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Lumpy by Ronald Wayne Jones
Sensory Detail
In Print
A Timely Thought
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BLACK BREATH OF LUTRON 23House is proud to present the latest offering by Ronald Wayne Jones, author of The Dwarf Demon Tongue. In a time where corporations have gained enough power to become the governments, natural resource companies rule them all. But when their employees are treated like an ore body, something to be used and cast aside, you know trouble will follow. Black Breath of the Lutron will be available from http://www.23house.com within weeks in both trade paperback and CD-ROM format.
by If this
maniac held true to his word, we had less than a half-hour before the
only ore accelerator on the planet went up in an eruption of rodnium
dust, collapsing the heart of our mine. I flipped on the flashing lights
and sped down the tunnel toward the magnetic accelerator shaft. More
volatile than magnesium in water, rodnium metal had a unique energy
signature that made it more valuable than gold.
The warts between
Lumpy's bulbous eyes protruded as he wrinkled his flat nose, and stared
at me from the passenger seat. "So, Lieutenant Dregs, who is this Mister
Roscoe, and why does he want to shut down Milco's mining operations
on Kimoto? I might understand if he was one of the lizards your company
cheated out of their planet's mineral resources, but not a human. Is
Mr. Roscoe a union organizer, or some rebellious agitator bent on revolution?"
I checked the
rear view monitor of my hovercraft. The vehicle containing Lumpy's two
bodyguards dodged through traffic behind us. The squatty meter-tall
alien never went anywhere without his henchmen.
Polite patter
wasn't what I'd expected from Lumpy, but Milco had demanded him as their
negotiator. Roscoe was probably just another guy who'd grown tired of
being treated like a disposable diaper, but Lumpy had a point. Milco
was more than a greedy corporation. It was our government on Earth.
"Don't play political
mind games with me." I refused to give him the satisfaction of looking
him in the eye. "You don't give a rat's ass who he is, do you?"
Lumpy's grin exposed
three rows of yellowed triangular teeth. "Of course, I do. If I'm to
mediate, I need to know his motivations."
Molybdenum-colored
stone flashed past on both sides of the narrowing tunnel. I knew every
twist and wiggle of the mine haulage tunnels and Lumpy's guards were
falling farther behind. Maybe I'd get lucky and lose the predatory toads.
"What good does
it do to know what makes him tick?"
Lumpy pressed
the suckers on his fingertips together and jerked them apart, creating
a series of annoying snaps. "All the difference in the world. You don't
threaten a man who doesn't care if he lives. Neither do you offer a
man a bribe who could care less about the goods a mountain of rodnium
will buy. I get the impression you resent Milco requesting my services
in this matter."
"Why would you
think that?" I knew all too well how deadly his bodyguards' barbed tongues
were. They could reduce a man to a hundred pounds of chuck steaks and
blood sausage before his heart hit the ground and stopped beating. "I'll
admit that I am curious how many of Milco's people you've had murdered.
Only last week one of our drillers, a man who some say owed you money,
vanished off this planet without leaving a trace."
"Maybe he got
tired of this dreary rocky scenery. How would I know what happened to
that deadbeat?"
I was sure he
knew more. The Dolamonds dealt in all kinds of illegal alien technology:
nucleic acid scramblers that made DNA traces impossible, synapse fusion
wands that could imprint false memories on peoples brains or erase them
entirely, and all manner of weird weapons.
"Don't play naive,
Lumpy. Everyone knows you control most of the gambling, drugs, and prostitution
on Kimoto, even if Major Mossberg can't find anyone willing to testify
against you."
"I thought
human laws presumed a person innocent until proven guilty." The Dolamond's
teasing laugh left me wondering how many police officers on how many
planets he'd played verbal tag with. "Even if you work for the same
people who pay me, Lieutenant, that's no excuse for making unsubstantiated
accusations."
I was swimming
with Bravagion dragonfish, but I wasn't about to back down to twenty
pounds of corruption packed into a five-pound bag. "Do you deny you're
backing the local loan sharks?"
The little weasel
hadn't become wealthy on the low-margin loans that Milco allowed. Lumpy's
underground offices showcased plusher furnishings than those of the
mine director, the highest-ranking Milco officer on this glacier-encrusted
planet.
"We run our enterprises
on one simple rule. Those who don't have the resources to repay are
denied. Besides, if that drill operator owed us cash, what profit is
there in murdering him before we've recouped our funds? By the sacred
law texts, I'd be more anxious to find him than you."
I was about to
challenge him when our headlights came to rest on a disheveled figure
standing in the tunnel. I noticed the detonator's red power light long
before I recognized the rows of explosive boosters taped to his chest
like a red flack jacket. If this guy released the electronic triggering
mechanism, clutched in his fist, half the mine would be blasted into
space along with everyone in it.
"Why did you bring
that miserable toad?" Roscoe bellowed as we climbed out of the cruiser.
"I told Milco's Director of Resource Management that I'd only speak
with security."
Lumpy's movements
resembled those of a mud skipper as he wobbled toward Roscoe on his
stubby legs and dainty webbed feet.
Roscoe raised
his hand, threatening to drop the trigger. "Don't come one step closer."
"If you know Dolamonds,
you must have heard of our unsurpassed talent as lawyers. Even a terrorist
is entitled to representation."
"I'm no fool,
you slippery, double-talking toad. I demand to speak with a man called
Brandon Dregs, and I want him here alone. Milco's time is nearly out."
I pointed to my badge. "I'm Lieutenant Dregs."
"Then, get that slime-tongued lawyer out of here."
"I wouldn't be
so hasty, my friend," Lumpy pleaded. Dolamonds didn't sweat, but his
breathing tubes gave away his jitters. His snorkels arched back from
the top of his head like impala horns, leaving the attached long ears
dangling like a pair of limp pendants at half-mast. "You're in serious
trouble, and threatening to blow up your government's only link with
its ore-processing satellites isn't winning you any admiration from
Milco's officers."
Roscoe's face
flushed. "Those corrupt bastards? I warned you to get that sucking leach
out of here."
"As much as I
wish I could, I can't," I explained. "My boss ordered me to bring him
as their negotiator. Please, listen to him."
Roscoe smiled
for the first time. "You've got to be joking. Dolamonds don't negotiate
with troublemakers. They eliminate them."
"Maybe Milco will
agree to pay his fee to represent you. When he says that Dolamonds are
the most talented criminal law experts in the galaxy, that's no idle
boast. He may even have a solution to whatever is bothering you. Think
of all the innocent victims who'll die if you slacken your grip on that
trigger, not to mention you and me."
Roscoe's gaze
fixed on me for the first time since our arrival. "So, you don't care
for Lumpy either?"
I stepped around
the short creature, putting me between the angry man and his target.
It wouldn't do much good if this nut released the trigger with all this
high-grade rodnium around us, but maybe it would get him out of this
guy's sight. "I was talking about innocent victims. Neither innocent
nor victim are words I'd use to describe a Dolamond."
I cringed when
I heard the bodyguards' vehicle whine to a stop in the tunnel behind
us, but saw no signs of headlights. My only hope, that Roscoe had missed
the faint howl, vanished when their hovercraft settled to the ground
with a loud clank after the anti-gravity generator ground to a halt.
"Who's there?" Roscoe shouted, his eyes searching the darkness behind me.
"Relax." I
prayed Lumpy's two eight-foot bodyguards would have the
sense to stay hidden in the shadows. Down here in this section of the
development panel, no one had yet strung lights. His two hit-men, a
pair of giant bipedal bullfrogs, were deadlier than the Dolamond.
I didn't appreciate
them creeping around behind my back, but I couldn't worry about them.
I had to talk this guy into disarming his bomb. I could still resolve
this without anyone getting killed. He obviously wanted to talk, or
he wouldn't have requested a security officer, but why me?
"Do you mind if
I sit down?" I eased forward, and pointed toward a large stone, hoping
he might take a seat near enough that I could jump him and keep him
from releasing the switch. "What did you want to discuss?"
He rubbed
his sleeve across his forehead before responding in a whisper. "I've
uncovered some information that might be of interest to security. A
friend once mentioned that you could be trusted."
A long gooey
tongue hissed out of the darkness to rip into Roscoe's neck. The man
stiffened and toppled like a felled pine. I grabbed for Roscoe's hand,
but it remained clinched like stone around the trigger. Roscoe stared
up at me with dead eyes.
"Damn it, Lumpy!
That stunt could have killed us both! Couldn't your bodyguards have
given us a chance to talk? He was just about to tell us something."
"My bodyguards
knew exactly what spot to hit to freeze his hand. You weren't in danger."
"That's not my
point. They killed him."
"And you could
be, too." Lumpy's comment sounded too much like a threat. "Relax, Lieutenant.
I'll put in a good word for you with Milco's staff. You did great distracting
him while my men worked their way behind him. Maneuvering him over to
those stones was a stroke of genius.
I didn't feel
like a hero. As I disarmed the string of interconnected primers, I couldn't
help wondering what secret Roscoe had learned and why Lumpy, and Milco
for that matter, were so determined not to let him pass it to me. * * * * * Ron Jones is the Gazette's West Coast Fiction Talent Editor and is a science fiction, fantasy, and action adventure author. His books are available from http://www.23house.com, or through Amazon.com.
by We've left the spring rains of Oregon
far, far behind and we're basking in the warm sunshine of The Coronado
National Forest in Southeast Arizona. As I sit here at a picnic table
at the South Fork of Cave Creek I can hear the raucous calls of Arizona’s
Gray-Breasted Jay, and in the background I can hear other birds singing
- a Wilson's Warbler, a Northern Flicker off in the distance, and something
that sounds like a small flycatcher. I'm not so certain about that one;
a single note song, descending slightly at the end, almost like the
sound of a young kitten's cry. I need to brush up on my flycatcher songs.
Sensory detail is important in any genre
of writing (Bridled Titmouse, off to my left), but it is even more important
in travel and nature writing. To transport your readers (another Wilson’s
Warbler, closer this time), use all sensory detail that you can. For
example, I could say that this Arizona mountain forest "has lots of
different kinds of trees," or I could describe how the smooth white
bark of the sycamore contrasts with the twisted branches of green and
gold leaves of the live oak growing beneath it, and how the juniper's
sharp tang perfumes the air in the afternoon heat. I could just point
out that there's an Acorn Woodpecker on one of those junipers, but wouldn’t
you rather hear about how comical he looks, with the red spot on the
back of his head and his yellow and white clown make-up?
It is these small details which add realism
to your articles or stories, and which separate the writer who has first-hand
knowledge of a subject from a writer who did his research on the Internet,
never actually experiencing it for himself.
When you travel, always carry a notebook
and always record as much detail about a place as you can, even if you
have no plans to write an article. Those notes you took in Scotland
about how the damp air soaked through your clothes and coated your with
tiny, crystal droplets, how the fog moved in so quickly that it became
impossible to see the tops of the hills in front of you. Those notes
might come in very handy if in five years you decide to write a novel
set in Scotland.
The right details at the right time can
also provide you with credibility. For example, the Acorn Woodpecker
calling behind me sounds something like "WON-ka, WON-ka WON-ka!" No
other woodpecker sounds quite like it. If you say, "I hear an Acorn
Woodpecker," you’d be accurate. If you say, "I hear an Acorn Woodpecker
calling 'WON-ka, WON-ka, WON-ka,'" others who have heard an Acorn Woodpecker
will say "yes, that’s what they sound like. This writer knows his stuff."
Write those details down now, for use later.
I recently read an excellent book by
Pete Dunne, called "The Feather Quest." Although it is primarily a book
for birders, Dunne is a master at inserting sensory detail into his
writing. For example:
"In our travels, Linda and I have filtered
a lot of North America through our lungs, tasted both the good and bad
of it on our tongues. We have known and savored the clean air that smells
of pine. The clean air that smells of sage. Clean air that smells of
brine. Clean air that carries the flinty, dry, scrubbed smell of desert
sand.
But until we reached the Arctic, I had
never breathed clean air that smelled like air. Just air. Unless what
I was mistaking for air was actually the cold no-smell of ice. Ice or
ice-laden air. I think I understand, now, what people mean when they
speak of air so clean that it intoxicates, air so clean it makes you
greedy for more, so greedy you think you'll never get enough of it."
Reading "the air was clean and fresh"
might be accurate, but it wouldn't make me want to experience the Arctic
for myself. Pete Dunne's two paragraphs on Arctic air are very compelling.
Get intp the habit of paying attention
to sensory detail wherever you are. Start now - wherever you are. Use
all your senses. What do you see? What is the quality of the light?
How does the air smell? Is it warm or cool, dry or damp? What tastes
cross your tongue? What sounds do you hear? Write it down. Do the same
thing in your backyard, at the bus stop, at your favorite coffee shop.
Do it so often that noticing sensory detail becomes second nature. That
way, on your next journey to a new place, you'll be tuned in and ready
to notice; and write down everything.
* * * * * Terrie Murray is a freelance nature writer from Portland, Oregon, who has published numerous magazine articles on birds, travel, bird watching and bird watchers. She is currently working on her first novel. Terrie is also the Travel Editor for the Emporium Gazette.
by Have you ever wondered what it is like
working with a printer to get your book published? Face it. Many university
presses don't print their books. They contract that work to any one
of a number of firms who print under that university's logo. Why shouldn't
you, the struggling author, do the same?
When dealing with a printer, remember
that most speak English but beware of their unique dialect. They regularly
use words like gutters, bleed, trim, multiple terms for paper grades,
phrases like camera-ready copy and a dictionary of other terms. If you
don't understand these terms, you aren't going to get their best price,
and it becomes highly unlikely you'll end up with what you want.
First you must understand what it takes
to get the copy into the format the printer needs. The term "camera
ready" means that your text must be in a form ready for type setting.
The printer should have no cause to manipulate your text. Just as today's
publisher will not line edit, neither will a printer play with your
type without charging you a fee. It must be in the font size you want,
set on the page size you specify, and with the margins, page numbers,
headers, and footers coded into your text. This is usually provided
on a floppy disk in a Microsoft Word or Word Perfect format.
Admittedly there are places who'll work
with rookie publishers, but others could care less about the customer
once they have his cash. So, make sure you have a reputable firm.
Check them out, and make sure they have been around for a while. If
not, check their customer lists for any signs of problems.
Having determined that the printer isn't
a fly-by-night firm, you need to understand what determines their costs.
Paper costs money and each company has a preference for the size of
paper it uses depending on the stock they purchase. When providing
you, the customer, with a bid, you tell the printer what stock your
book will be printed on by specifying the finished page size. You're
best bet is to stick with one of their standard sizes. This will likely
mean that you will not be able to quote one size book and get the best
price from each and every printer. Remember this fact during the bidding
process.
You can reduce your cost per book by using
smaller fonts, using a compressed font style, using single line spacing,
and reducing the margin requirements. Don't go into the bid process
without knowing what page count you have in the page size specified.
If you tell the printer the number of manuscript pages you have, it
will be like talking to the wall. Check out what looks best and format
your book for the page size you specified. This will allow the printer
to bid it accurately.
You must also understand that 12 point
Avant Garde fonts look twice the size of the same point of Mistral fonts.
This sounds corny, but fonts are not created equal. When picking a type
size remember your reader's eyes. Don't make it so small that he can't
read it without a jeweler's lens.
Also remember that the book will not be
printed on the page size you specify. In the binding process, the printer
will print on a flat layout. For instance, if you specify a six-inch
wide page by nine inches tall, the printer will choose a stock that
is slightly over nine inches tall and trim that to size after it is
printed. The width on the other hand will be at least twelve inches
wide, folding it in the middle and sewing these "pages" together in
groupings of eight sheets each. Thus, your book of 400 pages will only
require 100 sheets of paper assuming this includes your title pages,
acknowledgments, and all the other pages needed to make it come out
to some multiple of the eight page groupings.
Another thing to remember is not to crowd
your margins. When you fold a sheet to create four pages, this fold
produces what is called the gutter. If you crowd this blank dimension,
the reader will have trouble seeing the text without flattening the
page and breaking the spine. Usually you will need to provide additional
margin at the gutter than provided on the top, bottom or outside edges
of the page. Use a minimum of a half-inch, but I would recommend at
least three-quarters if you center all pages and don't provide extra
gutter at the binding. If you provide extra gutter, each page will alternate
having an extra quarter of an inch on the left or right of the page
so the print seems centered while accounting for the binding.
The paper stock's weight or thickness
is another variable. If you have illustrations or heavy areas of ink,
you will require a heavier paper to keep the pages from rippling under
the moisture. Most books are printed using number 50 paper, which is
equivalent to the 20 pound paper most people use in their personal computer
printers. The next step up is number sixty, which is equal to 25 pound
paper. Thus you can figure it is also 25% thicker as well for the same
number of pages. I'd suggest visiting an office supply store if you
want to see what these paper stocks look and feel like.
As a publisher, you will also have to
provide the printer with a "Camera Ready" cover. The first thing to
ask the printer is, What will my binding width be for the weight of
paper you specify? You can estimate this by pressing a group of sheets
together using the information in the previous paragraph, but asking
the printer is much more accurate, assuming you know the number of pages
in your chosen format. Once you know this and the page size you can
proceed to the cover design.
Again, cover art will cost you extra.
Your best bet is to hire a professional to do this, someone with the
equipment and programming to make this work a breeze. Unless you know
the talent of the printer you hire, I definitely wouldn't suggest leaving
this in their hands. People are available who do this kind of work at
a reasonable price. Ask for examples of their portfolio. Believe me,
it is worth it to take part of the load off your back leaving you free
to shoulder other details.
If this artist is not familiar with the
layout of a cover, you must remember the following. The printer will
not be able to cut the stock exactly on center once it has been printed.
If your art work extends to the edge of the cover you will have to add
a quarter of an inch all the way around the layout to allow for what
they call "bleed."
Now think about that summary and reviews
printed on the back cover. Will some of that text be cropped when the
binder does his final trimming, or maybe a necessary detail on the cover
art? Allow an extra quarter of an inch around such text for trim misalignment.
(This means that your cover margins for trim and bleed is now a full
half-inch.)
Insist that the artist provide you with
art in a minimum of 300 dot per inch format. While low-resolution art
is acceptable for the electronic publishing's computer screens, print
media must be much more detailed to fool the human eye. 300 dpi images
will provide for a crisper image. However, this format will create a
huge file that won't be easily transmitted in any other form than CD-ROM.
My cover took over 4.5 megabytes for a 9" X 12.5" flat layout cover.
This is a lot of data and won't fit on a standard 1.44M floppy, even
in compressed form.
I hope these details provide helpful trail
markers to at least a few of you thinking about publishing your own
book.
Remember: Never judge a book by its cover alone!
* * * * * Ron Jones is the Gazette's West Coast Fiction Talent Editor and is a science fiction, fantasy, and action adventure author. His books are available from http://www.23house.com, or through Amazon.com. Denise Vitola's Cool Well Trading Company designed the book cover for Ron Jones' newest novel: Brack Breath of the Lutron. To see the cover, please visit The Emporium Bookends Room.
My grandmother, who lived with us when
I was a child, would spot a small seam rip and immediately call me over
to her while she grabbed a needle and thread. Quick as ever she'd whip
the needle into the fabric and fix the offending seam. Then she'd say,
'A stitch in time, saves nine' and I'd make the usual confused frown.
"Saves nine what, grandma?"
"Nine more stitches. Take care of it now
with a quick stitch, or fix it with a major sewing repair later."
I was a young male and that phrase was obviously for girls only.
Well, I've matured and the many passing
decades were good to me. First, I've realized that 'girl stuff' is for
the uninitiated. Other than giving birth, both sexes can do about anything
they want, if they so desire. Therefore sewing is not for girls only.
Second. That phrase is very true, but
for me, it doesn't relate to sewing. It's all about writing.
How many times have you thought of the
perfect ending, great twist, or fantastic story only to lose it before
you locked it on paper?
I've had that problem many times over
the years and finally found a solution.
The solution actually came about in a
very subtle manner. I was busy scribbling (pre-laptop computer days)
down a short story that I was working on during my one hour train ride
home from work. Suddenly a lightbulb turned on over my head and the
problem that I'd been trying to resolve in a book I was working on was
apparent. I skipped to the back of the spiral notebook and jotted down
the thought.
When I got home to my computer, I yanked
the pad from my briefcase and dove into the book, correcting the bad
plot I had labored over to the new one I'd thought about on the train.
On that same train, in the morning,
I would fall asleep until it arrived at the station. During the transit,
I would dream about different things, sometimes the chapter I was working
on or future chapters. When I awoke I'd rush to my office which was
just outside the station. By the time I'd get there, the dream was that,
just a figment of my imagination.
Now I always carry a notepad with me so
I can write down any thoughts I've had. When I'd awake from sleep on
the train with a great idea, it was just a second and the pencil was
in hand writing it down. Even if all I wrote cryptic ideas of
what I'd envisioned, the bottom line was: I had it on paper!
Of course, when you don't ride the train,
but travel by car, some modification has to be made.
Get a small hand-held tape recorder, but
carry that notepad, nonetheless.
A wannabe will find every excuse why they
can't write, the most common denominator being: not enough time.
If you want to write, you'll find the
time and I'll show you where you can glean some hidden minutes.
I've already discussed public transportation
so I won't delve into that much further other than to say that my current
forty-five minute bus ride has allowed me time to write quite a few
short stories.
I'm sure the eyebrows went up when I said
personal car. I know that you're driving, but do you really need to
listen to the radio? If you're headed for a traffic jam, more than likely
all other routes are going to be congested. So, when given lemons, make
lemonade. Use a handheld tape recorder and talk away. You can always type
it in later and more than likely enhance what you noted. The major item
here is: you have the basics down. At least when you're sitting at the
keyboard, you can be typing in what you already have; not thinking about
what you're going to do.
I was in a major snarl for 1-1/2 hours.
Did I fume and get upset? Yeah, a little, but I also got some major
writing completed. I used my notepad and had the radio going. An occasional
look over my dash told me that traffic wasn't moving, yet.
Lunch time. That's a given. Grab a sandwich,
chips and drink; head to the park and write.
Waiting rooms. I've done my stint in waiting
rooms. Sure, at times it will appear callous to be sitting there typing
away on a laptop or writing in a notepad.
Writer's are people of experience. Use the emotion of the moment and write.
It will move you farther along toard your goal instead of sitting there
reading old magazines or watching cartoons on the television.
A stitch in time saves nine. Actually,
it means something totally different from what my grandmother taught
me. A note in time saves nine re-writes trying to remember that one
moment.
Do I actually save time? Sure. This article
was conceived, written, and edited on bus rides, one of which I had
the pleasure to endure a traffic snarl. It was typed in during lunch,
with the final edit at home.
So, my question is: Are you wannabe, or...
* * * * * Robert Nailor is the author of Celtic Fantasy, a unique blend of today and old Ireland's legends. He is also the Poetry Editor for the Emporium Gazette. You can visit his web site at: Lore's Webs of Wonder
The 2000 Short Story Contest
Denise Vitola will be the featured speaker at this year's 2000 Texas Book Festival, November 10-12 in Austin, TX. The festival celebrates both books and reading with proceeds of all sales going to support Texas libraries. For more information, please email: bookfest@onr.com
Writer's Guidelines for "Big World" Big World is a quarterly magazine that
focuses on independent travel. Big World is a magazine for people who
like their travel on the cheap and down-to-earth. And not necessarily
because they have to--but because they want to. It's for people who
prefer to spend their travelling time responsibly discovering, exploring,
and learning, in touch with local people and their traditions, and in
harmony with the environment.
We're looking for casual, first-person
narratives that take into account the cultural/sociological/political
side of travel.
Big World pays on publication, and publishes
a manuscript an average of 3 months after acceptance.
Editor's advice is to, "Take a look at
the glossy, fluffy travel mags in the bookstore. They're not what we're
about. We're not looking for romantic getaway pieces or lap-of-luxury
bits. Our readers are decidedly downbeat and are looking for similarly-minded
on-the-cheap and down-to-earth, first-person articles. Be breezy. Be
yourself. First-time writers especially encouraged. You can submit your
story to us on paper or 3.5 disc."
Contact Info: Big World magazine Attn:
Jim Fortney P.O. Box 8743-G Lancaster, PA 17604 Website: www.bigworld.com
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