tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-147111432024-03-12T17:23:16.979-08:00Counting Headsidle thoughts • book newsDavid Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.comBlogger166125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-70112639268697540812021-06-17T13:41:00.001-08:002021-06-17T13:59:38.524-08:00Book 3 in my UPON THIS ROCK series just released<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWkP4lnYkRX7ybr483Gaw4Bw_XQ3sILD6VWZ2QQwxprgWGUuaXPfrrTjT7aoGAU4fREQnxbv1qtXgJTvYi7wIBmP1W-FkPDDk4mkI7Vysuh3SHlLUHrZCA_WrtGwTFzSy8MoiK/s470/Book3ebookcover300.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="300" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWkP4lnYkRX7ybr483Gaw4Bw_XQ3sILD6VWZ2QQwxprgWGUuaXPfrrTjT7aoGAU4fREQnxbv1qtXgJTvYi7wIBmP1W-FkPDDk4mkI7Vysuh3SHlLUHrZCA_WrtGwTFzSy8MoiK/w255-h400/Book3ebookcover300.jpg" width="255" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: medium;"><b><i>Upon This Rock: Book 3 — Consider Pipnonia</i> now available</b></span></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Despite the alien’s best efforts, the so-called Little Nudge has failed, and the rogue planet Pipnonia is once again on a collision course with Earth. It’s time for the “Big Bump,” the alien’s last-ditch effort to save Earth and its inhabitants from total annihilation. But first it pressures Ranger Jace Kuliak to accompany Deut Prophecy, the Thirteenth Apostle, on her mission to Pipnonia to preach to its doomed population.</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Meanwhile, civil society is disintegrating around the world. Vera Tetlin, the popular governor of Alaska, and her family are on the run from agents of the Antichrist. And Doomsday Preppers from the Lower 48 are seeking refuge in the little ghost town of McHardy. Among them is a petty tyrant and racist who wants the town for himself.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Things are heating up — literally.</span></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Ebooks available at all online bookstores. Order a print copy at any brick-and-mortar bookstore or from Amazon.</i></span></span></p></div><p><br /></p>David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-82268015100302758162019-02-06T13:21:00.000-09:002019-02-06T13:21:05.750-09:00I am happy to announce the release of my latest novel<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkYNvXrFeSCzzLG1my9c42tMN1HNYuchpYr2gs5R3O-Gfv9eMhlQpT-SyT0uViUS66lqJ76J7ZA-Fa30Qr8wIrrmZd7DNCTaCMdIPfDui3PTx3Gj0hmR3PuRZsjkaRss9wpmiO/s1600/UTR2ebookCover300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkYNvXrFeSCzzLG1my9c42tMN1HNYuchpYr2gs5R3O-Gfv9eMhlQpT-SyT0uViUS66lqJ76J7ZA-Fa30Qr8wIrrmZd7DNCTaCMdIPfDui3PTx3Gj0hmR3PuRZsjkaRss9wpmiO/s320/UTR2ebookCover300.jpg" width="204" /></a></div>
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<i>Glassing the Orgachine</i> is the second book in my sci-fi series <i>Upon This Rock</i>. The series is an epic new saga about faith, family, and alien invasion in the bush of Alaska. The second book attempts to answer the question: What do reverse cyborgs want? Follow the continuing mis-adventures of the Prophecy family on Stubborn Mountain, the park service ranger who loves/hates them, and the celestial visitor (whatever it turns out to be). Read all about it on my <a href="http://www.marusek.com/" target="_blank">website</a>. Available on <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Upon-This-Rock-Glassing-Orgachine/dp/0998863351/ref=sr_1_16_twi_pap_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1549490739&sr=1-16&keywords=upon+this+rock" target="_blank">Amazon</a> and at all major booksellers.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0fS8TThYNNUmJdyCtR-UwNZbQcXC0DcMnuk3vonyd-Ee1dyTDYQWRYCJ2d-f-CTY312arCW0IJ7fuREScccnnBN1oYj4MPLe4e5_2fNLoQxF9ytzp0vdVCtIHsh_eChg98aw7/s1600/compilation300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0fS8TThYNNUmJdyCtR-UwNZbQcXC0DcMnuk3vonyd-Ee1dyTDYQWRYCJ2d-f-CTY312arCW0IJ7fuREScccnnBN1oYj4MPLe4e5_2fNLoQxF9ytzp0vdVCtIHsh_eChg98aw7/s320/compilation300.jpg" width="204" /></a></div>
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But if you haven't read Book 1 yet, no worries. <i>Upon This Rock: Compilation</i> joins both books in one stunning ebook. Get it at <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Upon-This-Rock-Compilation-Orgachine-ebook/dp/B07MXV2NTP/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1549489361&sr=1-1&keywords=upon+this+rock%3A+compilation" target="_blank">Amazon</a>, <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/upon-this-rock-compilation/id1450225263?mt=11" target="_blank">Apple Books</a>, <a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/upon-this-rock-david-marusek/1130334331?ean=2940161444603" target="_blank">Nook</a>, or <a href="https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/upon-this-rock-compilation" target="_blank">Kobo</a>.<br />
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As for myself, I'm in my writer's cabin slinging words at Book 3.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-44575747203563194132017-10-14T12:47:00.002-08:002017-10-14T12:47:40.237-08:00Enter to win a copy of UPON THIS ROCKI'm giving away three copies of my Alaska science fiction novel on Goodreads.<br />
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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_new">Goodreads</a> Book Giveaway
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35853240" rel="nofollow"><img alt="Upon This Rock by David Marusek" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1506812137l/35853240.jpg" title="Upon This Rock by David Marusek" width="100" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35853240" rel="nofollow">Upon This Rock</a>
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by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/278272.David_Marusek" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: none;">David Marusek</a>
</h4>
<div class="giveaway_details">
Giveaway ends October 31, 2017.
<br />
See the <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/257801" rel="nofollow" style="text-decoration: none;">giveaway details</a>
at Goodreads.
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<a class="goodreadsGiveawayWidgetEnterLink" href="https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/enter_choose_address/257801" rel="nofollow">Enter Giveaway</a>
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<script charset="utf-8" src="https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/widget/257801" type="text/javascript"></script>David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-43367553491399048382017-06-29T12:39:00.001-08:002017-06-29T12:39:58.981-08:00Upon This Rock now available!Today I launch my latest novel, <i>Upon This Rock: Book 1--First Contact.</i> It's available everywhere in ebook format. It's available in paperback at Amazon now, and in about a week you'll be able to order the paperback at any bookstore.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3viWrwTyRygvMg6M3agk2qz5pvvEQKftzwqRbrhpDv857im2pLgv0KrroUC-hatNDBxZ7OQ2uxww8J9Qwjln1cGVGZGur3kBjitNKbiV-KojuoXZISg3BooWpjhJsQi-vxGQu/s1600/UTR1paperbackmed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3viWrwTyRygvMg6M3agk2qz5pvvEQKftzwqRbrhpDv857im2pLgv0KrroUC-hatNDBxZ7OQ2uxww8J9Qwjln1cGVGZGur3kBjitNKbiV-KojuoXZISg3BooWpjhJsQi-vxGQu/s320/UTR1paperbackmed.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here's what it's about:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">An epic new science fiction series about faith, family, and alien invasion in the wilds of Alaska.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">When a shooting star plunges through the atmosphere and touches down in the Alaska wilderness, only two earthlings are present to witness the event. But they perceive two utterly different realities. What park ranger Jace Kuliak sees is a UFO and the arrival of a dangerous alien species from beyond the solar system. What Poppy Prophecy sees is the star called Wormwood, as recorded in Scripture, and the arrival of an archangel of the Apocalypse.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">The thing is — they’re both sorta right.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Poppy Prophecy is the despotic patriarch of a large End-Times prepper family that is busily converting a depleted copper mine into its own private doomsday bunker. Their copper mine is a century-old relic from territorial days when East Coast robber barons ruled Alaska and plundered its mineral wealth. Today the abandoned mine sits in the middle of the largest, wildest, most majestic national park in the United States. But Poppy isn’t impressed by mere earthly beauty, and he doesn’t mind bulldozing federal land when it suits his purposes.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Backcountry Ranger Jace Kuliak does mind, and he and fellow rangers confront the fundamentalist family in an armed standoff over the construction of an illegal airstrip. It doesn’t help matters when Ranger Kuliak falls hopelessly in love with Poppy’s second daughter, the lovely, innocent, and totally clueless Deuteronomy.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">An uneasy truce between the Prophecys and the park service is shattered when the falling star lands in their backyard and is claimed by both sides. What is it? Who is it? Better yet, of all the pit stops on all the planets in all the galaxies, why did the Visitor choose this particular rock to screw with?</span></div>
<div>
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><br /></span></div>
</blockquote>
Hope you enjoy it. If you want advance word on Book 2 in the series, please <a href="mailto:utr@marusek.com">sign up</a> for my Novel Update list.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-50967534476812834982017-06-15T14:48:00.000-08:002017-06-15T14:48:17.040-08:00New Book Release<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHt6ylzzQ4QGD2pRnB_pifRydMWpNqPML0p4gkufq4zDAjMX3NzzcFbaUZ5DHSToQVnu8O_QBPAofkOASph7wXLHKXw-g6W7nGZDCLOqhyst0xjFO-cAp-BCZWGwDUm3E_DvLi/s1600/UTRcover300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="300" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHt6ylzzQ4QGD2pRnB_pifRydMWpNqPML0p4gkufq4zDAjMX3NzzcFbaUZ5DHSToQVnu8O_QBPAofkOASph7wXLHKXw-g6W7nGZDCLOqhyst0xjFO-cAp-BCZWGwDUm3E_DvLi/s320/UTRcover300.jpg" width="204" /></a></div>
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I am pleased to announce the release of my new science fiction novel, <i>Upon This Rock</i>. It's the first in a series of books about an alien invasion in Alaska. It'll be released on June 29, just a couple of weeks from today. The ebooks are already up for pre-order on Amazon, B&N, Kobo, and Apple. I'm hustling to get the paperback editions up by then as well. I do hope you check it out. Here's the jacket blurb:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">An epic new science fiction series about family, faith, and alien invasion in the wilds of Alaska.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">When a shooting star plunges through the atmosphere and touches down in the Alaska wilderness, only two earthlings are present to witness the event. But they perceive two utterly different realities. What park ranger Jace Kuliak sees is a UFO and the arrival of a dangerous alien species from beyond the solar system. What Poppy Prophecy sees is the star called Wormwood, as recorded in Scripture, and the arrival of an archangel of the Apocalypse.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">The thing is — they’re both sorta right.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Poppy Prophecy is the despotic patriarch of a large End-Times prepper family that is busily converting a depleted copper mine into its own private doomsday bunker. Their copper mine is a century-old relic from territorial days when East Coast robber barons ruled Alaska and plundered its mineral wealth. Today the abandoned mine sits in the middle of the largest, wildest, most majestic national park in the United States. But Poppy isn’t impressed by mere earthly beauty, and he doesn’t mind bulldozing federal land when it suits his purposes.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Backcountry Ranger Jace Kuliak does mind, and he and fellow rangers confront the fundamentalist family in an armed standoff over the construction of an illegal airstrip. It doesn’t help matters when Ranger Kuliak falls hopelessly in love with Poppy’s second daughter, the lovely, innocent, and totally clueless Deuteronomy.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; min-height: 14px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">An uneasy truce between the Prophecys and the park service is shattered when the falling star lands in their backyard and is claimed by both sides. What is it? Who is it? Better yet, of all the pit stops on all the planets in all the galaxies, why did the Visitor choose this particular rock to screw with?</span></div>
</blockquote>
David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-6985066958630807902014-07-12T13:16:00.002-08:002014-07-12T13:16:23.742-08:00Sign up for novel updates
It’s obvious to anyone looking at my posts on this blog--I stink at
social media. Months or years go by without an update. I guess I’m just
not that into being social. But I still want to keep my readers informed
about my current novel in progress and other writing projects. So, I’m
reviving a mailing list from the days of my first novel. If you’re a
reader of mine, I encourage you to <a href="http://www.marusek.com/Cabin_in_the_Woods/Update.html" target="_blank">sign up</a>. I’ll be sending out only a few Novel Updates a year. No spam, no fuss. Maybe a few free giveaways. Also, this is the way you can reach me if you want to start a conversation about my work.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-86738218018942459662014-06-07T13:47:00.000-08:002016-02-06T11:13:34.003-09:00Alaska Sampler 2014 is free for the taking!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii4WoqXR4QQdZBowDJo62yGVQEQifNaR2JhEetxQE5nIGNsgn9_wsNBnaLOBNciZxvetTe-pnXqqm-bwcPQ2OYtTfGg3rilcEXu_JotVqFEEd0tTDNgIQsRFeL5OuIviOwjmyI/s1600/AKS2014cover400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii4WoqXR4QQdZBowDJo62yGVQEQifNaR2JhEetxQE5nIGNsgn9_wsNBnaLOBNciZxvetTe-pnXqqm-bwcPQ2OYtTfGg3rilcEXu_JotVqFEEd0tTDNgIQsRFeL5OuIviOwjmyI/s1600/AKS2014cover400.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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This is a new ebook project I’ve started with fellow-Alaskan writer, Deb Vanasse. We put together writings from ten of Alaska’s finest authors to show off the place we love, without all the reality-TV-hype nonsense. Pieces range from Biography, Fiction, and Memoir to Adventure and Humor. Best of all, it’s free. Go <a href="http://runningfoxbooks.com/ak-sampler/" target="_blank">here</a> to download.<br />
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Now, back to my non-social mode.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-19129157412597742792014-03-19T16:07:00.001-08:002014-03-19T16:07:58.134-08:00Join My New Novel Update Email ListIt’s obvious to anyone looking at my posts on this blog--I stink at social media. Months or years go by without an update. I guess I’m just not that into being social. But I still want to keep my readers informed about my current novel in progress and other writing projects. So, I’m reviving a mailing list from the days of my first novel. If you’re a reader of mine, I encourage you to <a href="http://www.marusek.com/Cabin_in_the_Woods/Update.html" target="_blank">sign up</a>. I’ll be sending out only a few Novel Updates a year. No spam, no fuss. Maybe a few free giveaways. David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-10799831868659556162013-01-19T15:02:00.000-09:002013-01-19T15:02:34.610-09:00Room for one moreThe <a href="http://49writingcenter.org/Instruction/classes.php" target="_blank">Science Fiction Apprenticeship</a> I'm teaching in February through 49 Writers has room for one more writer. If you'd like me to work one-on-one with you on a short story of yours, this is your chance. No need to be an Alaskan resident.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-13017129147389468722012-12-31T10:54:00.000-09:002012-12-31T10:54:00.851-09:00Ebook Production WorkshopMy six-hour UAF WINTERmester workshop in <a href="http://www.uaf.edu/coursefinder/search-results/details/index.xml?CRN=39909&term=201301&campus=UAF-University%20of%20Alaska%20Fairbanks%20%28all%20campuses%29" target="_blank">Ebook Production</a>, which begins next week, still needs a couple of more students to sign up or it will probably be canceled. If you've been thinking about self-publishing your book on Amazon's Kindle or B&N's Nook but aren't sure how to go about it, this is the course for you. On
the evenings of January 7, 9, and 11 we will cover the basics of ebook
production: file conversion, cover design, proofing, and uploading to
Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Even if you think you’d prefer to hire a
conversion service to do the conversion work for you, this course will
be helpful. Your book can be fiction or non-fiction. Come with a
manuscript and leave with a published ebook. Here's the course <a href="http://www.uaf.edu/files/summer/Ebook-course-syllabus.pdf" target="_blank">syllabus</a>.<br />
<br />David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-13985750448653288652012-12-01T15:35:00.001-09:002012-12-01T15:35:46.118-09:00Two opportunities for writersIn the next couple of months I’ll be offering two diverse learning activities for writers, one for Fairbanks residents and one for anyone with Internet service.<br /><br />The first is a six-hour <a href="http://www.uaf.edu/coursefinder/search-results/details/index.xml?CRN=39909&term=201301&campus=UAF-University%20of%20Alaska%20Fairbanks%20%28all%20campuses%29" target="_blank">workshop in ebook production</a>, part of the University of Alaska Fairbanks WINTERmester curriculum. Do you have a book you’ve been wanting to sell on the Kindle or Nook? On the evenings of January 7, 9, and 11 we will cover the basics of ebook production: file conversion, cover design, proofing, and uploading to Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Even if you think you’d prefer to hire a conversion service to do the conversion work for you, this course will be helpful. Your book can be fiction or non-fiction. Come with a manuscript and leave with a published ebook.<br /><br />Because the course takes place between UAF’s regular semesters, there will be no computer lab open in the evenings for our use. For this reason you’ll need to bring an Internet-ready laptop to class to make the best use of the instruction. (It’s actually better this way because you’ll have all the necessary software on your own computer.) Self-support course fee is $100. (And be sure to download the course syllabus.)<br /><br />The second activity is part of the 49 Alaska Writing Center Spring course lineup. In February, I will be offering a one-on-one apprenticeship program for science fiction writers. Here’s the course description:<br /><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Science fiction, outside of poetry, is the only literary field which has no limits, no parameters whatsoever.”—Theodore Sturgeon. While this characterization is certainly true, science fiction, like any genre, comes with certain built-in reader expectations that the writer must meet. These include muscular plotting, transformative vision, and freewheeling speculation. The Science Fiction Apprenticeship offers one-on-one guidance to writers working on a science fiction short story project, be it cyberpunk, space opera, hard sf, alternate history, or one of the many other flavors of the genre. You'll submit a manuscript of up to 7500 words for a critique by an award-winning science fiction author/mentor. The mentor will provide you feedback in the form of comments and a letter. After mulling these over, you will be encouraged to submit up to two revisions, each receiving additional feedback, as part of a conversation intended to guide both the work and the writer. We'll set goals for your writing and frame our conversation based on finding a path toward those goals, to include up to 60 minutes on the phone or in-person. The program is open to three participants. To apply, email up to five pages (typed, double-spaced) of your story, along with a short statement of goals for your work, to 49writers@gmail.com by January 25.</blockquote>
<br />The Spring 2013 schedule will be up at <a href="http://www.49writingcenter.org/" target="_blank">49 Writers</a> in the next few days. Only three writers will be accepted for my apprenticeship program, and the cost is $350 (members)/$375 (non-members).<br /><br />In other news, work on my upcoming novel, <i>Camp Tribulation,</i> goes well. Every day I wake up eager to push it forward another thousand words. It seems to be growing in depth and resonance (at least for my own quirky taste), and I’m constantly surprised at new developments and twists I had not foreseen.<br /><br />However, despite my respectable progress, the fact of the matter is that there’s another couple of unpaid years ahead before I can bring it to market. Thus the writing gigs on offer above. In addition to them, I seem to be sliding back into my old day job of graphic design, this time with a different angle: I am specializing in book and cover design. I’ll write more about this later, but in the meantime, if you’re in need of a custom-made ebook cover design, <a href="mailto:david@marusek.com" target="_blank">drop me a line</a>.<br />David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-40501698099419593402012-06-20T17:43:00.000-08:002012-06-20T17:43:12.513-08:00Taking my own advice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlIWQ3PMyUEZVQmv1QIjug4KPdbyUa4lhGqoQySlNXgH2UyG2bQ_OU2ERRNJ4kXiDyVWhyphenhyphen0PAYli8MBOVZqVeX2Krg3nPXGNEHhF_P4CLVRoTt8ImNIwZLb9RpAfxVONDLCvc/s1600/YR-YR-YR1000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlIWQ3PMyUEZVQmv1QIjug4KPdbyUa4lhGqoQySlNXgH2UyG2bQ_OU2ERRNJ4kXiDyVWhyphenhyphen0PAYli8MBOVZqVeX2Krg3nPXGNEHhF_P4CLVRoTt8ImNIwZLb9RpAfxVONDLCvc/s320/YR-YR-YR1000.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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In my final <a href="http://49writers.blogspot.com/2012/04/david-marusek-tootin-your-own-horn.html" target="_blank">guest post</a> to the 49 Writers blog, I reported on the theory that the best self-promotion an author can engage in is writing the next book. More titles on sale translates into more sales from readers who follow one’s work. In that regard, I continue to work daily on my next book, <i>Camp Tribulation</i>, at the expense of putting time into this blog. But <i>CT</i> won’t be completed for another year or longer. So in the meantime I’m putting more of my previously published short stories up as 99¢ ebooks. I am pleased to announce the release of the fourth and latest of these, “Yurek Rutz, Yurek Rutz, Yurek Rutz.”<br /><br />In my third <a href="http://49writers.blogspot.com/2012/04/david-marusek-cover-story.html" target="_blank">guest post</a>, which was about ebook covers, I suggested that one style of cover to consider designing is the typographic cover. That is, a cover in which the title itself makes up the graphical element. “Yurek Rutz” seemed like the perfect candidate for a typographic cover, and I followed my own advice in that regard as well.<br /><br />“Yurek Rutz” took a long time to write, over ten years, in fact. I had a notion in my head of what I was going for, but I hit roadblock after roadblock imagining the story. Every couple of years another piece of the puzzle would come to me, and I would jot it down. Finally around 1997, I managed to draft the whole story. But it was missing something. I had no idea what was missing, so I put it away again and worked on other projects.<br /><br /> That summer I attended LoneStarCon 2 in San Antonio and happened to attend a panel presentation called “Should I Sleep with the Editor?” The panelists were leading SF editors, including Gardner Dozois of <i>Asimov’s Science Fiction</i>. To the braying amusement of the audience, they read actual cover letters they had received from unpublished authors who were desperate to break into print. These aspiring authors wheedled, cajoled, and argued in an attempt to reach through the page and twist the editor’s arm. See me, read me, buy me. <br /><br />Suddenly I saw it, how to finish my own story. When I returned home I rewrote “Yurek Rutz,” recasting it as a cover letter to Gardner Dozois. I learned later that he detests epistolary stories, but he bought it anyway and published it in the January 1999, issue of <i>Asimov’s</i>.<br /><br />I love reading “Yurek Rutz” to live audiences. Of all my work, it’s the one most like my own speaking voice. I can hear not only myself in it but my father as well. Sometimes I choke up when I read it. It’s also my longest piece set in Alaska to date. So, if you like my stuff and haven’t read this little gem, download it today and see why old Yurek has made a cameo appearance in almost all of my subsequent stories and novels, including <i>Counting Heads</i> and "The Wedding Album."David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-39868703458922141702012-04-12T09:24:00.000-08:002012-04-12T09:24:31.562-08:00Ebook conversionMy <a href="http://49writers.blogspot.com/2012/04/david-marusek-quick-and-dirty-ebook.html" target="_blank">second guest post</a> is up at 49 Writers. I guess I should have mentioned last week that I'm doing a series on ebooks over there. Last week's post told why I took the step of self-epubbing my previously published short fiction. Hint: it involves money. This week I outline the steps writers can take to convert their manuscripts for sale on Kindle and Nook. Next week: the oh-so-important ebook cover. And finally: marketing in the digital age. I'm also thinking of doing a bonus post about possible future models for self-publishers and some things I've learned doing my own blog. I've spent a lot of time researching and writing these guest posts (too much time!), and I apologize for the dearth of new material here. That'll change in a couple of weeks when my guest gig is done. One thing I want to do is give you an update about the state of Camp Tribulation, which is chugging along nicely. In the meantime, check out my guest posts.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-4790300795070445772012-04-04T17:14:00.000-08:002012-04-04T17:14:11.519-08:00Guest Blogger at 49 WritersDuring the month of April, I am the guest blogger at the excellent Alaskan writing blog, 49 Writers. (Alaska is the 49th state. Get it?) <a href="http://49writers.blogspot.com/2012/04/david-marusek-much-ado-about-ebooks.html">Click here</a> to read my first posting.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-55934102552303160462012-03-06T17:29:00.000-09:002012-03-06T17:29:47.904-09:00Foreign News<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL9sRN8PaUuLUQuVOUzprsWl8i48SkeBsmoIkuUCmxPQqq0ZcQeBtxfM2RhehP79HbWmkHUgXwBqYFYh6mg1Q-aFxx_KwhiEeg0cjCC7hnHlGaTVgcjjtebxD7RFyhztNSuVvD/s1600/German-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL9sRN8PaUuLUQuVOUzprsWl8i48SkeBsmoIkuUCmxPQqq0ZcQeBtxfM2RhehP79HbWmkHUgXwBqYFYh6mg1Q-aFxx_KwhiEeg0cjCC7hnHlGaTVgcjjtebxD7RFyhztNSuVvD/s1600/German-cover.jpg" /></a></div>I am thrilled to announce that my German story collection, Wir waren außer uns vor Glück, has been nominated in two categories of the Kurd Lasswitz Preis. The collection includes “The Wedding Album,” “We Were Out of Our Minds with Joy,” and three other stories. The Kurd Lasswitz Preis is compared to our Nebulas, and my book is competing in the Best Foreign Fiction and Best Translation categories. My translators are Jasper Nicolaisen and Jakob Schmidt. The book is available in paperback and Kindle from the publisher <a href="http://golkonda-verlag.de/cms/front_content.php?idart=262">Golkonda</a> or from <a href="http://www.amazon.de/Wir-waren-au%C3%9Fer-uns-Gl%C3%BCck/dp/3942396033">Amazon.de</a>.<br />
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Very cool.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-65187233670023051202012-02-27T11:44:00.000-09:002012-02-27T11:44:19.105-09:00Last day free ebook giveawayGet 'em while <a href="http://www.marusek.com/Cabin_in_the_Woods/the_Promotion.html" target="_blank">they're</a> free!David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-76307023950043492652012-02-23T09:40:00.000-09:002012-02-23T09:40:43.368-09:00Giveaway Part 2--Free Kindle EbooksLast week I <a href="http://countingheads.blogspot.com/2012/02/ebook-launch-and-giveaway.html" target="_blank">gave away two ebooks</a> for the Nook. This week it's the Kindle's turn. Now through Monday, February 27, you can download previously published short fiction of mine. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/She-Was-Good-She-Funny-ebook/dp/B004XTKGCQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1329952267&sr=1-1" target="_blank"><i>She Was Good–She Was Funny</i></a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Morning-flashes-science-fiction-ebook/dp/B0073NDY5K/ref=sr_1_5?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1329952267&sr=1-5" target="_blank"><i>My Morning Glory and other flashes of absurd science fiction</i></a>. Read more about them <a href="http://www.marusek.com/Cabin_in_the_Woods/the_Promotion.html" target="_blank">here</a>. Download with abandon!David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-75870542650712413152012-02-13T13:43:00.001-09:002012-02-13T14:04:37.243-09:00Ebook Launch and Giveaway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyeZT_vddxXRO3WRtRjwBrxuxRIpAp5HBuzflegkR7Fzh76sR7N7kv_Mmo-LnIH5cZWF2kdM6C5B9lAl8hqaVkLXHK2IBw6rIbkuLYnYpZlUYXvz_fmHe_1xV7hFEyVpuu4A8x/s1600/MMGcover-med.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyeZT_vddxXRO3WRtRjwBrxuxRIpAp5HBuzflegkR7Fzh76sR7N7kv_Mmo-LnIH5cZWF2kdM6C5B9lAl8hqaVkLXHK2IBw6rIbkuLYnYpZlUYXvz_fmHe_1xV7hFEyVpuu4A8x/s320/MMGcover-med.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj338460zeRzcDX3hF4D4CEJ1QY_dBNManqbDcc8Y6LvUOFNtkeywl8fWaivS3RxM0g2zLFX_vi8U4n8hH4J13zE_3vG0cJs6wpQZ0lmLABs-nQmENqWSIpcfUG3rqWWDW4nLse/s1600/TWA-cover-600x800.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj338460zeRzcDX3hF4D4CEJ1QY_dBNManqbDcc8Y6LvUOFNtkeywl8fWaivS3RxM0g2zLFX_vi8U4n8hH4J13zE_3vG0cJs6wpQZ0lmLABs-nQmENqWSIpcfUG3rqWWDW4nLse/s320/TWA-cover-600x800.jpg" width="240" /></a>At long last, I am pleased to announce the publication of two ebooks, “My Morning Glory and other flashes of absurd science fiction” and “The Wedding Album.” The first is a collection of three flash fiction stories first published in the British science journal <i>Nature</i>, and I’m giving it away for free. The second is a novella first published in <i>Asimov’s Science Fiction</i> and probably my most popular and widely translated work to date.<br />
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In order to make a splash, I’m giving away the “My Morning Glory” mini-collection for free, along with a bonus short story (see below). Because of Amazon’s proprietary exclusivity rules, I’ll have to do this in two phases. First comes <a href="http://www.marusek.com/Cabin_in_the_Woods/the_Promotion.html" target="_blank">Nook. Download for free</a> until Monday, February 20. And then from Thursday, February 23 through Monday, February 27, download them from Amazon for free.<br />
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Not to make too big a deal about it, but this is more than just a book launch. It’s also the launching of my new role as e-publisher. The synergistic, skill-extension effect of the personal computer and the Internet has finally caught up with authorship, and all hell is breaking loose. With the introduction of the Kindle only three years ago, the traditional barriers to book manufacture and distribution have been battered down. Tens of thousands of aspiring authors have rushed in where only traditional publishers used to tread. Now, literally, anyone who’s ever wanted to publish a real book (in both digital and POD editions) and sell it around the world can do so at minimal cost and fuss. (Grammer, speling & punctuation is optional ;)<br />
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Suddenly there are channels to put books into the hands of the reading public that do not involve traditional publishing. Trailblazing authors have already racked up digital bestsellers without NYC’s input. Traditional publishing is reeling with the changes and trying to adapt, and someday it may figure out a new business model (transmedia novels, anyone?). In the meantime, we mid-list authors of the old regime are scrambling to stay afloat in the new. One thing many authors are doing, now that we’ve been given the tools, is to bring out our backlists in ebook format. I’m giving that a try; in my case I only own the ebook rights to my short stories, and I’m only planning on e-publishing these few. (You can already buy “MMG” and “TWA” along with 8 other stories in my Del Rey collection, <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/getting-to-know-you-david-marusek/1013063487" target="_blank"><i>Getting to Know You.</i></a>) If all goes well, I may self-pub my next novel, Camp Tribulation, (partly because I’m doubtful any legacy publisher will touch it--it’s that good!--or, maybe it’s no good at all; I don’t know; still too early to tell; it’s about two years away from completion).<br />
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One may wonder why I am e-publishing “TWA.” After all, it’s been reprinted about a dozen times and translated into five foreign languages and is easily found on pirate sites. Hasn’t everyone already read it who’s going to read it? I hope not. The fact that it has done so well for so long suggests that, given a little nudge, it might have the right stuff to find new readers on its own who may become new fans.<br />
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A literary agent once said that in order to make a living by writing fiction these days, an author needs 20,000 fans. (I think the agent was Donald Maass.) I don’t know how accurate the figure is, but it sounds about right. If it is, I still have a lot of recruitment to do.<br />
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I expect that anyone who regularly checks this blog has already read “TWA,” but maybe you know someone who hasn’t. Maybe someone who received a Kindle or Nook for Christmas or Valentine’s Day and is searching for something good to read on it. If so, please do me the fannish favor of passing this link to them.<br />
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On the other hand, unless you have a subscription to <i>Nature</i> (or belong to an institution that does), you may not have read the flash fiction stories. Please download “My Morning Glory” at no cost, with my compliments.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI4rmy7SryuxlQ7CJvr8tqaVqtZh6CWfTpjONqAIT2g99JsaoY45mOQPxyCbYGmthF8E7O9-P8QUflj4A4Tb69ThR83NmzIxD7UJSzgiox6hBEsgI25e0thuqR7DnKl8J4m3KE/s1600/+SWGcover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI4rmy7SryuxlQ7CJvr8tqaVqtZh6CWfTpjONqAIT2g99JsaoY45mOQPxyCbYGmthF8E7O9-P8QUflj4A4Tb69ThR83NmzIxD7UJSzgiox6hBEsgI25e0thuqR7DnKl8J4m3KE/s320/+SWGcover.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>But wait, there’s more! For a limited time I’m also giving my <i>Playboy</i> story away for free, “She Was Good—She Was Funny.” It’s not SF, but it’s kick-in-the-pants fun, and if you read it, you’ll have a little taste of what it’s like to live (and love) in the sub-Arctic.<br />
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So, Nookies, get your <a href="http://www.marusek.com/Cabin_in_the_Woods/the_Promotion.html" target="_blank">complimentary copies now! </a>And Kindlers, go to Amazon beginning February 23. (I'll post a reminder.)David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-17436996421750080162012-01-15T14:46:00.003-09:002012-01-15T15:19:17.474-09:00The New Cover<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlys_PGmrwWlQyfXJCoKGJm2lIZAO_MJQ6HvaGUDGELiYEb2TmYSeFHzCdqBa5cKqsqCtnO_kQ74UJDNuX78d37tBfY31JW0PWa69_nxuo1MnudS_Uk_5Un_Za4AvNMVr-84q/s1600/kissing+montage+cover.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 315px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlys_PGmrwWlQyfXJCoKGJm2lIZAO_MJQ6HvaGUDGELiYEb2TmYSeFHzCdqBa5cKqsqCtnO_kQ74UJDNuX78d37tBfY31JW0PWa69_nxuo1MnudS_Uk_5Un_Za4AvNMVr-84q/s400/kissing+montage+cover.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698013686429858194" border="0" /></a><br />It's minus 40 degrees F in Fairbanks right now. It was supposed to "warm up" to minus 19, warm enough for my 1992 Mazda pickup to bounce and slide down the road to the grocery store. But it didn't warm up, and I'm literally tossing one log after another into the wood stove. The temp hasn't risen above minus 30 degrees outside my door for 3 days now.<br /><br />That's the reason for this rare Sunday post. I believe I have finished, at long long last, the cover for my ebook version of "The Wedding Album." I wanted to share it with you (and to give anyone a last chance to <a href="mailto:david@marusek.com">send</a> me feedback). I'm liking this one a lot. It seems to have enough science fictional ambiance to telegraph its genre. IMO, it's visually intriguing. And it does the job (remain legible/iconic) at all sizes from 100 pixels wide to full-sized ebook cover (590 x 750).<br /><br />I modified two images from <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page">Wikimedia Commons</a> for the cover illustration. The kissing couple is from "backlight-wedding" by David Ball. The background is from "Have Your Cake - wedding cake with red swirls" by Terry Johnston.<br /><br />I don't know why I took so long with this damn cover. I was starting to think I'd never get it done. Now that it is, the new ebooks won't be far behind.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-31105133893860006342011-12-10T15:15:00.009-09:002011-12-12T09:53:34.022-09:00An Illustrated Account of the Last 6 Weeks<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSDwAr_5nZIayOmjB-5T3enEBrMOfcL1pb4-88jUveKQlxx1plmyOrECOYUk9JlqDnhHpfrstJDaBgC2c2LzjckArMxzqLY_NdSUdM2s7WMy-hBHW83lBXeSXzJFeTKROwO981/s1600/two+cords+firewood.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSDwAr_5nZIayOmjB-5T3enEBrMOfcL1pb4-88jUveKQlxx1plmyOrECOYUk9JlqDnhHpfrstJDaBgC2c2LzjckArMxzqLY_NdSUdM2s7WMy-hBHW83lBXeSXzJFeTKROwO981/s400/two+cords+firewood.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684660197550721042" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The novel burbles along. The deeper I get the deeper it gets. Hope I can pull it off. I'm getting pretty sure of the title and I feel like I can divulge it. My novel in progress is called <span style="font-style: italic;">Tribulation Camp</span>. Also, my main protagonist is now named Hadrian Haden. We'll see how long that sticks.<br /><br />Here in Interior Alaska we got a head start on winter. The last two weeks of November took a nose dive, and we got down to minus 41. We broke six all-time record lows, five of them on consecutive nights. The photo above is of my wood yard. I'm having to buy firewood this winter, and what you see represents a two-cord delivery of 8-foot logs.<br /><br />Last I heard, the Occupy Fairbanks diehards are still camped in the park and have maintained a continuous presence through the two weeks of extreme cold. In my last post I incorrectly identified the park as being a city park. It's actually a borough park (our boroughs are like your counties) and the official dealing with them is the borough mayor. The campers have two arctic tents with stoves. So far the mayor has resisted calls to clear the park and says the campers have 1st Amendment rights to assemble. Good for him.<br /><br />I'm still working on the cover to "The Wedding Album" ebook. I started to feel like I was over-thinking it, and I'm still open to hiring a real illustrator when I can. In the meantime, I've spent countless hours browsing the sites with Creative Commons, public domain, or reasonably priced images including: Wikimedia, Flikr, Deviant Art. This last one, <a href="http://www.deviantart.com/">Deviant Art,</a> is an amazing community of incredibly talented artists, many of whom I'd like to hire someday.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjBbxlmLsfs0BxGSRFu9yiLSbosn79HTPKmHH6hzzWMcMrW2KbRZjXTM7PeFmDFS_-QD8x6H-ZuFL5F61AdelrC3SFrRAPuqHSginqzX4UrZtwOn6VQH9dAxA1qR2AZkYz7AyR/s1600/TWA-cover-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjBbxlmLsfs0BxGSRFu9yiLSbosn79HTPKmHH6hzzWMcMrW2KbRZjXTM7PeFmDFS_-QD8x6H-ZuFL5F61AdelrC3SFrRAPuqHSginqzX4UrZtwOn6VQH9dAxA1qR2AZkYz7AyR/s400/TWA-cover-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684660187132020354" border="0" /></a><br />The last I posted, this was the stage the cover was at. (click on photos for larger size) I asked for and got valuable feedback from some of you. My main problem with it was that nothing about the image was science fictional. I did locate some Photoshop tools and filters I had been unaware of and spent some time sexing up the rings.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-wCWaQ2rBVqVG5xLpP5kfRP0Bw-COWWZJam9Z_ucBwYi_tOOnfv9cpe7s2-_pYnz5CA-dO9_22p7dFQx4rddOEVeNq-qhvP9HpOq1FSPcepRpqGa5SrYMBrysnb0peraJ0vif/s1600/Wedding_ringsdiffclouds.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 296px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-wCWaQ2rBVqVG5xLpP5kfRP0Bw-COWWZJam9Z_ucBwYi_tOOnfv9cpe7s2-_pYnz5CA-dO9_22p7dFQx4rddOEVeNq-qhvP9HpOq1FSPcepRpqGa5SrYMBrysnb0peraJ0vif/s400/Wedding_ringsdiffclouds.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684660186472844034" border="0" /></a><br />But in the end, the objection was the same, not SFnal enough. I kept browsing.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://img2.etsystatic.com/il_fullxfull.48491466.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 542px; height: 697px;" src="http://img2.etsystatic.com/il_fullxfull.48491466.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />I found this wedding cake topper featuring elegant robots. I fell in love with it and tried to make it work as a cover image. But it's just too whimsical for the story, and I had to let it go. If I ever get married again, I'm sure to have a robot cake topper. I encourage you to visit the online store of the artist, <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/18398656/elegant-robot-couple-wedding-cake-topper">Pete,</a> and see all the other robotic accessories he sells.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Upaa2SMiVU0_pzBKdQZK0yBx9AgqJzwXxt0vHkB2fyl6yffJnVckDW__iB9OvmCLQmkRKr6O01kiU93w_lckNkqwN8XvftNo_NTEoqQNKVpzjKh9CWylcnaeZnSqHNDuY-JT/s1600/TWA+cover2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 315px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Upaa2SMiVU0_pzBKdQZK0yBx9AgqJzwXxt0vHkB2fyl6yffJnVckDW__iB9OvmCLQmkRKr6O01kiU93w_lckNkqwN8XvftNo_NTEoqQNKVpzjKh9CWylcnaeZnSqHNDuY-JT/s400/TWA+cover2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5685315548722640082" border="0" /></a><br />I took another tack and the image above is the current iteration of the cover image. I'm liking it a lot. It evokes the story quite nicely. And I think it says science fiction. What do y'all think?David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-82766123664956265832011-10-29T16:15:00.003-08:002011-10-29T16:29:35.039-08:00Occupy Fairbanks<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivFwj84d7EoWL5u-wqx1w_jvtsScYAmex-YEMepRTsESp7R9b4CtFj2gnuLjDhQVrp91j3VdUkKVNktt5PM53FKhRrNSvX67ichQi1rbAgQXtcX2i8C43MC7-ziV80MQintpuE/s1600/Occupy-Frbks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 309px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivFwj84d7EoWL5u-wqx1w_jvtsScYAmex-YEMepRTsESp7R9b4CtFj2gnuLjDhQVrp91j3VdUkKVNktt5PM53FKhRrNSvX67ichQi1rbAgQXtcX2i8C43MC7-ziV80MQintpuE/s400/Occupy-Frbks.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5669075037346132946" border="0" /></a><br />Just returned from the Occupy Fairbanks march. I wasn’t dressed for the weather, a clear, relatively mild day (13 °F), and had to bail before all the speeches were done. About 40 people marched, pretty much the same crowd I saw when I protested the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Unlike those protests, this time I didn’t see any passers-by flipping us off or screaming insults. There are a few people camping out in a city park in solidarity with other protesters around the world, but they are having problems with the city and police. Nothing major yet. I've read in the news how other cities are holding their fire against Occupy protesters because they think the coming winter weather will do the job for them. It seems to me that Fairbanks protesters might have some cold weather expertise to share.<br /><br />Though the Occupy movement has no generally accepted list of demands yet, I agree with most of the ones I’ve heard: breaking up financial institutions that are too big to fail, bringing criminal charges against the managers and executives of institutions that caused the recession with illegal activities, ending the wars, ending corporate welfare, and so on.<br /><br />My biggest beef is with the Supreme Court that, beginning with the 14th amendment in the 19th century, declared corporations to be persons with civil rights. I’m concerned about the political power that major corporations are able to muster with large amount of money, of course, but being a science fiction writer, I can’t help projecting my worries beyond the current situation to the not-to-distant future when science has invented true Artificial Intelligence.<br /><br />Corporations are cleverly crafted machines, and machines do not have to be sentient to have an agenda and the means to pursue it. Their ultimate purpose is profit, not providing products or services. Products and services are merely the means to that profit. They have no inherent interest in human affairs, the planet, justice, or any other issue insofar as it doesn’t turn a profit. They are eternal entities but not very good at looking at the long-term consequences of their actions. A corporation will catch and sell the last fish in the ocean before it wonders where all the fish have gone. Supposedly people drive corporations, but it seems clear to me that the bigger and more successful a corporation becomes the more the corporation drives its board of directors and executives. If they do not serve its purposes (profit), they are discharged.<br /><br />Thus the corporate model is a perfect, ready made immortal “body” for an immortal AI to move into. When AIs arrive on the scene, I imagine they may have a hard time winning their own civil rights at first. The same people who give corporations a pass on social issues will object to conferring equal rights to soulless, unchristian AIs. However, enterprising AIs will be able to incorporate themselves and step right into personhood. In this sense the coming Singularity may look something like a hostile takeover.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-58814521273633948882011-10-08T12:38:00.002-08:002011-10-08T14:18:19.971-08:00Steve JobsOf all the tributes I've heard this week, I was most moved by people who told how the works of this man changed their lives. I must raise my hand and declare myself one of these.<br /><br />Back in 1986 I was in bad need of a job. Both my private business and marriage had just failed. Counter intuitively, I felt that it was a great opportunity to finally quit stalling and begin to work on my dream of becoming a published author. But I needed income, something to get by with while I took the time to write.<br /><br />I interviewed around town for a job. My most marketable skill in those days was as a graphic designer. I had worked at the local paper for a few years. They had turned my boyhood training in fine art into a rough and ready commercial art skill. I sold and laid out auto and real estate ads, a lot of them full-page ads during those boom times. The newspaper taught me the skills to manually lay out a mechanical, a blueprint of sorts in different colored inks on tissue paper. The typesetters, compositors, camera, and others in production used them to build the ads, Within the confines of the medium, I grew to feel quite proficient, if not artful.<br /><br />So in 1986, I was lucky to interview with the owner of Express Copy & Graphics for a job. She had a full time designer position to fill, one of the earliest Mac computers, laser printers, and version 1.2 of PageMaker.<br /><br />Thus I arrived at the ground floor of the digital revolution in printing. Desktop publishing, launched on Apple's machines, eventually brought down an entrenched giant of an industry--traditional printing. And I was not only witness to the complete upheaval, but served as a grave digger. It took me almost a year to translate my manual layout skills onto the Mac, and I never looked back. What with practicing, teaching, and free-lancing, I earned my bread and butter for over 20 years in graphic design on ever-improving models of Macs.<br /><br />The fall of traditional printing was followed by the fall of traditional publishing, a revolution we are witnessing these days with ebooks. In this the iPad, revolutionary in so many other areas, is running a distant third (I'm only guessin) behind Kindle. The Kindle Fire, just released, could be the final nail in the coffin of print books as big business.<br /><br />But by far the newest technological revolution Steve Jobs cast upon the world has been largely unnoticed in the press. I'm talking about Siri, the personal assistant on the new iPhone 4S, which was released on the day before Jobs died. I wonder if he had any free attention in those last hours to marvel at the little wonder he had just tossed into the world. I've heard that people were expecting Apple to announce the iPhone 5 and were disappointed when it didn't. Don't they know that the lucky owners of the iPhone 4S will hold in their hands the first iteration of . . . wait for it . . . the first iteration of the belt valet? Trust me, boys and girls, this is major. Even if Siri flops, like the Newton tablet did, the AI assistant cat is out of the bag. Thank you, Steve Jobs. We won't soon forget you.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-45888659765235455502011-10-01T11:43:00.006-08:002011-10-01T14:44:18.465-08:00The New Book CoverI've gotten some helpful feedback on the cover in the comments section. It provides gist for a few blog entries starting with this one. Renelle (one of my first readers) asks:<br /><blockquote><br />It's a nice cover, David. Do ebook covers serve the same purpose as (real books? meatbooks? what the heck do I call them?) printed book covers? Does it need to stand out in a crowd? Pique your interest?</blockquote><blockquote></blockquote>She also says: How many sizes is it going to be viewed at? How small will it be on, say, an iPhone?<br /><blockquote></blockquote>These are all great questions because they reflect the revolution going on in media, with the rise of the phones and tablets (the fifth and fourth screens, respectively, in the life of the modern consumer). If paper books are truly going away and ebooks springing up to replace them, then what of the cover? Is the ebook cover the same or is it different from the paper book cover? (I don't know what else to call them either--traditional books, hard copy books, eventually POD books.)<br /><br />It seems to me that all commercial covers, whether traditional or digital, must stand out on the crowded rack. Their purpose is mainly to sell the book. The method they employ is usually to be somehow evocative of the subject of the book while piquing the reader's interest. In this the digital book cover is no different than the traditional one, except the crowd it needs to outshine is digital. That is, the ebooks I'm doing will have no POD incarnation and will only be sold online. The online racks belong to Amazon, B&N, and others, and they display covers in sizes ranging from about 60 pixels to about 200 pixels in width, depending where on the site they are displayed. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheBqFBuKxXZj7dx8ScWgm4z0VFPotf2n1HcRV796AbirzOdAXVIeeqEI5PXXpvF55iX5dvRjqiw6yXBFOx9l2XAXqh5VIybJddv7SdKp5qRZDXSjfax1_NSe2JZQyLNr5Np6wO/s1600/MMGcover60px.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 60px; height: 90px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheBqFBuKxXZj7dx8ScWgm4z0VFPotf2n1HcRV796AbirzOdAXVIeeqEI5PXXpvF55iX5dvRjqiw6yXBFOx9l2XAXqh5VIybJddv7SdKp5qRZDXSjfax1_NSe2JZQyLNr5Np6wO/s400/MMGcover60px.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5658643292518744258" border="0" /></a>A 60-px cover is really tiny. Here's an early attempt at the cover for My Morning Glory at 60 px. You generally can't read any of the text at this size, not even the title. Objects are hard to distinguish. You may have only a shape and a color. But if you've already looked at the cover in a larger size, then this one acts like a little icon or trademark (a glyph).<br /><br /><br />Here's an intermediate size that appears on some Amazon pages. (I'm basing these on the Amazon site. Other sites have own sizes. And I have no idea how they appear on a tablet or smart phone.)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5p68OuTNL0gMLFkqH7q2Fd8qmTDrkc61lYCd38SuIG4jwhsLXqOa-jvkJJrYic2JopE1AUi_gFxBPasJZLFC_kY_AHZHLszNOFtkG2plPHLGhYZq9Z4kuxoG15GVSw7DrFpNn/s1600/MMGcover100px.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 100px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5p68OuTNL0gMLFkqH7q2Fd8qmTDrkc61lYCd38SuIG4jwhsLXqOa-jvkJJrYic2JopE1AUi_gFxBPasJZLFC_kY_AHZHLszNOFtkG2plPHLGhYZq9Z4kuxoG15GVSw7DrFpNn/s400/MMGcover100px.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5658643299370179682" border="0" /></a>It's 100 px wide, and at this size you should be able to read something, probably the title, maybe the author name. Object should be discernible.<br /><br />And finally the size on an individual book's main page. As far as the buying experience goes, this 200 px size cover is the largest that will appear. Sometimes, you can click on a cover and see a larger size, or you can click on "Inside this Book" and see a larger version of the cover, but I would guess that most people don't. So this size has to do all the work.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCSnbBv6laKDC3nSekydoavJ7k-xd1lO7hjR0oprsSQYETig9e8UM3JaDCco1_N0rmerjpgDzgayjamm9xuW0wHzJkiiY7iQc5ikkvHWlrgUpiVWYTQs60dPAjIlQ8ZOeK-pr/s1600/MMGcover200px.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCSnbBv6laKDC3nSekydoavJ7k-xd1lO7hjR0oprsSQYETig9e8UM3JaDCco1_N0rmerjpgDzgayjamm9xuW0wHzJkiiY7iQc5ikkvHWlrgUpiVWYTQs60dPAjIlQ8ZOeK-pr/s400/MMGcover200px.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5658643298907726770" border="0" /></a>You should be able to identify objects portrayed and read the title, author's name, and maybe the pitch line (subhead). IMO, there is no place for sub-sub heads.<br /><br />That's on the sales side. On the reader's side, e-readers also display the cover at about the size of a paperback book. The older Kindles displayed in B&W, but the iPad and Nook are color, and now with the introduction of the Kindle Fire, it seems to me that color will rule on the cover as well as inside the book. The insides of print books have only been shy of color in the past because of the cost of extra print runs that color entailed. But e-color is free, and I believe that ebook designers will embrace it.<br /><br />More discussion later.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-8061823734667680222011-09-24T11:44:00.003-08:002011-09-24T11:57:34.680-08:00Still here<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX87V3Vxa_1xkO82ZD79R_7Tk4aljTiaqbQbZ1DqI7QMc8TBKgmU3ncNfJpcJIQJXWK5bATXAzIHfZA19_4G0pPfywHqhadKoQaB_g4ax9ru-fkSihDY5bJtnHUJeYKvKqW7qT/s1600/TWA-cover-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX87V3Vxa_1xkO82ZD79R_7Tk4aljTiaqbQbZ1DqI7QMc8TBKgmU3ncNfJpcJIQJXWK5bATXAzIHfZA19_4G0pPfywHqhadKoQaB_g4ax9ru-fkSihDY5bJtnHUJeYKvKqW7qT/s400/TWA-cover-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5656016973180003282" border="0" /></a><br />I seem to have missed a week or two of posting. No excuses except that I have been mightily distracted by the Rat Race. Anyway, I have been plugging away at trying to come up with the cover for my next ebook. The image above is the current candidate. I'm not too jazzed by it because the background is brown, a no-no in graphic design, and because it looks so mundane. I'd much prefer a SFnal image that evokes the future, the Singularity, AIs or almost anything else. But I'm at the end of my rope. I've spent weeks browsing wedding images online and in bridal magazines, and this is the best I have come up with, given my limited illustration skills.<br /><br />So, how about some feedback. Anyone like this cover?<br /><br />Also, is there anyone out there who's read "The Wedding Album" and has a better idea? I'm all ears.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14711143.post-73718812493929444122011-09-10T13:20:00.002-08:002011-09-10T13:44:14.632-08:00I recommend this book<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlZTl98U2m_c0KPeqjcDWfau1_3Wq_xwkfsaLQGEIia3_BMLlKO06CrQLpwZ9OfSVel_4Wz-7yJSgEAgPQHtq7DK_O2Y0cQzT4pxq0tr6Kats-K_wP_wDbsQzHTcy_1wBJT_j6/s1600/beyond-hill.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 176px; height: 260px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlZTl98U2m_c0KPeqjcDWfau1_3Wq_xwkfsaLQGEIia3_BMLlKO06CrQLpwZ9OfSVel_4Wz-7yJSgEAgPQHtq7DK_O2Y0cQzT4pxq0tr6Kats-K_wP_wDbsQzHTcy_1wBJT_j6/s400/beyond-hill.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5650844435572616402" border="0" /></a><br />I am totally engrossed in a book of SF theory called <span style="font-style: italic;">The World Beyond the Hill: Science Fiction and the Quest for Transcendence,</span> by Alexei and Cory Panshin. What the authors lay out in this tome (of 685 pages) has provided me insight into what I am doing with my life. So it’s an important book to me, and I’d like to tell you about it.<br /><br />Chapter one begins: “Science fiction is a literature of the mythic imagination. In science fiction stories, spaceships and time machines carry us outside ourselves, outside our world, outside everything we know, to distant realms that none of us has ever seen . . .” Here is outlined the two chief themes of the book, myth and transcendence.<br /><br />Transcendence can be defined as moving beyond the range of normal human experience to realms that are irrational, elusive, wonderful, and never completely to be known. The label used throughout the book to denote normalcy is “the Village,” the place we spend our daily lives. Transcendent reality, the land of mystery and wonder, is denoted by the title, “The World Beyond the Hill.” Most humans throughout history have been content to live out their lives in the relative safety of the Village while yearning to glimpse the World beyond the Hill. For most of human history, that outer world was occupied by supernatural forces, gods, and demons. Direct experience of that world was never a good idea, was mediated by shamans and priests, and required sacrifice and prayer.<br /><br />A myth, by popular definition, is a false idea or belief, such as the myth that corporations are people or that lowering taxes can spur employment. In popular usage, mythology is the study of a belief system that is as ancient and dead as the gods of Greek mythology.<br /><br />A more scholarly definition of myth is a little more complicated. A myth is a set of principles (or collection of stories) that, using the best, most reliable knowledge<span style="font-style: italic;"> of the day,</span> explains transcendent mysteries: who made us? where did we come from? what does it all mean? where do we go when we die?<br /><br />Because there is a tendency for people to not recognize the tenuous nature of their own belief systems, they tend to call their view of reality the truth and everyone else’s a myth. It’s easy today to dismiss Mount Olympus and its cast of titans, gods, and mortals--Zeus, Cassandra, Achilles--no one believes that stuff anymore. It’s myth. What we too often forget is that, during its own time, Greek mythology represented the cutting edge of knowledge and helped explain everything from lightning bolts to love. We also forget that our own era’s myth of science, no matter how rational it seems to us today, may well be supplanted tomorrow by a whole new set of operating principles and that our truths may then seem just as quaint and dead.<br /><br />This book, then, follows the rise of the myth of science through the lens of fiction. From the Ages of Reason and Romanticism, through the Age of Technology, to the Atomic Age, the authors trace the decline of the myth of spirit in the West in favor of the new myth of science. Part world history, part chronicle of seminal works of fiction, this book creates a framework for understanding the genesis and effect of major works of science fiction (and proto-SF) such as <span style="font-style: italic;">Frankenstein; The Time Machine; War of the Worlds; Looking Backward, 2000-1887;</span> “Who Goes There;” <span style="font-style: italic;">I, Robot;</span> and hundreds more.<br /><br />Through this book, I have been able to view my own scribbling as part of a grand tradition of myth-making. Now I see why I am drawn to writing SF and not your everyday, Village-centric, mainstream fiction. My only disappointment is that the authors stopped their critique of history at the year 1945, the dawn of the Atomic Age. How I wish they’d take up their pens and resume their analysis to include our current era, the Information Age.<br /><br />I have only one quibble with the book: the authors seem to presume that the myth of science reins supreme everywhere in the West, that everyone agrees that spiritualism and supernaturalism are as archaic as the Greek gods. I don’t know where the authors live--in Europe?-- but here in the U.S. the vast majority of people still have at least one foot firmly planted in the Dark Ages. When leading presidential candidates refudiate the “theory” of evolution, claim Jesus as their personal savior, or believe a guy named Smith dug up heavenly golden plates that only an angel could interpret, science gets short shrift. It occurs to me that the sustaining force motivating me to write my current novel is the desire to finally and fully bust the myth of the supernatural.<br /><br />Good luck with that, dude.David Marusekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01323940829182539355noreply@blogger.com1