Author Archives: Eugie Foster

Depression sitting on my chest

By | |
19 Comments

Well, crap. My emotions spiraled out of control last night. I didn’t have a melt down, or lash out at innocent husbands or skunks or anything like that, but I felt decidedly blue, the sort of blue that’s free floating and overwhelming. Felt like crying, but not ever to the point of actually doing so, which would have probably been a nice release.

The psychologist in me was like “Well, duh. You’ve had a major life change with the job thing, and your sleeping habits are across the board, what the hell did you expect?”

The bitch.

So yeah, I’m depressed. Not surprised. But well, there it is. I sought comfort from Matthew. He made appropriately sympathetic noises, gave lots of huggins, and made French fries and faux chicken nuggets for dinner. And we bought a half gallon of Breyer’s ice cream because I felt the need to be pampered and indulgent. My hubby is the sweetest. He’s at a loss when I’m like this, but he does try.

Then I tried to get all introspective and figure out what the trigger was. Knowing what pushed me off equilibrium is often the first step I need to take in order to get a handle.

Determined it was a combination of the first, incredibly high COBRA premium payment I sent out in the mail, the rejection from Book of Dark Magic, and the profoundly non-fruitful search I did on craigslist which did not come up with any positions I both want, and that would keep food on the table. I think everything together just strained my psychological stabilizers to the breaking point. Brilliant deduction, I’m stressed about money and the future, and not feeling particularly thick skinned about rejections. Yeah, good use of my graduate degree in psychology. [\sarcasm]

Stupid brain.


Writing Stuff

236-day “enjoyed the story very much, as I have many of your other tales that I have read, but . . . ” from Book of Dark Wisdom.

Today would be a good day to get a phone call from my agent about an offer on my middle-grade novel. *crickets chirping* Well, it would.

Got a note from Nathan of Scrybe Press. Synchronicity. He’s buying advertising in Apex for the same issue that my interview is slated for. He’s going to gear his ad space toward my publications now, which is fantastic. Marketing, rah. Royalty payments = groceries.

Words: 570 on the WIP. Going backward on my productivity numbers, dammit, but hey, here’s a neat little progress bar:

Zokutou word meterZokutou word meter
5,922 / 45,000
(13.0%)


Club 100 For Writers
8

500/day
28

Skunk Therapy

By | |
6 Comments

There’s something incredibly soothing about napping with a skunk. Hobkin’s head is the perfect shape for burrowing. He likes to tuck his muzzle under my chin, and then snuggle it in, so that he’s as wedged as he can be, lodged between me and the pillow. If I should have the temerity to shift position or adjust my pillow, he cuddles closer immediately. And occasionally he gives little chin rubs with his face against mine. He’s got the thickest fur of any animal I’ve ever hugged, and he likes having his little ears rubbed, which are so soft, like velveteen.

‘Course, he’s prone to sticking his nose in my ear, and his breathing sounds like a windy cavern. And he also has a penchant for pressing icy paws against me in winter. But I find that endearing too, in a “dammit, Hobkin!” way. I can’t imagine how I ever got by without a skunky toy to sleep with.


Writing Stuff

54-day personalized reject from Sheila Williams at Asimov’s with invite to submit again. That’s the best reject I’ve received from them. But where to send this story next? Hmm.

Words: 1200 on the WIP, 300 on an outline/overview of a short story idea out of the blue.

Club 100 For Writers
7

500/day
27

Mr. Sandman dropkicks me through the goal posts of dreamland

By | |
10 Comments

My sleep cycle is fubared to hell. I’ve been staying up ’till the wee hours of the morning, and taking a long nap in the middle of the day, waking up early (often assisted by a skunk), and then having a nap after lunch. It’s not like I need to conform to a rigorous schedule these days, but it’s leaving me feeling rather surreal and outside-of-time. I can’t believe how quickly I’ve managed to lose track of the days. I’m trying to figure out if I’m feeling more tired of late, but I honestly can’t tell. I sleep when I’m tired, and wake up and do stuff when I’m not. Been having a slew of incredibly vivid and moderately disturbing dreams which is exacerbating this surreal sensation.

Syndicated the Sea Shepherd Moblog to LJ (seashepherdblog) for anyone on LJ-land who’s so inclined to follow the anti-seal hunting activists. The barbaric carnage is depressing to the extreme, but it’s also inspiring that there are people out there willing to put themselves on the line to protect the innocent.


Writing Stuff

Chugging along on my YA novel WIP. Pleased to have the outline to work from. It actually seems to be working the way an outline should. Now, when I run out of steam on a scene, I just look over it, and skip to the next scene that calls my muse. I still haven’t managed one of my uber productive word count days, but I’m gradually building up my daily progress. It’s pretty dismal considering how much time I’ve got free to write, and how much time I’m not spending writing, but at least the words are coming.

Words: 1000

Club 100 For Writers
6

500/day
26

Taxes, sinuses

By | |
10 Comments

Gah. fosteronfilm and I made the first foray into doing our taxes yesterday. For the last clump ‘o years, we’ve had them professionally done, but we figured we’d save the couple hundred bucks and do them ourselves this year. I did my Schedule C all by myself (C-EZ baby!), and we’re making inroads into our Schedule A and Schedule B, but Schedule D: Capital Gains is kicking our asses. My head was threatening to spin itself off toward the end of the afternoon. Will try to dive back into it later today. The IRS could really use a good writer/editor to punch up their instruction forms. There’s got to be a friendlier way of conveying the necessary information; there’s just gotta.

This pressure front that’s been going through the area is playing havoc on everyone’s sinuses in the house, including Hobkin’s. I’ve been suffering from massive sinus headaches that refuse to dissipate, no matter how much Sudafed and Excedrin I pop–but I do have a profound case of the jitters. Matthew’s been sinus clogged and congested. And Hobkin keeps licking his paws and them rubbing his nose with them. I think that’s his way of trying to clear his sinuses, the poor little guy. He also makes snuffy sounds in his sleep.


Writing Stuff

19-day “There is some beautiful writing here but . . .” from Ideomancer on a flash piece. I’m always somewhat ambiguous about my flash. It’s an awkward medium to write in, smack dab between poetry and prose. I’d give up on it, except so far all of my (few and irregular) flash pieces have sold. I guess occasionally I just get feeling particularly lyrical but without enough substance for a story. I know I’m no poet, so that just leaves flash.

Revenant: A Horror Anthology published by Carnifex press, with my short story “Caesar’s Ghost” in it, is out: $4.95. Herein a very small cover image. Will get a bigger, higher res one scanned in when I get my contrib. copy:

Outlined my novel WIP, rah! After some brainstorming and seeing where my muse seems to want to go with it, it’s obvious that it’s going to be a YA novel (assuming I can finish the thing). Teenish protag, morality and philosophical issues, plus I’m aiming for 40-50K, not nearly long enough for an adult novel, but a comfy length for YA.

Words: 700 (all in outline, but hey, that counts, right?)

Club 100 For Writers
5

500/day
25

Dude_the okay, Apex interview

By | |
9 Comments

Got a phone call from dude_the late last night. He was in an accident on his way home from work. His air bag deployed, his car was totaled, but he’s okay. He said he’s got a couple burns from the air bag, and he’s surprised his glasses didn’t break. Apparently they came off when the air bag went, but they withstood the impact. Both him and the other guy were checked into the hospital and were released. The hospital people want dude_the to come back in for a follow-up, but the important thing is that he’s okay–alive, nothing broken, and no head trauma.


Writing Stuff

Got an email from Apex Science Fiction and Horror Digest. They want to interview me for their Summer issue. Of course I said “yes.” My first interview!

Skunk stew

By | |
13 Comments

Hobkin is getting precariously close to being popped into a stew pot. He woke me up at 7AM this morning (after I’d stayed up until 2AM, writing) by walking over my chest and hitting me in the face with his tail. Then, when I was inclined to roll over, he dug at me with his claws (which are pointy since I just trimmed them) until I opened my eyes, bleary and sleep-fuddled.

Me: “What is it, boy? Is Timmy down the well again?”

Hobkin: “Hi Mom! I’m going to go nap under my hutch now, okay?” *traipses off*

And now I’m wide-awake. Yep, skunk-nose stew, mmmm.


Writing Stuff

Still haven’t formally outlined the novel WIP, and I think I need to do so. I’m writing all over the place in non-chronological sequence, with only slight assurance that I’ll be able to hook up the pieces. ‘Course, that’s the way I wrote my middle-grade fantasy manuscript, so I’m not knocking that strategy, but I had a better idea of where I was going with it. And I still wrote a couple scenes that I didn’t end up using.

Words: 850

Club 100 For Writers
5

500/day
25

Credibility bottoms out with three words: “I’m Self Publishing”

By | |
34 Comments

So I went into the unemployment office this morning for the orientation workshop–the first of four mandatory classes. I actually had to wake up to my alarm clock, something I haven’t done in a month. I don’t miss that at all. Ugk.

The class itself was only marginally informative, but I didn’t expect it to be a “next coming” sort of experience anyway. The most insightful thing I took out of it is that applying for jobs is much like sending unsolicited submissions to editors. The same things which will get you discarded immediately by an editor will get your resume/cover letter likewise circular-filed by a prospective employer. Basically, it behooves a writer/applicant to know the market/company they’re approaching, do their research, don’t unload personal grief in cover letters, etc. etc. It makes me feel a little better about the whole job application thing, thinking of it as a sort of unsolicited submission, which I’ve got tons of experience with, rather than something I haven’t done in nearly eleven years.

I also did a lot of people watching, the writer in me taking notes and trying to eavesdrop on conversations during breaks. Couple non-employment-oriented observations I made:

1. The people in business suits seemed to radiate more of a lost and helpless aura than the people in casuals. There’s a deer-in-headlights ambiance coming from them, especially the older ones.

2. The presenter, when he first introduced himself, exuded an air of professional efficiency. He was articulate, relaxed, and impeccably groomed–custom tailed French cut shirt with silver cuff-links. He did have a tendency of dropping the “l” in “help” so that it came out “hep,” which I found distracting (especially since one of the bits of paperwork he kept referring to was the “How May We Help You?” form). But overall he gave an excellent first impression, all “I am a font of sound advice, respect my authoritah”-ish.

In a “we’re all in the same boat” spiel, he commented that something everyone had in common in the room, aside from being unemployed, was we all had a story, which of course blipped my radar. And then he went on to give a brief overview of his. Apparently he was writing a novel and was so wrapped up in it he missed all the sinking ship signs at his previous place of employment. That is, until the pink slips started going out. During the break, I had to ask him how his novel was coming along.

Him: “Fantastic, it’s being published in June!”

Me, writers ears perking up (networking, ooo!): “That’s great! With whom?”

Him: “Myself.”

Me (ears drooping): “You’re self-publishing?”

Him: “Yep, I’m self-publishing. It’s the only way to maintain all my artistic rights. I firmly believe it’s the only sane way to publish these days–”

And suddenly, all the credibility he had with me is completely down the drain. I could almost see the red stamp on his forehead which read “SUCKER” and the big neon “I’VE BEEN SCAMMED” placard around his neck.

Whereas there are legit reasons to self-publish, “maintaining artistic rights” and viewing it as the only “sane” approach to publishing ain’t them. Ah well. No doubt he can still give me good pointers on writing a punchier resume . . .

Syndication and Train Networking

By | |
33 Comments

Finally talked Matthew into getting an LJ: fosteronfilm. He’s still dubious about blogging in general, but he plans to use it to post and syndicate updates to his Foster on Film website, his movie review/criticism and Dragon*Con Film Festival/Track site.

As part of my “see what LJ can do for you” spiel, I did a lot of research on how syndication works. Learned how to code RSS just as I discovered that LJ does it automatically. Sigh. Oh well, new skills are never a bad thing, right?

So I wouldn’t feel like I’d totally wasted my time (don’t ask me to explain the sense behind my logic), I found this website which makes customized RSS chicklets instead of those ugly orange buttons and registered with Feedburner:


Writing Stuff

So I get a phone call from Ann Crispin, my writing mentor, and as it turns out, a funny thing happened to her on the train. No, wait, that sounds like the beginning of a bad joke. Um, so anyway, she’s on this train and she’s chatting with one of her fellow passengers, passing the time, and the topic of conversation turns to their respective occupations. As it turns out, the person she met works for Simon & Schuster in their children’s subsidiary rights division, and they both chuckle when Ann reveals she’s an author. They talk some more, Ann learns that S&S are in the market for middle-grade fantasy, and brings me and my manuscript up. Ann’s new friend expresses interest and says that she’ll give the editorial division a head’s up to expect a submission from my agent and provides Ann with a trio of names.

Of course I immediately fire off an email to my agent, who is going to prep a couple copies of my manuscript to send out ASAP.

Wow wow wow.

Awake and resenting it

By | |
5 Comments

It is far too early to be awake. But my sleep cycle appears to be fubared. Not sure why. ‘Course it doesn’t help that Hobkin woke me up at 6:30 by walking over my head . . .

After a whirlwind weekend full of people and events, everything’s back to quiet. Hobkin was remarkably unaffected by the influx of new people into “his” territory. He stomped at Patrick a few times, but didn’t seem to mind either him or Glenn. And he didn’t seem too miffed with us for being out for a few hours on Saturday. Maybe he’s mellowing out as he ages?


Writing Stuff:

34-day rejection from Futurismic. The editor continues to really like my work and invites me to submit again, and yet no sale. Alas.

Wrote and published my review of Strange Horizons stories “Magic in a Certain Slant of Light” by Deborah Coates and “Dog” by Jenn Reese for Tangent.

I’m quite delighted with the artwork for “The Storyteller’s Wife” that Realms of Fantasy commissioned (by Heather Hudson). Can everyone find the character inspired by Hobkin? :

On the WIP front, writing is much like exercising. I’m finding that I need to increase my word count slowly. Having a hard time maintaining a sense of flow, although I have managed to achieve it a couple times now with this most recent work.

Words: 750

Club 100 For Writers
3

500/day
23