Ketchup

Found this yesterday, an Amazon page for Plague Zone that lists the book's release date as November 24th, quite an early pre-Thanksgiving publication for a December title. Also, apparently it's 336 pages. Nobody tells me anything!

;)

Labels: Amazon.com, Plague Zone release date

On Lou's advice, I'm thinking about writing not at all anymore and, instead, twitting all day to expand my readership. Who will have nothing to read. But still, I'll be exceedingly hip.

Labels: Lou Anders, The End of Western Civilization, Twitter

It's been a good week. I'm nearly done with a brand new fun short story (a rarity for me) despite fighting a nasty sore throat-with-cough, hooray... and there's been more excitement overseas. This is the cover of the April issue of Pevnost, the Czech Republic's top genre magazine of horror, fantasy, and sci fi. It says so right there behind the awesome vampire soldier, who's just about the coolest thing I've ever seen, with the possible exception of my own name in the table of contents.

Included in this issue is "Zamrziá Obloha," better known to you and me as "The Frozen Sky," which I've always considered one of my best stories. It's got a high concept, it's dark, driving, and there's a smart, tough hero. Apparently other people think so, too. That pleasant clinking you hear behind my sick groans and sneezing is the sound of dominoes!

I'm told that editors from two of the Czech Republic's largest publishing houses were struck by the story, went out of their way to find U.S. editions of my novels, and, whammie, we had a small bidding war between BB Art and Triton. It's official. BB Art, which also publishes books by Stuart Woods, James Rollins, and Douglas Preston, won Czech rights for Plague Year and War. We're very excited.
Also included with "Zamrziá Obloha" were these original illustrations of Alexis Vonderach and her freaky blind amphibian opponents by Karel Zeman, reproduced here with permission, all rights reserved. Nice work, man! These pictures look exactly like what the story looks like in my head. ;)

Illustrations © 2009 Karel Zeman

Labels: Czech Republic, foreign rights, Pevnost, Plague Year and War

That's right--I'm going to talk about BOOBIES! Whoo hoo! It's sure to get me in trouble, but, hey, these are important issues.

First to the main topic at last: our Norwescon 32 Insider Report.

I'm not exactly Captain Con-Goer, but I have been to more than 10 writers' and/or genre conventions, and here's what I think. Norwescon was among the best-run I've seen. For a regional con, it was also well-attended. Something like 3500 badges were sold in total, which is great. Of my half-dozen events, none had less than 15 people in the audience, and two were standing room only with 40 or more. That's awesome. Even the rather heavy duty "Biotech In Interstellar Travel" panel, which began at the ungawdly hour of NINE A.M., was packed with enthusiastic, educated, engaged people. Shazam.

The photo on top is of my final panel, "All About Agents," with Richelle Mead, Lizzy Shannon, and Gordon Van Gelder. Like most of the panelists whose time I shared, these folks were stone-cold professionals, prepared, excited, informative, and articulate. Me like that a lot.

In the meanwhile, I've gotta ask. What in the world is up with the fantasy fen and their magnificently squashed but nicely presented bosoms? Honestly. I must have seen 50 ladies in painful but naughty-looking corsets. Not that I noticed. I mean, I'm happily married. I don't even know where this photo came from.

Also... Is it just me? How wrong is this? Wasn't the female Han Solo just about the hottest thing you've ever seen in your freaking life right down to the laser blaster strapped low on her thigh gunslinger-style?

Seriously. I need to get out more.

And, finally, here's another shot from the awards ceremony. Go buy David Walton's book! I was glad to make a new buddy, glad to be included in the line-up, and above all I recommend Norwescon as a good time and a smooth-running operation chock full of mind-croggling smarts, fun, and interesting people.

Labels: Norwescon 32 insider report

I still intend to bang out a more informative post about my wild adventures at Norwescon, but I've been obsessed with a final polish of Zone. You'd think it was the end of the world or something. Ha. The book is in my editor's hands at last.

Off subject: I lost the PKD but here's my cosmic boobyprize. Minotauro has declared La Plaga a bestseller in the Spanish market, which means my American publisher is now changing my byline for Plague Zone to read "Jeff Carlson, International Bestselling Author." I do like me the sound of that! Wow!

To our left, we have a little book porn -- not pornography of people, but porno for book lovers. Look at those tasty muffins sitting in the window display. Must... buy... them... Touch... them...

Also fun, here's a link to charts compiled by one of Spain's book chains, which has Antidoto at #1 today on the very top of the heap. And that's in hardcover as a mainstream novel.

More soon.

Labels: International Bestseller, La Plaga, Minotauro, Norwescon 32 insider report

Yeah, I'm still alive. Probably I should have brought my laptop and made a post or three from the con. Lou Anders, the devil of technology himself, is in fact encouraging me to buy an iPhone so I can Twitter my happy thoughts live to the masses at all hours of the day. That sounds exactly like what we need! "I am now picking my nose." "Who votes I should get the French Dip instead of the cheeseburger?" "I just saw Chewbacca in the hallway."

Norwescon was awesome!!!!! Even not winning the PKD was okay. I'm not kidding. It really is an honor just to be nominated, most of my panels were fantastic, and I made a lot of new friends and good contacts and even just enjoyed the crap out of sprawling on my clean white bed in front of the massive flat screen in my hotel room watching stupid TV at midnight as the Pepsi slowly fizzled out of my blood stream after hours upon hours upon hours of babbling excitedly about things that I love like agents, books, biotech, and fen.

More soon.

I really, really, really have to get Zone to my editor. The photo is of myself with David Walton, co-winner of the 2008 PKD Award, split in a tie with Adam Troy-Castro's Emmissaries For The Dead.

No, I'm the guy beside Terminal Mind. David's the guy beside Plague War. It's the switcherooni. We're all about twisting your brain with big concepts, right? :)

Labels: Norwescon 32 insider report

This book is taking longer than I'd planned, mostly because it's bigger than either Year or War. I'm still not late per editorial deadline (getting close!), but I have run three weeks longer than I'd planned by my own calendar. Partly that's because I'm an obsessive, obsessive, obsessive maniac. Once it's done, it's done, forever set in black and white, and I want every line to be perfect.

Five thousand years from now, when intelligent raccoons rule the planet and they dig up this book, I want them to marvel at how perfectly the third comma on Page 117 was used. Yes, marvel! The entire novel is better for the placement of that comma. And then they'll erect a statue to me.

Labels: Final edits of PLAGUE ZONE

Most of you know I'm not much for fantasy. It just don't speak to me. Magic is such a slippery thing, and the epic plots often drag. So it may surprise you that among my All-Time Best Library is The Gandalara Cycle, a seven-volume set of swashbuckling swords-and-sorcery. Why? Partly because these books are old school. They're high fantasy adventure with sf guts and sensibility, written in the 1980's (and out of print now, I believe), but these are classic fan favorites, still widely available online and in used book stores. Highly recommended.

Interesting side note. The Cycle was written in collaboration by the esteemed, seasoned pro Randall Garrett and his bride-to-be Vicky Ann Heydron. Garrett fell seriously ill after they'd completed the first book and a detailed outline. Heydron went on to finish the series alone... My secret is that I've always wanted to write a second Cycle, picking up after the first set of books ended. It would be an insane career choice, of course. We'd need to secure permissions and clear every legal hurdle. The first books would need to be re-released first with a big splash. But I've already sketched out the plot and some titles. The characters and the setting are that powerful to me.

In the first Cycle, the sixth installment is entitled Return To Eddarta. This phrase only makes sense and is thus far more captivating if you've read the series, but, secret number two, I would call the first book of my Cycle by the same evocative name.

Return To Eddarta.

Labels: Randall Garrett, Recommended Reading, The Gandalara Cycle, Vicky Ann Heydron

Some good news today. My editor tells me Plague Year went to its fourth printing two months ago. Awesome! We're still an exploding helicopter and an Angelina Jolie from the big leagues of bestsellerdom, but, hey, a fourth edition for a first novel paperback original ain't no snail boogers, neither. Color me happy.

Labels: fourth edition, PLAGUE YEAR

I've been AWOL. For the past week I've been sweating through every line, nay, every *word* of PLAGUE ZONE again and again and again before it goes to the copyeditor, which is gruelling work, people. My brain is oatmeal.

In the meantime, the same friend has forwarded me another, even more excellent article on our subject of selling-yourself-versus-actually-creating-something-to-sell. It's written by veteran rocker John Mellencamp about the turmoil and misery in the music industry, but the parallels to the publishing world are intriguing indeed.

The article is here.

Labels: the musician's life, the writing life