Soon... Soon...

In the next week or so, I'll be launching a new website. Not a replacement for this little blogish thing -- to which I've become emotionally attached over the last few years -- but this one will be an advertisement for myself (thank you Norman Mailer). Specifically, it will be to pimp my talents as a reader of my own and other people's books.

Not much to say about it. It's not going to be revolutionary. I hope it will be a good-looking site and one which is easy to navigate. I hate cute sites that explode and have burning skeletons on them and... Well, you know!

This will just be me, a short bio, some sound clips and descriptors and the contact information.

So if you happen on this page and are already interested because you've heard me on the StarShipSofa or Escape Pod and have something you've written that cries out for a voice, give me a call, send me a note, let me know.

As Seen on TV

I’m not a fisherman. My father, was. In that way that people with passion have of viewing their personal joys, he would take me, holidays and birthdays, to some river or lake and sit me down, bank or boat, and get me to be quiet, observant of water and the signs of fish. I accepted his efforts in the spirit which he offered them. They were generosity. He was giving something of himself.

I never learned to like the sport.

Later - much later - I was watching something on late night television. As a constant, interrupting every 12 minutes, was Ron Popeil. Among other things, he was hawking his dad’s invention, the Popeil Pocket Fisherman, an item at the time I thought was about the niftiest thing I’d ever seen. I was still young, and this was a long-ago part of the old century and there were few marvels abroad in the world.

Okay? I hated commercials that interrupted “Citizen Kane," “Rocketship X-M” and whatever else kept me close to that dream-state young American males of the 60s seemed to pull over them like a blanket in the after-midnight of the heart. Still…that thing, the little thing you could stick in the glove compartment and which took the place of the whole trunkload and backseatful of stuff my dad and I trundled and packed before setting forth on what I knew would be a long day of bobbing and sweating and silence…even if we were just heading up to Antietam Reservoir. Well, that was worth a few minutes.
Later, when I reached the age of being a fully realized self-seeking smug American male, I thought, “why not just tell him? Say, ‘I don’t like fishing.’ There it is.” I didn’t. And, by then, he was no longer insisting I go with him.

Later still, I was glad that I hadn’t. I would have missed having to sit in a boat or on a bank, the silence and the seeking for fish signs with my dad, whom I wouldn’t have for too many more years. The Pocket Fisherman? I bought one. Not from a late night pitch by Ron on behalf of his dad’s invention. I found one at a yard sale. Bought it. Loved it. Used it to cast lead sinkers in the yard. I got good. I had it for years. I never fished with it. Finally, it was beautiful. And it represented the bright edge of a long-remembered gift from my father.

FiNAL WORDS ON LORD DICKENS'S DECLARATION -- MAYBE

I wanted to let all 6 of you who frequent this place know that the benefit sale of my novella, LORD DICKENS'S DECLARATION, went very well at the British podcast site StarShipSofa (http://www.starshipsofa.com/). Thanks to a push by a large number of people in the genre community including Neil Gaiman, Corey Doctorow, John Scalzi, Poppy Z. Brite, Matthew Sanborn Smith and others, sales more than tripled the expectations of the StarShipSofa's editors.

I'm not arrogant enough to think it was because of me or the story -- of which I am proud -- but rather, the affection in which the Robinson's are held and the good-will of the Season. So, if you helped, thanks. I hope you enjoy the story and will stop back over to listen to it. The three-part audio epidsode is still available for free at the Starship. It begins on Aural Delight number 111 and goes through number 113.

On a separate note:I found out yesterday that my short story, THEN JUST A DREAM, was voted Best Short/Flash Fiction of the Year by the StarShipSofa in Great Britain.This is the piece that won the Flash Fiction Contest at the World Horror Convention in Toronto in 2007 -- the one Marty Mundt didn't enter -- so this is the DREAM's second award. Maybe I actually ought to try to sell it. That above? That's me, 50 pounds ago and reading, as they say, like a motherfucker to get THEN JUST A DREAM read under the time limit.

In added awards news, I tied with Spider Robinson for the StarShip's Best Narrator of the Year. Which amazes me. If you've never heard him, Spider is fantastic.

If you're interested by the way, you can still contribute to the Jeanne and Spider Robinson fund by going to the StarShip, scrolling down to the first episode of LORD DICKENS... and pretend you're going to buy it. You'll be directed!

Or you can just click on this: http://www.starshipsofa.com/shop/lord-dickenss-declaration/books/

Happy New Year, Happy End of the Decade. The picture below? Just a reminder of the Season that's slipping past and of the tree the cats knocked down last night.

Just another day plus...

Another few hours and the StarShipSofa benefit sale of my novella, LORD DICKENS... Hell, you know what it is! So, for the last time, on December 31, the benefit at the StarShip is over. Done. Finished. For us Unistatians, it's about 5 bucks. Come on! For you Brits, it's 2 pounds 99. I have no idea what Canadians have to shell out. But come on.

This is my first science fiction tale since I lived in Philly and wrote some decently cool stuff set in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey sometime during the 21st century and... Well, the screenplay version of it got me in to see just about everyone in LA.

Of course no one bought or produced it...

I'm babbling. All I want to say is thanks to all of you who've contributed to this project. To Skeet Scienski who illustrated it and whose cover picture for StarShipSofa Stories, Vol. 1 started it; to Dee Cunniffe who laid out the book in what seemed like an overnight turn-around; to Tony C. Smith for having the balls to give me the job; to all who've helped promote the project; to Neil and Matthew and Corey and all the others who helped get the word out; to Josh Leuze who said, "hey! someone ought to do a story about that!"; to the community at large...thanks beyond my ability to thank.

To those of you who haven't yet bought a copy! CONFOUND YOU ALL.. get your butts over to the Starship and put 5 bucks out there.

Below is the press release we've been sending everywhere...just so you know all the details...

And Happy New Year Spider and Jeanne and everyone.

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

STARSHIPSOFA GOES TO THE DICKENS FOR THE ROBINSONS

The British podcast site StarShipSofa (http://www.starshipsofa.com/) is working to rally the science fiction/fantasy community around Spider and Jeanne Robinson this Holiday Season with a special book offer. Jeanne Robinson suffers from a rare form of biliary cancer, the treatments for which have eaten away at the Robinson’s finances as doctors aggressively fight the to keep the disease from spreading.
To give them a helping hand, the online science fiction audio magazine has released an original three-episode novella by multiple Bram Stoker Award nominee Lawrence Santoro. StarShipSofa visitors and subscribers can hear Santoro read "Lord Dickens's Declaration" free of charge.
They may also elect to purchase an ebook of the 23,000 word novella with art by American illustrator Skeet Scienski. Priced at a minimum donation of 2.99 GBP (about $5 US), the purchaser has an option to donate more in increments of 10, 20, 50, & 100 pounds. All proceeds from the sale of the book will go to the Robinsons.
Santoro suspended work on another writing project to write and record ‘Lord Dickens…’. “Over the years, Spider and Jeanne’s work has been a constant on my home shelf and in my memory,” he said. “Giving the Robinson’s a couple months work is small payback. Keep dancing, Jeanne!”
The "Lord Dickens..." ebook will be available for purchase only through December 31st.
Said, StarShipSofa editor Tony C. Smith, “Any fan of the Robinson's can attest to their strength, but we hope that through this time of strife, the science fiction and fantasy community can help them survive through the worst. Thank you for standing with them in their time of need."

The Print Version of LORD DICKENS'S DECLARATION

This is what Humpty Dumpty might have called a good portmanteau post.

The print version of the novella I wrote in aid of the StarShipSofa's fund-raiser for Jeanne and Spider Robinson has arrived for my signature. I'd worried about it ever since the StarShip's editor Tony Smith told me he was mailing it to me to put hands to and autograph. Our postal service in the universe of 60657 is dodgy to say the least. Most things intended for my block seem to find their way into my slot on the expectation that I'll do the delivery. This, of course, is only my perception since many things intended for me seem to find their way into other people's slots and, eventually, get delivered to me with nasty notes wondering why the final delivery Samaritan should have bothered.

But this one arrived. Well, that little salmon slip arrived, the one that announces that a postal employee had actually come to my door -- from past experience this is no guarantee that the actual package would be at the "carrier annex" when I got there to pick it up.

At any rate: it was. I have it. I've opened it. I've looked at it. I've loved it. And, soon, I'll sign it.

All of this is NOT to disparage of the U.S. Postal Service and it's many fine employees. No. It is to remind any of you who are out there and who have NOT bought the .pdf download of LORD DICKENS...that you have until December 31, 2009, to do so and to make your contribution to Jeanne and Spider Robinson.

So go. Go to the StarShip. Click on the appropriate link in the upper right corner of your screen and buy it. You won't have to wait. You won't be subject to the vagaries of the...

But I said I'd not disparage of that semi-government agency any more.

So Happy New Year. And go buy a copy of the book! 'K?!

FINISHING UP LORD DICKENS...

That's it. I'm finished. I can now return to the novel, I can stop hauling my 'puter around with me. I can stop being a mumbling freak, I need not write and edit on the 'L' and bus. I don't have to lock myself in my office at lunch.

I hope those who listened loved it. I hope those who bought it, read with delight. I hope the money it made helped Spider and Jeanne Robinson just a bit in a very shitty time in their lives.

Now, for the rest of things...

Best of StarShipSofa 2010

Wednesday, December 9, the second installment of LORD DICKENS'S DECLARATION went up at StarShipSofa.com.

With it was an announcement of the nominees for "The Best of StarShipSofa" for the past year and I was surprised and delighted to hear that my short short, "Then, Just a Dream" (which won the Flash Fiction competition at the Toronto World Horror Convention in 2007), is a nominee. I was also nominated for narration...I forget how many stories of my own or other people I did during the year. Quite a few, I think. And my "Progress Reports" on the writing of LORD DICKENS... was also among the short-listed Fact offerings of the year.

Thanks to everyone for thinking of me.

Here's the full list of nominees...

BEST MAIN FICTION
Exhalation by Ted Chiang (ep #66)
The Empire of Ice Cream by Jeffery Ford (ep #94)
Mars: A Traveler’s Guide by Ruth Nestvold (ep #73)
Lester Young and the Jupiter’s Moons by Gord Sellar (ep #71)
Child Of An Ancient City by Tad Williams (ep #106)

BEST FLASH & SHORT FICTION
Two Dreams On Trains by Elizabeth Bear (ep #100)
Jesus and the Cowboys by Jay Lake (ep #63)
Bob The Dinosaur Goes To Disneyland by Joe R Lansdale (ep #100)
Then, Just a Dream by Lawerence Santoro (ep #84)
Hard Rain by Matthew Sanborn Smith (ep #54)

BEST POETRY OR SONG CONTRIBUTOR
Michael Bishop
Neil Gaiman
Fred Himebaugh
Norm Sherman
Laurel Winter

BEST NARRATOR
Mike Boris
Jim Campanella
Larry Santoro
Amy H Sturgis
Spider Robinson

BEST FACT ARTICLE CONTRIBUTOR
Jim Campanella (Science News)
Matthew Sanborn Smith (Fiction Crawler)
Lawrence Santoro (Progress Reports)
Amy H Sturgis (History of the Genre)
Damien G Walter (Support Our Zines)

BEST ARTWORK
March 09 (Episode 71) - Skeet
August 09 (Episode 97) - Alllie
"The Reflection of Memory" (Episode 105) - Oleksandra Barysheva
November 09 (Episode 110) - Skeet
StarShipSofa Stories Volume 1 - Skeet

To vote, click on the title of this blog entry to go to the first page of the ballot.