I just unloaded the third video in my Beer or Coffee With the Author series. This one is about why I don’t have political propaganda in my books, as well as on my books as expressions of my understanding of what humankind is made
I just unloaded the third video in my Beer or Coffee With the Author series. This one is about why I don’t have political propaganda in my books, as well as on my books as expressions of my understanding of what humankind is made
I just posted another video on my You Tube channel, this one devoted to answering questions from readers.
It’s been several days since I got back from Westercon68 in San Diego, but they have been very busy days that prevented me from having time to write much about the experience. First, only one full day after my return, my daughter got back from the People’s Republic of China, where she had been for a few weeks on a cultural exchange visit. I was tasked with picking her up at LAX, a feat made more interesting by the developing case of cellulitis that I had in my right leg at the time.
It bloomed into full-blown swollen, red, hot, painful nastiness the following day and resulted in a quick doctor visit and my having to spend most of my time with my leg elevated. I have yet to learn to run my desktop computer with my leg elevated, so computer-related activities were gravely constrained.
In any event, I did not want to let another day go by without a few shout-outs to some folks I met there, many of whose names I no longer remember because of the memory issues that go along with some of the other medical problems that I struggle with from day to day. So, first, to the the gentleman with whom I had breakfast twice, thank you for your advice about conventions in general and panel participation in particular. Your insights into the world of science fiction fandom were not just useful, they were essential.
Next, thanks to Will and Yvonne Morton, whose names I remember mainly because THEY took down my email address and emailed me, thereby taking the issue out of the realm of my Swiss-cheese memory. I enjoyed dinner with you and the other wonderful folks to whom you introduced me. I hope to see you at future conventions, provided I get invited to participate in programming again, someday.
Finally, to the wonderful folks I met in the Staff Lounge the last night of the convention and whom I talked to such a peak of exhaustion that none were to be seen the next morning. I’m truly sorry. I should have excused myself around 1:30–it’s just that I don’t get out much and I was having so much fun talking that I presumed on your time and your energies beyond what was right. I’m pretty sure one of you was named Kris, but I an soooooooo grateful to have been invited to your inner sanctum, to have been given so much truly useful advice, and to have been the beneficiary of so much goodwill. I truly wish that I knew how to reach you directly (I checked your web site but could not figure out who was who).
Indeed, I would be very grateful if some reader of these words could point the relevant people to this page so that they could become aware of these sentiments, or if someone could furnish me with some email addresses.
I met so many wonderful people and was so deeply surprised to be treated with nearly universal hospitality, welcome, encouragement, and acceptance–from prominent writers such as David Brin and Vernor Vinge to fans who came up to me after panels and treated me as though I were a Science Fiction celebrity. I could not have had a better introduction to conventions, fandom, and the wider world of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Thanks to everyone.
I just posted my first video on You Tube, discussing how I became an author. Be merciful.
I’ve been receiving a great many emails, Facebook comments, and customer reviews on Amazon from people who have just finished reading Brothers in Valor who are upset because [paraphrasing here] “I thought this was a trilogy, but you left your guys in a a dangerous situation.” Some of these people are actually angry and feel that I misled them by calling these three books a “trilogy.”
Before I address that issue, though, I want to make very, very clear that Brothers in Valor is not the end of the Max Robichaux/Ibrahim Sahin story. As I have written many times in dozens of places (my Facebook page, this page, Twitter, Amazon comments, etc.,) this trilogy will be followed by the “Brothers of the Black Sky” trilogy, the first novel of which, To Stations My Lads is expected sometime in 2016. And, that trilogy will be followed by another, and another, for so long as there are readers and so long as I am able to write. I will not leave my readers hanging. Long.
Now, to the “trilogy” issue.
First, I want folks to understand that I’m sorry to have upset you and that, not only did I not intend to mislead you, it never occurred to me in a million years that anyone could ever, even remotely, be misled.
“How can you not have believed we would be misled?” some of you are asking. Well, that takes me to my second point: “Trilogy” is such a simple word–I thought everyone knew what it meant. Much to my surprise, there seem to be a great many people whose understanding of the word is, shall we say, less than perfectly correct. So, as a public service of this blog (valuable public goods abound here!) today I’m going to enlighten you as to what this word means.
If you actually go to a dictionary and look up “trilogy” you will find definitions that say things like, “a series of three related related books, films, plays, musical compositions.” Some, but not all, of the definitions also mention that the works are usually on a central theme. Read three, or five, or twenty definitions, and they will be pretty much the same: three related artistic works, perhaps on a central theme. That’s it. There is NO requirement in ANY definition that I found that requires that all plot elements be wrapped up with a neat little bow. Further, there is no rule that the protagonists may not be left in a position of peril at the end of the trilogy. AND, there is no prohibition that the trilogies may not be part of a cycle or series of trilogies, which is what I am doing.
The “Man of War” Trilogy tells the story of Max Robichaux and Ibrahim Sahin aboard the USS Cumberland. For reasons people who have read the third book understand, THAT story is over, in the most complete and emphatic way. This series is clearly and unarguably a trilogy. Complaining that it is not merely highlights the importance of dictionaries.