John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer

Posted on January 30, 2014 by SharonJoss

2014CampbellianAnthology_CoverI’m thrilled to announce that my short story, LOVE IN THE TIME OF DUST AND VENOM has been included in the 2014 Campbellian Anthology , an anthology of the eligible ‘first professional sales’ by other new science fiction writers like myself.  The anthology includes 111 stories and more than 800K words; all by neo-pro writers who made their first professional sale within the last two years.  The nominees will be voted on by members of LonCon3 (the 72nd World Science Fiction Convention), as the John W. Campbell Best New Writer Award.  Not a Hugo award, but voted on by the same group. A lot of great stories in here; it’s a terrific opportunity to discover future favorite authors.

M. David Blake has made a herculean effort to make this volume  available, so check it out.

And best of all, it’s FREE.

Posted in 2013, 2014, Amazing Stories, Awards, Best New Writer, Campbellian Anthology, Hugos, John W. Campbell Award, Love in the Time of Dust and Venom | Leave a comment

Cover Reveal – AURUM (squee!)

Posted on January 22, 2014 by SharonJoss

AURUM 011914smallforweb

 

I’m so glad I can finally reveal the new cover for my upcoming adventure / science fiction novel, AURUM.  Settling on this one took a lot of time and input from a lot of friends, family, and total strangers, but ultimately, I’m thrilled with it.

Hope you like it too.

Posted in 2014, adventure, AURUM, Cover Reveal, science fiction, Sharon Joss, Slipstream | Leave a comment

Half-fast Writer

Posted on January 17, 2014 by SharonJoss

Stipula_fountain_penI am not a fast writer.  I continually read about writers (all far more successful than I) who can write a novel in 16 days, or a month, or even a week. I am in awe of their capabilities. Last year I tried to force myself to write faster, but in a workshop, when the workshop leader asked, ‘who doesn’t write at least 500 words an hour’, I was the only person in the room who raised my hand.  Everybody looked at me with an expression somewhere between shock and pity.  I felt…well, lacking.

To be honest, I’ve never really timed myself against the clock.  I have a daily quota of words to write.  Sometimes I get through it in a couple hours, sometimes it takes all day.  Generally, it takes me 4-5 hours to write 1250 words. I average 33-38Kwords a month. Every month.

I’m not slow because I type slowly. But I am thinking/creating as I type, and intentionally trying to speed up my creative process just makes me crazy.  I write just as fast as I need to write to get the story I want to tell on the page.  I believe that the speed will come in time (maybe in the next million words or three), but even if it doesn’t, I’ve got something else going for me, and that’s consistency.

The lesson for me is to stop comparing myself to other writers.  It’s not a competition.  For now, I’m content to be a half-fast writer.

Posted in ambition, fiction, I Write Like, inner critic, learning the craft, perceptions, persistence, speed writing, write, write every day, write every day; writers write, Writing, writing business, writing goals, writing speed | Tagged | Leave a comment

Spice Up Your Fiction

Posted on January 11, 2014 by SharonJoss

images2While I do think of myself as primarily a writer of speculative fiction (a somewhat broad category which includes, but is not limited to, Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror), I’ve been mixing things up a bit lately. After writing fantasy for four years, I sold the second science fiction story I ever wrote. And at a work shop last year, I was challenged to write a military sci-fi story, which (although I never read military sci-fi) ended up as one of my favorites.  The change-up in genre made me appreciate how writing in different genres can be invigorating.

So as I begin my ‘new’ writing practice for the year, with my resolution to write at least two short stories a month, I’m looking to add to my writer’s toolkit and not limit myself to only one or two genres. I don’t limit my reading to a single genre, so why should I limit my writing? And the great thing about writing short stories, is that if you flub it and in the end it doesn’t work the way you’d hoped, you toss it and write something else. At least you haven’t spent months on trying it out for a whole novel.

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And writing in multiple genres has forced me to stretch my voice and plotting in ways I never imagined. I think it’s made me a better writer; and certainly a better storyteller. It’s both challenging and fun. Duotrope is a great place to look for prompts / story markets, as is The Grinder (which is free).

So go ahead; spice it up a little.

Posted in adventure, authors, genre, ideas, persevere, persistence, speculative fiction, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Joy of Books

Posted on January 3, 2014 by SharonJoss

JoyofBooksAs a full-time neo-pro writer, I live by the frugalista credo, which essentially states DON’T SPEND ANY MONEY.  That said, my idea of a shopping spree is a trip to the grocery store to buy detergent.  So imagine my delight when one of my beloved sisters sent me a gift card to Powell’s Books, one of my favorite indie books stores.

To better savor the gift of retail therapy, I held off using the card until after the holiday and post-holiday crowds had thinned.  Today, after finishing my daily writing quota of new words, I spent a blissful hour prowling the aisles, ultimately deciding on one from each of my favorite genres: adventure, horror, science fiction, and urban fantasy.

Aaaah.

Posted in 2014, adventure, books, Clive Cussler, Ellen Datlow, horror, Hugh Howey, Richard Kadrey, science fiction, urban fantasy | Leave a comment

2013: The List and the Lessons

Posted on December 26, 2013 by SharonJoss

ButcherBird

This year (2013) has definitely been the year of the short story. I read more than a dozen short story anthologies and nearly 100 (as yet) unpublished shorts by writer colleagues in writing workshops.

I also read more books this year than last, and although I once again did not achieve my goal of finishing 60 books, I did come close. I read a good deal more Science Fiction than Fantasy this year, as a result, have come to value and enjoy the genre almost as much as Fantasy.

 

THE LIST:

  • Favorite anthology: This is a tie between Lightspeed Year One and The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1: 1929-1964 by Robert Silverberg.  In the Hall of Fame anthology, James Blish’s  Surface Tension and The Little Black Bag by C. M. Kornbluth were my favorites; and I so enjoyed so many of the Lightspeed stories, I became a subscriber.
  • Favorite new author and series: Richard Kadrey and his Sandman Slim series, as well as his standalone novel, Butcher Bird.  His unique perspective and inner eye for bizarre and horrifically wonderful nightmare settings sets him apart from anyone I’ve ever read.
  • Notable Classics: One of my reading goals for this year was to read more by the masters of the Fantasy and Science Fiction genres.  A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle was a quiet story, which charmed me as every bit as much as his better-known The Last Unicorn.
  • Favorite Writing Book(s): Two authors made a radical and welcome change in my ideas about creativity, writing, and life.  Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch have opened my eyes to a whole new world as a writer and publisher.  Kris’s Freelancer’s Survival Guide and Dean’s Think Like A Publisher: A Step-by-Step Guide to Publishing Your Own Books are the most frequently used books in my library.
  • Favorite Books from Favorite Authors: I reread the entire John D. MacDonald Travis McGee series while riding the bike at my local gym.  What an engrossing and painless way to stay in shape!
  • Biggest Disappointment: Jack Vance’s Tales of the Dying Earth.  Seven hundred pages that started slow and never really grabbed me.  I know he’s considered a master of the genre, but I never really connected with his characters.

THE LESSONS:
Lesson 1: I don’t know why, but I never considered anthologies as a source of fiction before.  I love novels, and generally don’t read much short fiction, but this year, that all changed.  In addition to those mentioned, I’m looking forward to the Hugos and Year’s Best Science Fiction, and Ellen Datlow’s next horror project.

Lesson 2:  I don’t think it’s a coincidence that in this ‘year of the short story’, I made my first professional sale and received an Honorable Mention from Writers of the Future for short stories I wrote.  And while it’s taken me a while to figure out why that story sold, I’m now convinced that writing short stories will help me in my novel writing as well (in terms of both craft and building a following for my longer works).

Lesson 3: My move to Oregon from Idaho a year ago changed my life more profoundly than I could have ever imagined.  The genre writer’s community here is welcoming and supportive, and I have been fortunate enough to find wonderful mentors and colleagues who have taught me invaluable lessons in both craft and the business of writing.  But for every ‘aha’ moment, I’ve also come to realize there is so much more to learn. Looking back, I cannot believe how far I’ve come this year.  Looking forward to 2014, I know I’ve only just begun.

Posted in 2013, Anthologies, Dean Wesley Smith, Kristine Rusch, mentors, reading, science fiction, Sharon Joss, short story, shorts, writers write, writing, writing a series | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Here Comes the Sun

Posted on December 20, 2013 by SharonJoss

solsticeHappy Solstice!

Saturday is the shortest day of the year.  In the ‘old’ days (the really old days), people celebrated the end of darkness and return of the light.  From now until June, good ol’ Sol will shine its light on us poor humans a little bit longer every day.

I generally spend the Solstice reviewing my accomplishments of the previous year, and developing an action plan to achieve my business objectives and resolutions for the coming year.  As I looked back on my list of accomplishments for 2013, I couldn’t help but feel proud of how much progress I’ve made in my writing career.

I wrote more than 250K words this year, resulting in one-and-a-half novels, 11 short stories, and 50+ blog entries.  I received more rejections this year than I could have ever imagined, made my first professional sale, earned an Honorable Mention in an international writing contest, and saw six of my stories published this year.

So for 2014, I want to kick up the pace a little and keep the momentum going.

There are a lot of thing’s I’d like to experience in 2014 (hit the best-seller lists, win a major award, sell a million books), but I won’t waste my time worrying about things I can’t control. Instead, my resolutions in 2014 are to meet my writing quota every day, delight readers by writing the best stories I possibly can, finish everything I write, send out everything I finish, and the turn around and do it again and again.

I’ve got some great writing classes lines up, and I’m working on expanding my professional network. I finally got my author accounts set up on Facebook and Goodreads, and I’m learning everything I possibly can about the business of writing and publishing.  One of the biggest concepts I grokked this year is that for successful writers, the learning and networking never ends.

Good thing the days are getting longer.

Posted in 2013 resolutions, business, networking, persevere, persistence, write every day, write every day; writers write, writers conference, writers workshop, writers write, writing business, writing goals, writing quota | Tagged , | Leave a comment