October Author News + 99 Cent Books
Archon 43
I have recently returned from my fifth year at Archon, a St. Louis area science fiction and fantasy convention. I always have so much fun there -- I love the costumes, the gaming, the shop talk, and most of all -- the people.
This is me (on the left) with YA author Cole Gibsen. We had an engaging (and at times very personal) discussion about writing characters with mental illness.
It's a hard topic, but the audience helped with great questions and insight and by generally being supportive. I hope we conveyed that as much as it can make you bleed onto the page, we need to see more characters suffering from some kind of mental illness. Not to poke fun at them, or to cure them, or to even make the condition the focus of the story. We need to do it to normalize these issues, because most of us have a good idea what it's like.
The "Plotting Secrets" discussion was also insightful, and a lot of fun. That's me on the left again, next to Brian Katcher, Donna J. W. Munro, and Howard Andrew.
Howard and I ended up being on opposite ends of the plotting/pantsting spectrum, which I thought was perfect. New writers need to know that there isn't a "right" and a "wrong" approach here. As Brian pointed out, there are three secrets to writing a great story -- but nobody knows what they are.
For what it's worth, I do a lot of prep work in terms of world building and character building, but I do little to no outlining. I usually have a good idea what the ending will be, but that doesn't always hold up. The one time I tried outlining a novel, I killed my characters and had to bury them in a "trunk" file.
Editing Services
I do offer editing services, including developmental editing, line editing, and mentoring. If you're ever looking for some help getting a writing project off the ground, contact me at christine.amsden@PROTECTED for more information.
Sales and Freebies
Fantasy Books for Only 99 Cents: If you're in the mood to try new fantasy, here's a chane to pick up some fantasy reads for under a dollar. A great way to try new authors!
Psychic Activity: Or if you're dead broke and want to pick up some freebies, check out this giveaway featuring books with psychic activity. This includes, for the first time in a long time, my debut novel Touch of Fate.
Author's Corner
I don't have a lot to report this month. My current draft, which I'm tentatively calling Night School, is about halfway done. Which means I've reached the seemingly unavoidable mid-novel blues. That's the point in the middle of the draft where I wonder if the whole thing is rubbish and if I should go find another career. It does pass. It really does. And luckily, I've written enough books by now to know that it will, which gives me the ability to look at the situation with humor, even if I can't seem to shake the feelings entirely.
Contact Me
I love to hear from readers, and I check my e-mail regularly. I'm christine.amsden@PROTECTED.
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