On Wednesday, July 26, I shared a wonderful evening at my local library with several fellow writers for Battle of the Books, a game show in which three writers read three-minute excerpts from their novels or short stories in six rounds. The rounds include opening scene, introducing a character, action, dialogue, random page (chosen by the audience) and closing scene. After each round, the audience votes on their favorite reading. Following this, our quizmaster reads an excerpt from a famous novel and the audience is given the opportunity to answer and win a prize.
The random page segment was cut for time but it was a blast to read alongside Suzanne Grieco Mattaboni and Dianna Sinovic. John Evans was our Alex Trebek, Charles B. Kiernan our quizmaster, Judy England-McCarthy our timekeeper, and Michael Daigle kept score.
As a bonus, I sold a few books afterwards but more importantly, shared a few hours with amazing friends for a welcome midweek break. This was my fourth Battle of the Books, and one of the best yet.
This worthy sequel, set in the fall of 1873, follows brothers Jamey and Jake Galloway on a cross-country adventure with a cast of eclectic characters as they try to outwit a wealthy swindler at his own game—and that game is horse racing. Along the way, the Galloway brothers and their companions face every setback and obstacle the Old West can throw at them from train robbery and kidnapping to romances gone sideways. Through all of this, Weinstein doesn’t shy away from the social ills of the time and weaves them seamlessly into the plot. A fun, fast read.
This week, take some lessons in suspense from the master himself, Alfred Hitchcock.
Speaking of lessons, Amy Wilson and Anne R. Allen offer advice about writing effective dialogue while Maggie Smith teaches us several ways to make our secondary characters stand out. Over at Mythcreants, Chris Winkle discusses passive voice and how to create a story outline.
The nice folks at Good Story Company show us how to build a better author website and at BookBub, it’s all about promotion and crafting a captivating book description.
In the midwestern town of Midland City, Indiana, wealthy car dealer and widower Dwayne Hoover exists on the rim of insanity—but it will take an obscure and impoverished science fiction writer named Kilgore Trout to push Dwayne over the edge.
After being invited to the Midland City Arts Festival as their guest of honor, Trout debates whether to accept. Once he decides to go, he first hitchhikes to New York City to find copies of his novels. Trout hates his own books to much that he keeps none at home. He intends to embarrass the organizers and attendees of the festival by reading his lowbrow stories.
After being abducted, beaten, and robbed in New York, Trout hitchhikes his way to Midland City. All the while, Hoover grows more unstable. He becomes argumentative, insulting, and isolated. Filthy and haggard, Trout arrives at the Midland City Holiday Inn—also owned by Hoover—and takes a seat in the lounge where pretentious guests of the festival clash with a few of the locals. Ignoring all of this, Hoover sits alone in a corner lost in his own deranged thoughts and ignoring his estranged homosexual son, Bunny, the lounge piano player.
When the bartender turns on the black lights in the lounge, his jacket glows a brilliant white, as does the waitress’s outfit—and Kilgore Trout’s shirt. Beguiled by this, Hoover approaches Trout, resting his chin on the writer’s shoulder and demanding the answer to life. He snatches up a copy of Trout’s novel, Now It Can Be Told, and speed reads it on the spot. After which, all hell breaks loose.
Throughout the story, told in third-person omniscient, Vonnegut observes the events with his trademark razor wit and dry humor, reminding the reader that he is the creator of this story, explaining some of his decisions, and veering off on hilarious tangents.
The above summary is about one-fifth of what happens in this surreal satire that addresses themes of sex, pollution, racism, mental health, desperation, success, and hypocrisy complete with illustrations drawn by the author.
As one of the east coast’s longest-running science fiction conventions, Shore Leave celebrated its 43rd year on July 7-9, 2023. Technically, it should have been their 45th, but blame COVID for botching the numbering. Either way, I’m proud to say that I’ve been around for the past 29 of those.
Celebrity guests included Ben Browder, Claudia Black, Robert Picardo, Robert Duncan McNeill, Penny Johnson Jerald, Alaina Huffman, Peter Macon, Aaron Douglas, Grace Park, and Bonnie Gordon.
Like the eye of a storm, Shore Leave 43 was graced with a day and a half of fair weather between Mother Nature’s attempts to drown us on Friday and Sunday.
My wife and I arrived on Friday afternoon with ample time to check into our room, collect our registration materials, and grab a quick dinner before my first panel—a lively discussion about the new Quantum Leap TV series. The panel included fellow writers Mary Fan, Rigel Ailur, Lorraine Anderson, and Joshua Palmatier. Panelists and audience members alike compared the original series with the new one, touched on some inconsistencies within each (and between the two), and expressed our hopes and predictions for the next season.
Shore Leave 43 Program Book and Badges
After that, my wife and I caught up with several friends in the hotel lobby before getting ready for Shore Leave’s traditional two-hour Friday night book fair, Meet the Pros, at 10PM. As usual, it was a bustling event. I sold four copies of the new hot-off-the-press crime noir anthology, Hard-Boiled and Loaded with Sin, one of which went to writer Dayton Ward, famous for Star Trek novels and other media tie-in work. A few readers had purchased books in advance and brought them to me to deface with my autograph.
Keith DeCandido at Meet the Pros.David Mack at Meet the Pros.Dayton Ward (standing in aisle at right, with yellow lanyard) at Meet the Pros Book Fair.Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right. Here I am, stuck in the middle between Keith DeCandido (L) and David Mack (R).Derek Tyler Attico (foreground) and Mary Fan at Meet the Pros.Across the hall: Hildy Silverman and Bob Greenberger at Meet the Pros.
After the book fair, I spent another hour chatting with a few of the writers in the hotel lounge before calling it a night.
This was the first time Shore Leave scheduled me for a 9AM panel, but I was awake and alert on Saturday morning for Providing Actionable Writing Critiques. Fellow panelists included Joshua Palmatier, Amy Sisson, Laura Ware, Danielle Ackley-McPhail, and John Coffren. We covered a lot of ground including the value of critique groups, proper etiquette for providing and receiving a critique, different types of editing (developmental vs. line editing), evaluating an editor for your work, and what editors look for when selecting stories or novels.
Since my next panel wasn’t until noon, my wife and I watched a presentation about NASA’s planetary defense program known as DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test).Panelists included:
Lindley Johnson, NASA’s Planetary Defense Officer and Program Executive of the Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO).
Kelly Fast, Near-Earth Object Observations Program Manager for NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office.
Timothy C. Miller, Chief Scientist of the Seeker and Information Processing Group at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab
The panel was moderated by Joshua A. Handal, Program Analyst for the Planetary Defense Coordination Office at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
The goal of the DART mission was to launch a small craft at an asteroid in an attempt to alter its course. In November 2021, the craft was launched on a SpaceX rocket from Vandenburg Space Force Base in California and successfully impacted the asteroid Dimorphos in September 2022. The presentation included footage and images from the mission. It was a remarkable achievement!
At 11AM, I ambled to the room next door for What Makes a Good Detective? with panelists Christopher D. Abbott, Lorraine Anderson, Lauren Ware, T.J. Perkins, and Melissa Scott. Panelists and audience members alike offered their opinions on what traits a good detective should possess. Discussions ranged from earth-based sleuths—such as Holmes, Poirot, Columbo, Jessica Fletcher, and others—to detectives in science fiction and fantasy settings.
My final panel of the weekend was just a few doors down from the previous two and in a room that was adequately air-conditioned (unlike most of the rooms in what we call the “glass hallway”). I had the privilege of speaking about Pacing Your Fiction in an Attention-Short World along with Michael Jan Friedman, David Mack, Russ Colchamiro, John Coffren, and Christopher D. Abbott. The panel ended up focusing more on the topic of pacing and flow of story based on theme and genre than on writing for readers with shorter attention spans. Nevertheless, it was an edifying discussion.
For almost 30 years of attending conventions, one of the major attractions for me were the celebrity guests. I enjoyed their Q&A sessions and obtaining their autographs despite the often long lines. The appeal of this faded about three or four years ago, but to kill time before dinner, my wife and I sat in for Ben Browder and Claudia Black. Each had a microphone, but that didn’t prevent the audio from being muddled. Still, what I heard was entertaining as they discussed their work on Farscape and the final seasons of Stargate SG-1.
Claudia Black & Ben Browder at Shore Leave 43Claudia Black & Ben Browder at Shore Leave 43Claudia Black at Shore Leave 43Bob Greenberger (standing) chats with Sherri Cook Woosley and Andrew Hiller at the Authors Dinner.
At 5:30PM, my wife and I made our way to the McCormick Suite for the third annual Authors Dinner organized by Keith DeCandido and Wrenn Simms with food provided by the incomparable Andy Nelson’s BBQ on York Road. As always, it was the perfect opportunity to catch up with friends and fellow writers, some of whom only see each other once or twice a year.
Authors Dinner at Shore Leave 43
Afterwards, my wife and I spent time chatting with a few more friends before calling it a night.
With no panels on my schedule for Sunday, we packed up the car, checked out of our room, and attended a presentation on the Hubble Telescope. A Third of a Century Discoveries with Hubble was hosted by Kenneth G. Carpenter, Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Operations Project Scientist.
The presentation covered Hubble’s inception, an overview of its myriad discoveries in it’s first 30+ years of service, including new data from 2023. Dr. Carpenter also touched on the James Webb Space Telescope, comparing and combining images from both orbital observatories, and concluded with a brief look at the upcoming Roman Space Telescope to be launched in 2027.
On our way out, we made the goodbye rounds and in some cases, it was the first time we had a chance to see or chat at length with some of our friends who had been at Shore Leave all weekend. It happens. Cons are hectic.
Of course, no genre convention would be complete without a cadre of amazing cosplayers. I didn’t have time to take pics of all of them, but my friend Blair Learn caught a few that I missed. There were so many more than what you see below. You’ll just have to come to Shore Leave next year and see for yourself.
As always, the Shore Leave committee delivered a fantastic weekend and I look forward to #44!
This sardonic anti-war tale begins with Billy Pilgrim’s return to Dresden, Germany after WWII where he was a POW during the infamous firebombing. Throughout the story, it becomes evident that Billy suffers from PTSD and depression as he travels back and forth in time, experiencing fragments of his life involving terrible hardship and death. So it goes. To cope, he creates a fictional planet called Tralfamadore where claims to have been taken to become an exhibit in a zoo for the entertainment of the Tralfamadorians. And of course, Billy enjoys the science fiction novels of one obscure and loathed writer named Kilgore Trout.
Slaughterhouse Five is an engaging read from start to finish. Vonnegut’s fractured prose reflects the state of Billy Pilgrim’s mind, but while the story is tragic, Vonnegut imbues it with his trademark dry humor at just the right moments.
This sardonic anti-war tale begins with Billy Pilgrim’s return to Dresden, Germany after WWII where he was a POW during the infamous firebombing. Throughout the story, it becomes evident that Billy suffers from PTSD and depression as he travels back and forth in time, experiencing fragments of his life involving terrible hardship and death. So it goes. To cope, he creates a fictional planet called Tralfamadore where claims to have been taken to become an exhibit in a zoo for the entertainment of the Tralfamadorians. And of course, Billy enjoys the science fiction novels of one obscure and loathed writer named Kilgore Trout.