Tag Archives: 2014snapshot

My 2014 in Review

So, 2014 has come and gone. Wow. Time flies, huh?

Looking back, 2014 was a much better year than I realised. Even though I only had one story published, there were a number of significant milestones that are well worth celebrating.

But, first, let me get the negatives out of the way.

We lost some good people last year, and some people I care about had some tough times. That puts my problems into perspective, in the scheme of things I was very fortunate. So, I don’t really want to go into details as so many others have it so much worse, but during 2014 I struggled with some medical issues and, when added to my talent for taking too much on, I had a bit of a meltdown. The medical stuff is nothing life threatening, or anything for anyone to worry about, but enough to cause some issues. It’s not an excuse, but this did contribute to me messing up a couple of deadlines and letting some people down. You know who you are and, again, I apologise. It’s something I am very disappointed with myself in, and I hope that 2015 will be a much better year for that!

Looking back at the goals that I had set myself, I am disappointed to note that I still haven’t caught up on Doctor Who! Hopefully I can remedy that before Easter for reasons that will become clear later in this post.

I also haven’t made that first pro rate sale, though I do feel that I am getting closer and closer, and I might have another announcement to make soon..

But, on to the good things! There really were some wonderful moments, and I have a lot to be thankful for. And, it’s been great to feel like I am actually making some progress with my writing.

Unfortunately, I can’t share my biggest piece of news yet, but stay tuned as it will be announced around February.

Amongst the things I can talk about are:

  • After an eighteen year career in the field (pretty much straight out of Year 11), I left IT. I was seconded to our Editorial Department for 6 months in the position of Deputy Editor of one of our magazines (though I was essentially doing the Editor’s job). I can now announce that last  week I signed a contract extending my contract and naming me Editor. So, I guess I can say that I am a full time editor and writer now! There are not many people who get the chance to make a living from writing, so I feel incredibly blessed to have this opportunity– it really has changed my life. And, this has been so beneficial to my own writing, both in what I am learning from editing, and  because I am excited to be at work everyday instead being stressed and frustrated all the time. (which I know makes me very fortunate). I also think it has made me more productive, too, if there is a writing muscle, the more you use it the stronger it gets
  • From a fiction writing POV, one of the highlights of 2014 was being shortlisted for the WSFA Small Press Award. As I said at the time, seeing my name alongside all the past nominees and winners was a huge thrill and I was gobsmacked when I found out. I never expected to be nominated, let alone win, so I wasn’t that disappointed to lose–especially to a great story.
  • After two previous nominations, winning a William J. Atheling Jr Award for the New Who reviews. I have felt very privileged to get to work with Tehani and Tansy, and humbled to tie with Galactic Suburbia, one of my biggest influences. Hopefully I can catch up on the latest seasons soon!
  • The Ditmar for Galactic Chat. A huge amount of the credit for this needs to go to Sean Wright, our podcast overlord, and it was great to see him recognised for his hard work. It felt a bit weird winning an award for having the opportunity to get to talk to some of my writing heroes. Seems like a bit of a rort, really! lol
  • Which leads on to the interviews with Ken Liu and Kameron Hurley. Wow, talk about gushing fanboy moments. Just a hint: next year wills ee even more fanboying! I have a few more writing superstars lined up for you.
  • Being asked to return as part of the Aussie Snapshot team. This one was even bigger than the last one, and we managed to cover a huge cross section of the Aussie Spec Fic scene. If you haven’t read it yet, you are really missing out!
  • Even though I had a quiet year in publications, I managed to sell some stories and I have already have three new stories confirmed for 2015 (including a sale to Fablecroft and coeur de lion) as well as something a bit longer which I can’t talk about yet (and that is killing me).
  • The release of a bundle of my short stories from Clan Destine Press, including a brand new story that I am rather proud of, and am very glad to see find a home. It already has a great review!
  • Managing to make a good start on the collaborative young adult novel I am working on, It’s definitely starting to take shape now and has gotten to that point where it has developed some momentum, and the process that we decided to use seems to be working (big thanks to Amie Kaufman for her generosity with her time and advice. I am very excited about where it is heading, and you can expect to hear more about it in 2015
  • Helping my good friend, Laura Goodin, perform a radio play at Conflux. Hopefully there will be a version available for your listening pleasure soon
  • Beating “Hold Over Funds” to become the FFANZ delegate. I am really excited about heading over tot New Zealand in 2015, i am sure that it is going to be a blast. It looks like I need to be caught up on Doctor Who by then, though!
  • Amazing fun at Continuum X and Conflux 10

Aside from all these, there is something even more important to mention. I got to spend time with existing friends, made a number of new friends and, most of all, was continually reminded of what an amazing community we have in Australia. A number of my friends had some great moments of their own, and I was delighted to see their successes (and quite often got to help celebrate them, which is always fun).

The big goals for 2015:

  • Get that elusive pro sale!
  • Finish the YA novel and get it off for submission.
  • Catch up with Doctor Who.
  • Get my solo novel done.
  • Start another conversational review series about a series of books that are very dear to my heart
  • Try and get involved in some sort of news/discussion podcast

And, that’s probably enough for now!

Hopefully I will be at a few cons in 2015. I always try and get to Continuum, and I have brought my membership and booked my hotel for the Worldcon on in Spokane. And, of course, I will be in NZ for their Natcon.

I am looking forward to 2015, which I think might be my biggest yet, and I will be hoping for the same for you!

The march to global domination continues!

Some more Aussie Snapshot news!

The collated list of interviews is up on SF Signal. Thanks to the team there for hosting us, and hopefully it will mean more international exposure for our snapshotees.

There is also a nice article on Yahoo, via the West Australian

And, last but not least, the ever industrious Tehani and Katharine have started archiving all the old snapshots on a dedicated site. Eventually the new interviews will go there, too. Check it out for a glimpse of the scope of the project, and of the awesomeness of the Aussie scene.

SnaphotLogo2014

The Australian Spec Fic Snapshot 2014 – Ambelin Kwaymullina

Ambelin Kwaymullina is an Aboriginal writer and illustrator from the Palyku people. The homeland of her people is located in the dry, vivid beauty of the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Ambelin has written and illustrated a number of award winning picture books as well as writing a dystopian series – ‘the Tribe’ – for Young Adults. When not writing or illustrating, Ambelin teaches law and spends time with her family and her dogs.

You are halfway though a Young Adult series (the Tribe) that mixes dystopian and post apocalyptic themes with social commentary, to critical acclaim. What is it that attracted you to YA? Do you think that there are themes or concepts that YA can explore differently than other genres?

Why do I write for the young? We owe them something, those of us who are older – at the very least, we owe them a world that is a little better than the one we inherited. And it only takes the briefest glance at the situations in which many young people across the globe are living to know that we adults are collectively doing a very poor job of providing such a place. I’ve said before that I don’t invent worlds where the young are at risk; I just write about how to defy that reality. And YA explores those issues differently because it does so from the perspective of the young and not the old. I think we become far too accepting of the many injustices of this planet as we grow older; we can even come to believe that great inequities are inevitabilities rather than things created and perpetuated by human beings and human societies. But what we as a species have done we can also challenge, defy and undo – and the young understand this far better than the old.

cover-ashala-wolfRecently, you were the Guest of Honour at the Australian National Convention, Continuum X, which I believe was your first time as a GOH. How did you find the experience? Was it what you expected?

I loved it! And I did approach it with a degree of trepidation because I knew I would be speaking to issues that some people find confronting, including the appropriation of Indigenous culture. And, okay, yes, a few people did come up to me and say things that were not very nice. But the vast majority came seeking to improve their understanding and to engage with what I was talking about. In the end, I think what I had fulfilled at Continuum X was not an expectation but a hope – because I hoped, at a spec fic convention, to find people who seemed like they came from a better time and place. I hoped to meet people who valued the great diversity of human existence and who were doing their level best to make their corner of the world just a little bit brighter for those around them. And I did.

ambelin-bgWhile at Continuum, you continued the tradition of marvellous GoH speeches (you can read an abridged and edited version of the speech here), and it has attracted a great deal of comment on the internet. Were you surprised by the reception your speech received? What results or changes would you like to see come out of your speech?

I was surprised, in a good way, at the level of attention the speech received. And if there is a change I’d like to see people make, it’s this: pay attention. Start noticing when small acts of exclusion occur around you. And start speaking out or intervening (if it is safe to do so, and get help if it isn’t). I think people are too often susceptible to believing it’s big, grand gestures that truly matter. But like water running over rock, it is our everyday behaviour that shapes who we are and the world in which we live. Besides which, as someone who has had the ugliness of racism and sexism directed at them, I can tell you this: for someone else to speak up is a grand gesture, and a profoundly important one. We are all more powerful together than alone.

cover-two-hearted-numbat-largeWhat Australian works have you loved recently?

I’ve been revisiting Isobelle Carmody’s Obernewtyn series recently. This was one of the first spec fic series I ever read, and it retains its magic for me through many re-readings; I never get tired of it.

Have recent changes in the publishing industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

I try to write the best story I can; I can’t say I pay that much attention to changes in the industry (aside from anything else I just don’t have the time to keep up, any ‘spare’ time is devoted to writing). I do pay attention to writers, and I read as much as I can, most especially Indigenous writers both from Australia and elsewhere. And I will, of course, perpetually be reading and writing speculative fiction. I have a new three book series in my head right now, and a different, longer series after that. I’m not short on material. Just time.

cover-ember-crow

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Aussie Spec Fic Snapshot. In the lead up to the World Science Fiction Convention in London, we will be blogging interviews for Snapshot 2014 conducted by Tsana Dolichva, Nick Evans, Stephanie Gunn, Kathryn Linge, Elanor Matton-Johnson, David McDonald, Helen Merrick, Jason Nahrung, Ben Payne, Alex Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Helen Stubbs, Katharine Stubbs, Tehani Wessely and Sean Wright.

To read the interviews hot off the press, check out these blogs daily from July 28 to August 10, 2014, or look for the round up on SF Signal when it’s all done. You can find the past Snapshots at the following links: 2005, 2007,  2010 and 2012.

The Australian Spec Fic Snapshot 2014 – Karen Wyld

Karen Wyld lives by the sea, nestled between scrub, hills and vineyards. She’s had an eclectic working life, and currently works in Aboriginal workforce development. From dabbling with poetry as a soppy adolescent, to editor of a pre-internet alternative magazine, Karen now uses social media to procrastinate.

Never content with taking the easy path in life, Karen independently published her first novel. With sights on becoming a hybrid author, she is working concurrently on four genre-confused manuscripts.

Visit Karen’s website to find out about her first novel ‘When Rosa Came Home’. While there, read some short stories and blog-posts.

You live in an incredibly beautiful corner of Australia, and some of the shots on your blog are stunning. You also get to do a fair bit of travel around the place. When it comes to your writing, how much of an influence are your surroundings? How big a part does a sense of place play in your stories?

Over the last five years, my day-jobs have involved a fair bit of travelling through country South Australia, and more recently around Australia. Recent business trips involved airports and motel rooms in capital cities. It’s surprising how much writing can be done in a motel room, especially if it doesn’t have free Wi-Fi. However, I’m a country-girl at heart, and need to occasionally get out on the open road.

Travel inspires me on many levels. I’ve just returned from a two-week road trip from coastal South Australia to Uluru, Northern Territory. Finding myself suddenly in-between work (my job was a victim of the recent federal budget cuts to Aboriginal services), I ended up doing this trip on the cheap. This meant days of driving (window down, belting out songs) and then sleeping in my car at night (it was too windy for the tent). Might sound awful to some, but this mode of travel gave me a much better perspective of the country I was travelling through than the usual plane plus motel combo.

Photo by Darren De Silva

Photo by Darren De Silva

I started a new job this week, so I’m now looking at how to keep travelling as a writer. The dream of the moment is to hunt down a vintage caravan, renovate it, and hit the road on week-ends. I can imagine travelling to new places, writing, speaking at writers festivals; and then coming home to the beautiful Fleurieu Peninsula. Home is important to me.

I’ve always felt a strong connection to my surroundings, and I think that comes out clearly in both my fiction and non-fiction writing. Done right, place becomes another character in a novel. A reader should be able to not only see the setting of the story, but to smell, feel, hear and taste. What better way to evoke all senses then through place?

There is a beautiful tribute to Doris Nugi Garimara Pilkington AM on your blog. Could you tell us a little about her influence on you, and your writing? Are there other writers who have influenced you, or in whose footsteps you wish to follow?

Aunty Doris, who passed away earlier this year, is on my list of inspiring authors for two reasons. Firstly, because of her courage to write about issues many would have preferred stayed secret. And secondly, being related to a fearless female author inspires me to use my own writer-voice.

Some people label me as ‘political’, as I have a strong sense of social justice, and I’m very vocal about rights for humans, animals and the environment. Naturally I gravitate to writers who tell brave stories, and touch on enviro-socio-political issues. Which is probably why I mostly read, and write, magic realism. It’s a genre that is rich in place, and gives a voice to the oppressed. Magic realism is strongest when used by First Nation peoples that are grappling with the aftermath of colonisation, and other power-based atrocities.

100_1845Many Australian First Nation writers, past and present, are labelled as political. Mostly published by universities and small publishing houses, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers have been sharing brave stories for decades, especially using autobiographical and historical styles. This is changing as new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers find their own voices, and explore other genres, putting pressure on publishers to accept a broader range of work. We shouldn’t be expected to fit in a certain literary box, or always create main characters who are Aboriginal, or story-lines that involve Aboriginal issues, culture or histories.

Still, we need to honour the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers who have paved the way for us, and brought important issues to the attention of mainstream Australia, as well as internationally. Aunty Doris will always be remembered as having a pivotal role in raising awareness of darker times in Australian history. A time not so long ago, when many children were forcibly removed from family and community, through polices founded on cultural bias and xenophobia. By writing of these times, her words have helped progress healing and social justice. I believe that to constructively influence peoples’ worldviews through writing, to bring about much needed change, is the pinnacle of writing.

You’ve talked on your blog about coming to writing later in life. Can you tell us a little about the road to publication, and what the future holds? What are you working on?

To clarify, I’ve been writing both fiction and non-fiction from a young age, but only just published my first novel. In the 80s, I volunteered for an alternative magazine. I eventually became the editor and main contributor, until it got too much juggling the challenges of micro-publishing in the pre-internet days, and being the sole provider of a young family. I finished my first full-length manuscript about 20 years ago, but I put it in a drawer after being disheartened by the messages I was hearing from the publishing industry. However, like the banks’ opposition to women seeking mortgages, it was just a matter of waiting until attitudes changed. Decades later, having obtained the qualifications to get an acceptable income to buy a house, I felt it was time to publish a book.

roadThe timing was perfect. Advances in technology, and the way people use new technology and social media as a source of information and entertainment, has had a positive impact on publishing. Control is slowly shifting from the gate-keepers to the innovators, and this has opened the flood gates for aspiring writers. Diving into this on-line world enabled me to connect with supportive writers from around the world, and given me the means to learn both the art and business of writing. Going indie is not easy, and it’s extremely time consuming, but I’m glad I’ve taken that pathway. I’ve had to build a wide range of capabilities, and master elements that traditionally published writers wouldn’t even know existed. I’ve also had to toughen up; to not let the creative side take over, and instead make decisions based on good practice. Publishing independently does not mean that quality should be compromised, nor does it mean doing it alone. So for my first novel, I outsourced key elements of the publishing process, such as editing and cover design.

karenwyld_whenrosacamehome_web_finalAs an emerging writer, I’m not confined to any particular genre, and like to create hybrids. So far, my work fits within magic realism, literary fiction, indigenous literature, speculative fiction, or contemporary fiction with a dash of the absurd. Over the past few years, I have developed a number of manuscripts, which are in differing pre-published stages. The next one off the rank, which I will venture down the traditional publishing path for, is a politically-charged magic realism novel, set in the 60/70s. Through the lives of non-identical Aboriginal sisters, and their mother, the book explores themes such as identity, diaspora, racism, country and belonging. The characters travel through Country, from coast to desert, so place will be a key element of this story.

What Australian works have you loved recently?

I don’t recall the last time I read a book by an Australian author. Writing on a daily basis changes the way you read. I still read daily, but the way I read has changed. For me, writing involves a rhythm, both when stringing words together on screen and when reading. I find too many recently published novels lack a rhythm I can relate to, so I don’t often read for pure enjoyment anymore.

Because I needed to pack lighter when travelling, I went over to the dark side and am now an avid reader of e-books. I read a lot of e-books by other indie authors. Some as research into this emerging side of publishing, but mostly to support writers I’ve met through social media. There is a strong sense of community and playing-it-forward amongst indie writers. If there is a traditionally published book I really want to read, then I’ll look for it at the local library. The big publishing houses don’t seem to understand, or are resistant to, new ways of reading. They often overlook e-books, or overprice their books on-line, and basically make it more difficult for readers to access commercially published books.

When I do read for enjoyment, I usually find myself returning to my collection of books with dog-eared pages. My favourites have rhythm, they are rich in descriptive prose, evoke emotions, and touch upon important issues. So I re-read books such as Beloved (Toni Morrison), One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez) or Marie Laveau (Francine Prose). At the moment, I am not connecting to fantasy or sci fi novels. However, a new Pratchett novel will always get my attention.

Have recent changes in the publishing industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

We live in exciting times and, for writers who are able to adapt, it’s only going to get more interesting. Writers finally have choices, and are no longer kept out of the game by conservative guardians. These changes will be of particular benefit to writers who may have been pushed aside in the past, such as indigenous writers, and for those who creatively explore genres that are not considered profitable by industry.

Road_croppedIt’s not only writers that are benefiting from a transforming industry. We now have more choices of reading material, at prices that suit all incomes, and buying methods that are more consumer-driven. And the breadth of available storytelling formats is amazing. The way we tell and absorb stories will keep on changing at such a rapid pace that it is almost impossible to predict the next five years.

Hopefully, changes will include the actual bones of story, and not just how they are published and consumed. Personally, I think many novels have become stripped of descriptive prose. Writers are being told to be concise with dialogue and scarce on adverbs. Verbs and adjectives have also become victims of the prevalence of action-packed books. Reading should be challenging, it should expand both our vocabularies and capacity to think and feel. We might be at risk of losing the beauty, and profound messages, which can be found within books.

My first novel was driven by a dissatisfaction with contemporary novels; those with a pace that is much too quick and prose too thin. I purposely slowed down, filled the pages with uncommon words and enhanced the role of setting. I also experimented with how far I could push an allegorical style of writing. What resulted was a warm tale for adults, reminiscent of fairy tales but without fairies and similar folk. Now that I’ve had my fun, the next few novels will be in a more serious vein. However, if I can continue to fuse magic realism, gothic tales, speculative fiction and other non-commercial genres, I’m sure I will still writing far beyond the next five years.

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Aussie Spec Fic Snapshot. In the lead up to the World Science Fiction Convention in London, we will be blogging interviews for Snapshot 2014 conducted by Tsana Dolichva, Nick Evans, Stephanie Gunn, Kathryn Linge, Elanor Matton-Johnson, David McDonald, Helen Merrick, Jason Nahrung, Ben Payne, Alex Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Helen Stubbs, Katharine Stubbs, Tehani Wessely and Sean Wright.

To read the interviews hot off the press, check out these blogs daily from July 28 to August 10, 2014, or look for the round up on SF Signal when it’s all done. You can find the past Snapshots at the following links: 2005, 2007,  2010 and 2012.

The Australian Spec Fic Snapshot 2014 – Raymond Gates

Raymond Gates is an Aboriginal Australian writer based on the Gold Coast, whose childhood crush on reading everything dark and disturbing evolved into an adult love affair with writing horror. He has published a number of short stories, several of which have been nominated for the Australian Shadows Awards. With the help of his muse, he plans to drag the novel that lurks within him into the light. Delve into his mind at: http://www.raymondgates.com. You can aslo find him on Facebook and Twitter.

You¹ve built up a strong list of short fiction sales, appearing in some great anthologies, and storming the Australian Shadows Awards! What is it about short fiction that appeals to you?

I think all would-be writers can benefit from cutting their teeth on short fiction. It’s a great way to practice getting the elements of writing – characterisation, storyline, voice, etc. – just right for the story you want to tell. It’s also a good way of getting ideas out of your head and onto the
page. Not every story is novel-length, however that doesn’t mean it’s any less of a story. It still deserves to be told. When I write, I don’t start with a word count in mind. I just write and the story is as long as it needs to be. I think short fiction works well for many readers as well,
particularly those reading digital formats and reading between activities. If a novel opens a window to another world, short fiction allows you to peek through the curtain, and sometimes that’s all you want to do.
Ray_AuthorPicRecently, you did a radio interview where you talked about, amongst other things, issues relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers in genre fiction. How do you feel the Australian spec fic community is doing when it comes to welcoming indigenous writers What are some of the challenges? Are there any writers we should be keeping an eye out for?

I think the Rhianna Patrick’s Beyond Unaipon series showed that Indigenous spec fic writers are starting to make inroads into the Australian community, and I think the community is ready to embrace this. Part of this is that, as other writers interviewed in the series stated, the development of the indie market and relative ease of self-publishing has given Indigenous writers unprecedented opportunities to get their work into the public arena. Traditional or ‘mainstream’ publishers seem to have been reluctant to run with anything Indigenous that was not biographical, historic, or about social issues. The feedback I’ve had in the past indicates this is primarily based on fear: fear of getting the cultural sensitivity issues right, so as not to receive any backlash – real or perceived – from Indigenous communities, and fear that the Australian public won’t support spec fic with Indigenous overtones, or grounded in Indigenous culture.

dead-red-heart-webYet I think writers such as Ambelin Kwaymullina, Teagan Chilcott, and Tristan Savage are demonstrating that not only is the spec fic community ready to hear stories told by Indigenous writers, they’re finding that Indigenous writers bring something unique to the spec fic world through their culture and background. Publishers need to start working with Indigenous writers not only to bring out great stories, but to understand how to incorporate Indigenous culture and ideas into spec fic while maintaining cultural safety. That will get us past these fears, and once that happens, I think you’ll witness an explosion of Indigenous writers and stories into the spec fic market.

What’ s on the horizon for Raymond Gates? I believe there might be a novel lurking, and even some game development?

I have produced some short fiction for an Australian table-top miniatures game developer, Demigod Games, as part of the background to their historical-fantasy setting of their game, Conquest of the Gods, and there may be more opportunities to work with them on similar projects in the future. I have been forever threatening to produce a novel, and have spent the last several months engaged in some serious research with Brisbane’s Goth community and the Carpathian Magistratus Vampire Society to help make sure I get things right (there’s a hint as to what it might be about!).

I’ve also been approached by a small television and film production studio to discuss the possibility of adapting some of my short fiction to the screen, which is very exciting – I’d love to see some of my work brought to life in a Tales from the Crypt type of show, or as part of a short film festival!

Beyond that, I just keep writing, and looking for and welcoming opportunities to share my imagination with others.

ahwaWhat Australian works have you loved recently?

Sadly, I haven’t had the opportunity lately to spend any time with fiction. The last Australian writer I read was Ruby Langford Ginibi’s account of her life through her first book, Don’t Take Your Love to Town. It was especially important to me because not only is it a poignant and moving insight into the life of an extraordinary Aboriginal woman, and life for many Aboriginal people over the last half-century, but as Ruby and I are related it gave me an insight into a side of my family that I’ve never known.

Have recent changes in the publishing industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

There’s no question the rise of self-publishing and the indie market has changed the publishing industry forever. That alone is not only influencing what and how people write, but how people read and access works. I don’t believe we’ll ever see the predicted demise of the paperback though, because reading is more than just ingesting words, it’s an experience. Those dog-eared, creased, coffee-stained, slightly torn pages are far more intimate that the cold glare of a screen will ever be. As for how it influences my work over the next five years; I’m still keen to adhere to the traditional publishing route for now, because I believe this is more likely to keep challenging and developing me as a writer and (hopefully) move me into the upper echelons of the spec fic world. My next goals are to crack the professional markets and see at least one novel of mine on the shelves.

I would like to see the horror genre – my genre – return to its former glory days when horror meant exploring the deep, dark recesses of the imagination and unknown, rather than piggybacking onto the latest trends. And if I can be part of, or even instrumental, in that process, all the better.

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Aussie Spec Fic Snapshot. In the lead up to the World Science Fiction Convention in London, we will be blogging interviews for Snapshot 2014 conducted by Tsana Dolichva, Nick Evans, Stephanie Gunn, Kathryn Linge, Elanor Matton-Johnson, David McDonald, Helen Merrick, Jason Nahrung, Ben Payne, Alex Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Helen Stubbs, Katharine Stubbs, Tehani Wessely and Sean Wright.

To read the interviews hot off the press, check out these blogs daily from July 28 to August 10, 2014, or look for the round up on SF Signal when it’s all done. You can find the past Snapshots at the following links: 2005, 2007,  2010 and 2012.

The Australian Spec Fic Snapshot 2014 – Holly Kench

Holly Kench is a writer and a feminist, with a classics degree and a fear of spiders. She lives in Tasmania, Australia, where a lack of sun provides ample opportunity for hiding indoors and writing off-kilter stories. Holly writes about her life as a stuffed olive on her blog Confessions of a Stuffed Olive and manages the website Visibility Fiction, promoting and publishing inclusive young adult fiction.

I am a huge fan of your cartoons! When did you first start creating them, and can you tell us a bit about the process involved?

Thank you, David!

I started creating my cartoons nearly three years ago when I first decided to start taking my writing seriously (more than writing only for myself and friends). I wrote a few stories and put them on my blog, but they seemed really boring without pictures (because I have the maturity of a 3 year old and the attention span of a dead goldfish) so I decided to illustrate them with stick figures, and it snowballed from there. At some point the illustrations kind of took over…

My process? You make it sound like these things are the result of some kind of forethought. Typically each comic or story begins with me experiencing some socially awkward event, or remembering some mortifying childhood experience. Then I write. All my posts begin as text – usually long rambles written at 3am. Often by the time I finish writing, I realise I can say the same thing with more punch if I delete all the words and just draw a few sad looking stick figures. Of course, words are my enduring love, so a lot of the time the fun for me comes from crafting those rambles. The luxury of my Olive cartoons is that I can pick and choose whether I want to create a short comic or a short story, and can use supplementary stick figures to give my stories another dimension.

astronautI create all my Olive pictures in MS Paint and maintain that it is the best graphics program since, well, MacPaint. Once I’ve added in the pictures, I hit ‘publish’ before I can think about it too long and chicken out.

You have a story in the upcoming YA anthology from Twelfth Planet Press, Kaleidoscope, alongside an amazing range of YA authors. What inspired you to write your story, and why did that anthology in particular appeal?

I was so excited when I first heard about Kaleidoscope. I’ve been a fan of Julia Rios, via The Outer Alliance Podcast, and Alisa Krasnostein, via the Galactic Suburbia Podcast and Twelfth Planet Press, for quite a while. Both their podcasts are on my must-listen list. So when I heard they had teamed up to create an anthology with a theme that basically summarised everything I was dying to see in fiction… well, I happy-freaked out.

I didn’t have to read the planned table of contents to know this was going to be a fantastic anthology. Then when I did discover the amazing authors they had included… I mean, what can I say? I just feel so lucky to be involved.

Kaleidoscope-Cover-706x1024My fan-girling for Alisa, Julia and the rest of the Kaleidoscope authors aside, the theme of Kaleidoscope is something I feel very passionately about. I’ve written quite a bit in the past about the need for more diversity in fiction and it was clear from Alisa and Julia’s initial posts about the anthology that they were coming from a very similar perspective to my reasons behind starting Visibility Fiction.

My story “Every Little Thing” was loosely inspired by a novel I wrote (but never quite finished) a few years ago. Even though I eventually put that novel in the drawer-of-doomed-manuscripts, one of the secondary characters really stuck with me. When I read the submission call for Kaleidoscope, that character came straight to mind and I knew I had to tell a story from her perspective – though Mandy ended up being significantly modified from her original being. I can’t tell you how happy I am to have her story included in Kaleidoscope. I hope people like it.

You manage the site visibilityfiction.com. What is the site’s mission, and where do you see it going in the future?

As I mentioned, Visibility Fiction’s mission coincides a lot with that of the Kaleidoscope anthology. We publish and promote young adult fiction with protagonists from diverse backgrounds. Our aim is to create a space where people can access free, positive stories about diverse characters, and to address the imbalance of representation in fiction, which tends to focus on straight, white, cis, able (etc) characters.

When I first started the site, I had just finished some university work focusing on LGBT representations in teen culture (comparing the representation of the closet in Buffy and Pretty Little Liars – heh), but I soon realised that the lack of LGBT characters in TV, film and fiction was only the tip of the iceberg when it came to missing representations.

Visibility Fiction CoverI also realised that no matter how much I wrote about the current imbalances in character representations, if I wanted to really commit to seeing change, I needed to actively address the problem from within fiction. I began writing more diverse stories, but I also realised there were so many experiences that I could not even fathom. I decided there needed to be more spaces where people could access diverse stories from diverse voices, and spaces that promoted inclusive fiction in all its forms. So I made one.

My dream for the future is to be able to offer pro-payments to authors. I want to see more stories and a wider range of authors on the site. I’m very fussy about the stories we publish, in terms of the writing and the nature of the diversity presented. We have some fantastic stories up there and I’d like to see more. A pro-payment would help with this, but I also think it’s only fair for authors to receive that kind of compensation for their work. We run on donations, though, so our budget is fairly restricted.

Looking even further down the track than that, I’d love for the site to eventually become obsolete. I want to get to the point where diversity in fiction isn’t something we have to search for and actively promote, but where diversity in fiction goes hand in hand with fiction itself. I think that would be amazing.

What Australian works have you loved recently?

I fell into a steampunk spiral a little while ago and haven’t quite managed to pull myself out. There’s a lot more of it out there this year than in the past, both adult and YA, and this is both good and bad – good because it feeds my obsession, and bad because it’s beginning to get to that point where finding the good stuff amongst the rubbish can be a bit of a chore. That said, Australian author Bec McMaster totally brings the good stuff. I’m currently reading My Lady Quicksilver, which is the third in her London Steampunk series. These are some of the most addictive books I’ve read in a while, but a word of warning, they are VERY high on the steam scale of romance, so not for those who squirm at a bit of sexy times in their fiction. There’s a great overarching intrigue plot as well, and some of the best steampunk world building I’ve read.

Getting away from steampunk for a bit, I’ve also just started Nina D’Aleo’s The Whitelist. Last year I really enjoyed Nina D’Aleo’s The Last City, which was all fabulous characters and an amazing world. She has a very unique way of writing that really appeals to me and is very captivating, so I’m excited to be starting another of her novels.

Have recent changes in the publishing industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

I only read digital content these days, so the increase in the availability of digital content has hugely influenced my access to reading material. I love ebooks and I’m also a complete audiobook addict. I don’t remember how I functioned before audiobooks. I don’t even want to think about it. I’m also a big fan of libraries, and despite what some of the end-is-nigh paper book fanatics might say, the wonderful thing about libraries these days is the way they are adapting to provide more and more digital content (including audiobooks). Libraries are a good example of how previous models of book consumption can be adapted to make the most of the digital world, while still providing spaces that are all about book love. Seriously, guys, hug your librarian!

I think outlets for digital publications have also made it possible for more diverse and interesting fiction to be published. Stories that previously might have failed to find a path to publication through traditional models now have more opportunity to find an audience, not only via self-publishing, but also through digital first publishers which seem to be more willing to take risks with less mainstream content. For example, I’ve been reading a few female superhero novels lately (The Masked Songbird by Emmie Mears, Sidekick by Auralee Wallace and Scorched by Erica Hayes), all of which were released by digital first publishers, and I honestly have my doubts about whether some of these novels would have seen the light of day in the past.

As you can tell, I’m pretty positive about the way things are moving. There are definitely scary factors, but that’s the nature of transition, and I can see more good results from the new world of publishing than bad.

I have no idea what I’ll be publishing/writing/reading five years from now. Probably fiction, maybe some non-fiction. I can’t really say more than that.

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Aussie Spec Fic Snapshot. In the lead up to the World Science Fiction Convention in London, we will be blogging interviews for Snapshot 2014 conducted by Tsana Dolichva, Nick Evans, Stephanie Gunn, Kathryn Linge, Elanor Matton-Johnson, David McDonald, Helen Merrick, Jason Nahrung, Ben Payne, Alex Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Helen Stubbs, Katharine Stubbs, Tehani Wessely and Sean Wright.

To read the interviews hot off the press, check out these blogs daily from July 28 to August 10, 2014, or look for the round up on SF Signal when it’s all done. You can find the past Snapshots at the following links: 2005, 2007,  2010 and 2012.

The Australian Spec Fic Snapshot 2014 – Lewis Morley

Lewis  has a Bachelor of the Arts in Interior design from Sydney College of the Arts, and a Certificate in Art Direction from the Australian Film, TV and Radio School. He has worked for almost 30 years in the Australian film & TV industries. His specialities are miniatures and visual effects, special props, concept modelmaking and illustration. He has also won the “Ditmar” award for best Australian Science Fiction Artist. You can find out more here.

In the past you have worked for WETA on some incredible movies. What was your favourite project, and why?

Being asked to work at WETA was one of the high points of my film career. The Workshop is like Mount Olympus, everyone there is the best, working at the peak of their abilities. My traditional work method is to be involved in all aspects of the design, construction, finishing and filming of my projects. WETA is organised on a much more partitioned operation, with work often shared around to give everyone a go. I worked on Weta Collectables, both Lord of the Rings and Dr. Grodbort’s blasters as well as the films “The Hobbit” and “Elysium”. The Hobbit workload was Goblin weapon finishing, Azog costume development and constructing a lightweight Gandalf dummy for the final battle. Elysium tasks included sculpting a maquette of the robot suit (my personal favourite), building a mock-up robot suit and developing an on-set disintegrating Chem-Rail gun effect.

The guitar that you made for Richard Harland is one of the coolest things I have ever seen. Can you tell us how that project came about? Have you made any other custom projects based on objects from books? If you could pick any object from any book to make, what would it be?

I was asked by Richard to create something impressive on a budget (which is my natural comfort zone!). I have a laser cutter/etcher which was perfect to produce the engraved brass and inlaid marble components that change the look of the guitar but still allow it to be played. There are some antique style brass handles over the strings which look great but may cramp his style a little! I’m also indebted to Eric Lindsay who bought a lightning-effect display which he generously gave to me because he felt I could make better use of it. Concealed beneath a clear plastic hemisphere filled with crystal shred, it gives the perfect illusion of a pulsating power crystal.

guitarIn the past, I’ve made faux tin-toys based on stories by Ray Bradbury.

minitAs for other book inspired works, I’d love to do the Martian machines from War of the Worlds. Warwick Goble, Frank Paul, Mike Trim and Roger Dean have all done distinctive versions, but with my laser cutter, I think I could do something interesting with Well’s description of the Martian pivot-less sliding knee joint…

What projects are you currently working on? Where can we see more of your work?

I have many uncompleted projects, two that I really want to get back to are short films that have already had pre-viz animatics completed, so I know how long they run and what needs to be filmed to complete them.

One is “March of Progress” a faux 1960’s style documentary about a veteran flyer of the Inner World War who used his magnetic powered aircraft to vanquish inter-dimensional bio weapons.

The other is “Your standard day on the Nets” a claymation short featuring my comic character “Peregrine Besset” dealing with inter-dimensional junk falling into her world…

I created this character almost 15 years ago and am currently developing a rebooted version with a more considered world view. I take the writing workshops at Continuum very seriously and am attempting to integrate the insights I’ve learned there into a more holistic narrative.

godofthedeadThe existing 7 issues I have written, drawn or produced are archived in the comics page at www.redworldstories.com but I feel they are a very crude version of the story I now want to tell.

redworld2
A more complete overview of my various works can be seen at www.morleypride.com

What Australian works have you loved recently?

My most recent film was “Infini” which had an ambitious high concept “Outland meets 28 Days later” vibe. I haven’t seen the final cut, so I don’t know if they’ve successfully pulled off the story structure, but I had a great opportunity to inject some interesting design work into the hand guns and helmets. In a world clogged with spacey combat helmets, I was able to give the final look a slightly different feel.

With Australian  stuff that I’ve had nothing to do with, the writings of Anna Tambour are a firm favourite, not just her stories like “Crandolin” but also her blog “Medlar Comfits“.

Have recent changes in the film industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

The basic structure for film production has changed in the last 15 years, moving away from a reliance on multi-skilled individuals and towards more ordered workers within highly compartmentalized skill sets. This makes it a lot harder to learn different skills, move between departments or progress beyond a defined pay scale. The simplest example is Ray Harryhausen doing most of the effects for “Earth Vs the Flying Saucers” by himself versus the 15,000 people employed in the latest “Planet of the Apes” film. The increased sophistication and demands of modern big budget production means it is almost impossible for one person (no matter how skilled) to produce a finished work. I have found my options within big productions shrinking and I am moving towards independent productions that still allow me some creative freedom.

I think the only way forward for my own comic story is as a web comic. This imposes a three-panel episode structure, but also allows for full colour in the final images (something beyond the economics of photocopied comics) Chopping the story into smaller instalments may also allow for more regular delivery.

peregrinebessetThe only thing I can’t solve is how to get any sort of return on the effort expended. Maybe some kind of micro-payment might give some incentive, but as it exists the project is purely a labour of love. I have dreams of some kind of animated version, but as yet, no practical way of achieving it…

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Aussie Spec Fic Snapshot. In the lead up to the World Science Fiction Convention in London, we will be blogging interviews for Snapshot 2014 conducted by Tsana Dolichva, Nick Evans, Stephanie Gunn, Kathryn Linge, Elanor Matton-Johnson, David McDonald, Helen Merrick, Jason Nahrung, Ben Payne, Alex Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Helen Stubbs, Katharine Stubbs, Tehani Wessely and Sean Wright.

To read the interviews hot off the press, check out these blogs daily from July 28 to August 10, 2014, or look for the round up on SF Signal when it’s all done. You can find the past Snapshots at the following links: 2005, 2007,  2010 and 2012.

The Australian Spec Fic Snapshot 2014 – Amanda J Spedding

Amanda J Spedding is an award-winning author, editor and proofreader. Her stories have been published in local and international markets earning honourable mentions and recommended reads. She won the 2011 Australian Shadows Award (short fiction) for her steampunk-horror, ‘Shovel-Man Joe’.

Amanda is the owner of Phoenix Editing and Proofreading, and between bouts of editing, is currently writing the first draft of her novel.

Amanda lives in Sydney with her sarcastically-gifted husband and two very cool kids.

You’ve been a big contributor to the growth of the Australian Horror Writers Association. What are some of the AHWA’s achievements that you are most proud of? Where do you see it heading, and what challenges does it face?

Thanks, but it’s more being one of the many volunteers who’ve worked together to provide a home and voice for Australian writers and publishers. What achievements stand out for me? I’d have to say Midnight Echo and the Mentor Program. I’ve been lucky enough to be involved with both. It was the Mentor Program that drew me to the AHWA, and getting mentored by the extraordinary Kaaron Warren gave me incredible insight into my writing and the publishing industry. It also made me want to give back, so I became a committee member and held the position for three years – I hope the AHWA goes on to do more great things.

As for Midnight Echo, just holding a copy in your hands, with its horrifically beautiful covers and insanely good stories speaks for itself. As co-editor of issue 8 (with Marty Young and Mark Farrugia), getting to shape an issue and work with fantastic authors from both here and overseas was definitely a highlight.

AJspeddingYou also run an editing and proofreading business. How does working on the other side of the desk influence your own writing?

As an editor, I have an innate understanding of grammar, story structure and elements – all the things I work with authors on achieving in their work. ‘Write tight’, I tell them, and it’s something I definitely take on with my own work. Words have to fight for their right in the story.

However, as a writer, being an editor can have its drawbacks, especially when it comes to unrealistic expectations of perfection (I’m anything if not self-aware) – I’m an editor, I should be getting everything right. It does help, though, when sending off a story submission, that I’ve got the grammar, syntax and tense issues right. Being able to look at a story from both sides of the desk is a definite plus, but it’s no guarantee.

snafuYou’ve been very successful with your short fiction, with award recognition and appearances on an international RRL. What is it you enjoy about writing short stories? Are there any longer works in the pipeline?

Short stories are a blast to write. Being able to tell a fully-rounded story within a limited word-count is part of what has always drawn me to the short form. Writing horror allows me to reach into the worst time of a character’s life and… exploit it. Be it one hellish scene, or a drawn-out tortuous series of events, a short story forces you to really focus the horror and the effect of this on the character. Like I said, a blast!

I have two projects in the works at the moment. I’m currently writing the draft of my first novel – an apocalypse story that doesn’t shy from the horrors (inflicted on and by the characters in this world) that come with extinction-events. Creating on such a big scale – geography, faith-systems, inter-connectivity… it’s been a steep learning curve, and I’m loving it.

The other project is a comic based on my short story ‘The Road’ (Midnight Echo #9). The short story was ripe with imagery that really suited this medium. The script is now with illustrator Montgomery Borror, who is doing an incredible job bringing it to life. I’m very excited about both projects.

road page 17What Australian works have you loved recently?

I’ve been reading a lot of Aussie pieces of late. I’ve just finished reading Carnies by Martin Livings, and that was a great tale – it really dragged me into the story, and I was more than happy to spend time in his old-world carnival. I’m currently reading Davey Ribbon by Matthew Tait, and am really enjoying its supernatural flavour. Alan Baxter’s Bound, and Andrew McKeirnan’s short story collection, Last Year, When We Were Young, are next on my ‘to read’ list.

Have recent changes in the publishing industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

In regard to writing, no – I don’t think the changes affect the way anyone writes. Sweeping statement aside, it’s more how a writer decides they wish to publish – a choice many writers didn’t have ten, fifteen, twenty years ago. Anything other than traditional publishing was looked down upon. That stigma is almost gone now, and with a lot of author-published books being on par, or even better than traditionally published books, it definitely is a viable option for many authors. With my editing business, I’m seeing a lot more writers wanting to take the author-publishing route; wanting control of the final finished product and how it’s presented and marketed.

Five years from now? I’ll still be writing horror – I have a passion for the genre and its many sub-genres. I fell in love with steampunk when I wrote ‘Shovel-Man Joe’, which won the Australian Shadows Award for short fiction in 2011, so there’s definitely a steampunk/horror novel in my future. Reading? Any great story with a dark bent, and hopefully many great stories from Australian authors. I couldn’t even begin to predict what will be ‘on trend’ in five years. Publishing? I hope to be publishing novels and comics that leave readers reeling and have them thinking ‘what would I do?’

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Aussie Spec Fic Snapshot. In the lead up to the World Science Fiction Convention in London, we will be blogging interviews for Snapshot 2014 conducted by Tsana Dolichva, Nick Evans, Stephanie Gunn, Kathryn Linge, Elanor Matton-Johnson, David McDonald, Helen Merrick, Jason Nahrung, Ben Payne, Alex Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Helen Stubbs, Katharine Stubbs, Tehani Wessely and Sean Wright.

To read the interviews hot off the press, check out these blogs daily from July 28 to August 10, 2014, or look for the round up on SF Signal when it’s all done. You can find the past Snapshots at the following links: 2005, 2007,  2010 and 2012.

The Australian Spec Fic Snapshot 2014 – Kimberley Gaal

Kimberley Gaal is a 29-year-old speculative fiction writer who lives in Canberra, ACT. She was accepted into the 2012 JUMP National Mentoring Program for Young and Emerging Artists and was mentored by award-winning horror and speculative fiction writer Kaaron Warren. Her first novel, Dark Soul, is the product of that mentorship. Kimberley is on the committee of the Canberra Speculative Fiction Guild and has participated in panels on the place of mentorship in your writing at the speculative fiction conferences Conflux and Natcon, as well as appearing on less formal panels discussing the general awesomeness of zombies.

A few years ago, you went through the JUMP National Mentoring Program for Emerging Artists, and were mentored by the amazing Kaaron Warren! Looking back, what did you get from the mentor program? Did it have an impact on your writing, and its direction?

Absolutely – it had a huge impact. Kaaron is perfect parts art and business when it comes to writing. She is committed to her work and won’t compromise when it comes to quality or style, but also recognises the realities of the industry and is completely professional about it all. Working with her helped me cultivate that balance in my own practice.

I write very different content to Kaaron, in a very different style; it was never a case of trying to emulate her results, but rather to learn from her methods and experience. The JUMP Program encourages participants to choose mentors that can help you grow in areas that you know you are lacking in. Since I’m still in the early days of my writing career, I have a lot of those areas (I’m one big ball of lack, really) but Kaaron has an excellent way of drawing out my strengths while forcing me to face my weaknesses instead of hiding from them like a big scaredy runaway. She taught me to commit to my projects, to finish them even when I’m not ‘feeling the vibe’, and to look at the results from two very different angles: objectively, in terms of how good a product it is on its own, and subjectively, in terms of how well does it tell the story I want to tell, the way I want to tell it.

I learned a lot during the JUMP program, but I think that lesson – about the importance of recognising both the artistic side of writing and the ‘get down and get on with it’ side – was the most important. I don’t view writing as something I only do when the muse hits me anymore. I don’t quite buy into the ‘view it like you view your job’ idea, because to me a job is something you do for a guaranteed result, and it’s very hard to guarantee the result of your writing. I certainly treat it with more dedication and perseverance than I used to, though. Stories are like wombats trying to cross a highway (work with me here). On one side of the highway they’re just ideas. On the other side of the highway they’re finished works. You want to get them from one side to the other, and the only way to do that is by building those little underground tunnel things and hoping they go through them.

Kim_B&WEach time I sit at my keyboard and put in some writing time, I’m building another tunnel. Sometimes I can work for hours and nothing happens – no wombats like my tunnel, and the things coming through that I think are wombats are just fat dogs in wombat suits. Sometimes I sit down and find six wombats waiting to get through at once. Sometimes I think, ‘Kim, it’s time to come up with a better metaphor for this writing thing’ but then the wombats get jack of waiting for me, and if there’s one thing you don’t want, it’s a jacked-off wombat. In the end, the more time you put in, the more tunnels you can make and the better your chances of the right wombats being on the right side of the highway at the right time. Kaaron taught me that. But she did it without wombats, because she’s a lot classier than me.

Your manuscript has been accepted by the Cooke Literary Agency – congratulations! How has it been working with an agent?

I love my agent, Rachel Letofsky. I went into my working relationship with her in a very serious fashion – agents are business people, and I had to be very business-y in my dealings with them. That ended when Rachel sent me a photo of a duck statue she has on her mantelpiece and I made up a story about how its unfortunate wing-to-body-size crushed its hopes of a musical career and forced it into a seedy life as a Duck of the Night. She’s brilliant, and the rest of the team at Cooke seem pretty great as well.

She’s also been surprisingly helpful in terms of manuscript development. I say surprising because I didn’t think agents did all that much work with their authors in that regard. Working with Rachel has been a lot like working with an editor. My novel, Dark Soul, is miles better as a result, and much more marketable too. I’m excited, and nervous, and very busy picturing best and worse case scenarios, because I like to think if I can imagine every possible outcome I can somehow be prepared for stuff. In 29 years of living that has never worked, but I’m nothing if not consistent.

What are you working on at the moment?

I’m making steady progress on the second novel in my series, Old Soul. My protagonist, Mae, spent the first book building a family for herself and working out who she was when she wasn’t a rage-blind monster. Now that she’s got that sorted, I thought I’d break her family apart and shatter her beliefs. Just for fun. She gets to travel though, so she can’t complain too much.

I’ve also been making headway in short story writing, and my first substantial publication will happen in a few months. Shorts have never been a strength of mine, but working with Kaaron and getting more involved with the Canberra Speculative Fiction Guild’s short story crit circle has given me a much better understanding of how they work. I discovered a secret: when you’re just getting into short stories, don’t start by reading all the massively award winning stuff. Those stories were selected by other writers who recognise the skills and techniques involved, and who have read so many stories they are often drawn to unusual, cutting-edge stuff that can be difficult to appreciate when all you want is a good, fun read. Instead, find a genre you like and look for collections in that genre. My favourites so far have been the “Zombies vs Robots” stuff (zombies are my favourite, closely followed by robots) and some of the Twelfth Planet Press collections. They are quality works that are still accessible enough to read and enjoy before bed.

What Australian works have you loved recently?

After she kicked butt at the Aurealis Awards I got Allyse Near’s novel “Fairytales for Wilde Girls” and pretty much loved it. I hope she keeps doing great things. I’m also a fan of Craig Cormick and he seems to spit books out like Yoshi shoots eggs, so there’s always something new to read. The CSFG is full of writers that have kicked a lot of goals lately. And Kaaron, naturally.

Have recent changes in the publishing industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

I think I’m too new to the game to really have an established ‘way that I work.’ I do follow all the industry talk with interest, but things are changing so rapidly that my personal, very inexperienced opinion is that it would be stupid to spend too much time trying to catch the waves that are forming, because by the time you’re on one it’s broken and the next is already half-formed. If you find yourself on a good wave, ride it and enjoy, but don’t go out of your way to follow someone else’s example just because it worked for them, because that’s no guarantee it will work for you. There are successes and failures in every area of publishing: for every person screaming ‘traditional publishing is dead, long live self-publishing’ there’s another person bemoaning how self-publishing has gotten so out-of-hand that it’s impossible to find good work amidst the sea of dross. I think both are probably true, and neither are probably true, and maybe nothing is true at all and we’re all figments of George R.R. Martin’s imagination and he’s just looking for ways to kill us all off. I swear I saw a white walker the other day. He was riding a Vespa.

I do think you need to be smart – or at least, as smart as you can. If you want a writing career, by all means take your shot. Work hard, learn constantly, be nice to those around you whether they’re ahead of you in the game or not. Be professional, be brave, do your research and try your best. But be willing to accept that it might not happen regardless, and that’s ok. If you want to be a successful author because that’s the only way you think you can feel special, or worthwhile, then you’re setting yourself up for major pain, because no matter how good you are there will always be factors you just can’t control, and they could be the deciding ones. My writing career, such as it is and such as it might be, only really started when I accepted that, and I’ve never enjoyed writing as much as I’m enjoying it now. I hope I make it. I really do. But I’ll be ok if I don’t.

In five years I think I’ll be reading the same stuff I read now, but maybe in different formats. I already write all across the board, so I don’t think that will change except that hopefully I’ll be better. Getting better is the one goal I think every writer should have, all the time, no matter how good they already are. If you don’t want to get better at anything you’re doing, or do it in new ways, stop doing it. You don’t love it anymore and you only get one shot at life, so you shouldn’t waste it.

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Aussie Spec Fic Snapshot. In the lead up to the World Science Fiction Convention in London, we will be blogging interviews for Snapshot 2014 conducted by Tsana Dolichva, Nick Evans, Stephanie Gunn, Kathryn Linge, Elanor Matton-Johnson, David McDonald, Helen Merrick, Jason Nahrung, Ben Payne, Alex Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Helen Stubbs, Katharine Stubbs, Tehani Wessely and Sean Wright.

To read the interviews hot off the press, check out these blogs daily from July 28 to August 10, 2014, or look for the round up on SF Signal when it’s all done. You can find the past Snapshots at the following links: 2005, 2007,  2010 and 2012.

The Australian Spec Fic Snapshot 2014 – Aidan Doyle

Aidan Doyle is a Melbourne based writer and computer programmer. His first short story was published in Aurealis in 1993. He attended Clarion South in 2009 and has since been published in places such as Lightspeed, Strange Horizons and Fantasy. He has visited more than 80 countries and his experiences include teaching English in Japan, interviewing ninjas in Bolivia and going ten-pin bowling in North Korea.

You’ve found success in writing for both children (including an Aurealis nomination), and for adults (with numerous pro sales and mentions on international RRLs). Do many of the same skills and methods translate between the age groups, or is there a big adjustment in mindset required?

My natural writing style – lean, and with an emphasis on plot and humour is suited to writing for children. The main adjustment for me when writing for different age groups is subject material. Some of my stories for adults revolve around the regret of the passing of time, which is a theme that doesn’t have as strong an appeal for children.

DrabblecastHokkaidoGreenYou are a bit of a citizen of the world, regularly travelling to some amazing destinations! Do the different locations bleed into your writing, or inspire you?

For me travel is one of the best ways to get ideas. The people you meet and the history you learn. Worldbuilding is important in speculative fiction and it helps to have seen a bit of our world. I lived in Japan for 4 years and many of my stories are set in Japan. Last year I did a trip from Svalbard to Antarctica and I have a few ideas for stories set in those locations. Lots of markets these days like stories set somewhere other than a generic New York style big city.

IMG_21090I am a big fan of your writing goal tracker Planet Bingo (in fact it is my desktop screen saver on my writing machine). How important is the setting of goals to your writing process?

Jeff VanderMeer was one of my tutors at Clarion South and stressed the importance of setting goals. His Booklife writing guide has lots of useful information on the topic. I’m a big fan of checklists and to do lists. It is easier to achieve your goals if you know what they are! I use Workflowy (http://workflowy.com/) to keep a list of current activities. I also use Trello (http://trello.com/) with a small group of other writers to compare our weekly or monthly writing goals and encourage each other.

goalsJeff stressed the importance of setting concrete goals (I’m going to write 10 short stories this year versus I want to write more) and goals that are within your control (I’m going to submit 5 stories to Clarkesworld this year versus I want to be published in Clarkesworld). That being said, it’s nice to record your achievements. Christie Yant created a writing career bingo spreadsheet and I adapted the idea and made a program (http://www.aidandoyle.net/2013/08/21/writing-career-bingo/) that spits out an image with planets when I achieve a goal. Taking over the galaxy one planet at a time.

What Australian works have you loved recently?

The amount of historical detail in Hannah Kents’ Burial Rites is amazing. Jason Franks’ Sixsmiths is very funny. Cat Sparks’ collection, The Bride Price, is packed full of short story goodness.

IMG_20000Have recent changes in the publishing industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

The main thing for me is that it’s now much easier to submit to overseas markets. Email is much quicker and cheaper than overseas postage and international reply coupons. I have a young adult novel out on submission now and I’m close to finishing a middle grade novel based on my Aurealis nominated story. After that I have plans for some young adult novels and a novel based on my swordwriter stories.

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Aussie Spec Fic Snapshot. In the lead up to the World Science Fiction Convention in London, we will be blogging interviews for Snapshot 2014 conducted by Tsana Dolichva, Nick Evans, Stephanie Gunn, Kathryn Linge, Elanor Matton-Johnson, David McDonald, Helen Merrick, Jason Nahrung, Ben Payne, Alex Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts, Helen Stubbs, Katharine Stubbs, Tehani Wessely and Sean Wright.

To read the interviews hot off the press, check out these blogs daily from July 28 to August 10, 2014, or look for the round up on SF Signal when it’s all done. You can find the past Snapshots at the following links: 2005, 2007,  2010 and 2012.