Joe Vasicek

Character DTRs and other such stuff

Just a quick post before I go to bed.

The two main characters in WAFH just had a DTR (Define The Relationship discussion) and it was, well, kind of rough. I don’t know what’s harder: having one in real life, or writing a fictional one that actually works.

I also don’t know which one I have more personal experience with, but that’s a subject I’d rather not get into right now.

Anyhow, even though that was an unexpected rough spot that had me down for the past few days, the end for WAFH 2.0 is definitely in sight. I’ve got one more scene in this chapter, the big climactic end battle / rescue / whatever, and then a very short epilogue. In all, that’s about seven scenes, two of which are already written and two others which I can probably glean from recycled material.

In unexpected news, I had a very interesting idea. You know the Writers of the Future contest? I always want to submit to them, but never can, because none of my stuff is short enough. It’s acceptable to submit the first part of a novel–Dave Wolverton did that, with On My Way to Paradise–but only if the first part is a complete story in itself.

Well, as I was walking down the street, I wondered whether I could take one of my novels (like BSH) and eliminate all but one of the viewpoint characters’ scenes. Specifically, I was thinking of doing that with Stella, who goes from prisoner to concubine to queen of a tribe of starfaring warrior nomads. After cutting out all the other storylines and adding in a bit here or there to preserve continuity, it could make for an interesting novella.

Still, it’s going to be tough to get it down to the 17k word contest limit. Stella is one of four major viewpoint characters, so her scenes probably take up at least 25k words in the book. I might be able to cut out a couple of subplots, like the one with Gazan…but I dunno. I’m open to suggestions from those of you who’ve read it.

In other news, I made the first cut for the 2011 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest! I submitted Genesis Earth in the YA category, and mine is one of 1,000 entrants that will go on to the next round of judging. First place wins a $10k publishing contract with Penguin–yay!

I’m trying not to get my hopes up too much, but I’ll know whether I made the second cut by March 22nd. A couple of friends from Quark also made it through the first round, so if any of us makes it to the second, that would be awesome. Go Quarkies!

That’s about it for now; Brandon Sanderson did an interesting lecture in his 318 class on the new world of publishing, which was quite interesting. I’ve got a LOT of new thoughts to share on indie publishing, but that will have to wait for another post.

Until then, keep being awesome…but not like this guy:

Beard pics and other updates

In case you didn’t know, I’ve been experimenting a bit with facial hair recently. I figure, hey, I’m no longer a BYU student, so I might as well, right? Well, the results are in, and I must say I’m quite pleased.

I mean, check out how awesome I look:

Alright, fine, so that’s actually Waylander from David Gemmell’s Drenai series, but hey, a man can dream, right?

So anyways, here’s what the beard REALLY looks like:

I figured it would be good to keep it short, and trim around the neck and cheek; kind of like Riker, actually (no joke–his look was kind of what I was shooting for).

One of the funny things I’ve noticed is how many girls have actually complimented me on this thing. It struck me as quite a surprise, because from previous conversations with the opposite sex, growing a beard is something of a kiss (or lack thereof) of death. Interestingly enough, I’ve gotten as many or more compliments from women as I have from men. How does that work?

I guess that girls are opposed to beards as an idea, but (like most guys) they just don’t know what they want until they see it.

Probably the most hilarious about-face was from my sister Kate (who just started a new blog, hey!). When I was contemplating growing it earlier this winter, she kept telling me not to–that it would look hideous, that no girl would ever want to date me, that it would ruin my social life, etc. Well, guess what she said today?

Me: so you like my beard, eh?
oh ye of little faith
Kate: yes
…
Kate: I like it
I think it makes you look good
you need to be sure to keep it trimmed
it looks good
I’m really surprised
Me: hehehe
Kate: I eat my worrds
Me: so why are you so surprised?
Kate: hahaaha

So anyways, what do you think? Should it stay, or should it go? I’m kind of partial to it, but I’m open to hearing any contrary opinions, if there are any.

In unrelated news, I am sooo freaking close to finishing WAFH 2.0, and it orders of magnitude better than the first draft. Still, it needs a lot of work, so I’m looking for first readers to help me out with it. If you’d be willing to help out, please let me know (and please, only people I know in real life–as much as I love you for reading this blog, I’d prefer not to hand out my work to complete strangers) (also, some of you have already emailed me and I haven’t gotten back to you yet, but don’t worry–I haven’t forgotten. Expect an email about it sometime in the next week).

If you’d like to volunteer as a first reader for WAFH, I’d ask you to finish it by April 15 (tax day, joy!). My next project is Edenfall, and I expect that to take me at least a month and a half. I’m really hoping to get WAFH publishable before the end of the year, so I’ll probably start the next draft by May.

In other totally unrelated news, I’m going to write Edenfall 1.0 entirely in longhand. Crazy? Perhaps. I’ve got the notebook for it, though, and did some arts and crafts with it over the weekend–pictures to follow. Also, I’ll be sure to let you know what it’s like to write a novel in longhand; it should be interesting.

Aaand that’s about it for now. Gotta write!

LTUE 2011

So LTUE (BYU’s science fiction and fantasy symposium) was last weekend, and it was awesome.

The venue was the BYU Conference Center just north of where DT used to be, and in my opinion this was a much better place to hold it than the student center, where it’s always been. It felt a lot more professional, and allowed for better interaction.

It felt like there were a lot more people there this year, including two editors: Lisa Mangum from Shadow Mountain, and Stacy Whitman from Tu. I didn’t try to pitch to either of them, since I don’t think they really publish what I write, but they were on a few interesting panels. Tracy Hickman, Howard & Sandra Tayler, and Jessica Day George were also very awesome on all the panels they attended.

One of my favorite panels was the presentation by Tracy Hickman on Lord of the Rings. He basically took it apart using Dramatica theory, showing how the series is composed of several distinct subplot, where each character (even the minor ones, like Eowyn) is literally the hero of their own story.

The presentation inspired me to go through some of my own novels and use the basic character archetypes from Dramatica to outline my own novels. I wrote out the names of all the characters in WAFH and GE on notecards, then on the back wrote down which archetype they fulfilled based on who was the protagonist.

There were several other excellent panels as well. I got a ton out of the “Can your dreams pay the bills?” one, with Sandra Tayler moderating. She sure knows her stuff when it comes to the practical business aspects of a creative career.

I dunno; a lot of my writing friends claim to be at a point where panels at cons are less useful for them. While I can see why they say that, I still find them helpful. While a lot of the advice is stuff I’ve heard before, every once and a while someone will have a fascinating insight on things. It’s like stories, I guess; even though there’s nothing new under the sun, everyone has a different way of making it their own, which is ultimately what makes the whole enterprise valuable.

Also, I had an awesome first this year: I signed my first autographed story! Leading Edge had a booth in the hall, and while I was hanging out there, I mentioned to Eric James Stone how I had a short story published and joked around about signed copies. To my surprise, he bought the issue and asked for me to sign it!

So yeah, my first signed copy of anything ever goes to Eric–thanks for the support! Now I’ll see what I can do to make that signature actually worth something someday…

Oh yeah, one more thing: Dan Wells is going to name a character in one of his books after me! According to Dan, the character (Gabe Vasicek) is “a big guy who wields a minigun.” Hehehe…can’t wait to read it!

Anyhow, LTUE was awesome this year, just as I’d expected. The panels were enlightening and entertaining, the guests were gracious and easy to talk with, and the overall experience was just a lot of fun.

4,271 words…whew!

Just a real quick post before I go to bed.

I wrote over 4k words today in WAFH–all for a chapter that I basically cooked up on the fly. It feels amazing.

For the past month or so, I’ve been recycling old material, cutting a lot of stuff that doesn’t work, tweaking the stuff that does, and putting in a new scene here and there, but basically just doing revision (aka a “triage edit,” as Wolverton likes to call it).

I’m good at revision, but it seems that that’s all I’ve been doing for the past couple months. The more I revise, the harder it is to write new material–or at least, the harder it feels. I’ve always hated drafting new stuff, because midway through it all seems to fall apart and then I have to drop the project and let it settle in my mind.

But for this chapter, I basically told myself: “alright, this is what needs to happen, this is what the characters need to do–now GO!” I sped through the whole thing without paying conscious attention to the act of writing, and just pumped it all out.

Man, I need to do this more often. Writing is so much fun! I’m sure this stuff will need to be revised later, but the story is definitely taking form the way it needs to.

In other news, LTUE was this past weekend, and I was super lame for not posting about it. But have no fear; I’ll recap the event soon, probably sometime tomorrow <fingers crossed>. And, as with past events, I recorded all the panels I attended. I won’t post the links here, but if you want them, send me an email.

In unrelated news, Talecris sucks and I need a job. Actually, correction: I need to start getting paid for the work I’m already doing by writing these novels. One of these days, though…one of these days…

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

This book review is going to be a bit unconventional, so please bear with me.

Normally, I only review books on my blog if I feel I can recommend them. They might not be perfect, but overall, the praise outweighs the criticism. However, for me personally, The Hunger Games was a huge disappointment.

I’m not going to do a little book blurb like I usually do, because I want to spend all the available space on this post explaining the reasons why I was so disappointed. Also because of that, this post will be full of spoilers. Consider yourself warned.

First, let me say that I don’t think this book was all bad. Suzanne Collins is very good at plot and pacing, and she knows how to keep a reader hooked. In that way, this book reminded me of the old Michael Crichton thrillers that I devoured as a kid.

However, two crucial things killed about half of the suspense for me: the fact that this book was the first in a series, and the first person viewpoint.

From the very beginning, we know that Katniss isn’t going to die. We know it, because she’s narrating the story to us directly (in present tense, which personally irks me, but I won’t go into that). Unlike other gladiator-style heroic fantasies, where the major draw is to see who lives and who dies, we have that spoiled for us.

Of course, the argument in favor of the first person is that it helps the reader feel a closer connection with the viewpoint character. The problem is, I never did. At the end of the book, Katniss still feels like an outsider to me; I never felt like I got inside her head well enough to know who she really is. When I try to imagine her, all I can envision is a wide-eyed mannekin. She just didn’t come alive to me.

Why? Because the whole time, she’s only got one thing on her mind: survival. I don’t see anything but fragmentary glimpses of her other motivations, and those are never fully fleshed out. Her experiences growing up were just so traumatic that I can’t relate to her, and Suzanne Collins never provides a reference point outside of the awfulness of Katniss’s crapsack world.

Which is another thing that got to me: the setting. Every time I opened the book, I dreaded going back to Collins’ world–and not in a good, “ooh, this world is so creepy/frightening” way, but in a “man, this place just makes me depressed” kind of way. It wasn’t even that original–Panem is basically the USA as North Korea (though it could take place anywhere, for all the details Collins gives us).

What’s more, the setting is full of inconsistencies. The people are starving to death, but the forests are full of game and wildlife. In North Korea, people raze the forests for fuel and timber, driving all the game out. Yes, I know the people of District 12 mine coal, but all of it presumably goes to Capitol, just like in District 11 all the grain goes to Capitol and the people still starve. Which makes me wonder: why are all the districts specializing in only one commodity? That’s just stupid.

Which brings me to another thing: the sheer idiocy of the rulers of Panem. If the Hunger Games are supposed to remind the people of how subjugated they are, why allow the tributes the opportunity to do something like pull a romance stunt? Why spend all that time primping and preening them, interviewing them, and giving them an opportunity to manipulate the crowds? When the people of District 11 sent Katniss the bread, why didn’t a government censor stop that from happening? And finally, when Katniss and Peeta were the only ones left standing, why give them the opportunity to upstage the games by falling on each others’ swords?

Seriously, that last point got to me more than any of the others. When they announced the rules change, that Peeta and Katniss were supposed to kill each other after all, why couldn’t the GM see the potential for things to go wrong? Seriously, having them both kill each other–or refuse to kill each other–was such a blatantly obvious choice, I saw it the moment the rule change came into play. The fact that the villains didn’t just threw me out of the story.

But that wasn’t the first thing that threw me out of the story. The first thing was the parade, with Katniss and Peeta marching into the arena with their flaming cloaks. All this time, Katniss has been set up as the underdog–she isn’t pretty, she isn’t strong, she’s mildly sympathetic for volunteering in place of her sister, but the audience in that arena is looking for blood, not sympathy. So when the crowd goes wild for her and Peeta, I just didn’t buy it.

It only got worse as things went along. When the tributes did the skill check, Katniss–who, from the beginning of the story, has been set up as the underdog–scores higher than anyone else. Every time she’s in front of an audience, everyone is oohing and ahhing. It made me want to gag.

Honestly, you know what it seemed like? It seemed like Suzanne Collins fell in love with Katniss so much that she wanted to spoil her, even though the story required her to keep up the pressure. She made sure to torture Katniss in the games–so much so that it felt downright melodramatic at times–but while they were still in Capitol, waiting for the games to start, Katniss felt like a spoiled Mary Sue.

And as for the romance, it fell completely flat from the beginning. Katniss was nothing but a manipulative faker from the beginning–granted, because she needed to in order to stay alive, but the least she could have done was coordinate that with Peeta.

And that’s another reason why I had such little sympathy for her–she’s a callous, manipulative, lying little heartbreaker, like far too many women in this world.

So yeah, The Hunger Games was, in my opinion, a huge disappointment. I can partially see why it did so well (strong female protagonist, excellent plot structure and pacing, lots of hooks and cliffhangers), but personally, I don’t think it deserves half the praise it’s gotten. And after what friends have told me about the rest of the series, I can guarantee that I won’t be reading them.

Winter Warriors by David Gemmell

Eons ago, in the Days of Fire, demons feasted upon the souls of men the way that men feast on cattle. Those days ended when the second most powerful demon betrayed his people, damning them to purgatory so that men could inherit the Earth.

Four thousand years have passed, and the demons are beginning to come back. The dread Kreyakin, advance guard to the demon invasion, have already passed into the world of men. In order to open the portal to the other world, however, they must cast a spell requiring the lives of three kings.

Two of the kings have already been sacrificed. The third lies within the womb of the Princess Axiana.

The fate of the mortal world now lies in the hands of three aged warriors–Nogusta the swordsman, Kebra the bowman, and Bison the brute–and a handful of unlikely fugitives. Together, they must stand against the dread Kreyakin and all the forces of hell.

Alright, my attempt at a jacket blurb really doesn’t do this book justice. I want to say it was one of the best Drenai books I’ve ever read, but the truth is it’s just like every other book in the Drenai saga, which is to say that it’s awesome.

I think I’ve figured out why I love David Gemmell’s books so much. It’s because his books so perfectly capture what it means to be a man. Women read Twilight because it perfectly captures the experience of being a teenage girl in love, and Gemmell’s books–all of them–capture what it means to be a man.

I’m not just talking about the platonic ideal of manhood–I’m talking about the everyday reality as well. Two men sitting together in “companionable silence.” A warrior who scoffs when his commander sends some lesser men to accomplish a mission, then after getting chided says “I spoke in haste,” and the matter is dropped. Guys who tackle problem after problem, from fighting duels to fleeing from armies from helping the inexperienced princess with her messy childbirth, and do so without flinching, because hey, someone’s got to do it.

But the ideal is definitely there too, because in every single one of Gemmell’s books, circumstances conspire to push his characters right up to the very limits of their abilities. When that happens, their true character shines out, and the most unlikely ones rise to great feats of heroism, often sacrificing their lives in the process.

Indeed, if there’s one underlying theme in all of Gemmell’s books, it’s about heroism and what makes a true hero. It’s awesome.

The best part, though, is how Gemmell redeems even the darkest characters. I can’t say much about this book without giving away the ending, but let me just say it was extremely satisfying. Evil is not some slimy b-movie monster–it’s a quality that everyone possesses in varying degrees, alongside the potential for greatness.

In this way, I think Gemmell is the antithesis of George R. R. Martin. While both authors write in shades of gray, Martin emphasizes how even the noblest, most honorable people have an ugly black stain somewhere in their character, whereas Gemmell focuses on the potential within all of us to rise above the darkness in our souls and accomplish feats of greatness. His heroes are dark and gritty, but at the end of the day, they are heroes nonetheless.

In short, this book was awesome. If you’ve ever read a book by David Gemmell and loved it, I guarantee you’ll love this one. I certainly did.

Writing update, getting ready for LTUE, & Katniss must DIE

So I’m back at work at WAFH, making slow but steady progress. At this point, I’m throwing out about half of what’s on the page and redrafting stuff to fill in the gaps, but that’s only going to increase.

It’s not particularly hard, but it does take a lot out of me. I’m finding that I can write for about two or three hours before my creativity runs dry. When I’m spending more time online or playing games and less time focusing on the story, that’s a sign that it’s time to do something else to refill the well.

Man, I wish that well would stay full for longer…but in the meantime, 2.5k words per day isn’t so bad. I’ll take it.

In unrelated news, I’m currently about a third of the way through The Hunger Games and I hate the main character, Katniss. She’s a total attention whore, and fits all the classic characteristics of a Mary Sue. A tortured past, a heart of gold, ridiculously well skilled, beloved by everyone and romantically irresistible, even to her enemies…blegh! I hope she dies or gets tortured beyond all humanity.

In spite of this, I’ll probably finish the novel, just because it’s been such an influential bestselling title–as a writer, I’ve got to do my research. However, I don’t see myself finishing the series. There are other reasons why I don’t particularly like this book, but I’ll wait until a later post to articulate them.

In other unrelated news, LTUE 2011 is coming up, and I am so freaking excited for it! Here are the panels I definitely plan on attending:

Thurdsay

9:00 am:
– Best and worst writing advice ever given
(Anna del C Dye (M), Mette Ivie Harrison, Tyler Whitsides, Frank L. Cole, James Dashner)

11:00 am:
– Self-Publication pros and cons
(Jessica Douglas (M), LuAnn Staheli, Sandra Tayler, Anna del C Dye)

2:00 pm:
– Writing Strong Female Characters
(Sheila A. Neilson, Aleta Clegg (M), Clint Johnson, Jessica Day George, Bree DeSpain)

4:00 pm:
– The Writing Life: how to set and keep goals, how to prioritize.
(Angie Lofthouse, Julie Wright (M), Sandra Tayler, Berin Stephens)

6:00 pm:
– Marketing and Publicity–what can you do?
(Stacy Whitman (M), Bree DeSpain, James Dashner, Dene Low, Elana Johnson)

Friday

10:00 am:
– Tracy Hickman Presentation

11:00 am:
– Main Address: Steve Keele

12:00 pm:
-Charisma is not a dump stat: The real world importance of personal appearance and social skills in achieving your creative dreams.
(Howard Tayler, Jake Black (M), Tracy Hickman)

2:00 pm:
– The Problem of Sequels
(Anna del C Dye, Mette Ivie Harrison, Larry Correia (M), Bree DeSpain, Jessica Day George)

5:00 pm:
– What You Can And Can’t Do In A YA Novel
(Mette Ivie Harrison (M), Elana Johnson, Bree DeSpain, Robison Wells, J. Scott Savage)

Saturday

9:00 am:
– What I wish I had done, if I could do it all over again – A Guide to New Writers
(Lisa Mangum, Dave Wolverton, Brad R. Torgersen (M), Kathleen Dalton-Woodbury)

11:00 am:
– Main Address: James Dashner

12:00 pm:
“Zombies and You: A guide to what does and does not constitute an apocalypse”
Ross Wolfe

2:00 pm:
– Building believable economies/politics
(Dan Willis, Eric Swedin (M), Roger White, David Ferro)

3:00 pm:
– Can your dreams pay your bills?
(Rebecca Shelley, Ami Chopine, Sandra Tayler (M), Dave Wolverton, Michael R. Collings)

There are more, but these are the ones that look most interesting to me. As usual, I’ll record all of the panels I attend, so if you want a copy, just email me.

Man, I’m so excited! LTUE this year is going to be awesome!

The Obligatory Valentine’s Day Post

I was going to write a long post on why I hated Valentine’s Day, but then I realized it hasn’t been so bad.

Of course, that’s mostly because I’ve been in my apartment most of the day, writing. I did go to Macey’s at one point, and was mildly annoyed by the crowd of people buying flowers at the front, but other than that, it’s been like any other day in February.

I’ve always been single on Valentine’s Day, and while I’ve never really resented that, I have resented the pressure in the LDS church to go on dates and find a wife. But here in Utah Valley, that’s a constant year round, not just on Valentine’s Day. And it’s pretty bad. Listening to some church leaders speak, you’d think that it’s a sin to be single–as if the free agency of others doesn’t even factor into the equation. And worse, they always put the blame on the guys, never the girls, so the girls keep on acting immature which leads to all sorts of ridiculous problems.

A couple weeks ago during Stake Conference, I got in a pretty dark mood after one too many talks on the subject. This poetry is what came out of it:

Find a wife,
Date a week;
Marry young–
A life so bleak.

Where singlehood is selfishness,
And loneliness is sinful, too,
Rejection is a kiss of death;
Unwantedness a fate too cruel.

That’s about as far as I got. I wrote some other stuff, but I’m not about to share it.

Truth is, I’ve kind of given up on the dating scene here in Happy Valley. The hordes of pretty yet immature twenty year olds just don’t interest me, and while I do have a few old friends in the area who I might look up, I don’t expect much to come of it.

Part of it is the fact that I’m twenty six, which in Happy Valley is the equivalent of thirty five or forty anywhere else. I’m just old.

Part of it is the steady accumulation of bad dating experiences over the course of the past five years, which has a lot to do with immaturity, both my own (which I hope has changed) and that of the general population of available females here in Utah.

Part of it has to do with the fact that just about every girl I’ve actively pursued ends up marrying someone else in less than a year.

But mostly, I think it has to do with the fact that I’m just not really interested in anybody. And honestly, that’s kind of liberating. It’s part of the reason why I decided to grow out my beard (pictures coming soon). Most of the girls around here say they hate beards–but who cares? Screw ’em!

But yeah. I’m sure I’m going to get a ton of concerned emails from my family after I post this, but at least I’m being honest.

And yes, I’m sure I’ll find someone someday (or, more likely, she’ll find me), and we’ll settle down to a life of passion and bliss and whatever, but that doesn’t have to be right now.

So happy Valentine’s Day.

(Images taken from postsecret and Kencraft Candy)

Paradigm shifts and finding balance

Yesterday, I was going to write a post about how pathetic this past week was: I only wrote about 1.5k per day (while unemployed), and spent most of my time on the internet reading blogs.

However, after reading some more of Dean Wesley Smith’s blog series, Kililng the Sacred Cows of Publishing, I have to admit that this week wasn’t a total loss. Because of what I’ve read this week, I’m starting to have a major paradigm shift about the publishing world, and that likely will have a huge impact on my writing career, hopefully for the better.

If I can sum up how my views have changed into one statement, it would be this: that in order to succeed in this business and avoid the common pitfalls, I need to learn how the entire publishing system works as a whole, so that I can game it to my advantage. A lot of the hard and fast “rules” of the industry are actually myths that make for bad business, for writers as well as editors and agents. But when you look at the system from a rational choice perspective, the flaws become obvious.

Take, for example, the “rule” that editors only accept unagented submissions. What does that do for the industry? It turns agents into the first tier of gatekeepers that new writers need to get past. But agents don’t pay writers; they get a 15% commission off of the books they manage to sell (which, according to DWS, is excessive, but that’s another topic). And they don’t get paid at all for reading slush.

So agents are spending more of their time doing things that pay less money, pressuring them to take less risks and work only with what they “know” will sell. This leads them to ignore the fresh, unconventional voices that turn the tropes on their heads and have the power to take the market by storm.

Furthermore, because of their newly christened gatekeeper status, they make their writers rewrite their manuscripts until they read just like clones of Harry Potter or The Davinci Code. And when the agents’ three or four closest buddies turn the book down, they come back to the writer and tell them to write something else.

It’s an extreme view, for sure, but it has a few good points. The incentives are all in the wrong places, with too many opportunities for the gems to fall between the cracks. And while the response from everyone in publishing is to cling to the myth and scream “the system works!” I have to wonder, does it really?

This comment from one of the threads struck me with particular force:

“The biggest mistake you can make is giving complete power over to someone who will never care as much as you do.”

Youch. And yet, it makes so much sense. How many writers’ careers have been ruined by doing just that? Ceding too much power to people who simply don’t care as much as they do, all in the name of some “rule” of publishing?

Of course, that’s not to say that the publishing industry is full of cheats and sleazebags. I’ve spent some time with professionals at World Fantasy and other conventions, and I’ve been very impressed with all of them. It’s just to say that writing is a business, and that writers need to approach their careers in the same way as anyone who’s self-employed. Certainly it’s important to work with other professionals, but that doesn’t mean handing over the fate of your business to them.

So anyways, what with all the business research I’ve been doing, I suppose the last week isn’t a total loss. However, I definitely feel a need to get back into writing. My deadline for WAFH is in two weeks, and the next 40k are going to require the biggest changes. So here’s my plan for the next two weeks:

Get up at 7 am every day.
Write at least 2.5k words per day (500 during LTUE).
Fill out at least 5 job applications per day.
Take a week-long Halo fast.

Probably the single biggest thing killing my creativity right now is the angst that comes from money woes. I redid my budget yesterday and realized I can get by this month without dipping too deeply into reserves, but still, that’s no substitute for a reliable source of income. Trouble is, it’s hard to find motivation to apply for jobs when most employers don’t even respond to your application, but hopefully a concrete goal will make that easier.

As for Halo, as much as I love the game, I just don’t have time for it right now. Personal writing deadlines are coming up, LTUE is just around the corner, and I’m falling too far behind to spend my time on video games.

I’m also going to make a concerted effort to get up earlier. If I stay up past midnight, I’m usually just dicking around on the internet, whereas my mornings are almost always productive. Plus, I hate sleeping in–hate it. Gotta get up earlier.

So anyhow, that’s the plan. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some writing to do…

Thoughts on traditional vs. indie publishing

In case you didn’t know, the publishing industry is in the throes of a major revolution. With the growing popularity of e-books and the collapse of distribution channels and chain bookstores such as Borders, traditional business models are proving simply untenable.

I’ve been perusing several internet sources to make sense of all the craziness, among them Joe Konrath’s blog (a midlister who is now making six figures via ebooks), Writer Beware (which still emphasizes caution with self-publishing), the Adventures in Sci Fi Publishing podcast (which has recently started interviewing several successful indie authors), Dean Wesley Smith’s blog, and his wife Kristine Rusch’s series on the changing business of publishing (which I highly recommend–seriously, if you read nothing else, read this).

Some of these people predict the imminent collapse of the big publishers, and have selected (ironically enough) 2012 as the predicted date of the collapse. Others agree that many traditional publishers will collapse, but believe that most will survive and evolve into something different (the “dinosaurs evolved into birds” theory vs. the giant meteor). All of them agree, however, that whatever new form the publishing industry takes, ebooks will dominate.

For someone in my position–a budding author looking to break in in the next few years–all of this is simultaneously thrilling and unnerving. Should I venture into indie publishing and risk having my work lost in the flood? Or should I spend the next five years toiling endlessly to break into traditional publishing, only to see my rights get tied up in a bankruptcy?

Thus far, my strategy has been to a reputable agent, or a new agent at a reputable agency. I’ve been holding back from submitting directly to publishers, out of fear that getting rejected from publishers would make it difficult for an agent to do her job.

That was the orthodox model under the traditional system, when the big six (HBGUSA, HarperCollins, McMillan, Penguin, Random House, and Simon & Schuster) dominated the industry. For the time being, they still dominate, but I’m wondering whether it’s such a good idea to go with them.

The big six have been swallowing up independent presses and imprints for years, and as a result, they’re now major corporations. As such, they aren’t looking for moderate midlisters who sell consistently–those kinds of writers would drive them bankrupt. No, in order to support their corporate expenses (like multimillion dollar office space and executive bonuses), they need bestsellers like Stephen King or J.K. Rowling.

Trouble is, they often lose when they gamble on new writers, which means that the next bestseller needs to be even more spectacular than the first. And with the ebook revolution underway, they’re getting desperate.

Agent Kristin Nelson recently lambasted McMillan for claiming rights to all “derivative works” in their new boilerplate (a bad faith move comparable, IMO, with the worst scams on Writer Beware), while Kristine Rusch recently noted how the big publishers are becoming increasing hostile to new writers. Advances as low as $1,500, or single book only contracts, or nebulous clauses that ensure publishers keep ebook rights for decades, even with the author barely making $20 per year on royalties?

How am I ever going to make it full time in a business like this?

Well, according to Joe Konrath, every day my books aren’t up as indie published ebooks, I’m losing big money. His views are pretty extreme, but he makes a very compelling argument, especially for someone in my position. Yes, there will be a flood of crap, but good stuff inevitably rises to the top. Yes, sales start out slow, but that’s simply part of the new model–and they build over time. For a minimal investment of time and money, I could launch my books and start earning an income from them now.

But money (such as I may or may not make as an indie) isn’t everything in this business. At this point in my career, gaining prestige and making a name for myself is just as much if not more important than income. Granted, I can build some prestige through indie publishing if my books sell enough, but I don’t want to have to depend on that, especially if it takes years for sales to build.

For the science fiction and fantasy genres, the professional standard is set by SFWA, or the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America. In order to become a member, you have to have your work published in one of their approved markets.

Last night, I did some research on those publishers. Of those that specialize specifically in science fiction and fantasy, seven of them are affiliated with the big six (Tor, Ace, Baen, Bantam Spectra, Roc, Del Ray, and Orbit). Thirteen others are independent presses that might conceivably be interested in my work.

Now, just because a science fiction and fantasy imprint is affiliated with the big six doesn’t mean it’s a bad idea to submit to them. Tor, after all, is the undisputed king of the genre–the company has won the Hugo for “best publisher” every year since 1988. I also tend to think (though I have no data to support it) that the bad contracts are more common with mainstream fiction. Science fiction, after all, has always been small potatoes to the rest of the publishing world.

But precisely because science fiction is so small, I’m starting to wonder if it’s a bad idea to submit to agents first. Agents go where the money is–in LDS publishing, virtually every author is unagented. While there’s still a national market for science fiction, it’s definitely a small one, and all the agents I’ve found always tend to list it as an afterthought, focusing instead on YA/MG, thrillers, romance, or the ubiquitous “commercial fiction.”

In other words, I think that part of the reason agents have been so reluctant to pick me up, even after showing some interest, is that they just don’t see enough money to justify taking a risk on me. Granted, it may also be the quality of my work, but the bulk of the rejections I’ve accrued seem to point more to subjective factors, like the agent’s personal tastes (the ubiquitous “I don’t feel I’m the right agent for this work”).

Which is not to say that I don’t think it’s a good idea to get agent–not at all. Even Amanda Hocking, who has turned down several big publishing deals, has an agent.

No, what I’m saying is that in today’s market, it might be easier for a science fiction writer to attract an agent by getting picked up by a publisher, rather than attract a publisher by getting picked up by an agent.

And, of course, the only big reason to do any of this is to make a name for myself. At some point, I will go indie, even if only with a few of my works. The revolution has arrived, and I’d be a fool not to capitalize on it–the only question is when, and how.

(images from Postsecret)