Posted in Culture, Hi Tech, Writing, tagged blogging, collective culture, long distance phone call, long distance telephone, Writing on 17 Sep 2012| 2 Comments »
Fifty followers. Fifty.
That may not sound like a lot to you, but it does to me. I’m not even 100 days into this experiment, and already there are 50 of you who found it interesting enough to click the “follow” button. Not bad, in my estimation, especially since most of you 50 (if not all of you) are new to (the thing that is) KRAG. That’s a pretty good reach, in my book.
Mostly, though, it proves a point: Blogging is powerful.
Posted in Culture, Movies, Writing, tagged Abigail Gibbs, books, creative writing, harper collins, HarperCollins, novel writing, novels, publishing, self-publishing, Snooki, Twilight, Writing on 12 Sep 2012| Leave a Comment »
Yesterday, several of my writerly-feeds went nuclear after The Huffington Post reported that Abigail Gibbs was awarded a six-figure contract for her first novel. Every writer I know decried the state of writing when a newbie author would get such a deal for what was essentially (their words) “glorified fan fiction.”
First, nothing in the article leads me to believe that this is fan fiction. Though “inspired” by the Twilight series, there is nothing in the article that says she’s used characters from the series (a hallmark of fan fiction). Sure, she posted articles on Wattpad, but that doesn’t make it fan fiction, so, let’s drop that label, shall we? (more…)
Posted in Culture, Hi Tech, Low Tech, tagged e-ticket, high tech, low-tech, memento, new technologies, print at home ticket, seattle town hall, ticket stub, ticket stubs, tickets on 11 Sep 2012| 2 Comments »
Up on a shelf, next to some old journals, I have a box filled with memories.
Tonight, I’m going to a concert, and I won’t be able to put it in that box.
The concert is down at the Seattle Town Hall tonight and the music is a collection of piano trios. I bought my tickets to the series through an online vendor. As is my habit, I paid a little extra ($6) to have the tickets sent to my home.
The tickets didn’t arrive, and there was a little back-and-forth between myself and the vendor. For some reason, mailing physical tickets is sometimes beyond their abilities (despite the additional cost), and remailing them or issuing a second set is Just Not Done.
Posted in Fallen Cloud Saga, Low Tech, Writing, tagged amazon, Beneath a Wounded Sky, books, creative writing, ebooks, editing, Fallen Cloud Saga, FC:V, Kindle, low-tech solutions, novel writing, publishing, self-publishing, small business, Writing, writing tips on 07 Sep 2012| Leave a Comment »
I heard back from Fairwood Press, yesterday. As publisher of Dreams of the Desert Wind (my genre-mashup of speculative fiction, thriller, and corporate espionage), I wanted to give them the “right of first refusal” on the new FC:V. The good news is that Fairwood is doing very well; the bad news is that their docket is filled for 2013, and they couldn’t entertain this title until 2014.
That’s too long a wait. So, I’m moving ahead; Beneath a Wounded Sky will be published by Mouse Road Press (i.e., me) as part of a full, five-book release of The Fallen Cloud Saga.
Which means that everything is now on my plate. Including cover art.
I have an advantage here. I don’t care if this project makes money. In fact, I assume it won’t. So, if I have covers that don’t tick all the boxes on the marketing strategy checklist, no worries. But I do want to have good-looking covers.
However, I do not want to have the standard-style, heavy-detail, photo-realistic cover of men and machines that you see on almost every alternate history title on the shelf. I want something different.
I’m thinking: minimalist.
There’s a new meme out there. Do a Google search on “minimalist movie poster” and you’ll see what I mean. These are evocative but very stylized images. Most of them play on a previous knowledge of the movie, but they needn’t. They’re eye-catching, they’re clean and easy to understand, and they tell a little story all on their own.
So, I’m reaching out to some of my friends who have graphic art experience, to get their input on the process. I already have concept art for each of the five covers. Three of them are pretty much final product, in fact (yes, I was working on this ahead of time, having predicted the Fairwood response).
These covers will be unusual, setting them apart from the standard cover art for the genre. They will have a uniform “look and feel” to them, identifying them as a set. And since I won’t have to use any stock photo images (bonus), they will also be completely free of royalty costs.
I’m not an artist—I’m saving that learning curve for my retirement—but I understand the basics of design. With some educated guidance, I hope I can come up with a set of covers that will do my series proud.
k
Posted in Hi Tech, tagged Agile, Corporate America, Firefly, IT, Jayne Cobb, methodology, project management on 06 Sep 2012| Leave a Comment »
I’ve spent some time on this blog bemoaning the flaws and poor implementations of Agile methodologies so, to be fair, this isn’t about that. I cannot blame Agile for the problems currently weighing on me at my Monkey-Boy-Day-Job. These problems go much deeper. It doesn’t matter what methodology you’re using; you can’t fix stupid.
Like most people, I want to succeed at my job. I want to do well and contribute to good outcomes. I really hate being set up to fail. But management-types don’t seem to grok that concept. So they do things like this:
To quote Jayne Cobb, ” Where’s that get fun?”
k
Posted in Movies, tagged comedy, drama, entertainment, Korean film, modern life, movie review, Movies, reviews, South Korea on 05 Sep 2012| 1 Comment »
I’m worried about South Korea. No, not in that global, realpolitik way. I’m worried about South Koreans. I don’t think they’re happy.
Okay, it’s not fair to judge an entire society based on two movies, but I can’t help but see similarities between the last South Korean movie I reviewed (“My Scary Girl“), and yesterday’s movie, “Castaway on the Moon.” I recommend “Castaway…”. I thought it was an excellent movie, but it just makes me wonder.
Both movies are listed as comedies, which at their essence, they are. Both have moments—many, in fact—of humor and laughter, and even though “My Scary Girl” has a body count close to a Shakespearean tragedy, it’s undeniably funny. But the humor in that film is born of surprise and twists, where in “Castaway…”, the humor is more revelatory, as the two main characters unveil themselves to us and to each other. (more…)
Posted in Culture, Hi Tech, Writing, tagged amazon, book reviews, rj ellory on 04 Sep 2012| 1 Comment »
UK’s The Telegraph reports today that RJ Ellory, noted writer of crime fiction, has been outed as the author of pseudonymously posted raves of his own work—and likewise posted pans of his competitors’ books.
I will admit that I have posted a “review” on my own works on Amazon, but (1) it was done under my own name, and (2) it wasn’t an actual review, but a more in-depth blurb and a note to readers. The idea of heaping glory on my own work under a fake name just reeks of desperation, and the idea of trashing other writers in my genre? Oy. What was he thinking?
RJ Ellory has since apologized for his “lapse of judgement” but I say, this is no lapse. This was a self-justified, long-term pattern of bad behavior born of some overweening belief that he is just “too cool for school” and that the rules of fairness just don’t apply to Himself. For someone who gets the kind of notice, press, and accolades RJ Ellory already enjoys, this sort of petty, schoolyard tactic is nigh on unbelievable.
But, it is just another example of how standards have been reduced and misbehavior is only regretted once one is caught out red-handed. I expect this will not hurt Mr. Ellory in the long run—his sales will not markedly drop nor will his next contract be in jeopardy—but I hope it stings like hell for a while.
k
Kurt R.A. Giambastiani 