News and Notices from the Writing Trenches #170…
[Note from Steve: I cannot believe this is only issue #170 of my “News and Notices…” after 10+ years of this blog. But here it is.]
Spring and summer reading. Summer seems almost here, and then it’s not. So let’s just agree to say spring and summer reading is here—books to read on vacation, day-trips to the beach, or in those lazy evening of daylight savings time when you’re tired of TV reruns, lack of good movies, or everyone hogging your internet bandwidth. Or just books to read on those bad-weather days.
Given that ode to the changing seasons, let me make a couple of…
Reading recommendations. Here are two books I found entertaining (I wrote reviews for both of them):
Kilts and Catnip. Zoe Tasia, author (Black Opal Books, 2019). This romantic fantasy features an American in Scotland who discovers there’s something to those Celtic myths.
Aegir’s Curse. Leah Devlin, author (Penmore Press, 2015). This mystery/thriller features a Viking ship discovered near Woods Hole, MA. What could go wrong?
Black Opal Books and Penmore Press are small presses. You can find their catalogs online at https://blackopalbooks.com/ and https://www.penmorepress.com/. Please support small presses. They have treasure chests you’ll find full of gems—entertaining books to read!
TBRoR books. Now that I have three books out the door in 2019 (four counting a manuscript—see below), I can get some R&R and return to my TBRoR-list of books. (It’s always growing—so many good books and good authors, and so little time to read. I shuffle the list around sometimes, depending on my moods). Here’s three I want to read ASAP:
The Bottom Dwellers. Leah Devlin, author (Penmore Press, 2015).
The Clock. Leonardus Rougoor, author (Black Opal Books, 2017).
Sins of the Sister. Zari Reede, author (Black Opal Books, 2018).
Although I’ve started all three (I often have two or three going for variety), finishing those three aforementioned books of mine interrupted my serious reading for a while. It will be good to get back to them. They’ve all passed my title, cover, blurb, and “peek inside” tests, and books from 1.5 of the authors’ previous works (that’s an author’s inside joke) I’ve already read. All look interesting. (You’ll note that they’re from the same two small presses.)
Magic vs. science. Science fiction grandmaster Arthur C. Clarke’s quote is a good way to start this segment: “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” This is more than a glib remark from an old sci-fi writer. It is an important statement about technology.
Imagine a caveman from Earth’s prehistory holding a smart phone. He can’t call anyone and no one can call him, but he can hit a video replay icon by accident, see the video unfolding, and drop the phone as if it were black magic. (He might react the same way with a mirror, of course.)
If we can’t explain something, we often call it magic…or something fancier to make our ignorance more palatable. Hard sci-fi, though, usually offers a reasonable extrapolation of current science and technology. Space opera (e.g. Star Wars) and fantasy (were you a Game of Thrones fan?) often don’t. But the lines between them are often blurry. Purists might be caught up in the debate about the differences, but do the differences matter? As long as an author writes an entertaining story (it can also make us ponder universal human themes), the book works for me. What about you?
My new books in 2019. As I noted above, three are already out there:
The Last Humans (Black Opal Books). On a forensic dive, Penny Castro surfaces to find her fellow deputies and a witness dead. Her adventures in her struggle to survive illustrate the strength of the human spirit.
Mind Games (Carrick Publishing). Androids with psi powers? What could go wrong? Another sci-fi mystery for young adults from my alter-ego A.B. Carolan.
Son of Thunder (coming soon from Penmore Press). Many of you are familiar with Rembrandt’s Angel and its main character, Scotland Yard Inspector Esther Brookstone. In this sequel, Esther becomes obsessed once again, this time with finding the tomb of St. John the Divine, and she has competition. The saint’s story, Renaissance painter Sandro Botticelli’s, and hers come together in a multi-country, multi-era tour de force. And paramour Bastiann has a few narrow escapes too, but can he escape Esther’s romantic clutches?
The Last Humans: A New Dawn. I’m polishing the manuscript of this sequel for later submission. Penny Castro’s adventures continue here. Stay tuned.
A thank you. I don’t say it often enough. Authors rarely work alone. Sure, they can self-publish and be 100% DIY, but they shouldn’t. Even self-published authors should use editors, formatters, and cover artists to make their books into professionally produced entertainment for the reading public. Staffs at my two small presses do this work too.
I thank them all—Donna Carrick of Carrick Publishing and cover artist Sara Carrick; the staff at Black Opal Books, with acquisitions editor Lauri Wellington, cover artist Jack Jackson, and their associated editors; and the staff at Penmore Press, with chief editor Michael James, head of author support services Christine Horner, and their associated editors.
And last but not least, all the people who have beta-read and edited my manuscripts even before I submit them for publication. You know who you are.
Without these people, I would flounder. I can write a story; I can’t do the things they do, at least not well or in a timely fashion. It’s prosaic to say so, but there’s no I in team, and they are great teams.
Of course, many thanks are also due to the people on the other end of this process, the readers. Thank you for reading books, maybe mine, maybe not, but I’m happy you’re reading. You’re participating in the greatest adventure human beings have embarked on, storytelling. Thank you.
Free fiction. I limit myself to publishing my novels now, but you can find free short fiction listed on the web page “Free Stuff & Contests” at this website. Just follow the instructions there. It’s an excellent way to sample my writing, although most of my novels in ebook format are reasonably priced. If you want another bargain, try my…
Smashwords sales. I offer these in every edition of my email newsletter now…and only there. This month I’m featuring the Detectives Chen and Castilblanco stories where the plots go beyond NYPD homicide cases to have international repercussions: Angels Need Not Apply, Aristocrats and Assassins, and Gaia and the Goliaths. Want to subscribe to take advantage of future sales? Use steve@stevenmmoore.com to do so. (Note from Steve: My error, your benefit, if you’re not a subscriber, because there was already a sale on for the first ebook that goes until December 15. Of course, subscribers can buy all three at the reduced price.)
“Evergreen” Books. These are authors’ books that are as current today as when they were written. Many authors have them. Many books never get old. You can find the print versions in used bookstores and libraries. And evergreen ebooks populate many authors’ oeuvres and are worth reading. Here’s one of mine:
More than Human: The Mensa Contagion. Amazon reviewer S. D. Beallis called it “broad in scope and cautiously optimistic.” Amazon reviewer Debra Miller said she “was reminded at times of Kim Stanley Robinson’s Mars trilogy.” Both comments indicate the epic nature of this one novel where an ET virus creates Homo sapiens 2.0, and then the new humans colonize Mars. Available on Amazon and Smashwords.
Have a safe and relaxing spring and summer!
Around the world and to the stars! In libris libertas!
