Month: October 2018

Writing Progress Report for October 2018

Writing Progress Report for October 2018

I saw the play Hamilton at the State Theater in Cleveland, Ohio on August 25, 2018. In October, I read the biography of Hamilton by Ron Chernow that the play was based on. Both were excellent.

Writing Progress from September 2018

I wrote 3 blog posts for garydavidgillen.com.

I bought and used the editing program Pro Writing Aid to edit the novel. Edited and typed Assassin in New Marl City Chapters 30, 32, and 33 in August of 2018. Reviewed Chapters 34, 35, and 36 in September and plan to finish the review next.

The first draft of Assassin in New Marl City was complete at 99981 words in July of 2018. Decided to cut six chapters to use in book #2 and write two new chapters to end up with about 88000 words in book #1. I wrote the new Chapter 5 in September. New Chapter 10 to be written next.

Edited Chapter One of Assassin in New Marl City and submitted it to Pitch Wars on 08-28-18. Results announced on October 12th. I was not picked

Completed and submitted a Query letter and a synopsis to Pitch Wars on 08-28-18. I was not picked.

The stories 4 Humours, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, Get to the Point, and LARP Film Noir have been submitted to magazines.

Statistics of magazine submissions for 2018 are; 0 different stories submitted a total of 0 times with 0 accepted, 0 pending, and 0 rejections.

Events from September 2018

Not able to attend the Baltimore Book Festival in Baltimore, Maryland on September 28 through September 30, 2018.

ot able to attend the Capclave conference in Gaithersburg, Maryland on September 28 through September 30, 2018. I attended the conference in 2016 and would like to return next year.

Writing Goals for October 2018

Plan to write 4 blog posts for garydavidgillen.com.

Write the second of two new chapters for Assassin in New Marl City. It will be the new Chapter 10.

Type the edits for Assassin in New Marl City Chapters 34, 35, and 36 in October 2018.

Edit Chapters 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 of Assassin in New Marl City using comments from the Advanced Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio.

Polish and submit the stories Sleeping Sickness, Space-Dog Confession, White Bracer, Mage Squad, I Shall Not Return, Prisoner of Tarnal, and Kay-Eye for submission to short fiction magazines.

I submitted Grognard to my writing group. I will take the feedback gained and revise the story so it can be submitted to magazines again.

Submit 4 Humours, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, and LARP Film Noir to other short fiction magazines.

Edit Searcher of Riven.

Hire an editor for Searcher of Riven from Fiveer.

Edit Ruins of Yarnud.

Hire an editor for Ruins of Yarnud from Fiveer.

Put the novel, Assassin in New Marl City, into the writing program, Scrivener.

Purchase e-book covers for Searcher of Riven and Ruins of Yarnud from Fiveer.

Purchase an e-book cover for Assassin in New Marl City from Fiveer.

Planned Events for October 2018

My next scheduled event is the Indy Writer’s Conference in Parma, Ohio on October 13, 2018, which is held by the Cuyahoga County Library.

Link to website of Cuyahoga County Library

https://cuyahogalibrary.org/

Links

Link to Writing Progress Report for September 2018

Writing Progress Report for September 2018

Red Prophet by Orson Scott Card

Red Prophet by Orson Scott Card.

Red Prophet by Orson Scott Card, Tales of Alvin Maker Book #2

Introduction

Alvin Miller is the seventh son of a seventh son which gives him special powers in this alternate history tale of America set in 1811 during the time around the historical battle of Tippecanoe. In this series, each of the important characters of European ancestry possesses a folklore talent called a knack. The Indians in the series have a connection to the land which helps them survive and prosper. The Indian way is threatened by the arrival of the settlers. Alvin is a bridge between Americans and the Indians. He must heal the land and broker a compromise, or the Americans and Indians will perish in a destructive war.

Summary

Historical figures are transformed into characters who may or may not resemble their real selves. The American characters keep their historical names like William Henry Harrison, Mike Fink, Andrew Jackson, and Napoleon Bonaparte. The Indian characters have transformed names like Ta-Kumsaw (Tecumseh) and his brother Lolla-Wossiky (Tensquatawa) aka the prophet. Locations also have transformed names like the Hio territory (Ohio), the Wobbish territory (Indiana), and Carthage City (Harrison’s fort at the crossing of Ohio and the Greater Miami rivers).

The main plot involves three characters. Harrison wants to take over the Indian territory of Wobbish and open it to settlers. Ta-Kumsaw wants to fight the Americans and wipe them out to send them back to Europe. Lolla-Wossiky prefers a path of non-violent resistance and builds an Indian town called Prophetstown. The three clash and young Alvin, through his Indian-like talent powered by the strength of the land, try to solve the problem. Through his efforts, Alvin earned the name Alvin Maker.

Recommendation

I wanted to read this novel because I recently read an excerpt novella named Carthage City published in the September 1987 issue of Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine. I wrote a post on purchasing the missing 60 issues I didn’t have from Spring 1977 to March 2014 in this post titled Asimov Collection. The novella covered the story about the character named Hooch Palmer. It was the only section of the novel that did not involve Alvin.

I was interested in the background information and the magical system, so I bought a copy of the novel. I liked the novel. The only aspect of the novel I didn’t like was the narrative of bad American who is not of the land versus the noble savage Indians who are of the land. I took it as satire, over-exaggeration to prove a point about not thinking through actions. With that perspective, I would like to read the other five novels in the series.

Links

Red Prophet by Orson Scott Card.

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Red Prophet by Orson Scott Card.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7968.Red_Prophet

A book that shares some similarities to Red Prophet is Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin. Red Prophet is an alternate history where nature magic exists in America. Fevre Dream is a historical fantasy set in the past in America where vampire/werewolves come to America from Europe. The link to Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin is linked below.

Fevre Dream by George R. R. Martin

Cleveland Writing Workshop 2018

Cleveland Writing Workshop 2018

Introduction

I attended the Cleveland Writing Workshop on July 14, 2018, at the Holiday Inn 6001 Rockside Road Independence, Ohio 44131. The Cleveland Writing Workshop was a one-day event conducted by Writing Day Workshops who present workshops across the county throughout the year.

Summary Beginning

The day began in the large meeting room which had space for over 100 attendees. The presenter was Brian A. Klems who gave four talks during the day. He was the senior online editor for WritersDigest.com. He wrote the parenting guide for fathers called Oh Boy, You’re Having a Girl which is linked below.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16219954-oh-boy-you-re-having-a-girl

There was also a writer’s got talent panel. There were three other opportunities available for writers for an added fee. The extras were a query letter critique, a critique of the first ten pages of an author’s novel, and opportunities to pitch a novel to up to seven different agents. Before the workshop, I sent off my query letter, the first ten pages of my novel, and signed up for two pitches. I will write about my experiences at the workshop.

Summary Session One

The first session by Brian A. Klems was titled A Bird’s Eye View: Publishing and Books in the Year 2018. He discussed the three ways for an author to get published. They are traditionally by using an agent, by a university press not using an agent, and by self-publishing. In traditional publishing, the author gets an advance, but the marketing is mostly done by the author. In self-publishing, the author controls everything, but it’s difficult to get your books into bookstores.

Summary Session Two

The second session was also given by Brian A. Klems about 15 Tips on How to Write Like the Pros. There was a handout on the topic. Advice highlights were to avoid prologues, avoid information dumps and edit ruthlessly (kill your darlings).

Break

We had an hour-long break for lunch. I reviewed the information I had for the three meetings I had in the afternoon. Ten minutes before the meetings I left the main hall and waited at the queue for the meetings held in the meeting room. There were eight tables for the seven agents and an editor in the meeting room. The meetings were all ten minutes long and when they were completed; I returned to the main hall to attend the session in progress.

Summary Session Three

After the lunch break, they presented a panel on Writer’s Got Talent–A Chapter One Critique Fest. Five of the seven agents that took pitches were on the panel. At check-in at the beginning of the workshop, authors submitted the first page of their novel if they wanted. I did not. I had taken part in a similar panel at a different conference. The author’s names were not on the page, only the genre identification. Brian A. Klems read the submissions. During the reading, the agents raised their hand when they knew the writing did not work for them. When three agents passed, Brian stopped reading. At the end of the reading, the agents stated why they passed or why they liked the submission. I heard 14 submissions (But not all of them. I had a meeting during the session). Brian read only a few all the way to the end.

Summary Session Four

The next session was by Brian A. Klems about 25 Questions You Need Answered BEFORE You Seek an Agent or Self-Publish Your Book. There was a handout about the questions. Highlights were if you want to get published traditionally then you need an agent, you get an agent by submitting queries and a synopsis to them, and building a platform is becoming necessary for successful authors.

Summary Session Five

The next session was by Brian A. Klems about 25 Questions You Need Answered AFTER You Seek an Agent or Self-Publish Your Book. There was a handout about the questions. Highlights were Amazon reviews are extremely important, build a platform, and stick to it.

Activities

There were four activities I did at the workshop.

I sent a copy of my example query letter to Brian A. Klems before the conference. He e-mailed a detailed critique of the query letter to me. The insights he gave were excellent. I have improved my query letter based on his comments.

I sent the first ten pages of my novel, Assassin in New Marl City to editor Ricki Schultz before the conference. We had a ten-minute meeting where she gave me a written critique of the pages and we discussed the pages. Her comments helped me clarify what I was trying to do with those first pages and setting up my story. Her critique was helpful and the changes I made to the chapter made it better.

During the Workshop, I had a meeting with agent Cyle Young. We talked about what he was looking for in clients and about my novel. He suggested that I update my picture on Facebook/Twitter (I did), use SEO for my blog (I haven’t done it, but I should), and to send him a proposal (I did). I went to his website, wrote a proposal from his specifications, and submitted my proposal after the conference. It was not a fit for him, but I learned valuable lessons about writing and submitting a query. I also learned the importance of developing a platform from him.

During the Workshop, I had a meeting with agent Gabrielle Piraino. It was not a fit. I learned that sometimes an agent and a writer do not mesh and that’s okay. It’s about finding the right match and that is why it will take many queries to find the right one for me.

Conclusion

The Cleveland Writing Workshop 2018 was interesting and useful. I am glad I took the time and the effort to take part in the added activities offered. When the workshop returns next year, I will consider attending again. I will be a better writer then and will be readier to understand what it will take to be successful.

Links

Cleveland Writing Workshop 2018

I also attended the Marcon Conference from May 11 to May 13, 2018, at the Hyatt Regency in Columbus, Ohio. It is an SF conference, while Inkubator is a literary conference. My review of Marcon is linked below.

Marcon Conference 2018