“On hold” with WOTF

I have some interesting news.  My first quarter submission to the Writers of the Future contest has been put “on hold,” following the untimely passing of the contest’s coordinating judge, K.D. Wentworth.  Here’s the email I received this morning: Dear Entrant, I wanted to let you know that we have a delay in the handling… Continue reading “On hold” with WOTF

Back to writing (and publishing)

I was snowed in again this weekend, so I took advantage of the time to work on my writing–specifically, to figure out what to work on next.  Things have been kind of crazy these past few weeks, so I haven’t written very much, but now that I’ve settled into a new routine, it should be… Continue reading Back to writing (and publishing)

Why I’m not submitting to the 2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest

Last year, I submitted Genesis Earth to the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest and made it to the quarter-finals.  I’m pretty sure I could do at least that well this year, but after reading the contest rules, I’ve decided not to participate. Why? Because of this: 5. GRANT OF RIGHTS. By submitting an Entry and… Continue reading Why I’m not submitting to the 2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest

To publish or not to publish?

That’s what I’m wondering about right now with my latest project, Star Wanderers. The full-length novel isn’t complete yet, but the first part forms a self-contained novelette that has been sooo much fun to write. The story takes place in the Gaia Nova universe, about five hundred Earth years before the events of Bringing Stella… Continue reading To publish or not to publish?

Part I of Star Wanderers is finished!

That’s right–I was up until about 2 am last night finishing it.  Man, time goes by fast sometimes.  This is probably just the first part of a much longer novel, but I hit a good stopping point so I’ll probably put it on the back burner for now while I finish Edenfall and do a… Continue reading Part I of Star Wanderers is finished!

How do you know when you’ve succeeded?

With books and publishing changing so quickly, a lot of writers are wondering how they can tell when they’ve actually “made it.” It’s a valid question, one that I think we all need to answer if we want to write seriously.  For myself in particular, as an indie writer, how will I know when I’ve achieved… Continue reading How do you know when you’ve succeeded?

Disappointment and a shift in direction

So the latest round of judging for the 2011 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award came out today…and Genesis Earth didn’t make the cut. Oh well, at least I made it to the quarter finals.  Most of the reviews were encouraging, though the one from Publisher’s Weekly made me wonder if the reviewer had something against science… Continue reading Disappointment and a shift in direction

ABNA reviews of Genesis Earth

Today I checked up on my entry for the 2011 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest, and saw that it garnered a couple of very encouraging reviews! Here’s the first one: ABNA Expert Reviewer What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt? I enjoyed the background of this excerpt immensely. The futuristic technology like images projected… Continue reading ABNA reviews of Genesis Earth

Quarter Finalist? AAAHHHH!!!

Holy crap, Genesis Earth made the quarter finals for the 2011 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest! That means that it’s one of 250 other entries that will go on to the next round of voting.  The grand prize is a publishing contract with Penguin for a $15k advance. I’m happy to see I’m not the… Continue reading Quarter Finalist? AAAHHHH!!!