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| SFReader Forums > Book, Magazine, and eZine Publishers > Flashing Swords > Flashing Swords Debut Issue | Forum Quick Jump
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Daniel
Carl Jung's Waterboy
      
Date Joined Aug 2003
Total Posts : 4515
| Posted 1/30/2005 8:04 AM (GMT -4) |   | I've read the brief for Razor-Edged Arcanum(which I've obviously missed) and understand that each anthology will have a certain leaning--does anybody have any idea what features the next one wil be looking for? I realise it's probably still early days but I thought it was worth asking.
***
Hey Flint, the next (after REA) open-submissions heroic fantasy antho from Pitch-Black is liable to be a ways down the road, due to the distribution issues for LOS and REA that we are dealing with. In essence, the original date for release of REA (Spring 2005) will now be replaced by a distribution/release date for LOS and the REA publication date, as consequence, shoved back a few months.
We're not overjoyed with this delay, but it does mean that the anthologies will be given a wider audience and will be available in retail outlets, assuming all holds as it appears to be holding now ;-)
Daniel | | Back to Top | | |
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Jonah Lissner
Stablehand
Date Joined May 2004
Total Posts : 6
| Posted 1/30/2005 10:40 AM (GMT -4) | | Conan.com is rad and a half! Awesome site..
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A new fiction writer published in over 20 periodicals and anthologies. I write in the heroic genre. Jonah Lissner, Editor ADVENTURE FICTION ONLINE http://adventurefictiononline.com | | Back to Top | | |
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Flint
Neophyte
Date Joined Jan 2005
Total Posts : 59
| Posted 1/30/2005 10:46 AM (GMT -4) | | | | |
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Bruce Durham
Crom's Administrator & Drinking Buddy
Date Joined Jan 2005
Total Posts : 613
| Posted 1/31/2005 3:23 PM (GMT -4) | | quote:
Originally posted by Jonah Lissner
Conan.com is rad and a half! Awesome site..
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A new fiction writer published in over 20 periodicals and anthologies. I write in the heroic genre. Jonah Lissner, Editor ADVENTURE FICTION ONLINE http://adventurefictiononline.com
Er, if that's aimed at me, then thanks a bunch. Join the community forums, you may meet a couple of familiar faces. :)
BDurham
Admin: www.conan.com | | Back to Top | | |
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Jonah Lissner
Stablehand
Date Joined May 2004
Total Posts : 6
| Posted 1/31/2005 6:11 PM (GMT -4) | | Excellent.....[^][:D][8D] by Crom...
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A new fiction writer published in over 20 periodicals and anthologies. I write in the heroic genre. Jonah Lissner, Editor ADVENTURE FICTION ONLINE http://adventurefictiononline.com | | Back to Top | | |
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Bruce Durham
Crom's Administrator & Drinking Buddy
Date Joined Jan 2005
Total Posts : 613
| Posted 2/2/2005 4:13 PM (GMT -4) | | quote:
Originally posted by Jonah Lissner
Excellent.....[^][:D][8D] by Crom...
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A new fiction writer published in over 20 periodicals and anthologies. I write in the heroic genre. Jonah Lissner, Editor ADVENTURE FICTION ONLINE http://adventurefictiononline.com
For what it's worth, I have added links from the www.conan.com community forum to the SFReader forums. Hopefully it will generate some more traffic and additional reads and sales. No promises, though... [;)] | | Back to Top | | |
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Dave
Master of the Domain
Date Joined Aug 2003
Total Posts : 658
| Posted 2/3/2005 6:12 AM (GMT -4) | | Thanks bdurham.
An increase of sales to 1 would be nice....
Dave
SFReader Webmaster | | Back to Top | | |
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Flint
Neophyte
Date Joined Jan 2005
Total Posts : 59
| Posted 2/3/2005 8:47 AM (GMT -4) | | Well, I ordered my copy of "Lord of Swords" on the 25th of January and it's just arrived in today(I live in the UK: 3rd February. I paid for the best delivery option but it's still pretty good in my opinion. I'd like to thank the person who packed the book for doing such a good job--despite all the punishment the poor thing has probably had, it's relatively undamaged apart from some minor bending.
I read all the comments people had made about the style of presentation and binding quality and thought it was just--Blah! Now I have my own copy I can see what they mean; I'm impressed. Another very nice touch was David Pitchford's signiature on the invoice--I think it's been done by hand...oh yse, it smudges.
Well, all in all I'm a satisfied customer and I haven't even read a story yet.
Nice one!
Flint | | Back to Top | | |
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Daniel
Carl Jung's Waterboy
Date Joined Aug 2003
Total Posts : 4515
| Posted 2/3/2005 4:07 PM (GMT -4) | | *Thank you*, Flint. Now if we could just get a UK distributor ;-)
Daniel | | Back to Top | | |
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Flint
Neophyte
Date Joined Jan 2005
Total Posts : 59
| Posted 2/7/2005 12:44 AM (GMT -4) | | Just out of curiosity--when's the next issue of Flashing Swords timetabled for?
Flint | | Back to Top | | |
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jonesha
Forum Moderator
Date Joined Jun 2004
Total Posts : 655
| Posted 2/7/2005 7:45 AM (GMT -4) | | Hi Flint--issue 2 will be ready on April 1. It's a quarterly e-zine. Had I time and finances I could easily set it up to come out every other month, such is the strenght of the work I've been seeing.
I'm having to turn some good pieces away because they're on the longish side. Anything long has to be firing on all pistons.
Best,
Howard | | Back to Top | | |
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Flint
Neophyte
Date Joined Jan 2005
Total Posts : 59
| Posted 2/9/2005 11:58 AM (GMT -4) | | Ah well, maybe you'll be in the position to go monthly one day...or even print--that would be very nice to see. I'm a fan of Cyber Age Adventures or iHero www.ihero.net/ as it's known, they're putting their first print version out this year. I think it's taken a long time for them to get there but I'm sure it'll be worth it.
Flint | | Back to Top | | |
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PaulMc
Adept
Date Joined May 2005
Total Posts : 992
| Posted 5/19/2005 8:42 AM (GMT -4) | | quote:
Originally posted by jonesha
The debut issue of Flashing Swords ezine is live and waiting for you
Well, I'm new here, so I only just finished reading the first issue of Flashing Swords.
Here are my thoughts.
Wonderful introduction, Howard!
Guardian of the Dawn by William King
Very strong story! Kormack is an interesting hero. A man trying to remain noble in a world going to corruption. The setting is appropriately dark and gloomy. Humans as monstrous as the monsters is always a nice touch. The last two sentences make a killer of an ending. This is good stuff!
The Whore's Fool by Joseph A. McCullough V
This was a rousing tale. A wench, a hero and a sorcerer - what more could you want? I do have one technical comment - how large is the musket that Stevan carries? Muskets are rather long weapons. They would be unwieldy in a crowded tavern or city street. I would think the muskets would be left on the ship, and the men would carry pistols. If this is too stereotypical pirate, then how about short, sawed off muskets that look like blunderbusses without the flared barrel? If so, a sentence or two of description would help suspend my disbelief a little further.
The Golden Empress by Harold Lamb
OKay, you're gonna crucify me. I did not enjoy this story. The elements were all there - empress, gladiator and Vikings, but the writing was bad. I could go on at length, and I will - but I will do it as a separate reply to this post.
The Burning River by S.C. Bryce
Generally, I liked this story. We have an interesting elfin hero, a magic sword, a burning river and a very nasty beastie. I also like the conclusion and the villagers' gift to Dermanassian. I think, though, the story could have been a little stronger if we were told a little nugget of Dermanassian's motivation or backstory. I know when you have mysterious hero over a body of stories, you don't want to play too much of your hand. But, Dermanassian is a Desert Elf who goes around helping people. And in this story, he helps people - but why? We don't need the whole backstory - just a hint. Was he oppressed, a slave, was his village attacked when he was a boy? Is he a knight or a priest under oath to fight evil and protect the innocent? Is he an elfin Don Quioxte who just got lucky and found real monsters to fight? I just feel that a touch of motivation/backstory reveal would have helped this story stand out a little bit more.
The High Tower by D. K. Latta
More Zargatha, please! Need to learn more about that hand. And the story was action from beginning to end. Good stuff!
Any criticism is (meant to be) offered in a non-offending, constructive manner. I'm in the same seat you all (the writers) are! Just hoping we can all help each other hone our various skills (writing, reading and editing)
Cheers!
-- Paul McNamee | | Back to Top | | |
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PaulMc
Adept
Date Joined May 2005
Total Posts : 992
| Posted 5/19/2005 8:46 AM (GMT -4) | | The Golden Empress by Harold Lamb
OKay, you're gonna crucify me. I did not enjoy this story. The elements were all there - empress, gladiator and Vikings, but the writing was bad.
Violation #1 - shifting point-of-view within the same scene
My biggest pet peeve about story-writing, hands down.
While this is not a grammatical rule, it is a strongly suggested method of story-writing, dating back to Hawthorne (if I recall my American Literature history correctly). Short stories should be told from a single point-of-view. In the modern day, this has evolved to be "single point-of-view per scene" - regardless of story length. Here, in the gladiator fight alone, we go from the Emperess' mind to Harald's mind to Ulf's mind. In the opening, substitute the English translator for Ulf, and you get the same rollercoaster feeling.
This doesn't allow us time to get to know a character. We spend one paragraph getting to know them and then we are jerked into the viewpoint of another character. It makes for choppy reading.
Mind you, this would not stop you from getting published. I notice that the first novels in new series by new writers often do this. I can name you three examples off the top of my head; Star Trek: The Next Generation - Ghost Ship, Red Sonja - Ring of Ikribu and Cormac Mac Art - Mists of Doom. Unfortunately, the only thing I recall about these books is being annoyed by the shifting p-o-v! (Remember, you can learn what not to do as well as what to do from other books)
It won't stop you from being published, but to me, it just smacks of beginner/amateur writing.
Violation #2 - Show, don't tell!
This comes from my screenwriting training. Show us, don't tell us! I believe this translates very well into the prose of action-adventure stories.
Lamb gives us a gladiator fight, but later he totally skips over the rescuing of the maiden.
The second message, a half-hour later, startled all the Sacred Palace. The Norsemen, Harald and seven others including a strange woman, had been brought into the courtyard of the palace of Maria the Porphyrogenita, by five guards. At least, everyone had taken the five for guards--until Harald made his way up the stairs and found Maria lying on her bed. He wrapped her up in a coverlet and carried her down, and went forth in the center of his men, who had got new arms from the house. They vanished into the network of dark alleys leading to the waterfront.
Wouldn’t have been for more exciting to have described the rescue from the Vikings point of view? Or Maria’s? If you were filming this, imagine what you would see. The Palace. A messenger who says the Vikings grabbed Maria. An exposition of action off-screen.
I’ll grant you two valid reasons not to have shown the rescue. 1.) wanted to keep word count low 2.) repetitive action (e.g.; if he kept repeating gladiator fights over and over .. then you could skip the details of the later fights) But the rescue from the palace was a totally different piece of action from the gladiator fight.
Another published example of this folly is the original Planet of the Apes novel.
Cornelius makes a plan to get the hero onto the next launching spaceship. The next chapter starts, Cornelius plan was flawless and already took place and the hero is launched into orbit.
Okay, technically not to big an issue, but he could have given us a half-chapter full of suspense describing how they got the hero onboard. Plenty of opportunities to worry us into believing the plan will go wrong too. And, with a novel, he really didn’t need to worry about word count. It’s a short book anyway.
Show us, don’t tell us!
Again, all criticism meant to be constructive for the writers here. I'm not trying to tear down Lamb - I'm just pointing out writers' pitfalls that should be avoided.
Cheers,
-- Paul McNamee | | Back to Top | | |
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Supr
Neophyte
Date Joined Apr 2005
Total Posts : 107
| Posted 5/19/2005 9:17 AM (GMT -4) | | | I liked The Golden Empress! The viking hero is arrogant and self-confidenced like a real S&S hero should be. The queen is a very exciting person.[:)] | | Back to Top | | |
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Red Viper
Acolyte
Date Joined Mar 2005
Total Posts : 439
| Posted 5/19/2005 9:52 AM (GMT -4) | | PaulMc: Interesting commentaries on Issue No. 1. I look forward to your thoughts on Issue 2 and future issues of "Flashing Swords."
I agree with you on shifting points of view within a scene. I find it somewhat jarring to even shift points of view within a story; I think its best to filter everything from one character's perspective, so as to build suspence. When the writer jumps from one character's head to another, it's easier for the author to get all points across -- but it's more effective, I think, if you stick to one character's view and let the reader figure out what's going on along with that character. Harder work for the author, and the motivations of some other characters may remain open to interpretation. But in real life, we seldom know what's going on in the minds of others, anyway.
All that said, I still loved the Harold Lamb story. It had enough vigor and fun to make me forgive those POV infractions. Few authors hit bingo on every single point with every story; we all have our shortcomings. But sometimes -- and the Lamb piece is one of those -- the good stuff renders the bad insignificant, at least for me.
Anyway, though, it's nice to have you on board here. Your insights are valuable and well-taken.
Red Viper, aka Steve Goble | | Back to Top | | |
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jonesha
Forum Moderator
Date Joined Jun 2004
Total Posts : 655
| Posted 5/19/2005 10:15 AM (GMT -4) | | Hey Paul,
Really insightful comments, intelligent and well thought-out. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Naturally I have to take some issue with the Harold Lamb comments. You must realize that not having shifting POV is a new fad. Any and all writers used to be able to shift POV whenever the heck they wanted. Take a good look at REH and any of the first crop of sword and sorcery writers. They leap from character head to character head within the same scene--it allows enormous freedom. Personally I'd prefer to have that much freedom, but somewhere in some crit group some place it was decided that shifting POV was no longer in vogue and it's rare to find in more modern works. I've had every single story I've tried that in rejected, and crit groups mark it up with red pen when I run it through workshops. Bill King and John Hocking and I were talking about this the other day, and I exchanged a few e-mails with C.J. Burch about it as well. I hope they'll drop by and say a few words about it. Be an interesting thing to get a conversation going about.
As to avoidance of the rescue scene, I disagree there with you as well. Seems to me that would have stretched the piece out and slowed down the pace.
But I do thank you for posting. I hope you don't mind me speaking for Harold, since he's been dead since 1962 and I'm pretty much his shield bearer at this point.
I do hope you'll continue to share thoughts on any and all related matters!
best wishes,
Howard | | Back to Top | | |
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jonesha
Forum Moderator
Date Joined Jun 2004
Total Posts : 655
| Posted 5/19/2005 10:23 AM (GMT -4) | | Hey Paul,
Forgot to mention, so busily was I defending Lamb, that I appreciated the compliment on the opening essay.
And you want more Zargatha? Feast your eyes on issue 2!
best,
Howard
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PaulMc
Adept
Date Joined May 2005
Total Posts : 992
| Posted 5/19/2005 10:38 AM (GMT -4) | | quote:
Originally posted by jonesha
Really insightful comments, intelligent and well thought-out. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Sure. I'll get to the second issue after vacation [:)] I'll be gone 'til next week after today.
quote:
Naturally I have to take some issue with the Harold Lamb comments. You must realize that not having shifting POV is a new fad. Any and all writers used to be able to shift POV whenever the heck they wanted. Take a good look at REH and any of the first crop of sword and sorcery writers.
Yes, but was that necessarily a good thing? If REH did it, I don't recall it irking me so much. I'll need to doublecheck some of the old stories.
quote:
They leap from character head to character head within the same scene--it allows enormous freedom.
Does it really? It might help descriptions (such as Ulf seeing the gladiator fight from the outside), but as Steve G. (red viper) pointed out .. once we're inside everybody's heads, then we know all about them and their plans and deceptions.
I'm a kind of straightforward guy, and something I'm still training myself to do with screenplays is not to have my dialogue so on-the-nose. If everybody says exactly what they're thinking all the time, it's not real life. People say things, leave things out, lie, etc.
I prefer the p-o-v 'rule', modern or not (I think it's a bit older than modern, but maybe just en vogue now), because of what I said, it makes for smoother reading. And it helps to identify with one character at a time for the reader.
quote:
As to avoidance of the rescue scene, I disagree there with you as well. Seems to me that would have stretched the piece out and slowed down the pace.
Valid point.
quote:
I do hope you'll continue to share thoughts on any and all related matters!
I'll try. :)
And I'm sure I'll get my share of feedback, too, as time goes by [;)]
-- Paul McNamee | | Back to Top | | |
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Casca
Stablehand
Date Joined May 2005
Total Posts : 7
| Posted 5/20/2005 11:55 AM (GMT -4) | | As far as shifting the POV goes, I don't see any problem with it as long as it fits the scene, and suits the story. It works better in longer fiction, there is no doubt about that, because in longer fiction you are able to concentrate on more than one character more easily. But it can be done with shorter fiction as well.
Of course you don't want to jump around too much or you'll confuse the reader up one side and down the other. But saying it can never be done is just inventing an artificial rule for an artficial rule's sake. (If it couldn't be done Tolkien, to over use an over used example, could never have split the company of the ring, since Frodo was his POV character, at least at the beginning. There are other ways of doing it as well. In Startide Rising David Brin uses a different POV at the beginning of almost every scene.)
Of course most editors don't agree with me. But if you're just writing for editors you probably should be writing something other than S@S. | | Back to Top | | |
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Casca
Stablehand
Date Joined May 2005
Total Posts : 7
| Posted 5/20/2005 12:07 PM (GMT -4) | | | Sorry, mis-read the previous posts. I should have addressed shifting POVs in the middle of a scene. Again, if it fits the scene and the story it is perfectly feasible. There is no reason on earth that a writer should have to stop what he's doing and start fresh from another character's perspective in describing that self same scene. As long as the scene flows a shift of POV is fine. As a matter of fact, it is much easier to descrbe your protagonist when he or she first appears, from another's view point than from their own. If the workshop folks that claim otherwise were correct about this, and alot of other stuff, I suspect S@S would be a lot more popular today, and maybe a tad less homogenous. | | Back to Top | | |
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Casca
Stablehand
Date Joined May 2005
Total Posts : 7
| Posted 5/20/2005 12:19 PM (GMT -4) | | | Okay, I'm going to babble just a little more, then I'll let this go. Stories are rarely just about one person. Events, in life, and in fiction, are rarely about just one person. There is no reason a writer should have to start every scene from scratch and retell it simply becuase there is more than one person in the scene. Assumng the reader is too stupid to realize that is a terrible sin, to me. Writers knew that for hundreds of years. There's no reason we should forget it now. | | Back to Top | | |
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Red Viper
Acolyte
Date Joined Mar 2005
Total Posts : 439
| Posted 5/20/2005 12:50 PM (GMT -4) | | Casca: I'm not saying shifting POV should never be done. But I think it should be done less. Too often, the shift in POV is not seamless, not signaled by the writer, and the reader has to re-read a passage to catch up and make sure he knows what's going on and who's head it's going on in. An example is Patrick O'Brien's historical novels about the British Royal Navy. The man knows his stuff, and his characters are fully human and wonderful. But he shifts POV sometimes in mid-paragraph, and quite often without giving a thought to signalling the reader that he is doing so. He also shifts scenes very suddenly, without a hint of transition, and the effect is quite jarring. I love his books, and will keep reading them, although I know each one will be something of a chore. And I know that if he had been just a tad more thoughtful about POV, he could have written the same books in much the same manner -- and made it even more of a joy for the reader.
If you want to sustain suspense and mystery, it's often better, I think, to stick to one character's thoughts and let the reader wonder what the other characters are thinking and doing. Casca is correct in saying that events in life and fiction are seldom about just one person. But haven't we all gone through experiences wishing we knew what the heck was going on in the minds of the people we know? Wondering what their agendas are? Sure we have, and I think it heightens the reader's ability to identify with a character when the reader and character BOTH are are wondering what motivations lurk in the minds of others. It lets the reader interact with the story, instead of merely absorb it. It gives the reader the chance to smell a trap before the hero does, and smile in satisfaction upon being proven right -- or be utterly surprised upon realizing the writer has led him on a wild goose chase.
Of course, there are stories that demand shifting POV. I've written some myself. I guess I'm saying that it's not so much a sin to shift POV -- but if you're going to do it, have a good reason for doing so and do it well. Make sure you take the reader along for the ride with you when you go from one mind to the next!
But Casca is quite right in saying that having rules just for the sake of rules and following them slavishly is a bad idea. Writers must create, using whatever tools are best for the job at hand, whether it be shifting POV, first-person narrative, rhyming couplets or even the dread split infinitive.
Red Viper, aka Steve Goble | | Back to Top | | |
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Casca
Stablehand
Date Joined May 2005
Total Posts : 7
| Posted 5/20/2005 4:49 PM (GMT -4) | | | Red Viper, I agree. If I seemed to be arguing that changing POV was something that should be done willy-nilly I mis-spoke. I use it fairly regularly, but even at that, I find it best to look at those places where I use it very carefully. If it doesn't fit, edit it out. If it does any damage to the story at all, edit it out. Funny, I find I've used it most when I'm writing about two people who know one another exceptionally well, and who I think of as protagonists rather than the protagonist and his side kick. It is my clumsy way of letting the readers know they are both important. | | Back to Top | | |
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Red Viper
Acolyte
Date Joined Mar 2005
Total Posts : 439
| Posted 5/20/2005 5:49 PM (GMT -4) | | Hey, Casca, I doubt it's clumsy in that instance. A certain Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser come to mind ...
Red Viper, aka Steve Goble | | Back to Top | | |
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