Tag Archives: Scott Sigler

Five Things I Learned When Writing a Young Adult Book

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curseofthesilverpharoah_smallRecently, The Curse of the Silver Pharaoh went live on Amazon, print editions premiering this week at the Maryland Renaissance Festival, provided we get no unforeseen whammies from CreateSpace. (Thanks, Hurricane Matthew!) Silver Pharaoh is not my first novel, nor is it my first foray into steampunk, as many of you know. The thing about this book that has me fidgeting nervously as reviews start to trickle in is that Silver Pharaoh is my first step into the realm of Young Adult fiction.

And that terrifies me. Greatly.

I’ve got a lot of feelings about Y.A. Fiction, one being that those reading Y.A. are not necessarily “young” adults. Think about it—while Harry Potter could be easily dismissed as a “kid’s book” and is found in the Children’s sections of bookstores and libraries everywhere, just as many adults devoured the adventures of the Boy Who Lived just as ravenously as its target audience.

So, yeah, working in the wild and woolly world of Y.A. for the first time, I picked up a few things… Continue reading →

Watch That First Step: Starting New Projects (and Yes, It’s Okay to Be Scared Shitless)

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TheDiamondConspiracyI’ve been writing in The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences for almost five years now. Five wonderful years. Every time I sit down at the keyboard to reconnect with Eliza, Wellington, Bruce, Brandon, and the crew, it’s like reconnecting with old friends from high school and college. No time has passed. We’re cracking jokes. It’s a real synergy that—I won’t lie—is a tad addictive. I feel as if this world has become my port in a storm, an oasis in the desert; and I genuinely love these people and this world.

Here’s the thing, though—Pip and I are starting something new. Amidst a flurry of D.I.Y. projects undertaken while the Boom is away at summer camp, we started a title that is a complete departure from steampunk. Yes, that is what people know us for, but a solid writing career isn’t based on hitching your wagon to one series and then you’re done. Do you want to be the writer known for that one series, or do you want to have one of those careers where people love your work no matter what world it is set in? This is why Pip and I have taken those first steps in developing a new series, and I am scared shitless. Continue reading →

Two Detectives: A Case of Lightning Striking Twice

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peter-dinklage-lightbox-1As you all know, I have a thing for the Dinklage. 

When I first saw him in the *ahem* EMMY-AWARD-WINNING PERFORMANCE of Tyrion in Game of Thrones, I knew that if Billi were ever optioned for the big screen or for cable, Dinklange would be my first—and only—choice for the role of the dwarf detective. The wise-ass attitude. The swagger. The confidence. He was Billi in the best suits Westros could offer. This, of course, was a pipe dream as The Billibub Baddings Mysteries were settling comfortably as bygone titles in my career. I hadn’t really given the dwarf detective much thought until January when my better half and the rest of the Smoky Writers’ Retreat convinced me a Kickstarter to fund a third Billi—regardless of both my agent and other publishers showing no interest in the series—was a good idea.

So since Valentine’s Day, the dwarf detective and Dinklage have been in the forefront of my mind recently…

…and that why I was completely thrown for a loop when this bomb dropped in my lap: Dinklage is in talk for a new HBO series where he plays a dwarf detective.

Wait. Come again?! Continue reading →

Six Years Ago Today

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This is me, six years ago, recording Morevi: The Chronicles of Rafe & Askana.

Six years ago, I was talking to Evo Terra about podcasting Morevi with support from The Dragon Page, a podcast about Science Fiction and Fantasy literature. This was all to promote Morevi‘s upcoming sequel, Legacy of Morevi. Evo paused, and said “Let me get this straight: You want to podcast Morevi. That’s a really big book, Tee.” Continue reading →

Litopia Daily: Tee Morris Staves Cabin Fever via Podcasting with Peter

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The day after the Great #Snowpocalypse of 2009, I felt the walls closing in a bit…and the twins inviting me to play with them really wasn’t helping. Fortunately, saving the day was Peter Cox all the way from Central London when he rearranged his schedule to sit down, open up the mics, and talk with me about podcast fiction. Seems that Litopia has opened a floodgate in talking about podcasting, Social Media, and the modern writer, and Peter wanted to sit down with the guy that started it all.

If you don’t know Litopia, you should. Lipopia is  run by writers for writers. It’s a podcast, it’s a blog, it’s a forum. It’s an inside look and a behind-the-scenes look at the publishing industry, and what was supposed to be a fifteen minute podcast…well, we went a little longer…

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Enjoy this bit of time travel through the history of podcast fiction, and looking at the present day and possible tomorrows of Social Media in the publishing industry.

Listen. Comment (here and at Litopia). Share.

Krakens Comedy: “The Turnover” with Christiana Ellis

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krakens-player_card

I’m not sure how this idea came about, but I’m going to give credit to the Queen of Social Media Comedy Chrisitana Ellis. The two of us collaborated on this skit first podcast on the original release of The Rookie, my favorite of Sigler’s works. Scott is re-casting his football Science Fiction epic, and Christiana has dropped in her feed our tribute to his gritty, galactic grid iron world.

So what is featured in “The Takeover”? Along with The Rookie, Christiana and I manage to tip our petypalups to…

  • Firefly/Serenity
  • Battlestar Galactica
  • Farscape

We also show that some things are timeless and universal, transcending light years and alien races. And listen to Sandra’s ringtone.

I’ve done a few fun sketches, both for Christiana, for other podcasts, and myself. This one is a favorite. Enjoy!

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Feeling the Love from across the pond!

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In this picture are two people that I hold very dear in my life. One of them is my daughter. I will let you try and figure which one of them is her…

martyn_kiddo

The other “bloke” is Martyn Casserly, a journalist, an accomplished musician, and now he is an award-nominated podcaster with his one-minute Movie Mantras podcast. (Martyn is also a dad and a good mate to boot…although his opinions concerning the new Craig-Bond films and recent Doctor Who are completely wrong, but I digress…) With the many endeavors he had going, Martyn approached me this Spring to talk about an article he was penning on podcast authors. He was optimistic that Wired Magazine (UK) would pick up the column. So I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.

This morning, I checked my Twitter stream and found this waiting for me:

My article about Podcast Authors is up on Wired ! @scottsigler, @sethharwood, @jchutchins, @teemonster all appear. http://bit.ly/Pv53w

Now live on the site, Wired Magagine (UK) picked up  “Novels by Podcast” where Martyn discusses how we authors are giving away our hard work in audio format for free. He also goes into the genesis of the podcast novel and why we do what we do.

“Giving away your stories isn’t a risk… it’s a competitive advantage,” explains Scott Sigler. “If a reader who’s never heard of me has $25 to spend and they’re looking at my book next to a Stephen King book, who are they going to choose? They take King. He’s a proven storyteller. But if King is $25 and my story is free they may try me out first. Why not? It’s no risk to them. If they like me, they buy me. If they don’t they buy King. Whatever happens the customer gets what the customer wants.”

It is a tight article covering successes and milestones; and while many who follow us on Twitter, on blogs, and through podcasts, may consider what we do “old hat” after four years, podcasting — and more importantly, podcasting fiction — is still a brand-spanking new concept to the mainstream market. Articles like Martyn’s and venues like Wired are getting the word out about what we are doing. That’s what is important here: getting people to listen.

Show Martyn appreciation by blogging about this article (and yep, I got it covered from the business perspective over at Imagine That!), syndicating his link in your feeds, dropping him comments on the article’s page, and talking it up on your podcasts. Let Wired know we’re paying attention and appreciate their support, and let Martyn know both on Twitter and on Wired that his words ring true.

Thanks, Martyn. Well done!

Tee Morris (that naughty boy!) on Erotica ala Carte

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Back in December, you might recall a blogpost proclaiming my love for New Zealand smut. Well, Chef Ballantine appreciated my kind words so much concerning the podcast too hot for iTunes, Erotica ala Carte, that she invited me to cook in her kitchen. The ingredients this naughty Gordon Ramsey (with help from her listeners) threw at me were:

  • Alternative History
  • Government Bureau
  • Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down

The end result is the short story (borderline novella) “Release Me” which dropped just before Balticon. As I mentioned, the story seemed to write itself and really took on some serious momentum, surprising (if not, disturbing) me. The end result, though, I am quite happy with:

In an alternative America a superhero learns a lesson in control.

Inspired by my favorite film of the year so far, Watchmen, I went with a government bureau of superheroes instead of something along the lines of The X-Files. (I think that is what folks were expecting.) There are also a few nods to the Twitter community and a homage to one of my Geek Chic heroines. This was a lot of fun, and a terrific exercise for me as a writer. So as it stands, J.C. Hutchins has challenged me with writing a thriller and Pip has tapped me for erotica. What’s next? Horror?

Scott Sigler? Phil Rossi? Any of you guys wanna throw the gauntlet?

Have a listen, and let me (and Pip) know what you think.

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Show #042: On Writing Demands and Real Life (with Scott Sigler)

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Finally, after all these years, the F.D.O. joins me in the foxhole
for an interview…

About to wrap up his second Stank Tour, New York Times Bestselling Author and Failed Pimp, Scott Sigler, joins me on the Survival Guide to talk about something near and dear to us both: Facing the Challenges of Real Life. While the topic has been touched on once or twice here in Boot Camp, this time I take a look at dealing with the demands of delivery while coping with real life situations; and as many of the Junkies know, Scott had a rough-and-tumble 2008 as well. Here he comes — the Force of Nature that is Sigglerisimo.

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00:00 — Creatures & Crooks promo

01:47 — Introduction

07:20 — On Writing Demands and Real Life (with Scott Sigler)

  • Three years of podcasting novels
  • Scott takes his own advice
  • Scott talks a bit about how Contagious his latest work is!
  • Scott’s epic journey, Nocturnal
  • How Scott and The Sarge are working through Real Life Demands…
    • Pushing out a novel in record time
    • Making the priorities
    • “2008 was one thing after another…” — Scott Sigler
  • How do you continue to produce through the dark times?

28:08 — Promos: In Your Right Mind, The Brain Science Podcast

30:03 — On Writing Demands and Real Life (Part II)

  • Guest Bumper: Kimi Alexandre
  • Details on “Books & Bling” at Creatures & Crooks in Richmond, VA
  • Allowing your work to be your escape and your focus
  • Dealing with aggressive fans and negative reactions
  • The Two Kinds of “Fans”
  • Setting Priorities (Revisited)
  • Connecting with the fans and meeting expectations
  • Keeping up with the deadlines, staff turnovers, publishing politics, and your sanity

54:43 — Wrapping Up