I’m over on Ash Arceneuax’s blog, talking about the writing and rewriting of Brutal Light, and what the Deros had to do with it. I can’t promise it’s completely accurate–I based it off the notes the night gaunts kept–but it is something to keep in mind when writing. That and bacon.
I’m over on Sean A. Lusher‘s blog today, talking about seven books that made me weird(er). What books have messed with your head in these ways? Come share!
Also, while I’m here, I should mention Brutal Light is on Shelfari now… and so am I. You know, in case you feel like rating and reviewing.
I’m over on Tim Marquitz‘s blog today, going on about “Brutal Light and my Path to Dark Fantasy. Essentially it’s my longform answer to the question of what drew me to write dark fantasy fiction in the first place. Stop by and say hi!
So. Just 34 days to go until my debut novel, Brutal Light is unleahed upon an unsuspecting humanity–in both old-timey ‘paper’ format and a variety of shiny e-book formats for your convenience. (Actually, the ‘paper’ format will be available around mid-December, not straight up on 12/1/11 — but it will be still dripping with convenience.) I am hip-deep in assembling a virtual book tour and writing out fascinating essay-shaped and interview-shaped nuggets for it, which doesn’t leave much time for writing anything time-consuming today. Which means it’s time for… links! [Stock footage: people running in terror from giant locusts, an outhouse exploding, old ladies clapping.]
Here are some very true words on the virtues of patience and persistence if you’re lookiing to get published: What Do I Wish I’d Known… Or You’re Kidding, Right?.
Here’s Su Halfwerk on how she learned to stop worrying and love writing for multiple genres.
I was wondering when they’d take my homebuilding concerns into account: Architecture Contest Calls for Zombie-Proof Home Designs.
From the department of I See No Way In Which This Can Be Turned Into An Orwellian Nightmare: Real-life Inception: Army Looks to ‘Counteract Nightmares’ With Digital Dreams.
Surely there is a short story in here somewhere: Vampire Moths Discovered in Siberia.
And finally, for those of you brave enough to wade into the gonzo end of the conspiracy pool, I present this site, which is loaded with gobs of articles on the agenda of the interdimensional Reptilians who secretly control Earth. Whenever I’m worried that I’ve lost my marbles, I go here to reassure myself that, comparatively, I am a marble hoarder.
I know where my ideas come from.
They come from the murky insides of my head, from the hole where I pour all the things I read and watch and think about. There are things that have been added recently, and things that have been fermenting for as long as I can recall. Many of these things have been in the soup so long all rememberance of where they came from before have eroded away, or become grossly distorted. Many of these things have combined with other things, becoming something else entirely.
They can see out of the hole. They know what’s going on, out in the Cartesian Theater where my illusion of consciousness and control hangs out, working the controls of the body. Sometimes, when something flashes across the stage, it draws these things. Makes them want to come out.
Other times, I have to reach in and haul them out, whether they’re done fermenting or not. The best bits are never quite ready for their showtimes… but I pull them out anyway. They come out in my words and my stories. In truth, they are also still in the hole, looking for new things to join to, to congeal with, and to ferment in.
That’s where my ideas come from. That’s why I read the strange things I love to read, knowing that even if I never consciously use what I read, it will still be down there, somewhere, becoming something else. Something that will one day come, willing or not, into words and light.
16) Do you write romantic relationships? How do you do with those, and how “far” are you willing to go in your writing? 
Romance and sex have been part of many things I’ve written, from some fairly straightforward romantic subplots in Superguy and SfStory, to some partially-to-completely dysfunctional relationships in Brutal Light and True Places. My novels have been more explicit in terms of sex scenage, though I took great pains to have them be part of the story, rather than something that stops the story dead for x number of pages. (Given the nature of these novels, this also means that the scenes end up being very weird and possibly disturbing, and overall not likely to simply take you to your happy place.)
