Here’s a copy of the Writers of the Future video that was shown during the big awards show this past April, which shares a few glimpses of my own experience there. If you watch it, I’m sure you’ll find more than a few things interesting, humorous, and/or educational, but I’ll just speak to the parts in which I’m featured.
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All, I have been shamefully neglectful in asking for donation to the Clarion West write-a-thon. Please, go to the website and donate a little something. It supports the creation of a wonderful diversity of amazing future authors. And I’m offering a prize. And now, a snippet from a Finn Fancy-related short story I’ve been writing during the write-a-thon, featuring Finn’s sister Sammy and set in 2003:
Sammy paced the small waiting room between the small sofa and the wall-mounted television, less than eager to confront Bishop Freedom. A unicorn posing as a televangelist. What a frakked up world she lived in.
Of course they had the TV going full volume, the power cord inaccessible and the control panel apparently super-glued shut. Sammy watched Freedom strutting about on stage with his white hair helmet and perfectly even smile.
“… again, what is the greater sin?” Bishop Freedom demanded. “To allow a condom, or to allow easily preventable disease and death? What is the greater sin, to …”
It annoyed Sammy to the point of pissed-offedness that Bishop Freedom used arguments she actually agreed with, given that his true motives were hardly noble.
Sammy pulled out her Palm Pilot, slid an infrared beamer into the SD slot, programmed the PDA as a remote and shut the damn TV off.
It wasn’t that she disagreed with his message, but rather his motives. Unicorns, witches and several other feybloods were well known for feeding somehow on virgins, but less known was that women who’d simply never gotten preggers served them nearly as well. Something about conception, not to mention STDs, changed whatever energy in a woman such creatures fed upon. And two things that had been proven to cause a hell of a lot of pregnancy and disease were bans on contraception, and telling a bunch of horny teenagers to “just say no”. So of course Bishop Freedom condemned the religions and politics that promoted such frakked up policies, but he didn’t do so because they were morally wrong or bass-ackwards in their thinking, and certainly not out of concern for the women; he did so because they screwed with his food source.
You’ve written a novel? CONGRATULATIONS! So … now what? Did you make it as gooder as you can get it? Well then, it’s time to consider sharing it with the world!
But which path should you take to fame and riches? Let’s start with another fun flow diagram, then I’ll get into the nitty-gritty details. I think I’ve practically compiled a small book here, so, enjoy!
DIGGING INTO TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING
How Do Traditional Publishers Pay Me?
You’ve Gotta Fight for your Rights to Party
How Many Books Do I Have to Sell to be “Successful” Traditional Style?
How Do Used Books and Libraries Affect Me?
What’s a “Big 5” vs Small /Indie Press vs Vanity /Subsidy Press?
The Traditional Publishing Process
WHAT IF I TRY THE TRADITIONAL ROUTE AND EVERYONE REJECTS ME?
Some Food for Thought Before We Proceed
How Does Self-Publishing Pay Me?
How Many Books do I Have to Sell if Self-Published?
OKAY, SO CAN I MAKE A LIVING AT THIS WRITING THING EITHER WAY?
As always, please feel free to sign up for my newsletter at the bottom of the page (or send me an email if signup bar not visible) to receive additional tips, as well as exclusive Finn Fancy content.
Over the next couple of weeks I’ll be posting some info on how to become a novelist. Here’s the first, an infodumpographic and general Q&A on the first step — write a novel.
Why? Well, careful scientific studies have revealed that the number one reason for not having a novel published is, in fact, not finishing a novel. A lot of writers struggle to get past this step, but I hope this information helps.
How big is this mountain I must climb? (How long is a novel?)
Are we there yet? (How long does it take to write a novel?)
How many millions will I make from my books and movie deals?
Seems easy enough, you just … Oooo, cat videos!
Is a novel like a long short story?
It’s that time again!
You want great fantasy and science fiction? Help support the development of future writers. Knock knock. Hello. My name is Randy Henderson. I’m asking for donations to Clarion West, a totally awesome intensive writing workshop for speculative fiction that has been called a “boot camp for writers.”
BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE. For the first 10 people who register with the Carl Brandon Society (at http://carlbrandon.org/ as a paying member), announce it and let me know about it, I will donate $10 each to the Clarion West write-a-thon on your behalf. The Carl Brandon Society supports and increases the representation of diversity in our genre’s content, creators, and fans, and offers a scholarship every year to an attendee of Clarion West, so it is a great way to ensure your donation dollars produce the maximum benefit.
http://www.clarionwest.org/members/randyhenderson/
Here finally is a wrap up of my book tour experience for Finn Fancy Necromancy — the good, the awesome, and some lessons learned — not only to say thank you to everyone who helped or attended, but also to maybe help those who are trying to plan their own book tour. This is way overdue, I know. And I’ll do a separate post about promotion in general.
Randy at Gatsby Books, LA
I figured I’d talk about how I set up the tour, how I promoted it, then share some pics, and a list of the bookstores.
I haven’t weighed in on Tempest’s challenge because others said what I would have said quite well.
But this morning as I read yet another bit of concern over it, I realized that many people who are reacting to it are writers (and many who are reacting negatively are white male writers who fear this is an attack on their writing and/or livelihood), and for writers, there is an obvious solution: treat it as a writing critique.
If someone tells you that there’s something wrong with your story, you should not take it as a condemnation of who you are, it is a critique of the problems in the story.
Brainergy. It’s not a new agey thing, or a result of midichlorians. It’s just my word for measuring how fresh and alert and energized my brain is feeling. And I believe learning to organize your writing schedule around your brainergy is very useful for writers.
Basic Writer’s Brainergy Chart (more below)
Alas, I am not independently wealthy and writing this from my Super Writer Cave hidden beneath stately Henderson Manor. I have to work full time, and I try to spend quality time with the people (and pets) I like. I also have myriad other little life distractions.
So people sometimes express surprise at the amount of writing that I get done (not that I’m anywhere near Jay Lake levels or anything). And it isn’t just the writing, of course, but the fact that I actually find time to finish and polish and submit my writing, and do all the other work that goes with being a writer.
One of the tricks I’ve learned is to not simply make a “To Do” list of things I want to get done, but to schedule them, and more importantly, schedule them smartly.
Happy New Year!
Rather than share events from my past year, I thought I’d offer a bit of encouragement and advice to help with the coming year. While this is aimed primarily at my fellow writers, it also, I think, can be applied to life in general.
This weekend, I encourage you to sit down and do three things:
1) Create a calendar/schedule for your goals and tasks.
2) Create, or update, your list of goals and tasks.
3) BELIEVE and do what makes you happy.
One more thing to be thankful for – Finn Fancy Necromancy will be recorded by Brilliance Audio. And the voice actor? Todd Haberkorn, who has done voices on Legend of Korra, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, Dragon Ball Z, and a bunch of other awesome stuff, as well as plays Spock in the amazingly cool TOS fan webseries, Star Trek Continues.
Author, relapsed sarcasm addict, Clarion West graduate, milkshake connoisseur, winner of Writers of the Future, and member of Dungeon Scrawlers.
Randy’s humorous contemporary fantasy series from TOR (US) and Titan (UK) includes:
Bigfootloose and Finn Fancy Free,
now available for purchase, reading, and use in questionable acts.
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.
More info →
“… 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
More info → 
