Sponsor Gifts for the Clarion West Write-a-thon

Right now there's a sorority house in Seattle filled with eighteen amazing science fiction and fantasy writers. They're studying with some of the best writers and editors in the field, forming lifelong friendships, and learning so much about their writing that will shape and propel their stories for years to come. 

Two years ago I was lucky enough to be in that house. And a scholarship from Clarion West donors helped me get there. 

The 2013 Clarion West class is about to enter their last week of the workshop, and it will also be the last week of this year's write-a-thon. 

I signed up for the write-a-thon and have been working on my first novel, Recovery. It's a story about a young woman and her two ravens living in Fairbanks. She's a former activist, suffering from care fatigue, and slowly gaining the power to enact change from an unsuspected source. 

In June I went to the Center for the Study of Science Fiction beginning novel writing workshop, which was a wonderful experience and gave me a much clearer vision of where my novel is headed. I wouldn't have even applied to this workshop, however, if it were not for the encouragement of my Clarion West classmate (and amazing writer) Alisa Alering. 

I'm hoping to get a few sponsors for the Clarion West Write-a-thon, and in return I will mail each donor a broadside with an excerpt from my novel in progress and an image to inspire you to write a new short story.

Interested? Here's how it works:

1. Go to my Write-a-thon profile and click on the donate button http://www.clarionwest.org/writeathon/jennimoody  
2. Donate any amount to support Clarion West ($1, $5 - every bit helps) 
3. At the end of the week I'll receive an email from Clarion West listing my donors and their addresses. At this point I'll send the goodies off to you in the mail. 
4. Goodies will arrive in your mail! Hooray! 

Clarion West made such an amazing difference in my life, and from stories I've heard from others, I know I'm not alone. Please join me in supporting the amazing stories of tomorrow. 

Publication in Booth

Last week I received my contributor's copies for Booth Journal, Issue 5. It is a gorgeous publication, with amazing artwork inside and out. 

The interior flaps list the contributors, and I'm in some wonderful company.

Throughout the issue there are comics by Kelly Clancy. I love the way she tells stories through sequential art,  and look forward to reading her Xeric Award winning book Soldiers of God. 

If you're looking for a good literary journal to submit to, the staff of Booth are professional and communicate throughout the publication process. I always felt like my story was in caring hands, and that the journal would be a good home for my work.

I just didn't realize how damn beautiful the final product would be, or how much I would love the rest of the writing in the issue.

CSSF Novel Workshop

Earlier this month, I spent two weeks on the University of Kansas campus attending the beginning novel writing workshop at the Center for the Study of Science Fiction.

Lawrence is a lovely town, full of brightly painted houses and big trees.

There are also many brick sidewalks in various states of disrepair. Some stretches have all of the bricks in place, their interstices smoothed with grass. Others are buckled, bricks missing, with holes ready to suck in your foot and twist your ankle. 

 

Kij Johnson and Barbara J. Webb run the workshop, and they are amazingly welcoming, kind, and supportive. They made the transition into workshopping easy, and our group meeting room quickly became a safe place to brainstorm ideas and ask for help. 

From one to four each day we workshopped, with Kij and Barbara asking the author what they wanted from the story, calling on the group to offer up ideas and responses to help move the novel along. At six we met to walk down to dinner on Massachusetts Avenue, the main road at the bottom of the campus full of restaurants and shops. By eight or so we were back in the workshop room fishbowling. Sometimes fishbowling is talking out your characters to the room, or writing a bunch of ideas on Post-Its and rearranging them until the glue wears off. Sometimes it's staring at your sticky notes in despair until someone comes up and asks you one question about your story that makes the whole project make sense. 

Mainly, fishbowling is a way of figuring out your story so that you can write a better draft of your novel. One of my classmates had an amazingly detailed outline by the end of the workshop, others had clear sets of action through the first turn, and it seemed as though everyone walked away with a better sense of clarity in regards to their project. I finally met my protagonist and discovered her story and her core need that will push my story forward. It was fascinating to watch novels expand with ideas, try out different possibilities, and finally find their solid paths - friendly sidewalks with not quite so many bricks missing.

We shared the dorm with the short story writers workshop. In the evenings they watched movies on the 3rd floor of the dorm, with novel writers invited as well. Throughout the workshops there are also people in the dorm who are on retreat - they just come to be around other writers and write. There's an atmosphere of love for science fiction and fantasy, of engagement in the larger writing community, and of creative play. It's lovely.

At the end of the second week we attended the Campbell Conference, held in the swanky Oread Hotel, just down the street from the KU Student Union where we ate lunch everyday.

Campbell and Sturgeon Awards

Saturday was rainy and I wasn't feeling well, so I stayed in. But I wish I had pushed myself to go to the panels and signings. I heard that Andy Duncan's reading was fantastic, and from the very short reading he gave during the student readings on Thursday I have no doubt it was entertaining and lovely. If I'm ever lucky enough to attend the workshop again, I'm not going to miss the Saturday events of the Campbell Conference.

The beginning novel writer's workshop gave me the confidence and stubbornness I'll need to finish a full draft of my novel. My fellow workshoppers are writing so many amazing, beautifully told stories that I hope I will get to read as they grow into novels.

Origami flowers by Brooke Wonders

The best part of the workshop is that, unlike Clarion and Clarion West, you can go back. If you want to make the transition to writing novels, go to Lawrence for the summer. Take more clothes than you think you'll need (it is hot, you will walk everywhere, you will sweat), be ready to make big changes to your novel, and bring your favorite sticky notes and sharpies to grow and rearrange your story. 

Kij Johnson and Barbara J. Webb's
Class of 2013
The Marmosets

Tail twist! 

Prepping for a Workshop: (Not So) Minor Characters

In going through some books the other day, I found one of my favorites from my undergrad days. It wasn't assigned in class. I found it through researching, following the paths of different writers during my crush on the Beats.

Joyce Johnson's Minor Characters

Joyce Johnson is in the background of the cover photograph, behind Kerouac. In her book she describes seeing the photograph, herself photoshopped out of it, used for a GAP ad. They just wanted Kerouac.

But I loved reading Johnson's account of her life as a writer during this time period, in many ways moreso than On the Road. 

At writing workshops you've got your main characters - the people whose names are on the website or flyer. The writer or team of writers who will lead the workshop. They are probably names you've heard of, writers whose every book you've bought within a week of its release, whose writing encourages and challenges you to be a better writer.

If you're accepted to a residential writing workshop like Clarion West, you'll probably start reading books by your workshop leaders as soon as you get the call.

But workshops are a labor of love, supported by communities of writers and artists, who believe so much in the power of words and the worth of writing that they donate their time and money and backyards (for parties) and cars (for driving you to parties) to making the workshop run smoothly. Their photographs don't appear on the main website for workshops, but their names aren't hidden away. Look for the board of directors, the contributors to the workshop newsletter, and the workshop administrators. They're writers, too. Excellent, amazing, award-winning authors that you'll mingle with at parties and dinners.

When I went to Clarion West in 2011, I took at least one book from each instructor with me. When I arrived at the workshop, I heard someone talking about writing poetry with Neile Graham. I had her book of poetry, Blood Memory, at home. I'd bought it years ago, because hers was one of the most highly recommended books of SF poetry. I hadn't made the connection between the writer whose poetry I'd admired and the person who had called me one evening in March, and told me in gentle, welcoming tones that I'd been accepted to Clarion West. I felt the sting of overlooking this fact when Neile wrote a poem for my class at the end of the workshop that was beautiful and true and the most wonderful gift.

These writers aren't minor characters, they're your mentors and future friends. The ones who will sit beside you and talk to you even when you're shy and terrified, whose books you should read. So do your homework before you pack your bags to that amazing workshop with Frightfully Famous Author. You'll be meeting many more writers, learning from them, and falling in love with their work.

2011 Westies Anthologized

My Clarion West classmates have had a pretty rockin year so far with stories in anthologies and collections. If you are looking for some good short stories to read, I highly recommend checking these out.

First up is S.L. Gilbow's new short story collection. I've been waiting for Gilbow to put out a collection of his own ever since I met him. His stories are amazing. They're the kind that pull you in so close that they silence a loud room, and grip you so tightly that you ache for days. Elegant with a feeling of the best classic science fiction, these are stories that you'll remember and want to share with others. There are five stories in this collection, each one beautifully crafted. I hope one day there's a print edition, so that I can add Gilbow to my shelves with my other favorite authors. You can get your copy here.

Next up is an anthology with two of my classmates' stories: Corinne Duyvis' Week 6 story at Clarion West, "The Applause of Others," and "Fisheye" by Maria Romasco-Moore. Corinne's story is set in Amsterdam, full of lovely city details. If you haven't read a story by Maria Romasco-Moore yet, you are missing out on some of the most beautiful and delightfully, wittily weird writing. In addition to Corinne and Maria's stories, the line up is stellar. Check out the Table of Contents and then maybe get a copy. 

Jei D. Marcade's story "Superhero Girl" is out in bookstores (like Barnes & Noble and such) in the anthology Super Heroes. Read this cool interview with Jei about the story that was originally published in Fantasy Magazine and learn the word for the storytelling technique you've probably been trying to pull off for years. Jei uses it seamlessly in this story. It is, in my mind, the textbook example (in addition to just being an all-around amazing story.) Go Jei! 

Alisa Alering was a winner of the Writers of the Future Contest this year. Her story "Everything You Have Seen" is in the newest compilation (Volume 29), out everywhere! This is a gorgeous, haunting story told in the lyric-crisp language that I love in all of Alisa's stories. At the awards ceremony, dancers interpreted the story, in what I think was the best performance of the evening. Read her awesome story, then head over to her blog where she's recounting the WOTF winner experience. 

The rest of my Westie friends are doing amazing things - managing magazines, starting novels, finishing novels, publishing short stories in magazines all over the place. I'll do another check-in soon with some cool story pubs in journals and magazines. Go CAAMF! :) 

My First Fountain Pen

I've always loved stationary. From the faded Santa set my sixth grade teacher gave me to the Elk themed letter set I found at a thrift store in Alaska, I'm a sucker for cool correspondence materials. But my idea of splurging on nice pens is buying a pack of three Sarasas from the grocery store. I've never owned a fountain pen, or even tried writing with one. So getting one as a present from my dad was pretty wonderful. 

Here's a few photos of my new pen, with the fancy schmancy backdrop of a Totoro blanket: 

A pen that comes in its own classy bag - already this is awesome.

Different shades of blue for the packaging. Lovely.

The whole set, including a package of ink capsules and a bottle of ink. 

The pen! Gorgeous and simple. 

Engraved nib

I'm still getting used to writing with it. The pressure points on certain parts of letters - the curves of an 'e' for example - are different from regular pens. And my fancy stationary isn't porous enough to use with the fountain pen. The ink shows up faint and smeared. But other cards and papers are perfect.

I really love my new pen. I kind of feel as if I've had a trip to Ollivanders Wand Shop.  

The Model Enterprise

My friend Go Thou Geekly moved recently, and before he left he gave me an amazing rocket model set. I was really excited because I knew instantly what I wanted to do with the set - build it with my dad when he came to visit. 

My dad was only in town for ten days. We spent some of the time taking care of logistic issues - just the usual life paperwork that builds up - and I had to go to work everyday. So we wanted to hang out together in the evenings as much as we could, but since I haven't seen him in a year we didn't want to spend that time watching movies or television. We wanted to actively hangout. 

If you've never built a model set with someone, I just want to say that it is a great project to embark on with a friend. I was lucky in that my dad built models when he was a kid, so he knew all kinds of awesome tricks like soaking the decals in water so that they slid off onto the model and adhered as if they'd been stamped there. 

But even if you've never built a model before, it's a cool crafty project to undertake. And in the end, you're left with a unique reminder of the time you spent with that person or, if you build it alone, that time in your life. I think I'll always remember working on the shuttle model with my dad, taking a break to explain to him what a meme is, or for him to show me how to tape the edges of a wing so that our paint would be in a straight line. 

Here's some progress shots of us building the space shuttle together:

Fresh out of the box - the moving pad and booster rockets

Doing a test of how everything will come together once it is painted

I was given the task of taping the model before we painted.
In this pic, we painted the portion below the yellow tape black.

In progress shot.
 The tupperware container is full of water for soaking the decals.

I was pretty proud of how clear the lines are on this wing due to my taping the edges.
There's still some rough bits, but  it was immensely satisfying to transform a piece of
plain white plastic into a recognizable piece of the shuttle. 

The end result! The glue needed to dry before it would stand
upright on the pad, but it looked pretty spiffy. 

Go Team Moody!