“The Art of the Dragon” by Sean McMullen – A two-mile long dragon appears from nowhere and begins destroying all architectural works of art across the world. With the credentials of an art historian and survivor of the attack on the Eiffel Tower, Scott Carr is selected for an elite group in Britain who try to understand the dragon’s origin and purpose.
The opening was strong and compelling, but I found the concept behind the dragon disappointing and implausible, even for a speculative story.
“You Are Such a One” by Nancy Springer – The middle-aged protagonist is driving to a funeral for one of her distant relatives. Plagued by a recurring dream of wandering through a strange house, she is startled to discover the house of her dreams along her route. When she inquires of the caretaker, she discovers something even more peculiar than her dreams.
The second-person narrative is refreshing, and I think it works well for this story. I was hoping for more closure, but perhaps I simply failed to grasp the ending.
“A Token of a Better Age” by Melinda M. Snodgrass – An imprisoned centurion awaits his chance to fight for freedom in the morning. He meets a patrician sentenced to death who asks the centurion to listen to his fantastic tale and report it to his mother.
I enjoyed this story until it became so outlandish that it turned sour. The historical settings and characters were well written, but once the plot became laughable, I lost a lot of interest in this piece. I think the enjoyment of this story will depend upon the reader’s personal theological views.
“Hunchster” by Matthew Hughes – Out of the small group of poker players in Lee’s garage, a young man nicknamed “the hunchster” has an odd way of playing, relying upon hunches rather than trying to read the other players.
Simple, surprising and humorous. Hughes presents an interesting tale that’s a quick read.
“The Bones of Giants” by Yoon Ha Lee – After years of existing in the rim of the Pit with the undead as his caretakers, Tamim despairs of life and nearly commits suicide. He postpones his plan when a young necromancer asks him to accompany her as she attempts to overthrow the sorcerer who rules the rim. Should they complete her quest, she promises him the death he desires.
An appropriate amount of creepiness and dread sets the tone, and I really enjoyed how Tamim and Sakera (the young necromancer) interact. I think this has been my favorite story by Lee that I’ve read so far.
Icarus Saved from the Skies “Icare suavé des cieux” by Georges-Olivier Châteaureynaud (Translated by Edward Gauvin) – A man discovers to his horror that he begins to grow wings on his back, and he takes whatever measures necessary to hide them from everyone. His love interest, whom he eventually marries, sees his curse as an impressive gift and hopes to see them grow so large that one day he’ll be able to fly into the air in plain view of everyone.
I kept thinking of the scenes around Angel in X-Men: The Last Stand as I read this. I empathized with the protagonist, which is a sign of good writing when I consider how fantastic his condition is.
“The Others” by Lawrence C. Connolly – Clone iterations of a woman named Cara explore a new world, one clone at a time. The third clone, Gamma (who thinks of herself as Cara), was injured while defending a village of intelligent natives from a deadly fang-claw. Alpha, who orbits the planet, creates more clones to assist Cara in destroying a nest of thousands of fang-claws in order to save the villagers and prevent the fang-claws from overtaking the entire island.
This was my favorite story of the issue. I’d read Connolly’s prequel to this, “Daughters of Prime,” and this is a great continuation of that story. It isn’t necessary to read the other story before reading this, but if you have the chance, I highly recommend it as well. I like the action and tension throughout the tale, and I’m hoping Connolly might keep this series going.
“Three Leaves of Aloe” by Rand B. Lee – Amrit’s daughter has caused too many problems in her school and is facing permanent expulsion unless she’s implanted with a nannychip as a safeguard against disobedience. Amrit faces a great deal of opposition from her daughter at the thought of being chipped, and Amrit isn’t certain about how she feels about the idea until she has an insightful and disturbing conversation with her uncle’s young wife.
The setting and culture of India seemed unique to me, and I think the freshness of the scenery kept the story moving more than the actual plot. Don’t get me wrong. I liked the story; I just don’t think I would have liked it much if the author had tried a similar plot set in America.
“The Private Eye” by Albert E. Cowdrey – JJ Link has psychic abilities, talents he uses at the local casino until he’s banned due to his winning streaks. When a local girl is kidnapped and held for ransom, the local police and FBI run out of leads and turn to JJ for help. The young man learns how far his powers can go towards solving mysteries, but JJ’s interest is to simply retreat and live a life of solitude.
I don’t know how Cowdrey consistently writes so well. Honestly, I’m dumbfounded. If he hasn’t run a writing clinic yet, he needs to. And if such a clinic takes place, I need to find a way to attend. Yes, this is another good story. Read it.
“Snowfall” by Jessie Thompson – Harlan Ellison’s pick for the 60th anniversary of Fantasy & Science Fiction is “Snowfall,” and I can see why he picked it. This was a really moving, artful piece, and I won’t even attempt to summarize it. I highly recommend reading this if you can.
“Esoteric City” by Bruce Sterling – Achille Occhietti’s lifetime of successes are a result of his prowess as a dark magician, particularly in the art of necromancy. A long-term associate named Djoser, an ancient Egyptian priest he raised from the dead, comes to escort Achille to hell in order to meet with Achille’s former boss and master. Achille’s master warns him of a dreadful encounter he must soon face.
The humor around Djoser carried this piece for me. I wasn’t that interested in the main plot of the story, but I’d like to read other stories featuring Achille and Djoser.
Saturday, August 01, 2009
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Author Bio
An author bio (short for biography) is something every writer will need, regardless of whether he or she has been published or not. I suggest using two types: one used with query letters and another used in public areas, such as what would appear with a published story.
For query letters, your bio, in most cases, should only list your previous publications (if you have any) unless an editor specifically requests more information in their submission details. If you haven’t had any stories accepted for publication yet, I would avoid pointing that out; the editor will assume that, so there’s no reason to throw an enormous flag up to identify yourself as a complete amateur; you still want the query to appear professional. If you actually sold a story, be sure to use that keyword “sold” in your details. I highly doubt that all editors have heard of all paying magazines, so rather than leaving them to guess, note it as a sale. If you’ve attended a credible writers’ workshop, you might mention that as well. Keep this area brief, though, and try to emphasize your biggest accomplishments up front. Here are some examples: “I sold a short story that was published in Matt’s Cool Magazine.” “I sold three short stories that were published in Matt’s Cool Magazine, Matt Weekly and The MW Insider.” “I attended Matt’s Workshop last year. I sold one of the stories I wrote at the workshop to Matt Weekly, and it’s scheduled for publication later this year.”
When you need a bio to accompany a published piece, or if you’re creating a short bio for a website or blog, write about yourself in the third person. Yes, it feels quite strange to do this at first, but keep in mind that it should look like someone else is writing about you. (It’s not a writer’s autobio, after all.) One other note: whereas I think it’s important to emphasize the word “sold” for query letters, it looks pretty tacky as part of the public bio. For the public, mention your publications (or at least the ones you want people to be aware of) along with some personal information. You might include information about where you live, if you’re married, how many children you have, the kinds of pets you own, etc. I always like a bio that is a bit quirky, too, like the author is testing whether or not you’re actually reading it. Here’s an example for an author named Bob Author: “Bob Author lives in Seattle, Washington, driving everything from forklifts to steamships. His stories have appeared in Matt Weekly and The MW Insider. To find out more about Bob, check out his website: www.bobauthor.net.”
Do you have a bio yet? If not, what are you waiting for?
For query letters, your bio, in most cases, should only list your previous publications (if you have any) unless an editor specifically requests more information in their submission details. If you haven’t had any stories accepted for publication yet, I would avoid pointing that out; the editor will assume that, so there’s no reason to throw an enormous flag up to identify yourself as a complete amateur; you still want the query to appear professional. If you actually sold a story, be sure to use that keyword “sold” in your details. I highly doubt that all editors have heard of all paying magazines, so rather than leaving them to guess, note it as a sale. If you’ve attended a credible writers’ workshop, you might mention that as well. Keep this area brief, though, and try to emphasize your biggest accomplishments up front. Here are some examples: “I sold a short story that was published in Matt’s Cool Magazine.” “I sold three short stories that were published in Matt’s Cool Magazine, Matt Weekly and The MW Insider.” “I attended Matt’s Workshop last year. I sold one of the stories I wrote at the workshop to Matt Weekly, and it’s scheduled for publication later this year.”
When you need a bio to accompany a published piece, or if you’re creating a short bio for a website or blog, write about yourself in the third person. Yes, it feels quite strange to do this at first, but keep in mind that it should look like someone else is writing about you. (It’s not a writer’s autobio, after all.) One other note: whereas I think it’s important to emphasize the word “sold” for query letters, it looks pretty tacky as part of the public bio. For the public, mention your publications (or at least the ones you want people to be aware of) along with some personal information. You might include information about where you live, if you’re married, how many children you have, the kinds of pets you own, etc. I always like a bio that is a bit quirky, too, like the author is testing whether or not you’re actually reading it. Here’s an example for an author named Bob Author: “Bob Author lives in Seattle, Washington, driving everything from forklifts to steamships. His stories have appeared in Matt Weekly and The MW Insider. To find out more about Bob, check out his website: www.bobauthor.net.”
Do you have a bio yet? If not, what are you waiting for?
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Elora's New Room
With the new baby coming later this year, my wife and I decided to move Elora into a new room. The theme: butterflies.
We managed to complete most of the work this past Saturday with a lot of help from Bess’ parents. Now my daughter has an actual bed to sleep on rather than a crib, although it’s still a very small bed. Since nothing seems to dim Elora’s mood except for teething, she was naturally excited about the change. If she could elaborate clearly about it, I think she would say, “Nursery, shmursery; this new room rocks!”
Still, it was a bittersweet dad moment for me. I’m glad to see my daughter growing up, but it’s hard to realize she’s no longer a baby. It’s probably only a matter of time before the butterflies are replaced by the next age-appropriate theme, and one day that room will be empty. Bess and I were married for years before we had kids, and even though I’ve only been a dad for around eighteen months, it’s like it’s all I’ve known. I hope the butterflies stay around for a long time.
We managed to complete most of the work this past Saturday with a lot of help from Bess’ parents. Now my daughter has an actual bed to sleep on rather than a crib, although it’s still a very small bed. Since nothing seems to dim Elora’s mood except for teething, she was naturally excited about the change. If she could elaborate clearly about it, I think she would say, “Nursery, shmursery; this new room rocks!”
Still, it was a bittersweet dad moment for me. I’m glad to see my daughter growing up, but it’s hard to realize she’s no longer a baby. It’s probably only a matter of time before the butterflies are replaced by the next age-appropriate theme, and one day that room will be empty. Bess and I were married for years before we had kids, and even though I’ve only been a dad for around eighteen months, it’s like it’s all I’ve known. I hope the butterflies stay around for a long time.
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