Why “Waiting to see it complete” kills careers

I belong to a group of writers who all had our debut novels (traditionally) published in 2019. NONE of us have had massive success. ALL of us–some from small publishers, like me, others from Big 5 houses like Tor Books–are basically still languishing in obscurity. Now, I haven’t read ALL of the books written byContinue reading “Why “Waiting to see it complete” kills careers”

The Pandemic’s Effect on (my) Book Sales

My debut, The Widening Gyre, was released in 2019. In the first two quarters of the book’s life, I sold over 1000 copies. That’s relatively good for a no-name author published by a small press. It’s gone on to sell more since. The sequel, The Blood-Dimmed Tide, was published in February 2020, just before everythingContinue reading “The Pandemic’s Effect on (my) Book Sales”

Why Backups are Important

Once, there was a writer who’d completed his first novel. It was decent. It was ready to go out, or at least as good as he could make it. And then his computer’s hard disk died. Completely. And it took the novel with it. “That’s okay,” he said. “We have a backup.” No, he didn’t.Continue reading “Why Backups are Important”

Star Trek and the Echo Chamber of ‘fandom.’

I came across an announcement that Star Trek: Picard had been renewed for a season 2 already. Attached to that article was this comment: And, well… sigh. Talk about wishful thinking. This is right up there with NeoCon talking points. This is the kind of viewer who is so ensconced in his echo chamber thatContinue reading “Star Trek and the Echo Chamber of ‘fandom.’”

Rise of Skywalker: What I Liked/What I Didn’t Like

It’s no secret that I’m a huge Star Wars fan. I watch the movies and the shows, I read the books, I wear the costumes, I spent more money than was perhaps warranted at the time for a custom lightsaber for my costumes, I wrote a book heavily influenced by Star Wars. So how didContinue reading “Rise of Skywalker: What I Liked/What I Didn’t Like”

Rant: Self-Checkout Machines and Why I Hate Them

When self-checkout registers first showed up, I thought “This is amazing; I can check out without annoying small talk about random crap in my basket!” I happily got in line. Now? Now I hate the things. I want to like them. I want to use them. But the bloody things were programmed by enemies ofContinue reading “Rant: Self-Checkout Machines and Why I Hate Them”

Author Interview: Reese Hogan

Today I’m presenting an interview with my fellow Debut 19 author Reese Hogan. Her novel, Shrouded Loyalties, comes out August 13th from Angry Robot books. Naval officer Mila Blackwood is determined to keep her country’s most powerful secret – shrouding, the ability to traverse their planet in seconds through an alternate realm – out ofContinue reading “Author Interview: Reese Hogan”