(Semi-spoiler for the epilogue of False Covenant in the synopsis, FYI.)

2013 Scribe Award nominees.

Um… Wow. There are some really good books and writers on that list. I’m kind of humbled to be up there with them.

Good luck to every one of the other nominees. I hope you all come in a really close second.

In the interim… Thursday the 28th, 7:30 PM, at the new Dragon’s Lair location here in Austin: Indie Creator Night! A whole metric crapload (that’s 2.2 English craploads) of authors and creators will be there. The list includes me, but you should come anyway.

I believe they’ll have many of my books there (fiction and gaming), but I can’t vouch for which ones. If you want anything signed that you already own, please feel free to bring it. Or just swing by and say hello.

Hope to see you there.

Oh, it may not be wrong for you. But it’s wrong for someone. There’s not a path, a rule, a method, or a technique out there that’s universally applicable. If you follow anyone’s writing advice slavishly, you’re not going to succeed.

2) You’re not special. You have to work to become a good writer. Maybe a little, maybe a lot; natural talent enters into it, certainly. But you’re not going to start off at a professional level. You’re just not.

3) You will be wrong. Sometimes suggestions and revisions and so-called “mistakes” are purely matters of taste. Sometimes they’re not, and the suggestion is flat-out incorrect. But sometimes, the problem is yours. An editor or a fan or a reader or a friend will point out a problem with your book that actually has merit, and no matter how much you argue, or love the way you wrote it, it will still have merit. Your book is not perfect as you envisioned it.

4) You need an editor. Always. Whoever you are. No matter how precise or attentive you are. No matter how long you give yourself between writing and rewriting. You will always, always, always miss things that a new pair of eyes would spot.

5) Publishing a book, even e-publishing one, isn’t free. If you’re publishing traditionally, the publisher pays those costs. If you’re self-publishing, you’re going to have to. But they must be paid. You must have editors, both content and copy. You must have a halfway decent cover. You must have non-eye-bleeding layout and formatting.

If you can’t afford to acquire an editor and the other necessary professionals, you cannot afford to self-publish, no matter how long you’ve been working on your book or how good you’re certain it is. Save. Work extra. Do what you must, until you can afford to do it right. Or don’t do it.

6) Every rule has exceptions. Including, but not limited to, these. You will always be able to find an outlier. Someone who produced a fantastic book without an editor. Someone who made a zillion dollars on their first book. Someone did work for “exposure” that actually got exposure. These are all serious long-shots, but they do happen.

These exceptions don’t make the rules invalid. They’re still rules. They’re still necessary. They’re still true 99.99999999repeating % of the time. Choosing not to follow them because exceptions exist is like choosing not to look before running across the freeway. It’s possible you’ll make it, but the odds are not in your favor.

There are exceptions. You are not going to be one of them. Suck it up and work.

Here’s the second.

Amherst, New York—Pyr®, an imprint of Prometheus Books, and Privateer Press®, the second-largest miniature games manufacturer in the world, have partnered to publish the first novels based upon the award-winning WARMACHINE® steam-powered fantasy wargame and the world of the Iron Kingdoms™ Role Playing Game.

The Iron Kingdoms™ world takes classic fantasy concepts and gives them a new twist with a high-octane rush of steam power and industrial engineering. These tie-in novels will be action-packed, steam-tech, military fantasies that combine elements of epic wartime adventure with thrilling cloak-and-dagger espionage.

The first—IN THUNDER FORGED: THE IRON KINGDOMS CHRONICLES (The Fall of Llael Book One)—will be published in June 2013 in paperback and ebook editions. Author Ari Marmell has authored RPG materials for games such as Dungeons & Dragons® and the World of Darkness® line. He is also the author of the novel The Goblin Corps, as well as Thief’s Covenant and False Covenant in the Widdershins Adventures series for Young Adult readers.

(Follow the link above for the remainder of the press release.)

And here’s the blurb for the novel itself.

Especially when you got the kinda secrets I do.

So yeah, I give the trouble boys a wide berth. I sure as hell don’t ever work for them!

Except when I do. Except when some made guy’s moll tells me her daughter’s been missing for sixteen years, and they’ve been raising a good old-fashioned changeling in her place. Then, my better instincts aside, I start getting interested.

Me? I’m a P.I. Of course I am. Ain’t all these stories about a P.I? But I’m not your typical P.I.

The name’s Mick Oberon, or at least it is now. Yeah, like in that Oberon; third cousin on my mother’s side. I’m here in Chicago mostly because I’m in exile from the Seelie Court.

And like most of you have probably already figured, I’m not human.

————-

Uncover the occult mysteries and deepest secrets of gangland Chicago, from the underworld to the Otherworld.  Hot Lead, Cold Iron, by Ari Marmell, coming spring 2014 from Titan Books.

So, here we go.

1) What is the working title of your next book?

Depends. If we’re talking about the next book I’m writing, the only working title is “Widdershins book 3.” It follows Thief’s Covenant and False Covenant, so it’ll probably have “Covenant” in the title.

If we’re talking about the one that’s most likely to be published next, the title is In Thunder Forged. It’s a tie-in novel for a property that I can’t reveal yet.

2) Where did the idea come from for the book?

The third Widdershins book simply followed from the earlier two. I knew that I wanted to write a story of the character outside of her home city, but other than that very broad concept, it’s just where the story took me.

In the case of the other, it comes from the details of the property, and a specific time period in its history that we were asked to address.

3) What genre does your book fall under?

Both are fantasy. The Widdershins book is also YA.

4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

That’s a really tricky question. Anyone I think of for Widdershins is either too young, too old, or just doesn’t quite fit. Maybe Chloë Grace Moretz? Willa Holland, if she doesn’t mind playing a little young? I’m actually not sure. (I swear I had someone in mind, but I can’t think of who it was.)

5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

“Widdershins learns that, no matter how far she’s run from home, neither she nor those she cares about have escaped the magic and murder that have haunted her all her life.”

6) Will your book be self-published or traditionally published?

Traditionally. The Widdershins novels are published by Pyr Books, and the tie-in property I mentioned will be published by [Censored].

7) How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

Well, the Widdershins book is just getting started. The other one was, due to deadlines, one of the fastest books I’ve ever written. Took about two months.

8) What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Hmm… There are some similarities between the Widdershins books and Steven Brust’s “Vlad Taltos” series, though Brust’s aren’t YA.

9) Who or what inspired you to write this book?

The first Widdershins book, Thief’s Covenant, was purely a labor of love; the idea and character came to me, and that was that. The others developed as the writing progressed.

10) What else about the book might pique the reader’s interest?

Well, leaving aside those who have already been reading the series and enjoy the characters… Beyond the initial concept of a young thief with a god living in her head, I very much hope that the combination of humor and horror, along with the world-building and religion, would be enough to draw people’s interest.

Tagged for next Wednesday (the 5th):

Erin Evans

Darrin Drader

James Wymore

Andrew Mayer

[Fifth to come?]

There’s been a lot of fuss in political news about people not knowing, or arguing about, how old the world is. I just laugh at them. I know exactly how old my world is, because I know when she was born.

Happy birthday and more gratitude than I can begin to express to the woman without whose seemingly endless reserves of love, support, and patience–woo, boy, especially patience–I wouldn’t be remotely near where I am today. Or who I am today. If you’ve ever enjoyed a single word I’ve written, or a single conversation we’ve had, it’s due as much to her as it is to me.

I love you, George.

Even if you can’t, just spreading the link around would be of great help.

Thanks, everyone.

PS: The Civilian Reader blog has an entry about the project, in which several participating authors discuss their own contributions. You can find that here. I, of course, being the chatterbox that I am, wrote a much longer response than they expected, so it’s up as a separate post. That’s here. But if you’re just going to click on one link, please choose the project page, above.

What I can say is that issue #5 of Shock Totem is, after some unfortunate delays, available for purchase. A magazine of the horrific and the weird, Shock Totem worth getting in and of itself. In this case, however, I do also have a short story appearing in those pages. “In Deepest Silence” is, at the same time, both a bit of a departure for me, and yet entirely my style. You’ll know what I mean when you read it. I’m quite proud of how it came out; I hope you enjoy it.