The Life and Loves of April Johnson Now Available!!
2 months ago
Blog Talk Interview (29 May)
Come and give a listen to my blog talk radio interview 29 May (Saturday) at 6pm EST with One World One Voice. Raven Starr is getting me out of bed early (I sleep days and works nights) to entertain all the lovely listeners. Don't miss out. You never know what I'll say in my half-sleep state. :D
~D. Renee Bagby
Building New Realms of Passion...
http://dreneebagby.comRead More......
~D. Renee Bagby
Building New Realms of Passion...
http://dreneebagby.com
New Short Story by Jean Marie
I took a page out of S.J. Willing's book today and posted a short short story for my Samhain blog. Consider it a free pass into the weirder corners of my mind. It's "All About the Flies". Really. ;-)
Waiting to Balticon--Jean Marie's Schedule
Memorial Day and Balticon—the two go together like fun and three-day weekends. Balticon is the premier Maryland regional science fiction and fantasy convention, which this year runs from May 28-31 at the Marriott Hunt Valley Inn. Tanya Huff will be the Writer Guest of Honor, but that’s only the beginning, folks: Gail Carriger, Keith R.A. DeCandido, Laura Anne Gilman, Gail Z. Martin, Jeri Smith-Ready, Maria Snyder… and, well, me.This year I snagged five fabulous panels. Hope to see you there.
Friday, 7 p.m.
Are You Sure You Want to Go There? Writing about the darker things in life: Rape. Torture. Childhood trauma. Sex with Dwarves. Sometimes it's done for a laugh. Sometimes it is done for an emotional response. Sometimes, we ask ourselves "What was THAT all about?!" So why not ask the pros who do it? When is shock essential to the story, and when is it sensational? Find out if authors add in moments of terror and extreme situations in order to surprise an audience, or as an alternative to group therapy. Jennifer Andrea, Allison Duncan, Chris Lester, Tee Morris (moderator) and Jean Marie Ward.
Friday, 10 p.m.
Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading – Seven Broad Universe authors resent tasty, bite-sized readings of their work that will leave you hungry for more. Danielle Ackley McPhail, Roxanne Bland (moderator), Elaine Corvidae, Kelly A. Harmon, Gail Z. Martin, Roberta Rogow and Jean Marie Ward.
Saturday, 11:30 a.m.
The Many Faces of Fantasy or the Road to Victory – Peter Beagle once divided fantasy into High and Low categories. One web site lists more than 20 sub-genres. Let's discuss some examples of these. Can we say that Frodo Baggins and Vicky Nelson are characters from the same genre? What is urban fantasy? Is it the same as contemporary fantasy? Elwin Cotman(m), Tanya Huff, Misty Massey, Darrell Schweitzer, Jean Marie Ward
Sunday, 6 p.m.
Creating Three Dimensional Characters – When writing an adventure or a story, having characters that the readers can get into is half the battle. If the readers or players become intrigued by the characters, then the rest of the story will fall into place. Join our writers as they discuss creating compelling characters. Gail Carriger, C.J. Henderson, Kory Kaese (moderator), Bernie Mojses, and Jean Marie Ward.
Sunday, 7 p.m.
The Legendary Triple Launch – Bad-Ass Faeries 3: In All Their Glory, Dragon's Lure, and New Blood. Faeries, dragons and vampires; a little bit of something for everyone. See writers in costume try to read their works. There will be too many of us to name. And yes, I will be wearing wings. Be afraid, be very afraid.
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Book Cover: ERIS
Siren-Bookstrand has just given me my cover for ERIS, my first menage title due out some time this summer (as soon as I get a concrete date, I'll pass that info along)
What do you think?
~ ReneeRead More......
What do you think?
~ Renee
Coming Soon to a Balticon Near You
Normally I wait until I’ve got my schedule in my hand to do a long Balticon promo post, but I think this merits a special post. Danielle Ackley-McPhail—writer, editor and hostess of some of the wildest con parties around—will be launching not one, not two, but three anthologies at Balticon from 7-9 p.m., Sunday May 30, at the Hunt Valley Marriott outside Baltimore, Maryland.
On the surface dragons, fairies and vampires might not seem to have a lot in common, but as Dani says, fiction readers never grow tired of them. “Each of these anthologies takes one of those legends and gives the reader what they want…and so much more.”
Since one of my favorite short stories, “Lord Bai’s Discovery”, is included in Dragon’s Lure, I must heartily agree. :-)
As always with Dani’s parties, there will be scads of writers, great refreshments and marvelous prizes, including a hand-sculpted dragon box by acclaimed artist Linda Saboe. There will also be readings by the anthology contributors including Dani, Linda, Elaine Corvidae, Keith R.A. DeCandido, John Grant, Kelly Harmon, C.J. Henderson, Brian Koscienski, Jeffrey Lymon, L. Jagi Lamplighter, Terri Osborne, Chris Pisano and me, Me, ME!
Well, to be honest, I won’t be reading three times. But I do plan to read “Lord Bai’s Discovery”. Hope to see you there. In the meantime, if you want to learn more, check out Dani’s launch page.
On the surface dragons, fairies and vampires might not seem to have a lot in common, but as Dani says, fiction readers never grow tired of them. “Each of these anthologies takes one of those legends and gives the reader what they want…and so much more.”
Since one of my favorite short stories, “Lord Bai’s Discovery”, is included in Dragon’s Lure, I must heartily agree. :-)
As always with Dani’s parties, there will be scads of writers, great refreshments and marvelous prizes, including a hand-sculpted dragon box by acclaimed artist Linda Saboe. There will also be readings by the anthology contributors including Dani, Linda, Elaine Corvidae, Keith R.A. DeCandido, John Grant, Kelly Harmon, C.J. Henderson, Brian Koscienski, Jeffrey Lymon, L. Jagi Lamplighter, Terri Osborne, Chris Pisano and me, Me, ME!
Well, to be honest, I won’t be reading three times. But I do plan to read “Lord Bai’s Discovery”. Hope to see you there. In the meantime, if you want to learn more, check out Dani’s launch page.
Enjoy!
Jean Marie
Con Catch-up
Finally finished my April con reports on RavenCon, the Library of Congress, Turn the Page Bookstore Cafe's 2010 mega-signing and the Washington Romance Writers Retreat. The results, plus twelve occasions for blackmail--er, photos are now live at Beyond the Veil. That means if you want to know what Roxanne St. Claire and Charlaine Harris are doing with those sugar packets, you'll just have to click the link. Mwahahahahahaha!Jean Marie
RavenCon, Retreat and the Library of Congress, Oh My!
It is a truth universally acknowledged that the more fun I’m having away from the keyboard, the less likely I am to blog. Guess who’s been having way too much fun this month. We’ll draw a veil over the household’s Easter/Oster celebrations. Suffice it to say much chocolate was consumed—necessary fuel for what was to follow.
Next came RavenCon, which this year featured two of my favorite people, Rachel Caine and her husband R. Cat, as Writer and Artist Guests of Honor, respectively. And that’s not even counting the great people who run the convention. If you’re interested in a visual tour of the fun, my April 9 and 10 photos can be found here. Sunday, April 11, I was too busy to shoot. Honest!
The very next day, Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Sarah Avery, Christine Norris and I upheld the honor of Broad Universe at the Library of Congress. We didn’t get any photos of the Rapid Fire Reading itself, but if you want to see the unusual suspects, click here.
On April 16, it was off to Turn the Page Bookstore Café in Boonsboro, Maryland, for the annual mega-signing with Nora Roberts and the featured guests of the Washington Romance Writers annual conference, “In the Company of Writers”, then the conference itself. The Retreat, as it’s called, is always a highlight of my year. I just wish the love came through in the photos. The subjects are so much lovelier than their photos.
I’ll write a longer report for my monthly Beyond the Veil blog on May 8. But until then, I leave you with this. Enjoy!
(Left to right) authors Charlaine Harris, Diane Whiteside and Ginjer Buchanan, Ace/Roc editor-in-chief at the WRW Retreat, April 17.
Jean MarieRead More......
Next came RavenCon, which this year featured two of my favorite people, Rachel Caine and her husband R. Cat, as Writer and Artist Guests of Honor, respectively. And that’s not even counting the great people who run the convention. If you’re interested in a visual tour of the fun, my April 9 and 10 photos can be found here. Sunday, April 11, I was too busy to shoot. Honest!
The very next day, Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Sarah Avery, Christine Norris and I upheld the honor of Broad Universe at the Library of Congress. We didn’t get any photos of the Rapid Fire Reading itself, but if you want to see the unusual suspects, click here.
On April 16, it was off to Turn the Page Bookstore Café in Boonsboro, Maryland, for the annual mega-signing with Nora Roberts and the featured guests of the Washington Romance Writers annual conference, “In the Company of Writers”, then the conference itself. The Retreat, as it’s called, is always a highlight of my year. I just wish the love came through in the photos. The subjects are so much lovelier than their photos.
I’ll write a longer report for my monthly Beyond the Veil blog on May 8. But until then, I leave you with this. Enjoy!
(Left to right) authors Charlaine Harris, Diane Whiteside and Ginjer Buchanan, Ace/Roc editor-in-chief at the WRW Retreat, April 17.
Jean Marie
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