Orson Scott Card.

What can you say about celebrated New York Times bestselling author Orson Scott Card?

Well, there’s this…

“Orson Scott Card is a homophobic piece of shit.”

And then there’s this…

“That P.O.S. gets none of my dollars.”

And from the same thread…

“He’s not getting a dime from me.”

Members of the Science Fiction community have been of late truly repulsed by some of the things OSC has expressed both online and in the world of op-ed pieces, and—let’s be honest—OSC as an author is so mainstream that his recent spirited opinions inspired articles like this:

http://thinkprogress.org/alyssa/2013/02/21/1619481/an-ethical-guide-to-consuming-content-created-by-awful-people-like-orson-scott-card/

http://www.salon.com/2013/03/07/end_game_for_orson_scott_card_partner/

Here’s where it gets tricky though…

Ender’s Game is a book I have never read, but I know the book. I’ve known this book for decades, prominently displayed in bookstores everywhere in 1985. And in 1995. And in 2005.

And today, people still recommend it. Pip loves this book, and while I already know how this epic adventure wraps up, a part of me really wants to read it in preparation for what promises to be an incredible epic rivaling the upcoming Man of Steel.

Yes, I believe in you, Zac Snyder, even though you got a Brit playing one of the most iconic of American superheroes…

…but I digress.

Since OSC started spewing his hatred and other political rants, fans of his work have taken a moment to step back and say “Hold on.” There was enough uproar against his opinions that DC Comics artist Chris Spouse walked away from OSC’s Superman story, compelling DC to shelf the story until they can find an artist willing to work on it. Even Browncoats who held OSC’s review of Serenity as a golden fleece for Whedon’s deep space western had to stop and wonder where this hatred was coming from.

Then this trailer hit the Interwebz, and suddenly the same geeks once chastising him for his bile-laden bigotry were starting a countdown to the movie’s release. And regardless of what kind of deal OSC signed (and in his own words, “I jealously protected the movie rights to Ender’s Game so that it would not be filmed until it could be done right.” so you know this had to be one killer deal for it to look this good in a preview), one way or another, the Ender’s Game movie puts money in OSC’s pocket.

So I find myself in a quandary. I honestly don’t want to give money or support of any kind to Mr. Card. I want to read the book. I really do. Based on the casting and the glimpses we got in this two-and-a-half minute trailer, this looks to be an incredible story. However, you could be the best storyteller EVAR; but if you’re a bigoted punk, why would I want to buy your stuff?

From the earlier quoted thread, there was another comment worth noting:

“If you judged every work by its creator, you’d live in a dull, motionless vacuum. Go see the damn movie.”

Good point. After all, I’m a writer. So’s Pip. Shouldn’t we be practicing solidarity for our fellow author, and shouldn’t we take a point-of-view of “Would we want people passing judgment on our work based on the merit of the work itself, not on our beliefs and opinions?” I’m sure, based on my blogposts, my podcasts, my sentiments expressed both on and off panels, and my social media updates, I’ve turned off potential readers on account of my tree-hugging-raging-liberal-Christian viewpoints.

No, you didn’t misread that self-description. You read that right. Shocking but true: I drive an E.V., and I recycle.

But seriously, would I want someone to judge my work based on how I live my life, or on the quality of the stories I tell and the characters I create?

When you think about it, this impasse sounds a lot like something you’d read in Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine or see on The Twilight Zone. If a scientist discovers the cure for cancer, but then reveals his or her insistence that this cure would be reserved for “whites only” would you financially invest in his or her work? Okay, for something less dramatic, what if you have a favorite musician and you love their work. You have all of this artist’s music, maybe even a few rare vinyls of their early works. Then you discover the artist is anti-Semitic, supports white supremacist groups, and is about to come out with a new album. Do you purchase it? Yeah, maybe you can pirate it, but by enjoying their work, aren’t you also giving that artist validation for their efforts?

One part of me wants to discover a great story. Another part of me does not want to give any kind of validation to Orson Scott Card. But by boycotting the film, I’m boycotting what promises to be powerful performances from Asa Butterfield, Harrison Ford, and Ben Kingsley, and artistic accomplishments of the film’s director and technical crew. Is one guy carrying a lot of fear and hatred within him worth it?

It truly is a moral dilemma. And once upon a time, there was an author who wrote about such a moral dilemma. Back in 1985.

So I’m about to leave Facebook to get back to editing when this image from Being a Geek (via Lauren Harris) popped into my feed…

I now post this for creative ladies like Lauren, Raven, Riddle, Jenn, Jean, Alexia, Freddie and cosplayers everywhere.  Some of these incredible creators I know. Some are total strangers to me. All of them are fans through and through, dedicating their time and talent to bring their favorite characters of comics, film, and television to life.

And no, they’re not doing it to get attention, score dates, or lure you into a bed strewn with roses. These ladies—and the guys who also cosplay—do what they do for the love of the genre and for the love of those characters.

They are also writers, gamers, and artists.

If you believe this, stop this sort of sexism when you see it. Whether it is Dragon*Con, Comic Con, or an entirely new convention, this kind of idiocy needs to be called out. After all, that is what the Science Fiction-Fantasy-Horror community is all about — acceptance.

Time we start practicing it.

When it comes to celebrating Earth Day and working towards green initiatives, Pip and I do what we can. I don’t think I’ve become completely and totally green, but I do think my carbon footprint has gone down a few sizes. We’ve got the dual trashcan for our recyclables. We’re turning off lights and conserving power when we can (although being the digital family that we are, that’s a challenge); but since a Plug-In Day event held in Manassas, I had been wanting to go all in. That was why when, back in November, it was time to seriously start shopping for a new car, I said “I want to go electric.”

At this alternative fuel event sponsored by Plug In America, the Sierra Club, and Electric Auto Association, I got a closer look at the rock stars of consumer electric vehicles (or EVs, as they are commonly known by) which included the Tesla Roadster and Coupe, the Chevrolet Volt (an EVs that had a nine-gallon gas tank as a “reserve” for when the battery is low), and the Mitsubishi MiEV. While I didn’t find the looks of Mitsubishi’s EV appealing, they were offering test drives so I took the MiEV for a spin. The first thing I noticed — the car truly sold itself, not just in how it handled but in how quiet it was. I mean, whisper silent! (A little unsettling, but in a really good way.)

So I was sold on the concept of an EV, but I wanted to find one that fit right with me. The Volt was a pretty elegant looking ride, but there was a model not represented at the 2012 Plug-In Day  — the Nissan LEAF. In our test drives, we found the interior far roomier than expected, a comfortable ride and stealthy just like the MiEV, and a battery with an impressive range of 100 miles on a fully charge.

The next test drive was the Volt, and neither Pip nor I could tell the difference between it and the LEAF. This was when the decision came down to affordability, and the LEAF offered an ideal three-year lease. Why ideal? Within three years, we were not only given an opportunity to consider a newer model (hopefully with better battery range) in 2015, but we can take a look at the infrastructure for EVs at that time. Improvement or stagnation? Based on that, we know the next move to take in investing an EV.

Since signing the papers and driving off the lot, I have not had one regret in undertaking this “bleeding edge” of automotive technology. In the short time I’ve driven our LEAF, I have learned a lot already in how to drive an EV because there is a science to it. But for anyone who has described our EV as a “glorified golf cart” let’s talk about the facts:

• The gasoline bill has dropped to $60-70 a month.
• The amount of carbon emissions I have reduced by driving our LEAF equals over 600 pounds.
• Oil change bill — cut in half.
• My electricity bill has increased by only $5 a month. If that.

Honestly, I’m still waiting to see where I’m making the sacrifices to go green here. (Okay, I admit, the infrastructure is still in need of a kick in the pants, but we will see how these next three years play out.)

There are more benefits to driving our LEAF than just driving by gas pumps. Our LEAF came with a lot of change in how we drive, how we plan a trip, and how we live around it. That’s what I’m covering in this column; and along the way, we might have a bit of fun driving what some days feels like science fiction. And if you have a question about driving an EV, feel free to ask @EV_Joan on Twitter. She’ll answer as we embark on this adventure to dive green.

One road trip at a time.

I’ve been wanting to do app reviews on Imagine That! Studios alongside my bits of social media advice appearing there, but the first app I wanted to review really seemed more appropriate for my personal blog on account of the subject matter: beer. More to the point — living the lifestyle of a beer snob.

Untappd is a social network for those who love beer. It’s not just for beer snobs like me but for lovers of beer on all levels. Whether you are happy and content with your Budwiser or Miller Lite, or if you are an adventurer in sampling unique brews from across the country and around the world, Untappd connects beer lovers, breweries, and ice cold brewskis. At the core of the app are the reviews. When your first round arrives, you search for your beer in the Search bar across the top. Once you tap your beer, you select “Check-In” and are offered a field where you can type in a brief review (140 characters), add a photo of either what you are drinking (or who you are drinking with), rate your brew (and the slider allows for 1/2-star reviews), and add in your location. If you sync up your Twitter and Facebook feed with Untappd, you can send out your review and photos by tapping the Twitter and Facebook icons. On tapping “Confirm Your Brew” your review is shared online. The more reviews you share, the easier you can connect with friends on your respective social media networks.

UPDATE, 20 April, 2013: Untappd also recognizes cider and mead, so if you are more into those libations, you can find them in Untappd, or create your own custom entry.

This app, however, offers more than just “This is what I’m drinking at the moment…” but a full-on hop-tastic experience when it comes to Happy Hour. When you visit a bar in your area, you can automatically access your location to see what people are saying about the featured brews, be they local, international, or new to you. If you are visiting from out of town, you can also use Untappd as a kind of Urbanspoon or OpenTable to find pubs, sports bars, and even breweries. Then there is the option to crowdsource your choice in drinks with Trending Beers. Pulling from the entire Untappd network, you can find out what are the popular beers and use “Find It” to see if it’s at your current location, or somewhere close.

Then you have the badges. Taking a page from various geotagging networks, Untappd has a collection of beer drinking achievements that can be unlocked only after meeting challenges put together by the network’s creators. My particular favorite earned so far has been the “Untappd Groupie” honor, awarded after having at least five beers enjoyed by the Untappd founders. You can find out details on how to unlock these badges, along with managing your profile, keep up on beer news through the Untappd blog, and even become an Untappd supporter all at Untappd.com.

What started off as a slightly dodgy app for me — particularly in the login process —is now an app I enthusiastically fire up when out for a pint. I’ve been tapping into the fun of the Untappd app since March of this year, and it’s a great way to discover new brews and share with friends across your social networks. So if you’re looking for a fun way to bring the pub to your smartphone and connect with other beer snobs, take a look at Untappd. It’s a place to praise your favorite pints, and stretch your horizons for the hops.

“It was at Astronomicon I met a character that not only made a heck of an impression on both me and Nat, but also became a good friend for cons to come.  His real name is jan howard finder (yes, spelled in the lower case)…but everyone calls him “Wombat.”  Wombat is a little more than the professional fan.  He’s a published author.  He’s an activist for the preservation of endangered species.  He’s a world traveler.  He’s a Jack of All Trades, known for his mink glove and massage techniques.  Most of all, he is a good guy.  A really solid individual with a good heart and soul to match.”

I wrote those words a decade ago about a guy that I met in my first year (come to think of it — at the time I had met him, MOREVI wasn’t even six months off-the-press…) as a professional author. I was still new to the genre, still new to the Science Fiction convention circuit. I met Wombat entirely at random, stuck up a conversation, and gradually found out that I was in the company of a legend in the circles of fandom. He could be called a true ambassador of the convention scene, but I never really liked to think of jan howard finder — Wombat — as a luminary of fandom. He was far bigger than that, in my eyes.

To describe Wombat in a single word — passionate. He was passionate about a lot of things, but he was passionate about embracing people and life on a whole. I have known that his health was in decline, but Wombat when I last saw him still remained driven to make anyone’s and everyone’s day brighter. Perhaps this was why I always regarded Wombat as being bigger than the con circuit. Over the years, I have met fans who made certain they knew my place around them and that no matter how much I read or experienced or researched, I would never know as much as they did about Science Fiction and Fantasy. Wombat was none of these things. I knew that every time I saw him next there was another adventure under his belt, another amazing memory he was going to share with me. The only words I ever heard come out from him were positive. If he had a critical thought about a person, he never let it fly. Wombat was everything I aspired to in being a fan of this genre. He was warm, knowledgeable, and approachable. I never knew a time when, if I was down or depressed for any reason, that Wombat couldn’t give me a better perspective.

What I said a decade ago has never faltered. It has been a while since last our paths crossed, but nevertheless I felt his loss when I found out this morning that he was gone, having passed away on February 25 while undergoing chemotherapy. I can assure myself that before his star fell, Wombat knew he was loved, admired, and adored by those in his life. As I said before, he was bigger than fandom circles; and if you were lucky to have met Wombat in any capacity, that is an encounter that will stay with you for a long time.

Rest in peace, Wombat, and thank you for welcoming me into the genre, and being a part of my life.

You might have caught the Instagram from Monday but it has been one of those weeks.

I’m going to side-step the details because I want to focus on the positive. I want to focus on tomorrow. I want to focus on a lesson I got from someone who hit a few brick walls in her time (and she’s all of 26, you know…) and now she’s pwning the world one sold out venue at a time.

This week, I got served by Lindsey Stirling.

Before the events of the week hit, I paid for a V.I.P. evening with Lindsey Stirling. Now if you don’t know this performer, you really should take a look at her videos on YouTube. Here’s a favorite of mine…

When she went on tour and offered V.I.P. tickets which included a meet-and-greet, I immediately whipped out the credit card. A chance to meet Lindsey Stirling and maybe enjoy a little bit of V.I.P. treatment? Absolutely! Little did I know how well-timed this indulgence would be.

When our evening at the 9:30 Club arrived, I was getting nervous. I was a tad concerned about my Monday putting me off for the concert, but I was growing more anxious about meeting Lindsey Stirling. Why?

The last time I took part in a “V.I.P. Meet and Greet” I was meeting Nancy Kerrigan before a “who’s who” of Olympic figure skaters. To give you a point in time, this was after all those Tonya Harding shenanigans. This performance, though, was also after a few less than flattering gaffes she made following her Silver medal performance in Lillehammer. At this V.I.P. event, I met Kerrigan; and to this day, I feel like I owe her an apology for taking up two minutes of her time. Nearly twenty years ago.

And here I was, bringing up the rear of a V.I.P. receiving line. Again.

When it was our turn, I said “Are we good?” Lindsey gave me a smile and a nod. I turned to Pip and said “We’re going in!” Lindsey’s smile only got wider as she said “Come on in.”

I can say, without doubt, that Lindsey Stirling is nothing like Nancy Kerrigan.

With so many people who had already taken photos and talked with her, Lindsey was gracious, kind, and appreciative of the two of us. When we presented her with a copy of Phoenix Rising: A Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences Novel, we talked a bit about steampunk and shared with Lindsey how her music made writing fight scenes easy. ”That’s truly a high compliment,” she said, “knowing my art is inspiring art from others.” We took pictures, got a poster autographed for Sonic Boom, and joined the rest of the V.I.P.s where, after a few more questions from the audience, Lindsey performed a song exclusively for us.

This set the tone for one incredible evening of music, dance, and high energy. Her opening act, The Vibrant Sound, kicked things off and sent the crowd into orbit with an incredible cover of the Marvin Gaye make-out classic, “Let’s Get It On.” When Lindsey took the stage with her drummer and keyboardist, the pace set by The Vibrant Sound only picked up. This was an amazing show with a bass line that you felt in your chest. It was hard to tell who was having more fun, Lindsey, Drew, and Gavi or the thousand people at the 9:30 Club.

So when, during the evening, did I get served by Lindsey Stirling?

Lindsey started talking about one of her songs — “Transcendence” — as being her own musical testament of her journey to that night in Washington D.C. She talked about some of the obstacles she faced (which, I found out recently, included “Americas Got Talent”) where her “approach” just wasn’t considered smart. Had she given up when told giving up was “the right thing to do” we would have been denied the evening we had this week.

This was a swift kick I needed. I’ve been struggling to make sense of the week being what it has been. When Lindsey shared her story, I was reminded of my own words from another blogpost. I already knew that I needed to stay course, that I needed to persevere. Lindsey reminded me that there was something better just ahead. It may not seem that there is, but it’s there. I’ve faced worse odds and darker places than this; and had I given up then, I wouldn’t have been able to give Lindsey a copy of Phoenix Rising. It simply would have never happened.

I didn’t know it at the time, but there was something truly significant in giving her that steampunk romp of ours. At the time, I didn’t know; but now… yeah… mind blown.

I still have my V.I.P. pass from the evening. Lindsey Stirling has got an incredible schedule ahead of her, but I’m hoping — in between performance stops, power naps, and gaming sessions — Lindsey cracks the cover and meets Wellington and Eliza. Maybe she’ll take a ride with us like we did with her Wednesday night.

And maybe, just maybe, we can return the favor and inspire something from her.

(A special thank you to Drew and Gavi for not only being nothing short of awesome; but for also being gracious and taking these incredible ninja shots of us presenting Lindsey with the book. We had no clue you did that until we got home! Thanks!)

Today — February 6th — was dubbed by Chuck Wendig (or I like to call him, TMB or That Magnificent Bastard) as International Please Don’t Pirate My Book Day. He has put out a call for creatives of all types to head to their blogs, their podcasts, and their various social media networks to share their thoughts about piracy. This, as inspired by that TMB, is my own entry. If you join in, give Chuck a shout.

Step in your wayback machines to 2005. A short eternity in Interweb years, but barely eight years ago a young whelp of an author launched a rather daunting project: a podcast novel. Following in the footsteps of people like John Scalzi, Cory Doctorow, and others, I stepped up with my epic fantasy MOREVI: The Chronicles of Rafe and Askana to give it away as a podcast. Throughout the journey I was an advocate for this new model of promotion and marketing. Interviews with me at that time were reminiscent of a Red Hot Chili Peppers diddy…

No, not “Catholic School Girls Rule.” This one.

Just give it away. No strings attached. Let the audience carry your work into a viral sphere of success. Build yourself a fan base with free audio. We were called “scabs” by the Science Fiction Writers of America. I was patronized by audio book publishers when I suggested the idea of taking the “slowest moving title” in their library and offering it as a podcast for free. And even with the numbers of my book at Dragon Moon Press steadily climbing, publishers refused to buy into the concept of giving a novel away for free in any format.

Now, almost a decade later, I ask that you do not circulate my book for free.

Why? How is taking a stand against piracy and asking for copyright laws to be respected different from 2005 when I encouraged people to burn CDs of my podcast and share them with friends?

When I podcast both MOREVI and The Case of the Singing Sword, I wanted to increase my distribution to other parts of the country and the world. It was my decision to release these books for free. The approach was to offer this audio adaptation at no cost; and if the audience didn’t want to wait for the next installment, they would be able to purchase the book from Amazon. This approach in giving my book away for free was my choice. It was also my choice, at any time, to pull the plug. Some authors, not worth naming in this article, did this with their own podcast titles in progress; but I promised myself that if I started podcasting a novel, I’d finish it. That was my promise, and my choice.

One day, I would like to write full time. When I choose to give away free fiction, it’s part of a bigger plan. Piracy — something out of my control — will prevent that transition to full-time writing.

I remember the first time Phoenix Rising: A Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences Novel was pirated. I considered it a rite of passage. Someone found it good enough to pirate. Wow! Cool! That was the reaction of the social media swashbuckler, the “No-no-no, give it away! Give the people what they want!” Tee Morris who, with this act of piracy, had finally arrived.

Then I stopped for a minute and really thought about it. I thought about how I was never asked permission. I thought about how I couldn’t check the quality of the download. I thought about how people weren’t being loaned a copy like in a library, but being given copies of Phoenix Rising: A Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences Novel to keep for themselves. No real way of tracking the numbers.

Yes, the numbers. The all-mighty numbers. I was a new author; and in the eyes of my publisher, only one sale was recorded. And that one sale decided to share. With everybody in the world. Without my permission.

Maybe we don’t show it at a con — and while turning conventions into Thunderdomes may sound appealing, I’d rather not (Author David B. Coe would wipe the floor with me for starters!) — but writing is a competitive business. There are only so many open slots for the New York Times coveted Bestseller List. There are others worth mentioning. Locus and USA Today both have Bestseller Lists. Indie bookstores like Borderlands also have their own Top Ten’s. And then there’s Goodreads Best of the Year lists, but there are only so many slots available. There are a lot of writers out there. With the popularity of digital publishing, the market has only exploded. So yes, it is a competitive business. Piracy affects that.

Why do I ask you do not pirate my book? Because, one day, I would love to go full time with my writing. I don’t mind giving out my work for free, provided it is my choice. It is part of my own strategy in marketing a title, and I will continue to provide free audio fiction in the future as it remains a great way to introduce new audiences to my worlds. It is part of my marketing plan, part of the brand I am attempting to build. When my work is pirated, it’s not part of that plan. Additionally, torrenting my books is being done without my permission. It affects sales. Dramatically? Hard to say. The piracy in Spain was enough to compel an award-winning writer to quit her career; and I know that when I find out about a site that is offering up my work, it remains online until my publisher’s legal team can “get around to it.” So it remains vulnerable, available, until removed. Only to appear on another site.

And exactly what does that say about any kind of respect to the artist? Is it an honor that of all the books published, our steampunk adventures are being torrented? Or is it that people who choose to pirate our books do this because they find eight dollars too much to pay for a download? A sense of entitlement on the part of the online community, perhaps? I don’t know why people pirate, but I do know that people who have read my work want more. I would love to go full time, and produce more; but I need to have the numbers that show the demand, and convince the publisher to keep my books in print. Piracy affects those numbers, and piracy can steer the course of a career.

You want me to go full time as an author? So would I.

It was that awkward moment around Halloween 2012. Maybe you saw the image that went (mildly) viral? My costume was to be an homage to Monty Python, and I had nothing to worry about with it fitting as it was the “one size fits all” variety. I slipped on the base outfit and checked it in the mirror…

Then I turned to one side.

Then to the other.

When I smoothed out the front and my hand went out not down, I knew that a day I dreaded had finally arrived…

…but no, I’ll deal with it later. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as the costume made it look.

Fast forward to the first weekend of November, when Pip and I were at the Emerald City Steampunk Expo. I’m getting into my steampunk outfit, I go to button up my pants…and I can’t. Not the first time. Not the second time.

You can guess how the third attempt went.

It is at this point I accepted the fact that all the weight I had lost and kept off (give or take a few pounds) between 2007 and 2010 had returned in full gluttonous glory. Once back in Virginia, I asked Pip if she wanted to join me on Medifast. The program had worked for me, and I trusted their system. We agreed, and decided to get on the wagon – the two of us, together – the week of Thanksgiving.

Yeah. We went on a diet the week of Thanksgiving.

193 was the starting weight. That was a hard number to have staring back at me from the floor. That was the 2006 Model Tee. I liked the 2007 Model Tee. It hadn’t been easy getting to that goal weight of 155, and I knew it was going to be even harder this go-round as I am now in my forties. Stepping off the scale, I looked at the week ahead Two Thanksgiving dinners, both offering my kryptonite — pumpkin pie. That’s what happens when your timing of “I’ve had it!” really stinks. I had two options:

• Cry, piss, moan, and whine about it.
• Do something about it, but just work a little harder.

I was expecting to feel as if I failed, seeing as I was back on the packets and bars. It was just the opposite. I felt a surge of pride. Well, pride and many trips to the loo on account of drinking lots and lots AND LOTS of water. (64 oz. / 8 pt. a day. Pip now appreciates the Mason jar glass.) I was taking control again, and I was determined to make it work.

If you are reading this post, it means today I passed the 20 pound milestone.

This time, I’m approaching the health and weight loss very differently. Instead of staying hardcore on the Medifast food – which, honestly, has been a surprise in how much the food had improved – I’m incorporating off-the-shelf food with the Medifast meals. I’m trying to approach how I’m eating differently along with what I eat. This is also to make sure when I step away from their food, I can transition much easier into “real” meals. This approach has made my 2012 “Get Fit” odyssey infinitely better.

The trade-off has been, though, the weight loss has been more gradual; but I’m in no hurry. I’d like to be lean by the time Dragon*Con rolls around in 2013 which was exactly what happened between 2006 and 2007. Looking at my stats on Weightbot, I appear to be right on track.

Medifast says “Give yourself goal treats but make sure these treats are not food related.” (So much for the Dogfish Lock-In…) and that is sound advice. On thinking about it, I decided that when I hit my desired goal of 155 (which, if I start strength training around 165, might change) I’m going to make an appointment with the incredibly talented J.R. Blackwell. I want to do a full on photo shoot involving steampunk, secret agents, and maybe even superheroes.  Considering what she did with me on the fly…

…I want to give her time to plan, plot, and prepare.

That goal is in my sights…and I intend to get there. So this is a charge to the lovely Miss Blackwell: Make sure your camera’s ready.

With author P.J. Schnyder spending a weekend for us, Sonic Boom was in for a treat…

And so the two set off on their culinary adventure together…

It was going so well…

The cake was a sight of perfection. The icing, however was another story… 

But P.J. was determined to put a face in this tragedy…

Hello, Apocalypti-Kitty!

Quick. Someone call Cake Wrecks!

First off, I’m sorry everybody. It has been far too long. Where in the name of clocks, gears, and cogs have I been?

Let me drop a few quick teasers as to what has been going on in my life:

• Got a new job. Social Media Coordinator. And the best part, it’s very close to home with telecommuting thrown in as a bonus.
• After a month, got a promotion at the new job.
• Then, conducted interviews for the job that I was originally hired to do. (Being on the other end of the interview table? Woah…)
• Got a new car. I’m driving a Nissan LEAF right now. LOVE IT!
• Jumped back on to the Medifast train. My weight was out of control again.
• Christmas.

Some of these things I intend to talk about later on this blog. (Stop laughing. Seriously. I am!) I also have to keep in mind, though, I have a novel to finish. I’m still on board with a steampunk reboot of MOREVI, so Rafe Rafton will be returning to the oceans this year.

It is this very subject — something that, I’ll admit, people are coming to me more and more about for an opinion which feels pretty good — from where this rant finds its core. So let’s turn back the clock to January 15, Tuesday, 10 a.m. At my new day job, a friend sends me a link to AdAge about IBM’s fascination with steampunk. I ran the article on my Facebook page as this truly was the convergence between my day job and my writing career. IBM is tracking “steampunk” in order to find patterns between trends and fads. I also posted it on the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences Facebook page and between the two, I got a whopping 6 shares. So maybe it wasn’t as cool as I thought.

Actually, no, it was very cool as Forbes.com covered it (using the work of Brute Force Studios as a representation, I might add…) the next day. Soon followed two days later by Time.

Now with this story cropping up in a number of places this week, some are stepping up to take credit for steampunk suddenly becoming the talk of the Internet. To those asshats who are delusional enough to thing that Forbes and Time are reading your Buzzfeed entries, this is nothing new. Time ran an article about steampunk back in 2009. And no, you elitists were not mentioned. Either time. So there.

What strikes me as truly “odd” is the other reaction people are having to this: Steampunk is going mainstream!!!! PANIC!!!!!

Funny. I heard that in 2011 when Justin Beiber did his steampunk music video.

I also heard it in 2010 when other authors (who knew me in the Dragon Moon Press years) told me I was “selling out” and “jumping on the bandwagon.”

And I’m pretty sure I heard the same sentiment as far back as 2003 when Sean Connery hit the big screen with The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

Fanbois and elitists are screaming about the “mainstreaming” of steampunk, and with IBM leading the charge it seems that science is predicting that THIS TIME it’s really going to happen. (Science!) Now here’s a little slap from the Halibut of Truth: weren’t people just bickering mere months ago (particularly around the infamous Prada campaign) about the definition of “true” steampunk. It’s the running joke of the genre — what is steampunk, exactly? The lack of a concrete definition could very well hinder the sub-genre’s journey to mainstream, but much like those pinheads ranting against “fake geek girls” some are bemoaning the fall of steampunk. Again. Why are so many worried about a genre that, if it isn’t redefining itself minute by minute, no one can agree exactly what it is?

I would like to see steampunk go mainstream as it would mean a wider audience for my books and my podcast. I am totally transparent in that manner. But going mainstream is bad, you say? Why? Is it because people will, by your definition, get steampunk wrong?

Well, I hate to break it to you, but people are doing that already, on a whole, in the science fiction genre. There is a great love for the film version of V for Vendetta. Despite wonderful performances, I believe the Warchowsky Brothers got it wrong. Same goes for Monsters and Skyline, two films that are science fiction, but science fiction poorly executed. Do we want people to get science fiction wrong? Of course not; but with Asylum Pictures making “mockbusters” with D-List actors, it happens more often than we like. It’s part of the risk of science fiction as science fiction is part of our mainstream culture…

…and because it is mainstream, for all the SyFy Crap of the Week we’re thrown, we also get The Avengers, The Hobbit, Serenity and John Carter. (Yes, I’m putting John Carter in there. That movie, for all its negative hype, was surprising with a lot of heart and beautiful visuals!) This is an upside for going mainstream: for all the attempts that fail, we find gems that stay with us and inspire the next generation of fans.

So yes, I would love for steampunk to hit mainstream. With the right creative minds behind it, I think a Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences movie would rock. But what do you think? What are the upsides and downsides of steampunk going mainstream? Will it continue on, even after its popularity wanes?

As you have probably caught on Twitter, Facebook, and the official website of the Ministry, our repeat appearance in the book readers’ social network, Goodreads, has been the subject of conversation. The first round was comprised of selections from title activity and reviews, and the second round included write-in nominations with the original nominees. This is not new territory for Pip and me as Phoenix Rising landed the eighth top slot for Best Science Fiction of 2011, but still…

We asked for your votes.

We watched the deadlines come and go.

And this week, you all made it official — The Janus Affair is a Finalist for Best Science Fiction of 2012.

Goodreads and its community of readers have spoken and here is (by author, in alphabetical order) their Top Ten Best Science Fiction of 2012:

• Orson Scott Card, Shadows in Flight
• Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris, The Janus Affair
• James S.A. Corey, Caliban’s War
• Nick Harkaway, Angelmaker
• Hugh Howey, Wool Omnibus
• Gini Koch, Alien Proliferation
• James Luceno, STAR WARS: Darth Plagueis
• Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter, The Long Earth
• Rob Reid, Year Zero
• John Scalzi, Redshirts

As we were when Phoenix Rising made it into the Top Ten of Goodreads’ Choice Awards, Pip and I are honored, thrilled, humbled, and hungry.

Yes, hungry. We ranked eighth in Science Fiction. This year, we want better!

By no means are we expecting to take the top spot (but don’t let that stop you from voting for us!!!) as we’re sharing space with New York Times bestsellers, Hugo winners, and Nebula winners. What we hoped for, this time around, was to see if we could have a repeat appearance for the Ministry, and you all made that happen. Now — here in the finals — what do we want?

This year, for the Ministry, we want a spot in the Top Five.

Between now and November 27, we need your help! If you haven’t voted yet and you have an account with Goodreads, please vote. Feel free to syndicate this blogpost. Share this blogpost on Facebook. Point people from Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn to Goodreads, and get them to cast a vote for agents Books and Braun.

We got to the Top Ten. Let’s see if we can crack into the Top Five alongside these other fine titles.

Yep. It’s here. Dragon*Con.

Tomorrow morning, Pip and I hit the Interstate system of the Mid-Atlantic, heading to the grand event where tens of thousands of geeks of movies, television, books, costuming, and just about anything else you can think of descend on the unsuspecting city of Atlanta. We’re facing our busiest Dragon*Con ever (see what happens when you go a few years without hitting an event like this — they make you work!), and the breakdown is here:

Thursday

• We check in. We see whatever we can. We party a bit with Alex White.

Friday

• The Retro-Cast: Steampunk Podcasting & More – 8:30pm in Westin Int’l BC (Main Room)

• The Parsec Awards — Saturday, 4:30pm in the Regency V Ballroom — Hyatt
• The Tech Stuff (hosted by Steve Riekeberg) — Saturday, 8pm in Hilton 204

• Steampunk Author Roundtable (Part 1) – Sunday 1oam in Westin Int’l A (Roundtable Room)
• Book Signing, Larry Smith Books, Sunday 12:00-1:00 in Marriott Booth 309
• Book Signing, The Missing Volume, Sunday 1:30-2:30 in Marriott Booth 614

• Social Steam: Steampunk, Social Media, and Making It Work – Monday 10am in Westin Int’l A (Roundtable Room)
• Steampunk 101 — Monday, 11:30 a.m. at Hyatt Embassy D-F
• How Do You Take Your Steampunk — Light or Dark? – Monday 1pm in Westin Int’l A (Roundtable Room)

Once more unto the breach, dear friends.

Let’s see exactly what kind of trouble the two of us can get into this weekend. Pictures to come…

Closing in on the end of the summer, I’m looking back at the year with a cockeyed perspective. First, I’m trying to figure out what happened to the summer. Second, I’m trying to gauge how this year will come to an end. You would think with the launch of my second steampunk novel, The Janus Affair, I would think this was the banner year, especially with the showing Tales from the Archives is having at this year’s Parsecs.

It’s been a ride, safe to say.

For those of you following us on Facebook, you know that Pip and I returned from New Orleans just last week. What brought us to The Big Easy was an unexpected invitation to an unlikely match for the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences. We promised ourselves a priority of 2012 would be to make each appearance count, attempting to reach more steampunk-centric events like the Steampunk World’s Fair, a nice introduction to our target audience.

The Steampunk World’s Fair was also a nice introduction to other authors in this genre, one in particular being Stella Price. How does one describe Stella? If you know the phrase “She’s a pistol,” Stella would be the Smith & Wesson Model 500 of erotic, steampunk, and romance authors. She does not care to sugar-coat or look with rose-colored glasses at anything. She makes the call as she sees it, which is one of many reasons Pip and I love Stella. In one of those rare quiet moments of this year’s Steampunk World’s Fair, writer P.J. Schnyder told us of Stella’s passions, an event called Authors After Dark, a readers’ event focused on romance and erotica. However, we were assured that the event also welcomes science fiction, fantasy and horror.

The marriage of speculative fiction, romance, and erotica isn’t anything new as Nobilis Reed, Helen E.H. Madden, and even Pip nurture a healthy relationship between the genres. However, we have never taken a deep dive into its community.

We have never shied away from a challenge, though. So Pip and I asked Stella about attending. Stella enthusiastically invited us to attend. In 2013. 2012 was already booked solid and had been since 2011. Considering this was an event that catered to four hundred? Well okay then. So we accepted Stella’s invite and started kicking around ideas for Authors After Dark 2013.

Jumping to the end of July and it’s just under three weeks to go until the New Orleans edition of AAD. P.J. is spending a weekend with us and gets word that two authors pulled themselves from the event without warning. P.J., whom Pip and I are learning is not one to let an opportunity pass, looked at us and said “You want to come?”

P.J. talked to Stella. Stella talked to us. Then, just like that, Pip and I started to make plans.

All this may seem a bit impulsive, but this was a tough. Authors After Dark was an event catering to romance, erotic, and urban fantasy authors. They were planning steampunk events such as a costume tea, and other authors we knew from the genre such as Theresa Meyers, A.l. Davroe, Leanna Hieber, and Lia Habel were in attendance; but these were ladies (P.J. and Stella, included) that all leaned heavier to the romance side of things. The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences is a lot of things, but a romance? Perhaps, if you’re okay with a slow burn, much like Addison and Maddie from Moonlighting.

And if you don’t know Moonlighting, shame on you.

It was going to be a stretch, but as this was a steampunk-friendly event we decided to go for it. We’ve got a podcast coming where Pip and I talk to Stella at great length about this brainchild of hers, but in a nutshell Authors After Dark stand out from any other event as the programming is geared to put authors directly in touch with  readers, book bloggers, and (in one event, for us) book clubs. This is a big deal for the readers in attendance as their rock stars — authors — are in attendance, the ratio of readers to authors being a whopping four to one.

Why is this a big deal? Because while you do get interaction with authors at science fiction and steampunk conventions, that interaction tends to be the authors on panels, readers in the audience, and that’s it. Sure, kaffeklatches are now becoming a bit of a trend, but they are few and far between. (The last one I did was at WorldCon in Reno, NV. In 2011.)  At Authors After Dark, however, their programming is centered around meet & greet and one-on-one sessions in order to assure readers they are guaranteed time with authors. For authors, this is important because it is this that makes the Dan Brown’s, the J.K. Rowling’s, and (like her or not) the E.L. James’s of literature happen — word-of-mouth. Authors After Dark was truly three incredible days of discussions, lunches and dinners, and field trips throughout New Orleans; and before we left the 2012 event, Pip and I were already making plans for 2013.

Then, following a weekend of rock star treatment, I got back to work with the Meso Foundation…and was told that my position was being terminated.

Yeah. Second time this year and right on the heels of the AAD euphoria, I was being given “the talk” from the Executive Director and Chief Operations Officer that, while I was great at what I did, the Foundation needed to scale back where they were spending money. So I was let go.

As I did with Intersections, I took the termination like a professional. I wasn’t going to melt down. I wasn’t going to go completely against the Meso Foundation. If I was frustrated about anything, it was that I was excellent at what I did when it came to social media. The problems leading to my termination were beyond my control. With that being established, I got an assurance from the COO that I had a recommendation in the works. This letter couldn’t come at a better time as I found myself ahead of the curve on this layoff. A month ago, I was watching situations unfold that made me think circulating my resume would be a good move. Turns out that it was.

I sat on this news last week for several reasons. One primary reason was I needed to focus on finishing up another ACX project that, sadly, I was having a difficult time completing. I also needed to follow up with a few interviews and temp assignments that were coming across my desk throughout the week. There was also sitting down with Pip on what we could and could not do this month and September. The good news: Pip and I are still going to be at Watch the Skies’ Steampunk Extravaganza at Midtown Scholar and Dragon*Con this month. The bad news: We need to back out of FenCon in September.

Resolving all this last week means I can focus this time between jobs as valuable time to write. Dawn’s Early Light, the third Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences Novel, is in need of attention. I also need to get started on the Morevi reboot, now under the working title, Darkwater. I don’t know when I will be completing it, but I want to get it started. Then I’ve got another steampunk fairy tale novella that’s been waiting to get underway. After the success of Aladdin and His Wonderfully Infernal Device, I want to see if I can do it again.

And yeah, I like novellas. They have all the cliffhangering delights of a short story with the details of a novel. So I’d like to see if I can do it again.

Through all of this, I am confident. I have to be. It is easy to be so as I have friends telling me exactly how I’m going to get through this bout of instability and uncertainty. Maybe my circles see something I don’t but I go back to what happened at the Meso Foundation — it wasn’t me. I wasn’t the reason I was terminated. It was something beyond my control, someone making calls that had no reason being made. It’s going to be okay, and my writing calendar offers me a sense of comfort. That, and a few opportunities in the distance. I just have to see all this through. And I have my friends, family, and faith to thank for giving me the strength to face this. Again.

It sounds like I’ve got a lot on my plate already; and with a book signing and Dragon*Con looming ahead, yeah, I’m not going to be given a lot of time or opportunity to take it slow and easy. That’s okay, you know? It’s not a matter of distraction, but more of an opportunity. I need to make the most of it.

I intend to. Watch me.

There may be a good possibility you are new to this blog this week. If you are — I hope you had fun in New Orleans! I hope to see you again in Savannah!

(If you are curious as to what I mean by that, stay tuned. I have another blogpost in the works about that.)

Being new to the blog, I’d like to bring you up to speed on some good news from the podcasting front, made official on receiving this badge:

If you are not enjoying podcasts because this is the first time you have heard of them, a podcast is some sort of online media (usually audio or video, but really any kind of file) automatically delivered using iTunes, Juice, Bloglines or some kind of app that can subscribe to its feed. It sounds complicated, but trust me — it isn’t.

The 2012 Parsec Awards, now in their seventh year, honors podcasts featuring Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror, celebrating the best in speculative fiction. I’ve not been up for a Parsec since 2008 when Billibub Baddings and The Case of the Singing Sword won that year for Best Audio Drama (Long Form).

This year, however, I’m apparently making up for lost time…

Best Speculative Fiction Story: Small Cast (Short Form)

• “A Ruby in Rain” by Grant Stone (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)
• “Darkest Before Darkwater” by Tee Morris (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)
• “Night’s Plutonian Shore” by Jack Mangan (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)
• “Precarious Child” by Pip Ballantine (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)
• “Sins of the Father” by Tee Morris (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)

Best Speculative Fiction Magazine or Anthology Podcast

• Beneath Ceaseless Skies Magazine
• Drabblecast
• The Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine
• The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences: Tales from the Archives, Vol.1 (produced with Pip Ballantine)
• Toasted Cake

Best Podcast about Speculative Fiction Content Creation

• The Dead Robots Society
• Pendragon Variety Podcast
• The Roundtable Podcast
• The Shared Desk (produced with Pip Ballantine)
• Writing Excuses

What makes this year’s Parsecs so special for me is that this year marks the first time Pip and I are appearing as producers, not just podcasters. Tales from the Archives also appears twice in the Best Short Story (Large Cast) category, and I don’t know who is more excited — Starla, Paul, or Pip and myself. We are so proud of the talented authors appearing in the Tales from the Archives (all of them — even the ones that weren’t nominated), but the Ministry’s presence at this year’s Parsecs only validates what we already knew. Thank you, everyone!

And to everyone in the Final Round, congratulations. To make the finals in the Parsecs is practically standing in the Winners’ Circle as far as I am concerned, and it’s a nice place to be. I wish you all the best of luck!

Onward to Dragon*Con…

I was planning to nap, but my brain really won’t power down. I blame NASA and this incredible photo of Christina Hendricks I saw Facebook.

It still blows my mind that we are on Mars. Again. This time, using a means of entry that resembled something the Coyote (Eatibus Anythingibus) purchased from ACME in order to catch the Road Runner (Hotrodius Diggus-Outtus). When I saw the animation on how they were going to get Curiosity on the Red Planet, I thought “That’s nuts!”

Put one in the WIN column for Super-Geniuses.

This week Pip and I head for New Orleans. Not necessarily planned, this trip; but then again, 2012 hasn’t really gone to plan. I feel very much in transit, particularly with other friends hitting crossroads in life. Things could be worse, sure, but if you were to ask me to describe the year in a word: uncertain. I don’t know what it is about this year, but there it is in a nutshell.

NASA however taught me last night a whole new degree of uncertainty. Think about it: The reason (okay, ONE reason) they went nuts early this morning was on account of uncertainty. Beyond the insane amount of time and precision in the entry, there was the fact that Curiosity would get to Mars and fail hard. A camera could have jostled out of whack, a board could have failed on touchdown — even if you got redundancies in place, a thousand and one things could go wrong, and still you have to worry about that other variable that could make it one thousand and two. NASA faced their uncertainty with incredible resolve, and now we’re back on Mars with a probe that is state-of-the-art and ready to rumble in the Red.

This is what we all have to do: face it. Face it head on. We do that, and we will come out the other side. Stronger. Wiser. Ready for more.

If you were expecting the shot of Christina, that’s on my Facebook page. This one’s for NASA.

Anybody remember May?

I do. Barely.

It was a full-on month, the 2012 edition of the lusty month of May, and when it was done, I figured “Yeah, the rough part of this summer is done. i can now kick back and coast until Dragon*Con (which Pip and I had already committed to last year). Nothing to worry about.”

I really have to learn to not say things like that. As August looms ahead, I’m now looking at the unintentional tour schedule Pip and I have cobbled together between June and now.

Mark your calendars…because we sure have!

August 8-12, New Orleans, Louisiana

Watch the Skies

August 25, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

alongside the steampunk talents of…

• Pip Ballantine, The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences
• Sarah Hunter, Brute Force Studios
• Jared Axelrod, writer of The Battle of Blood and Ink
• Steve Walker, artist of The Battle of Blood and Ink

Dragon*Con

August 31- September 3, Atlanta, Georgia

• The Retro-Cast: Steampunk Podcasting & More – Fri. 8:30pm in Westin Int’l BC (Main Room)
• The World Is Bigger Than England: Multi-Culturalism in the Alternate History Environment — Saturday 2:30pm in Westin Int’l A (Roundtable Room)
• The Parsec Awards — Saturday, 4:30pm in the Regency V Ballroom — Hyatt
• The Tech Stuff (hosted by Steve Riekeberg) — Saturday, 8pm in Hilton 204
• Steampunk Author Roundtable (Part 1) – Sunday 1oam in Westin Int’l A (Roundtable Room)
• Book Signing, The Missing Volume, Sunday 1:30-2:30 in Marriott Booth 614
• Social Steam: Steampunk, Social Media, and Making It Work – Monday 10am in Westin Int’l A (Roundtable Room)
• Steampunk 101 — Monday, 11:30 a.m. at Hyatt Embassy D-F
• How Do You Take Your Steampunk — Light or Dark? – Monday 1pm in Westin Int’l A (Roundtable Room)

Write by the Rails (at Trinity Church, Manassas, VA)

8 September

Baltimore Book Festival

28-30 September

No, I didn’t plan the end of my summer to be as full-on as the opening of it, but for those of you who have been following my works over the years, you know what I’m going to do — lock my feet under the car’s inside lip, raise my hands up, and enjoy the ride!

See you all in the dog days of summer.

It’s still the grey of twilight, but here I am, on the train, heading in…

Trying something a little different this time — using the personal hotspot instead of the phone itself to blog. Yeah, it dawned on me the last time I did this segment (which, I admit, has been a while…) that I could do this and why not? After all, I got that ability, why am I suddenly limiting myself to the screen of my smartphone.

I blame the lack of coffee in the morning. Gets me every time.

You know what else gets me? Bad dreams. And lucky me, they like to hit me just within the hour before I wake up. I then hit the morning routine wondering “What brought that on?” It tends to make for a distracted morning, something I really can’t afford. This week, August commences and it’s going to be one of those months akin to May where time will be fleeting, book events will be upon us (me and Pip, that is), and I’m still trying to sort out the mechanics of a life.

What does that mean? Come on, you know this segment — completely off the top of my head. Also, I can’t elaborate because I know as modest as this blog may be, I’ve got people watching and reading. I need to pay attention to what I say, and all I can say at this point is that nothing feels set or secure. I need to make some judgment calls in August. That is crystal clear to me. So right now, I am what I am. Like Popeye, only without the squint, pipe, and unnatural spinach fetish.

And next week, Pip and I hit Authors After Dark. Let the mayhem commence.

This weekend, I kicked back with Sonic Boom and the Olympic Opening Ceremonies. I think that show gets more epic each time you watch it. I blogged a few months ago about Kenneth Branagh and my man-crush on him. So nice when he appeared in the midst of this spectacle. I nearly wet myself when he recited from The Tempest. He’s been there and back again, it seems; but watching him at the Opening Ceremonies?  Oh yeah, he’s still got it.

Kenneth Branagh. Working the Olympics. Like a mill boss.

Holy Hanna on a hotplate!

This past Thursday, it turns out, was the day the 2012 Parsec Awards were announced. Now if you have never heard of the Parsecs, don’t sweat it — you’re about to get schooled on one of the most prestigious awards in podcasting and Science Fiction.The Parsec Awards, now in their seventh year, is awarded to podcasts featuring Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror. Whether it is fiction, fan news, or even geek-a-licious music, the Parsec Awards celebrates the best in speculative fiction and do so as part of the wild ride that is Dragon*Con.

(Pictured here is the 2011 Parsec brought home by Technorama. Good on ya, guys!)

It’s been a while since I’ve been up for a Parsec. In 2008 Billibub Baddings and The Case of the Singing Sword won that year for Best Audio Drama (Long Form), although you could argue last year I was in the Parsec Run as Tales from the Archives gained a nod for Best Short Story with “The Astonishing Amulet of Amenartas” by Nathan Lowell.

Nah. Pip and I produced that episode. “The Astonishing Amulet of Amenartas” was all Nathan, and more of a nice feather in the cap for the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences.

Now we’re up to this year’s Parsecs. I was chatting with Veronica Giguere when the announcements went live. I know this because she started chuckling and then said, “I’m laughing about the Parsecs, and about you in the Parsecs.”

I’ll say it again…

Holy Hanna on a hotplate!

Best Speculative Fiction Story: Small Cast (Short Form)

• “A Ruby in Rain” by Grant Stone (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)
• “Darkest Before Darkwater” by Tee Morris (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)
• “Night’s Plutonian Shore” by Jack Mangan (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)
• “Precarious Child” by Pip Ballantine (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)
• “Sins of the Father” by Tee Morris (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)

Yes, the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences shut out the Short Story category.

Stunned. That’s what I am. Completely and utterly stunned. I was ready to walk away from this Parsec Awards with my head held high, but the Ministry, Pip, and yours truly, popped up elsewhere.

Best Speculative Fiction Story: Large Cast

• “Beachcombing” by Ray Cluley (from The Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine)
• “From Paris, with Regret” by Starla Hutchton (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)
• The Guild of The Cowry Catchers, Book 3: Ashes by Abigail Hilton
• “Dream Engine” by Tim Pratt (from Journey Into)
• “The Seven” by P.C. Haring (from The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences)

Best Speculative Fiction Magazine or Anthology Podcast

• Beneath Ceaseless Skies Magazine
• Drabblecast
• The Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine
• The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences: Tales from the Archives, Vol.1
• Toasted Cake

Hold on…one more…

Best Podcast about Speculative Fiction Content Creation

• The Dead Robots Society
• Pendragon Variety Podcast
• The Roundtable Podcast
• The Shared Desk
• Writing Excuses

Oh yeah, and Pip and I were asked to be presenters this year.

So…yeah…it’s a crazy year at the 2012 Parsec Awards.

To everyone in the Final Round, congratulations. Yes, it’s great bringing home the trophy, but seriously — you’ve already won. You’re in the Winners’ Circle as far as I am concerned, and it’s a nice place to be. To those of you in the categories where we’re nominated, it’s a real pleasure to share company with you. And to the talented authors of the Tales from the Archives, Pip and I are so proud that you all have made our podcast an award-winner. Thank you. The best of luck to everyone!

And finally, yes, I have made a promise on Facebook and I’ll make it here — if The Shared Desk pulls off a miracle win, Crazy Uncle Charlie will make an acceptance speech.

Promise.

When tragedy strikes, emotions run high. So does opportunity. When you talk about opportunity, does Texas Republican Louis Gohmert come to mind? Well, it should. He was one of the first (if not the first) from Capitol Hill to speak up on the tragedy in Colorado where over 70 people were wounded and 12 killed during a midnight premiere of The Dark Knight Rises. Yes, he hit all the talking points his staff put together for him. Attack on religion. Founding fathers’ intentions. Gun control. All part of an opportunity to get firsties on proclaiming the real reason behind this horrible shooting in an Aurora movie multiplex. What struck me hardest in his asshattery was his closing statement in this Huffington Post article:

“It does make me wonder, with all those people in the theater, was there nobody that was carrying a gun that could have stopped this guy more quickly?”

Fast-forward to the next day where I am enjoying a lovely wine tasting in Leesburg, VA at the Corcoran Vineyard and Brewery.  It’s a nice afternoon with Pip, the Boom, P.J. Schnyder, and Or Draconis (her boyfriend) and good wine. In the midst of Wine #3, another small group joins us. I’m trying desperately not to stare, but one of the newcomers is wearing a tee-shirt nigh impossible to avoid. In huge, black block letters against stark white, his shirt reads:

Where’s Lee Harvey Oswald Now That We Need Him?

Then, on turning around, I get a look at the back design: a generic drawing of a man’s head, a gun sight, and the top portion of the man’s head exploding outward. Complete with blood splatter.

No. Kidding.

This shirt — this douchebag-du-jour shirt — really got to me. It was wrong on many levels, but to wear a statement like this the day after the Colorado shooting took that kind of tact where you cite at an elementary school PTA conference what an upstanding individual JoPa was back in the day.

But I digress…

As angry as this dipshit’s fashion made me, I swallowed my disdain. (I recommend a light dessert wine when chocking on bile.) Why? Because of this:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

That is our First Amendment. I love the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States. I was always fascinated by it, but grew to love it when I spent a semester studying it at James Madison University. In fact I more than love the First Amendment, I respect it. It is, as my professor told me, the most important of all the amendments of the Constitution. “Why?” he said. “Because of all the items the Founders wanted to add to the Constitution, this one came first.”

So what does the shooting in Colorado, a political opportunist from Texas, and some wingnut whose equally-insensitive friends all looked at him that particular morning and said, “Yeah, that’s perfect to wear the day after a civilian massacre!” have to do with the First Amendment? Hard to see, I know, what with the rage on Facebook and elsewhere concerning our Second Amendment. This newly-fueled “gun control” argument we all had to see coming the moment it was reported that James Holmes legally bought the ammunition and guns used in the shooting.

Point of order here: That’s not what this blogpost is about.

I’m not outraged about my Second Amendment rights being threatened so much as I am outraged at the blatant disrespect people have concerning the First Amendment; and submitted as Evidence D (for dickheads): Westboro Baptist Church is threatening to protest the upcoming Aurora memorial service while praising Holmes’ actions online.

These isolated expressions are all protected by the First Amendment. Period. It’s truly a beautiful thing because there are countries and governments that would go out of their way to quash such sentiments, and it truly is an inspiring thing that we as a country have such a wonderful privilege. However, in light of these cited expressions, I find myself asking because we have that right to speak our mind, does that mean we should?

Even this is protected.

As Uncle Ben told Peter (in a much better Spider-Man film) “With great power comes great responsibility.” and I am astounded at the lack of responsibility with which people handle the First Amendment. There is this understood belief that “It’s there so I’ll use it…” but that’s a belief born of callousness. The truth is, cupcake, you really need to consider what words come flying out of your mouth — particularly now — at such a time when we’re reeling from the actions of one unstable individual. And when idiots from both sides of the political fence wrap themselves in American flags and start quoting the Founding Fathers, that should be the moment to stop and ask “Hold on — were the Founding Fathers smarter than me? After all, they wrote the Constitution and the Declaration. Maybe they knew something I currently don’t?”

I guarantee you: They did.

Speak your mind. Speak your heart. It’s your Constitutional right, but consider how responsible you are with your words. Practice your First Amendment, but practice responsibly. Do you need to choose and pick your words carefully all the time? Of course not. But when the cameras are rolling, yes, you might want to think “Am I ready to share this with the world?” Should I question my taste in clothes? What you wear is an expression in itself. You’re your own. Do you think, though, in the wake of a tragedy like Colorado, a mock-bloodstained tee-shirt that reads “But other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?” would be appropriate? Exercise your First Amendment right, but have a care. It plays into the debate currently at large.

How so?

Jumping back to Gohmert’s quote:

“It does make me wonder, with all those people in the theater, was there nobody that was carrying a gun that could have stopped this guy more quickly?”

Allow me paint a scene for you: You are going out to see a movie. Midnight showing. You’re looking forward to the night out and, as it is your habit, you not only wear your best ensemble, you also strap on your Smith & Wesson 38. (It’s quite the conversation starter with your date, it turns out.) You and your date settle in for the movie with popcorn and soda; and, following an onslaught of trailers, the lights dim further. The movie begins. About 20 minutes into the feature, you hear from the front of the theatre a loud noise and few startled screams. Then smoke starts to fill your theatre, and that’s when gunfire starts. You draw your weapon.

You are in a darkened theatre. People are screaming and running for the exits. There’s gunfire, and your target is dressed in black. There is also smoke in the air. (Since no one can confirm tear gas was used, let’s just say it was a smoke bomb.) You don’t dare use your laser sight as it would give your position away…or maybe the laser sight clashed with your shirt —  regardless, you don’t have one. There is chaos around you, you’re in the dark, and all you know is the guy is at the front of the theatre, dressed all in black. That is all you know.

So I ask — Can you put him down without putting down innocent bystanders?

Now before you answer me or call me a “dumbass, tree-hugging, screaming anti-gun Liberal” know this: I have some weapons training. Limited. Less than the basics, and it’s been a while so I’m in need of a brush-up. (And I have a standing invitation to visit a friend’s gun range. Just have to set the date.) I don’t own any guns, but I do respect them. Could I make that shot? No. I most certainly couldn’t.

Now, I ask again — could you get in that clean shot?

Before you answer, check your I.D. right now. If you can’t tell me your name is either “Jason F. Bourne” or “James F. Bond” (you know what the “F” stands for), it’s a safe bet you can’t make that shot. I have friends in the military or have previously served (thank you) in the armed forces. Out of them, I would trust  “Wired Pig”  to make that shot. But I can’t answer for him, so I’ll call him out — Wired Pig, could you?

This is why I won’t be abusing my First Amendment right and screaming “WE NEED MORE GUN CONTROL!” or “GUNS ARE OUR SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHT!” because put in that situation — a darkened theatre, smoke bomb, and a target dressed in black — neither answer makes this situation better. More gun control? Why? Because it worked so well earlier in Colorado, or closer to home at Virginia Tech? More guns? So we can turned a darkened theatre into a gunfight at the O.K. Corral? Yes, I have the freedom and the right to speak up, but should I? Maybe, instead of not knowing what the real solution is and just kicking a wasp nest, I should STFU and think of the victims. Yes, I have the freedom and the right to speak up, but should I, if I know I am talking about something I know nothing about?

So unless you are serving on Seal Team Six or have been under fire before and know without question you can make this call, consider the statements you want to make. Speak loud. Speak freely. Speak knowledgeably.

But above all, speak responsibly. As a writer, I know — words can carry a lasting impression.

Heading home, and I’ve got 21 for this entry; so Double Down if you can.

Yesterday was a day I want to put behind me, but I admit it was a crossroad kind of day. Revelations. Lapses of reason. Manning up. And as pissy as I felt, I find out I have a friend — you know, one of those best kinds — facing a shut storm that reduced my day to just a chocolate drizzle. It’s all about perspective, isn’t it?

Something tells me you’re reading this, bro. Don’t go stealth on me. You were there for me. My turn now…

Today, I was dealt a few pleasant surprises. Discovered more folks in my corner. Got validation on a few things gnawing at me. And then there was the writing. It just feels great being back in this world, and I am planning to go farther. I was in full stride today, and now I have to wonder if I can pick that stride up tonight.

I’m not worried about it. That surprises me a bit. I don’t know. Should it?

Getting ready for work this morning, I purposefully chose this shirt. Part of me was worried it would send the wrong message, but I wanted this message for me. I needed some reassurance, and Kal-El’s never let me down, sour sequels and a heartless reboot not withstanding. Maybe Supes was the boy scout of the JLA…but he was the boy scout that you could always count on. Today was my facing down of dragons. I’m good.

Superman or Raiders of the Lost Ark — which one has the more iconic fanfare, you think?

Whatever. Both kick ass.