E-haa!

E-book sales up; mass market down.

According to the Publishers Weekly June Sales Report, e-book sales rose a staggering 204 percent while mass market paperbacks dropped nearly 15 percent.

At Random House, profits doubled in the first half of the business year with a 300 percent rise in e-book sales - helped by the international bestsellers of Stieg Larsson. And Borders has announced a drop in sales from bookstores, but a rise in online orders.

Other publishers have also reported increases in online and e-book sales.

Customers are moving to immediacy with their reading and publishing companies are cashing in - those who have recognised the shift in customer trends, that is.

The e-book publishing industry allows for profits on all sides: cheaper production costs for publishers, larger income for authors and cheaper, faster receipt of books for customers. But negotiations are still on-going within the industry on how to divide the incomes. And while those negotiations keep the lawyers busy, customers are happily downloading and reading the latest in books.

Everyone but readers are playing catch up, mainly because they are the driving force behind the industry. So many books are published each year, that readers can be more discerning in their choices - and it is that choice, e-book or traditional, that dictates the direction of the industry. And the direction is electronic.

The paperless society is on its way.

Back in the trenches

Right then. I've spent the weekend editing Huntress: Unbreakable.

By golly, it has some dark moments and I wonder what black mood I was in when I wrote those scenes. I'm not deleting them - they portray a character who never had a moral compass; there are equally dark exploratory scenes and scenes of redemption. Thankfully, I came across some amusement, too, but I think it needs a hit or two more of Joss Whedon-ness. Oh, God, oh, God, we're all gonna die? Heh, heh, I love Firefly.

Does the end fulfil the promise of the first book? Yes, although some peeps might not think so and I've left the option open to write a fourth book or more. Nano, anyone?

For now, I'll set it aside for a few weeks and work on a couple of others. I'm not very good at queries or synopses and I need the practice. I also need to pack this lot off to agents - bidding war anyone? Hah! Kidding... sort of.

I need to work on something else, so... I'm off to work on something else!

Storm Troopers

A Jedi and someone lining up for the most excellent coffee. I'm also guessing that in a galaxy far, far away, even Storm Troopers need caffeine.

Carving and trimming

I guess it's better to write too much than not enough. Apropos the editorial panels I attended at Worldcon, I know I need much harsher editing on the books I intended to pitch (no pitching allowed, dammit!).

The panels emphasised the potential of an author, not necessarily perfect grammar and spelling, but I can't help but disagree. As an author, you need to make your manuscript as perfect as possible, as well as have a story with potential.

Perfection isn't attainable, but making your manuscript the best it can be, is attainable.

Now I have to go off and carve out 20k on each manuscript; simply tightening the language - getting rid of adverbs, for example - may not be enough. I'll have to trim off a sub-plot in each, shorten paragraphs and sentences, maybe delete a character or two, all without messing with the over-arching main plots.

Doable. Must be doable, actually, if I'm to submit to an agent.

And at least I won't be padding the work, but making it more concise with some judicious line edits.

Sigh.

Dream Called Time by S.L. Viehl

This is the final book in the long-running series about the bio-construct, Dr Cherijo Torin.

Cherijo is shocked to discover she is missing five years of her life to an alternate personality, the aggressive, knife-wielding Akkabarran, Jarn. Worse, she is heartbroken that her husband, Duncan Reever, loved Jarn, not her and that daughter Marel mourns the loss of Jarn.

What’s a bio-construct to do but leave love behind and jaunt to a Rift in space that catapults her and the crew back a few million years?

Then everything she thought she knew about her father, Maggie and the black crystal changes.

This book is action-packed from the first page. I might even say ‘manic’ as the end of the series closes in. Cherijo is slowly regaining her memories of the fateful day she disappeared and why Jarn appeared. She’s also dealing with the rejection of Duncan, the distance of her daughter and Xonea’s obsession with her. The rift ship and intriguing crystal also needs resolution and when Maggie turns up to warn her not to go on the mission, Cherijo tells her where to go.

Cherijo turns to medicine when her private life falls into a heap – an alter-formed Hsktskt, PyrsVar who wants to return to Hsktskt form, presents a unique challenge to her.

Throughout the series, Cherijo has been physically and mentally tortured – how much can an immortal bear without going mad? Quite a bit, although a lot of the pain is through memories and realisations, of putting the complete story together.

I dislike Reever, since he is the cause for the majority of Cherijo’s anguish. He’s had plenty of time to learn human emotion, and he turns into an SOB in this book, too, but I guess you don’t get to choose whom you love. His one redeeming feature is that he stood by her, but even that was for selfish reasons.

The ending was appropriate and tied up all the threads: who her father is, who Maggie is, the secret of the black crystal and how to get rid of it.

The book keeps moving, with carefully laid clues, and after nine books of adventure, emotional distress and physical torment, Cherijo deserves the peace she finds.

I doubt Ms Viehl is finished with the Stardoc universe, it's too well formed and has the most interesting characters.

This is most definitely a re-readable series and worthwhile for anyone who enjoys medical science fiction.

De-conning

Home at last. The South Coast area got wrecked by near cyclonic winds on Saturday night. Driving down the mountains I saw the trees and branches littering both sides of the road. Obviously, the SES crews worked hard to clear the debris and re-open the roads, but the street lights are still out - all darkity-darkness. And I thought the excitement was northern Victoria with the massive flooding. I've spent some time today cleaning up the backyard and mourning the loss of my newly planted tomatoes.

Worldcon was great. Even though not one of the works I voted on won any Hugos; but Seanan McGuire won the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Author. I was so intrigued by Rosemary and Rue, I've ordered the books - since I couldn't find them in any of the book stores I visited.

Best moment of the Con: listening to John Berlyne of the Zeno Literary Agency speak of all the right things I've done so far. Confirmation, really, that I'm another step closer to publication.

Worst moment of the Con: Having the opportunity to ask Ginjer Buchanan of Penguin, USA, a question and having a total brain freeze; I felt like an overwhelmed fan! I finally got the question out and tried to ignore my burning ears. Lovely woman didn't bat an eyelid at my sudden silence.

Awed moment: the WETA digital presentation. Their artwork and CGI is amazing; I wish I could do stuff like that, but given the amount of work, I shall simply admire from afar.

Most fun moment: the Baen Travelling Slideshow - maybe because I picked up a couple of book covers and CDs with buckets of books on them. I don't when I'll have the time to read them all!

Metaphor moment: the Vampire versus Zombie Smackdown! I had no idea that vampires were a metaphor for the elite class, shape-shifters were the middle class and zombies were the proletariat - the unwashed, uneducated masses. My argument? One wooden stake and it's over for the vampire; but it's not even an 'owie' for a zombie. As for metaphors, well, I don't look any deeper than whether a story is entertaining or not.

Quote of the Con: Cathrynne M. Valente - "Screaming is a poor character trait".

And so the convention is over. I really hope it won't be another ten years before it returns, but I fear just that given all those countries vying for the privilege. Then again, it might give me the opportunity to travel to other countries to attend; and maybe as a guest if I work hard enough and I get published.

I left the convention feeling more optimistic, more determined and more inspired to get it right. I've even worked out what to write for Nano...

Work and Play

I think people design conventions to squeeze as much energy out of participants as possible. Not that it's a bad thing, of course, it's been highly entertaining.

This morning I started with The Problems with First Contact with Sean McMullen, Dave Freer and Mark L. Olson. It was more a comparative argument, for example, using the affect colonial explorers had on Pacific Islanders as an example. Then there was Editing the Novel, an hour-long explanation of how professional editors deal with manuscripts - not much new there - followed by Has Hollywood Sucked the Vampire Dry? Marianne De Pierres, Lara Morgan, Kirstyn McDermott and Catherynne M. Valente dissected the genre at large - and not one mention of LKH.

Catherynne, I think, summed up what's wrong with the supposed 'kick ass heroine': "Screaming is a poor character trait." Yet, a number of popular characters seem to let rip with an ear-piercing wail.

The Secret Life of Literary Agents wasn't so secret; bottom line: research the agents and abide by what they want you to do in the submission process.

At last, mid-afternoon came along with Norman Cates' WETA Digital Presentation. It was just so totally AWESOME!!! Norman gave us an insight into how those amazing effects are made on Avatar, LOTR, The Lovely Bones and others WETA has been involved with.

The final event on my schedule was a Boxcutters podcast conversation with Dr Who writers, Rob Shearman and Paul Cornell, and John Richards. A very funny end to the day.

Tomorrow, the Convention comes to an end, but still a full day. I am so looking forward to the Vampire vs Zombie Smackdown! Not sure who I'll be supporting - they both have big 'ick' factors.

Tip of the day: really make sure your takeaway coffee lid is secure (how can it happen twice??)

Lots of shinies...

Today started off with Copyright in the 21st Century, although it was more a discussion of copyright, with examples, than the future of copyright. Cory Doctorow, Patrick Nielson Hayden, Andrew Adams, Ian Nichols and Bill Sutton were as bracing as a shot of espresso in their discourse.

I now have a list of books to hunt down following The best SF novels you have never read; whether I can find them, well, I’ll be haunting the second-hand bookstores. Authors like Kevin Brockmeyer, Peter Watts, Raphael Carter and Jasper Fforde’s The Eyre Affair.

Then it was on to How To Pitch (without the option to pitch anything, so there went that plan). Penguin editor, Ginjer Buchanan, Agent John Berlyne, Simon Spanton from Gollancz and writer Rowena Cory Daniels laid it all out in the simplest terms possible. It was nice to know exactly how to pitch and that I’m on the right track. All I have to do is hunt down the submission requirements.

I met up with Emeraldfin (from Pecked By Ducks fame) and Drama Duck *waves* and we took ourselves off to The writer and the audience: online interaction and public personae. With social networking, I figured it was important to differentiate between public profile and private life – and to avoid one leaking into the other. Who knew Peter V Brett was an introvert? I can totally relate.

The final event we went to was Writing in Trilogies with Trudi Canavan, Fiona MacIntosh, Russell Fitzpatrick and Glenda Larke. Of interest was the difference between agent/editors in Australia and the US/UK markets and what they want from new authors – and the reasons why. For example, if you can write a trilogy, here in Australia, it’s considered a good thing because it shows consistency and that, as a writer, you’re capable of finishing what you start. In the northern hemisphere, you’ve got to sell the first book before the next two are considered – which I imagine makes the job of getting published that much harder.

A most instructive day. Even had a bit of a one-on-one chat with Ginjer Buchanan - although I think she wanted to be left in peace since she was on her lonesome. No badgering on my behalf, I just asked how she liked Australia.

Oh, and my tip for today: always make sure the lid on your takeaway coffee is secure.

Ooo, shiney! Ooo, kitty! Ooo, is that...?

I’m ‘zawsted, positively wrecked. And it’s only day two.

Day one was me awake at 4.30am, running around making sure I had everything for a 6.30 am flight to Melbourne. Then, locating the hotel – close to Spencer Street Station, cool. Ibis, for those who care and they were nice enough to have a room ready at 8.30 in the am.

So. I dump my gear and go off exploring. And did way too much of it; about five hours worth. The knees weren’t terribly happy with me by the time I sat down. Anyone who’s had knee problems will know what I mean when I say they were twitching.

First up, Minotaurs in Space Helmets: using myth in science fiction. For most of it, I thought I’d dropped into an alternate reality – lots of existentialism. But two things resonated: that Norse mythology doesn’t have dark-skinned gods, nor to African mythology have white-skinned deities. The other thing was the similarity in primitive myths, but if you ask about ‘foundation’ myths, as if there’s something lacking if your culture doesn’t have one, then one will be created – true or not. It bears more consideration.

If You Wrote It, They’d Never Believe It was also interesting, if only because one of four panellists turned up. Jonathon Walker, a WorldCon newbie, did an admirable job keeping the crowd entertained, while constantly glancing at the door hoping, nay praying someone else would arrive.

After that, I considered myself trashed and went back to the hotel for an early night.

So, today. The knees seem fine, but I know they’re lulling me into a false sense of security. I started the panels with What We Publish followed by Keeping Pace: maintaining momentum and The Baen Travelling Slideshow (with Prizes!) I really enjoyed it – especially grabbing two cds of books I haven't read yet. The awkward moment came courtesy of David Freer whom Toni Weiskopff announced was now an Australia citizen. Dave felt the need to lean over the microphone and say ‘G’day’... poorly. The Americans cheered and applauded; the Aussies sat in embarrassed silence.

It’s a cultural thing.

Last thing of the day was an entertaining hour of In Conversation with Seanan McGuire and Catherynne M Valenta.

It’s been busy and a lot of fun. So since I manage to hunt down (and I do mean hunt, I can’t tell you how many bookstores I searched) a copy of S.L. Viehl’s Dream Called Time, I’m going to put my feet up. Gotta 'nother busy one tomorrow.

Last minute

I'm printing stuff - synopses, first three chapters - while trying to remember everything I have to take with me. So of course not only is the laptop making strange noises, I'm about to run out of ink. *sigh* I might have to finish printing in Canberra.

I know I'll forget to pack something - doesn't everyone? - but anything I do forget, I should be able to buy in Melbourne. I have a mental checklist which I know I'm suppose to write down. It's busy up there in my head, with visions of the last WorldCon I went to, the weather, what clothes to take, not forgetting the mobile phone recharger or the camera or the wireless thingie, recalling the lecture on safety since I'm there on my lonesome, planning the drive, wondering if I've got enough money, the panels I'm attending, who to see, what-to-do-when-to-get-there-did-I-pack-the-alarm-clock?

Life's full of challenges, both great and small. I need to relax, but it's a bit early for a glass of vino. Deep breath. Okay. I'll be posting while at WorldCon, and if I remember the camera lead, posting some photos, too.

Countdown

Monday. It's Monday already. On Wednesday, I drive up to Canberra to catch a flight down to Melbourne unspeakably early on Thursday.

And I think I've worn myself out already. The old 'I'm ready' and the 'I'm not ready' have been fighting so much I'm at the 'not caring' stage.

Still, today and tomorrow I plan to finish the synopses, edit the synopses, print six copies of the synopses and first three chapters - then worry some more. The Pitch is on Saturday, so I can enjoy the two previous days events - oh, and get in some genealogy on Thursday. Excellent!

The first place I'll be heading to is the Dealer's Room. Dream Called Time (weird title) by S.L. Viehl, is available from the Galaxy Bookshop who will have a table. YAY! Sure beats my local book store who said it wouldn't be here until October. Nyah, nyah!

So, I must away to work and suppress the squealy fan-girl moments. No doubt panic will set in eventually, followed by the 'get over yourself' chastisement.

Meanwhile, back in Hell...

I'm currently touring the Seventh Circle of Writer's Hell; such a fun place after the previous levels, which are:

1. Finding a story arc that will last 100,000 words;
2. Creating the characters that won't burn because they're cardboard;
3. Sitting down and writing the epic, no-way-it-can't-be-published tome;
4. Not being terribly smug about finishing the work and dreaming of bigger things;
5. Editing - nuff said.
6. Trying not to succumb to 'this is shite' and tossing the work, this is where Demons are wrestled;
7. Compressing 100,000 words into a few pages of a SYNOPSIS;
8. This is a secret level - I think it's the anxiety-ridden level of pitching to an agent or editor.

Below these levels are the Doors Of Fate:

Rejection 1 - Beyond this door lies the busy streets of giving up, there's so much more you could be doing, like a nine-to-five desk job and regular pay cheque;
Rejection 2 - Your own computer where you need to sit and revise, again;
Rejection 3 - The internet where you decide you'll post your work anyway, because obviously those pinhead editors and agents don't know a brilliant piece of genius if it smacked upside the head;
Acceptance 1 - A smiling agent who can sell your work if you adjust the manuscript to fit the genre, and the protagonist to be a bit more... sparkly, or sexy, or mysterious, or tattooed, or...;
Acceptance 2 - An office, with a contract set squarely between two slush piles;
Acceptance 3 - A crowd of cheering fans, holding out your book for an autograph, author peers applauding, film producers offering money for the rights, Hugh Jackman offering you the Hugo, the Golden Dagger, the Booker, the Nobel Prize for Literature... mmm... Hugh...

So, anyway, synopsis writing. In between writing the sucker, I'm trolling the 'net for hints. I've downloaded some articles, but I think it comes down to practice.

It's hot here on the seventh level, but I think if I keep sweating away at this last piece, I'll give myself the opportunity to hit the eighth level next week. And who knows? Maybe I'll face the doors and one will be open.

Storyboarding

While skimming the latest e-mail from Writers Digest today, I came across 4 Ways to Improve Narrative Drive in Your Story, by historical novelist, Sara Sheridan.

What leapt out at me was thinking of your story in a storyboard format, like a graphic novel, a comic book. I'm a visual writer, I see the scenes unfold in my mind as I write them, like a film. That means everything is written, even the stuff the readers doesn't need to know about. It's why editing is such a pain for me. What do I keep and what do I cut? What could I expand on and what doesn't quite fit?

But storyboarding... I'm not an artist - in no way, shape or form can I draw - but to create squares with a few words in them so I can visualise, or better yet, search the web for the images I need, that sounds like a plan.

According to Ms Sheridan, it's a great way to see if your story is balanced. Can you imagine a comic book with squares and squares of scenery rather than action or meaningful dialogue?

I can already imagine the opening sequence of my current WIP in comic-book format. It might seem like doubling my workload, but if storyboarding smooths out the rough edges, then it's another useful item in the writer's toolbox.

I think I'll go play with the shiny new toy, if only for the first three chapters. Maybe it will make writing the synopsis easier.

Now I can plan...

The Aussiecon program is now posted, so I can sort out what and whom to see. Go, look and be jellus!

There's the 'work' stuff, Pitching the Novel, Editing the Novel, How to Review, The Secret Life of Literary Agents, but there's room for the fun stuff, too, Why Australia is More Horrifying Than Anywhere Else - you know, our weather, the many poisonous and deadly beasties, Vampire vs Zombie Smackdown! - oh, yeah (I wonder if LKH will be mentioned?), The Baen Travelling Slideshow - ooo, shiny, In conversation with the likes of George RR Martin, Robert Silverberg, Kim Stanley Robinson, Jonathon Strahan, Seanan McGuire, Whores and Virgins - yes, well..., and who knew Mary Poppins was written by an Australian? I didn't. But do I want to know more?

Then there's the Dealers Room and Fan tables and Koffeeklatsches, I could go on - there's so much to chose from - but I need to stop being a squealie fan-girl and look at the program objectively.

And I need to get my shit together to take stuff down. Even if they don't look at the work, I'll count the convention a success if a) I get business cards, b) learn new stuff, c) laugh - it's all about having a good time as well as making contacts.

Hung out to dry

For the first time in 70 years, we have a hung parliament.

Was it a result of Labor voters dissatisfaction? The so-called 'mining tax' and other disasters over the last three years? The brutal dumping of K. Rudd in June? Was it a change in direction for the Liberals? That the leader reflected a time under Howard when everything was just dandy and we were protected from international banking events?

Or was it that neither side projected strong enough image and policy to sway the voter?

I've always thought Labor made a mistake in giving the leadership to Kevin Rudd and Julia Gilliard as deputy PM. She had the credentials to move the country forward; K. Rudd was a diplomat who lacked diplomacy with his staff; who had some nifty ideas but executed them poorly and in haste; who gave his new ministers more than a year to adjust to their new portfolios before anything was done to actually govern the country. Julia would have kicked butt straight up.

So now we have the Greens Party, under the leadership of Bob Brown, who hold the balance of power in the Senate and has a member in the House of Representatives - he's also calling for proportional representation in the House to give his candidates a better chance at succeeding.

Personally, I loathe and despise a politician who will prostitute his ideals for power. A vote for the Greens meant a vote - once preferences are distributed - for Labor. It's reprehensible that a candidate can win most of the votes in an electorate, but still lose the set due to preferences. A party who hands over votes to one party, but says it will 'work with whoever is in government' isn't one that stands on it's principles.

A minority party does not express the will of the people, yet will use the balance of power to push through legislation reflecting it's own radical agenda. The Greens have held the balance of power before, much to the detriment of running the country by holding up legislation. Governing slowed down to such an extent that when they lost the balance of power, both sides - left and right - expressed their relief and they could now get on with it.

In the days of Senator Harridine from Tasmania, he held the parliament to ransom on a number of issues. Like... he would only vote in favour of legislation if Australia stopped providing contraceptives to certain third world countries, that promoting women's health included anti-abortion material. He was a man who didn't vote according to his constituency, but his own religious bigotry.

Now this. What will the Greens demand? More social justice? More money thrown at pie-in-the-sky energy boondoggles? Higher taxes on the wealthy to subsidise the poor?

I tell you, politics makes me crazy!

We choose...

Today is election day. Or, I suppose, Election Day! Yep, we go to the polls to decide who will be the next Prime Minister of this great nation.

Do we go for the first woman Prime Minister (not elected, but giving the leadership of the Labor Party after a caucus room spill - since they held government, she became P.M.) Or do we vote for a former Minister of the Howard Government - a near-priest and exercise fiend?

The current polls indicate a 50-50 split with many voters still undecided. There's no... enthusiasm like last time. The pith and vinegar flew in 2007, with spiteful remarks across internet sites. This time, not so much.

The worst example of mocking our system is former Federal Labor leader, Mark Latham, suggesting donkey votes - that is, screw up your vote so no-one gets it - because neither side is worth it. Sanctimonious, petulant idiot. (He, too, was dumped by his own party as leader).

Australia has compulsory voting - one, I think of only two countries in the world. Everyone votes, no-one 'misses out'. Postal, absentee or polling booth, we have the facilities for all to have their say. And it's not about leadership. It's about your candidate in your electorate. Whichever party wins the most electorates, has the right to form government. The party elects the leader, and the party room decides the issues to stand on, through our elected representatives.

Democracy in action. While compulsory voting seems like an oxymoron, it works. No-one can complain about the result because everyone had a say. Your side might lose, but you were involved in the process. Okay, except for those who vote for the Greens; a vote for the Greens is a vote for Labor under a deal done for preferences before the election - a deal I think should be made illegal. If I want Labor in, I'll vote for them, none of this back room dealing to gain votes by proxy.

So. Who am I going to vote for? Well, we also have secret ballots. It's no-one's business who you vote for, so I ain't tellin', but the results should be interesting.

Surprise trees

Winter is sullen because gleeful Spring arrived today. Too warm for a sweater. The naked limbs of trees clack together in a warm northerly breeze like strips of plastic in bicycle spokes.

So I'm looking at the trees and thinking 'aw, they're about to burst into bloom'. Cue images of pure white blossoms and verdant leaves exploding from the buds. But... the closer I walked, the more a feeling of impending doom rose, until I stood almost beneath one of the trees. Those small, white globes, ready to unfurl dotted each tip without the accompanying hint of green. Those small, pale orbs ready burst bore an uncanny resemblance to something else I knew of; something that lurked in the garden. Under pots and wood piles. In dry gutters and buried in piles of dead leaves: spider eggs.

Off went the imagination, backpedalling as fast as it could manage. The film played out anyway; white pearls tearing open and a squillion dark spiders raining down on unwary shoppers below... skittering down unprotected collars, abseiling off fringes with legs spread wide, tickling across bared skin, nipping, biting with tiny fangs.

For a moment I paused - not just because of the traffic - and wondered where the hell the images came from. My favourite time of year slowly giving way to the warmer weather? My particular loathing of eight-legged beasties? Stress? Dunno. But writers can turn the most innocuous sights into whatever they want. Being botanically-challenged, I have no idea what those trees were, but I'll never look at them the same way again.

It's weird how the mind works when out hunting down groceries. Don't you think?

Strained patience

A little over two weeks to go until World con and there's still no program. I'm a just a wee bit annoyed about this. I want to organise a schedule for myself so I can maybe see other things in Melbourne. I've been patient, but... really? No program? What's up with that?

It could be my anxiety levels are rising - I'm trying not to poke and prod at my work, to fiddle and adjust and maybe delete or add. I have to convince myself it's not the end of the world if none of the agents/editors are interested, no matter that it will feel like it. I may have a hissy fit and readers on Scribd might just benefit...

It's been eleven years since the last Worldcon in Australia and it's a good time. I went in 1999 and felt overwhelmed by choice - gathered my wits enough to get a book signed by Elizabeth Moon, did short story critiquing with Gerald Nordley, saw some anime, heard Terry Pratchett (a marvellous speaker, but I don't like his books) however, the rest seems like a blur.

This time, I have a plan... which I can't implement without the damned program!

Sigh. I need to relax and plan my trip to the Victorian hatches, matches and dispatches to hunt down my Victorian relatives - it's an opportunity I ain't gonna miss. I'm flying in at an unspeakable hour of the morning and the opening of Worldcon isn't really until the afternoon. Plenty of time for lattes and research.

Hyperbole and a Half

My new and favourite place to visit for a smile, a chuckle, a laugh-out-loud moment, or an OMG! cack-fest that will stay with me for the rest of the day. Yeah, sure I was working - doing research in fact - when I found it, although the 'how' and history that led me to the page currently escapes me...

Hyperbole and a Half, written by Allie Brosh, has some meaningful comics that illustrate cautionary tales in humorous ways. It's a blogspot that is, unfortunately, addictive.

Check out Bicycle for a post everyone must be familiar with from their childhood. Anyone who has a dog or a cat will cackle at Dog - not all pets are brilliant and clever and trainable, some you just have to love because... well, just because.

Then there's How A Fish Almost Destroyed My Childhood. I'll stop now. You should go and read them.

I need to get back to work now and stop stuffing about. The minutiae ain't gonna write itself, you know.

Articles of interest

I can say, officially, that I've started my CHRISTMAS SHOPPING!!! Yeah, it's August, but if you see something a sibling, niece, nephew or parent might like... why not? I'm jes sayin'.

Anyway, Writer's Digest has a most excellent article on The 10 Commandments of Fiction Writing by Raymond Obstfeld. Number one is 'Take Yourself Seriously' and the reasoning will probably resonate with most new authors - published or not.

Number two, 'Act like a Professional'. This one should be obvious, but...

The next eight are equally as illuminating.

Also of interest in this edition is: Five easy tips to strengthen your scenes by James Scott Bell.

Found this too: Best writing advice in ten words or fewer and 11 Plot Pitfalls - And How to Rescue Your Story From Them by Laura Whitcomb.

So now, I'm off to watch the Ravens and Panthers... Yay! Football season!