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Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award

So Sunday night I submitted the first Shredded Orphans book to the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award for 2012.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I’ll at least make the first pitch cut.  I know I don’t have a chance of winning since I’m writing sci-fi instead of literary fiction, but it was a great goal to get the book ready to where I felt comfortable showing other people.  Well, I’ll know by the end of February how it goes.  Here’s hoping!

In case you are interested here is the pitch I used for my book.

            Come Space Tripping With the Shredded Orphans.  The Verity Aquinas crash lands on the way to a concert.  Lix and the rest of the Shredded Orphans band must find their way back to civilization.  The band is desperate to make it to the concert on time. 

            Lix and the rest of the band have landed in the desert and there is no sign of life.  Their communications equipment isn’t working.  They don’t have a clue which way to go, but that doesn’t stop the adventurous group. 

            Lix and the other members of the Shredded Orphans are slaves to their jobs – literally.  The galaxy is run by the corporate class and at its head is the Galactic Media Corporation.  The band’s manager won’t give two credits to save Lix’s pink Mohawked head if the band doesn’t rate enough image points.

Driven by the thought of what might happen if they fail, the Shredded Orphans set out on their trip across the desert.  Lix worries that the band is falling apart and music isn’t the only thing at stake.  By night, the band plays concerts.  By day, Lix is on a secret mission to save the universe, one slave at a time.  Is the risk getting too high for the group to handle?

Travel with the Shredded Orphans as they encounter ex-advertising slaves, unknown fauna and over-exposure to the sun on this “road” trip of galactic proportions.  It’s like Firefly and Farscape with a recording contract.  Space Tripping with the Shredded Orphans is a hilarious adventure filled with music, mayhem and managers.

First ever video

I just made my first ever web cam video.  It was a tribute Thank You to Chris Baty of NaNoWriMo.  He is just the most awesome guy ever!  I really can’t thank him enough for creating NaNoWriMo, which has now seen me through my 4th novel rough draft.  If only editing were as much fun.  To see my video (blush) click here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTjs0Xz_uWY&feature=watch_response

Foray into the short story

So I started writing some short stories.  I have written four rough drafts for novels now, but haven’t written any short stories for many years and nothing very structured.  I recently wrote this short story for Author Stand and last year I wrote another short story for PNWA and the really short story was so limiting that I had to make every word count.  I was cutting out words to make the story fit.  It was very frustrating.  I won’t post last year’s story, but the one I did for Author Stand I thought came out okay.  If you register with Author Stand you can download it for free here:   http://shop.authorstand.com/Products/5573-it-was-a-dark-and-stormy-night.aspx      I couldn’t think of anything to write at first, so I wrote it about a writer with writer’s block.  Do all writer’s do this at some point?