ARTIFACT #1, THE AZOTH WOODCUT, TESSERACTS 22 ALCHEMY AND ARTIFACTS

IN ORDER TO PROMOTE TESSERACTS 22 Alchemy and Artifacts, one of the things Lorina and I felt we needed was an ‘unofficial’ symbol that conveyed the nature of the anthology, a bit of visual alchemy that appealed and challenged at the same time. After a bit of searching, I came across this artifact - a woodcut from Basil Valentine’s Azoth series, dated at around 1659; it's one of twelve pictures depicting the alchemical process of making ‘azoth’, a precursor to the Philosopher’s Stone or a universal medication or solvent – the Elixir of Life. It was often associated with the element mercury. This woodcut is the fifth or sixth in the series; as to which one it is, not all sources agree.

To me, it works well as a symbol for literary creation – the process of making story. One of the things I plan to do with this and future posts, is to present various artifacts that might ignite the imagination.

This Azoth woodcut contains a number of intriguing symbols. The first is the androgyne, the two-headed being. It represents a divine marriage between solar and lunar, male and female energies, which together, were seen as the highest form of spiritual attainment. Surrounding the androgyne are seven symbols for the planets (gods) and their metallic counterparts. From left to right are Venus (copper), Mars (iron), Sol or the Sun (gold), Mercury or Hermes (mercury), Luna or the Moon (silver), Jupiter (tin), and Saturn (lead). The androgyne also holds a compass and the set-square, two tools of architecture, important in Freemasonry.

Upon the androgyne’s chest is the sign, R.E.B.I.S. I’ve yet to find what these letters stand for. If any of you know, please enlighten me. As mysteries go, this is a good metaphor for the sense of mystery Lorina and I hope to find in the submissions we receive.

The winged dragon can be seen as an alchemical symbol for fire and volatile elements. The fact that the androgyne is standing upon the dragon, subduing it, is significant. This may actually point to a specific part in the alchemical process. The dragon is also associated with the element, sulphur.

Both androgyne and dragon stand precariously upon a Cosmic Egg. The egg is a symbol of both cosmos and creation – of potential. Lines and numbers intersect its surface. The numbers might stand for the four elements - air, earth, water, and fire - or have different meanings (ie., 1 to represent the primal force, 2, duality, etc.) There are many interpretations. 

Speaking of numbers, I came across this interesting titbit while looking into the above symbols. In numerology (whatever you make of it), the number 22 is considered the most powerful of numbers. It's known as the Master Number and Master Builder. As Master Builder, it takes fantastic dreams and turns them into realities. I can’t think of a better process to describe what Lorina and I plan to do with Tesseracts 22. 

One might say it's almost...alchemical.

Until next time - Susan.

UPDATE ON 'THE TATTOOED ROSE'

I'M JUST OVER 75,000 WORDS in the first draft of The Tattooed Rose. It's been a struggle. I go through this every time I hit the middle of a first draft. The end is not yet in sight, and I have a lot of ground to cover. The thing that helps me most is to not be daunted by the huge task it seems, but to focus on what I need to accomplish scene by scene, to get me to those major plot points I had constructed in my head so long ago.

When I had this great idea for the trilogy, the last book, The Tattooed Rose, was the most sketchy in terms of what I wanted to accomplish. I knew how the story would end, which translates into - these major things need to happen, and I'll figure out how to get there as I go along.  Well, I'm now hitting 'getting there' and dealing with 'going along'.

I have said this on Suzenyms before, that this book has been the biggest challenge for me to write. That's been an understatement. I have had to learn a lot about the 1550's, the slave trade, Trans-Atlantic shipping, New World Exploration, the major political players involved (Spain, England, Portugal, France), piracy and privateering, Caribbean history, geography and gold sources, old and new world plants, transplanted West African religions (modern-day voodoo, the gods, houngans and bokors, etc.). Even though the trilogy is based on an alternate world, I need it to be reflective of our own.

I'm not complaining. I love learning about all of this stuff and applying it. But it has been an effort and at times, I wonder if I've bitten off more than I can chew. I've also run into things I didn't expect. I've had to create certain characters to push the plot where I want it to go, and it's not just a matter of making them up. (Who would have thought that I'd have to research West African names specific to a particular area of Nigeria and the Bight of Benin, for slaves from opposing tribes?) Or, that old secondary characters I thought would not be major players become so in The Tattooed Seer, and even more so in The Tattooed Rose? And finally, that this last book would enter into some very strange environments and head spaces - even for me.

It's not the trilogy I expected to write, entirely.

But therein lies the discovery of it. When I am finally done, I hope it will be everything I had envisioned and more.

I am under contract for three books. I'm looking forward to fulfilling that goal and bringing the trilogy to its logical conclusion. But I am also toying with the idea of a fourth book that takes place ten years later. In the meantime, I will continue to work on Rose, and wrap up the trilogy as best I can.

- Susan.

REVIEWS for THE TATTOOED WITCH and THE TATTOOED SEER

I DON'T GENERALLY POST REVIEWS OF MY BOOKS (come to think of it, I don't think I have yet here on Suzenyms), but I couldn't resist these two. They were completely unexpected. The first review is by Steve Stanton on the 49th Shelf, as a recommendation for September reading:

Steve Stanton picks The Tattooed Witch, by Susan MacGregor

"This debut fantasy novel by accomplished Canadian editor Susan MacGregor is set during the historical period of the Spanish Inquisition when women lived without basic civil rights and were treated as chattel. The author has a gift for engaging empathy from the reader with a simple narrative style.

The story begins dramatically with a young seer falsely accused of murder and destined for torture and death at the hands of corrupt papist minions, then begins to conjure a thematic ballet of primitive European spirituality and unrequited love. It's a dance of life revolving around a gypsy tribe known as the Diaphani, who have magical powers of divination in their bloodline, worship the goddess Lys, and believe in an afterlife of ghosts and demons. Hounded by the orthodox Church, the Diaphani make an annual pilgrimage by caravan to a secret sanctuary in the hills for ceremonies of prophetic appointment and cultural restoration.

The Tattooed Witch explores and satisfies the innate human longing for arcane knowledge and forbidden revelation with strong elements of romance, revenge, and reconciliation."

Steve Stanton is the author of a Canadian sci-fi trilogy, The Bloodlight Chronicles, and is the former president of Canada's national association of science fiction and fantasy authors. You can find him on Twitter @SFStanton.

And here's the Amazon.com review by Greg McKitrick, regarding The Tattooed Seer:

"I’ll begin this review with a caution. Susan MacGregor’s The Tattooed Seer is a sequel to last year’s The Tattooed Witch. I read the latter about a year ago, and even with that relatively short period of time, I found myself struggling at times to remember the back story. So, if you have not read The Tattooed Witch,  read it first. It’s a wonderful book and will greatly enhance your enjoyment of the The Tattooed Seer.

So on with the review of this book. Susan MacGregor sets her books in 16th century Spain, where a magical band of gypsies are fleeing persecution from Tomas, the Grand Inquisitor for the Spanish Inquisition. The book is fantasy but that hasn’t stopped the writer from doing meticulous historical research, so much so that most readers of historical fiction or romance will find much to like here.

The story centers around Miriam, the band’s matriarch and her struggles to lead her people to safety. Her life is complicated not just by the inherent dangers of their situation, but also by two lovers, one of whom is corporeal and the other spiritual. This may well be the oddest love triangle I’ve ever encountered but it works beautifully.

Miriam’s powers come from self-inflicted magical tattoos but she is not alone. Each member of her band has their own special ability but they must work together or perish at the hands of Tomas. Getting them to do so is part of the challenge facing Miriam.

If you are a fan of historical fantasy or romance this book will sit in your sweet spot. But here’s the thing. I’m not and yet this book still works for me, largely because Susan MacGregor is a literary craftsman. In my world, fine writing trumps genres any time, and this is fine writing."

G.J.C. McKitrick writes poetry, songs, short stories, novels, stage plays, and reviews under the name G.J.C. McKitrick and science fiction under the name T.K. Boomer. His mainstream novel “A Walk in the Thai Sun” is available on Amazon. He is close to completing his science fiction novel, “The Fahr”. He maintains a website at: http://bit.ly/1oKwjhf

(My thanks to both Steve and Greg for these great reviews. As I mentioned earlier, they were unexpected, which makes them all the sweeter. Since both reviews have been made by men, I'm happy to see that the trilogy is breaking barriers - not simply dismissed as 'women's fiction'.)

50,000 PAGE VIEWS

TODAY, SUZENYMS REACHED 50,000 PAGE VIEWS. (As I write this, it's been 50,424 page views to be exact.) 

I resurrected the blog last April, 2013, after letting it lie dormant for two years. What I did was to turn it from a strictly personal blog into one I thought people might find more interesting - a blog devoted to writing and editing, with a little bit of my own book promotion thrown in. What really started it was this - Why Didn't On Spec Buy My Story? - which I posted on April 24, 2013. To date, it remains one of the more popular posts on the blog.

It's not only been great, but surprising to reach this milestone. To all of you who have visited Suzenyms, who have left thoughtful comments, who have contributed as guest authors, and who continue to support me in my efforts here, thank you. You have helped me do it.

- Susan.

THE TATTOOED SEER is up on AMAZON, KOBO, ETC.!

AS I MENTIONED ON MY FACEBOOK PAGE, these arrived in the mail yesterday. I have since checked out Amazon.com, Amazon.ca (Kindle version) and Kobo. The books are now available in print or e-books, and of course, with my Canadian publisher Five Rivers Publishing.

I am so pleased! There's nothing like seeing your novel in print. Naturally, I had to stop what I was doing yestserday (working on the first draft of The Tattooed Rose) to savor the moment, touch the books, and read some sections. If you've already read The Tattooed Witch, feel free to take a look at the preview for The Tattooed Seer here on Amazon. If you haven't read The Tattooed Witch, I suggest you read it first, because the prologue in Seer is a spoiler.

I've been told The Tattooed Witch is a good book. I've been told that The Tattooed Seer is an even better one. This is great to know, because the concern with a second book in a trilogy is that it will slump. I don't think The Tattooed Seer does that. (And I'm sure Lorina Stephens, my editor and publisher at Five Rivers would have told me if it did.)

If you read The Tattooed Seer, drop me a line. Let me know what you think. I'll be officially launching it in Calgary, at When Words Collide over the August 8, 9, and 10th weekend. If you're attending and would like to buy a copy, I will have both print books available for sale and signing.

To those of you who have so enthusiastically supported me while I've been writing this trilogy, thank you. I really appreciate your support. Over the next year, I will do my utmost to deliver a satisfying end in the final book, The Tattooed Rose.

- Susan.

COVER FOR THE TATTOOED SEER

I AM SO PLEASED WITH THIS COVER! Jeff Minkevics finished it tonight, and I wanted to unveil it for my novel The Tattooed Seer, the second book in my Tattooed Witch trilogy, soon to be released this August 1st.

If you're wondering about the tattoos, the first two are featured in The Tattooed Witch. (If you don't know what they represent, read the book!) The bloody circles below the first two are featured in The Tattooed Seer and come from a scene where Miriam is cut by the women of her Tribe in an attempt to ward them against unwanted spying. The circles are actually linked snakes swallowing their tails.

I love how these covers are evolving. Book One had a brilliant white background, and Book Two is moving into a bit more colour. You'll have to wait at least another year to see how things change yet again for Book Three, The Tattooed Rose (which I am currently writing).

The Tattooed Witch has been short-listed for a 2014 Aurora Award under Best English Novel. For those of you who have been waiting to see how the trilogy evolves, The Tattooed Seer will be available for pre-order shortly, through Five Rivers Publishing.

- Susan.

BOOK PROMOTION IDEA: EDMONTON'S FIRST CHARACTER DEATHMATCH by HAL FRIESEN

IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A FUN AND ENTERTAINING WAY TO PROMOTE YOUR BOOK, you might follow Hal Friesen's example. I asked Hal to pen me a Guest Post explaining his Character Deathmatch, a marketing tool he created which encourages audience participation. I, along with seven other local writers including Hal, will be participating in this event on Saturday, June 28th, at Audrey's Books in Edmonton at 1:00 P.M. It's going to be a lot of fun. As you can see by the descriptions and placards that follow, Hal has put a lot of time and effort into this event. Thank you, Hal!

I'VE DONE A FEW BOOK EVENTS, and I always felt the spirit of the event should better capture the raucous enthusiasm some books engender. When I read a good book, I want to run outside and scream about it to the world. I’m not alone in this regard, so why then, do so many book events feel  stifled? Peru offered me the answer I was looking for: Lucha Libro, a twist on Lucha Libre, Mexico’s pro wrestling. Known as “literary wrestling”, writers don masks and are challenged to write a short story in five minutes. The winner takes off his or her mask and proceeds through the tournament, with the final victor having his or her first novel published.

Lucha Libro changes the idea that literature is boring and tries to make it as exciting as possible. I wanted to have a book event like that, where people got together and were excited about books. I wanted to engage the audience, and most of all, I wanted it to be fun. That’s when I came up with the notion of the Edmonton Character Deathmatch.

This is how it will work: two authors will duel by reading a sample of their work, one after the other, with selections focusing on a particular character. The audience, given creative action placards (such as “assimilates”, “judo chops” and “baffles with brilliance”), will then vote on their favorite character. It’s silly and fairly arbitrary, but it adds a level of engagement, progression, and (hopefully) tension to the tournament. I’ve gotten Lucha Libre masks for all the authors, but I can’t promise that everyone will want to wear them.

The winners of the duels will be determined by audience vote, and will take each other on as characters are eliminated from the contest. The final victor will walk home with a trophy that is as incredible and ridiculous as the event itself. To make sure the contestants remain fresh in the audience’s mind, each character has a stat card, similar to a sports trading card, that lists all of his or her qualities and weaknesses.

Here’s a snapshot of this year’s contestants:

Name: Angela Simonson, half-demon teen EMP

Appears in: The Puzzle Box, Creator: Eileen Bell

Mission: To meet her father, while making life as miserable as possible for her mother. Oh, and not destroying the world in the process!

Special powers: She’s half demon, and can wreck most electronics with a half-assed internal  EMP. However, a Djinn has just given her three wishes, so she can do just about anything she wants (but only three times. And being half-demon seems to really mess with the wishes, so she has to be very careful. Normally, she’s not careful. Not at all.)

Name: Edgar Domingo Vincent, undead drunken playboy

Appears in: Edgar’s Worst Sunday, Creator: Brad OH Inc.

About: In life, Edgar Vincent has been something of a cad. Callous comments, thoughtless promiscuity, binge drinking and excess sufficient to shame Caligula, are standard Saturday night fare.

Mission: When Edgar finds himself in the cloudy planes of the afterlife on one particularly dreadful Sunday, he must put aside his ever-present hangover and try to figure out how he ever got to this point, and where he’s meant to be going now.

Weakness: Sundays.

Name: Eve Lopez, gravity manipulator

Appears in: Weightless, Creator: Jay Bardyla

Mission: Before, it was learning to control her abilities. Now, it's to save the world, repeatedly.

About: What do you do when something beyond your control forces you to lose control? And what happens later when people want to control you? A battle to maintain a sense of self is easier fought when the whole world isn’t fighting over you but for Eve Lopez, the world’s sole super-human, both battles are never-ending.

Name: Fra Francisco, drug-dealing double agent for the Papacy and Inglais

Appears in: The Tattooed Seer, Creator: Susan MacGregor

Mission: To locate witches in Esbana, and to convince (or kidnap) them to come to Inglais to aid Ilysabeth’s rise to the throne.

Special power(s): Deceit, drugs, espionage, masquerade, acting, tumbling, kidnapping, assassination (but only the bad guys)

About: (This is a rare depiction of him, painted when he was much, much older. He also bears an uncanny resemblance to Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth 1st's Spymaster.)

 

Name: Haywire McGuire, altruistic Metis fugitive.

Appears in: The Tenth Circle Project, Creator: Billie Milholland

Mission: To save children from slavery in the post-apocalyptic City of Glory.

About: On the run from the law, wanted for an assassination she didn’t commit, Haywire McGuire teams up with other fugitives to rescue children from a life of servitude.

Interesting stat: She hangs out with ChloroMorphs (people who can trade the iron atom in their hemoglobin for magnesium to temporarily gain the power of photosynthesis).

Name: Lola Evangeline Starke, sharp-tongued bare-knuckled bruiser

Appears in: Die on Your Feet, Creator: S.G. Wong

Mission: To find the truth, no matter what the cost.

Weakness: Lola is haunted by a ghost named Aubrey O’Connell, invisible to her (as all ghosts are to the living) but plenty audible.

About: Happy to partake in all that the City’s swank supper clubs and gambling joints have to offer, Lola is unafraid to mix it up with the seedier elements of Crescent City’s dark underbelly when the job requires it.

Name: Nestor Tark, helicopter father super trooper

Appears in: Shepherds of Sparrows, Creator: Hal J. Friesen

Special power(s): Genetically modified Vrellish Highborn, with exceptional strength and agility in gravity and in a rel-fighter. Deadly with a sword.

Mission: To find somewhere he belongs, and where he can raise his family.

Weakness: His physiology doesn’t allow him to eat fruit or vegetables.

Name: Tad Klassen, post-rehab atheist anti-hero

Mission: To stay clean, and to reconcile with his family on his terms.

About: At age eighteen, Tad was fed up with his parents’ hypocritical faith and constant bickering, and he walked away without a backward glance. A year later, fighting addiction, Tad returns from his self-imposed exile to find his place in a family that’s slowly disintegrating.

THE JEERING HAS ALREADY STARTED ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER, and I’m sure there’ll be more playful jabbing throughout the event (June 28 at 1:00 PM at Audrey’s Books). This is all tongue-in-cheek, however, since everyone involved is really supporting each other and coming together to make the event a success. Regardless of who wins this Saturday, everyone should come out wearing a smile. Check it out! It’s something Edmonton has never seen before. 

(I second that, Hal. Thanks for all your hard work. It's going to be a great event. I know we're all looking forward to it! - Susan.)

YOUTUBE CLIP where I talk about THE TATTOOED WITCH AURORA NOMINATION

HI. I HOPE YOU'LL ALL FORGIVE THIS LITTLE BIT OF PROMO I'm indulging in here, about my Best English Novel Aurora nomination for my debut novel, The Tattooed Witch. I talk with Lorina Stephens, Publisher of Five Rivers Publishing. As I mention in the clip, I'm a bit stunned by the nomination and honoured, too. I talk about the book, why it doesn't fit into one specific genre (it's a true hybrid), and the themes I wanted to explore. If you have ten minutes over a coffee, give it a listen. At the end, I also mention that you can read The Tattooed Witch and the other novels that have been nominated, if you join the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association (CSFFA). The cost to join is only $10.00 (through PayPal) and gives you the opportunity to read all nominations in all categories for free, plus voting privileges. Thank you for supporting Canadian work and The Tattooed Witch.

CONSIDERATIONS WHEN WRITING A TRILOGY and UPDATE ON THE TATTOOED SEER

I MANAGED TO FINISH THE EDIT OF THE TATTOOED SEER THIS WEEK. It involved both substantive and line edits, and I was happy to get the whole thing off to Lorina at Five Rivers one month ahead of schedule. Which means, instead of an October release, we have our fingers crossed for August 1st, providing Jeff Minkevics, who designed the cover for The Tattooed Witch, can also create a cover for The Tattooed Seer in time. I hope so. I'd like to launch the book in Calgary at the When Words Collide convention.

It's been an interesting process, doing the edits. There is great value in having a sharp editor look at your work and make suggestions as to how to make the book better. As writers, we tend to be myopic about our work. It was through Lorina's suggestions that I fleshed out a new character in one of the sub-plots in The Tattooed Seer. I had fleshed him out, or so I thought, but not nearly enough. The important details never made it onto the page. They're there, now.

The other great thing about doing edits for a book that's part of a trilogy, is that it forces you to look for inconsistencies. Because I had already started the research and writing for The Tattooed Rose (the third book in the trilogy) I needed to go back and correct some details in Seer with regards to shipping in the 16th century. I had learned a few things in the meantime. There were other small details I needed to change in terms of the world I had created for all three books. For example, I had to make sure I'd been consistent with the honorifics for the clergy, that I'd accented and used the Spanish terms properly, etc. - all very minor things that were easy to miss, but were also important. The substantive edits also meant I needed to do more research - in particular on opium usage and on the characters found in the Commedia dell'arte. All of these are elements in The Tattooed Seer.

If you haven't read The Tattooed Witch yet, it's been nominated for an Aurora award under Best Novel, English. Over the next several months, you can read it for free if you're a member of the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association, who sponsors the Aurora. If you aren't a member, it's also available on Amazon, Kobo, and through Five Rivers Publishing (see the column on the right for links). Witch is competing with some works by very high-powered and well-known writers, including Guy Gavriel Kay, Robert J. Sawyer, and Julie Czerneda. Chadwick Ginther, who we've also published in On Spec, has his second book up for consideration. It's wonderful to be included in such excellent and stellar company.

- Susan.

LETTERS TO THE SLUSH PILE #18

Dear -------

On Sunday, the other On Spec editors and I made our final picks of the stories that will appear in upcoming On Spec issues. You would think that after doing this for twenty-three years that I wouldn't be surprised by anything, but it appears that even after all of this time, I am. I'm speaking of editorial bias, and why we choose the stories we do.

I am always amazed when I think a story is awesome and others don't find it so. I just want you to know that I was stubborn enough to fight for the stories I loved, even if others didn't agree with me. To be fair, I also need to point out that my fellow editors also fought for what they thought was wonderful, even if I didn't share their opinion. Because On Spec is a collaborative effort, we will always pick our favorites, and especially so if one of us champions the work.

Editorial bias/personal taste - there's no way around it. My opinion of what I think is brilliant isn't always shared by others. When it comes to my own writing, as in, when I'm the one submitting and waiting for an editor's decision, it's the one thing that frustrates me most. We all like to think our writing is excellent. It would be great if everyone else thought so, too.

A while back, I did an ABC's post on rejection. If we rejected you, I just want you to know that it's very likely that your story came close. When you have four (or more) editors reading work, there will always be a lot of discussion. If there is a general consensus that a story was good but had a minor flaw, it may be that that flaw was what kept the story from making it into the magazine, as compared to a story that someone cares strongly about.

I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but we received over five hundred stories this submission window. Of those five hundred, we only bought eight. One other story is still under consideration. Part of the reason for this is we are waiting to hear how we will fare with our future grant funding. As well, we have already purchased stories from a prior submission's window. Only eight new stories out of five hundred should tell you that we had to be extremely selective this time around. With a very diverse editorial bias as part of our equation, if we rejected your work, I hope you'll realize that it doesn't necessarily reflect on your work's quality or value.

I have yet to contact those writers whose work we are accepting, and also to advise those we are rejecting. I will do that this coming week, as will my fellow editors regarding those pieces that fall under their jurisdiction. This will be my last Letter to the Slush Pile for a while, so I'll pen the sign-off I use on much of my writing correspondence. I mean the sentiment truly. It's been a pleasure. Thank you for sharing your work with me.

All the best to you in your future writing endeavours.

 - Susan.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, SUZENYMS!

THIS WILL BE A SHORT POST. About a year ago, I decided to resurrect Suzenyms. I'm so glad I did. At first, I thought the new start-up would be a way of promoting my book The Tattooed Witch, but I've actually had more fun posting about writing and editing, and sharing my insights with you via my ABC's and Letters to the Slush Pile. It's also been my pleasure to host many of you, including On Spec editors Diane Walton, Barb Galler-Smith, Ann Marston, Robin Carson, Barry Hammond, Cat McDonald, and contributing guest professionals, Lorina Stephens, Robert Runte, Dave Laderoute, Michael R. Fletcher, Michell Plested, Sally McBride, Eileen Bell, Billie Milholland, Hugh A.D. Spencer, Derek Newman-Stille, Graeme Brown, Karen Dudley, Adria Laycraft, Janice Blaine, Peter Halasz, and Rachel Sentes.

To all of you who have shared your thoughts with me here on Suzenyms or on the I Read On Spec Facebook Page, a big thank you! You've given me a wonderful year. 

- Susan.

NEW EDITORS AT ON SPEC MAGAZINE

Cover by Lynne and Steve Fahnestalk

WE'VE BEEN EXPANDING at ON SPEC MAGAZINE. With the switch to Submittable software to handle the mountain of slush we received during our last submission's window, I'm happy to announce we've taken on four new editors at On Spec. Please join me in welcoming Brent Jans, Laurie Penner, Constantine Kaoukakis, and Eileen Bell!

 Brent Jans is a lifelong, unapologetic sci-fi and fantasy geek. He's that guy you know who re-reads The Lord of the Rings every year, yes, including The Silmarillion. When not copy-editing, proofing, or dipping his toe into the slush pile for On Spec, he freelances as an editor for independent game publishers (such as Mystic Ages Publishing's Foreign Element RPG). If you have ever read, loved, or hated a Tweet from @OnSpecMagazine, Brent wrote it so blame/praise him. Being able to learn on the job from some of the best writers and editors in Canada is why Brent feels fortunate to work with the folks at On Spec.

Full-time desk jockey Laurie Penner pushes papers around for the Alberta government during the day and proofreads for On Spec Magazine at night. Somehow, she also finds time to volunteer for the Millwoods Bread Run, play way too many video games, and attempt to find the best bowl of bo kho in Edmonton. 

Constantine Kaoukakis was born and raised in Montreal. His interests include comic books (Marvel & DC), Sherlock Holmes, Star Trek, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Greek mythology, Doctor Who, British murder mysteries, ancient history, and literature. He has degrees in Education, English, and Classics which have enabled him to teach Latin, ancient and modern Greek, ESL, English literature, ancient Greek and Roman literature at the high school, college and university levels: Concordia University (Montreal), Queen’s University, and other minor colleges. Not only is he a former member of The Bimetallic Question - the Sherlock Holmes Society of Montreal, but he has also founded The Wisteria Lodgers - the Sherlock Holmes Society of Edmonton.

Eileen Bell has written most of her life (usually as an antidote to whatever day job she had) and has had short fiction published in magazines and several anthologies, including the double Aurora Award winning Women of the Apocalypse. Recently, she and three other writers had a collaborative novel, The Puzzle Box, published through EDGE Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing. In 2014, she will have her own paranormal mystery, Seeing the Light, published through Tyche Books. When she’s not writing or editing or thinking about writing, she’s living a fine life in her round house (even if it is in a perpetual state of renovation) with her husband, two dogs, and a gold fish.

Of course, we couldn't function without the talents of Isaac Calon, our Proofreader,  Cat McDonald, our Production Editor, or Jen Laface, our Publisher's Assistant. I would also like to bid a fond farewell to Robin Carson, who we will miss greatly as a fellow editor, and who knows he can return to us any time, once his day job isn't so demanding. 

And while I'm on the subject of the On Spec staff, I may as well include links for those of us who make up the old guard. If you want to know more about what Ann, Barb, Diane, Barry, or myself are looking for in manuscripts, you can find that information below:

For Ann Marston:
For Barb Galler-Smith:
For Barry Hammond:
For Diane Walton:
And for Susan MacGregor: 

So welcome, Brent, Laurie, Constantine, and Eileen! And a big thank you to all of you who support us at On Spec Magazine.

AN UNEXPECTED KUDO

LORINA STEPHENS POSTED THIS on her Facebook Page today, and because she mentioned me, I received notice of it in my e-mail. This was unexpected and really nice to hear. She wrote:

"Received the final manuscript from Susan MacGregor for 'The Tattooed Seer'. Can hardly wait to dive into the edit, which will likely be a breeze, cause, well, you know, it's Susan! Still hoping to release it late this summer. Yaaahay!"

Oh, wow. I never expect these comments, and I am so surprised and grateful when I do. I hope the edit goes smoothly for both of us. 

Anyway, I just wanted to share this, and we'll soon be back to regular programming. Will be posting something for the ABC's shortly, plus more 'Letters to the Slush Pile'.

- Susan.

LETTERS TO THE SLUSH PILE #6

Dear X and Y,

I'm writing to you both because although your stories are different (X, yours is a contemporary fantasy featuring trolls, and Y, yours is an epic fantasy with were-foxes) they both have the same problem in common. Both trolls and foxes aren't really trolls or foxes. They're human beings running around in troll and fox suits.  

You've both told me an engaging story. I was interested in your plots and the troubles your characters encountered. Your main drawback is you both need to show me how your characters are different from human beings. When I read about dog, cat, dragon, elf, dwarf, or even bug-eyed monster protagonists (or antagonists), I want to have a sense of their dog-ness, cat-ness, dragon-ness, etc., - whatever separates and makes them really different from us. Intrigue me with your insights about their instincts, abilities, talents, understanding of their world - perhaps even their social structures and morality. Do your research. Mine your imagination. Show me something I won't expect or will make me think, 'Yes! That's how they would be.'

You're both good writers. With a little thought, I'm sure you won't this find hard to do.

- Susan.

LETTERS TO THE SLUSH PILE #5

Dear -------,

I’m really torn over your story. You make so many basic errors, yet your prose is quite wonderful. You’ve taken some risks, you’re reaching towards a sophistication as a writer. Like most of us, I think you just need a bit of guidance. Here are the issues I had with your piece.

What you’ve sent me is an ‘in-depth, evolving over time’ character sketch. It’s a great character sketch. The problem is, it’s presented through your protagonist who talks about a more fascinating secondary character. A few things happen to your main character, but not enough. Still, the elegance with which you tell the story - so strong on character but not so much on plot - is enough to sway me into passing it along to the other editors.

As for technicalities, your story is a copy-editor’s nightmare. Here are the things I’d have you correct:

- Change the title. It has nothing to do with the story. It doesn’t work as a metaphor either, which is where I think you were going with it.

- Do NOT use different sizes of fonts to indicate yelling, fading voices, etc.

- I realize you’ve used italics and plain text to indicate changes in time and scene. Within those sections, please be consistent in terms of present and past tenses. Indent every paragraph. Within italicized areas, if you choose to indicate emphasis (which you might normally, with italics) return the word or text to plain font.

- Avoid clichés. You’ve given me some wonderfully fresh metaphors, a pleasure to read. Please don’t ruin my appreciation of your ability by slipping into tired phrases. You've shown me you're capable of so much more.

- Please be consistent in using either American or Canadian/British spellings. One or the other, but not both. On Spec prefers Canadian spelling.

Now back to the story. You need a stronger end in terms of what happens to your protagonist (so in terms of plot). At the moment, the piece feels lopped off. I read your story twice. My initial impression was you've used what should be your end as your opening hook. On second read, I’m not so sure I agree with this now, meaning, I can live with it, but you still need a stronger end.

As I said, I’ll pass your story on to the other editors for their comment. After discussing it, it may be that we’ll ask you for a revision. If we don’t, you might want to think about the piece overall. Whatever happens, I hope you take this letter in the support that it’s meant. I think you have a great future ahead of you as a writer.

All the best - Susan.

LETTERS TO THE SLUSH PILE #4

Dear ------,

I have to say, it was a real delight to read your story! I've read just over a third of the slush assigned to me, and yours was the first that really made me smile. I like all kinds of work and all types of stories - from the silly, to the poignant, to the dark, to the dramatic. Yours was a rare gift - a fun read! I really have nothing to criticize about it. I'm sure the other editors will enjoy it as much as I did when they get around to reading it. Of course I am passing it along. Of course, I will fight for it. (I doubt I'll have to fight very much, if at all).

I hope to copy-edit your story (which, truth be told, doesn't need much - I think the only thing I would tighten is a very small section of your dialogue). Why did I enjoy it so much? Because, despite your characters being 'types', they were still original and refreshing enough, the situation they found themselves in was ridiculous, and the end was perfect, considering their foibles.This is the entertainment business. You entertained me.

Thank you so much for submitting --------- to On Spec. I see you've sent us a few other pieces. I look forward to reading them too, as well as telling you eventually, that your story was the one I was raving about.

Keep up the marvelous work!

- Susan.

BROKE 40,000 WORDS THIS WEEK on THE TATTOOED ROSE

I FINALLY BROKE 40,000 WORDS THIS WEEK while working on the first draft of The Tattooed Rose, the third book in my Tattooed Witch trilogy. Let me tell you, this has been the hardest book to write, mostly because I know how I want the trilogy to end and some of the high plot points I want to reach, but everything else has been undefined. Way back, when I had the vague idea, "Well, they finally manage to escape Tomás (my sadistic Grand Inquisitor) for a while, and it all happens on the Great Ocean Sea (the Atlantic) and in the Caribbean. Miriam is on one ship and Joachín is on another, and eventually they get together on Xaymaca (Jamaica) where they run into more trouble with pirates, voudou sorcerers (bocors), and the Inquisition, again," that that would be enough. 

Good grief. What was I thinking? I've had to do research on Spanish galleons (naos), carracks, and caravels, how they're built and what kinds of guns they might have carried. I've had to figure out how long it takes a sailing ship in the mid-sixteenth century to get from Spain to the Canaries and then to Hispaniola (Haiti and the DR). I've had to study piracy, and voudou, and African slave routes (yes, slaves are involved), the Taíno (one of the indigenous groups of the Caribbean who were mostly decimated due to small pox), and the myths and beliefs surrounding the Fountain of Youth, and Ponce de Leon. Book Three touches upon all of these. I'm taking a short break to write this post, because I'm not sure what to do next in the plot. I need to think about character motivations, what drives them, what the reactions should be to last actions. I've already written the following scene, but it's a culminating one and I need a stronger lead-up. 

I'll figure it out. I always do.

Still, I never thought writing would be so difficult. The Tattooed Witch took me six years from considering the idea, developing it, writing it, revising it too many times to count, to interesting an agent, to finally seeing the book published through Five Rivers Publishing last summer. (Thank you, Robert, fabulous editor that you are, and Lorina, my wonderful publisher). Book Two, The Tattooed Seer took me just over a year to write and revise, and it wasn't that hard. I had less of an idea for it than The Tattooed Witch, but I knew I wanted Miriam and company to race across Esbaña (Spain) in order to reach a port to sail to the new world. There's more magic in Book Two, and more enemies including Tomás (the Grand Inquisitor), plus more romance, as well. Joachín's and Miriam's relationship deepens. But Book Three, this one... oh, yoy.

It'll be the best book of the three, I know. But in the meantime, I feel like I'm running (writing) a marathon. The end is in sight, but I still have a long ways to go.

(If you haven't read The Tattooed Witch, you can read the first two chapters from my previous post here: http://suzenyms.blogspot.ca/2013/08/the-tattooed-witch-first-two-chapters_1.html

OR, you can read the first four chapters from Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Tattooed-Witch-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00DZ25XAC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383251781&sr=8-1&keywords=the+tattooed+witch)

If you purchase a copy of the book, thank you very much! As a debut novelist, I both need and appreciate your support. If you like the book, please feel free to write a review - on Amazon, on your blog, or wherever.

ROMANCING THE CRONE, PART TWO...

LAST POST, I TALKED ABOUT HYBRID BOOKS, The Tattooed Witch, my debut novel that spans both speculative fiction and paranormal romance, and my frustration with the Big Five NY publishing houses that insist that fantasy and romance genres remain within strictly defined guidelines. (Thank heavens for my publisher, Five Rivers Publishing, which diverges from the traditional publishing model and allows its authors an authentic voice.) I went on to criticize some of the traditional romance formulas, which include a dominant alpha male hero and a tolerance for rape. Shortly after I posted Romancing the Crone on Suzenyms, there was a lot of discussion on my Facebook Timeline about the romance memes, why romance writers adhere to them, and how readers don’t necessarily think the same way writers do. Diane Walton, friend and fellow editor at On Spec, sent me this e-mail (slightly edited, so as to protect identities). She wrote: I asked two acquaintances to read your post about romance writing, since they write romances and paranormal romances. Here’s what one of them said: 

“As much as I agree with her (meaning me) about romance writing, we still have a publisher's formula to follow. In fact, we tried to write a thoughtful, exciting, and historically accurate romance novel, and a lot of it was edited out…as new authors, we are at the mercy of editors' and readers' preferences. If these formula novels were not popular, they wouldn't be selling.”

This note started me on a very interesting back and forth with the writer in question. I suggested to her that perhaps I’d been a bit harsh in my criticisms. I asked her if I could share our correspondence, to which she agreed, as long as we maintained her anonymity. She was worried about offending her publisher. I find what she writes very illuminating:

“I don't necessarily think the formula is a good thing, and for some women who are far more educated and sophisticated in their reading habits, they still love romance, but not the ‘old style’ romance. Many are shifting to historical lit with romance stories built in to get better stories with more depth and richness. I got into romance on the whim of my publisher—the book I co-authored was written as historical lit. She changed it and edited it to fit the romance cube.

If you hate formula romance, you will also hate this one, I think. We had a damn good book until the publisher and editors took out all our careful research and wonderful plot and had my co-author, who took over the rewrites during editing for the experience, insert some hackneyed, horrible ‘sensual scenes’  that are stilted and awkward. (I already had experience working with editors and publishers so I wanted her to have the opportunity.) I’m not putting down my co-author—being a new writer she was intimidated and obeyed—but I wish I’d known. She had to insert love scenes where they didn't belong. I didn't know what was going on until it was too late. It was my mistake. I should have taken over the editing process with the editors and publisher of  this book. 

Frankly, I'm on a mission to change the ‘formula’ and make romance into an intelligent, sophisticated, thoughtful, and exciting genre, instead of the same old crap that’s being pumped out there. If I have to write romances for this publisher, I want them to be good stories. From what I hear, most women readers are shifting towards this as well, but the romance industry is simply not listening.”

She goes on to point out the romance book industry accounts for 68% of overall book sales in North America (I haven't verified this number and I've seen other stats that differ, but the percentage is substantial.) With regards to women romance readers wanting to see a shift in terms of what the industry offers them, she said this is what she continually hears on discussion panels. 

So, how do we change publishers' minds in terms of what readers might rather see in romance novels or hybrid books? We speak up. We offer differing opinions, whenever and wherever we can. We encourage our readers to do so, too.