At Last
George came over for an RPG at my house on Saturday and he brought an extra copy of my bound manuscript. Which looked just like bound galleys. The problem is that the manuscript hasn’t been copy edited hence the “bound manuscript” title rather than bound galleys. The front page says the books is going to be published May 2008. This is later than I’d hoped, but at last I have a date — a real date… I hope.
So after getting excited I then became immediately nauseated because of course the book sucks, and whatever was I thinking writing such a dumb idea. Ah, the joys of being a writer.
Patrick, my editor, called me today and we discussed a few more people to solicit for cover quotes. He also said he was pushing the art department about the cover. He says it should be soon so watch this spot. As soon as the cover is available I’ll have it posted.
And then the next terror hit. This is a very, very controversial book. It’s going to offend the crazy religious crowd of every stripe and denomination. I’m actually a little bit worried that I’m going to be killed. I expect to be threatened, and I plan not to read the howls of outrage. (I never read any of the angry posts from Star Trek fans after my essay in Omni appeared), but it’s daunting to expect to be hated. Because of course everyone wants to be loved.
But I really felt this book, and the themes spoke to me so deeply that I had to write it. We’ll see what happens.
Melinda
August 14th, 2007 at 3:03 am
Interesting information about your book. May 2008 doesn’t sound like a bad publication date. I forget, have you mentioned the title in a previous entry?
Also interesting to read about the RPG. I know Wild Cards had its origins in a game (were you one of the original players in that?) What sort of game were you running on Saturday? I vaguely recall George mentioned taking part in a long-running, Roman-era game run by Walter Jon Williams (if I recall correctly), but that was some years ago.
August 14th, 2007 at 8:08 am
I was indeed one of the original players in George’s Super World campaign that spawned Wild Cards. I wasn’t running the game on Saturday. I ran a Scotland Yard campaign, and I’ve run a game that we called the Run and Gun. It was just shoot ‘em up, silly fun. Carl is our GM on the Port Placid campaign which is a Chuthulu/vampire/Twin Peaks kind of adventure. We’re having a lot of fun, and have introduced Ian Tregillis to the madness. Turns out he’s a natural. He’s created this sleazy developer, and managed to become intregral to the entire adventure.
I miss Walter’s Rome campaign. We played that game for ten years, and I took my character Drusus Cornelius Hipponax from the human claymore mine (this side toward enemy) to a thoughtful and rather cunning politician. It was a writer’s paradise with George, Walter, Daniel Abraham, Jane Lindskold and me.
Now, back to the book. The title is THE EDGE OF REASON. I’ve retitled the second book as ON THE EDGE, and book three is tentatively titled EDGE OF MADNESS.
August 14th, 2007 at 11:01 am
Cletus doesn’t get a mention!?!
Cletus is the key to the entire operation!!!
August 14th, 2007 at 11:46 am
I was _trying_ to be polite to you and George and not talk about Dumb & Dumber.
(George and Ty are playing Human Thumbs). I’m the local sheriff trying to steer a course between there are monsters let’s burn down the house — Cletus’s solution, and trying to slap cuffs on the monsters. I think I’ll have a nervous breakdown. 
August 14th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
Embrace the controversy, it will sell more books. Lets hope we can get you on Jon Stewart and/or The Colbert Report or maybe even Olbermann–all three of them clearly read SF&F and would attract the kind of readers you want.
Having a book banned because of religious views puts you in the same neighborhood as J.K. Rowling. Not a bad place to be.
August 14th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
And, oh, yeah: Said book definitely does NOT suck. You seem to like writing more than having written. Len’s the other way around.
August 14th, 2007 at 3:33 pm
Thanks, Chris, I needed the pats. I’m feeling decidedly untalented right now. God, I just _love_ being a writer. We’re such needy little shits.
August 14th, 2007 at 3:44 pm
Lol, I just went back to the old manuscript of KINGS AND REBELS, and boy, does that monster suck. I shouldn’t try to rewrite and introduce the Fantasy element, I should delete the whole 130K of rotten crap and start afresh.
I’m usually not the RPG type, but a Roman one might tempt me. I’m just in love with those guys.
August 16th, 2007 at 10:39 am
Hell, Melinda, I saw that book at all stages of construction; I was impressed to begin with and it got much better as you went along. The concept, characters and dialogue were always strong and you got the description and action honed to a very sharp edge.
That book deserves to do well. It’s simply a damned good piece of work.
And if it kicks up a little controversy, so much the better. There’s no bad publicity and the type who’d be really put off is unlikely to buy much SF/F anyway. If nobody’s killed J.K. Rowling, nobody’s going to kill you… 8-).
As for being hated and loved… I’d be disturbed if some people loved me, and the hatred of an enemy is a complement. It means they’re taking you seriously.
August 16th, 2007 at 2:56 pm
So, wait, what did you say in OMNI that pissed off Trekkies? That sounds delicious.
August 16th, 2007 at 8:38 pm
Ah, the Omni essay. I was asked to write an essay answering the question “Did Star Trek Change the World”. I just come off a very difficult year and half on the show so that probably colored things, but on it’s face it was a ridiculous statement. So, I wrote and essay that basically said that Trek reflected the world in which it was conceived. Classic Trek was New Frontier, I’m going to napalm the big paper mache dragon so the innocent aliens can experience pain, and grief and death, and The Next Generation struck me as smug and complacent Regan era attitudes.
Maybe I’ll post the essay someday. I don’t know if I have the right even though Omni is no more. Maybe at the same time I post my good version of my script THE ENSIGNS OF COMMAND.
August 17th, 2007 at 10:57 am
Wow, I hadn’t realized that your Trek experience was a difficult one. (I actually just a couple months ago watched TNG on DVD, and was always delighted to see your name come up at the end of all the 3rd-season episodes.)