May 2009 Blog Posts (185)

ROGUE MALES: SUBJECT #8, MAX ALLAN COLLINS

(Author’s note: Rogue Males: Conversations & Confrontations About the Writing Life, is a collection of author interviews. It includes Elmore Leonard, Lee Child, Pete Dexter, James Ellroy, Daniel Woodrell, Kinky Friedman and James Crumley. Rogue Males also features an account of a trip to the desert to interview crime fiction greats Ken Bruen and James Sallis about the craft of writing. During the next few weeks, I’m sharing a little bit about each of the 16 writers featured in… Continue

Added by Craig McDonald on May 22, 2009 at 9:47am — No Comments

Judge Reviewing Pirate Bay Trial Bias Is Removed for Bias

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/05/judge-reviewing-pirate-bay-trial-bias-is-removed-for-bias/

This case keeps getting more and more interesting.

Added by John Dishon on May 22, 2009 at 7:39am — No Comments

It's A Fair Cop, Guv

Today the police turned up at my door. Again. Now, I don't know about you, but whenever a policeman turns up at my door and says "Are you Donna Moore?" I always start to panic. Of course, it's to be hoped that a policeman isn't going to turn up at your door and say "Are you Donna Moore?" That's an altogether different problem. My immediate response is to think a) Oh my God what's happened to everyone I love, followed swiftly by b) What the hell have I done? and sometimes c) Has someone sent me… Continue

Added by Donna Moore on May 22, 2009 at 7:00am — 6 Comments

Yakuza Gambling Debt Score Settled

My tale of still attached pinky fingers has been entered into the Flash Fiction 40 Contest at Editor Unleashed: Running with the Iron Rooster.

Check it out here (have to be registered with site):

http://editorunleashed.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1198

Added by Michael Solender on May 22, 2009 at 7:00am — 1 Comment

Purgatory at the Pump 'n' Loaf

That's the title of my first attempt at flash fiction. It was published today at Flash Fiction Offensive (FFO). It's a real honor to see my work next to the talented authors on the site.

Check out "Purgatory at the Pump 'n' Loaf" here. Be sure to poke around at the other stories on the site, too. You won't be disappointed.

Added by Benjamin Sobieck on May 22, 2009 at 1:05am — 1 Comment

Things Learned from Readers

I went to a book club meeting last night where my book, MACBETH'S NIECE, had been read. Everyone was very kind, and it was one of those gratifying experiences where you're treated as an expert and you feel a bit like an imposter playing the "Author" role.

The part that sticks with me this morning is the questions. These are all people who read, and from the general discussion I think they read decent material: good fiction and nonfiction too. They analyze things as a group, much like… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on May 21, 2009 at 11:20pm — 8 Comments

NEW INTERVIEW

Sandra Ruttan interviews me about interviewing authors here.

Added by Craig McDonald on May 21, 2009 at 9:26pm — No Comments

Two Great New Reviews - Dracula Doesn't Live Here Anymore and Kiss of Life (Advance Review)

Kristina Dalton, author and chief editor for Stonehedge Publishing, has carried out reviews of both Dracula Doesn't Live Here Anymore and an advance review of Kiss of Life, due for release in a few weeks. I'm delighted with what she had to say about the books.

Dracula Doesn't Live Here Anymore

This novella surprised me in that it packed a great deal of character and plot elements into a tight, fast read. I… Continue

Added by Brian L Porter on May 21, 2009 at 7:55pm — No Comments

The Queen of Quirky: The Writing Life interview with Tama Janowitz

Tama Janowitz has always been great at first lines (Remember her Slaves of New York opened with this: “After I became a prostitute, I had to deal with penises of every imaginable shape and size.”) Her new novel, they is us, will be out… Continue

Added by Matt Rees on May 21, 2009 at 7:42pm — No Comments

Holy crap--I'm going to be on NPR.

Linda Wertheimer's going to interview me for Morning Edition's "Crime in the City" feature. They've done interviews with lots of actual famous people--from Chelsea Cain to Robert B. Parker. Why they want to talk to me is anybody's guess. We'll do a kind of walking tour of Provincetown and talk about some of the locations in the books. No idea when it will air--soon-ish, I hope.

Added by Jon Loomis on May 21, 2009 at 3:49pm — 4 Comments

“Peak Experience” Announced Best in Popular Fiction Category for 2009!

“Peak Experience” Announced Best in Popular Fiction Category for 2009.

Author Bud Connell’s Peak Experience: A Novel Receives Top Gold Award

May 21, 2009 – New York, NY – Organizers of the 13th annual Independent Publisher Book Awards, conducted to honor the year's best independently published books, have announced the results for the 2009 competition. While much of the world economy is in a slump, books and reading are gaining ground on more expensive forms of… Continue

Added by Bud Connell on May 21, 2009 at 2:00pm — No Comments

The Great Agent Search Begins Again...

My inability to get an answer out of the publisher whose been sitting on my science fiction novel for 4 years, or from the editor who asked me to let them look at it again last year, has convinced me that I desperately need an agent.

But I hate looking for one.

First, I'm in Canada, and I have several bad agent experiences I had in Toronto. (Ever had one bar a door when you had an appointment for a meeting and they demand you slide your work through a mail slot?) I've… Continue

Added by D.R. MacMaster on May 21, 2009 at 1:26pm — 3 Comments

Opportunity Knocks

There were days when I thought I’d never get another novel written. But it is.

There were times I didn’t think I could get a book published. But they are.

I once wondered if it was even possible to get my books onto bookstore shelves with all those other writers. When I walk into a store and see them there I’m still a little amazed.

I never thought a bookstore would be willing to host a book release event for one of my little mystery novels. And yet, on June… Continue

Added by Austin S. Camacho on May 21, 2009 at 10:20am — No Comments

Suspense Magazine is available to order online NOW!!!

Our ordering website is up at: www.suspensemagazine.com/secureorderform.html

The packed June Edition is headed to print right now, so don't miss out! You will see John Sandford, Gregg Olsen, Actor Courtney Gains, Golden Age Stories and a lot more! Order your 12 month subscription now and you will receive the June edition.

We just received word that director Wes Craven has agreed to do an interview with us, coming up in a future edition, to honor the 25th anniversary… Continue

Added by John Raab - editor of Suspense Magazine.com on May 21, 2009 at 6:34am — No Comments

Rogue Male, Craig McDonald, and promo opportunities for authors.

My latest post for the Examiner includes a short Q&A with Craig McDonald, who has a new book out featuring author interviews with James Crumley, Elmore Leonard, James Sallis, Lee Child, Ken Bruen and many more.

My partner has taken on the literature column for the… Continue

Added by Sandra Ruttan on May 21, 2009 at 4:00am — No Comments

Marcus Sakey

Just read through author Marcus Sakey's Celestial Navigation page on things to keep in mind while writing. This is great advice and I will come back to it often. I think I will read one of Sakey's novels next.

In the mean time, spending my time hacking on my SF novel, Tyrmia. I suspect that I will need to get it done quickly, so I can focus on another mystery after the release of Null_Pointer this… Continue

Added by Johnny Batch on May 21, 2009 at 3:07am — 2 Comments

Green Is a Prettier Color Than Blue

I know. It's a matter of opinion. Steak is better than seafood. Girls are smarter than boys. Duncan Phyfe is nicer than Old Mission.

Yet we try to convince others that a certain author is no good or the very best. We think that if we just point certain "facts" out to people, they'll stop buying junk and read what we read. I suppose it sharpens your skills of argumentation, but it isn't going to work.

I recall a student who was hooked on a certain spooky author and asked if… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on May 20, 2009 at 8:40pm — 4 Comments

Featured on Diana Rubino's Blog Plus New Video Trailer

Author and book editor Diana Rubino has featured my latest paperback release 'The Voice of Anton Bouchard on her blog at http://www.dianarubinoauthor.blogspot.com/and I'd love it if anyone would care to drop by and read the article and… Continue

Added by Brian L Porter on May 20, 2009 at 6:18pm — No Comments

Harvard prof tells judge that P2P filesharing is "fair use"

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/05/harvard-prof-tells-judge-that-p2p-filesharing-is-fair-use.ars

It's a pretty ballsy position. For sure this will be a case to keep an eye on if you're interested in the future of intellectual property rights.

From the article: "Should Nesson win, he will essentially legalize the sharing of all digital… Continue

Added by John Dishon on May 20, 2009 at 12:59pm — 2 Comments

Authors Behaving Badly

As Charles Manson once said, "Are people strange, or am I just crazy?" Call me naïve, but as a published author myself, I assumed other authors must interact with booksellers as courteously as I do. I've always believed intelligence and unusual sensitivity to be typical traits among those who write. For the most part I've found that to be true. But I’m also a bookseller now — my husband and I own The Well Red Coyote bookstore in Sedona, Arizona. During my four-year tenure as a bookseller, I've… Continue

Added by Kris Neri on May 20, 2009 at 10:10am — 2 Comments