I mentioned a few posts back that I would have a lot of news this fall. And I do. It stuns me. First, let me thank all the people who have supported the Pulphouse Kickstarter so far. As I write this, we’ve hit two of our stretch goals and are halfway to the third. The […]
Continue ReadingI don’t know about all of you, but I’m getting a lot of reading done this summer. I suspect I might get even more done on August 21, since my hometown, Lincoln City, Oregon, is the first place the eclipse makes landfall, the experts predict we’ll have internet outages, power outages, and cell phone outages […]
Continue ReadingWriters always believe that they can become a bestseller if they only goose their sales properly. I actually had a brand-new writer scream at me once about this very thing. Back in the early days of Amazon’s Kindle, she had “sold” 50,000 copies of her only novel by giving it away for free. “I’ll […]
Continue ReadingI’m particularly fond of June. I entered the world in June many decades ago, and as a result, I feel like it’s my month. I think I’d like the month even without the personal resonance: June contains the longest days of the year (in my hemisphere, at least) and, in the Pacific Northwest, is the […]
Continue ReadingI promised in the comments of last week’s blog that I’d write about newsletters. Except for mentions and brief discussion in blogs on other topics, I really haven’t discussed newsletters much. In my book Discoverability, I list newsletters as one of the minimal things a writer should do (in addition to a static website and […]
Continue ReadingTwo new stories of mine appeared in November, but kinda sorta got lost in the noise of the month. The first, “The City’s Edge,” appears in Bridging Infinity, edited by Jonathan Strahan. This is my second appearance in one of Jonathan’s Infinity anthologies. They’re hard sf and always a delightful challenge to write. This one […]
Continue ReadingI have lots of fun stuff to share. I hope you saw that the latest Diving novel is out (and the Recommended Reading List has returned). I also have a story in The Best American Mystery Stories 2016, edited by Elizabeth George. I love her work, so I’m particularly flattered that she chose a story […]
Continue ReadingI love October. I love the darkening days, the blowing leaves, the spectacular sunsets over the ocean. I even love the return of the rain. So, it’s no surprise that I have a few appropriate stories coming out this month.
Continue ReadingI remember the moment vividly: I was reading Runners World, and an essayist mentioned that while running a race, a person nearby collapsed. The essayist was appalled that she (he?) had a momentary thought— Should I just leave the person there and keep trying for my personal best?—before stopping to help. The essay was about […]
Continue ReadingI’m great with schedules. I have a dozen calendars, all with great purpose. I have a computer calendar that notifies me of deadlines and future projects.
It all works—when I have writing deadlines. I set it up for traditional publishing writing deadlines. I have never put promotion on my calendar. Ever. Because I do the minimal amount.
But this fall, failing to put even the most minimal promotion on my calendar has led to a series of problems.
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