Writing in the margins

It's funny. I sit here in 2012 and think that 2011 was all bad, but it had a few sweet moments. My first pro sale. Writing Steampunk for the The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences. Having a poem published by the Science Fiction Poetry Association. A tiny little story down the back of The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities.

But for all that, 2011 felt pretty flat for me. A big part of that was being stuck in a day job that went from being fresh and interesting to flat out soul-destroying. I spent far too many months last year being miserable about the nine-to-five, which resulted in me not sleeping particularly well and, most of the time, in no state for writing.

So I did something about it.

A few months ago I started a new job, at a much larger company. Nothing on the technical side is particularly challenging, but I'm working with (and for) some very smart people. I like going to work in the morning and when I come home at night I don't worry about it.

Quite deliberately, the new job is in Auckland city. Which means if I don't want to sit in traffic for hours every day, I have to take the ferry. 35 minutes each way. That's an extra hour of writing, five days a week. Since I started the new job, armed with a fancy new netbook, I've been writing up a storm. Finished a couple of short stories that had languished for too long. Working on finishing another couple now. Added more words to the very ambitious was-a-short-story-is-now-a-novella-might-end-up-a-novel collaboration. And I wrote a couple of children's books, which could be the hardest thing I've ever attempted.

But all of that? That's all just a warm up for 2012. This year, I'm writing a novel. How hard can it be? Well, probably very hard. But it's time.

I don't know if I'll be blogging much as I put the thing together, but I might put up the odd update. I've always been a seat-of-the-pants writer, but for this one I'll be trying to plan as much as I possibly can in advance. I'll be collecting metrics so I can measure how long it all takes. And stealing some ideas from the dayjob, I'm thinking of using a burn down chart to plot my progress. So the blogging's going to be light. But by the end of this year (and hopefully a lot earlier), I'll have a finished novel.

 That's not a New Year resolution.
 That's a promise.

Ruby, Tales and Wood.

Several things:

My story A Ruby in Rain is now online at Tales from the Archives, the official Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences anthology.

From the farthest edge of the Empire, New Zealand agents Lachlan King and Barry Ferguson are called to interview a recent arrival to Auckland’s prisons. An infamous gambler has turned himself into their custody, not for the safety of society but for his own. The Ministry steps in to uncover a man’s story of impressive luck, and more incredible vision.

Opium dens, clockwork eyes and exploding sheep: just another night in Auckland. Check it out.

Phoenix Rising, the first Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences novel by Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris is available right now. Huge thanks to Pip and Tee for letting me play in their universe.






Tales for Canterbury is now at the printers! You already know it's an amazing bunch of stories by even more amazing people. If you haven't already ordered your copy, just go do it now, OK? I'll wait.









And finally - I can't believe I haven't blogged about it earlier (blame Twitter) but my story 'Wood' will be included in Ticonderoga Publications' Year's Best Australian Fantasy & Horror. The full list of stories:


RJ Astruc: “Johnny and Babushka”
Peter M Ball: “L’esprit de L’escalier”
Alan Baxter: “The King’s Accord”
Jenny Blackford: “Mirror”
Gitte Christensen: “A Sweet Story”
Matthew Chrulew: “Schubert By Candlelight”
Bill Congreve: “Ghia Likes Food”
Rjurik Davidson: “Lovers In Caeli-Amur”
Felicity Dowker: “After the Jump”
Dale Elvy: “Night Shift”
Jason Fischer: “The School Bus”
Dirk Flinthart: “Walker”
Bob Franklin: “Children’s Story”
Christopher Green: “Where We Go To Be Made Lighter”
Paul Haines: “High Tide At Hot Water Beach”
Lisa L. Hannett: “Soil From My Fingers”
Stephen Irwin: “Hive”
Gary Kemble: “Feast Or Famine”
Pete Kempshall: “Brave Face”
Tessa Kum: “Acception”
Martin Livings: “Home”
Maxine McArthur: “A Pearling Tale”
Kirstyn McDermott: “She Said”
Andrew McKiernan: “The Memory Of Water”
Ben Peek: “White Crocodile Jazz”
Simon Petrie: “Dark Rendezvous”
Lezli Robyn: “Anne-droid of Green Gables”
Angela Rega: “Slow Cookin’ “
Angela Slatter: “The Bone Mother”
Angela Slatter & Lisa L Hannett: “The February Dragon”
Grant Stone: “Wood”
Kaaron Warren: “That Girl”
Janeen Webb: “Manifest Destiny”


And that's it for news. Now I'd better retreat into my cave and write some more stories. Thank you and goodnight!

Young Love on the Run from the Federal Alien Administration New Mexico Division (1984)

My family lived in Christchurch. Every summer we'd make the trip up to Marahau, a camp at the entrance of the Abel Tasman National Park.

Far more eloquent people than I have written about the eyes of youth. All I know is the summers lasted forever, the sky was bigger than God and the air was so rich with energy I'm still running on it now. To walk barefoot on a burning road, then to sink your toes into the sand at the edge of the bluest sea - I can't see how Heaven can be any better than being thirteen years old in 1985.

I wanted to write a story that celebrated everything I loved about the Eighties. Not the reality: the dirt and the politics and the poverty of it. But about all that music, all those movies, all that television I soaked up. And that unending sun. Live Aid and 12" Singles and Rocky 4 and Apple IIs and riding away on a luck dragon after saving the princess.

So, this week at Strange Horizons: Young Love on the Run from the Federal Alien Administration New Mexico Division (1984). Think of it as E.T., as directed by John Hughes. Hope you like it.

Huge thanks to Karen Meisner, whose amazing editing skills hit me like an after school special. Karen helped to solve problems that had stumped me worse than a Rubik's Cube. And I couldn't even peel the stickers off.

And I don't suppose they'll ever read this, but I also need to thank Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal. This story would not exist without them.




Postscript: The same week my story appears at Strange Horizons, they run a review of My Little Pony. Not only is this entirely appropriate for an Eighties story, but I don't think there's anything I can ever do to impress my daughters more than appearing on a website with Pinkie Pie.

Driving by

This is one of those posts where I cram a whole bunch in. Ready?

My story 'The Salt Line' is featured in Night-Mantled: The Best of Wily Writers (Volume 1). I'm in good company: Nathan Crowder, Jennifer Brozek, Seanan Mcguire and many others including the mighty Ripley Patton. It's available at Amazon and Smashwords. Check it out.

Ripley of course, lives down in Christchurch, my home town. I've tried several times to write something meaningful about the earthquake and failed. Emily Perkins covers it better than I ever could in The Guardian.

My story 'When Her Wings' is included in Tales For Canterbury, organised by the amazing J.C. Hart and Anna Caro, with all proceeds going to help Christchurch. It's going to be available soon, in both ebook and paper versions. Seriously people, you're going to want to buy a copy of this one. Check out the list of contributors! I'm going to ask everyone to make a real big noise when it comes out.

If you're in Auckland on March 25th, get yourself to a library for the Auckland Writers and Poets benefit for the Christchurch earthquake. Which library? Pretty much any of the 30+ libraries around Auckland. Looks like most are kicking off at either 6PM, with a few at 1PM. Check your local library for more details. I'll be reading something at the Highland Park library.

Just one more piece of news. I've just learned that my poem 'Dead Air' from Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine #46 received an honorable mention in Ellen Datlow's Best Horror of the Year! And it wasn't just me: John Dixon & Adam Browne's 'The Laughing Girl of Bora Fanong' and Christopher Green's 'Linger' also got nods. If you haven't checked out Andromeda Spaceways before, consider that your invitation.

OK, one more. b0t #2 is late but it's coming. Soon. For serious.