Here are some things I’ve learned as an author giving readings of my work:
Do not select a piece that fills your entire reading time. If your reading slot is 30 minutes, PREPARE A 15 MINUTE PIECE (with a 5 minute extension prepared in case you end up rush-reading it and are left with extra time). If your reading time is 1 hour, select at most 30 minutes of reading material with a 10 minute buffer (though that much time just sitting quietly and listening to you read can be a bit much to put an audience through).
What about the rest of the time?
You will need a few minutes to say hi and do intros and get started.
If the piece you are reading needs some setup and context, you will need time for that.
And you may want some time for questions and answers after the reading, to engage with your audience and increase their interest in you and your work. Be prepared with a few example questions to help prime the pump and get the Q&A rolling as the audience may be shy at first in asking questions. Or loosen up the audience with some trivia questions, anecdotes or jokes.
Norwescon is awesome.
Let’s just make that clear right up front. This is not about them. I was invited to be a panelist this year and
I politely declined for “me” reasons. I want
to talk about those, I guess in case it is helpful for others.
I have been blessed to participate in Norwescon for a number
of years. And every time, it has been a
joy and an honor. I do not view it primarily
as a promotional opportunity (though I do not ignore that benefit). I also do not view it as some earned and
expected acknowledgment of my status as a published author, because that is not
what it should be (and because I began paneling before I was professionally published).
So why am I not participating this year?
I guess first because of Imposter Syndrome, and a bunch of deeper weird feelings I am working through and will probably write posts about someday, that comes in part from being “Between books.”
I posted previously that writing is sacrifice. And I posted on Facebook about how workshops, crit groups and writer friends can make the struggle less difficult. I realized I might sound like I think writing is all pain and hardship, when the truth is quite the opposite.
In truth, writing is mostly joy (and life) to me. Yes, there are sacrifices, but I don’t really notice them most times. Yes, it can be hard and sometimes frustrating work with ups and downs and moments of self-doubt and disappointment, but most anything really worth doing is, and the pros far outweigh the cons in my mind.
So I thought I’d throw together a quick pro/con list to better show both sides. And yes, this list is far from comprehensive, and there are writers for whom one or more cons have never been a con due to their successes or publishing method etcetera. But I think this is a decent “at a glance” summary that holds true for most writers.
Writing is sacrifice, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something.
And no, I don’t just mean sacrificing the odd goat to the Goddess of Inspiration (though if you do, also be prepared to sacrifice hours getting those stains out. Lesson learned!)
Nor do I just mean spending a little less time on gaming or Netflix bingeing, though that may also be required.
True, every writer’s writing method and path to publication differs. And every writer’s life circumstance is different. But even if you are blessed to have retired, or be independently wealthy, or have someone supporting you financially, there are still sacrifices to be made.
And sometimes, these sacrifices are ones we don’t like to admit or talk about.
What will help you reach the next level as a writer? What is that thing you can’t quite put your finger on that would take your stories to the next level? Come to my workshop on May 21 and I will walk through the stages I see most writers grow through, from beginning writer to published pro, and some of the common challenges and lessons found at each stage. The workshop will include handouts and a number of exercises. No matter where you are at in your writer’s journey, the goal is for you to walk away with a clear idea of what you can do to “level up” as a writer.
There are limited seats available, so sign up now!
I have run fast enough from the theater in the future to break the time barrier and return here to give you my review of the movie.
There was a lot about the JLA movie that was sheer awesome! A lot of cool, snapshot poses, a lot of awesome uses of superpowers.
But by the end I felt disappointed, and even a bit bored.
The first problem was the character intros.
As expected, we spend a good chunk of the movie meeting the new heroes, and getting bits of their backstory. Flash. Aquaman. Cyborg. This was the first big challenge of the movie, to make us care about these characters, so that later when they are fighting and in danger, we actually care whether or not they win, whether or not they are hurt. Care whether or not they achieve some kind of happiness, or peace, as a result of the choices and changes they make through the course of the movie.
But we simply did not get enough time with each character to feel connected to them, to care. I rooted for the Flash just because he was funny and likeable. But what Pixar did in five minutes at the beginning of Up, JLA did not manage to do in the roughly ten minutes of character establishment per character.
Even Batman did not move me much, because we haven’t really spent much time with Affleck’s Batman except in his ragey conflict with Superman, so all his pain and the tragic experiences of his past that would make forming a team and being responsible for others a fear to overcome for him (e.g. the loss of a Robin to the Joker) has not really been established here.
Wonder Woman, at least, we understand a little after her LONG overdue solo movie. Which is probably one reason she was the most relatable hero beside Flash.
Heroes aside, though, I think the biggest problem was the enemy.
Steppenwolf and his MacGuffincubes
Basically, our heroes did not have an interesting villain with goals and motivations that we could relate to on some level. I never felt the villain had personal stakes that I cared about yet knew would be bad for our world and our heroes. Instead, we had a CGI Alien Armor Big Bad who wants some evil boxes, and a bunch of CGI aliens and robots to help him get them, and that would be bad. Because it is bad.
Yes, the battle scenes were epic and full of superpowered awesome. But I never felt that Steppenwolf forced a hero to confront their deepest fear or flaw and overcome it. I never felt that Steppenwolf presented a personal challenge to any of the heroes, that he was the worst possible enemy the hero could have had to face at this time because of what they had been through, or what they were struggling with.
Steppenwolf is a master strategist, yet I never really felt there was a clever cat and mouse game going on between him and Batman that made Batman question his own brilliance or ability or willingness to lead others into danger and death. Steppenwolf never really made me feel he had pushed Batman to the edge and the Bats might lose it if anyone died on his watch. They just were racing each other to get the boxes, a simple set of escalating challenges.
Steppenwolf is a badass, but I never felt that in his conflict with Wonder Woman or Aquaman that any of them were forced to question their own strength, the responsibility or consequences of strength, or who they were without it.
Part of the reason the Avengers worked well by comparison is that they faced off against Loki, a villain we had come to know already, a person filled with pain and anger and tragic, twisted need that drove him, a guy who really just wanted to be loved above all others (is that so wrong?). And because Loki played on each hero’s insecurities and flaws and fears, and turned friend against friend. Likewise, in Civil War, the enemy plays the heroes own flaws and pain against each other, turning friend against friend. And in Avengers 2, Scarlet Witch does something similar.
Steppenwolf did not really achieve that. He was not an enemy of the Justice League, of the heroes individually or as a team. He was just big badass enemy, a threat.
And as demonstrated by the Phantom Menace, simply destroying an army of enemy robots in an epic battle can in fact be extremely boring.
Finally, I understood why of course they had to keep Superman out of it for most of the movie, for much the same reason that Hulk wasn’t in Civil War (he would have just smashed anyone on the opposing team, etc). But his moping/angst over the events in Batman vs Superman was a bit of a lame reason for the delay.
In summary, I of course went and saw this movie, and overall it was a fun popcorn flick. How could I not go to see the JLA on the big screen? Not to mention Jason Momoa and Gal Gadot kicking ass and looking hot doing it. But if you are going to have all the grimdark and Pew Pew, you need to balance it with a tad more humor, and a lot more heart, than JLA delivered.
I grew up reading trilogies. I grew up watching trilogies. I lived in trilogies, walked the lands of trilogies until I knew them better than my own neighborhood, lived many lives through trilogies, fought evil and triumphed in trilogies. I dreamed of writing a trilogy. It is surreal to have actually done so. And wonderful. But really, it doesn’t feel real. Yet there it is. Three books. That I can hold in my hands. With my name on them. It’s like I’m living in some bizarro alternate universe. And it is pretty dang cool.
And I love the UK versions from Titan as well!
Book 3 comes out in the US on March 7th, and I can’t wait for people to read it!
I thought I’d once again offer a bit of new year’s encouragement and advice to help with the coming year. While this is aimed primarily at my fellow writers, the same advice can also, I think, be applied to most any goal or creative pursuit, and to life in general, so just replace “writer” or “write” with whatever your passion is.
This weekend, I encourage you to sit down and do three things:
2017 will also certainly be a particularly important year to be active in supporting and fighting for what is important to you, without giving in to despair or in to anger that harms yourself. Here is a starting point for that: http://www.randy-henderson.com/2016/11/what-now/
Want to know how to get published? Well, there’s lots of ways, actually 🙂
And writer/ editor Shannon Page has put together a pretty neat collection of essays called The Usual Path to Publication by 27 published authors (including yours truly) on HOW they got published. Check it out!
Two big bits of news for book 3, Smells Like Finn Spirit:
First off, revised Finn 3 has been officially delivered to my editor! And I am so proud of it. Of course, I’m biased, but honestly there are just so many parts I can’t wait for people to read — funny moments, emotional moments, fantastical moments, moments that made me tear up or laugh on my own re-read — and I think that’s a pretty good sign. It has more of the humor of Finn Fancy Necromancy, and expands on the world building of Bigfootloose and Finn Fancy Free, with some deep character moments I think reflect all I’ve learned as a writer while working on these books, and it completes a nice three book arc (with seeds for future books of course should Tor buy more). Not trying to sound braggy, or like I think so much of my skill or anything, I just am proud of what I created, and feeling pretty happy about being a writer right now.
And second, COVER REVEAL! Thanks to the awesome Peter Lutjen!
In this sequel to Randy Henderson's acclaimed debut novel, Finn Fancy Necromancy, Randy Henderson spins another tale full of adventure, magic, and laughs, exploring in more depth the magical world and characters introduced in the first book.
“… it’s an urban fantasy, one that takes place in and around present-day Seattle. But even though it deals with sinister magic and family tragedy, it counterbalances that darkness with something that’s become increasingly rare in fantasy fiction: laughs, laughs, and more laughs.” -- NPR
