A Writer’s Vanity

Musings of an editor, publisher, and writer

February 2010
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Dark Futures update

Posted By Jason Sizemore on January 27, 2010

There were a few last second additions.

Okay, I’ll tell the truth. I had accepted these stories and forgot to list them in the final ToC. Rest assured, I received much grief and worries from nervous authors who thought I’d changed my mind about their submission.

“Black Hole Sun” by Alethea Kontis & Kelli Dunlap
“For Restful Death I Cry” by Geoffrey Girard
“Tasting Green Grass” by Elaine Blose
“Endangered” by Robby Sparks
“Nostalgia” by Gene O’Neill
“Beautiful Girl” by Angeline Hawkes
“Father’s Flesh, Mother’s Blood” by Aliette De Bodard
“Terra Tango 3″ by James Reilly
“Love Kills” by Gill Ainsworth
“Memories of Hope City” by Maggie Jamison
“Do You Want That in Blonde, Brunette, or Auburn” by Glenn Lewis Gillette
“Marketing Proposal” by Sarah M. Harvey
“The Monastery of the Seven Hands” by Natania Barron
“A Futile Gesture Toward Truth” by Paul Jessup
“Hydraulic” by Ekaterina Sedia
“Alien Spaces” by Deb Taber
“Virtual Babies” by Maurice Broaddus
“Personal Jesus” by Jennifer Pelland
“Meat World” by Michele Lee

That changes our stats a bit…19 stories, about 88,000 words.Twelve stories by women. Seven by men.

For any contributors to Dark Futures who might be watching, I’m working on getting contracts to you so that we can make this final.

Science Fiction Across National Boundaries

Posted By Jason Sizemore on January 12, 2010

The genre world goes through phases much the same as any other cultural zeitgeist. Right now, horror is mired neck-deep in the world of vampires and paranormal romance (with zombies running a close second). Science fiction readers are enthralled with steampunk and the apocalypse. Fantasy is trending toward more gritty, salt-of-the-earth type novels (raise your hand Richard K. Morgan!).

Read the rest here at Tor.com.

Win a free copy of Writers Workshop of Horror

Posted By Jason Sizemore on January 7, 2010

This from the editor of WWoH:

Want to win a signed (by editor Michael Knost) copy of
Writers Workshop of Horror?

I will give away a copy each week for the month of January.

Visit www.MichaelKnost.com and fill in the entry form, then send.

I will draw a name out of a hat (yes, an actual hat) and announce the winners on the same website. I will also contact each winner via email.

You need only make one entry to be eligible for all drawings.

Good luck!
Michael Knost

“Special Delivery” available in new anthology

Posted By Jason Sizemore on December 20, 2009

My dark humor short story “Special Delivery” makes an appearance in the just published Sam’s Dot anthology Shelter of Daylight.

“Special Delivery” is one of my favorite works. I wrote it in a weird mindset…soon after I was fired from a terrible job at had at a sweatshop of a software development company.

You can get it from The Genre Mall here.

Unfortunately, they got my byline wrong (I’m listed as James B. Sizemore). Still, don’t let that scare you away from a nice story.

My top ten books of the naughties

Posted By Jason Sizemore on December 15, 2009

I’m not going to call my list the ‘best of the naughties’ because, really, unless you read hundreds of books a year, it’s just hubris to do so. I do feel confident calling these books outstanding and worthy of your attention.

Naturally, this list is exclusive of Apex titles in the interest of being fair and balanced.

So here it goes, my personal top ten novels of the 2000s. These are in no particular order.

The Alchemy of Stone by Ekaterina Sedia — This is science fiction showcasing its best features: a basis for social statements, a commentary on technology, and a fascinating character study of a unique protagonist.

Terminal by Brian Keene — One of Keene’s first novels after his outstanding zombie-apocalypse works The Rising and City of the Dead, he shook off the label as ‘that zombie guy’ with Terminal. Terminal is an emotional and heart-wrenching book about a man dying of cancer looking to do one last criminal score in order to make sure his family will be okay after his death. If you’re familiar with the A&E drama Breaking Bad, then imagine the intensity and emotions of that show compressed into a 320 page paperback.

No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy — While many cite The Road as the better book, I felt that No Country for Old Men presented a more varied and nuanced look at absolute evil and the loss of innocence. Bad guy Anton Chigurh might be the scariest madman committed to paper. The book’s opening exposition by the sheriff is a perfect introduction to McCarthy’s dusty tale.

The Yiddish Policemen’s Union by Michael Chabon — I’ve yet to read The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay. It could very well be better than The Yiddish Policemen’s Union, but this book was my introduction to Chabon and it blew me away. Also worth reading is Chabon’s The Gentlemen of the Road.

November Mourns by Tom Piccirilli — I was already a huge fan of Piccirilli’s work before reading November Mourns. I’d stormed through at least a half dozen of his novels, but this one cemented Piccirilli’s spot as master in my eyes. The author is also a renowned poet and it shows in all his books, especially this one. The amazing thing is that Pic followed this one with the equally as impressive (yet 180 degrees different) Headstone City.

Magic for Beginners by Kelly Link — As a writer, this is the type of book you read with both disgust and awe. Link does things with plot, narration, and language that produces masterpieces of short fiction. This is the collection that gave us the titular novella, “Some Zombie Contingency Plans,” “Stone Animals,” and “The Faery Handbag.” Enough said.

20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill — If Link is the master of fantasy and SF short fiction, a case can be made that Joe Hill is Link’s horror counterpart. 20th Century Ghosts contains some of the best horror short fiction I’ve read. There’s the downright creepy and surreal: “Voluntary Committal,” “Best New Horror,” “The Black Box”. And then there’s the downright bizarre: “Pop Art,” “My Father’s Mask,” and “You Will Hear the Locust Sing.”

Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan — You want a book that reflects many of the social issues bandied about in the naughties: entitlement of the rich, an examination of what makes us human (chemistry vs. souls vs. body), politics? Want to mix it with cyberpunk, pulp noir, and lots and lots of violence and sex? Then you can get no better than this.

River of Gods by Ian McDonald — This was one of those books that didn’t knock me off my feet upon completion. Yet, it stuck with me, and with the passage of time I’ve come to realize that what I’d just read was a masterpiece of plot, characterization, and setting. Perhaps one of the few books I’ll reread.

And now for my left field pick…
Dreadful Skin by Cherie Priest — The author is receiving a lot of well-earned press for her latest (Boneshaker) but this gem from Subterranean Press made this anti-werewolf reader begrudgingly accept that they can be fantastic antagonists. Priest uses everything that makes her a memorable author: unique protagonist, fun and vivid setting, and an ease of narration that makes the pages turn. After you’re done reading Boneshaker get yourself this book.

There you have my top ten picks. I realize I have many gaps in my list, I just haven’t had time to read Blindsight, The Windup Girl, Lamentations, Brasyl, Old Man’s War, Pattern Recognition, etc. However, they are on my TBR pile! So maybe one day…

Dark Futures ToC announced

Posted By Jason Sizemore on December 11, 2009

The following stories is slated to appear in my Dark Futures anthology from Dark Quest Books.

“Black Hole Sun” by Alethea Kontis & Kelli Dunlap
“For Restful Death I Cry” by Geoffrey Girard
“Tasting Green Grass” by Elaine Blose
“Endangered” by Robby Sparks
“Nostalgia” by Gene O’Neill
“Beautiful Girl” by Angeline Hawkes
“Father’s Flesh, Mother’s Blood” by Aliette De Bodard
“Terra Tango 3″ by James Reilly
“Love Kills” by Gill Ainsworth
“Memories of Hope City” by Maggie Jamison
“Do You Want That in Blonde, Brunette, or Auburn” by Glenn Lewis Gillette
“Marketing Proposal” by Sarah M. Harvey
“The Monastery of the Seven Hands” by Natania Barron
“A Futile Gesture Toward Truth” by Paul Jessup
“Hydraulic” by Ekaterina Sedia
“Alien Spaces” by Deb Taber

For those keeping count, that’s 16 stories, about 80,000 words. Ten stories by female authors. Six stories by male authors.

I believe the publisher’s plan is to release the book in the first half of 2010. I’m certainly excited. There are some great stories by some talented people in Dark Futures.

This isn’t the final-final ToC. There are contracts to sign. Also, this is not the order of the stories in the anthology. That hasn’t been decided yet.

Sizemore sighting tomorrow at Corbin, KY

Posted By Jason Sizemore on October 30, 2009

Harlan County Horrors editor Mari Adkins and book publisher Jason Sizemore will be signing tomorrow at The Moonbow Coffee House in downtown Corbin, KY from 12pm-2pm.

http://www.themoonbowcoffeehouse.org/

Mari and I hope to see you there tomorrow!

Don’t forget tomorrow’s signing at Morris Book Shop

Posted By Jason Sizemore on October 23, 2009

Don’t forget that tomorrow is the <em>Harlan County Horrors</em> release party at Morris Book Shop in Lexington, KY. The event goes from 1-4p.m. There will be a couple of readings, group signing, and maybe even a song from editor Mari Adkins!

Confirmed to be in attendance: Jason Sizemore, Mari Adkins, Earl Dean, Robby Sparks, Debbie Kuhn, Maurice Broaddus, TL Trevaskis, Geoffrey Girard, and Preston Halcomb.

Here are the directions to the store: http://www.morrisbookshop.com/directions.html

We expect a sizable crowd, but don’t let that stop you. Whether you’re a fan of Apex or a local person wanting to network with a bunch of talented writers, this event promises to be a good time.

I hope to see you there!

Stuff to read

Posted By Jason Sizemore on October 18, 2009

You can read my xenophobic hillbillies SF story “Yellow Warblers” over at Apex Magazine. It’s the story that was printed in Harlan County Horrors. I’ve heard it’s not bad. Both the anthology and the story!

Also, I was interviewed over at Seventh Star Press.

Harlan County Horrors – last day to pre-order

Posted By Jason Sizemore on September 30, 2009

The last day to pre-order and get your copy of Harlan County Horrors signed by the editor, the artist, and a bunch of us contributors has arrived.

Don’t miss out on some fine hillbilly horror.

http://www.apexbookstore.com/collections/books/products/harlan-county-horrors

silverware
grain
responsibilities
proofing
keller
duration
sins
casper
databases
witches
marcos
exeter
anton
tones
neopets
bedtime
rascal
publishing
growing
tupperware
palsy
welcome
malta
metropolis
din
eliminate
catamaran
chan
sweat
promenade
titles
juicer
conducting
tent
deisel
tournament
gentleman
hhr
housekeeping
mart
loser
washer
families
mallard
cameo
sliding
whitley
puyallup
custard
glen
f250
christy
westinghouse
swimsuits
mp3s
aerobic
component
elephant
makeup
moda
assay
gerber
segmentation
terrence
northridge
stupid
norwalk
mechanicsburg
hourly
bib
elliot
chan
along
koi
ex
newest
weaknesses
motorhomes
sidewalk
ankle
hongkong
synergy
administration
chiefs
halen
filter
japan
electrolux
zephyr
chapman
shenandoah
sealed
iris
jonny
awards
cleanse
invasive
stanislaus
pocatello
fingerprinting
jess
naturals
walgreens
lulu
finances
mitch
grover
disaster
lots
cooper
peoria
vanessa
essential
duffy
surgeons
torah
sheppard
salts
kennel
wiccan
peoplesoft
amanda
treehouse
juniors
alli
swot
monetary
taboo
fame
carbohydrates
charter
npr
die
merck
coupe
spicy
pfaff
headaches
spy
spanish
freehold
sailors
bones
jobs
sociology
puma
heavenly
caviar
capitalization
aps
ku
guards
descriptions
deville
winnie
coopers
funding
keen
geothermal
supply
janeiro
cherub
openers
rebel
segal
shar
tours
prophet
crain
softwares
salt
sia
squadron
milestone
masala
bay
cameo
jena
ll
conn
wineries
as400
instrument
pacific
larvae
scope
magnifier
bynum
franks
troubleshooting
rheumatoid
pagoda
coles
rucker
corning
emi
starters
livingston
hauling
boeing
pvp
pierce
turk
hatching
assn
pitcher
chamber
jacque
nodule
directx
barron
initiation
conclusion
eyewear
informal
forester
pencil
bremen
sorter
assignments
penguin
incubation
conley
duncan
farm
jeffrey
greenleaf
nova
telescopes
badminton
employed
anna
adn
preacher
designing
channel
temperatures
secondhand
freight
prednisone
colin
acquisition
mary
signatures
atypical
bookcase
reciepes
josie
liters
artwork
html
bahia
middletown
inverters
enigma
ally
chow
export
silica
clinique
pagan
rudder
incomplete
painters
jo
immortal
thomson
oates
holds
touchscreen
javier
commentary
altavista
drywall
allison
shepards
blackwood
tornado
loco
ariens
baths
woodlawn
piccadilly
housewares
ust
measles
proprietary
sla
edward
randal
nchen
impaired
balm
sanford
alex
uhaul
fresh