Happy New Year, everyone!

The countdown to Arisia 2017 has begun and I’m very much looking forward to my first show of the year. I’ll be sharing a table with my friend and fellow author J.M. Aucoin, and sharing the vendor room with such fine folks as Auntie Arwen’s Spices (their ginger-infused sugar is amazing in a nice hot cup of lapsang souchong tea), Broad Universe, Emporium 32, Meloria Maille, and Tea & Absinthe.

WRITING PROJECTS

Action Figures – Issue One: Secret Origins:  Audiobook recording in progress.

Action Figures – Issue Six: Power Play and Action Figures – Live Free or Die: My editor Julie submitted her notes over the weekend and I made the penultimate round of revisions on Saturday. The next step is to prep the final draft and do the formatting for the print and e-book editions, and then I wait with eager anticipation for the cover art. If you can’t wait to see what I have cooking with book six, you might want to keep your eye on this space tomorrow…

Action Figures – Issue Seven: The Black End War: First draft finished.

Action Figures – Issue Eight: Crawling from the Wreckage: First draft in progress. Got some work in over New Year’s weekend, including a little bit on the climactic scene.

Action Figures – Issue Nine: Rough plotting in progress.

The Adventures of Strongarm & Lightfoot – Blades of Glory: Rough plotting in progress.

APPEARANCES and EVENTS

• Friday, January 13 – Monday, January 16: Arisia 2017 in Boston, MA. J.M. Aucoin will be in the dealers room at table A18 selling and signing books and talking about writing. I also have four panels on my schedule throughout the weekend.
• February 17 – 19: Boskone at the Westin Waterfront Hotel, the same location as Arisia.
• NEW EVENT! Saturday, September 16: The Connecticut Renaissance Faire in Lebanon, CT. I was contacted by the producers this week about returning for the third annual Meet the Authors program, which brings in local authors for afternoon book signings and I am currently down for Saturday of the third weekend, which will be Fantasy & Romance Weekend. Looks like I have some great incentive to get cracking on the next Strongarm & Lightfoot book, huh?

MISC.

For those interested in my panel schedule at Arisia, here’s where I’ll be over the weekend and what I’ll be talking about:

Writing Swordfights, Knives, and Hand-to-Hand Combat

Saturday, 2:30 PM in Otis

Violent encounters are a good way to up the tension in your story. Our panel of martial artists will not only explain the phases of combat, what goes through their mind prior to ‘going at it’, and what makes a realistic swordfight, knife-fight, stick-fighting or hand-to-hand encounter, but they will also demonstrate a few basic moves, answer questions, and help one lucky attendee work out the mechanics of their work-in-progress.

Getting Into Character

Sunday, 1 PM in Faneuil

From the way you walk, to the way you talk, getting into character is key to making your cosplay shine. Our panel of performance-minded costumers share with you their secrets for bringing their costume to life.

Writing a Worthy Adversary

Sunday, 8:30 PM in Douglas

Nothing brings a story to life like a worthy antagonist, but how do you figure out the yang for your protagonist’s yin? What is your villain’s backstory? What are some of the ways they can twist, torment, and temper your main character? And how can a good antagonist act as your protagonist’s mirror? Boo! Hiss! Come learn how to write bad guys your audience will love to hate.

Imaginary Friends: Crafting Memorable Characters

Monday, 10 AM in Marina 3

Even the most gripping plot will fail if you don’t have memorable characters. How do you create a sympathetic protagonist? How much backstory should you give them? How do you develop interesting supporting characters to accompany them on their journey? There are many ‘tricks’ you can use to flesh out characters, as well as ways to juggle multiple character viewpoints. Come learn how to write characters so realistic your audience will be talking about them long after they finish your story.