My Capclave Schedule

Capclave starts tomorrow! Where did the year go? It seems to have filled up like...well, like my Capclave schedule, which is nothing if not exciting. That's okay. I like exciting.
Hope to see you there--there being the Hilton Washington, DC North/Gaithersburg in Gaithersburg, Maryland. And as always, there will be chocolate...

Friday
5 PM, Rockville/Potomac Room
Humorous SF
Panelists: John Ashmead (M), Norm Sherman, Alex Shvartsman, Jean Marie Ward
It's easy to name the funny fantasy books, but what about the funny SF books and short stories? For instance, Unidentified Funny Objects was an entire anthology of funny SF.

8 PM, Rockville/Potomac
No Means No
Panelists: Inge Heyer, Natalie Luhrs, Emmie Mears, Jon Skovron, Jean Marie Ward (M)
There is a great disturbance in science fiction and fantasy. As fans and writers you have the right to expect respect.

9 PM, Bethesda
Don't Go There. Unless You Really Want To.
Panelists: Brenda W. Clough, David G. Hartwell, Shahid Mahmud, Jean Marie Ward (M)
Taboo subjects in fantasy and science fiction. Are there any? What lines won't you cross? What lines should you cross?

11 PM, Salon A
The Appeal of King Arthur
Panelists: Tom Doyle, Max Gladstone, Robert Greenberger, David G. Hartwell, Darrell Schweitzer, Jean Marie Ward (M)
What makes so many writers from Twain to Mary Stewart to Lerner and Lowe produce their own takes on 'the matter of Britain'? Why do King Arthur books thrive while other legends like Robin Hood get far less attention? What are the best takes on the Arthurian legend?

Saturday
2 PM, Bethesda
Smart Women Foolish Television
Panelists: Barbara Krasnoff, Sherin Nicole (M), Janine Spendlove, Genevieve Valentine, Jean Marie Ward, Fran Wilde
We all have those shows we watch and love and maybe love to pick on because they are our guilty pleasures. We revel in their cliches and inconsistent writing and leaps of logic. Or in their bizarre yet internally consistent alternate realities (even if they're supposed to be based in the real world). Ahistorical historical shows and why we love their anachronisms.

7:30 PM, Salon A
Mass Signing
Participants: Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Sarah Avery, Paolo Bacigalupi, Holly Black, Marilyn "Mattie" Brahen, Neil Clarke, Tom Doyle, Andy Duncan, Scott Edelman, Jim Freund, Charles E. Gannon, Max Gladstone, David G. Hartwell, Alma Katsu, Pamela K. Kinney, Barbara Krasnoff, Dina Leacock, James Maxey, Will McIntosh, Mike McPhail, Sunny Moraine, James Morrow, Sarah Pinsker, Benjamin Rosenbaum, Lawrence M. Schoen, Darrell Schweitzer, Alex Shvartsman, Jon Skovron, Alan Smale, Bud Sparhawk, Janine Spendlove, Genevieve Valentine, Michael A. Ventrella, Jean Marie Ward, Lawrence Watt-Evans
The Saturday evening mass autographing session.

11 PM, Bethesda
Eye of Argon
Panelists: Walter H. Hunt, Sarah Pinsker, Ian Randal Strock, Michael A. Ventrella (M), Jean Marie Ward
Our panelists read the worst fantasy story ever written, mistakes and all, and if they laugh or read it incorrectly, they are forced to act out the story. Just try not to fall over laughing! At some point, volunteers from the audience can participate and discover firsthand the author's contentious relationship with spelling, capitalization and punctuation.

Sunday
12 PM, Rockville/Potomac
Can A Small Town Elf Make it in the Big City?
Panelists: Holly Black (M), Jim Freund, L. Jagi Lamplighter, Emmie Mears, Jean Marie Ward
It's an Urban Fantasy panel. Favorite authors, current trends, what's the next supernatural creature to hit it big now that vampires, zombies and angels have all had a turn in the spotlight?

4 PM, Bethesda
The Darker Side of Fae
Panelists: Holly Black, Pamela K. Kinney, Janine Spendlove, Jean Marie Ward (M)
Not everyone can be Tinkerbell (who wasn't all sweetness and light), sometimes the world is a little less clean and pure. Both the Seelie and Unseelie Courts are best avoided if at all possible.

Meet me in Charm City!

You weren't planning anything special this weekend, were you? Certainly nothing as special as seeing me in the great tented outdoors of the Baltimore Book Festival in the Inner Harbor, September 26-28.
There will be wonderful writers. Jeanne Adams! Danielle Ackley-McPhail! Catherine Asaro! Brenda Clough! Ron Garner! L. Jagi Lamplighter! Laura Lippman! Sujata Massey! Marissa Meyer! Diana Peterfreund! Don Sakers! Alex Shvartsman! Bud Sparhawk! And more (like me)! All available for autographs, panels, photographs and conversation.
The weather forecasters have promised a weekend of clear skies and balmy, high-seventies temperatures. For a change, they may be right. Yesterday's rain has dried, and the air is growing warmer.
 There will be exhibitor tents and tables scattered the full length of the Inner Harbor. But most of my activities will be focused on the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) Tent situated along the south arm of the Inner Harbor horseshoe.
So far, my schedule looks like this:

Friday
12-1 PM: Reading (Dark Quest Books)
4-5 PM: Athena's Daughters Autograph Session (Silence in the Library Publishing)

Saturday
4-5 PM: How Can I Get My Writing Noticed--A Must Do Panel for Writers in the Modern Age (with Scott Edelman, Elektra Hammond, Don Sakers, Peggy Rae Sapienza, and Mike Underwood)
5:30-7 PM: Meet-and-Greet Reception with SFWA Authors

But's that just the merest fraction of the bookish pleasures in store for you at the Book Fest. So say nothing of the one-time, one-of-a-kind goodies to be found, such as the special Temporally Out Of Order Kickstarter postcard.
This limited edition postcard (seriously, I only printed 50), seen here with a cat who has elevated the art of feline indifference, to the level of a super power will only be available at the Baltimore Book Festival.
I'll even sign it if you like. If you show proof of funding the Kickstarter, I promise not to sing. Seriously, you wouldn't like me when I sing. ;-)
Can't wait to see you there!
 And if you need to make absolutely, positively sure I don't sing, you can always pledge to support the new Zombies Need Brains Temporally Out Of Order Kickstarter before you go. Just click here, and you're good. Or at least your eardrums are...

Clockwork Universe: Steampunk vs. Aliens is officially ticking!

Just in time for you to see what all the fuss is about before Zombies Need Brains starts up another Kickstarter, ZNB's first anthology, Clockwork Universe: Steampunk vs. Aliens has landed at a retailer near you. It's got Steampunk. It's got little green men, bug-eyed monsters, secret agent chickens and Chihuahuas. What more do you need ?

A table of contents? We can do that:

"The Cavorite Job" by Ian Tregillis
"Gracie's Fire" by Leah Cutter
"Quinta Essentia" by Bradley P. Beaulieu
"When Comrade Ekaterina Died for the Motherland" by J.R. Hargenrader
"A Clockwork Alien" by Gini Koch
"Heart of the Empire" by Jason Palmatier
"The Red Queen and the White" by C.B. Pratt
"The Wizard of Woodrow Park" by Jean Marie Ward (me!)
"Of War and Wings" by Tansy Raynor Roberts
"Airship Down: A Sound and Fury Adventure" by Gail Z. and Larry N. Martin
"Steamsuit" by David J. Fortier
"Fingers of Steam, Veins of Gold" by Brad Hafford
"Heart of Clockwork" by S.C. Butler
"Lady Antheia's Guide to Horticultural Warfare" by Seanan McGuire

All edited by the irrepressible Joshua Palmatier and Patricia Bray, the same folks who brought you The Modern Fae's Guide to Surviving Humanity and After Hours: Tales from the Ur-Bar.
Wanna taste? I've got your excerpt right here. Or you could check out one of the early reviews:

"They take a steampunk nineteenth century…and add aliens. Would Earth even recognize the threat? It’s a nod to industrialism… A high-five to technological advancement… And, above all, kudos to the genius of action-packed prose."

Word of the Nerd 

Not only that, the book comes in all your favorite flavors:

Trade Paperback 

Kindle

Kobo 

Nook

What are you waiting for? Those Chihuahuas can't hold out forever, you know. ;-)

My 2014 Dragon Con Schedule

Yeah, I’ve been a Bad Blogger. In my defense, I’ve been hard at work on Unconventional Fantasy, a huge anthology celebrating the fortieth anniversary of World Fantasy Con, coming up in Crystal City, Virginia, this November.
About the only thing I’ve had time for is convention appearances, and one of the biggest is coming up fast. I’m about to leave for the World’s Biggest Summer Camp for Wayward Adults: Dragon Con. We’ll be taking over downtown Atlanta, August 29 to September 1. There will be parades! Music! Gaming! Films! Puppetry (no foolin’)! And of course, panels like the these:

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Title: Just the Facts, Ma'am...
Description: Writers of non-fiction looking for a career boost? This panel is geared toward perfecting your craft--and discovering new outlets for your work.
Time: Fri 02:30 pm
Location: Embassy D-F - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Panelists: Jean Marie Ward (moderator), John L. Flynn, M. B. Weston, Stuart Jaffe, Anya Martin, Teresa Patterson)

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Title: Athena’s Daughters Signing
Description: Meet the writers of Athena's Daughters at the Artists Alley table of cover artist Autumn Frederickson.
Time: Fri 04:30 pm
Location: Grand Hall West - Hyatt (Length: 1.5 Hours)
(Panelists: Autumn Frederickson, Jean Marie Ward)

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Title: Athena’s Daughters Authors Meet and Greet
Description: Meet the talented ladies behind the popular Athena's Daughters Anthology, featuring heroines of all ages and stories for the entire family
Time: Sat 10:00 am
Location: A708 - Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
(Panelists: Janine K. Spendlove, Gail Z. Martin, Jean Marie Ward, Diana Peterfreund)

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Title: SciFi Spies
Description: Secret agent/spy fiction has always overlapped with SF in a big way, from futuristic gadgets to flying cars to laser cannons in space.
Time: Sat 11:30 am
Location: Embassy A-B - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
(Panelists: Van Allen Plexico, Jean Marie Ward)

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Title: Their World Forever Changed: Chaos and Heartbreak on Lost Girl
Description: A moderated fan-panel discussion of the hit show. (Note: this is a fan panel. No cast members will be appearing on this panel.)
Time: Sat 08:30 pm
Location: Chastain ED - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Panelists: Jean Marie Ward)

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Title: Who Needs Dystopias When You Have History
Description: From infant sacrifice in Carthage to the Inquisition, history offers some of the darkest times and places you NEVER want to visit in a time machine.
Time: Sat 10:00 pm
Location: Augusta 3 - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Panelists: Jean Marie Ward (moderator), A. J. Hartley, D.B. Jackson, Katherine Kurtz, Gail Z. Martin, Kathryn Hinds)

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Title: Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading
Description: A program of bite-sized readings from some of your favorite Broad Universe authors.
Time: Sun 11:30 am
Location: Vinings - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
(Panelists: Gail Z. Martin, Janine Spendlove, Jean Marie Ward, Trisha Wooldridge)

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Title: Lifestyles of Science Fiction
Description: Science fiction doesn't only explore scientific possibilities but also social ones.
Time: Sun 10:00 pm
Location: Embassy A-B - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
(Panelists: Diane Hughes, Jean Marie Ward)

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Title: Victorian Technology
Description: A panel discussion of the technology of the Victorian era and how to exploit it in your stories or imagination!
Time: Mon 11:30 am
Location: Augusta 1-2 - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Panelists: Jean Marie Ward, Stephanie Osborn)

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Title: Win, Lose or Draw Description: SF style.
Description: The traditional convention-closer for the SF Literature Track. Once again, I'll be hosting a competition based on contestants ability to get others to decipher their artwork. There will be prizes, too.
Time: Mon 01:00 pm
Location: Embassy A-B - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
(Panelists: Jean Marie Ward)

 Looking forward to seeing you there!

Okay, that didn't work

The subscriber button I posted on my website didn't work with any of my email addies. So it's off the sidebar, and I'm back to researching widgets. Ah, the glamour of the Intarwebs--not!

Ah, That New Paint Smell!

Earlier this year, I got disgusted with the duplication of effort involved in maintaining a blog (which, I admit, I use more as a newsletter than a daily/weekly journal) and a "News" page on my website, JeanMarieWard.com. Techno-dummy that I am, I wasn't sure I could rectify the problem on my own. The header needed to be changed and that entailed reconstructing the accidental combination of typeface and format I blundered into three versions of image/photo software ago. But I did it--I did it!--without breaking the site.

Tonight's blog is something of a shakedown cruise for the refreshed site. The basic organization remains the same. The pages don't look noticeably different. But instead of the redundant "News" in the header, there's a shiny new "Articles" tab, which links to my web-based nonfiction. At the moment you'll find about fifty links to interviews on Buzzy Mag, a global link to Crescent Blues, and links to two YouTube features I did for personal research and entertainment.

My ultimate goal is to resurrect the articles I did for SciFi Weekly back in the day, and post them on the site. Whether I can will depend on the copyright status of the articles. Resolving that will involve buttonholing my former editor at a con, because naturally the program where the electronic contracts were stored crashed and wiped all the data. Lesson to remember, folks, paper is still god. I'm also experimenting with a subscription button to provide email updates when I blog, but the first version I tried doesn't appear to work. Obviously, this calls for more experimentation. I'll let you know when it's operational. Until then, you can try, but don't expect the email they keep promising you. Mine has yet to arrive.

On a more writerly note, The Mammoth Book of Tales from the Vatican Vaults has accepted my equally mammoth retelling of the 1814 Burning of Washington, "Cooking up a Storm". When I say "mammoth" I mean effing HUGE. I turned in over seventeen thousand words on a call for six. And, oh yeah, the editor and publisher are British, so of course, I made the Brits my villains. The saga of its acceptance is a textbook example of how not to get published. The only thing missing was the typo in the first paragraph (which I managed to do in another submission earlier this year--oops!) Needless to say there was much mad flailing and ecstatic happy dancing when the contract appeared in my inbox.

I'll post more on the anthology as details become available. But for now just let me say I'll be sharing page space with my good friends John Grant and Dave Hutchinson, as well as folks like Mary Gentle and Storm Constantine. Release is set for spring 2015.

But that's almost a year away. In the meantime, I've got plenty of new things for you to enjoy. "District Coincidental" made it to the Akashic Books website in February. The link will take you to all 750 words of noir-ish goodness (badness? Who knows with noir?)

Hellfire Lounge 4: Reflections of Evil hit the stands at the end of May. In it you'll find the latest adventures of Eddie "WOOD LOUSE!" Woodhouse and Ducky "Duc" Orr. The two hapless sorcerers were last seen at the bottom of a jinni's bottle stinking of absinthe. "Glass Transit", my story in HF4 tells the tale of how they escape that predicament only to land in a mirror on the Hindenburg on May 6, 1937. Oh the humanity! Oh, the teeny tiny excerpt!

Speaking of Eddie and Ducky, their first adventure ("Burning down the House" from Hellfire Lounge 3: Jinn Rummy) will be reprinted with added monkey and Tuckerization in Dance Like a Monkey, the charity anthology to support the inimitable C.J. Henderson during his cancer treatments. That anthology is scheduled for release in a month or two.

It should appear on the shelves about the same time as The Clockwork Universe: Steampunk vs. Aliens, the first anthology from Zombies Need Brains, Joshua Palmatier's new publishing venture. Joshua and Patricia Bray were the editors of The Modern Fae's Guide to Surviving Humanity. They had so much fun with that anthology and After Hours: Tales from the Ur Bar they decided to create their own press to publish more.

 My contribution to The Clockwork Universe, "The Wizard of Woodrow Park", involved stuffing a sentient chicken into the head of a Daniel Craig clone and sending him after an anthropologist missing for seventeen years in a steam-powered world. I also punked out a Chihuahua. Imagine my consternation when I discovered people really are putting titanium crowns on the teeth of dogs attached to Special Forces teams. DUDES! I was trying for ABSURD! Though I suppose the secret agent chicken probably has that covered...

Finally, this entry would not be complete without mentioning Athena's Daughters, the record-busting Kickstarter literary anthology. The anthology's tag line is: Stories about strong women by strong women. To which I should add: Introduced and illustrated by strong women, too. Both the print and electronic versions are now available from Silence in the Library Publishing and should be available from online and bricks-and-mortar retailers soon.

Given the company--Mary Robinette Kowal, Sherwood Smith, Gail Z. Martin, Diana Peterfreund, Jean Rabe, Janine Spendlove and so many more--I can't tell you how honored I was to be included. But it gets better. My story, "A Gap in the Fence", closes the collection. I still can't believe it. It's a gentle story, but one that means a lot to me. I hope readers will feel the same. That's it for now.

Happy reading!

Athena's Daughters Has Achieved Cover

Isn't the print cover just gorgeous? I can't wait to hold this book in my hands.

Even better, from a purely selfish point of view is the illustration for my story, "The Gap in the Fence" (below). Want to know more? Well, you can read a taste of my story here. Or better yet, pre-order the entire book here. You won't be disappointed!

Awesome Con Schedule is Awesome

Friday, Saturday and Sunday will find me at the DC Convention Center, indulging in the delights of Awesome Con. Since this will be my first Awesome Con, my schedule is unusually light:

5:15-6:15 p.m., Friday, April 18
Part Time Writer, Full Time World

11:45 a.m. - 12:45 p.m., Saturday, April 19

Writing Fantasy This means I'll get to hang with buds like Gail Z. Martin and Silence in the Library Publishers Janine Spendlove and Ron Garner. Yay! Even more remarkable, after more than a decade as a con guest, I might actually get to see some panels other than my own. I can't wait!

Hope to see you there.

My Capclave Schedule

It’s almost here! Capclave, the Washington DC-area science fiction, fantasy and horror convention will run from Friday through Sunday, October 11-13, at the Hilton Washington DC North in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

This is a big thing—not just for me, but also for fans of Guest of Honor George R.R. Martin. I can’t remember the last time he and fellow Guests of Honor—editor Sharyn November, writer Harold Waldrop—have graced an East Coast con.  Putting on my reporter’s hat, I have no idea how much Game of Thrones/Wild Cards/Old Mars gossip I’ll be able to wheedle out of them. But I plan to give it my best shot.

And par-tay! At least, when I’m not on a panel. I think you’ll agree my schedule (below) is choice. Hope to see you there!

Friday

4 p.m. Salon A

The Darker Side of Fae (Ends at 4:55 p.m.)
Panelists: Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Alethea Kontis, Michelle D. Sonnier (M), Jim Stratton, Jean Marie Ward
Not everyone can be Tinkerbell, sometimes the world is a little less clean and pure. Is the darker fae a return to time when the fae were strange and alarming?

10 p.m., Salon B

Nice Shoes … (Ends at: 10:55 p.m.)
Panelists: Judi Fleming, Jason Jack Miller, Betsy A. Riley, Patrick Scaffido, Jean Marie Ward
Shoes, do they make the character? What are the tricks to subtly tell the reader about the character through clothes, furniture, job, and hobbies. Is this just a chic lit trait or a common tool?

11 p.m., Salons CDE

I'm Just Borrowing the Characters… Writing Fanfic (Ends at: 11:55 p.m.)
Panelists: Janine Spendlove, Elaine Stiles (M), Jean Marie Ward, Steven H. Wilson
Why do people write fanfic? Is it fair use or unfair abuse? How is it different from retellings of Greek myths or King Arthur? Is using familiar characters and settings "training wheels" for beginning authors or a dangerous crutch that will engrain bad habits? Where are the lines?

Saturday

3 p.m., Salon B

A Survey of Kickass Animals that Probably Don't Exist (Ends at: 3:55 p.m.)
Panelists: Thomas Holtz (M), Diana Peterfreund, Norm Sherman, Howard Waldrop, Jean Marie Ward
From the Goatman to the Mothman, Yeti to Yowie, and Dodo to Ogopogo. From Bloops to Blobs, Giant Owls to Lizard men, Chupacabres to Mongolian Deathworms. From the foul smelling Skunk Ape of the Florida Everglades, to the brain eating Nandi Bears of Kenya, this course is a basic introduction into the study of absurd animals which purportedly exist based on the sightings and information gathered by stammering lunatics, drunken peasants and other researchers in the field.

7:30 p.m., Salons A-E

Mass Signing (Ends at: 8:25 p.m.)
Panelists: Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Catherine Asaro, Eric Bakutis, Philippa Ballantine, Matt Betts, Matt Bishop, Neil Clarke, Tom Doyle, Andrew Fox, Charles E. Gannon, Carolyn Ives Gilman, Laura Anne Gilman, Bob Greenberger, John G. Hemry, Alma Katsu, Annette Klause, John Edward Lawson, Dina Leacock, Edward M. Lerner, Marianne Mancusi, George R.R. Martin, James Maxey, Heidi Ruby Miller, Jason Jack Miller, James Morrow, Diana Peterfreund, Patrick Scaffido, Lawrence M. Schoen, Jon Skovron, Alan Smale, Michelle D. Sonnier, Bud Sparhawk, Janine Spendlove, Michael Swanwick, Michael A. Ventrella, Jean Marie Ward, Lawrence Watt-Evans, Steven H. Wilson, Leona Wisoker, K. Ceres Wright
The Saturday evening mass autographing session.

9 p.m., Salon B

Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading (Ends at: 9:55 p.m.)
Panelists: Jean Marie Ward (M), Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Day Al-Mohamed, Meriah Lysistrata Crawford, Elektra Hammond, Dina Leacock, Christine Norris, Leona Wisoker
Bite-sized readings from the writers of Broad Universe.

Looking ahead

Art by Kelli Neier

Those of you who obsessively check the sidebar of my website (there's gotta be one of you, right?) will have noticed the release of Hellfire Lounge 4: Reflections of Evil has been pushed back again, and I still don't have a release date for Gaslight & Grimm. (Boo.) But a new story and a new convention have joined the list. (Win!)
First and foremost in any writer's mind is the latest acceptance. "The Gap in the Fence" is one of my favorite contemporary fantasies, but I wasn't sure it would find a home. Then Janine Spendlove and Ron Garner of Silence in the Library Publishing invited me to submit a story to Athena's Daughters. The fit between story and anthology was so close, it's almost as if I wrote it with Athena's Daughters in mind.
Athena's Daughters will be the subject of a Kickstarter later in the year. The first level will fund the ebook, which features the beautiful cover by Kelli Neier shown here. As we go up the levels, there will be additional authors, illustrations and a paper edition. You better believe I'll have more about that as we get closer to launch.
Also listed is my first confirmed con of 2014: World Fantasy Con. The 2014 edition will be happening just a few minutes from my home. But this is one local on I won't be commuting to. I plan to party!
I also plan to party at next weekend's Capclave, and I'll be posting my schedule early next week. Hope to see you there!