So Much Awesome
GUYS. The Clockwork Crown has its first trade review in Publishers Weekly! And its awesome!
“…Cato continues to defy expectations, moving the saga toward an unexpected, heartfelt conclusion, and the revelations about Octavia’s abilities are amply rewarding.”
In other news, I’m contributing to the annual Suvudu Cage Match. This year’s theme is Women Warriors. The full bracket is shown here. Last week I wrote about Johanna Mason (Hunger Games) and Tris (Divergent), and Johanna won in my story and in the votes. The current match is Johanna versus Felurian (Patrick Rothfuss’s Kingkiller Chronicles). I anticipate a lot more people to disagree with me this time around. Who do you think would win? Go check out the poll!
The Cage Match has been picked up by the media, too, and an article in Bustle dubbed me as a “big name in the biz” (to which I go o_0) and excerpted my story. Like whoa.
In totally different news, my poem “Mama Gonna Fight” was just published in Apex Magazine. This is one of my favorite poems for all of last year (I wrote it during April Poem-A-Day), so I’m really excited that it’s in such an esteemed magazine.
There’s also my Holy Taco Church recipe for the month: Verde Pork in the Slow Cooker. This is a super-easy way to make a whole pile of meat to use in tacos, burritos, salads, casseroles, or just straight-up.
Three months exactly until The Clockwork Crown comes out and already the pace is frantic. Deadlines galore! Reviews! Promo posts! 2015. This year is crazy.
Read MoreStory Behind the Cover of THE CLOCKWORK CROWN
When my editor told me that she’d like to see Octavia and the Lady on the cover of The Clockwork Crown, I thought it was a wonderful idea. I do miss seeing Alonzo again–and I described such a wonderful outfit for him in the book, too–but the series is really Octavia’s story. That’s especially true in Crown. This is where Octavia grows up. She has to confront everything that terrifies her.
Beth Cato at her Metro Center Barnes & Noble signing in December 2014.
I exchanged a number of emails with artist Gene Mollica. There is a lot of give and take in this kind of thing. My biggest request was that Octavia wear the green coat again. I mean, I loved the coat on the Clockwork Dagger cover so much that I commissioned one of my own.
Secret of Mana artwork by Hiro Isono.
Then I needed to describe the Lady. I sent along some descriptions from the books but also some reference images. The whole concept of the Lady and her religion is inspired by the Super Nintendo game Secret of Mana. That was the first place I encountered the world tree mythology when I was a teenager. Nintendo Power published an issue with the Secret of Mana cover art as the centerfold, and I had that Hiro Isono artwork pinned on my bedroom wall for years.
The Lady is a tree whose branches scrape the clouds and whose roots moor the world. A canopy of normal-sized trees is around her roots, like grass is around a typical tree. Her bark is mottled with algae and growths and cascading waterfalls, and creatures of all kinds reside in her shadow. Hiro Isono’s illustrations provided the foundation for my imagination.
Mana series artwork by Hiro Isono.
Therefore, when I saw the cover for Clockwork Crown, I was blown away. Octavia looks great, but the Lady…! It brought tears to my eyes. I mean, look between these illustrations and Gene Mollica’s end result. He created a real-life version of the Lady, inspired by the Mana Tree that I stared at for so many years there on my bedroom wall.
Read MoreSo Many Links
I am behind on All the Things. See, last week I finished up the novella I worked on for five days in November. Then I gave myself the severe deadline of finishing the first revision pass before the end of the month. Oh boy. That was mean of me. It’s been a very intense rewrite of a very bloated, crappy rough draft. It still needs a lot more work but that first pass is done and now I can catch up on other things, like my blog.
HI, GUYS. Let’s get all caught up, shall we?
– I was interviewed on the Science Fiction & Fantasy Marketing Podcast. You can watch the full video or download the audio alone. I talk about my experience with Harper Voyager, my writing background, Dragon Quest slimes, and the Holy Taco Church. As one does.
– Also on the subject of podcasts, at Skiffy and Fantasy Michael R. Underwood gave Clockwork Crown a shout-out as among his most anticipated reads of 2015. He’s at the 30 minute mark. The whole podcast is very interesting, the sort that’s dangerous for your book wish list.
– I’m REALLY EXCITED (CAPSLOCK!!!!) that I have an article on Tor.com: That Was Awesome: The Power of Voice in The Diabolical Miss Hyde. This is a new steampunk book out from Voyager in a few weeks. It’s really good, very intense, definitely on that borderline with horror.
– My recipe at the Holy Taco Church this month is a healthy one: Butternut Squash and Chickpea Tacos.
– Awesome Australian Pete Aldin interviewed me: On CLOCKWORK DAGGER, 5 Questions and 1 Statement.
I had a bunch of new poems come out this month as well!
– “When Death Rides Among Puppets” is in Eye to the Telescope
– “Time Traveler’s Diagnosis,” “Loophole,” “The Border Cowboy in Fairyland,” and “The Border Cowboy’s Smile” are in Star*line 38.1. Follow that link and you can read “Loophole,” which is very short.
I think that’s everything? Maybe? Anything else can wait for another post. A long to-do list awaits!
Read MoreBook Giveaway(s)! And CLOCKWORK CROWN has a cover!
Hey, would you like to win a copy of The Clockwork Dagger? You can, over at Kings River Life! They choose a winner on January 31st. Check it out, and please spread the word.
Oh, but you already have Clockwork Dagger? Would you like to read Crown and get the early buzz going? The book is available through Edelweiss. If you’re registered there, submit your request and wait impatiently.
On the subject of Clockwork Crown, there’s this.
ISN’T IT PRETTY?! I’ll do a post soon where I talk more about the cover, but I am so excited about how it turned out. SQUEE.
2015 Goals
2014 was a year of Holy-Crap-My-Dreams-Are-Coming-True. I survived the book release! I have a book! It’s available in libraries in Wellington, New Zealand and Singapore and everywhere in between! Most every Barnes & Noble in America carries it, and about a dozen airport bookshops, too. How crazy is that?
I do wish I had the chance to write more short fiction this year. I’m down to just a couple stories in circulation–one of those nice problems, as it means everything else sold. It still bugs me, though.
My original post for my 2014 goals can be read over on my LiveJournal. I fulfilled everything but #6, as I did not write a second book.
I’m not sure what 2015 will bring. My two-book contract is fulfilled, with my final edits on The Clockwork Crown turned in just before Christmas. I already have a small Secret Project in the works that I can’t quite discuss in public yet, but I really want to write more novels. So let’s cross fingers and offer burnt butter cookie offerings that good stuff will happen!
Here are my goals for 2015:
1) Meet the deadlines for the three parts of my Secret Project. These are spaced out throughout the year.
2) Prepare comprehensive marketing plan for release of Clockwork Crown in June. This includes regular updates on my personal blog, scheduling interviews and blog posts for other blogs and sites, participation in Novelocity, and seizing other viable opportunities.
a) Don’t have a mental breakdown.
3) Release Clockwork Crown in June.
a) Don’t have a mental breakdown.
4) Participate in Write 1 Sub 1’s Light Ray option and write a new story (fiction or nonfiction) or poem each month, if balanced with novel obligations. Aim to have at least ten works on submission at all times.
5) Write stories to fulfill invitations to anthologies; at least four at this time.
6) Write at least one novel.
7) Continue to participate in 50book challenge, LibraryThing, and Goodreads, reading at least 50 books during 2015 and posting reviews for all.
8) Attend several conventions and book festivals; at this point, I am planning on Tucson Book Festival (March 15th), Phoenix Comicon (May 28-30th), and WorldCon/Sasquan in Spokane, though nothing is set yet.
9) Be honest with myself about my stress and personal limits. Don’t hold it all inside. Reach out to writer friends. Let my agent know what is going on. Take time out for my husband, son, cat, and family. Read. Bake. Go thrift store shopping.
10) Don’t give up. I’ve come a long way in the past year and there’s plenty of mountain left to climb. If tired of climbing, use dynamite.
ebook sale!
Here’s something incredibly cool. The Clockwork Dagger is on sale in ebook format! You can find it for $1.99 on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Google Play, Kobo, and iTunes. This is a limited time offer.
This not only means it’s a great chance to buy a copy for yourself, but you can also easily gift an ebook. I know on Amazon, you just need the recipient’s email, and you can even set the delivery date… like Christmas morning. That’s pretty darn cool.
I’m really excited about this, especially since I’m working on my final revision pass on The Clockwork Crown. It’s the most amazing thing, seeing people buy Dagger and hoping-hoping-hoping they will love it and get Crown, too.
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