welsh and Selena Illyria, an online party for writers of LGBT fiction. I’ll be posting excerpts from the editing room floor, links to artwork, and a chance to win a free e-book copy of MORO’S PRICE as well as a beaded necklace made by yours truly. I’ve pasted in the original message…
Read More “No Pouting Party” @ Selena Illyria’s Offerings Yahoo Group(Stands up, taps microphone, and says “Hi, I’m Crane Hana, and I’m addicted to world building.” Nine or ten other frazzled patients respond, “Hi, Crane.”) Now that I’ve got that out of the way, here’s why I am addicted. First off, maps. Maps are wicked cool. They’ve had a bad rap in fantasy publishing recently,…
Read More Maps and world buildingOnce upon a time, music was a crutch I needed before I could write at all. Like good chocolate and tea, or the perfect writing environment, the right music was part of many little rituals to activate my reluctant muses. I don’t write to music very much these days. The muses and I have reached…
Read More soundtracks