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Believe it or not, I’ve kinda laid low this past week… so more Bubble & Squeek. A lot of reading for Speculate! getting caught up on that. Blog posts. Mostly convention prep for Worldcon and Tracon. Still, it’s been exciting. I officially signed the contract for Sekrit Project Alex (complete with NDA, thus the name), and had agent Cherry Weiner accept one of my novels for representation. Right now, I’m trying not to freak out over all the forthcoming travel. We’ve got everything in place, including house/cat sitter, neighbors warned, etc… And then, after Worldcon, I’m going to see two countries I’ve never seen before. It’s going to be awesome.
Anthology: Maximum Velocity: The Best of the Full-Throttle Space Tales. A project I had going on in the background. Kinda of excited about this one. I like WordFire Press.
Article: Here is my Shadowrun tarot card, The Shadows, for the Shadowrun anthology Drawing Destiny, and how I used it.
Article: Why Writers Make Incredible Friends. A fun article I just had to share.
Article: I was the author spotlight on MyLifeMyBooksMyEscape. It was unexpected and cool.
SFWA: In the second SFWA Chat Hour I participated it, I talk about how to hand sell your books to convention attendees. That all said, there is more to this. There are some attendees who do not want to talk to you. Watch their body language. If they won’t make eye contact, leave them be or ask them if they’d like to hear about their books.
WorldCon: I will be at Worldcon/MidAmeriCon II. Come say hello. There is a no-shyness zone around me. I’m happy to chat with you. Here’s my schedule:
The largest news is that I am now represented by Cherry Weiner. It’s been an exciting couple of weeks.
I’ve finished MAKEDA RED. I’ve edited 3 novels and I’m on a novella. I’m starting to prep for WorldCon and Tracon—both of my schedules require research. Life is slowing down. It is. But this is the calm before the storm.
Article: On the Semiotic Standard: The Collective: Bringing Books to Film. I didn’t cheat and say Melissa Allen. I talked about my true love… THE DARK TOWER.
Awesome: The daughter of a friend has just cosplayed one of my characters: Melissa Allen. Achievement unlocked!
Review: Nice review for the World of Shadows anthology from Forgotten Tomes.
In the SFWA section…
SFWA Chat Hour about game writers… wherein we talk about the background behind the decision to admit gamer writers.
Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America to Admit Game Writers. The actual guidelines.
Follow-up SFWA Admits Gamewriters, All Heck Breaks Loose, Film at 11.
No, the guidelines aren’t perfect. Yes, we are looking at specific cases. Yes, it will take time. We will not be making a knee-jerk reaction to everything.
Release: Colonial Gothic: Lost Tales – This is my “Oops! I have a fiction collection” book. Rogue Games collected all my RPG fiction in the Colonial Gothic universe. Supernatural horror in 1776 for the win!
Review: The Melissa Allen series got a NICE shout out in this: Where Are My Damn Heroes? This article makes me really happy. It’s nice to be understood.
Sale: Reminder – Last Chance Karen Wilson Chronicles Trade Paperback Sale. 4 Trade for $30.
In the “I’ve been so busy writing the Shadowrun novel, I didn’t notice this was announced” side of things, Project Joe got announced two months back. Project Joe is actually H.E.A.D. Hunters from Gut Shot Games. I wrote all of the background stories for every character and the setting. The announcement and podcasts are system focused, but it is nice to be able to talk about the game now.
Announcement: Gut Shot Games Announces H.E.A.D. Hunters, designed by Ben Cichoski and Danny Mandel (the guys who designed Legendary Encounters).
Podcast: Dukes of Dice – H.E.A.D. Hunters, system discussion starts at 1:10. Pretty crunchy discussion.
Podcast: Bearded Bards of Board Games – H.E.A.D. Hunters, more detailed system discussion starts at 1:19. There are brief comments about the character stories. It seems I really disturbed the designers with the Lechuza (Owl Witch) story. 🙂
It is all Shadowrun all the time right now. I’m deep into MAKEDA RED and that’s pretty much all I’m doing right now. So, here’s some links for you and a chance for you to win a set of Melissa Allen audiobooks.
REVIEW: Here’s a great review of NEVER LET ME. I really appreciate reviews like this.
REVIEW: Here’s a really good review of APOCALYPSE GIRL DREAMING. I love the fact that some of the stories stick with her.
REVIEW: Here’s a great review of DECISION POINTS. The reviewer says that my story, “The Prince of Artemis V,” hit a home run.
SALE: Apocalypse Ink Productions is having a sale of my Karen Wilson Chronicles books! If you were waiting to get any of the individual trade paperbacks, Now is the time to get them. After May 1st, they are gone for good. Karen Wilson Chronicles Trade Paperback Last Chance Sale. 4 Trade for $30.
AUDIOBOOKS: All three Melissa Allen audiobooks are available. You can listen to NEVER LET ME SLEEP, NEVER LET ME LEAVE, and NEVER LET ME DIE, read by the marvelous Elizabeth Evans. Also, email me at gaaneden at gmail dot com for a chance to win all three audiobooks!
Bubble and Squeek is full of all kinds of good news. It helps me get over this terrible throat thing (“acute pharyngitis”) I’ve been dealing with. Thank goodness for antibiotics. I am no longer contagious and will be at Norwescon.
Article: Never Let Me Sleep got a shout out in this article: 13 Horror Books that Might Be the Next Hit Movie. Can I just say, “Yes, please.”?
Audible: All three Melissa Allen books (Never Let Me Sleep, Never Let Me Leave, Never Let Me Die) are available for pre-order on Audible! My first audiobook series. This is thrilling and terrifying.
Award: I’ve won 2nd place in the 2016 Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Award Contest! The thing I really like about this contest (besides that it is free to enter) is the fact that it is a blind read. It is the story that won. Not the author’s rep or connections.
Pre-Order: The Usual Path to Publication edited by Shannon Page. My own essay, “No One True Way,” has three different examples of how I sold something to be published.
Release: Happy book release day to me. The Karen Wilson Chronicles ebook and paperback omnibus! It has all four KWC novels, every Kendrick story written (even the ones not in the four KWC books), and a new John Corso story. It’s pretty hefty and can be used as a bludgeoning instrument. I am so proud of this book!
Release: Speaking of the Karen Wilson Chronicles omnibus, it is also available in a Signed, Limited Edition Hardback form. We will only sell these at conventions (like Norwescon) and on the AIP website. Once they are gone, they are gone.
Reminder: I will be at Norwescon this weekend and here is my schedule. Hope to see you there.
I’ve been writing a lot on Project Joe. I also just taught at Foolscap and was the writer GoH at RadCon. So, there’s not much to report except that I’m working lots. In lieu of new content, here’s the great big awesome Melissa Allen trilogy round up Bubble & Squeek.
For NEVER LET ME SLEEP, I wrote for SFSignal and Chuck Wendig.
For NEVER LET ME LEAVE, I wrote for Wag the Fox and Damien G. Walter and had an interview with Spotlight Radio.
For NEVER LET ME DIE, I wrote for Jim Hines.
For NEVER LET ME, the omnibus, I wrote for John Scalzi and Mary Robinette Kowal.
Not a bad list of links, if I do say so myself.
So much writing on Project Joe! Other than my computer setup exploding on me recently, requiring me to get a new keyboard and to vacuum the dust from the computer, my life is mostly about writing and editing. And petting demanding cats.
EVENT – READING: I will be reading at the University Bookstore in Seattle on Jan 26th. Please come! There will be cookies and book giveaways and I’ll be reading from NEVER LET ME which Publisher’s Weekly calls “a strong, entertaining tale.”
And now back to your irregularly scheduled Bubble & Squeek.
Article: MIND MELD: The Growth and Future of SF/F. An interesting question.
Article: Nightmare Magazine – The H Word: Shifting Away From the Common. I talk about what I enjoy about shapeshifters that aren’t werewolves.
Blog: I have a guest blog over at Jim Hines’s Blog site about revealing personal details in your writings. I didn’t manage to post about this more than once. So, here it is again.
Event: I am a workshop leader at Foolscap on Feb 5th. I’m teaching a class on writing series called “Combat in the Land of Forgotten Details.”
Review: Publisher’s Weekly reviewed NEVER LET ME. It’s a good review. I’m happy with it. I don’t even mind the quibble.
SALE: COLONIAL GOTHIC: LOST TALES. This is one of those “oops, I have a fiction collection” sales. Totally unexpected but very happy for it.
SALE: MAKEDA RED. I’m running the shadows again. This time in novel form. I’ve wanted to write a Shadowrun novel for ages. Now I get to. MAKEDA RED stars the protagonist from my Shadowrun short story, “Rune’s Avatar Cafe.”
I am home from OryCon and SF Authorfest 9. I had a fabulous time. It was so much fun. In lieu of content, here is a Bubble and Squeek.
Article: Mind Meld: More Children’s Movies that Scared the Crap Out of Us.
Podcast: LIMETOWN. If you aren’t listening to this podcast, you are missing out. It reminds me of American Elsewhere and Night Vale.
Review: A Lovely review of Jazz Age Cthulhu and “Dreams of a Thousand Young” from Hauntology. I really am fond of this novelette.
For the Melissa Allen section of Bubble and Squeek…
Article: Over on Wag the Fox: Characters with a mind of their own. AKA why the sequel, Never Let Me Leave, exists.
Article: Why a Bat? Over on Damien Walter’s blog, I discuss why Melissa Allen use a baseball bat when fighting monsters.
Podcast: SF Spotlight Radio from 14 Nov 2015. I talk about a lot of things. Mostly the Melissa Allen series.
Writing, writing, writing. Here’s a “Melissa Allen” themed Bubble & Squeek!
Article: On SFSignal, I write about Melissa Allen and Mental Illness.
Article: Over at Chuck Wendig’s blog, I talk about Five Things I Learned While Writing Never Let Me Sleep.
Podcast: YA Books Podcast, Oct 7. I talk about all kinds of stuff on this one.
Pre-Order: Never Let Me Leave pre-order is up! Melissa Allen #2 is out in November.
Pre-Order: Never Let Me Die pre-order is up! Melissa Allen #3 is out in December.
Release: Never Let Me Sleep has been released! Lots of good buzz about it. Though, I have to admit, the first Amazon review of it is a little strange.
This is a big Bubble and Squeek today. A lot stuff came in all at once.
Article: For writers on the SFWA Blog. How do you ask for blurb?
Article: I talk about my love of gargoyles on My Favorite Things.
Article: SFSignal MIND MELD: Second Chances. I talk about why I gave Stephen R. Donaldson a second chance.
Article: Over at Ragnarok Publications, I talk about how I used my anger to fuel my writing career in Dreamer No More.
Interview: Permuted Press asked me some great questions about NEVER LET ME SLEEP. We touch on body image and mental illness.
Interview: Over at Eating Authors I get to talk about ramen. Really, really good ramen.
Review: I get a nice shout out in this review of NOT OUR KIND from the Eviscerating Pen (what a lovely name!).
Pre-Order: Remember, you can pre-order NEVER LET ME SLEEP and the hard copy Melissa Allen compilation NEVER LET ME. Also, if you missed it, here’s a post that’s all about my fabulous covers.
SFSignal: I gotta say it. I love seeing my name on SFSignal and in such good company, too.
Jennifer Brozek is a multi-talented, award-winning author, editor, and media tie-in writer. She is the author of Never Let Me Sleep and The Last Days of Salton Academy, both of which were nominated for the Bram Stoker Award. Her YA tie-in novels, BattleTech: The Nellus Academy Incident and Shadowrun: Auditions, have both won Scribe Awards. Her editing work has earned her nominations for the British Fantasy Award, the Bram Stoker Award, and multiple Hugo Awards. She won the Australian Shadows Award for the Grants Pass anthology, co-edited with Amanda Pillar. Jennifer’s short form work has appeared in Apex Publications, Uncanny Magazine, Daily Science Fiction, and in anthologies set in the worlds of Valdemar, Shadowrun, V-Wars, Masters of Orion, Well World, and Predator.
Jennifer has been a full-time freelance author and editor for over seventeen years, and she has never been happier. She keeps a tight schedule on her writing and editing projects and somehow manages to find time to teach writing classes and volunteer for several professional writing organizations such as SFWA, HWA, and IAMTW. She shares her husband, Jeff, with several cats and often uses him as a sounding board for her story ideas. Visit Jennifer’s worlds at jenniferbrozek.com or her social media accounts on LinkTree.
