The author, his writings, and his warped little mind.
Just a quick update before bed. I have discovered that the blog Baryon Review reviewed Zero Gravity and had a sentence about my story “Leech Run”. The implication is that the reviewer enjoyed the story; he explicitly says he liked the book.
My brief con report for ChattaCon will be up tomorrow or Tuesday. I didn’t make any sales (that I know of), but I made some great contacts and new friends. Check back for more details.
I’ve been going about this short story submission thing all wrong. As it turns out, the only sale I’ve made in the past six months is one I withdrew (details to follow). So maybe I just need to go pull all my stories out of slush so they’ll get bought. Or perhaps I should take this anomaly for what it is and move on.
I am selling “Leech Run” to Escape Pod podcast/ezine as a reprint, my first reprint sale. More excitingly, it’s my first audio sale! It’s just as exciting as having “Poison Inside the Walls” illustrated. Having another artist/performer interpret my work is very exciting to me.
The Escape Pod sale was not without hitches. I won’t bore you with the details beyond the fact that the fine people at Pill Hill Press — the editors of the anthology Zero Gravity: Adventures in Deep Space where “Leech Run” originally appeared — have been fantastic in their help to allow things to progress naturally. (You should go buy Zero Gravity on Kindle. Five bucks for thirteen awesome stories in deep space. Or buy it in paperback. Or special edition hard cover if it’s still available…but I think that was just through the end of 2010. Or buy all three!)
This reprint sale has me wondering how many people would enjoy “Leech Run.” Would it translate well? There is money to be made in foreign sales, even for short fiction. Other stories might also do well translated. Or in audio. “Excuse Me” would probably be better performed. Maybe I could do an audio recording for this site? It could be fun. Surely I can find a student actor or two willing to read some lines. Hmm… [sticks idea on shelf to revisit later]
Now on to my latest obsession: Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog!! It’s a short film done by Joss Whedon (and family, it seems) starring Neil Patrick Harris as the eponymous villain-on-the-rise (was that Horrible or Howser?), Nathan Fillion as his heroic but egotistical nemesis Captain Hammer (or was that Reynolds?). Funny, dark, and musical. The cleverness and musicality of the songs hearkens to the South Park movie. Afterall, NPH is a Broadway guy. I love it in all its cheesiness. I’ve been listening to the soundtrack on my iPod nonstop for two days. If you have not seen this 42-minute marvel, find a way. I’ll likely bring my copy to ChattaCon for a potential (small) viewing party/sing-along. Consider the love shared. If you too love it, I have done my duty. If not, well, you may want to have your funny checked. (You should do that every ten thousand miles anyway.)
When I get details regarding Escape Pod, I’ll let you know. Until then, read Zero Gravity, watch Dr. Horrible, and eat Mezzetta Garlic-Stuffed Olives.
After a response drought I end up with two in my inbox in two days. This one (S.H.) was a rejection from IGMS. It never even made it to Ed the editor (nice guy, met him at ConCarolinas). Too bad. Now I need to select another market. I may try Daily Science Fiction; other Codexians seem to be scoring there. If not, their response time is only a notch or two slower than Lightspeed or Clarkesworld.
On a bigger note, I have received confirmation that Zero Gravity will be out later this summer. A quick turnaround is an advantage of a small press, I guess. It’ll be a trade paperback (size of a hardcover just without the hard cover). It looks like it will sell at around $15 from Amazon based on Pill Hill Press’s previous anthologies. I’ll link to it when it’s available.
A sale!
How long ago was I complaining about not hearing any responses, two hours? I ran out to get a movie (more on that in a minute) and come home to find that the anthology Zero Gravity has accepted my story “Leech Run”! They’ve had it on hold for a little while. Submissions closed today and I guess no one managed to bump me.
“Leech Run” has been seeking a home for a long time. It’s the story that got me waitlisted for Clarion West last year. Honestly Zero Gravity seems about the perfect fit. It’s a Pill Hill Press anthology, due out late next summer (I’m finding conflicting dates, so it may be soon and it may be 2011); more waiting before “Leech Run” sees the light of day. But a sale’s a sale, 25 bucks I didn’t have before. A credential I didn’t have before. Being read by people (eventually) that hadn’t heard of me before.
As for the movie rental, I went to a RedBox for the first time. Efficient, affordable, the way of the future. I went specifically to get…*cough*…New Moon. I know, I know. Not my choice. The wife needed to see it again before she drags me to Eclipse on Friday. Two in the same week. I’m going to have to read some Moby Dick to balance it out.
Scott W. Baker .net 