How to Eat an Elephant

Contrary to popular belief, my first love is not reading. My first love is putting pen to paper and telling stories to anyone interested. Before I ever taught myself how to read, I told stories to entertain myself. As an only child, you can probably imagine the worry I caused my parents when I would find strangers willing to listen to one of my crazy stories. (To me, the definition of ‘stranger’ has always been obscure.)

For my fifteenth birthday my parents bought me an HP desktop, which for the next several years I abused to no end, pounding away on the keys, forcing thoughts, characters, stories and worlds onto the blank page that we writers are all too familiar with; the cursor blinking, taunting and begging for that blank page to be filled. Thoughts filled with fear and doubt always steered me away from being able to finish a story. For a year, I would start a story and abandon it before ever reaching the rising action.

The Spring of ’06 I stumbled upon a handful of paperbacks, each one, in my opinion, better than the last. It started with Brian Keene’s The Rising, and ended with Tamara Pierce’s Bad Things. I blew through them in a matter of a few weeks, and, somewhere in between, Gary A. Braunbeck’s In Silent Graves sealed the deal for me. After putting it down, I knew my calling: to tell my stories to an audience that would pick up my stories of their own volition.

Since that spring day, I’ve managed to do all the right things without realizing it: I joined a writing group, started networking, and continued to write. Which brings me to now: my reading goals have been established for 2012, but I’ve realized my writing goals haven’t. Somewhere within the last month, I’ve realized that I don’t have a professional publishing credit to my name. It’s not a major, life-altering revelation, but it’s made me stop and think hard about what I want to do this year. So, I sat down and drew up my Writing Plan for ’12.

Have you ever heard the phrase that begins: “How do you eat an elephant?” It's probably not something you hear often, if at all, but recently I found myself asking that very question. If you know me, then you know that I'm an ambitious person. Even if I don't succeed, I set crazy goals that seem short of impossible. But I've found that's the only way I can attain my dreams. Even if I don't hit my mark, I've done more than what I would have done before.

Without realizing it, that's how I had approached my reading goals for this year. So, it only made sense that I followed that same format when setting my writing goals.

Here's what my writing goals for '12 look like:

Write four short stories, one for each quarter of the year.

Submit each story to different markets (two of the stories I have planned already have markets to submit to; the last two I have vague ideas for).

Continue work on the handful of novellas that I either have notes for or large chunks written (each novella stands on its own, but all of them are written in the same universe and tell a larger story). My goal is to be able to knit them together and create a novel-length piece by the end of the year.

So, what does that mean for my word count for the year? Well, something like this:

Short Story #1: 3,000 to 10,000 words

Short Story #2: 3,000 to 5,000 words

Short Story #3: 3,000 words

Short Story #4: 5,000 words

Novella #1: 25,000 words

Novella #2: 25,000 words

Novella #3: 35,000 to 40,000 words

Which means between 99,000 to 113,000 words will be written in 2012.

According to traditional publishers, a novel (and this is along the more literary mindset) begins at around 50,000 words. Conventional publishers – the small press and big six who publish speculative fiction – mostly agree on 80,000 (this doesn’t necessarily mean they won’t publish anything shorter, but 80k sells better than 60k).

Either way you slice it, 99,000 words is a lot. Which brings me back to that phrase: “How do you eat an elephant?” Well, that's simple: in small bites.

At the end of February, I’ll be left with 306 days to write 99,000 to 113,000 words. 324 – 370 daily, depending on which goal I need to reach, so let’s just say 370. That’s not too many pages when considering standard formatting: 12 point font, double spaced, Times New Roman or Courier New. Which breaks down to about 350 words per page, for a total of a page a day. Small bites.

A bite a day keeps the doctor away.

Let's see how I do!

~Rodney




Be sure to visit The SciFi Guys Book Review blog or add them on Twitter at the following links:
scifiguysbookreview.blogspot.com
Twitter: twitter.com/scifiguysbkrev

Rodney's personal blog and Twitter page can be found at:
The Bloody Pen
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/kidstaple

Four Steps to Finding Your Next Good Read

Four Steps to Finding Your Next Good Read
by Rodney Carlstrom


As a reviewer, I don't have certain privileges, but as a reader I have all rights in the world. When it comes to reviewing, I usually – 95% of the time – stick to what I'm sent to read. But as a casual reader, I'm very picky about what I consume. I have the right to do so, and so do you!

You are leveraging your time for quality entertainment, unlike the average movie where you get a full story – and sometimes not even that – within an hour and a half. A book is different: you spend more time with the characters, the culture/environment; by the time you're done reading, you've invested so much time in the novel that you might as well have spent all day watching a full season of your favorite show.

For some these following four steps are going to sound very familiar, but they work. Unless you're picking up an author that you absolutely adore, or have heard good things about, chances are you're just looking for that next good read. This checklist will help you achieve that. I can't promise that it's fool-proof, but it's better than picking a book at random.

1. You've heard it before. Chances are you've probably uttered it more times than you care to admit: “Never judge a book by its cover.” It's a worn out, clichéd adage that has more validity to it than most people are willing to admit, especially in the publishing world. And here's why: depending on the publisher, whether they're small press or one of the bigger publishers, the author either has complete control of the cover, or none at all. Yes, the cover might look kick ass, but are you going to take the chance on something so trivial as a picture? Do you know for certain that the cover depicts accurately something within the pages of the book (character/scene)?

Every book has one. Covers are just eye candy for the masses. If they see something that intrigues them, they probably won't hesitate to pick it up. It's the same reason stores put all the chocolates, candies and sweets in the check-out lanes. It's an impulse buy. And unfortunately, that's how the majority of our culture reacts: on impulse. Don't be one of those people, instead go one step further...

2. Flip to the back of the book. Read the synopsis. Now granted, the sole job of the synopsis – and for that matter blurbs from other authors – is to catch your fancy. Smart writing that engages you and makes you think. Does it sound interesting? (Most times, this will be a yes...) If so, move to the next step.

3. Crack open the book. Read a little bit. Don't be afraid. I mean, isn't that why you're in the bookstore to begin with: to find a book to read? To spend quality time absorbed in a world that's not your own? If your answer is yes to either, then:

a. Start with the middle. Open the book and read. See if there's anything worth reading. Does the author's writing catch your fancy, or is there something in that brief glimpse that just doesn't sit right?

b. Now, do the same thing, only crack it open somewhere near the end...preferably three fourths of the way through it. Read. Ask yourself again: is there anything worth reading?

c. Finally, open the book to the very front, preferably the first page. Read (if you've got the time, try the first chapter). Ask yourself again: is there anything worth reading?

4. And finally, follow your gut instinct. Always. Because, somehow, somewhere, between gazing at the cover, reading the back synopsis (or blurb(s)), reading from the middle, the beginning and somewhere close to the end, you've already subconsciously decided. You might not realize it, but you have. Somewhere deep inside your mind, something snapped. Listen to your heart and gut, and one or both of them will pay off with a damn good read. Something you are not only going to remember, but something you won't be able to stop talking about, recommending and demanding your friends, loved ones, and even strangers read.

This might all seem obvious, but time and time again I'm surprised by the conversations I have with people who complain that they're picking up boring reads. Yes, you're going to pick up a book every once in a while that's going to suck big time, but those are risks that everyone takes.

Sometimes it takes the obvious to find that next good read...

~Rodney


Be sure to visit The SciFi Guys Book Review blog or add them on Twitter at the following links:
scifiguysbookreview.blogspot.com
Twitter: twitter.com/scifiguysbkrev

Rodney's personal blog and Twitter page can be found at:
The Bloody Pen
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/kidstaple

My Life as a Reviewer: A Love Affair

Editorial Note: As promised, the Seventh Star Press blog is expanding! New contributors and content bringing you a look into the world of authors, publishing, and more will be gracing the blog in the future.

Today, we kick it off with a nice piece from Rodney Carlstrom, a reviewer with The Sci-Fi Guys Book Review, who gives us a look into what led him into becoming a reviewer, as well as some insight into his process of reviewing. This one should be interesting for both authors and publishers alike!
-Stephen




My Life as a Reviewer: A Love Affair
by Rodney Carlstrom


I'll be the first to admit that I love books, but I'll be the last to admit that I have a problem.


Since that fateful trip to my local library, where I managed to pick up my first 'big boy book' at the age of 12, – J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit – it's been a non-stop race to see how many books I can devour before I die. (Not that I plan on kicking the bucket anytime soon, mind you.) And within those nine years, I think I've done a damn good job of putting a dent in my ever-expanding list of Books-to-Read-Before-I-Die.

Some would call it an obsession. I tend to think of it as a love affair.

Fast forward four years: that first trip to the library has now turned into a weekly occasion, or whenever I can get there. If it meant walking, riding my bike, or catching rides from friends, I found a way to walk those isles of familiarity. For a kid of sixteen, hormones raging, testosterone pumping, that was the closest I ever thought I'd get to having a lover. And oddly enough, I was okay with that.

It was during my browsing of the new fiction shelf that I picked up two novels that would further change my life: Brian Keene's The Conqueror Worms and Gary A. Braunbeck's In Silent Graves (Stephen King's The Shining followed soon after). Although not my typical diet of Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms, Star Wars and Star Trek novels (I blame my father for instilling his love of science fiction in me), these two titles plucked at heartstrings I never knew existed. It was then that I decided I wanted to do the same thing they did for a living; I wanted to write my own stories,and get paid for doing it.

It was in the following years that I began to write. Two short stories later, and I had found my newest obsession, and my second love. And even though I hit a few hard spots along the way, (losing 80,000 words of outline for a fantasy trilogy thanks to a nasty virus) they didn't stop me. I got back up, brushed myself off and put my fingers to the keyboard once again.

So you see, it was only a matter of time before I realized that I could combine the two things that I loved most: writing (albeit not fiction, but a chance to exercise my thoughts and opinions) and reading. Add in a best friend, boredom to the nth degree, a bookcase of novels just waiting to be read, and all summer to read them, and thus The Sci-Fi Guys Book Review Blog was born.

Granted things change. Where at first there were two steady reviewers, now there's only one. Instead of individual podcasts for each book review, there's a single post. Since that initial post two years ago, I've changed as well. Instead of just focusing on reviewing the newest title, I'm dissecting every novel, chapter, page, paragraph and sentence I read.

And with every new review I write, I learn what works best within that novel. Whether it be the mechanics the author uses, the tone or feel the author evokes, the development of the characters, or the author's ability to allow me to escape long enough to block out the world around me, there's always something to have been learned by the last page.

One of the best pieces of writing advice ever given to me came from Horror author Brian Keene, who said that the only way to become a better writer was to read and write every day.

That's it.

It's that simple: Read and write. Every day.

Luckily enough at the time, I was already in a position where I was doing half of what he prescribed.

The other half came from wanting to be as good a storyteller as J.R.R. Tolkien. As imaginative as Stephen King. Or to have the ability to pluck the heartstrings of readers who had never known such a sensation existed, like Gary Braunbeck. Or to tell one hell of a good story like Brian Keene.

Though there are many things that happened before that piece of advice was imparted to me, the most important thing I ever did to open doors in the publishing world, and to hear Brian Keene reaffirm me that I was on the right track, was to start Sci-Fi Guys. It's been two years since I blogged the first post, and since then it has enabled me to get my foot in doors I could have never dreamed of before.

Including the words you're reading right now.

Even though I'm not yet published (I have several stories out floating around, waiting to be snagged), I consider it an honor to be allowed to share my thoughts, ideas and ramblings with readers of the Seventh Star Press Blog.

And to think it all started with a love affair...

~Rodney


Be sure to visit The SciFi Guys Book Review blog or add them on Twitter at the following links:
scifiguysbookreview.blogspot.com
Twitter: twitter.com/scifiguysbkrev

Rodney's personal blog and Twitter page can be found at:
The Bloody Pen
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/kidstaple