My latest story in Analog hit the stands this month. "The Last Romantic on the Belliponte" is a tale of a rattled crew, each member bringing their own ghosts and superstitions to a tense mission in the Oort Cloud. While trying to acquire data from an extrasolar object, is one crew member losing it—or will madness save them all?
I'm one of those holding out for the paperback. While I have the ARC, in the long-term, I do prefer the material copy - and not just for the soppy reason of having your works on my shelf!
This post as a whole has left me with a lot to think about. It's easy to lose sight of this perspective on the industry as a reader because we usually only see the shiny PR and not the labour behind it. That amount of work is perhaps one thing that has kept me from pursuing writing, or at least imagining publishing it one day. It feels like every creative endeavour must be monetized just for the sake of survival, and that sucks the joy out of it. (Oop, I'm in a glum mood, sorry. But I don't see a way to make such a big, messed up system change. Even the upsets seen by the big publishers lately haven't seemed to have an effect. Perhaps it's too optimistic to hope that the writers' strike will make a difference?)
Please don't lose heart! And congratulations for getting a story published in Analog! Novels are a tricky buisiness, and the reading public is a fickle thing. Meanwhile, I'm excited to get into Doro and see what you've done with that fascinating premise.
Thanks so much for this post, there's a lot to chew on here. Especially as I prepare a book for ARC reviews (still waiting on my cover getting done.) I'm not out to be a pessimist but a realist and stuff like this is actually kind of a relief to read, I really appreciate your research/transparency. Indie debut? If I get a couple sales outside my IRL support group, I'll consider it a success. (Going by the PRH/SS trial, over a dozen and we're in the big leagues, ha!) And it's good to know we aren't alone. Sort of a trauma bond. Best of luck!
I'm one of those holding out for the paperback. While I have the ARC, in the long-term, I do prefer the material copy - and not just for the soppy reason of having your works on my shelf!
This post as a whole has left me with a lot to think about. It's easy to lose sight of this perspective on the industry as a reader because we usually only see the shiny PR and not the labour behind it. That amount of work is perhaps one thing that has kept me from pursuing writing, or at least imagining publishing it one day. It feels like every creative endeavour must be monetized just for the sake of survival, and that sucks the joy out of it. (Oop, I'm in a glum mood, sorry. But I don't see a way to make such a big, messed up system change. Even the upsets seen by the big publishers lately haven't seemed to have an effect. Perhaps it's too optimistic to hope that the writers' strike will make a difference?)
Please don't lose heart! And congratulations for getting a story published in Analog! Novels are a tricky buisiness, and the reading public is a fickle thing. Meanwhile, I'm excited to get into Doro and see what you've done with that fascinating premise.
Thanks so much for this post, there's a lot to chew on here. Especially as I prepare a book for ARC reviews (still waiting on my cover getting done.) I'm not out to be a pessimist but a realist and stuff like this is actually kind of a relief to read, I really appreciate your research/transparency. Indie debut? If I get a couple sales outside my IRL support group, I'll consider it a success. (Going by the PRH/SS trial, over a dozen and we're in the big leagues, ha!) And it's good to know we aren't alone. Sort of a trauma bond. Best of luck!