Meet me at the UK Games Expo!

I'm off to the UK Games Expo! Would love to meet up with my digital friends in real life - find out more here!

Author Interview: David J Pedersen

Tell us a little bit about yourself e.g. where you live, family, occupation, favourite type of breakfast cereal etc!

I was born in Racine, Wisconsin and raised in Kansas City, Missouri.  I’ve worked in sales, management and IT – which means I’m not good at anything but I can make a mess in lots of different places.  My lovely wife and editor, Angie Pedersen, is a published author of three books about Scrapbooking.  I have a 14 year old daughter and an 18 year old son.  Right now I’m trying the paleo diet, so all cereal sounds really good!

How long have you been writing and what first inspired you to pick up the pen?

I’ve been writing stories since I was in grade school, and got the bug to write a novel in High School – but was never patient enough to do it.  I’m not sure what finally made me turn the corner, if it was too much time in corporate America, or that I was finally mature enough to wait for the microwave to count all the way down to zero.  Either way I’m glad I finally did start because I can’t seem to stop and I’ve got a lot of story to tell.

I see you’ve written a novel called ‘Angst’ – let’s hear the sales pitch for it!

Angst is a story about midlife crisis in medieval times. After turning 40 Angst believes that any chance of his dreams coming true are gone. He is an overweight, paper-pushing, magic-wielder. Magic is mostly illegal and because of this he is stuck in a thankless job. His friends have drifted apart, his marriage is on the rocks, and the only person who seems to care is the teenage princess Victoria. They have become the best of friends, which upsets his wife, and makes things worse with his boss, the Queen. Angst believes that if he had just been allowed to become a knight everything would have turned out better.

The world around Angst is tumbling into chaos. Once extinct magical creatures have begun to appear, they are invulnerable and they are hungry. After pulling the proverbial "sword from the stone," an ancient sword so large people thought it was a statue, Angst discovers he can use it to kill these monsters. To rid herself of Angst, the Queen offers him what he wants the most, a title, possibly even knighthood. All he has to do is find the source of magical creatures. Angst uses this mission as a means to force his friends to accompany him, in hopes that it will pull them close together again. Unfortunately they don't know how much danger they will be facing. While his friends may be too old and out of shape to be fighting monsters, Angst is driven to succeed so he can become a knight.

One of the great things about this novel is that it isn't that traditional fantasy story of ‘a young man or woman filled with potential and seeking the path of greatness’. Angst is a guy who never found that path in his youth and has spent his life wondering why he never got the chance. When the chance is finally thrust on him, he finds that the grass isn't necessarily greener.

Do you consider your work to be in any way autobiographical – i.e. are you facing the same mid-life crisis that plagues your protagonist?

One of my best friends from High School said reading the book was like spending an evening talking to me.  While I’m not Angst, and most of the characters aren’t exact duplicates of friends and family, there are certainly more than a few similarities.  I have tried to follow Mark Twain’s great advice to “write what you know.”  As for a mid-life crisis, I guess it depends on who you ask.  I will say that if going on adventures while being surrounded by attractive young women means I’m going through a mid-life crisis – then I’m in!

Why did you choose to self-publish rather than follow the traditional route of publishing?

There are lots of reasons I never submitted anything to a traditional publisher.  The most important one was retaining control of the story and characters.  I have no doubt that a publisher could make my story more sellable, but I know what I want my story to say and really don’t want anything or anyone cut out.  For instance, there are things that happen in book 2 that may not be referenced again until book 6 or book 100.  I want the flexibility to leave those plot points and characters in place.

I also enjoy the immediate gratification I’ve gotten from self-publishing.  Writing your first book isn’t about money. Instead, my goals have been to entertain, write characters that people care about, and create situations that readers can relate to. And I love to hear that I have made someone laugh.  I’ve been told that I’ve met many of those goals, and I feel great about it.

How important is social media in the marketing/promotion of your work?

To this point it has been everything.  Most of my marketing and promotion has been done through Twitter and my blog.  I never thought I’d say this, but I love Twitter.  It’s a great way to find an audience, and network with other writers.  I’ve met some amazing people and have gotten some great feedback.  The interaction is both fun, and really makes me want to write more.

What’s the most challenging aspect of being a writer?

I want my books to be easy to read, entertaining, and relatable while at the same time being clever enough that you don’t always know what is going to happen. Readers who reviewed Angst enjoyed some of the twists and turns of the story.  I’m proud of my first book and am striving to make the sequel, Buried in Angst, as good, or better than the first.

Do have a strict writing regime or is your creative process fairly relaxed?

Not really - my schedule is crazy full so I fit writing time in when I can.  I try to schedule writing after work 2-3 days a week and feel pretty good if I get one day in -- I usually hide at a bookstore with my netbook and throw up a few pages while listening to various soundtracks.  Then I’ll edit and rewrite the mess a couple of days later at home in the evenings before handing it off to my wife for editing.

What genres and authors do you enjoy reading?

It’s unfortunate that my reading time is my writing time (and my family time, and my exercise time, etc).  I mostly enjoy fantasy and science fiction, but if I don’t have a lot of time to read I’ll pick up a comic book.  I’ve really enjoyed DC Comics’ New 52 soft reboot lately.

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Write!  More than anything you need to write.  Write lots, write little, write poorly – it doesn’t matter.  Every time you write it is like exercising a muscle; your writing will improve and so will the creative process.

David J Pedersen is the author of “Angst”, available on Kindle, Nook, Kobo and other reading devices. He regularly blogs at http://gotangst.blogspot.com/

Author Interview: Natalie Binder

Who is Natalie Binder? Tell us your story!

I’m 26 years old. I live in rural Florida where I work as a public librarian. It’s a great job in a great community, but I’m not from here. I travel a lot. I went to Bard College at Simon’s Rock when I was 16. After I got my A.A. I went to work with AmeriCorps, which gave the opportunity to travel all over the country and meet all different kinds of people. I worked with a lot of different charities and government agencies, which is what inspired me to go into public service. In 2007, I went to Indonesia as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant. It was an amazing experience that still affects me every day—especially through my writing. I recently graduated with my Master’s in information science. I now get to be a librarian during the day and a writer and book reviewer by night.

How long have you been writing and what first inspired you to express yourself in this way?

I wrote my first play when I was eight. It was about dogs. I was a really quiet and isolated kid, so creative writing was a way to express myself and connect with people. I wrote all through my childhood. But I didn’t finish many stories, and I didn’t publish any. It took me a long time to work up the confidence to show my writing to other people. I’ve just started writing real, complete stories and trying to get published. It’s been an incredible learning experience.

Tell us about your book, “New Year's Day”, Redshift Vol. 1 – what's it all about?

Redshift is a time travel story about a twenty-first century man, J.D. Mitchell, who is suddenly and unexpectedly transported into the distant future. He falls in with a group of prison escapees and ends up as a pirate, traveling across the galaxy in search of a way home.

“New Year’s Day” starts at the end of Mitchell’s story, when he’s been captured by the military and forced to confess to everything that he’s done. Eventually we’ll learn how Mitchell came to be a pirate and why he was “kidnapped” by the future.

There were two real scientific “gimmicks” that inspired the Redshift storyline. The first was that in 2011, when I was working on an early draft of “New Year’s Day,” scientists discovered how to hide events in time. The second is that we are beginning to learn how to record people’s dreams and thoughts. I love that conflict between secrets and exposure. I’m planning to really dig into guts of that with Redshift, while also writing what I hope is a fun space adventure story.

The book is the first in a series of novellas – why did you choose this particular format?

I believe in a relationship between form and function. It was a hard decision. People love novel-length stories. The biggest complaint I’ve gotten about “New Year’s Day” is that it’s not long enough—it ends before people expect it to end. It only takes Mitchell through his first set of obstacles. But for very important structural reason Redshift can only hold together the way I’m writing it. I think that will become clearer when I publish “Surprise, Surprise” and “Deal of the Century” this year. The whole thing is built like a Mobius strip. It’s going to turn back in on itself at the midpoint.

I do think that shorter forms, like story collections and novlets, are a great fit for e-readers. The only problem is that I can’t do a Redshift story every week or even every month. Each one takes a lot of time and effort.

Why did you choose to self-publish, and why did you use Smashwords in particular?

Redshift is kind of a mad concept. I believe that it can compete on quality, but it’s not something a publishing company would or could ever gamble on. And that’s OK. The world is big enough for all kinds of writing and publishing now and many different levels of success.

As a librarian and a student of books, I wanted to self-publish to prove that I could do it. A lot of this has been an experiment for me—OK, how do I make an .epub version; OK, how do I get on a bestseller list; OK, how do I get into this or that category. I spent a lot of time in graduate school making web pages and gaming search engines. Now I get to do it as a hobby. A publishing company would never let me do that.

I chose Smashwords because of their extended delivery service. They put “New Year’s Day” on iPads and Nooks. You can even download it plaintext onto your computer. The ebook market is huge. I didn’t see any reason (and still don’t) to limit my distribution to a particular format. I did format my own Kindle version of “New Year’s Day.” Kindle is a very important platform for self-pubbers. I wanted to be personally involved in that process.

How do you make use of social media (facebook, Twitter, blogging, etc) to promote your book?

I am a huge fan of Twitter. It’s my preferred social network. I’ve also used my Facebook to page to document the writing process and share news. I blog about the books sometimes on http://nvbinder.com/blog/. Generally, though, I’ve found social media a pretty tough nut to crack. I think it’s easy for writers get caught up in the marketing side of self-publishing when they should be focused on craft.

In the months since I published “New Year’s Day” I’ve cut way down on self-promotion and used Twitter to get to know other people, ask questions, and talk about things I like. I’ve also started a blog, http://launchscifi.com to help promote other writers. I still tweet about my new books and blogs and things as they’re released, but I try not to do that too much.

How do you balance spending time writing and all the other pressures and responsibilities of life?

It’s not easy. I’m so lucky to have a full-time job that I love, and that has to be my priority. I’m also involved in the community. And there’s a lot of pressure to tweet and blog and read and on and on during my free time. I have to take my writing time in big chunks on the weekends and very late at night. 10 p.m.-2 a.m. is my usual writing time.

What do you consider the most challenging part of the creative process?

Finishing.

Which books/films/television shows inspire you the most?

I’ve taken inspiration from so many different shows and books that it would be difficult to say for sure. Anyone who reads Redshift, and especially “New Year’s Day,” will see Firefly and Farscape in its lineage. I can’t help that. I love those shows. I’m a very straight-laced person in real life, but my other car is a smuggler’s spaceship.

But take Farscape—the person who created that, Rockne O’Bannon, took his inspiration from Flash Gordon. So when I was writing “New Year’s Day,” I had to go back and read Flash Gordon. OK, well, Flash Gordon was created in the 1930s to compete with Buck Rogers. And without H.G. Wells and Jules Verne, you could never have had Buck Rogers. So Redshift’s great-grandparent is really Wells’ The Time Machine. That doesn’t mean I’ve rewritten “The Time Machine,” or Buck Rogers, or Flash Gordon, or Farscape—or that I’m claiming to be as good as them. I can’t make that judgement. But Redshift fits within a cultural milieu which is all around us and has a long history of literary influences.

You can trace anything back the same way. Star Trek and Firefly have a similar family tree to Redshift. You look at something like House—which is a huge mainstream hit—and it’s just Sherlock Holmes with a different name. At the same time they’re releasing modern versions of Sherlock Holmes that are clearly influenced by Hugh Laurie’s performance as House. That’s been going on since the first time Holmes was adapted for the stage. It’s very circular. So who’s to say who had the first idea? Or what will come out of it next?

What would you say to someone who wants to write and publish a book?

You should do it. If you really have that urge to write, you won’t be able to stop yourself. But I have these pieces of advice: 1) Don’t do it alone. Every successful creative work is a group venture. Get help from other writers. Get help from published writers. Let 40 people read it before you put it out in public. 2) Learn to accept criticism. If you have to explain why a character did such-and-such, or why such-and-such happened, you either need to rewrite that part, or accept that not everybody will get it and move on. You can’t convince people to like the book after the fact. 3) Study craft, not marketing. If you want to sell your story, you need to tug at people’s hearts, not at their wallets. 4) Don’t expect financial success or fame. The average book sells less than 100 copies. That’s not per month. That’s ever. Success is magic, and it’s made by audiences, not writers or publishers. 5) Be willing to spend some of your own money. At the very least you need to hire a smart editor and a talented cover designer. Rock bottom, you’re looking at an investment of at least $600-1000 per book—not counting your time.

I say these things not to discourage people, or to be negative, but to make sure they come into this with their eyes open. Some indie writers seem to take it really hard if their book isn’t a bestseller. Your book is doing OK if you’re selling just a few copies a month. Writing didn’t suddenly get easier because publishing did.

That said, there are huge opportunities and rewards out there for people who are willing to make the leap. No matter what, it’s an amazing life and learning experience. I am so proud of what I did with “New Year’s Day,” and I’m looking forward to publishing “Surprise, Surprise,” very soon.

N.V. Binder is the author of “New Year’s Day (Redshift #1),” available for free on Kindle, Nook and other reading devices. She reviews books at http://launchscifi.com.

Some holiday reading: The Time to Die Prologue

Realised I haven't posted for quite a while, so here's some writing for you! This is the prologue to the current Tweet RPG adventure, Time to Die - get ready for some neo-noir detective fiction.

I take the steps two at a time, flying up the decayed staircase into the darkness above. Dirty vibrant colours seep in through the smudged windows of the building. A slamming thud resounds down the stairwell, a door flung shut. Neon flashing across my retinas, I draw my Strayer Voight Deadshot .45 from its holster within my coat, preparing to corner my prey.

I reach the top of the stairs, a solid metal door blocking my path.

End of the line.

I reach for the door handle, slowing my breath, readying myself to burst through. There's probably a cross-hair aimed at the other side of the door. Might get hit, might not. Best to be prepared for the worst, ready to act after that red-hot slug of lead has ripped into my body.

Kicking the door open, I advance onto the rooftop, my body taut, blood thundering through my veins. The cityscape looms above, towers of metal and glass leering down, blocking out the night sky beyond.

My quarry stands on the opposite side of the rooftop, a lithe person dressed in black all-in-one climber-suit. A skull-hugging mask covers their face – could be a man or a woman...

I level my pistol at the person, edging cautiously closer. They don't flinch or move, accept for a slight tilt of their head, seeming to express mocking disdain. I move closer.

There's no loud blast of sound or muzzle flash proceeding the projectile. It rips into my body, sending me reeling back, sprawling onto the ground.

My breath rattles around my chest like a solitary data-chip in a beggar's tin. I look down, expecting to see blood spreading out from an entry wound – but there's something else...

The hilt of a dagger protrudes from my torso. I've seen this object before, touched it, held it.

Suddenly, the last piece of the jigsaw puzzle falls into place.

I've been played for a fool.

A few days earlier...

I toss the knife from hand to hand, the weight of it like the familiar hand shake of an old friend.

“Used one of these during the Middle East Nuclear Crisis – mine had a few more notches than this.” I place the weapon back on its ornamental stand.

“Dr Obadiah helped create the phase-technology inside that weapon,” the young woman utters sheepishly. Her white lab-coat is slightly oversized, her blonde hair bunched tightly against her scalp, her shoes clunky and functional. Quite unremarkable.

“That was some breakthrough,” I comment. “Guys used to tell stories of cutting into the armour of tanks with their blades. The gene-lock on mine played up a lot – wouldn't activate because it didn't recognise me. Just ended up using it like a normal knife.”

The girl doesn't reply.

I turn, casting my eyes over the small laboratory. Coils of wire and components of varying size and shape litter the surfaces, intricate tools scattered amongst the mayhem. The chaos of a genius.

“Will he be here soon?” I ask, breaking the silence.

As if in answer to my question, the door creaks open behind me, a small middle-aged man entering the room. His frizzy grey hair frustrates me – unkempt hair makes my skin crawl.

“The device was stolen at some point in the last twenty-four hours,” the short scientist states with no introduction as he bustles about the lab. “No security footage, no obvious signs of a break-in.”

“Can you elaborate on the function of the device?” I ask, repressing the revulsion and annoyance I instantly feel towards this man, unable to draw my eyes away from the flaky skin on his scalp.

“No.”

“I'm sorry but I really think – ”

“It is a black cuboid box,” the scientist interrupts, “each side measuring about two feet across, with a black rubberised plate on top and an instrument panel on one side.”

I smile broadly at the man, then turn and head out of the door. I haven't got time for this kind of nonsense.

- x -

She catches up with me as I walk out into the grimy alleyway.

“Please, I'm sorry – he's under so much stress.”

I turn, looking at the young woman's earnest face. She could be quite pretty with a little effort.

“Why do you care so much?” I ask. “What's in it for you?”

“He's my doctorate advisor. I need him to sign off on my training, and if he has a meltdown before I get that signature...”

“I see.”

“I'll make sure you get half of the payment up front,” she pleads. “And I'll get you two thousand extra.”

“That's a lot of data,” I say. And I need it. Three month's rent to pay and there's always bullets, booze and food to buy.

“It won't be a problem.”

The door opens, Dr Obadiah stepping out. He shuffles over, watching me beadily.

“Is he going to do it?” he asks.

“Yes,” answers the girl, looking into my eyes imploringly. I say nothing, resigning to surrender. It's a well-paying job. I really don't have a choice.

“Good,” he replies, turning and heading off down the alleyway.

“Goodbye to you too,” I mutter under my breath.

“Thank you,” says the girl, smiling with relief.

“Don't worry about it,” I reply. “Let's go back in – I'll need to inspect the lab.”

She leads me back towards the stairs. I feel a twinge of unease but shake it off like an unwanted embrace. What could possibly happen that I haven't seen before? Only time will tell, I guess...

If you enjoyed that, why not join in with the adventure? The story continues at the start of the New Year - catch up here and follow Tweet RPG on Twitter!

Breaking the radio silence

Many apologies that it's been so long since I've written anything new - I've been absolutely swamped with writing and moderating the latest Tweet RPG adventure, Starfall.

Afraid I still won't be able to post for a while as Tweet RPG is the number one priority for the moment. If you're desperate for some literary stimulation, head over to the Tweet RPG blog and check out all the Starfall articles.

Thanks for bearing with me!

Friends of Samuelj

Tweet RPG

Tweet RPG is a free, Twitter-based, follower-defined RPG service, where adventure stories are played by a community of users, each having the chance to alter the progression of the narrative. I recently started this project, thinking it was a innovative way to promote my writing, and would be a fun way to be creative! The first Tweet RPG adventure, 'King Slayer', started on June the 3rd, and is progressing well, with followers easily engaging with the concept. To join in, all you have to do is follow @tw33t_rpg on Twitter and make your choices! You don't have to take part in every voting session, just vote when you can. You are the hero - the choices are yours.

Neverending Story Project

The Neverending Story Project is a venture with the aim of encouraging anyone and everyone to write something. As they state on their 'about us' page, writing is something we all do throughout our daily lives; why not be creative with it? The NeS webpage promotes writers through interviews and posting stories and fan fiction, hosts Twitter-based writing events and compiles three-page short stories by combining the work of individual writers. If you're budding writer looking to get some recognition, or just want to get involved in a fun creative project, then head over to the NeS page. Follow NeS on Twitter - @story_project

Christian Hoagland - Santa Ana Video Game Community Examiner

Christian Hoagland writes a video gaming news and review page, hosted on Examiner.com. A self-confessed avid gamer, Christian charts his love for video games beginning at the age of two, playing the Sega Genesis. He continued this passion through the changing generations of consoles, and has also provided articles for TrueAchievements. As well as collating up-to-date gaming news and reviewing new products, Christian also posts a series of 'Gamer Spotlight' articles, interviewing video game fanatics about their interests, adding a personal edge to his page. If you like gaming, head on over! Follow Christian on Twitter - @ExaminerCKH

King Slayer has begun!

The day is finally here! As of 8.00 am this morning, the first Tweet RPG adventure, 'King Slayer', has begun! The votes are coming in - where will the story go?

To join in, just follow @tw33t_rpg on Twitter, and send us your choice. Once the voting session has finished, the winning choice will be posted and the next voting session will begin. It's that simple!

There are a couple of gameplay adjustments that you will need to take into account:

• When encountering an enemy, you will be given an assessment of how dangerous your foe is. For example, you might see '[low threat]' after the enemy's name - this indicates the battle will be fairly easy. Precede according to this information.
• There may be some situations where you cannot use your bow during battle. You will see '[bow unusable]' in these situations.

Keep voting and see where the story leads!

Tweet RPG: Twitter's next big thing!

I've recently been working on a new project involving Twitter, and the time has come for some shameless self-promotion! 

The project is called 'Tweet RPG'. It's a Twitter feed providing followers with the opportunity to play 2nd-person text RPGs as a community, voting on what decisions to make throughout the narrative and thus shaping it's progression.

The first Tweet RPG adventure is due to begin on Friday the 3rd of June, at approximately 8.00 am GMT. It's a fantasy story called 'King Slayer' - you can find out more by reading the prologue on the Tweet RPG blog.

If you've got a Twitter account, follow @tw33t_rpg and get involved!

I am the chosen one!

Yes, I have been chosen. Chosen to start the next 'Neverending Story Project' Twitter short story on Friday the 27th of May! Sorry if I gave anyone the impression that I am Harry Potter - there is a slight resemblance, but I'm afraid I'm just a simple muggle.

The Neverending Story Project is a writing venture that creates stories by getting one writer to start a story, another to continue it, and then a final person to compose the conclusion. They also create stories through the use of Twitter, tweeting the opening sentence of a narrative and then leaving it up to the followers to finish the tale. And my sentence was chosen to start their next story! The sentence is:

"Take the next left," she ordered. I turned clumsily, clipping the kerb. It's hard to drive with a pistol wedged in your side.

Visit their website for more details, and follow @story_project on Twitter to get involved!