Project: Shadow

P:S 7 - "Dragons of Night Update 0.3"

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 22:53:52 +0000

Dragons of Night Setting Bible

added: Gramarye: The Art of Human Magic
added: History of the Dragons of Night

P:S 6 - "Dragons of Night Update 0.2"

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 21:17:58 +0000

Dragons of Night Setting Bible

P:S 5 - "Dragons of Night Update 0.1"

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 23:24:48 +0000

Todays updates for Dragons of Night

In the Setting Bible

added: General Information: Word Count, References, and Tag Lines
added: Heros and Villains: General Guidelines
added: Series Synopsis: General Overview of the setting with a sample.

The Craft

P:S 4 - "You're going to Open Source my what?"

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 01:53:42 +0000

Dragons of Night is now OPEN SOURCE!

P:S 3- "Borders on the Edge of No Where"

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 21:04:15 +0000

P:S 2- "5 Versions Up"

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 01:54:53 +0000

On today's episode of Project: Shadow, we discuss:

P:S 1- "When is Our Solemn Hour?"

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 21:46:50 +0000

Welcome to the first episode of Project: Shadow. On Today's Episode we talk about:

Our Solemn Hour
Shore Leave
When Giants Walked

The Travails of the eBook

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 15:00:58 +0000

Diane Duane wrote an interesting post responding to a shocking post from Teleread. They are both facinating reads about the travails of the eBook market, and the odd problems publishers are having moving their content over, including these new editions are adding horrid typos to the text such as:

“The reader is invited to examine the next Jew chapters…” (Teleread)

Ack, how could a publisher miss that?

Enter the eBook

Publishing is in crisis. I don't think there are any readers or writers out there that are unaware of the problems the industry is having. The eBook market, like the audiobook market, was seen as a small niche market by the publishers, so they didn't pay much attention to the quality of either.

Now that both are taking off as preferred methods for reading their lack of attention is biting them in the butt.

Compounding issues is that as these formats are taking off, more authors are checking out of the old school publishers and moving to publish their own books. This gives rise to new issues.

Where have all the editors gone?

Small press and self-publishers often don't have the money or the prestige to attract editors, and the work suffers.

I have had this issue. I enjoy working with editors, and feel like it makes my work better, but as a self-publisher, the cost of an editor is a problem. Most services are just for copy editors, and that is important, but I am more interested in having a content editor I can develop a relationship with.

There are not many options for folks like me. We are desperately in need of a new model.

Beta Readers?

I have thought about setting up a beta reader site to control who has access to it so I can gather a group of trusted readers together to comment on my fiction while I am working on it. My biggest problem with that is that I would probably have to consult a lawyer to make sure that everything works smoothly, and to help me write a license explaining in legalese what the relationship between me and the beta readers would be.

Wow, that is starting so sound complicated. I am not sure if I want to get involved with all these issues. Complexity stifles innovation.

I am not sure what the solution to this would be. Maybe there should be a beta reader license foundation like the Creative Commons Foundation to maintain such a license, but that seems like a dream at this point, but it is something to look at.

What solutions do you have? How can we make eBooks better?

Bad Publicity for Established and New Writers

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 15:54:49 +0000

We have all heard the cliche that all publicity is good publicity, but a new survey show that is now not entirely true.

For books by established writers, a negative review led to a 15% decrease in sales. For unknown authors, a negative review increased sales by a healthy 45% (The Millions).

I can testify to this. When my first book came out, an author (that I don't want to continue to argue with so I will not name her) and I got into a big argument at a convention. So she blogged about me, and my sales went up. When Amazon banned my second book because it had a gay character in it (or as they say, because it was accidently caught by their porn filter), my sales went up.

I do not recommend either of those as a route to success, but I found the negative press helpful. On the other hand, I have received several really positive reviews, and I didn't see an effect from those at all.

Publicity is hard

I wish I had some wise words to share here to everyone looking to promote their work, but there is no magic bullet. If there were, the magic would soon be drained away.

The best thing I can say is to write and get your words out in as many places as you can. The best thing I did for my work in a long time was a story I wrote for Horror Addicts. In fact, I will probably do that again.

The moral of the story is: don't be devastated by bad press. It may help you out, especially at the beginning of your career.

Fantasy Hero: Men v Women

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 16:00:51 +0000

You don't have to be around fantasy for a long time before you realize that the roles of men and women are portrayed very differently in fantasy fiction. There are probably a lot of reasons for that, but I've often felt that is to make up for the frightfully asexual characters that inhabited the Lord of the Rings.
I also wonder if this is a result of the odd stereotype of a fantasy fan as a socially inept, over weight male who had no idea of what it felt like to be touched by members of the preferred sex. Oddly enough, most of the fantasy fans I have met are women, but I suppose that is of little interest to the marketing types who love this image of their audience.

Sex sells, or so they tell me, and I fear that Fantasy costumes are the way they are because of an antiquated and misogynistic porn aesthetic that needs to pass away.

Women are dressed in scant wisps of fabric and metal because, simply enough, heterosexual males find them pleasant to look upon, as well as fantasize about. That part of the mystery is simple enough, but what about the men.

Men are dressed in covering, if form fitting, clothes and armor that often mimics the ripped muscular forms they cover. Why depict the gorgeously masculine bodies of men with coverings that match that same form? The only reason I can think of is to protect the heterosexual male ego.

Metal breastplates in the form a muscular male body replace the unattractive male porn star to insulate the heterosexual male psyche from the possibility of being turned on by the image of a handsom male body. If, perchance, they are aroused at all by the image, well, everyone loves a fine piece of metal work. It is a macho, even if only in their own minds, to be aroused by the elements of war. What could be more masculine after all?

Once I realized this, I felt a strange pity for the heterosexual male. They seem to be such delicate and fragile things. I understood what a Victorian man must have thought when he looked at a woman. I never really wanted to understand that feeling, but nevertheless, here I am, wondering how to toughen up these poor, fragile, heterosexual men so they could bare the realization that man can be sexy too.

The comic I included in this post is from Dueling Analogs at Dorkly Comic. It reminded me of this problem, and interested in a solution.

I doubt that neither hyper-sexualization of the male form, or modest portrayals of the female form will amount to anything more than a cosmetic mask, easy to wash off. It is difficult to strengthen a fragile thing, and I am sure quite a few people will be upset with me bringing this subject up, but I feel like we need to talk about it if we are ever going to remedy it.

Maybe this is just something that time will fix on its own, but I doubt it. Perhaps I should just go my way, and let this sort itself out. (Everyone who knows me knows that won't happen)

I suppose I feel that it just needed to be said.

Creative Control and Red State

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 10:00:34 +0000

Image via WikipediJohn the Rouge Demon Hunter asked me on Facebook:

What is your thoughts on Kevin Smith's Red State Tour?

To which I replied:

Anything a content creator can do to take more control over their work and its distribution is a good thing. I long for the days when the movie studios, television networks, and book publishers all go out of business and we get our content directly from those who made it. I wish him luck.

I probably shouldn't be talking about this right now. I watched a documentary today about Harlan Ellison called Harlan Ellison: Dreams with Sharp Teeth. God of I love Harlan, and he really gets my blood boiling.

He talks a lot about how bad writers are treated by the powers that be, and all I could think was, "Thank God for the interest!" to which he would reply, "Fuck you, there is no god."

We are living in a magical time when technology is allowing creative people to reach out directly to the people. We can cut out the middle man, and I think that is a wonderful thing.

Harlan would probably disagree with me about this, but I think the creative business is changing. We still need to get paid for our work, but I think we have more choices now than ever.

Kevin Smith is doing what he can to cut the studio out of the distribution of his film, and that can only be a good thing. I live in a town where, if we are lucky, we get his movies for a week or two. I can only hope that his efforts will be a vanguard in the tearing down of the chain monopoly on theaters. That is probably too much to hope for, but I like to dream big.

I am working on a new novel, and we are debating what we want to do with it when it is done. Should I seek out a distribution partner or not. Right now, I just don't know.

I have a few ideas, but everything is difficult when you have to consider bank rolling it yourself.

Creative Independence is something I think we should push for every day. We just need to know that the audience is there.

Help me Share More with you

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 12:00:30 +0000

I've written quite a bit about my latest project, but now I have an issue, a sort of strange one. I kinda want to beta the setting and the story...

I love my readers! You are very helpful and supportive, and I miss the closeness we developed when I was writing for Amazon Shorts. The immediacy of the medium helped to keep me motivated, and got you all involved in my creative process. We knitted together in a special and meaningful way. I miss that, and want to bring it back.

I have a problem here. I honestly don't want to make this special content open to everyone. That might sound horrible, but one of the elements that added to my Amazon Shorts experience was low-cost of entry. The low-cost of the shorts provided a barrier to readers, weeding out the casual readers. This elite group really loved the setting and the stories, so they paid the entry fee.

While I might be wrong, I feel like we were able to connect and work together to make each story better.

I don't want comments from random readers. I'll get those when the finished stories come out. I release my books and stories free and paid, so I hear from random readers then. For me, the purpose of a beta is to engage readers who love the work and really want to make it better.

Building a Member Site

I feel like I have to make it clear, I am not talking about turning all the dashPunk blogs into exclusive members sites. I am thinking about setting up special member sites for the settings I am developing. Those new sites will have some free and some members only content.

Would a small membership fee help or hurt? Well, since I've decided to forgo mainstream publishers because I don't see the benefit of giving 75% of the money I make to a company that doesn't provide much of a benefit, I need to ensure that I have the money to submit the books to online stores. Member fees would help with that. It would also be a better way to tally the seriousness of votes.

For example, I am torn between two setting right now, I could (theoretically) use member counts to find out which setting you all want to see my next book in... or I could add a members only section to Blade Opera and post on both settings. I could take the feedback more seriously because I know I am dealing with my core audience.

It might be stupid, but I am not sure what would work better.

Pay Wall as Social Proof?

Perhaps I have become too much of a capitalist over the years, but I want to make this beta site something very special for my readers. A place for us to refine and perfect the stories. I have noticed a marked difference in the level of setting knowledge exhibited by those who have bought a copy of one of my books compared to those who have read a free copy online.

Those of you who bought the books have asked me questions about things I didn't think anyone would notice. Admittedly, this data is skewed, because you are the same readers that make it out to convention appearances, which makes you a special breed unto yourselves, but it is something I have noticed.

To me, anyone who is willing to spend a couple bucks a month to participate has a greater level of passion about the subject than those who are just willing to sit around and wait for the next book to come out. It's that passion I want to harness for the betterment of the work.

Beta Testing

Most beta tests are a lottery. Testers sign up and submit their system details, and are randomly selected based on what is needed for the test.

The only requirement I have is that you love my writing and sincerely want to help. How can I check for those credentials?

I have posted stories to Authonomy and WeBooks, and often received unwanted comments about my sexuality and spam. Not helpful. If someone wants to give me money to call me a faggot, then more power to them. A small pay wall feels like a good way to weed those people out of the garden.

Please Comment

Whether you love or hate the idea, please leave a comment. I am not trying to hide the content I already post, I am desperately looking for a way to share my creative process that is currently hidden away in my Scrivner and EverNote with my most passionate readers.

If you are against the idea of a pay wall, please tell me why.

If you think it is worth a try, how much should it cost and what content would you expect to find there? Do you want one for each project, or should I add it to my personal site (Blade Opera)?

Do you know of any alternatives? I am really open to suggestions.

I and Mine: The Publishing Dilemma

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 17:00:43 +0000

Brian and I argue a lot over what it means to be a writer these days. With the disintermediation of media, we agree that an author no longer requires a publisher to be a professional, but if we get rid of that standard, what do we have left?

SFWA Standards

The Science Fiction Writers of America standard is deceptively simple:

Established authors with three qualifying short story sales, one qualifying novel sale, or one professionally produced full-length dramatic script (SFWA).

What does that mean?

Qualifying Short Fiction Venues

Short fiction sold to the following markets are considered qualified (list last updated 01/02/10): URLs are given for on-line magazines. Please note the $50 minimum sale requirement as listed above (SFWA).)

Qualifying Novel Venues

Novels sold to the following publishers are considered qualified (SFWA):

Followed by a list of 30 publishers...

Most "professional" organizations require publication through a curated list of publishers to count a writer as professional. The idea of a professional author as someone who makes money from their work is not even taken into consideration. I've met quite a few of these "professionals" and their description of the industry is bleak and painful. It is enough to make someone like me question whether or not I want to be a part of it at all.

Should I play by their rules?

That is the real question isn't it. What do I get from playing by their rules?

Accreditation (they stamp "Industry Approved" on my forehead)

Money? from the stories I've heard, a little. A very tiny amount.

Publicity, the publisher may spend their money to promote my book but that is usually not the case.

Bragging rights

Other than that, I cannot see a reason to play their game.

Is it worth it?

That is where the math breaks down for me. I really don't know. If you are the lucky lottery winner that becomes a runaway bestseller, yes, but for the rest of us?

I struggle with this question probably a lot more than I should.

Running a business is hard work!

The real, secret advantage of going with a publisher is that they do a portion of the business work for you, but it is only a portion. You are left with the actual ground work that MUST be done if you are going to have any semblance of success. But they handle distribution.

Damned if you do, Damned if you don't

There are pros and cons on both sides of the coin, and honestly, I am not sure there is a real answer to that question.

As I work on my new novel, I keep asking myself, is this an in-house project, or is it something to shop around. The more I think about it, the more I feel like I am asking myself if I want to play the lottery.

If I take the time to shop the story, I might be able to win a chance to win a larger audience and money... Is is worth the time and money? I am not sure. I would like to think it is, but...

What do you think?

Does it matter to you as a reader? What do you think I should do?

Crowd Sourced Franchise

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 22:30:05 +0000

I am a big fan of Franchise Fiction: Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate et al. As a writers, I've dreamed about starting and running my own. That is the financial goal of most creative folk: continuing characters and setting you love and an exploration of an idea to its fullest with a committed fan audience who really want to participate in the project.

If that is the dream, how can I (or any writer) make it into a reality?

Learning from the past

Franchises are accidents...

Damn! With the exception of Babylon 5, I cannot think of a planned franchise that succeeded, and even Babylon 5 survived on a healthy dose of luck.

I wish I could pin point a formula to share (and follow), but there really doesn't seem to be one. But I think that is a big part of the problem. It puts the cart before the horse. There is one really important question we have to ask before we can move forward:

How to define Success?

Franchises fall and collapse into themselves like dying stars long before anyone every gets to see them. Most, especially the ones produced for film and television, suffer under the weight of unrealistic expectations.

When I say I want to have a successful franchise/series, I mean:

I want it to support me

I want to enjoy working in it

I want readers/viewers to enjoy it

I want readers/viewers to participate in it

It does not have to:

Make me rich

Be a bestseller

Be bigger/more popular than Series X

Please everyone

Realistic or Delusion?

That is the real question isn't it. By now we have all heard the argument:

A creator, such as an artist, musician, photographer, craftsperson, performer, animator, designer, videomaker, or author - in other words, anyone producing works of art - needs to acquire only 1,000 True Fans to make a living.

A True Fan is defined as someone who will purchase anything and everything you produce. They will drive 200 miles to see you sing. They will buy the super deluxe re-issued hi-res box set of your stuff even though they have the low-res version. They have a Google Alert set for your name. They bookmark the eBay page where your out-of-print editions show up. They come to your openings. They have you sign their copies. They buy the t-shirt, and the mug, and the hat. They can't wait till you issue your next work. They are true fans (Kevin Kelly).

Is that doable? Yes, but there is one giant flaw with the model:

Producing Enough Purchasable Content

At dashPunk, we rely on advertising, affiliate links, donations and sales of my books to pay to keep the lights on. I look at it this way:

Ads cover the cost of lurkers and folk who are too cash strapped to pay to products

Affiliate links bring in people who like the same things we do

My books sell to people who love my fiction

Donations are for the kindhearted folk who want to support the work we are doing

We don't rely on any one solution, but if I want to have a successful franchise, I have to produce enough content to support the salary I want to have.

I talk to a lot of writers who seem to think that making money is a form of magic. They will sign a mystical contract, send their work out into the ether and have paychecks come in. They get really frustrated when they learn the truth.

The problem is, I think a lot of media companies have the same idea. They produced the show/movie/book/game and the money should magically appear. It may have worked like that once upon a time, but those days are dead and gone.

Content creators need to learn how to be fans of their own work and involve their fans in their projects.

To Crowd Source?

This the beauty of the Creative Commons license to me. I want my fans to know they have the right to play in my settings and with my characters, but there needs to be an easy way to bring fanac into canon.

I've been working on a new setting for some time now, and I plan to build a site for it and involve my readers in the process. I am not sure exactly how I am going to do this, but I would love your input. Comments and ratings will be a part of it, but I am not sure if that should be all. I want more interaction.

If we creatives are going to have a future, we have to learn how to move forward with our projects in a way that will involve or fans. We go forward in community, or not at all.

To Wainscot or Not to Wainscot, that is the question

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 18:38:13 +0000

To Wainscot or not to Wainscot– that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the tale to create
The beings and world out of nothing but my page,
Or to take with some of its history
And, creatively change them. To write, to make...

: Image by Greg_e via Flickr

Ok, that's enough at that, but as a genre writer, it is a question that crops up from time to time, and when it does, oy, what a headache.

If you don't know what wainscoting is, it is creating a paneled off world within our real world. Think Harry Potter, or Bleach, or

Charmed

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Dead like Me

Dollhouse

Percy Jackson series

Stargate SG-1

Stargate Atlantis

Stargate Universe

Underworld movies

I think you get the idea. The basic idea is that in a Wainscot story there is a secret world which is kept from the eyes of the average person.

When you are writing a sci-fi or fantasy world you have the choice between a wainscot world and a secondary or new world. The decision is not always as easy or clear-cut.

Could Lord of the Rings take place in a wainscot world? Yes, it honestly could. The only part of the story that would be changed is that the story would no longer be a prehistory, unless it was set early in Earth's history. Honestly, if you set the story during the time of Rome, and made Mount Doom into Mt Vesuvius, then the story would be just as poignant.

So why Wainscot?

Honestly, the only reason to choose a Wainscot world over an Invented world is control.

When you create a new world/cosmos, you have total control over every aspect of the world. You get to decide what is and isn't natural, as well as extremely precise control over the cultures and histories of the people who populate your world.

A Wainscot is helpful when you want to call up cultural, ethnic, or historical references.

Why is Harry Potter a wainscot?

It is easier to understand quidditch when you can reference soccer.

Rowling didn't have to explain wizarding education or politics, because she could reference its British equivalence.

It was easier to hide Harry outside the Wainscot than within it.

Think about it: Terry Goodkind had to put up a magical barrier in his world to hide Richard. That is a lot more work than dropping him off with a group of muggles.

So which is better?

It depends on your audience. Genre readers are used to flipping back and forth from between fantastical worlds, but the average reader is not. If you look at the best sellers charts (granted they have their own problems), you will see that most of the best seller are Wainscots.

I might be suffering from a perception filter, but it really does seem that way. Just because it is easier to mainstream a wainscot world than an invented world is not a great reason to choose to write one, but it is something to consider?

Do you have any thoughts? Questions? Comments about wainscot stories? If so, leave me a comment, and I will do my best to answer them.

Micro-Magazines: Future or Fad of Media

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 01:46:14 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

Seth Godin (among others) proposes that Micro-magazines are the Future of Media. He defines a Micro-magazine as:

Being digital (probably a PDF), that's free to 'print', fast to make and easy to share. (Newsweek spends seventeen million dollars a year on paper.)

Having subscribers, either by email or RSS

Focused on issues that appeal to some, but not all

Having a very specific audience (call it a tribe)

Enabling that tribe to connect by sharing the ideas in the magazine among them, as well as supporting it with a forum or blog

Containing ads that are relevant to that audience

Being longer than 140 characters or even a blog post, so significant ideas can be exposed in detail (Seth Godin)

This is not a new idea, it is an old one. So let's start by calling them what they are. Every time I see the word Micro-Magazine I really want to say Micromachines and John Moschitta, Jr. I feel like I need to start talking as fast as I possibly can. What we are really talking about are Zines: Extremely focused magazines made by people you have a strong interest in the subject for people with a strong interest in the subject.

I know some people won't like my use of Zine here. To them, they think of poorly photocopied, saddle-stitched pamphlets someone cooked up in their mother's basement. I think of the periodicals I always loved to read, and looked forward to more than any other. To each their own, but we cannot have this discussion unless we are honest with ourselves. What we are really talking about is the professionalizing of Zine publication. Low cost, quality content for a focused audience.

That said, let's look at each of Seth's points individually:

Being digital

Agreed. Future of media is digital publishing.

File Format

I call upon all Gods and Devils to prevent the PDF from being the format of the future!

The format of the future is going to be variable. It needs to be available on the web, as a download, as an app for our favorite mobile device, and print on demand. It needs to be available in every format a reader may want to read it in. Conversly, there needs to be a singular tool for the publisher to post once and have the content appear every where.

Sharing

The format need to be easy to share. One button click to all our favorite networks, to email, and to print. How ever the reader wants to share it, out it goes.

Subscriptions

Why do podcasts work? 1 click subscriptions.

The platform will need to have the ability to allow the reader to subscribe in the manner of their choosing in one click and to have the content auto-delivered. Email and RSS already exist, it is possible though not easy to make a mobile app, but it also needs to be added automatically to our Kindles, iBook shelf, or to be mailed via a print on demand. Options are the solution.

Focused Content

The content needs to be focused. That is why we offer the new minisites on dashPunk so people who are only interested in a particular subject can find that content easier.

The days of Mass Media are for the most part over. The long term future in in producing content that will appeal to a niche audience and evangelizing for the importance of niche to bring more people in.

A Tribe of its own

Some topics appeal to a lot of people, others don't. The trick is to find a way to get your tribe to support the Zine no matter the size.

It is also important to let your tribe talk to itself. The more people involved the stronger the Zine will be for it.

Monetization

Awwwww, I said a dirty word.

I would really like to be a utopian, but everything costs money, and thus has to make money to succeed. It is a hard truth to face, but that's the deal. If I want to give my content away for free, I have to sell ads to cover the cost, and hope that my readers will support my sponsors and affiliates, shop in my Amazon Stores, and buy my books.

I know that this is a great place to link out to these thinks, but I feel like that would violate my contract with my readers. I am not posting to advertise the ways I make money, but to share thoughts I find interesting. I know I can tell went someone is pushing a sale and I think you all can to. That is a lesson I think more writers need to learn.

Content Collection and Exploring Ideas

This is the Holy Grail.

The Problem: (Content) longer than 140 characters or even a blog post, so significant ideas can be exposed in detail

The Solution: The Link.

Hypertext does this really well. The MMO Aoin does this very well in that all Mission text is linked to dictionary articles, which link to the game's UI. I never leave the game to find out more information. I can easily surface this information if I want to, but it doesn't clutter the game if I am not interested.

Google Living Stories is an interesting model for this, but it is not polished enough to be useful yet, but it is movement in the right direction.

Scribd has also delivers some of these features, but in isolation of any of the other content.

My Dream WordPress Project

Everyone has their favorite Open Source project. Mine is WordPress. I would love to see a BuddyPress scale open source project to bring these features into WordPress in a way that is simple and easy to use. If there are any developers out there interested in starting this project. I will set up a site and start gathering resources for it.

We can build a better media for the future, we just need to put our heads together and make it happen.

What dejla taught me about writing

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 21 May 2010 16:30:08 +0000

: Image by Getty Images via Daylife

There are times when I forget what it's all about, and I need a reminder:

That's the joy of fanfic. It's not a career, it's not a job, it's not something you slog at 9 to 5. It's something you choose to do because it delights you. You get the pictures out of your head and onto the page, and then, sometimes, you share them. Sometimes you don't, like Emily Dickinson, but even if you don't, you wrote them because you wanted to. Because it was exciting to see the words on the page (dejla).

All writing should be like that!! All of it!

Before I got into it with my sister about my future as a writer, I used to write like that. But she told me I had to buckle down and get serious or give it up... so I did.

I remember when writing was fun, but it hasn't been for a long time. I don't want to let her down, so I doubled down and started looking at my writing as a career... that was a big mistake.

Every writer needs to stay connected to their passions. I lost my way and now I find it really hard to write. I have to go back to basics and fall in love all over again.

Thank you dejla. I needed a good swift kick in the ass.

Transgender and Androgyny in Speculative Fiction

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Wed, 19 May 2010 16:00:13 +0000

: Image by VOLPE1981 via Flickr

My new story is in trouble. A lot of trouble. I can not figure out what I want it to be about. I really want to do something different, something I want to read, something I want to see, and I've learned that I am a hard target audience.

I only know one thing about the story, I want it to have a drag cabaret in it and I want to play around with gender in a way I've never done before. I want the character list to include at least 1 drag queen, 1 transgender, and 1 androgyn. It is hard to deal with this in a way the average reader will be able to cope.

Pronouns and gender words are posing a problem for me. Also introducing the characters in a way that tells the readers who these characters are without a "coming out" scene or using unflattering language.

When I read iambic kilometer's META: Five+ Ways Being Transgender in Fandom Really Sucks, and Why I Stick With It Anyway, I felt an ache within me to work even harder to get this right.

The trans character is to one I am having the more trouble developing, so I might drop her from the roster. Is it better to do a questionable job with a character or to leave them out? I'm not really sure, but I need to figure that out.

Testing a Setting

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 17:00:12 +0000

Yesterday, I finished the first draft of a test story for a new setting I am developing. Wow, that was a vague sentence, but it sounded like I really said something didn't it.

I liked it. I haven't written an Urban Dark (Gothic) Fantasy since 1996. I blame Emerian for my return to Horror writing. I love the genre, abandoning it only after I felt trapped in the rules and requirements it puts on fiction.

After my near breakdown in November, and the many months of recovery, I realized that I am tired of playing by everyone else's rules. I have always been bound to one system or expectations. The world I grew up in is gone, and there is little to nothing I can do to bring it back. I have to just pick up from the mess that exists now and move forward.

If I can be allowed a cliché: "Be the change you want to see."

A couple weeks ago, I started working on an idea. It was strange and scared me a bit. Unlike anything I have ever written, I didn't have a model, or genre to define it. I am not claiming that it is original. I am sure somewhere someone has written something like it, but it is mine. It is the type of story I want to read.

Form

My biggest hurdle has been getting beyond the structures of the novel and the short story. I agree with H P Lovecraft that the best fiction is pulled off with the same craft as a well devised hoax. So I started playing around with ways to tell a strory directly and from oblique angles. I would love to share some of these stories, but they may be included in the final project, so I don't want to release them early.

My biggest inspiration comes from comics. I love the shared universe, and I would love to find some writers to help me out on this project. The idea of the setting as hero mashed up with characters that readers will really care about excites me. In the end I would like this story to spawn blogs, vlogs, and podcasts set in the world, expanding it holding to the canon.

I have never been accused of dreaming too small, LOL.

Test Everything!

If I had any advice for the writers out there it is this. Test everything! If you get an idea, no mater how outlandish, bizarre, or out of the mainstream. Give it a try. See how it comes out, then move forward based on the results. I have found a new setting I love writing in. Who knows what you will find.

A Rose by any other name

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:00:19 +0000

: Image by Parvin ♣( OFF&ON - Very limited ) via Flickr

A new story is boiling in my mind. It scrapes at the inside of my skull like Athena trying desperately to get out. The cast of characters came to me quickly, but they needed names.

...names...

Sometimes, I feel like names are the bane of all authors. They have to fit the character and the setting, and work well with each other. That might sound simple, but for me it spirals into a series of questions just short of the Spanish Inquisition.

Eric's First Rule of Naming

No character in the story can have the same name as a member of my immediate family.

That is hard. In this particular story, there is a character that feels like a Christopher and another who feels like a Donna, but my sister's name is Chris and my mother-in-law's name is Donna, so both of those names are out.

I made this rule when I was really young, when family thought characters with the same name were really ways to talk about them. (sigh)

There is a practical reason for this too. Writers can be sued if people think characters in their stories are based on them. It makes naming a bit challenging for me, but it is a wise thing to do.

Eric's Second Rule of Naming

Names must flow together well.

Flow is a hard thing to talk about. The easiest way to think of name flow is that the names need to sound like they belong together. Families and regions have certain naming conventions, and as a Speculative Fiction writer, determining those conventions are important.

Older fiction didn't bother with this, so we ended up with names like Blork, Gort, and Xanthon. Names that sounded outlandish, but were just weird.

H. P. Lovecraft thought a lot about the names of the creatures in his fiction. Cthulhu for example is based on the greek work Cthon which means underground, and he intentionally wanted something that was hard to pronounce and that would be pronounced differently by everyone. He thought it helped to lend the character an unknowable and alien quality.

Eric's Third Rule of Naming

Love the names you choose.

Writing a novel or series is akin to marriage. You are going to spend every moment of every day with these characters rummaging around in your head. It can take months or even years to write and edit a story. It is a commitment. Make sure you are committed to the names you choose so you don't end up with a Dwigt in your manuscript.

The really real reason why science fiction is dying

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 17:33:19 +0000

: Image by iBjorn via Flickr

Paul Jessup thinks he knows why Science Fiction is dying:

Heinlien. Asimov. At the latest, Orson Scott Card (but mostly just for Ender’s Game). I don’t see anyone ever looking for something new...

This is why SF is spiraling downward in sales. It’s fans just aren’t buying it anymore. I’ve got mixed feelings about this. I love Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, etc. so I don’t mind that it’s popular and selling. But some part of me wonders- is SF meant to be kept in the past? Is that why Steampunk is so popular right now, because it’s an emulation of the past? I’m not sure. But this is a problem (Paul Jessup).

Is classicism the problem? Well, it is part of it, but it is only one of many.

Lessons Lost

The biggest problem SF has is that the industry didn't learn from the New Wave SF of the 60's and 70's. These authors, most notably Harlan Ellison and Ray Bradbury, didn't allow themselves to be constrained by the limits of industry enforced genre. There stories were a little bit science, a little bit fantasy, a little bit horror. The incorporated whatever they thought they needed into their stories to make them good.

Genre has become increasingly rigid. Publishers forgot that Speculative Fiction is the literature of the imagination. It once explored the question, "What if" without any limits save those of the author's imagination. As the genres stiffened, sales have continued to go down.

Lack of Imagination

This genre lock is not the only problem facing SF. Have you seen any of the marketing for new fiction? No? You are not alone.

If a new classic is published and no one knows about it, will it make any sales? Yes, among the author's friends and family. That is about it.

Publishers and authors need to find new ways to generate excitement about new titles, but that is not enough. Fans need to find better venues to share and spread the word about their favorite new books.

Bless me, for I have sinned

I have to admit that I really haven't read any new books in a long time. With the exception of Night's Knights, Brave Men Run, and Burning Skies. These don't count because I read them after meeting the authors. I also don't count the Harry Potter books or franchise fiction. Personally, I find it too hard to find new books to read.

As a writer, I feel like I am confessing a mortal sin. I want to read more, but I am not sure where to find new books.

I've thought about reviewing books myself, but I don't feel like I have the time to wade through the weeds to find the books.

So, I ask you. Where do you find out about new books? How can we promote SF books better?

Amazon settles in Antitrust lawsuit

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 06:00:45 +0000

: Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Is this really a reason to celebrate?

The Booklocker suit was in response to a decision by Amazon to make all print-on-demand publishers use its BookSurge (now CreateSpace) division if they want to sell their titles directly on the Amazon Web site or face the removal of their buy button. Under the agreement, Amazon agreed to not remove Booklocker books from its Web site or to remove the “Add to Shopping Cart” button. Amazon, which admitted to no wrongdoing, also agreed to pay $300,000 in attorney’s fees (Publishers Weekly).

I don't think so.

Amazon gets to admit no wrongdoing, and pay what for them is a tiniest of tiny fractions of what they make an hour...

This maybe good news for Booklocker, but what about the other Print-on-demand providers? I assume they are covered, and I hope to Uma Thurman that I am right.

The Publishing industry is changing, and we need new rules.

(via File 770)

Do we need $4.00 Books

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:00:48 +0000

: Image by Matt Callow via Flickr

Mark Coker over at the Huffington Post wrote an interesting post calling for Publishers and Authors to move to a $4.00 eBook.

Here in the U.S., most consumers already think twice before shelling out $7.50, $15.00 or $30.00 for a good read. If a book at the current prices represents a big purchase for citizens of the world's most affluent economy, imagine the cost burden for the vast majority of the world's literate people (Mark Coker).

It is not hard to agree with the idea that books cost too much. $5-$10 seems to be the sweet spot for books. When Liquid Sky first came out, the book cost $20, and it was not easy to sell.

Imagine how hard it is to walk up to people and say, "Hi, you don't know me, but could you give me $20 to know me better?" Try it some time and be prepared for rejection.

After we split the book up, each volume is now around $8, and they sold well. The lower price point really helped sell the book. I am curious about the idea of $4 books, but I think that price point is more of a macguffin than a real price.

Affordable Access = Smaller Books

By offering customers a cheaper, smaller and less expensive format, publishers expanded the available market for their books and enabled a larger number of readers to gain access to affordable reads (Mark Coker).

That is the key. Smaller and cheaper formats. Lower the cost of a book would require shrinking the size of the book.

The industry started looking for smaller books a little while ago. Personally, I have focused on serializing my work so I can still tell the complex stories I love and still keep the word count down. I am not sure there is another way to lower costs.

eBooks require readers

Ebooks also hold the promise to expand the worldwide market for books. Hundreds of millions of new middle class and literate consumers have come online outside the US, especially in developing countries.

...

Since it costs the author or publisher next to nil to "print" each copy of an ebook, ebooks are extremely profitable on a per-unit basis, even at a low selling price (Mark Coker).

I agree that ebooks are cheaper to make, but the cost to the average reader is just too high for now.

Most people do not like read books on their laptop or desktop computer, so to sell to they need to get an ebook reader. The Kindle costs between $300 and $490, while the Sony ebook reader costs $300. For $300, you get the reader... that's it... books are extra

Books are not music

The industry needs to realize that books are not music. We were used to spending money for a discman to listen to our cds, so when Apple introduced the iPod and iTunes, it was natural for us to buy an iPod instead of a discman. It was easier to use, and so we bought it.

We are use to just buying books and using them. The psychological barrier to purchasing an ebook reader is much harder to get over.

For $300 ebook reader, we could buy:

40 books for $7.50

20 books for $15.00

10 books for $30.00

Lets just take the average of 23 books. The reader asks themselves: "Should I buy 1 ebook reader or 23 books?" Which would you do as a reader?

For ebooks to catch on, Amazon and Sony need to offer book credits with the purchase of their readers. It is easier to spend $300 on an ebook reader if you get 20 free books. The reader would be a loss leader, and they would make up the difference on the sales of books through the device. If they implemented this solution, readers would go mainstream.

Until something like that happens, the iPhone, Courier Pad, and Android devices are the only hope for ebooks long term survival.

Range of Formats

Not all books should be priced at $4.00. Publishers should segment their markets to ensure they're delivering a range of products and formats that offer the target customer value that exceeds each price point (Mark Coker).

Agreed. For now, the best model appears to be:

$ free ebook to promote the book. (American Gods sales increased 300% because of the free copy, Paul Krugman agrees)

$ low ebook (so readers can show support, $0.10 per 1,000 words sounds fair)

$ middle paperback

$ premium hardcover

State of the industry

Some might argue book publishing isn't in trouble, as evidenced by the industry's continued growth. True, the industry has grown in recent years at 1.6 percent annually between 2002 and 2008, according the Association of American Publishers. Yet this growth is a mirage. Publishers are maintaining the illusion of growth by increasing prices. If we adjust for inflation, unit book sales have been in decline for many years (Mark Coker).

Writers, like myself, need to look to the future, and find a way to keep our industry alive.

(via Personanondata)

Do you want text, audio or video?

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 19:00:19 +0000

: Image via Wikipedia

Sonia Simone over at Copyblogger asked an interesting question: Is Writing Obsolete?

I have been asking the same question for a long time now. I love to write and read, but as the amount of time I have dwindles, I find myself relying more and more on audio and video.

Blogs

I love text on blogs. It is scanable and I can know right away if I want to read the rest, but there is something about unedited video that I find extremely compelling.

Some of my favorite blogs are little more than webcam videos of people talking about topics I find interesting. They are personal, and the context clues the voice and face offers is matchless.

I've thought about doing more videos for dashPunk, but I am put off by the idea that no one would really want to watch me talk.

I like audio. We post all of our podcasts to the site, and people spend more time than I thought they would listening through the site.

Books

My biggest problem writing lately is that I am not sure what the future of fiction should be. I really enjoy writing novels. I want them to be so much more.

I am working with an audio engineer to make full cast audio productions of my books., and I have thought about offering a version read my me.

Honestly, I would love to make a video series out of them, but I would have to find a filmmaker to help out.

What do you want?

Are you interested in Text, Audio, or Video?

A Story with 3 Genres

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:21:41 +0000

: Image by Jeff Bauche._.·´¯) via Flickr

An idea hit me. One that I love. One that I really want to write, but I have one little problem...

I am not sure what genre to set it in!! The basic idea is to explore spirituality, power, and the power of relationships to save people.

I know that is a little vague, but it is a complex story with a generic outline that spans four novels at the moment.

My biggest problem is that I can see the story existing in three different settings

My existing Barrens End setting, where Liquid Sky, Fate's Harrow, and Shine like Thunder take place.

A new modern supernatural horror setting that would be somewhere between the Vampire Chronicles, Harry Potter, and the Cthulu Mythos.

A unique hybrid fantasy setting, a kind of sword and sorcery/dark fantasy/supernatural horror/steampunk thing.

I can honestly see the story in each of these settings, and how each will affect the plot. I am partly looking for comments, and part thinking out loud. I am really unsure which way to go.

What would you all like to see? I am really open to suggestions

When there is no dark side...

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:01:09 +0000

The oldest foe of humanity has to be the demon of time management. It stalks the wasted minutes and hours of our lives. Temples are built for its glory and those few souls who struggle to capture the beast are more often than not left wounded and disoriented from their encounter.

Some say it is not worth fighting, "Ignore the creature and he will ignore you. Just go about your business and hope it does not notice you and attempt to devour you."

Other say, "He is a gentle beast, tamed with the lightest whisper."

Then their are those who truly frighten me who say, "Submit to the demon as your lord and master. Allow him to dictate every facet of your life. You will be better for it."

In my life, I have been all of these people, but the work has become increasingly difficult.

The Compromise

"Demon! You will tell me what is required from me, and I will tell you what is a benefit to me, and what is a curse."

It's admittedly not the best plan, but it is one that has worked for a while. I look at the mountain of To do's, and I do a pros and cons list. What is the upside and what is the downside? Focusing on the items with the most upsides in my benefit if completed or the most downsides if left undone, I was able to tame the beast for quite some time.

Then it found a new angle to attack me from. Projects started cropping up that inevitably balanced on the scales. The system broke.

The decision rests with you...

From a slobbering brute who assailed me with fears, doubts, and risk, the demon morphed into Klaatu from The Day the Earth Stood Still, except both paths it offered offer the same benefits and the same risks, and there is not enough time or energy available to me to accomplish both simultaneously. Then with a cleaver grin the beast said, "The decision rests with you."

None of my tricks work anymore, and thw quandry makes my head swim in so many directions that I don't know where to go or what to do.

This is not untraveled ground for me. It is a path that I know all too well. I continually find myself in these predicaments.

In a limitless world, you are your only limit.

As I have said many times, the blessing and curse of the modern era is that anything is possible. With so many possibilities it is hard to figure out which way to go, what path to go down.

So here I am. The schedule is packed. Between the podcasts, blogging, and novel requirements I have little to no time to turn around and see what I should do or where I should go. None of it is an easy decision. I feel guilty when I neglect any of these projects and I love and enjoy doing all of them.

How do I get out of here?

Well, part of it seems easy, and the rest fills me with fear and trepidation.

I have two stories wrestling in my head, and I am going to do the only thing I can: work on both of them. I am going to post the ideas as they develop on this site, and grow them toward the novels they could become. As for everything else, I am just going to have to let go.

I have been afraid to watch Merlin out of fear that it would spawn a new podcast from dashPunk. If it does it does. I am just going to have to do as much as I can.

To quote Queensryche:

The art of life is ...
without rushing, without faltering, unraveling the secrets of knowledge.
We must challenge and defeat our four natural enemies;
Fear.
Clarity of mind.
Power and the desire to rest.

Free Ebooks boost Sales, but How?

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:30:07 +0000

: Image via Wikipedia

Victoria found this interesting Fact about giving away a free eBook of your novel.

... a doctoral student, John Hilton, is collecting data on the sales impact of ebook giveaways...

...While four of the five Random House books Hilton identified showed an uptick in sales post-e-version, 20 of 24 Tor titles showed a decrease. Why the difference? "One possible explanation is that by making the free books available for only one week a different dynamic was present [for Tor] than when the books were made permanently available [by Random House]," Hilton says. "The opportunity for word-of-mouth to spread about the free book may have been significantly diminished in the model used by Tor (Writer Beware Blogs!)."

Permanently Free= Word of Mouth

The study is finished but the difference between permanently giving away a free eBook increases sales while a limited time free eBook didn't. The trick to building any audience or community is word of mouth. My question is, how much do you giveaway? I am not talking about whether or not to give away the whole book or just a sample, I am more interested in when is a good time to start giving away the book.

Writing in public

I have been toying around with the idea of writing a book in public. I am in the process of developing a new novel, and I have been thinking about making the development and the writing public. The question for me is how. I can see a couple options:

Set up a free blog and allow anyone to read and comment on the ideas, outlines and drafts.

Set up a paid blog and allow anyone who preorders the book to read and comment on the ideas, outlines and drafts.

I like the second model best because it would weed out people who do not like my work at all, and it would allow my fans to be a part of the the writing process. I do not usually release hardcovers, so maybe I could make a signed hard cover the preorder book. Maybe I could even set up a gold membership that would offer an exclusive copy of the prewriting in print too.

What do you think?

No one writes alone

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:30:37 +0000

: Image by classicrockrox via Flickr

I have a lot in common with David Halpert over at Scifi Watch.

I have always been a writer too. For me, It started when I was a kid watching He-man and the Transformers. I started writing and drawing my own comics.

I fell in love with books when my sister bought me the works of Edgar Allen Poe and Mark Twain. I started telling stories for my AD&D club, and my preferences were always Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance.

I never thought about writing a book before I read Dragon Singer by Anne McCaffrey. That book changed the way I saw novels.

The Internet changed my writing

Before I wrote Liquid Sky, I agreed with David:

Realistically I’m all alone when it comes to achieving my goals of getting published (and hopefully to one day write full-time) [SciFi Watch].

Now, I see the error in that way of thinking. I am not alone in my writing goals. I have my readers, friends, and fans to help me get where I want to go.

It depends on your goals

If your goal is to garner the approval of publisher so a corporation will pat you on the head and say, "Good job." at least once, then this system might not work for you. But if your like me, with a compulsion to write and a desire to get your stories out for others to read in the hopes that it will become a full time career, then give it a try.

Writing and fandom...

are forever connected one with the other.

If you have a story to tell:

write it

edit it

polish it

share it for the world to read

connect with your readers

grow your readership

hone your writing

repeat

You are not alone in your writing. Today, there is a cloud of readers who can and will help you build and audience and support your work.

Never believe that you are alone.

The Cult of Done Manifesto

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:30:20 +0000

I have fallen in love with this idea. It is time to bring an join to the Cult of Done!

I am inspired to let go a little more and release works into the wild so others can do more with them.

(via Bowing to the Future)

Myth Makers

cedorsett@gmail.com (dashPunk Media) — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 14:00:04 +0000

All well written Speculative Fiction tales are a part of the fabric of the new mythology. This is true whether the author meant it or not. Every story we see/hear/watch is unconsciously compared to the stories we live by. If the new story aligns with, adds to, alters, or changes that story, it has become a part of an individual's personal mythology. Simply calling something myth or mythos does not make it so. Only when that alchemy occurs and the story is adopted by others does the story become myth.

Pure Mythology

While that may sound pretentious or mystifying, it is, in fact, a plain statement of fact: Pure mythology...

is fiction that gives the reader/viewer a true experience of being alive.

is drawn from the archetypal well of dream that invests meaning into the text.

is written in such a way that it connects with the reader to impart clues to understanding profound mysteries.

Any writer who truly engages their imagination in the creation of their work does all three of these things, often without conscious thought or action to do so.

When a writer or artist is set free of commercial and popular demands, and allowed to penetrate and explore their own creative vision, the result can be pure unencumbered art. The more corporate the art of writing becomes, the less interesting, and true the result.

Many fans are tired of the homogenized work that is becoming more and more common in the industry. We do not need another company driven by profit margins, or another author whose self-important propaganda obscures the art. We need writers and artists that love what they are doing. That is why we are here. We are looking for something better.

Return of the Cultural Cycle

As we discussed in the Project: Shadow Manifesto, In the era before copyright, "stories, heroes, melodies, and lyrics belonged to the people. Stories were told, and retold. Numerous visions of each story competed against each other. The best were remembered, collected, retold, embellished, and built upon. The rest were forgotten."

Stories used to have to fight for the attention and memory of the populous. Now they fight for the attention of an editor or producer who is often more interested in making a quick buck than telling a great story. But things are changing!

The advent of the internet and the various methods of print on demand have opened up the floodgates for anyone to publish a story, movie, or song that wants too. We are returning to the old survival of the fittest model but with one major difference. We lack the common space for this free exchange of stories to take place.

Only a small fraction of YouTube's traffic searches for the video they watch. Most rely on others. And when it comes to text or audio, where do you go to find what you are looking for. The chance of discovery has increased, but so have the odds against being able to find something new.

For the vital role of the Cultural Cycle to return, we have to discover new and better ways to enable discovery of the new stories.

Copyright, not the only problem

Each generation must retell the tales of the preceding generations in their own context to keep them relevant. This cycle has been broken by copyright, but this is not the only problem facing us.

We are not teaching writers to create lasting works.

We have not made it easy to find these works.

We have not made it easy to share these works.

We have yet to find a way for these to writers to easily make a living from their work without repeating the problems of the past.

And there is one last problem, and its a big one:

Marketing Mythos

The word “Myth” has become a marketing term.

It has gotten so bad that people have started rebelling against the very notion of myth making, assuming it is nothing more than a marketing gimmick.

We have to fight this trend and realize that myths are just the stories that give our live a sense of meaning and purpose. Without them, life is dreary hollow place. To quote the Manifesto again:

We need writers and artists that love what they are doing.

We need fans who are not afraid to speak their minds.

We need places in our towns/cities and online where we can meet and share the few gems that we find from the industry and from the independent artist, writers, and filmmakers who are still following their bliss rather than the dollar.

Now we need to look at what a myth really is, and how we can spread them easily.