Have You Met.... ? Monday #2: Emma Michaels

Have you met.... Emma Michaels? First off, she's awesome. And not just "awesome", but, like awesome awesome. Like awesome on caffeine. In a microwave. Bluetoothed. With a fricking Einstein-Rosen wormhole. 

And in case that verbiage seems a bit...um... effusive?... then allow me to point out that she's not just an author and cover artist (and doesn't just play one on TV), but she's a bona fide student of aeronautics and aerospace engineering. So, you know, like rocket science and stuff. ROCKET SCIENCE. Seriously. Pretty damn impressive.

Also, her books are wonderful. Take, for example, Owlet. "Somewhere between falling and flying… there is a girl." COME ON. Awesome. It's a fantastic story about a girl who discovers that the world she has always known is not the life she is actually a part of. Emma did a wonderful thing, by building a story up from her own experiences with having asthma into a story where what might have otherwise been seen as a weakness, becomes the means by which she discovers the truth. Weakness becoming strength... what a perfect analogy for youth, I think. 

Emma got into writing the old-fashioned way - - by working her butt off. By being nice to people. By helping contribute to the industry she dreamed of being a part of, and not just hoping one day to be discovered. Hard work, people. Take note. 

Emma is one of my Steampunk friends - which has a very special space in my heart anyway, but she's also a rampant Whovian and a friend to Studio Ghibli movies. So, you know, if you didn't already realize how awesome she is, now you have no excuse.

Go check her books out at www.emmamichaels.com and support this fantastic and really wonderful storyteller. You'll be so glad you did. And, obviously, she will be too. ;)

Check back here next monday for our next "Have You Met...?" - and feel free to make recommendations below for people you think everyone else should meet!

Back to the Well

It's weird to believe it's already June. I know, there are a lot of reasons to point to - but it's definitely weird in that I completed my last book in February, and aside from a bunch of short stories, I haven't worked on a new novel since then. Four months, yikes.

Well, the new outline is completed and I've just done the first chapter + point five and I'm right back in that mindset that floods me with creative satisfaction. In short, good lord, I love writing.

There've been a few things that had been on my mind lately, mostly from watching the news and reading the internet. Things like Climate Change, gun violence, and corporate megalomania, mostly. You know, things that we could probably totally fix but we just somehow cannot manage to do so... and then I looked back into the story I'm writing. Which is about the world, resting on the edge of a blade, and only one dead man being at the center of that all-important final (?) moment.

So there I go, huh? Of course I'm worked up. Of course I'm filled with anxiety and frustration at a world that, for all intents and purposes, seems content to let things get worse and worse without lifting a finger to change it. We find ourselves rooted to the old ways without doing more than idly dreaming that there could be a way to make things better.

Of course, cosmos. I know. That's why I write books. For the stories. For the imagination. And also, for the possibility that people can dream bigger.

So I go back to the well. One bucket at a time, we nourish the fields. And one day, the good food will grow. Sounds a bit preachy, huh? Well, they're also fun stories. I promise: layers.

Thankfully, some of those old struggles and tales are immortal. Heroic quests from the dawn of time. Folklore, urban legends - even the classic old books dating back to ancient Greece, the Middle East, Asia - the big quests always start with an idea... and a single step.

Back to work for now. Thanks for reading! 

Have you met....Kiri Callaghan

....Kiri Callaghan?

Author? Actress? Vlogger? Bard? Totes a jedi? Ring any bells?

I've had the immense pleasure of knowing Ms Callaghan for lo a couple years now, so it's difficult not to be excessively effusive. And, since I'm starting my new "Have You Met..? Monday" - my weekly cross reference to someone I really think you should meet - and since Kiri is already heavily featured in projects of mine both past and future, she seemed the ideal candidate for the inaugural post.

Kiri is something of a creative dynamo - like so many artists I have been coming to know of late, she comes from a variety of disciplines, all of which roll up into a broader appreciation and understanding of the many ways in which art can communicate and express the human experience. 

Plus, she's kind of awesome.

She wrote a script - "Funeral Potatoes" - a short but powerful depiction of a young woman's look at dealing with loss - and I had the opportunity to watch it performed. I'm not ashamed to tell you I cried like a baby. It was very impressive, seriously. Since then, she and collaborated on a series of short stories designed as a prelude to a dark fantasy take on the Peter Pan stories, called "Into the Dust", and since then she has also finished another full novel, titled "Alys". And during all that time, she's been a nearly full time vlogger, and was picked up last year by none other than Geek & Sundry. 

And in addition to that, I'm proud to consider her a very close friend of mine. So, yeah, I might be a tad biased, but I'll forgive myself that. 

She has some great projects lined up, some of which will be featured here (stay tuned!), but definitely feel free to follow her blog and her Facebook page - - you'll be glad you did!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to leave your submissions for future "Have You Met...Monday" posts in the comment section, below!

The ten things I've learned from publishing

I might not be the last person to write a list like this, but I'm certainly the latest. For, I dunno, like five minutes or so, I'd bet. It's been an interesting five years so far, since I shifted from author to publisher, and one of the things I've seen most across the internet has been everyone's compiled list of "the X number of things you need to know about Y." Everything from formatting to marketing, from coming up with ideas to finding an agent. Everyone seems to know the Right Way to Write, or how to sell more books, or how to succeed in business without really trying. And I've read through all of them, and while some of them have got some really fantastic ideas, let's be honest. Not every road really does lead to financial glory. That being said, I've met a lot of people who are just taking those first steps towards their goal, and it seems like a good time to pause and share some of the lessons I've learned along the way. 

As you'll see, some of the lessons were through doing things a "right" way, and some...not so much. This is not so much intended as a "follow me to glory!" as much as a buffet of experience. Feel free to pick and choose, you won't hurt my feelings.

1. Define "Success". Before you even get started, figure out where you're going. It may be a destination, it may be a journey. But get your bearings before you lose your way. Are you in it for the money? Then set a number. Are you in it for the joy of creation? Are you just making things for yourself to enjoy, or for others to see and share? Paint a picture in your mind, and commit it to paper - there's a profound sense of satisfaction to be had in knowing you've accomplished what you set out to do.

2. Learn about the path before trying to walk it. The way is littered with the wreckage of a thousand pilgrims, no matter what way you intend to go. See what they did right, see what they did wrong. Learn your options. Make a plan. Even if you're looking at the road less traveled, chances are that someone has taken it already. Understand their journey and you are more likely to be successful on yours. But always remember: just because that's the way it's always been done doesn't mean that's the way it should always be done.

3. Take the First Step. Fear stops most people before they've even begun. That first motion forward can be horribly terrifying. Get it over with. The road to your goal will be filled with little choices - remember this: small risk, big win - but the biggest little choice is that first step forward.

4. Enjoy the path. The bigger the goal you've set for yourself, the more challenging and time-intensive it's going to be. Don't make the mistake of choosing to celebrate only after you've arrived - the result will be a lifetime of memories of your struggles and pain, but none of the joy that should be associated with following the path of your heart. Smile. Breathe it in. Every step forward should fill you with joy - and then, when you've reached your goal, you will have all the more cause for celebration.

5. Know yourself. Keep a check on where you're going, how well you're moving, and be sure you're still heading in the right direction. If you aren't, change course now. Every step you take in the wrong direction takes you further from your goals. The time to correct is the moment you realize you're off path.

6. Get another pair of eyes. I don't care how meticulous or how much of a perfectionist you are, you're going to make mistakes along the way. Just accept that now. Get someone - a real friend, not just someone who will tell you what they think you want to hear - to look over your work and give you the cold, hard, facts. Is it good? Does it need work? And before you do this, by god, ready yourself for the truth. You don't want to spend ten years going down one path only to discover it's not the path you should be taking. 

7. Embrace Doubt. Everyone doubts. Ask anyone, and only liars will tell you otherwise. Doubt is what makes faith such a big deal. It is the anchor which keeps us from flying off the map. Doubt is the resistance band which powers our belief and our motivation. Listen to it, and use it to explore the possibilities you haven't considered - like testing a boat's hull before planting it in the deeper waters.

8. Understand the motivations of others. You will encounter "haters", or people who simply tell you "it can't be done", or "we don't require your submission at this time," or "self-publishing is only going to destroy your chances of success", or whatever you hear. Maybe they'll say "we can publish your manuscript, we only require a down payment of 50% of your overall project cost..." People will rarely financially invest in your work if they see a profit in it. This includes agents, publishing houses, whatever. I'm not trying to make you cynical, but spend a few minutes browsing the internet and you'll see a whole author graveyard, scattered with the broken dreams of artists who got their projects published years ago, only to find themselves in debt to their publisher, with no means of escape and no property of their own to leverage against it. Musicians, artists, authors - it's a sad and common tale.

9. When in doubt, do it yourself. Thanks to the internet, there are many options available to musicians and authors - also to filmmakers, video game designers, and so forth. You don't need a publisher to publish your book. You don't need to be discovered in that dive bar downtown to become a successful musician. You have an idea for a book? Write it! You have a song jingling around in your brain? Play it, record it.   Aspiring is like trying - do or do not. Get off your butt and get cracking. 

10. Remember this: you are not alone. There is an entire world full of other artists out there, writing, recording, creating. Many of whom are in the exact same boat you're in. Find them. Reach out to them. Offer to help. Ask to pick their brains. Network. Work together. Support other independent artists. The rising tide lifts all boats. 

The Girl of Winter Snow

It occurred to me, belatedly, that writing a "Who's Favo Carr?" blog was a bit silly in the big picture, as he's not even a major character until late in the original "Aesirium" series. Of course, the main character is Romany (Rom to her friends), and this realization got me thinking that, really, of all the characters her off the page origin story is the most interesting to me personally.

I'm a fan of Dungeons and Dragons - playing since the original core set came out - that little white box with the three stapled booklets. I didn't play for a span of about ten years, though, but several years ago decided to run a game with some friends. We chose a generic "D20" multiverse campaign, and I encouraged everyone to pick whatever D20 rules set they wanted to select from. My wife chose the "BESM" D20 rules - and wanted to play a "Magical Girl/monster hunter" character. She left the specifics to me, but said she wanted it to be something like Battle Angel Alita meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer. oh, and she needed to have an animal companion, just like CardCaptor Sakura. 

I did a bit of googling until I stumbled across a really amazing painting on Deviant Art (I won't show or link to the picture here, because I've never been able to contact the original artist and don't feel good linking without their permission) with an anime-like redhaired girl in a black lolita dress, parasol, with a white flying cat hovering about her shoulder.  I loved it instantly.

Thus the visual reference of Romany was born. She was a vampire hunter with a flying cat, wearing a lovely black dress. An entire character background unfurled before me, and I couldn't wait to surprise her with it all once the game got underway.

Unfortunately, as anyone who plays an RPG knows, reality happens. The group eventually fell apart somewhat short of the mark, and Rom's background - her full story, really - never got to be told. 

About a year after the group's collapse, two truly perfect conversations occurred. The first was in trying to explain to my daughter why the Harry Potter movies were not all about Hermoine Granger, as she was clearly the smarter and more magical of the heroic triplet. The second was in my expression of discontentment at not knowing where to put all my creative intentions. I felt like writing music, or writing another RPG campaign, but just doing it all myself so I could be assured I could finish the story. I mentioned that I didn't want to do another RPG because I was still frustrated from not having the opportunity to tell Rom's whole backstory. She asked, "well, why don't you write Rom's story, then?"

Frankly, I felt pretty stupid that it hadn't already occurred to me.

So there she was. Rom. Red-haired vampire hunter in a pretty black dress. She turned into a white-haired girl midway through the first draft of what was then called "The Return of the Twilight Gatherers", when I realized that her name should come from an old Aesirium word referencing fallen snow. And I took out the Vampires (and the title) when I heard of a little book called "Twilight" which had just come out and was getting a LOT of buzz. Two vampire books? Both with the word "twilight" in them? Crikey. So the vampires became monsters (though a gentle bit of a return to that original concept does appear in the later books as Sandmen), and the book became titled "Reaper's Return".

Her personality - her predilection for never thinking any further ahead than was absolutely necessary - came mostly from my wife and daughter, and I often looked to them when I didn't know exactly what Rom was going to do next. And on a side note, it's a lot more difficult to write a book about a whimsical character than you might think. Because even if she doesn't know quite why she's doing something, she really does know. Sometimes, she just doesn't want to tell you. 

The notion of a fearless monster hunter wearing lovely dresses is definitely from my daughter, though. She's the one who used to dress up as Snow White so she could play with her lightsaber. In her mind, the idea of indulging your pretty princess side is every bit as feasibly intermingled with kicking butt and taking names. And if you don't believe that, just sit down and play a video game with her. Her smacktalk is pretty epic.

Romany has become that character who will always follow me in my life, I suspect. As guardian angels go, you can't do much better. 

-------------------------------------

Romany is a character appearing in the 6-book YA Steampunk Fantasy series "The Chronicles of Aesirium", available through Amazon.com.  

Upcoming Appearances

SPOCON - August 15-17, Spokane, WA. Ren will be appearing with Kiri Callaghan at a table in Author row on all three days. He will have his full library available to purchase and sign.

Rose City Comic Con - September 20-21, Portland, OR. Ren will be appearing with Kiri Callaghan at a table in the artist's alley (booth TBA) on both days. He will have his full library to purchase and sign.