Do you stop for paladins?

Mike Substelny prepares for a practice ride.

Those of you who know someone with multiple sclerosis (MS) know how frustrating and debilitating the disease can be. Promising research has been and is being done as I write this. If you’re in a financial position to help,  please consider sponsoring Patti’s Paladins. Patti is the much loved spouse of Michael Substelny, an equally loved member of our writers group, Cajun Sushi Hamsters. Very soon he will be riding his bike in support of MS research fund raising.  These are two of the finest, most generous people I’ve met and I’m hoping they meet their goal.

Donate here.

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Do you triangulate?

Triangulation: End of the Rainbow is out and available from BarnesAndNoble and  Amazon and can be ordered through Ingram, which means that bookstores can stock it or special order it for their customers.

Contents

The Rainbow Vendor — David Sklar
Making Friends — Kylie Bullivant
Tourist Trap — Mark Onspaugh
A Test of Spirit — Brenta Blevins
David is Six — Amanda C. Davis
The Stickball Witch — Peter S. Beagle
Messiah — M. Z. Hoosen
The House at the End of the Rainbow — Amy Treadwell
A Womb of My Own — Tinatsu Wallace
The Meaning of Yellow — Cate Gardner
Talking Blues — Matthew Johnson
Spirit House — Ron Sering
A Patch of Jewels in the Sky — Eugie Foster
Haole — D.K. Thompson
The World in Rubber, Soft and Malleable — Aaron Polson
The New Elementals — Marshall Payne
Commander Perry’s Mystic Wonders Show — Jaime Lee Moyer
In Lixus, Close to Waking — Erin Hoffman
In Order to Conserve — Cat Rambo

Vincent Chong (cover art)

Authors will receive 1 contributor copy and can order additional copies at discount.

While my supply of copies lasts, anyone can order a copy directly from me at cover price and I’ll provide a free story critique (stories up to 5,000 words). For details, e-mail me at stephen.v.ramey at gmail dot com.

Net proceeds will go to PARSEC, which underwrites the anthology every year and also organizes a killer reader-con here in Pittsburgh.

However you get your hands on the book, please do read the anthology. We found some very good stories from wonderful authors.

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Confluence ahoy!

Where does the time go? It seems like just yesterday I held the Triangulation: End of the Rainbow proof in my grubby hands. Now I have boxes of them ready to debut at Confluence tonight.

We’re going to kick off the proceedings with a 90 minute session in which I’ll talk about Triangulation, our reading and selection process, the challenges of selling an anthology of (mostly) original fiction. Young writers in the Alpha program will participate, perhaps reading from their own work, and Amy Treadwell will be reading an excerpt from her story as well.

On Saturday evening, we’re hosting a Launch Party (Willow room, 9pm-???) where we will sell books and hob nob with folks. Peter Beagle should be stopping by and we’re hoping to lure Wen Spencer as well. If that’s not enough, free snacks and soft drinks should seal the deal. There’s also a cash bar. With luck, we’ll convince people they’re a bit tipsy and seeing double when they purchase two copies of the anthology. Don’t worry, it’ll clear up in the morning 🙂

Contributor copies will go out next week. Contributors who would like extra copies may order them at a 50% discount. I’ll be in touch about that as soon as the Confluence dust clears a bit.

On another topic, I received a very welcome phone call yesterday. I can’t reveal the substance just yet, but there’s a good chance I’ll be whooping again in this blog soon.

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It’s a whoop

The Triangulation: End of the Rainbow proof arrived today and it looks good. I think I like last year’s cover a little better, but it’s plenty eye-catching and the interior looks to be very readable and cleanly laid out.

Copies are on order for Confluence next week. Wish us luck in selling enough copies to break even this year. The book should be available on Amazon and Barnes And Noble websites and in the Ingram catalog in a week or two. That means it should be available for order from your favorite bookstore. We’re hoping to be stocked in a few stores as well.

Thanks to everyone who contributed work this year. We have some tremendous fiction on tap for our readers.

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The proof is in the pudd… er, mail

Having cleared the title setup hurdles at the printer, I’m told the Triangulation: End of the Rainbow proof is rolling its way toward me this very overnight. Cross fingers it will be here in the morning and that nothing is stupdendously wrong with the book, because I really need to order our copies tomorrow so they’ll arrive in time for Confluence next weekend.

Clap if you believe in UPS! And check back tomorrow for a whoop or a sigh.

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Epic

If you’re not convinced of the Flying Spaghetti God’s existence, this may convince you not to believe in the Invisible Pink Unicorn either. If so, I’ve done a service by posting it.

Discovered this gem over at Atheist Mind.

Marx famously said, “Religion is the opiate of the people.” I disagree. Religion, in my view, is the delivery system for what we deeply crave, similar to a needle delivering heroin. The drug is powerfully deadly because it satisfies a deep craving, but at a huge cost to our real world awareness. Unfortunately, the needle can be at least as dangerous. An ideal religion is one that is both sterile and sharp, delivering its message with a minimum of disruption and little chance of subsequent infection.

Meditation anyone?

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Printing a rainbow

I worked through proof corrections and some additional minor copy-editing last week and processed the cover file and interior file over the weekend. It was an ordeal to say the least, but I THINK it’s going to come out nicely. The cover is striking, though I’m concerned it might be too bright in CMYK. We’ll see shortly. I ended up having to reduce font size slightly in order to maintain our page count while bringing the page header down a bit to comply with Lightning Source requirements. That took almost all day to accomplish, as each text block had to be reset on each page and each section of text re-streamed and checked for orphans.

At any rate, I’m glad that’s done. It will be easier next time around, I think. I’m looking forward to mailing off contributor copies and reviewer copies.

Tomorrow, I hope to get back to work on my novel, at least for a few days. Still waiting on our agent regarding the collaborative fantasy with Sue. I’m thinking of changing my middle initial from “V” to “W” (for “Waiting”).

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Living a storied life

A really thoughtful blog over on Ferrett’s livejournal. It’s particularly relevant to us writer types, who are constantly looking for “story” in the everyday.

I agree with his analysis and would even go one step further to suggest that this need for story, this seed of psychodrama, is one way we are manipulated. Politicians, priests, advertisers and even newscasters are well aware that narrative compels the majority to (varying degrees of) action. He or she who controls the narrative controls the issue… unless the masses are aware of this lever and can effectively disengage it from their impulse to act. And no, this is not a call to arms against the machine (that would be ironic, wouldn’t it?), but a simple observation. Writers, in particular, need to be aware of motivational drives in people.

The difference, of course, is that we writers only use that power for good. (Is my face straight?)

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Tweet tweet

I have a couple of tweets upcoming on trapeze in case you’re interested.  No pay, but these things are kind of fun to write. They seem to function on the level of a crossword puzzle for me, which MAY help keep the old brain working at a higher level as I get older.

On the other hand, you folks might think my brain has already gone to mush after reading the first tweet (July 8). It’s a chance I’ll just have to take.

The second tweet is up today (July 15). Have at it.

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New flash

I’m happy to report that one of my “Monsters” flash pieces has appeared over at Everyday Weirdness. Coincidentally, it came one day after Mickey Mills’ weird take, “Still Life”.

It’s a small world after all… I hope you enjoy both offerings.

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