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PenguiCon Detroit 2024 Conference Recap

PenguiCon Detroit 2024 Conference Recap

Introduction

I attended the SF conference named PenguiCon at 1275 South Huron Street Ypsilanti, Michigan at the Ann Arbor Marriott, Ypsilanti at Eagle Crest from April 26, 2024, to April 28, 2024. I attended the opening ceremonies, three panels, and one author reading. This year’s theme was Open Source.

This is a link to the Con website.

This is my badge for PenguiCon Detroit 2024.

PenguiCon Detroit 2024 Conference Recap

Summary

PenguiCon Detroit 2024 Conference Recap

Friday, April 26th at 6 PM

Welcome to PenguiCon Opening Ceremonies:

[Insert Summary Here]

They held the opening ceremonies in Auditorium 1 with 40 attendees.

Saturday, April 27th at 10 AM

Panel on The Good, The Bad, and The Yikes with Ericka Kahler and Michael W. Lucas:

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in Salon II with 16 attendees.

Saturday, April 27th at 11 AM

Panel on How I Make a Living Writing with Michael W. Lucas:

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in Salon IV with 8 attendees.

Saturday, April 27th at 12 PM

Reading with Author E.M. Anderson:

[Insert summary here]

They held the reading in the Elizabeth Ann A room with 4 attendees.

Saturday, April 27th at 1 PM

Demonstration: Fun With Chemistry with Professor X and Lady Ana

Unfortunately, the presenters couldn’t make it, so the demonstration was canceled. I was looking forward to this demonstration because I’m a Chemist and it sounded fun.

They would have had the demonstration in Conference E room with 10 attendees.

Saturday, April 27th at 5 PM

Panel on Write What You Know with E.M. Anderson:

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in the Conference B room with 17 attendees.

Recommendation – Conclusion

I felt the con went well and enjoyed my attendance. My star of the Con was the author E.M. Anderson. They read two chapters from different novels in their author reading and gave insightful comments on their panel about writing. I was looking forward to attending again in 2025, but I have recently heard that it was canceled.

Links

A Con like PenguiCon is the ConFusion Detroit Con. The links to my review of ConFusion Detroit Con that I have attended follows.

This is my post about the SF conference ConFusion in Detroit, Michigan from January 19 to 21, 2024. The theme was the Labyrinth of ConFusion. My star of the con was Author John Scalzi.

In January 2023, I attended the SF conference ConFusion in Detroit, Michigan. I still want to write a post about that.

I attended the SF conference ConFusion in Detroit, Michigan from January 21 to 23, 2022. The theme was Rising ConFusion. My stars of the con were Guest of Honor author Jim C. Hines and Science Guest of Honor Dr. Jordan Steckloff.

I attended the SF conference ConFusion in Detroit, Michigan from January 16 to 19, 2020. I attended four panels, two readings, and one interview. The con theme was How to Train Your ConFusion, based on the movie, How to Train Your Dragon. My star of the con was John Scalzi. He gave an excellent reading of Chapter Two of his upcoming book, The Last Emperox. My other highlights were Kameron Hurley’s interview and the lecture on Edible Insects and Human Evolution. I’ll be back next year.

I attended the SF conference ConFusion in Detroit, Michigan from January 18 to 20, 2019. The con’s theme was Storming the ConFusion, so they chose the areas with names related to the movie The Princess Bride. I had a great drive to Detroit just before the snowstorm came. My star of the con was John Scalzi. He gave an excellent reading and was engaging in the panel I attended. My other highlights were Ada Palmer’s interview and watching The Princess Bride at the con. I’ll be back next year.

Writing Progress Report December 2024

This is my Writing Progress Report December 2024.

I attended the Cleveland Cavaliers basketball game at Rocket Mortgage Field House in Cleveland, Ohio, on November 8, 2024. Cleveland beat Golden State 136 to 117. It was a great game.

Writing Progress from November 2024.

I wrote three blog posts for my website, garydavidgillen.com. One of the posts was my writing progress report for November 2024, which I linked below.

In November 2024, I presented the short story named Kay-Eye to the Advanced Fiction Writing Workshop on a Zoom call.

Writing Progress from November 2024 Continued

I made five posts on my Goodreads account in November 2024.

In the past, I sent the stories; Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, and Grognard to magazines.

The seven Flash Fiction Stories I sent out in 2020 and 2021 were Space-Dog Confession, Sleeping Sickness, Caliburnus, Popular Mechanics Re-brewed, Wormhole Generator, Runs with Scissors, and Principled Rogue.

Magazine submissions for 2021 were 4 unique stories submitted 4 times, with 0 accepted, 0 pending, and 4 rejections. No submissions for 2022. None for 2023. None for 2024.

Events from November 2024.

I attended no events in November 2024

Writing Goals for December 2024.

In December 2024, I plan to write four blog posts for garydavidgillen.com including my Writing Progress Report for December 2024.

We will postpose our Advanced Fiction Writing Workshop until January 2025.

Eventually, I plan to work on third draft edits for Assassin in New Marl City using comments from the Novel Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio. I plan to split Chapter 1 into two chapters and add a scene to the new Chapter 1.

Submit the stories Space-Dog Confession, Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, LARP Film Noir, Sleeping Sickness, Popular Mechanics Re-brewed, and Caliburnus. to other short fiction magazines.

Polish and send the stories White Bracer, Mage Squad, I Shall Not Return, Prisoner of Tarnal, and Kay-Eye for submission to short fiction magazines.

In December 2024, I plan to make five posts on my Goodreads account.

Planned Events for December 2024.

The next conference I plan to attend is ConFusion in Novi, Michigan, from January 23, 2025, to January 26, 2025. The Ann Arbor Science Fiction Association Sponsors ConFusion.

https://2025.confusionsf.org

The con theme next year is Monumental since this is the 50th Confusion.

Western Reserve Writers Conference 2024

Western Reserve Writers Conference 2024

Introduction

I attended the 39th annual Western Reserve Writers Conference 2024 on March 23, 2024. They held the Conference at the South Euclid-Lyndhurst branch of the Cuyahoga County Public Library at the William N. Skirball writer’s center at the branch. It was a one-day event with an introduction, a keynote speaker, three breakout sessions, and one first-page critique panel.

Western Reserve Writers Conference 2024

This is the link to the Cuyahoga County Library.

https://www.cuyahogalibrary.org

This is the link to the writer’s center at the library branch.

https://www.cuyahogalibrary.org/Services/William-N-Skirball-Writers-Center.aspx

Summary

Saturday, March 23rd at 9:30 AM

Welcome and Conference Overview

Deanna R. Adams is the conference coordinator and Laurie Kincer is the librarian in charge of the writer’s center.

Laurie explained how they set up the library, where the three meeting rooms were located, and about the door prizes available at 4 PM. Deanna introduced the keynote speaker, Brandi Larsen.

They held the welcome and conference overview in the meeting room A/B/C with about 100 attendees.

Saturday, March 23rd at 9:45 AM

Keynote Speaker: What’s Best for Your Writing Right Now.

The keynote speaker was Brandi Larsen, the 2024 Cuyahoga County Public Library Writer in Residence. She is a writer, speaker, and a writing coach.

She talked about sharing how to weave in the threads of community, craft, and commerce to bring more joy and inspiration into your writing (and encourage you to approach the writing desk with confidence).

  1. Craft: The big questions. Can you get to the page? Figure out your writing style alignment. What is your why? Can you communicate what you wish? Can you finish what you start?
  2. Community: The world needs your work. We need each other. Find your people. Showing up matters. Books are loved into life.
  3. Commerce: What do you want for your writing? Are you ready for your writing to become a product?

They held the talk in the meeting room A/B/C with about 100 attendees.                                                                                                                

Saturday, March 23rd at 11:30 AM

Breakout Session: Self-Editing Tips for Writers of all kinds.

The presenter was Rebecca Ferlotti. She is an editor.

You must self-edit your work first before you even consider sending your work to an editor. So, why do you hate editing? Whatever you do, don’t stop writing to read between the lines. Read the story out loud to change your headspace. Print out the story and cut it to edit it. When you read, keep in mind detail deficits and places to pare down your writing. Also consider continuity issues, word choices and grammatical errors. Final advice: complete your first draft before your first edit.

You can find Rebecca Ferlotti at the following website.

They held the talk in the writer’s center meeting room with about 45 attendees.

Recommendation – Conclusion

I enjoyed attending the Western Reserve Writers Conference 2024. I also attended the conference in 2019, 2022, and 2023 (they canceled the conference in 2020 and 2021 because of COVID-19). My Star of the Con was Rebecca Ferlotti. She had some brilliant advice for writers who want to self-edit their work.

Links

This is my Recap for the Western Reserve Writers Conference on March 26, 2022, where I attended the introduction, a keynote speaker, and two breakout sessions. The Cuyahoga County Public Library held the conference at the South Euclid-Lyndhurst branch.

I attended the 36th annual Western Reserve Writers Conference on April 27, 2019. They held the Conference at the South Euclid-Lyndhurst branch of the Cuyahoga County Public Library at the William N. Skirball writer’s center at the branch. It was a one-day event with an introduction, a keynote speaker, three breakout sessions, and one first-page critique panel. I attended the introduction, a keynote speaker, and two breakout sessions. I thought The Western Reserve Writers Conference was well run, diverse in the presentations offered, and informative. My Star of the Con was Bree Barton. Her presentation was fun, the exercises were useful, and I liked her personality.

I attended the 34th annual Western Reserve Writers Conference on September 23, 2017. I could not attend last year. This is a link to my review of the 2017 conference.

Conference Recap Cleveland ConCoction 2024

Conference Recap Cleveland ConCoction 2024

Introduction

I attended the SF conference called Cleveland ConCoction at 600 North Aurora Road Aurora, Ohio at the Bertram Inn and Conference Center from March 8 to 10, 2024. I also attended Cleveland ConCoction in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2023. (2020, 2021, and 2022 was canceled due to COVID-19).I attended the opening ceremony, eight panels, two author showcases, and the closing ceremony. This year’s theme was the Neverending dungeon celebrating the 50th anniversary of the release of Dungeons and Dragons game system and the 40th anniversary of the release of the movie The Neverending Story.

ConCoction 2024 Banner

Conference Recap Cleveland ConCoction 2024

ConCoction 2024 Program Guide Cover

[insert program cover]

ConCoction 2024 Badge

[insert badge]

The link to the ConCoction website.

http://www.clevelandconcoction.org/

Bertram Inn and Conference Center

Summary

Friday, March 8 at 2 PM

History of Computing Before Computers, a panel with D. Mark Hayes.

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in the Hayes A Room with 11 attendees.

Friday, March 8 at 3 PM

Write That Novel, a panel with Becca Lynn Mathis and David Wyatt.

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in the Pegasus Room with 9 attendees.

Friday, March 8 at 5 PM

The Opening Ceremonies.

[insert summary here]

They held the ceremonies in the Pegasus Room with 27 attendees.

Friday, March 8 at 6 PM

Author Showcase with Marie Vibbert, Becca Lynn Mathis, Geoffrey Landis, Mary Turillo, and A.S. Ferguson.

[insert summary here]

They held the showcase in the Grant A Room with 4 attendees.

Saturday, March 9 at 10 AM

The Fermi Paradox – The Silurian Hypothesis, a panel with David Wyatt.

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in the Hayes C & D Room with 16 attendees.

Saturday, March 9 at 12 PM

Now What?!, a panel with Becca Lynn Mathis.

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in the Hayes A Room with 3 attendees.

Saturday, March 9 at 2 PM

Author Showcase with Addie King and Rami Ungar.

[insert summary here]

They held the showcase in the Grant A Room with 10 attendees.

Saturday, March 9 at 3 PM

Research and Authenticity in Fiction, a panel with Marcus Cook, David Balrog. A.J. Mathews, and Shannon Eichorn.

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in the Hayes A Room with 14 attendees.

Sunday, March 10 from 10 AM

Melissa Scott talks about whatever she wants, a panel with Melissa Scott.

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in the Grant A Room with 7 attendees.

Sunday, March 10 from 11:30 AM

The Power of Short Fiction, a panel with Marie Vibbert, Rami Ungar, Geoffrey Landis, Evan Graham, and Addie King.

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in the Pegasus Room with 11 attendees.

Sunday, March 10 from 1 PM

Dreamstates, a panel with the band Dreamstates.

[insert summary here]

They held the panel in the Pegasus Room.

Sunday, March 10 from 2 PM

The Closing Ceremonies

[insert summary here]

They held the ceremonies in the Pegasus Room with 35 attendees

Recommendation – Conclusion

This is my Conference Recap Cleveland ConCoction 2024. I had a great experience at Cleveland ConCoction 2024. The Bertram Conference center is nice. I’m glad to be back. My star of the con was Becca Lynn Mathis. I saw her in two panels and in an author showcase. My other highlights were seeing Marie Vibbert and Geoffrey Landis both in a panel and in an author showcase. I’m planning on attending next year.

Links

This is my recap of the SF conference Cleveland ConCoction 2019 at 600 North Aurora Road Aurora, Ohio at the Bertram Inn and Conference Center from March 1 to 3, 2019. I attended the opening ceremony, four panels, and the closing ceremony. I also volunteered in the Programming Department for four hours and in the ConSuite for four hours. This is a link to my conference recap.

I attended the SF conference Cleveland ConCoction at 600 North Aurora Road Aurora, Ohio at the Bertram Inn and Conference Center from March 9, 2018, to March 11, 2018. The 2019 convention was from March 1 to 3, 2019 and I realized as I was writing a recap for that conference, I had not posted a recap for the 2018 conference. This is a recap for the conference from last year. I attended the opening ceremony, five panels, two author showcases, a performance, and the closing ceremony. I also volunteered in the ConSuite for eight hours.

This is my recap for the SF conference Cleveland ConCoction from 2017. They held it from March 10, 2017, to March 12, 2017. Attended nine activities and volunteered in the ConSuite for twelve hours.

End of All Things by John Scalzi

End of All Things by John Scalzi, Book #6 of The Old Man’s War series.

Introduction

End of All Things by John Scalzi is the sixth book in the Old Man’s War series. The book is a series of four interconnected novellas. The Earth, The Colonial Union, and the Conclave face a threat bigger than all of them. Can the Colonial Union save humanity from extinction?

End of All Things by John Scalzi

Summary

They published End of All Things by John Scalzi as a series of four interconnected novellas.

Novella #1 The Life of the Mind. Rafe Daquin is a captured pilot who must discover his circumstances and defeat an unknown threat to reclaim his life.

Novella #2 This Hollow Union. This novella describes the situation in the Conclave.

Novella #3 Can Long Endure. Lieutenant Heather Lee of the Colonial Union faces tough choices in her missions and changes.

Novella #4 To Stand or Fall. Lieutenant Harry Wilson of the Colonial Union narrates the events leading to the potential compromise between the Colonial Union, the Earth, and the Conclave.

The book also has an alternate version of the first novella. It features the same events and characters but has different perspectives and a different ending.

Recommendation

End of All Things by John Scalzi is an interesting continuation of the Old Man’s War series. I liked the alternate version of the first novel. It seemed like this was the last novel of the series, but they plan to publish a sixth novel in 2025. I plan to read it when they release it.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of The End of All Things by John Scalzi.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23168809-the-end-of-all-things

Zoes Tale by John Scalzi is the fourth book in the Old Man’s War series. Zoe Perry tells her side of the story from The Last Colony.

Last Colony by John Scalzi is the third book in the Old Man’s War series. John Perry and his family colonize a new planet. Can he protect the colony, or will it perish, leading to the extermination of humanity?

Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi is the second book in the Old Man’s War series. Jared Dirac is a clone with another man’s memories. He must save humanity from three allied alien races determined to destroy humanity.

Old Man’s War is the first novel in the Old Man’s War series. This is the link to my review.

Fire and Blood by George R R Martin

Fire and Blood by George R R Martin.

Introduction

Fire and Blood by George R R Martin is written like a history written by a contemporary arch maester of the Targaryen dynasty. The fictional history book tells the story of the Targaryen dynasty from the first King Aegon the Conqueror up to the seventh King Aegon III. The Targaryen slogan is Fire and Blood, and fire and blood is found on very page of this book.

Fire and Blood by George R R Martin

Summary

Martin presents the book writing like he is Archmaester Glydayn writing a history using various resource material. Glydayn’s uses the dry dynasty approved story and the writings of Mushroom the Jester for the salacious parts. Martin’s idea for the book started with the 2014 book named The World of Ice and Fire. That book has short versions of the story of the whole dynasty including up to the events of the Song of Ice and Fire series.

Martin published three extended sections of that book in three different anthologies. They published “The Sons of the Dragon” in the 2017 anthology named The Book of Swords. It covered the reigns of the sons of Aegon the first. They published “The Rogue Prince” in the 2014 anthology named Rogues. It was about the reign of Viserys the first. They published “The Princess and the Queen” in the 2013 anthology named Dangerous Women. It was about the Dance of Dragons. HBO adapted this part as the HBO show named House of the Dragon.

Martin revised and expanded the three sections for the Fire and Blood book with some added sections to complete the story. Martin plans to write a second volume of Fire and Blood that will cover the Targaryen rulers after Aegon the third up to the events that begin in the novel named Game of Thrones.

Recommendation

Fire and Blood by George R. R. Martin is an interesting history book of the fictional Targaryen Dynasty. It gives interesting background material to the series. HBO adapted the Dance of Dragons section of the book for the HBO series named House of the Dragon. It provides essential reading for understanding the author’s vision for the events that are depicted in the show.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Fire and Blood by George R. R. Martin.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62805560-fire-blood

In Fevre Dream by George R. R. Martin, Abner Marsh is a Mississippi steamboat captain in 1857. He accepts a dangerous commission in this fantasy featuring vampires.

Writing Progress Report November 2024

This is my Writing Progress Report November 2024.

I attended the Ohio State University football game at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, on October 5, 2024. Ohio State beat Iowa 35 to 7. It was a great game.

Writing Progress from October 2024.

I wrote two blog posts for my website, garydavidgillen.com. One of the posts was my writing progress report for October 2024, which is linked below.

In October 2024, I submitted the short story named Grognard to the Advanced Fiction Writing Workshop on a Zoom call.

Writing Progress from October 2024 Continued

I made five posts on my Goodreads account in October 2024.

In the past, I submitted the stories; Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, and Grognard to magazines.

The seven Flash Fiction Stories I submitted in 2020 and 2021 were Space-Dog Confession, Sleeping Sickness, Caliburnus, Popular Mechanics Re-brewed, Wormhole Generator, Runs with Scissors, and Principled Rogue.

Magazine submissions for 2021 were 4 unique stories submitted 4 times, with 0 accepted, 0 pending, and 4 rejections. No submissions for 2022. None for 2023. None for 2024.

Events from October 2024.

I attended no events in October 2024

Writing Goals for November 2024.

In November 2024, I plan to write four blog posts for garydavidgillen.com including my Writing Progress Report for November 2024.

I plan to work on a story for the Advanced Fiction Writing Workshop on a Zoom call in November 2024.

Eventually, I plan to work on third draft edits for Assassin in New Marl City using comments from the Novel Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio. I plan to split Chapter 1 into two chapters and add a scene to the new chapter 1.

Submit the stories Space-Dog Confession, Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, LARP Film noir, Sleeping Sickness, Popular Mechanics Re-brewed, and Caliburnus. to other short fiction magazines.

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

In November 2024, I plan to make five posts on my Goodreads account.

Planned Events for November 2024.

The next conference I plan to attend is ConFusion in Novi, Michigan, from January 23, 2025, to January 26, 2025. The Ann Arbor Science Fiction Association Sponsors ConFusion.

https://2025.confusionsf.org

The con theme next year is Monumental, since this is the 50th Confusion.

Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan

Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan, Book Eleven of the Wheel of Time series.

Introduction

Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan is the eleventh book of The Wheel of Time series. The novel follows five main plot arcs. Rand, Mat, Perrin, Elayne, and Egwene. All five characters face hard choices and must grow so they can complete the challenges put before them. Will the forces of Light be cut down by the Knife of Dreams?

Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan

Summary – Prologue

The prologue has seven point-of-view characters, and each point of view sets up a plot arc.

Galad is a member of the White Cloaks who duels Eamon Valda for the command of the Children of the Light.

Rodel Ituralde is a general of Amon Domain who fights the Seanchan and sets up a trap for them.

Lady Suroth is Tuon’s subordinate who learns something from a Forsaken that will change the Seanchan situation.

Pevara is a White Tower Aes Sedai charged with discovering any Black Ajah hiding there.

Alvarin is a White Tower Aes Sedai that is working against the order.

Galina is an Aes Sedai enslaved by the Saido at Malden who is trying to escape with Faile’s help.

Egwene was captured by the White Tower Aes Sedai and has been reduced to an Accepted in the order. She has plans to help the rebel Aes Sedai who are sieging the city.

Summary–Groups of characters

Crossroads of Twilight by Robert Jordan has five main plots.

Rand continues to pursue his truce with the Seanchan so they can both focus on defeating the forces of the Dark One rather than each other.

Mat’s group leaves the traveling circus headed to Murandy. He continues to court Tuon. He finds part of the Band of the Red Hand and attacks the Seanchan nearby.

Perrin”s forces attack the Shaido at Malden to free Faile and the other captives.

Elayne continues her siege of Caemlyn and worries about what the Borderland armies camped near the city will do.

Egwene’s rebel forces continue to siege Tar Valon. The White Tower has captured her, and she starts a rebellion from within the Tower.

Summary–Best Plot Points

Nine Chapters stand out in Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan. (There’s so many, It’s a great novel)

At the Garden is Chapter 3 where most of the Forsaken meet and vow to kill Perrin and Mat.

A Village in Shiota is Chapter 10 where the people in Mat’s caravan see ghosts. Thom gives Mat a letter from Moraine that changes everything.

A Hell in Maderin is Chapter 11 where Tuon wants Mat to take her to a rowdy bar. Interesting things happen there and after.

The Golden Crane is Chapter 20 which is split into three parts. The first part is about Rand but the rest is about Nynaeve and Lan. Nynaeve is great here.

Honey in the Tea is Chapter 24 where Egwene starts her war from within at the White Tower. This odd thing is that this is Egwene’s only viewpoint chapter in this novel, though she is features in a part of the prolouge. It’s a great chapter.

A Plain Wodden Box is Chapter 27 which is a split chapter though both section are great. First, Rand goes to a meeting with the Seanchan leader, but unexpected events occur. Then, Mat displays his awesomeness in commanding his army.

Outside the Gates is Chapter 30 where Perrin and Faile’s arc comes to a long simmering conclusion.

The House on Full Moon Street is Chapter 31 where Elayne finds out what Mellar has been up to and tries to do something about it, but faces unexpected consequences.

Prince of Ravens is Chapter 37 where Mat’s plans come to fruition.

Recommendation

Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan resolves several plot arcs that were set up in Winter’s Heart and Crossroads of Twilight. There are big endings with the Perrin, Mat, and Elayne arcs. Rand is still pursuing his truce with the Seanchan and Egwene pursues her siege of the White Tower from within. It’s great to see some of these plots completed. Robert Jordan must have seen the end to the series here. This was the last novel he completed before his untimely death. Brandon Sanderson took Jordan’s notes and some completed scenes to write the three novels that complete the Wheel of Time series. I see Knife of Dreams as a turning point to the endgame coming at the Last Battle, Tarmon Gai’don

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75566796-knife-of-dreams

Review of Crossroads of Twilight by Robert Jordan. Rand, Mat, Perrin, and Egwene get closer to their goals in this novel.

Winters Heart by Robert Jordan has some brilliant scenes but misses conclusions to the plot arcs explored

Review of Path of Daggers by Robert Jordan. When Rand fights the Seanchan, will they defeat him, or will he win across the Path of Daggers?

This is the link to my review of Crown of Swords by Robert Jordan. When Rand forces the hand of one of the Forsaken, will the Forsaken defeat him or will he earn a Crown of Swords?

This is the link to my review of Lord of Chaos by Robert Jordan, Book Six of the Wheel of Time. Chaos reigns in the Westlands. They push Rand to the edge of insanity. Will he survive the box?

This is the link to my review of Fires of Heaven by Robert Jordan, Book Five of the Wheel of Time.

This is the link to my review of Shadow Rising by Robert Jordan, Book Four of the Wheel of Time.

This is the link to my review of Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan, Book three of the Wheel of Time.

This is the link to my review of Great Hunt by Robert Jordan, Book two of the Wheel of Time.

This is the link to my review of Eye of the World by Robert Jordan, Book one of the Wheel of Time.

Writing Progress Report October 2024

This is my Writing Progress Report October 2024.

I attended Jeff Lynne’s ELO concert at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio, on September 14, 2024. It was a fabulous show.

Writing Progress from September 2024.

I wrote two blog posts for my website, garydavidgillen.com. One of the posts was my writing progress report for September 2024, which is linked below.

In September 2024, I submitted Explosion at Moon Base Alpha to the Advanced Fiction Writing Workshop on a Zoom call.

Writing Progress from September 2024 Continued

I made five posts on my Goodreads account in September 2024.

In the past, I submitted the stories; Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, and Grognard to magazines.

The seven Flash Fiction Stories I submitted in 2020 and 2021 were Space-Dog Confession, Sleeping Sickness, Caliburnus, Popular Mechanics Re-brewed, Wormhole Generator, Runs with Scissors, and Principled Rogue.

Magazine submissions for 2021 were 4 unique stories submitted 4 times, with 0 accepted, 0 pending, and 4 rejections. No submissions for 2022. None for 2023.

Events from September 2024.

I attended no events in September 2024

Writing Goals for October 2024.

In October 2024, I plan to write four blog posts for garydavidgillen.com including my Writing Progress Report for October 2024.

I plan to work on a story for the Advanced Fiction Writing Workshop on a Zoom call in October 2024.

Eventually, I plan to work on third draft edits for Assassin in New Marl City using comments from the Novel Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio. I plan to split Chapter 1 into two chapters and add a scene to the new chapter 1.

Submit the stories Space-Dog Confession, Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, LARP Film noir, Sleeping Sickness, Popular Mechanics Re-brewed, and Caliburnus. to other short fiction magazines.

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

In October 2024, I plan to make five posts on my Goodreads account.

Planned Events for October 2024.

The next conference I plan to attend is ConFusion in Novi, Michigan, from January 23, 2025, to January 26, 2025. The Ann Arbor Science Fiction Association Sponsors ConFusion.

https://2025.confusionsf.org

The con theme this year is Monumental, since this is the 50th Confusion.

Komarr by Lois McMaster Bujold

Komarr by Lois McMaster Bujold, Book #11 of the Vorkosigan saga.

Introduction

Komarr by Lois McMaster Bujold is the eleventh novel of the Vorkosigan saga. The Emperor of Barrayar sends Miles as his Imperial Auditor to find out how the Komarr terraforming mirror was destroyed. Miles discovers plots against him as the son of the Butcher of Komarr and other terrorist plots.  He must disentangle the various plots with the help of Ekaterina Vorsoisson. Can Miles save Komarr from itself or will the planet fall into anarchy?

Komarr by Lois McMaster Bujold

Summary

[Insert Summary Here]

Recommendation

[Insert Recommendation Here]

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Komarr by Lois McMaster Bujold.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61884.Komarr

In Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold, death will not stop Miles Vorkosigan, but his boss Simon Illyan has an illness that might end Miles’s career. Can Miles figure out what happened to Illyan and what he should do about it before it’s too late?

In Ethan of Athos by Lois McMaster Bujold, Dr. Ethan Urquhart must discover what happened to unusable ovarian samples. Will Ethan go off the planet, risk being corrupted, and solve the mystery of the unusable samples, or will he doom Athos by doing nothing?

In Cetaganda by Lois McMaster Bujold, they send Miles Vorkosigan and his cousin Ivan to Cetaganda on a diplomatic mission. Miles becomes involved in a complex mystery. Will Miles foil the plot to destroy Cetaganda and save his home planet of Barrayar?

In The Vor Game by Lois McMaster Bujold, they accused Miles Vorkosigan of treason. Will Miles play The Vor Game well enough to escape the treason charges made against him and secure the assignment he desires?

In Warriors Apprentice (Book #2 of the Vorkosigan Saga) by Lois McMaster Bujold, Miles Vorkosigan gets involved in another planet’s war. Can he escape the mischief he started?

Links (Continued)

In Barrayar (Book#7 of the Vorkosigan saga) by Lois McMaster Bujold, Lady Cordelia Vorkosigan faces an assassination and the birth of her son. Will she survive the regency and give birth to her son?

In Shards of Honor (Book#1 of the Vorkosigan saga) by Lois McMaster Bujold, Barrayaran Captain Aral Vorkosigan takes Betan Commander Cordelia Naismith as a prisoner. They take a hike in the jungle. What happens when they fall in love?

In Falling Free (Book #4 of the Vorkosigan saga) by Lois McMaster Bujold, space engineer Leo Graf must decide between retiring or risking his life protecting his students. The novel is a fun, self-contained space opera romp.