Fingers Crossed Once Again for "Interview With the Faerie"

The two or three of you who have been following my writing career (hi Mom!) know that I am particularly attached to a piece of my writing that has an identity crisis. Is it a poem? (Maybe.) Is it a short story? (Sort of.) Is it sellable? (???) It is Interview With the Faerie (Part I), a dark chronicle of the uneasy meeting between the King of Faerie and a human reporter "chosen" to be the first to interview the Fae Lord in over a century.

For some blasted reason, when the idea first came to me 3+ years ago, it initially came out as a poem. Then I set it aside for a while, until the rest of the story wrote itself.

When I was inspired to pick it back up--not sure where it was going to take me--it continued to spew forth as a poem. A poem with stanzas of six lines (mostly.) And when the Fae King speaks, some of his lines rhyme.

Hey, don't blame me. He's a Faerie. If He wants to speak in rhyme, He can.

So, the piece is 1300-ish words long, in stanzas (some of which rhyme) and it ends in a cliffhanger, because that's just how it ended. Thus, the (Part I) at the end. There will be at least one other part. I've tried to write it a few times, but it wouldn't come out.

Back to my original point...

I sold the piece last summer, and it was supposed to be published this past summer, but the magazine went under. This happens.

Then things got busy with back to school, family calamities, starting my new business, etc. So today, I picked a market and sent it off.

I really believe in this piece. The question is, who is going to take a chance on an overly long poem/sort of short story?

We shall see. (I hope.)

My 2011 Pi-Con Panel Schedule

I'm not currently listed on the published schedule due to lateness on my part, but here are the panels I'll be on at Pi-Con.

What is Pi-Con? You ask...

 From the website: "Pi-Con is a diverse collection of geeks. Our members are fans of books, movies, gaming, webcomics and print comics, tech and gadgetry, costuming, anime, and music. You'll find people who are into steampunk, space opera, vampires, ren faires, superheroes, and dozens of other genres in various combinations. This year we're proud to be expanding our offerings to include a strong science track (including a science guest of honor!) . We'll still be including all the best parts of previous Pi-Cons; you can discuss your favorite topics in panels and meetups, play tabletop games from our extensive library, see a show or two, and party until you can't stay awake anymore.

The convention is held annually in August, in the Springfield, MA area.

We pride ourselves on being open and welcoming of newcomers. If you're into any of the fandoms we celebrate, or even just into hanging out with a bunch of friendly geeks, we'd like to extend a warm invitation. Hope to see you there!"

So, you can see why I fit in ;-)

Once again this year I'll have my husband and fellow scifi and science geek in tow. I'm also psyched because my fabulous writer-friend, Trish Wooldridge, is this year's Guest of Awesome! I'll also get to see some of the New England members of Broad Universe. (And on that note, I am the new coordinator for the New England chapter so if you are a woman writing genre fiction or a man who supports such--or would like to host a discussion about women writing genre fiction please feel free to contact me.)

Without further ado, the schedule:

timeslot Room panel

8/26/2011 8:00:00 PM Suffield Sex & Genre Literature (other panelists: Genevieve Iseult Eldredge (M), Trisha Wooldridge)

8/27/2011 12:00:00 PM Suffield Apocalypse: How? (George Claxton (M), Michael Whitehouse)

8/27/2011 4:00:00 PM Agawam Locally Grown Genre Works (Kate Kaynak (M), Ken Kingsgrave-Ernstein)

8/27/2011 5:00:00 PM Suffield Ask a Geek: Social Sciences (Kate Kate, Mike Whitehouse (M), Paul Estin)

8/27/2011 8:00:00 PM Main Tent Love and the Robosexual (George Claxton (M), Jennifer Pelland)


*** I may try to get on another panel or two, and should also be reading from my work if there is a Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading ***

One Door Closes, Another One Opens

I was really bummed out two weeks ago when I received the news that my short story/poem "Interview With the Faerie, Part I"--slated to be published this month--was not going to be. The magazine is closing up shop. I was particularly dismayed because they held the piece for a year (and no, that is not unheard of in this biz.) Also, I LOVE this piece of work. In many ways, it defines me as a writer and is a good representation of what I write.


But to put this piece of news in greater context, I was coming off several poetry rejections (I'm clearly not sending to the right markets) and going through the change of leaving my job and re-defining myself. And dealing with the aftermath of Ari's back surgery. And such.


And then I was pleasantly surprised to hear that my short story Essie was accepted for publication by Luna Station Quarterly, a market I really dig. Their mission is to, "... is to display the vast and varied talents of female genre fiction writers."


So, look for Essie in their September issue. This will qualify as my first published short story! It is also one of my relatively few forays into pure scifi--I tend to write more fantasy and magickal realism.


Yesterday, I did re-tool "Interview" a bit and send it off to another market. I am now going to refer to it as a short story, which it really is. Even though it's written in stanzas like a poem and has some rhyming elements. It's over 1,700 words. So, fingers crossed on that.

Adjusting to a New Life & Random Musings

New Life Musings

Today I begin my second week without full-time, "in-the-office" employment. I've been incredibly busy and this new reality hasn't really sunk in yet. I'm sill under the pressure of kids' activities, Ari not being up to speed, and leftovers for work. And painting the darn kitchen, which thankfully is coming along.

Here's a view of the finished part.

Tomorrow is Summer Solstice, which amazes me. The weather has been suck in the Northeast and it feels like it's just begun to get nice. Tomorrow is also the kids' last day of school. Hopefully we will find a way to celebrate the solstice.

I had hoping that by now we'd have more of a hang-outside area. Having a spouse out of commission has made me realize how much each person contributes to running a household/family. (Honestly, kudos to you single Moms and Dads--I don't know how you do it.) The grill is still under the house and it's too heavy for me to take out. Although I'm now an expert lawn-mower the trimmer is still packed away and if memory serves I don't have a lot of stamina holding that up and using it for extended periods. My vegetable garden didn't get planted.

In my perfect vision of this summer, I'd have lovely little vegetable plantlings, an outdoor patio area, and a firepit. I'd be able to invite my friends over to celebrate the solstice.

Instead, I have hours of work to finish, a kitchen still in need of some paint, boxes of kitchen stuff still to put away, looming writing deadlines, and kids on my hands as of tomorrow.

But I have POTENTIAL. Theoretically--when things settle down a bit--I have more and more flexible time. My kids are older, and they are funny, and amuse the heck out of me when they're not annoying me by leaving utter chaos in their collective wake. And Ari is on the mend.

Realistically, I live in paradise. I love where I live. Everyday the chipmunks put on a show, and there are beautiful bird songs all around.

Writing Update

In writing news, I received a poetry rejection recently, the novel is still "in progress" and my most active project is a short story for the upcoming unCONventional anthology. Also, my long poem "Interview With the Faerie, Part I" is supposed to be published this month in Abandoned Towers. I'm also thinking of going on a total poetry hiatus--that is not writing ANY poetry at all--for a year, and just concentrating on my other writing. I can't seem to find the markets for it (either that, or my poetry really sucks) and I'm getting discouraged.

Off to food shop--YAY I don't have to fight the crowds on Sunday any more!!

Early Summer Blessings to All!

Listen to me read from my novel-in-progress. You know you want to.

The May episode of the BroadPod--sponsored by Broad Universe--is up and I am reading some of my work. This episode is all about "mothers" and "mothering." Please have a listen, and tell me what you think!

http://broadpod.posterous.com/

Happy listening!