New maps of Ursia

I recently decided it was time to update the map to my fantasy world, Ursia, and set about doing so in Photoshop. Below is the new map, one in color, the other in black and white. Click on them to see the larger versions, and let me know what you think.

Kurt Vonnegut biography supposedly a shocker

A new biography about Kurt Vonnegut has been released, titled And So It Goes. According to an article at The Guardian, this biography shows a "dark, sad, cruel" side to Vonnegut, a side that supposedly will shock the thousands (or millions) of fans who loved this man because he had a public persona quite different, one that was humanist and somewhat grandfatherly.

To be upfront about it, I'm not a Vonnegut fan. I have nothing against the man, nor do/did I dislike his writing. I respected him, but that's about as far as it went. I've only read a couple of his books, and I saw him once years ago at a reading. I don't hate him. I don't love him. But I always found him interesting.

What impelled me to write about him today, however, was that article in The Guardian. Perhaps I am the only one, but that Vonnegut had a "dark" side came as no surprise to be.

I don't mean to suggest I saw such character within him on the one occasion I saw him publicly, nor that I necessarily picked up on anything particular in his writing. But come on, have a brain for a second. Anyone who is a humanist is going to be frustrated with the world we live in and the people who populate it, at least from time to time. Someone like Vonnegut, being a public figure and an artist and aging and, etc., is going to feel such frustrations ten times over, perhaps even more so.

I don't claim to be a humanist, but I understand the thinking. Imagine a normal person who considers themselves a humanist going about their daily life. As I said, they're likely to be frustrated from time to time, especially if they keep up with the news. Now imagine that person is a public figure, one with a public persona built upon the fact he or she is a humanist. Now imagine that person is also an artist, someone who works regularly with humanism as a philosophy, for their daily bread.

I see no reason that person's frustration levels wouldn't be quite high.

In fact, I find it silly that an article or anyone might suggest otherwise, especially in this day and age. For a lot of people, there's a lot to be pissed about, whatever side of the social and political spectrums one falls onto. To suggest because someone is a humanist he couldn't possibly have a "dark" side, to my way of thinking, is just silly. No, it's beyond that. It's stupid.

Let me be clear: I am not voicing a complaint that someone has pointed out Vonnegut had this "dark" side. Not at all. As I mentioned, I'm actually not surprised by this.

What does bother me, what baffles me, is that anyone would act surprised by this.

Some of my feeling about this is because I, too, am a writer (no, I'm not comparing myself to Vonnegut). I become frustrated when others try to pigeon-hole me as a writer. I'm probably best known as a fantasy writer, and I have no problem with that, but fantasy is not all I write and it is not how I identify myself as a person.

Humans seem to have this need to classify everything, including other humans, into nice little, simple compartments. Hell, look at our politics, and I mean this worldwide, not just in the U.S. Everything, and I mean everything, is liberal vs. conservative. Sure, many nations have multiple political parties with all their different nuances, but it always comes down to liberal vs. conservative. Which is stupid beyond compare, mainly because it is so simplistic.

It's as if humans can't look at one another and expect each other to be complex. An individual is either "this" or they are "that." It is all so very junior high school as to make me want to vomit.

Looking only at other writers, I see vast complexities of character. Look at Robert A. Heinlein. The man was brave enough within one lifetime to pen both Starship Troopers and A Stranger in a Strange Land, two novels that at least by the modern political spectrum should seem opposed. There are those who might argue Heinlein was a Libertarian, but that's just another stripe of conservatism for the most part in this day and age (though admittedly there are some few liberal Libertarians ... and I'll add here I have nothing against Libertarians and am not taking sides here in any political debate).

For someone more controversial, consider Ayn Rand. The founder of the philosophy of Objectivism is usually either loved or hated. Often she is shot down as a writer because of her personal philosophy, while others raise her on a pedestal because of her philosophy. But still, though Rand definitely played up her public persona as an Objectivist, she was a more complex individual than her philosophy would seem to allow. She gave money to friends. She gave money to charities. She had friends to whom she was nice. She was not the worst human being to ever live. She was more than just an Objectivist, more than just a writer. She was a multi-faceted individual.

But that's not good enough. We have to break everything down. We have to simplify everything.

Which is what we are now doing to Kurt Vonnegut.

We should be ashamed.

An announcement: Monumental Works Group

Recently I joined an organization of writers known as Monumental Works Group. Membership is by invitation only (sort of like a cult), and I was pleasantly surprised when Darrin Drader asked me if I would be interested in joining. It seems at least a couple of members of the group had read some of my work and didn't think it totally sucked.

Right away my mind started scheming. Here I was, a member of a secret society, one of the behind-the-scenes rulers of the universe! The power! It is astonishing! Mwahahahahahaha!

Actually, the group has a good mixture of writers, most independent, some with professional backgrounds in publishing and the role-play gaming industry. I'm glad to be a part of this group. They seem like nice people, and I already know of a few of those behind-the-scenes things in the works ... stuff that will boggle the mind! Change the way we all think about our very existences, the way we pray to the nether gods of ... okay, wait, wrong organization. I'm thinking of another group I recently joined (Azathoth, call me!).

But, to the other members of the Monumental Works Group, thank you for including me. I am truly humbled.

At least until the Great Old Ones wake.

100 sites for fiction writers: #82 - DearEditor.com

This is an ongoing series looking at websites that can be of help to fiction writers with their craft and career.

DearEditor.com

As a fiction writer, have you ever had a question about writing that you needed answered, but you just didn't where to turn? Maybe it was a question about manuscript formatting? Or a question about the publishing business? Or maybe just a grammar or spelling question?

Sure you have. We all have.

What's different now from back in ye olden days, however, is that we have a place to go to find the answers to those questions.

No, I'm not talking about the Internet, silly. I'm talking about a website known as DearEditor.com.

Novelist, non-fiction author and editor Deborah Halverson runs this site. You can submit a question to her and she will answer it to the best of her knowledge, but keep in mind she is only one person, so of course she can't answer every single question that comes along. To help get an answer to your question, before asking it you should look through the DearEditor.com Archives to make sure the question has not already been asked and answered.

If you need extensive help with a manuscript and can afford the fees, this site also offers Editorial Services, which can be important especially for independent authors who do not have easy access to an editor.

On a related note, Deborah Halverson is most experienced in writing fiction for the young adult market, so those with interests in that area should definitely check out Deborah's books and her site, DearEditor.com.

2011 blog tour comes to an end

November 2011 is over, which means my blog tour promoting my new fantasy e-book Ghosts of the Asylum has come to an end.

This was my first blog tour, and I had a great time with it. I also learned quite a bit.

For instance, I learned guest posting on others' blogs for 30 days straight is a lot of work. There's a lot to keep track of, and a lot of people to keep track of. It was almost like having a real job again (ya know, instead of just writing all day). Would I do it again? Yes, I would. I would even go so far as to say I would guest blog for 30 days straight again. I might even consider doing it with the release of my next novel. I had planned ahead this time, and that helped quite a bit, but now I know to plan even further ahead. I gained experience this time, experience that should help me in the future.

Actually, originally I contacted about 40 others to see if they would be interested in hosting me. Some did not want to take part, and others I never heard from. But I hold no hard feelings for that. Folks are busy and have stuff to do, and I'm not exactly a well known author.

But a lot of strangers, people who I did not know at all, were willing to take part.

And this was one of the greatest things about my blog tour, meeting people online who I otherwise might have never got to know. For that alone, the blog tour was worth.

Now, for you writers out there wondering if a blog tour is worth it, the thing upfront in your mind is, "Well, did the tour help your sales?"

The truth? Yes. I wouldn't say the tour helped my sales dramatically, but I can say my sales for November were higher than the three months before. To me, that's progress. It's not just about money, but about readers. More readers discovered me, and hopefully they will find something to enjoy in my writing.

Star Wars memories

I got a busted nose
over this guy
when I was 11.

Technically this is not part of my November blog tour (which just wound down), but I have a guest post about my early Star Wars memories over at the site of author Darby Harn. Some of this will be old news to my regular readers (both of you), but for others it will be something new. Enjoy.

And thanks, Darby!

Novel excerpt over at Indie Snippets

Some of you might recognize this very short excerpt from my new novel Ghosts of the Asylum, but for those who don't, you can see it over at the Indie Snippets site. My Kerjim character has a little chat with my Mama Kaf character.