An Introduction to Crowbar and Her Brothers

The beta version of The Spectrum Circus is now up at www.spectrumcircus.com. Woo-hoo!  What is The Spectrum Circus? I'm so glad you asked! It's a website I'm developing to help readers find the books they want to read, from the independent presses (we're talking speculative fiction, of course).
This beta site is very beta: it's extremely visually bland, and some of the functions are not yet...functional. My purpose with this site is to give people a basic idea of what the site is intended to do, and how it's intended to work. I'm also soliciting suggestions for the kinds of features people would like to see, and trying to recruit reviewers for the site.
So, I'm hoping if you have the chance, you will check it out and let me know what you think. Also, if you or anyone you know might be interested in joining the crew of reviewers, there's instructions for how to apply on the site.
Hope everyone is doing well, and enjoying this lovely hot summer!

As you might have guessed, Library Thing is my latest discovery in the world of literary networking.  It's very similar to Goodreads, but has some additional neat features, like the ability to add to a "Common Knowledge" database for each book, that includes things like the first line and last line of the book, lists of characters, favorite quotes, etc.  I had a lot of fun adding stuff to the RedJack books, hee-hee.

In unrelated news, as a die-hard Monty Python fan, I just had to go see "Spamalot" when it returned to San Francisco, so my daughter and I went this past weekend. It was totally hilarious, and the cast was amazing. The highlight was definitely the "French Taunter" scene: I didn't think it would be possible for it to be funnier than it is in the movie, but somehow they managed it.  My stomach hurt from laughing afterwards. Oh, my goodness.

In movie news, the Batman franchise has decided to revamp the series by injecting some fresh new blood, so they have hired me to direct the next Batman movie. It's going to be titled Batman: Rested, Refreshed, and Ready to Go. Batman with be played by Kathy Bates (Misery, Fried Green Tomatoes), Commissioner Gordon will be played by Bart the Bear (Dr. Doolittle 2, Into the Wild), and Alfred will be played by a lamp post (the corner of 53rd and 3rd).  There will be no villain, no crisis threatening Gotham City--just a nice relaxing weekend and one of those fancy, eco-friendly health spas that I've always wanted to go to.

Open Library is my latest discovery in the quest to find resources for authors and publishers, that help us to find our audience.  According to the site, their goal is to create a database of "one webpage for every book every published" and in so doing, become a hub of book information.  It's a pretty site, well on it's way to becoming very thorough and user-friendly.  It's still beta, and in some ways that shows.  For example, I tried to "Add a Book" and went through the entire, somewhat lengthy process, only to have the record disappear (I went through twice, to make sure that I had completed the process -- nope, gone).  But if your books are in the Baker & Taylor database (it's apparently not enough for it to be in the Books-in-Print database, which is a little weird), you can easily add descriptions, Table of Contents, and a quality cover image.  They also provide links to many online booksellers -- but no place to put a link to the publisher's website, which is a bummer.  It's not a fantastic resource, but it's easy to see that they're working hard on it, and it's likely to get better.  So, it's worth putting a little time into it to update book and author information.

In other, not-really-related-to-RedJack news, my mom and I are drawing on our combined 50 years (yeek!) of experience as health care administrators to expand on a pamphlet we created to help patients understand their health insurance.  The new, expanded pamphlet will be titled The Health Care Handbook (How to Manage the Cost of Your Health Care), and will cover such topics as: Choosing the Right Health Insurance, Understanding Your Rights and Responsibilities as a Patient, and Risk Management and the Cost of Health Care.  This pamphlet is going to be made available primarily as a free PDF download.  I'll provide updates as we move the project along.

Well, that's it for me. Hope everyone is enjoying the Memorial Day weekend!

I've been trading emails with The Amazing Nina Munteanu, as we work out stuff for her short story collection (as yet untitled, but in my mind called Natural Selection), which RedJack will be publishing in early 2010.  Nina is a Canadian ecologist and author of the novel Darwin's Paradox, published last year by Dragon Moon Press.  You  know, as much as I love the book part of the publishing biz, I love the meeting interesting people part even more.  If you ever get a chance to talk to Nina, you should definitely not let the opportunity pass you by.  But until that happens, there's her blog, The Alien Next Door, which is also really fun.

In other news, I finally took the time to look into the literary networking site Goodreads, which seems to be a good resource for readers and authors alike. It's very user-friendly, and the staff are super-helpful.  If you have the time, it's worth checking out.

Hope everybody has a super week --
Heidi :)

It turns out that RedJack will have a dealer's table at FiestaCon (Westercon 62), which will be in Tempe, Arizona on July 2-5.  I can't wait for the heat!  Seriously, the hotter the better -- it's been raining for five days straight up here in Arcata...My cat is starting to mold.
On the other hand, I'm bummed that RJ will not be at Wiscon this year.  My daughter is leaving for Belize that week, and I just can't make it happen.  I just got the word through the Broad Universe network that Lettie Prell is going to be writing the skit for the opening ceremonies, and I'm going to miss it (along with all of the other loopiness that is Wiscon)!  Wah.
Anyway, that's all my news.  I hope everyone has a great week!

RedJack has a new website!  Woo-hoo!  If any of you have a few minutes, please stop by at www.redjackbooks.com and check it out, and let me know what you think. What works for you, what doesn't, if you run across any technical glitches or errors, and so on.  For those of you that are RedJack authors, note that there's a brand new "About Us" page, that includes a section on "Resources for Authors."  I'm working hard to develop tools and programs and promotional materials that will help you (and help us, and help us help you and help you help us) find the audience for your RedJack book(s).  If you have any ideas or suggestions in this area, I would be so happy to hear them.
I hope everyone is well, and enjoying the beautiful (and for us, long overdue) springtime!

Hi there!
This is an invitation for the WorldCon attendees to come to the RedJack New Release Party on Wednesday night at 8:00.  We'll be celebrating the release of "Edge of Our Lives" by Mark Rich.  Mark will be there, and I'm sure that all of you swell people will enjoy hanging out together, relaxing, enjoying a glass of wine/beer/apple juice, coloring, playing Twister (just kidding -- unless you really want to) and the other fun stuff we have planned.

I don't actually know the suite number yet, but the party will be at the Sheraton on Wednesay night at 8:00 in one of the deluxe suites on the main party floor.  Of course, I will have flyers up at the con, also.

Hope to see you there!

It was great!
The End.

Just kidding.  It really was great, and as always, it was the people who made it that way.  Oh, man...I don't know where to start.  (Well, how about at the beginning?)  Okay, that's a good idea.  But, do you mean, at the beginning beginning, waking up at 3:00am to catch the flight? (What?  No, I mean at the beginning of the con.  Thursday night, Broad Universe Party...)  Oh, right.  Okay, the Broad Universe Party...

It was fun to meet and talk with the Broads (some old, some new, some about-to-be-new), including Cat Rambo and Kathy Sullivan and JoSelle Vanderhooft and Roberta Gregory and Morven Westfield.  Kathy, in particular, is just an astoundingly nice and consistently thoughtful person, and came to our rescue at least three times during the con -- for which I am very grateful.  At this party, I also met John O'Neill and Howard Andrew Jones, publisher and editor (respectively) of Black Gate.  They're the kind of guys that immediately bring to mind the words "witty" and "erudite" and "charming" and "Harvard Literary Review" -- so when they started talking "taking over the world" and "tentacles," I immediately fell in love.  No, but seriously, if you haven't read Black Gate, you should.  Not only are the production values flawless, but the stories are incredible, walking that fine line between pushing the literary envelope and sheer fun readability.

The highlight of Friday was meeting and talking with Mark Rich, his wife Martha, and Rick Bowes.  Mark and Rick are, on their own, extremely talented authors; together, they're, well...bizarre, but in the best of all possible ways.  Their story "Jacket Jackson," which appears in Electric Velocipede, is a screaming motorcycle ride over the rainbow, to the dark side of the moon, past the outer limits, and beyond.  Just listening to the two of them in conversation is pure entertainment.  Kiri sat next to Rick at dinner, and I'm sure that was the highlight of the con for her: she has dubbed him "The Funniest Man in the Universe."  Mark and Martha are also musicians, and I'm lucky enough to have two of their CD's, which are just the combination of wit and artistry that I would have expected.

The other highlight of Friday was having lunch with Steve Segal of Weird Tales/Prime Books and Jenna Waterford.  Steve and I were on a panel together ("Surrealism Trapped in a Jar") and so the topic of conversation was, naturally, the world of publishing, art, cats, and oh, yeah, surrealism and what we would talk about in the panel (he suggested that we stage a fight a la Jerry Springer, but I was dubious of his ability to take a chair hit without actually getting hurt).  I have a lot of admiration for Steve and the work that he does (and the lovely person that he is), so it was a real treat for me.  Kiri and I had coffee with Jenna later, and it was an extra-special treat to get to know her better, too.

Saturday night was, of course, the RedJack release party for Bruce Taylor's book Edward: Dancing on the Edge of Infinity.  Kiri was our party planner, and she did a fantastic job.  It was risky, substituting candy, crayons, and Play-Dough for alcohol, but it worked, and I think people had a great time (of course, it didn't hurt that the TOR party was going on downstairs, basically serving as a bar for all of the parties -- shhh, don't tell them) -- and we ended up with some amazing Play-Dough creations (pictures to be posted soon).  Bruce did a couple of readings, and we had prize drawings, and sold out of every copy of Edward we had.  What more could we have asked for?

Due to (insert long and complicated story here), I have an extra party room booked for 9:00pm Thursday night (Nov. 1) of WFC.  So, I've decided to turn it into a Broad Universe party (I think I have permission from the board -- at least, nobody's said 'no').
Remember: Thursday, Nov.1 at 9:00, Broad Universe Party at WFC.
For those of you who don't know what Broad Universe is: come to the party and find out :)

You are invited!
We're having a party to launch Bruce Taylor's book, Edward: Dancing on the Edge of Infinity at the World Fantasy Convention.  It will be on Saturday, Nov. 3, at 8:00pm (don't know the room yet).  Kiri (my daughter) and I have decided on a "Party for the Inner Child," so we'll be having candy, food, candy, drawings for cool prizes (magic kits and books and other stuff), candy, and other fun surprise-like stuff.  And candy.
Hope we'll see you there!

Yes, it's true...Edward: Dancing on the Edge of Infinity is here!  Woo-hoo!  We got the books a couple of weeks ago, and they look great.  Bruce and I are both very happy!  What a relief!  After two years of struggling with printer issues (refusing to print the books because they were "obscene", going out of business unexpectedly, etc.), I finally went with Thomson-Shore and they are awesome!  Tell your friends!

The book is still on pre-sale for half price ($5.00) until November 1.  Tell your friends about that too!

I also have a limited number of review copies, so if you think you might be interested in reading and blogging, let me know, and I'll send you a copy!

Well, since I've officially used up my daily quota of exclamation marks, I guess it's time to sign off (!)

The first issue of the Anathema online anthology is up!  Whew!
We have two great stories for the premiere issue:
 "Angel, With Child," by Calie Voorhis, an intriguing and lyrical story about an angel who spawns an anti-theist revolution.
"The Club," by Sue Lange, a hilarious look at the Singularity, from the inside. (Can there be an inside and outside in the Singularity?  Hmm...I don't know).
I hope that you all will get a chance to take a look, and let me know what you think!
And remember, we're always open for submissions...

Just like the title says, RedJack's new online anthology, Anathema,  is now open for submissions.   If you're interested, please visit the guidelines page.
Thanks, and I look forward to hearing from you all!

A while ago, I posted a poll asking if people were interested in the idea of an online anthology in which the writer is challenged to write (sympathetically) from a point of view directly opposed ot his or her own.  Everybody who responded thought it was interesting, so I'm going to go ahead with it.  As soon as I get the details worked out, I will post submission guidelines to all of the usual places.  
In the meantime, is there anybody out there who is interested in helping me sift through the submissions?  I would pay some token amount, and guarantee a spot in the online version of the anthology (not sure yet if there will be a print version -- I'll have to see how it goes).  Let me know if you're interested.

Small, but intense.  That is Readercon.
Some highlights:
1) Mary Robinette Kowal's (maryrobinette) panel on "How to be a Great Reader."  What I learned: Mary will be doing all of my readings from now on.  No, just kidding.  Not only is she an extremely talented voice actor, but an awesome teacher.  We learned some simple and some more complicated stuff about -- not only how not to be a terrible reader -- but how to be a GREAT reader.  I tried to put at least some of what I learned to use at the...
2) Broad Universe Rapid-Fire-Reading.  I love these so much.  It was a great sample of some diverse work, from Phoebe Wray, Jennifer Pelland (jenwrites), Morven Westfield, Margaret Ronald, and Trisha Wooldridge (who read a completely amazing poem).
3) The "Meet the Pros(e)" party.  This was the coolest idea.  There were a bunch (meaning, a LOT) of people around the ballroom with sheets of computer labels that had quotes from their work.  You then go around and collect the quotes, creating a piece of random cool "li-tri-ture," meanwhile, socializing and stuff. It was really fun.
4) The kaffeeklatch with Gavin Grant, Kelly Link (from Small Beer Press) and Matthew Kressler (from Sense Five Press, publishers of Sybil's Garage -- in my mind, the best-designed magazine out there.)   Some fun conversation there, about a variety of stuff, but mostly it's cool to see how dedicated people are to putting out the best possible work.

There was, of course, other great stuff...and more to come, I'm sure...

Boston is a cool city.  Not literally -- it's pretty wam and muggy climate-wise (I'm told it gets much worse, and I believe it).  But it's cool because:
1) It has the oldest public piece of land since colonization (Boston Common).
2) It has the oldest building in the US since colonization (the Old State House) - although, apparently the Governor's house in Santa Fe may be older, or the same age.
3) It has a three-mile-or-so "Freedom Trail" (a red line painted and/or bricked into the sidewalks) that take you around to the various historical sites -- and there are a LOT of them.
4) In Boston, as you walk around, you are constantly surrounded by/reminded of the incredible fortitude, brilliance, and determination of the men and women of the mid-1700's, and what they accomplised in freeing themselves from the yoke of a tyrannical government.  And not only to free themselves from oppression, but to actually have the vision to replace it with something better.
5) I'm guessing that this constant reminder of this heritage has something to do with the tenor of the 4th of July in Boston.  On the 4th of July, Boston Common was not drowning in the red-white-and-blue; there was no empty sloganeering, flag-waving, sentimentalizing.  There was, however,  a Freedom Trail tour guide dressed in (what must have been a swelteringly hot) colonial costume, talking about the "Writs of Assistance," (aka "The Intolerable Acts") and saying "the soldiers could enter your house at any time and read your private papers, to see if you'd said anything bad about the King -- because, you see, the King wanted to know what you were thinking. (Then, to the children in the group) Can you imagine living under a government like that?"
6) The North End of Boston has more Italian restaurants in about a five-block area than there are Chinese restaurants in the entire city of San Francisco.  Okay, that's probably an exaggeration, but there are a LOT of Italian restaurants, and they're all very classy-looking (and the shuttle driver says they're all good).  
7) Boston has really good public transportation.  I hope they appreciate it.  I went from Burlington to Boston and back for $7.00 on a combination of bus/subway (it's a $60 cab ride one way), and all of the bus drivers/transit workers were awesomely patient and friendly.
8) Everybody that I have met and talked to in Boston has been awesomely friendly.  This is not what I've been taught to expect from the East Coast.  Another stereotype bites the dust, and I'm so happy.

...is the title of Frank Wu's animated short, which I saw at Westercon and loved -- especially because Frank was there to explain all the high-falutin' literary references it contains, which I missed while I was laughing at the high-heeled ray-gun shoes and the exploding chicken monster (and frankly, would have missed anyway).  Apparently, this short (the Director's Cut version) is being considered by Nickelodeon as a pilot for a series, so, Frank says it would help if we all go to YouTube and run up the hit counter in order to impress the execs.   I highly recommend it as a cure for artistic over-seriousness...

By the way, according to Frank, all of the music in the short is a variation on "The Chicken Dance."

Everybody, meet Edward -- Edward, meet everybody.  I just finished the layout, typesetting and editing of Bruce's new book (see title above, I'm too lazy to type it again).  Whew!  It was very very fun, but also a very challenging book to typeset -- and if you don't believe me, you're not my friend anymore.  No, seriously: over 80 hours of work, just in the initial pass, mostly because of the weird/fun/clever little doohicky doodads (eg., two simultaneous stories, 194 footnotes, an appendix of endnotes on the footnotes, 3 diagrams, a puzzle, a recipe, and a "To-Do" list -- among other things).  And then there's the novel itself, in and among and between and through all of this high cleverness.  Did I get lost?  Yes, occasionally, I did.  Luckily, I'm good with both compass and dictionary.

Was it worth it?  You betcha.  I seriously love this book.

So, now Edward's page is up at www.redjackbooks.com.  Go pay him a visit, see what he's about, read an excerpt from the introduction by Jay Lake (an introduction that is, by the way, just as twisty-tailed as the book itself).  You can also pre-order the book at a thigh-slappingly good discount.  But you can't slap your thigh unless you actually order the book.  No cheating.

Also, a limited number of unbound galleys are available for reviewers (or anybody who wants to do a second-edit pass for me, and earn major karma points in doing so...)

Woo-hoo!  (and another woo-hoo!)  My film students and I yesterday completed the shooting of our summer film (well, video) project Totally Macaroni!  These kids are so awesome.  Despite some misadventures (like, getting forced out of our main location, so that we had to complete five pages of script in just under two hours), and some challenges (steadicam + superhero costume on public bus; an extremely cute but as-cooperative-as-warm-jello dog), we completed the project on time, and the footage looks great.  If you're interested, I posted some photos of the process at www.karonophile.com/TotalMac.html. 
Next up, editing.  Last year's project (Strictly Commercial) required two hundred hours of editing time (which included learning-to-use-the-editing-program time).  Hopefully, this won't take quite that long.
All-in-all, it's been an amazing week.  And I'm now, officially, completely pooped.

While at Wiscon, I was lucky enough to receive an advance copy of Kathy Sedia's book The Secret History of Moscow (published by Prime Books, release date November 2007) -- and when I say "lucky," I mean it.  I just wish I had been a little luckier, and been asked to publish it!  Seriously, this is the kind of book that exemplifies (to me) the best that the speculative fiction genre has to offer.  And I'll tell you why...