Archive for the ‘Writing’ Category
An Update Regarding Michael’s Novellas
It’s time, and past time, to give you all an update regarding my late husband Michael B. Caffrey’s “Joey Maverick” novellas. So here we go.
Over the next several weeks, I’m going to offer two different “Maverick” stories, “A Dark and Stormy Night” and “On Westmount Station.” Cover art has been chosen, and formatting is about to get underway for independent e-book publication.
“A Dark and Stormy Night” is about a low-tech sailing regatta in the future; Joey Maverick is merely a crewman on one of the sailing ships. When a vicious storm sets in, the captain is incapacitated, and Joey must take charge. Rescues ensue, and Joey encounters feisty nurse Belinda Simpson, who is a pain in the caboose to deal with as she questions Joey’s authority at every turn . . . so why does Joey feel so attracted to her? Ultimately, “A Dark and Stormy Night” is an excellent action-adventure story with just a touch of low-key romance that’s appropriate for all ages.
“On Westmount Station” is a more typical milSF story because Lieutenant Joey Maverick is about to go off to space. However, there’s a little problem on Westmount Station that no one quite expected as there’s a bomb in an unexpected place. Joey’s the man on the spot; he and his new team must defuse the bomb before it’s too late, and deal with the terrorist in question besides . . . there’s action, there’s suspense, there’s mystery, and then there’s Joey, who has to be one of the more fun, albeit low-key, characters I’ve ever had the pleasure to read about. Truly, this is a story that many people will enjoy, especially if you like your military adventure with just a touch of wry.
If these stories do well, I plan to work on fleshing out a third novella in 2014.
These stories will have bylines of “by Michael B. Caffrey with Barb Caffrey” as I edited and smoothed out various things in the first novella, while I added a subplot, action and additional characters in the latter. But they firmly are Michael’s stories, set in Michael’s universe, using Michael’s main character Joey Maverick and should be enjoyed by anyone who loved my husband’s work.
People have asked me many times over the years since Michael’s passing why I’ve been bound and determined to keep Michael’s writing alive (as Michael wrote the first novella back in 2000, and what turned into the second novella in 2001). It’s very simple, really; Michael was an exceptionally gifted writer. I want his words to live, because he worked hard on them, the stories are excellent, and I think many people will enjoy them if they only have the opportunity to find and read them.
I don’t know what else Michael would have written had he lived. But I do know this: He was every bit as persistent as I am. He would not have given up on his own work. And he would want me to get these stories out there in whatever form, because he knew what he’d done and he wanted others to read his stories.
I plan to offer the two novellas at Amazon through Kindle Direct Publishing, at Smashwords, and at BN.com, among others . . . and I hope that everyone who has an interest in my husband’s work will buy them. (Please!)
Jeff Passan Owes Baseball Fans an Apology
What is wrong with Yahoo Sports writer Jeff Passan?
Passan wrote yet another column condemning Ryan Braun this past Sunday, despite this new column being at least the fourth such column in the past month. This seems excessive under the circumstances, as a number of other baseball players, including Nelson Cruz of the Texas Rangers, Everth Cabrera of the San Diego Padres, and Jhonny Peralta of the Cleveland Indians are also suspended, while Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees continues to play pending his upcoming appeal of a lengthy, 211-game suspension.
Anyway, Passan’s newest column on Braun cited an ESPN report that said Braun had supposedly lobbied fellow MLB players prior to his successful appeal regarding the reportedly high level of testosterone in his urine sample. ESPN’s slant was that Braun was perhaps looking for support from his fellow players as Braun was prepared to lose his hearing. According to ESPN’s original report, Braun supposedly told several unnamed players that the urine specimen collector, Dino Laurenzi, Jr., was both a “Cubs fan” and an “anti-Semite.” But when Braun unexpectedly won, that lobbying wasn’t needed.
However, Passan’s column as initially reported said that Braun had told specific big-name players such as Troy Tulowitzki of the Colorado Rockies and Joey Votto these very same allegations. (The inference in both columns, of course, was that Braun had said that Laurenzi, Jr., had it in for Braun.) And because Passan’s column named these names, it made this particular report sound that much more compelling.
Then came the reports here and here that stated that neither Tulowitzki nor Votto had spoken with Braun about this particular matter. And that Braun had most emphatically not slandered the urine collector in any way as far as either one of them knew.
So, what should you do as a writer when something this big blows up in your face? Most people would print a retraction and an additional article saying, in effect, “Sorry. I/we screwed up, and it won’t happen again if we can help it.”
But that’s not exactly what Passan did here, though he did back off a few of the worst of the allegations against Braun:
ESPN.com first reported that Braun had reached out to fellow players. While Yahoo! Sports previously reported Braun had contacted Joey Votto and Troy Tulowitzki, on Monday they denied having any conversations with Braun about test collector Dino Laurenzi Jr. (emphasis mine — BC)
Note that this slight backing off seems to be blaming ESPN’s initial report, which is silly at best because it wasn’t ESPN who named Tulowitzki and Votto as being among the players Braun had supposedly reached out to for support — it was Jeff Passan himself.
Worse yet, other reports are still being written that are going off the original source material, including this one from UT-San Diego, which was written one short day ago.
Look. I understand why Passan felt the need to write his column, at least in part. ESPN had put out a report. Yahoo wanted to have its own story. Passan wrote it because, quite frankly, he cannot abide Ryan Braun (he’s previously called Braun a “cockroach”) and Passan, being a baseball writer who fully understands what’s going on with regards to the 2013 suspensions for performance-enhancing drug use, was probably the best person to write this particular column.
Where Passan erred was when he decided to name Tulowitzki and Votto without getting quotes from them on the record. Both players are among the biggest names in baseball; Tulowitzki came in second to Braun in the 2007 Rookie of the Year Award, while Votto won the Most Valuable Player award in 2010.
So when Passan named them without quotes, he had to know that fallout was possible. Yet for some strange reason, that didn’t seem to bother him at all.
Why?
What Passan did wasn’t a small error. Instead, this was a big, fat, huge error considering Passan’s name, his reputation, and the fact that he has thousands upon thousands of people reading his columns every single day. That’s why whatever Passan ends up reporting on any given day needs to be above reproach.
Passan screwed up by naming two players who apparently had absolutely no contact with Braun whatsoever regarding this issue without checking his sources and making sure they were unimpeachable. And thus far, Passan has failed to offer one shred of reasoning as to why he, Jeff Passan, did this at all, when Passan had to know they would both be asked about these allegations . . . especially considering that Passan obviously had no idea what these men were going to say.
If Jeff Passan didn’t realize that these two men were going to deny these allegations, much less in the heartfelt way both men picked to do so — Tulowitzki and Votto are known as straight shooters — why on Earth did he print such inflammatory allegations?
While the slight clarification currently in the Yahoo Sports article by Passan (referenced above) is better than nothing, it is extremely puzzling that Passan would not print an apology under these circumstances.
Because really and truly, Passan owes all baseball fans an apology. His report regarding Braun’s apparent slander was inflammatory. He couldn’t back it up — in fact, it was roundly denied by two of the people Passan sourced in his original column as supposedly being upset and offended by Braun’s reported remarks — and then, he only had the wit to partly backtrack and blame ESPN instead for ESPN’s initial report?
I’m sorry. That does not cut it.
Writers must have integrity. Honesty. Believability. And be able to tell a fair and accurate story, especially when it comes to nonfiction sports writing and current events . . . otherwise, the writer in question has nothing at all.
We all know this, as writers. Which is why most writers would’ve apologized for making a mistake of this magnitude immediately.
Otherwise, why would you want to trust us, or believe that we’re giving you the best information possible on any given day?
Whenever we fail, as writers, we must own up to it.
I don’t care if there are one thousand people in baseball who think exactly what Jeff Passan reported . . . if Passan hadn’t named names, he’d be in the clear. But he did, he was wrong, and he should apologize. Profusely.
And if he refuses to apologize, I have only one more question for you: Why on Earth should we believe anything else Jeff Passan ever says?
———–
**Note: Both the ESPN report and the column written by Jeff Passan at Yahoo Sports have been updated to reflect the record that both Tulowitzki and Votto have denied these specific allegations. ESPN’s report quite properly credits Passan’s Yahoo sports column for making those direct allegations.
Quick Writing Update (and Other Stuff)
Folks, I’ve been working on a short story for an anthology this past week. Between that and editing, I just haven’t had time to do anything else — no books got reviewed over at Shiny Book Review (SBR), no blogs got written since early last week, and even though I’ve had much to say as there have been plenty of targets (Wisconsin’s R Governor Scott Walker actually had the nerve to compare himself to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, if you can believe that), I just haven’t had the time or energy to spare for blogging.
However, as I have sent off my story to a friend for a quick read-over, I have enough time to comment very quickly on a few things. So here goes:
I think it’s ridiculous that people are praising Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig for his “vision” and “good sense” in suspending a number of baseball players today, the most high profile player of the lot being Alex Rodriguez. (The others include OF Nelson Cruz, SS Jhonny Peralta — yes, that’s how he really spells his name, it’s no misprint, and SS Everth Cabrera.) As former Brewers pitcher (and current New York Met) LaTroy Hawkins said today on Twitter:
LaTroy Hawkins @LaTroyHawkins32 8h
PLEASE STOP PRAISING #BUD
And here’s my take on Bud Selig, again from Twitter:
Already tired of people praising #BUDSELIG. He looked the other way when steroids drove baseball; he’s a hypocrite. #IHateHypocrisy
Otherwise, I’m keeping an eye on the national political scene, as per usual, even though nothing’s getting done as the House of Reps (not to mention the Senate as well) are on a five-week paid vacation right now.
My take on that? Who the Hell else gets paid for doing absolutely nothing, then goes around telling people they’re “fighting Washington” as have the House Rs (or, if that doesn’t read well to you, the House GOP as led by Speaker John Boehner)?
I’m sorry. If you are an elected public official, as John Boehner is, you’re not fighting Washington — you are a part of Washington. Thus, you are a part of Washington’s dysfunctional culture. And you can either fix it, or not . . . but if you refuse, don’t be surprised when you’re thrown out the door next time around. (Or if your own seat is saved, your position may not be — which is why Boehner is likely to be the minority leader of the House next time if his inaction and lack of leadership keeps up.)
Granted, the House Ds aren’t doing much of anything, either, save bloviating and grandstanding — but they have no power, as there are far too many Rs to make anything the Ds do worth the time. Which is why I, personally, blame the Rs far more than I do the Ds.
Finally, I’m very glad that the current Wisconsin law as signed by Gov. Walker that restricts abortions has been placed in abeyance — that is, an injunction has been filed that blocks the law — by a federal court judge. I think that law needs to be studied in depth before it’s implemented, if it ever is. Because on its face, it’s yet another biased law by a bunch of people who, to be charitable, don’t seem to know what the Hell they’re talking about.
More blog updates when I have ’em . . . and thanks for reading, as always.
Working Away While Slowly Recovering
Folks, as I said a few weeks ago, my blogs may be few and far between for a while. My health continues to slow me down, though I have recovered a teensy bit of energy and have been able to do more in the way of editing for the past week or so.
Still, because I was so ill, I got behind in my various editorial projects. That means everything else got behind as well, including the various reviews I’d hoped to write for Chris Nuttall’s THE ROYAL SORCERESS, Ash Krafton’s second novel, and Karen Myers’ two novels in her Hounds of Annwn series. (These books all will be reviewed ASAP, but all depends on my health continuing to improve — or at least not to decline again.) And let’s not even start talking about any other writing, as everything — including e-mails to friends and colleagues — has taken a back burner to completing at least one edit for the past week-plus.
Fortunately, I’ve now done exactly that — completed work on one edit. (There are still three more in the pipeline, of course. But one beats none.) This means I might have a little time left over to write with, so that means I may be able to better work on my blog, my book reviews, and of course my fiction writing if I am able to set aside any time for it.
At any rate, as I’ve said here before, it took months for my health to become this bad. So it’s going to take months before my health returns to some semblance of normalcy. That means I have to continue to pace myself, get as much rest as possible, and try not to get frustrated as I’m assuredly going to have days where I can do almost nothing.
But the key is “almost.” And if I can do something, no matter how small — and no matter how fleeting — the day isn’t a complete and total write-off. Which means I’m doing all I can, and that I’m still progressing toward my goals.
And as that’s all I can do, I’ll take it.
Sold a SF Story to “How Beer Saved the World” Anthology…and it’s Out
Folks, a few months ago I got the delightful news that my science fiction short story “On the Making of Veffen” had sold to editor Phyllis Irene Radford’s HOW BEER SAVED THE WORLD anthology. But, as per usual in this business, I couldn’t mention it until the anthology was officially either “on the schedule” at Sky Warrior Book Publishing with a definite release date, or when it was listed at Amazon. (UPDATE: It’s also listed at Smashwords, if you’d prefer to buy it there. Several overseas friends have already written to me and let me know that the first link, to Amazon, is “United States only,” so I really hope the Smashwords link will work for anyone who wishes to buy the anthology but does not live in the U.S.)
As of April 27, HOW BEER SAVED THE WORLD has been available at Amazon as an e-book. Which is why I’m now free to discuss my story and the whole idea behind this fourteen-story anthology. Containing stories by Ms. Radford, Brenda Clough, Nancy Jane Moore, and many others, it’s described over at Book View Cafe as:
Here’s a book that takes issue with the popular image of beer as the drink of sports-watching couch potatoes: How Beer Saved the World, an anthology of quirky short stories celebrating beer. Edited by Book View Cafe’s Phyllis Irene Radford, and including stories by BVC members Brenda Clough and Nancy Jane Moore, this is a collection of 14 different takes on positive outcomes brought on by beer.
Beer goes back to the early days of the human race. As it says in the introduction, “Fermented grains have been a mainstay of the human diet almost as long as we have been human.” So pour yourself a cold one and sit down with these stories.
Or, if you’d rather see the official press release put out by Maggie Bonham of Sky Warrior Books, here you go:
And on the Eighth Day God Created Beer.
Beer is what separates humans from animals… unless you have too much.
Seriously, anthropologists, archeologists, and sociologists seem to think that when humans first emerged on earth as human, they possessed fire, language, a sense of spirituality, and beer.
Within these pages are quirky, silly, and downright strange stories sure to delight and entertain the ardent beer lover by authors such as Brenda Clough, Irene Radford, Mark J. Ferrari, Shannon Page, Nancy Jane Moore, Frog and Esther Jones, G. David Nordley, and many more!
(Obviously, as a lesser-known author, I’m among the “many more” here.)
My story, “On the Making of Veffen,” concerns Terran Ambassador Betsy Carroll and her N’Ferran friend, the N’Ferran Scholar (and Fearless One), Asayana. (Or as I call him, Scholar Asa for short.) Asa is avian, but he loves veffen — every N’Ferran drinks veffen every day, including the infants — and he and Betsy have bonded over the years due to their mutual love of fermented beverages (among other things). This story starts out with the two of them drinking a tall glass of veffen in the local tavern — veffen, of course, was described in the story as “…akin to a rich Irish stout, even though it had a taste all its own that was rich, nutty and bitter as all dark beer, yet with a hint of entrancing sweetness.” (Do I know my beer, or what?)
Anyway, this meeting is bittersweet, because it’s the last time Betsy sees the elderly Asa alive. Yet Asa’s disappearance and eventual death are mysterious. So the questions aren’t so much as “whodunnit?” as “why did they do it?” as it’s obvious that the N’Ferrans as a whole want to keep something quiet — and that secret has a great deal to do with veffen.
Now, as the anthology is very upfront that beer saves the world, you can assume that what Asa does — which I refuse to spoil (go buy the book already in e-book format; it’s a steal at $4.99, truly) — is of vital importance, and that it, too, has a great deal to do with the nature of veffen. And that it will, indeed, save his world of N’Ferra.**
The other authors here have stories that range from satirical to serious, from the ridiculous to the sublime. All feature some form of beer. And in some way, shape or form, beer saves the world. Which is why it’s a truly different and special anthology, one that should be of interest to beer drinkers everywhere — most especially in my home state of Wisconsin, home of beer, cheese, and brats.
In my opinion, HOW BEER SAVED THE WORLD has a story to please every palate. So if my story doesn’t interest you — though I really hope it does — go check out the anthology anyway, because something else probably will.
———–
** A lengthy aside: “On the Making of Veffen” was written in memory of my late best friend, writer Jefferson A. Wilson (1963-2011). Jeff never managed to get a story published, but he kept trying, and his work had worth and value. Unfortunately, his life was cut short before he could completely deliver on his promise.
As my story is about unusual best friends and the enduring nature of friendship as much as anything else, I couldn’t help but think of Jeff. But I couldn’t figure out how to dedicate the story officially to Jeff as the words refused to come.
Still, I dedicated this story to Jeff inside my head and heart, which is far more important.
Without knowing my friend Jeff, I doubt I would’ve written a story remotely close to this one. And I have to admit that the reason my N’Ferrans are avian is because Jeff liked sauroids nearly as much as dragons (God/dess, did Jeff love dragons), and yet Jeff never wrote a story about avians as far as I know. Which is why I wrote one instead, as it seemed remarkably appropriate.
The Importance of Wills for Writers
Over the past several weeks, I’ve been trying to get a few projects back up and running. These projects, some of them years in the making, have become stalled out not for lack of interest, but because of the lack of time I’ve had to spend on them.
This can be frustrating, mostly because I have more stories than I have energy to work with — and partly because I have the sense that I’m running out of time.
Mind you, I’m going to keep working on the various projects. But the idea of running out of time needs to be discussed . . . and as I’m here, I guess I’m the lucky one who gets to discuss it.
Don’t think that just because you’re not in your dotage that you still have plenty of time. Because maybe you don’t.
Consider, please, that my husband Michael died before he was able to become known as a fiction writer (though after he and I had sold one story, this a SFWA qualifying sale). The stories he left behind are ones I’m trying to keep alive, because they’re really good stories and I want them to see the light of day.
Then consider that my best friend Jeff also died before he was able to become known as a fiction writer. And then further consider that his stories — which were thoughtfully sent to me by his brother — will never be published, or finished either, because he didn’t get time to flesh them out.
And because, unlike my late husband, Jeff did not have an inheritor.
Kristine Kathryn Rusch wrote a post about how important it is for a writer to have a will — no matter how “unimportant” that writer may be, and no matter how unknown his or her work, your literary estate matters. (Yes, she wrote it last November. But the advice still applies.) This is why we all should sit down and make wills if we possibly can.
Bare minimum, we really should start thinking about it.
I’ve already lost two men in their mid-forties who mattered a great deal to me. I’ve only been able to “save” the output from one writer — my husband — and I’m not even sure where all of his files are. (I just believe I can reconstruct them if they’re unable to be found, because I knew Michael so well.) His writing will live on, partly because we’d discussed things and I knew what he wanted done . . . and partly because I’m too damned stubborn to just give up on them.
But my friend Jeff’s writing will not. And that saddens me greatly.
Please, folks. For the love of God/dess and little green apples, if you are a writer of any sort (including a musical composer), figure out who you want to be the executor of your literary estate. Then sit down with your chosen executor, discuss what you will need done after you pass from this earth, and make sure that the person you’ve picked not only understands your wishes, but wants to be your executor . . . then make out your will accordingly.**
That way, whoever ends up being your inheritor will have as good of an idea as possible as to what, exactly, you want done with your literary estate. Because otherwise, who knows what will happen?
So don’t take the chance. Figure out what you want done with your words, and make out that will as soon as you possibly can.
If you do that in a timely manner, your words will have a chance to live on.
And a chance beats no chance at all. Doesn’t it?
————
I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out that Neil Gaiman blogged about this very issue a few years ago due to the problems that occurred after writer John M. Ford passed away. Gaiman’s post on the subject includes a simple PDF form will that should get you pointed in the right direction.
Editorial Ramblings
Before I get into this long-overdue blog about my actual profession (writing and editing), let me say something important:
Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!
Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s talk about editing.
Because I’ve been doing so much editing lately, I’ve had trouble snapping out of “editor mode” and back into whatever mode I’m in when I write. This makes it more difficult to write blogs — even short ones — as much of my energy is being applied elsewhere.
The ability to write words is something I’ve called the “alpha state,” also known as the best place to be for a writer. This is when words flow naturally, and it’s seemingly easy to tell a story. I say “seemingly” because once you’re in the editing phase, you realize how much more work there is yet to do.
That’s why I thought today might be a good day to say a few specific words about editing. Because even though I’ve not specifically talked much about editing, it’s an extremely important part of any writer’s job whether you call yourself a “writer/editor” or not.
Writers often consider editors to be a “necessary evil” even if they, too, are editors. This is one of the odder things about the whole “writing/editing” profession; you don’t start editing unless you know something about writing, and you also don’t start editing unless you really enjoy writing (or at the very least, enjoy reading).
Yet the myth of the “Evil Editor” can’t help but persist, especially among writers who are just starting out or those who haven’t worked with many editors over time. I don’t know how this myth got started, but it really needs to come to an end. Pronto.
I can guarantee to you that, as an editor, I don’t go out of my way to cause trouble for writers. I understand writers (I should, because I am one), and I also understand the worry that an editor possibly won’t understand what you’re writing, and thus won’t be of any use to you.
For those extremely nervous writers out there (I won’t call you “nervous Nellies,” as at least some of your nerves are justifiable, if not actually justified), you need to remember that a good editor helps you clarify your thoughts and clean up your manuscript. Editors exist to help writers, to help polish up that gem of a story you have that’s ready to go out into the big, wide world — otherwise, what would be the point?
I mean, if editors were out there hoping for “perks,” the profession would’ve died out long ago.
Smart writers want editors to look over their work and give suggestions for improvement — at least, I know I want as much editorial help as I can find. Because while my writing is sound, and my ideas are fresh, why not run it by an editor and make my book even better?
Also, remember that even if you, the writer, don’t always agree with your editor, usually some sort of consensus can be reached if the lines of communication remain open. And if you’re willing to trust in the process — and not just eschew all editing because your book is perfect as it is, thank you.
Bottom line? You need to stop fearing the editor, or at least fearing the editorial process. Because your editor — whomever he or she may turn out to be — can help you improve your manuscript.
And really, isn’t that what it’s all about?
————
Note: For those of you who would prefer not to deal with editors, and think your work is perfect as it stands, thank you very many — I have news.
It isn’t.
We all need editing. Every single last solitary one of us.
So rather than fearing the editorial process, or worse, disdaining it as unnecessary, you need to work with it.
Because it’s part of being a professional writer.
And if you’re in this business to be an obnoxious boor, and are insistent that you do not need editing or editors because you are perfect in every conceivable way and the words you’ve written don’t need editing because of your self-same perfection . . . and you then proceed to denigrate editors and editing whenever you can . . . all I can say to you is this:
Grow up. (Seriously.)
Twilight Times Books to Offer Free E-Books Between March 3 and 9, 2013
Folks, I have three pieces of information to impart today regarding Twilight Times Books (TTB).
First, there’s a giveaway going on next week (March 3 to March 9, 2013) over at Twilight Times Books for “Read an E-Book Week.” Several books will be given away, including Stephanie Osborn’s THE CASE OF THE DISPLACED DETECTIVE: THE ARRIVAL (book 1 in her Displaced Detective series). Read all about it here.
Second, there will be a concurrent sale over at TTB on their most popular e-books. The sale will take place at TTB’s own site, over at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other fine e-book outlets. So there’s never been a better time to read an e-book — or a cheaper one — than March 3 to March 9, 2013.
Third — and most personally relevant — is that I’ve been named to the TTB Editorial Board. (Check this link for further details.) Publisher Lida Quillen let me know she was going to do this, which I truly appreciate.
There’s really no better way for a publisher to show her appreciation of what you’re doing as an editor than by public acknowledgement of this type. So I’m quite pleased to be able to point this out. (I’ve known about it for a week, but wanted to discuss it now to coincide with the “read an e-book” promotion.)
Also, please check out the Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) currently being offered by Twilight Times Books. I edited SAILING UPHILL by Gerald Mills, a fine and funny book about sailing and life. I also edited ANSELM: A Metamorphosis by Florence Byham Weinberg, an excellent literary fantasy set in 1965 about a flawed Catholic priest and a flawed literary professor, and how they intersect. And I edited LUCID by Natalie Roers, a young adult literary fantasy about lucid dreaming with a sweet romance at its heart. (I’m also currently in the midst of editing two other books for TTB, but those three are done and in, so I can talk about them.) Please go to this page to order the ARCs for these three fine books right now.
And do, do check out Stephanie Osborn’s free e-book next week. She deserves a much wider audience.
Thus ends this public service announcement.
Barb Caffrey's Blog 