Julie E. Czerneda's Blog, page 11

Enjoy an "author's" list of favourite books from last year, and anticipated in the next.
I went with first authors, having two I recommend to you without hesitation.

http://fantasticalimaginations.wordpr...

The entries are in -- now it's up to you to decide which phrase Aunt Sybb will say in A PLAY OF SHADOW!


Visit https://www.facebook.com/Marrowdell to cast your vote.

Voting closes noon (Toronto) time December 31st.

Thank you!

Julie

Pop over to http://www.czerneda.com to find your treat.
I've posted, for the holidays, my very very very first ever short story.
Thank you, very very VERY much, for your support and interest in my work.

All the best!

Julie

http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/2013...

Ask a bunch of SF thinkers about tech -- prepare to have some fascinating, disturbing, and fun answers!

Enjoy.

Hi Folks!

Best part about this time of year is giving things away.
Sometimes I just do.
Sometimes ... it's a contest!!!
Today is the start of the latest!
Go to https://www.facebook.com/Marrowdell# for the details.
Your words in A PLAY OF SHADOW. Your name in the acknowledgements. And ... when the book comes out, you will receive a copy!
Ho
Ho
HO!

After writing the first post, I realized I'd forgotten one of my favourite "hooks" to get me writing like mad.

SMALL STUFF!

For example, I found pen-making parts in the Lee Valley catalogue (which I highly recommend for both research and inspiration).

It led to this:

**
The body was beechwood, smooth and bronzed with age, of perfect balance. Silver girdled it, worn plain and tarnished, quickly warm to Maleonarial’s fingertips. The pen had been an extravagant gift, from a father with neither coin to spare nor generous nature until a son proved of marketable talent. He remembered how the silver had glittered in his hand, that long ago day, like some cheap gaud on a whore. He’d done his utmost not to use the thing in front of classmates or masters. Such a garish object demeaned the lofty position of mage scribe-to-be.
Had he ever been so young?
The new nib was old. Bone, weathered wood-bronze, carved silver-smooth. Simple, like the now-plain band, but with remembered complexity and purpose. He’d found the piece on his wanderings, tucked among reeds by a busy, impervious stream. A deer once.
Or a man.
**
This? Led to an entire magic system and became "Intended Words" my first fantasy novella, published by Baen Magazine. And that?
Led to GOSSAMER MAGE, to be published by DAW Books once I'm done the next few projects.

See? Small stuff. I highly recommend it.

Every writer has their own way to approach the craft. It's not as obvious as for, say, painters. One might use digital, or a knife/palette, or fingerpaints etc, but for writers, it's there. That sneaky trick. This little ploy. Whoa -- that notion!
Sometimes, what works for one works for another, so I thought I'd share one of mine with you.
Scene Hooks.
By this I mean more than what a given scene is to accomplish in terms of plot, revelation, or character. This isn't about hooking the reader.
It's about hooking me, the writer.
I need something to grab my attention before a scene starts to really flow from my head to fingers, keys flying, words tumbling out faster than I can keep up (hence spellcheck, yes?). That's glorious writing -- and often it's the best stuff.
How to get it going?
For me, it's in the mechanics.
* How I start the scene. Have I found an image that calls to me? In fantasy, it could be a landscape that creates a mood and inspires the language I need. But, equally valid, it could be the punch line for a bad joke, started in the previous scene. Something that gets me in there and moves my writerly feet.
* Where I set the scene. If I think of a setting and immediately know it will be exceptional for my characters, I'm off and running. It could be a familiar-to-them place or somewhere challenging and strange. Doesn't matter. I can feel when where I've planned to go will cause something to happen for the story.

Don't get me wrong, plot can hook me in as well. Knowing a special moment is about to arrive? I can hardly wait! (Or I really can, and need wine.)
But most scenes are not about special moments. They're about getting there. About caring when you do. Those scenes are just as important to the story, but a bit tougher in the daily motivation of a writer department.

So, look for the hooks that grab your attention. Mine work for me.
I suspect they end up working for readers too.

Ah yes. The pumpkins have been cut up and tossed deep in the forest for wildlife, and we're bringing down the shovels because, yes, there's SNOW in the forecast. Must be that winter time of year.
LOVE IT!
Not so much the shoveling, but the permission to stay put and write. I settle. My word count spikes November through to March (then things start growing and I'm all manner of distracted again). To be indoors in a storm and accomplish important stuff? Doesn't get much better. Okay, I confess, if the Leafs get to the playoffs again, that's going to add to my winterly joy as well. Oh, and spring.
But I digress. Along with writing flat out for the season, I plan to do more in here as well. So, now's the time to ponder those questions -- any at all -- you might like to read me answer.
I'm here.
Couldn't be happier about that.

It's always a pleasure to discover how many people will give money to charity for that single reason.
Not to mention grist for the writerly mill, because I've often been able to add a little something more than a name about that person to the description or scene. Only good bits, I hasten to add.
Here's your next opportunity to be, well, in one of mine!
I've donated two "give your name to a character" prizes to the charity auction at Reversed Polarity, this weekend in Toronto. One fantasy, one sf.
http://tcon.ca/reversedpolarity/index...

Fantasy: Be an artisan with a magical talent you get to help pick in A PLAY OF SHADOW, out 2014. (Last chance for this book.)
SF: Jump into Reunification, Book 1 (and maybe 2 & 3 if I don't kill you off). It's possible I can be convinced to write you into a scene with Huido. Give it a try!
In each case, the winning bidder gets to read their scene first, then will receive a signed copy of the book.
Nice?
If you aren't coming, they will take proxy bids!