Should we fear the robotics industry??

Hello friends. I joke around about my being a Luddite sometimes...having a fear of technology...but it's news stories like these that keep my mistrust of all things electronic well preserved.

So watch.

Fear...

Tremble!

and laugh :)



In The Know: Are We Giving The Robots That Run Our Society Too Much Power?

Interview with Brian Polivka PART TWO

Welcome back for PART TWO of my interview with George Bryan Polivka. Be sure to check out his new book, Blaggard's Moon, published by Harvest House.

To read part one of the interview, CLICK HERE

To read my review of Blaggard's Moon, CLICK HERE

Okay, on to the interview!

BB: Looking back from today, how has your life changed since that first day you got word that Harvest House was going to publish The Legend of the Firefish?

GBP: Well, not nearly so much as you might think. Family, Church, and work still take priority, and take up nearly all my time as they always have. Most of the people I work with have some idea I’ve written some books, and either they think that’s cool or they think it’s a waste of good golf time. Friends and family are proud and excited, now and then, when a new book comes out or I get nominated for an award. But mostly I’m just the same me, doing the same things. And since I’ve always written, the only real difference is the occasional interview or book signing. And while book signings sound pretty glamorous, it’s not very. It is fun, because you get to meet new people, who are always polite! But mostly it’s explaining over and over again what the books are about. It’s not frosting on the cake, exactly, but it’s not meat and potatoes either. The writing is the main thing, and it’s not a new thing.

BB: Bryan, this next question I ask is on behalf of the many writers who will view this blogpost. It is a question that struggling writers often ponder when thinking about their futures, and the potential that they just might succeed one day as an author. You may not be famous in comparison to the world's exalted view of what it means to be famous, like the huge names of J.K. Rowling, Stephenie Myer, or Stephen King, but you've certainly encountered a good amount of that same attention, even if it is to a lesser degree. Has it been difficult handling the attention? Have you encountered battles within yourself in keeping a right perspective on your writing? Basically, have you had to duel with your ego to keep it in check as you've found some success?

GBP: I have always encountered battles to keep perspective. I don’t think you have to be particularly successful to wrestle with ego and vanity, and in fact I think I struggled with it more twenty years ago than I do now. There’s something about the knowledge of one’s own talent that must be settled within, regardless of what the external world thinks of it, or whether it even knows. I believe that I couldn’t have handled even these meager amounts of notoriety twenty-five years ago when I wrote my first novel. I believe that is one very significant reason that God did not allow me to get published. I had some real trials to survive in order to learn that God is in charge, completely, and not only to learn it, but to actually want it that way. I got published when He was good and ready for me to, when He deemed it was time, and not a day sooner. And I’m thankful for that, and looking back, wouldn’t have it any other way. His timing is and was perfect.

BB: What type of story are you working on at present? Can you tell us a little about it as a teaser?

GBP: I’m not writing at the moment, but you asked the right question. Saying I’m not writing does not mean I’m not “working on” a story! Sorry, can’t even give you a hint, because I don’t want it getting back to my publisher and spoiling a good surprise. And actually, I might yet change my mind.

BB: You've been writing novels for sometime before finally landing The Legend of the Firefish with Harvest House, could you perhaps give us a few details about your earlier work and what type of stories they are?

My earliest stuff was inspired by the style of authors like Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., Walker Percy, and Joseph Heller (Slaughterhouse Five, Love in the Ruins, and Catch 22 primarily). Mine were stories about very ordinary people who found themselves in extraordinary predicaments, with elements of the supernatural intertwined. I was powerfully drawn to these authors, and wanted to write like them. I read my old manuscripts now, and realize that it was not my voice.

The first novel I tried to get published made it to the final vote of the editorial board at Zondervan in 1981, where it was turned down because a single editor "didn't have a feel for it." That was not as discouraging as it might sound, because I was young (23) and the experience told me two things: 1) I was good enough to be published and 2) God could get me published anytime He wanted. The discouragement happened gradually over the next 25 years. But during that time I never let go of those two lessons, regardless of how I felt about it.

I finally gave up on that voice in about 1993, when I looked back on all my novels and realized they were so tied into the pop culture of their day that they would have to be completely rewritten to get published. So I decided to write something timeless, literally, something that could have been published a hundred years ago or could be published a hundred years from now. That book was The Legend of the Firefish (originally titled Trophy Chase). I found myself completely comfortable there. I was working within the bounds of who I am, not who I wished I was. It took me back to the roots of my faith, which were tied up in C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien.

But it didn't get published, either. It wasn't until 2004 that I decided the manuscript needed one more level of polish, that the characters needed to be deepened, the whole thing needed to be a work of art that was all I could make it, that embodied the deepest pains and longings of my own life and heart. That rewrite took about a year, and that's when I graduated from author wannabe to writer. Having written a dozen books, I had finally learned the craft. That's the book Harvest House picked up, and published as Book One of the trilogy in 2007.

BB: Have you written any short stories over your many years of writing? If so, have you ever tried to publish them in magazines or online zines?

GBP: I have not written a short story in ages, since maybe 1981 or 82. I have focused exclusively on full-length manuscripts, trying to get good at that. I did fail at a couple of novels, because they ended too soon--the resolution was not as difficult as I had expected. Come to think of it, those might be short stories! But I’m not even sure I have them any more. I ought to open up the vault and peruse the ancient archives...

BB: What books, fiction or otherwise, have touched you recently?

GBP: I don’t read much fiction, but I love histories and biographies. Right now there are some really, really excellent authors out there, people like David McCollough and Stephen Ambrose. And I hate to jump on a bandwagon, but I loved Team of Rivals. I hope anyone who reads it pays close attention to Mr. Lincoln’s character, and how his personal ambition was tied up in doing something extraordinarily positive for his country and his countrymen. Here was another man who did the right thing, and in troubling times when the right thing wasn’t always obvious and certainly wasn’t popular.

The book Charlie Wilson’s War is also very much worth reading, even if you’ve seen the movie. To me, it’s a study of the mysterious workings of God in history, and while those who put a lot of faith in the government’s ability to control things find it frightening, I found it amazingly comforting. Three very flawed people with wildly different motives changed the course of history, while the great machinery of state, the ferocious designs of political parties and their agendas, and the elected power of the entire US Government had little or nothing to say about it. Proof that it really all comes down to what God wants, and who He chooses to work through in order to accomplish it.

BB: Bryan, thanks so much for taking the time to do this interivew,

GBP: You are quite welcome!

Well, it was a fun interview and I hope you enjoyed it. Now go check out the rest of the CSFF blog tour members also discussing Blaggard's Moon!


Brandon Barr
Beth Goddard
Jennifer Bogart
Keanan Brand
Melissa Carswell
Amy Cruson
CSFF Blog Tour
Stacey Dale
D. G. D. Davidson
Jeff Draper
April Erwin
Karina Fabian
Alex Field
Marcus Goodyear
Todd Michael Greene
Ryan Heart
Timothy Hicks
Cris Jesse
Jason Joyner
Kait
Carol Keen
Mike Lynch
Magma
Margaret
Melissa Meeks
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Nissa
John W. Otte
Steve Rice
Crista Richey
Chawna Schroeder
James Somers
Rachel Starr Thomson
Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Jason Waguespack
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Jill Williamson

Interview with Bryan Polivka PART ONE

Welcome to my interview with George Bryan Polivka, author of Blaggard's Moon, and the Trophy Chase trilogy.

If you're interested in my review of Blaggard's Moon CLICK HERE. If you're here for the interview, then read on!


1) Bryan, I found Blaggard's Moon completely enthralling, how did you convince Harvest House that the Trophy Chase trilogy needed a prequel?

GBP - Actually, I didn't try to sell them on a concept at all. I didn’t tell them what I was doing. I just wrote the first several chapters. When I was sure it would be pretty good, I sent my editor an email that essentially became the book's marketing blurb, and I attached the first two chapters. All I got back was something like, “Go, Bryan!”

2) As I read Blaggard's Moon, I kept asking myself, how much did Bryan plot this thing out? Did he have a solid picture of the story's end before he started--of who would live and who would die--or did he only realize these things as he drew deeper into the story? Could you enlighten me and any other curious readers about this!?

GBP - I didn't really plan too much. I did want it to be a much simpler story than it turned out to be, but it grew in the telling. I knew from the beginning how Delaney's tale would end (not all the details, but the bigger plot items), and I knew what I wanted to do with the pirate hunter Damrick, and his love interest Jenta. The rest just sort of played out as it seemed most interesting to me at the time. Or more accurately, as it seemed it must be when I got there. In just about every book I’m surprised by someone who dies when I didn’t expect it. I will put the scene together in my head before I write it (I always do this), so that when I write I’m pretty much recording what I’ve already envisioned. That gives me the ability to add in details during the first draft that might otherwise have to wait for a second or third. But it doesn’t always work as planned. In the Trophy Chase Trilogy I lost several people I had hoped to keep alive. In Blaggard’s Moon, I kept alive a couple of characters I had expected to lose--one good, one not so good. So I guess it evened out!

3) Which characters did you find yourself truly toiling over to get just right?

GBP - The main characters were not difficult. They were each so unique. And of course, I knew Delaney inside and out from the Trilogy. I struggled a bit with the military man who made Hell’s Gatemen a real force to be reckoned with, Hale Starpus. He started out a bit bland, but by the final draft he was so vivid to me that I actually worried he might overshadow Damrick’s right-hand man, Lye Mogene. I also had to work on Jenta’s mother, Shayla. She was so distant and cold and pristine, and yet inside there was great passion for her child, and deep within a great sorrow for her lost love. I’m still not sure I conveyed all that. For her sake, I hope so.

4) The majority of the book follows three main storylines (and one of those main storylines is actually split in two). The first is Delaney on the post, the second is Ham and and the pirates he is telling his tale to, and the third is the actual tale itself, which goes into all sorts of stories and characters. And here's my question, how did you come up with this idea to write from so many POV's? And, did you find it difficult managing them all?

GBP: Writing from different points of view is what I do. There was a lot of discussion about this when The Legend of the Firefish first released, and some reviewers said they had to get used to it. Interestingly, no regular readers ever complained about it. I think the more literary-minded have personal views and even beliefs about POV, and many simply don’t like the omniscient viewpoint for their own educated reasons (I tend to put it in less intellectual terms: it’s just a bit old-fashioned). But I find this the most interesting and compelling part of writing, to see and feel and understand deeply from points of view that are very much in contrast, and are often in conflict with one another. Where else can that be done, if not in fiction? Movies maybe. But not to the same depth. And no, I don’t really find it difficult and I’m not sure why. I enjoy it immensely. I even embedded a little back-handed self-commentary about it in one of Delaney’s musings about the storyteller within the story, who also managed to keep up with multiple story lines as he spoke to the listening pirates.

It was an odd thing, Delaney thought, how a deckhand like Ham with

no particular skills otherwise, who could hardly keep up with his own

pistol and powder, could somehow keep track of a thing as slippery as a

told tale.

So, it may be a particular gift I’ve been blessed with, but it doesn’t mean I can remember where I parked my car!

5) Behind the life and blood characters you create, behind the magical, tangible world of great heartbreak, hope and redemption, their is an important message. And that is the decision to do what is right, no matter the cost. In Blaggard's Moon, the cost is very, very high for many good and honest characters. What influences can you cite, biblical or otherwise, that drove you to make this a theme in your fiction.

GBP: This is a message that I think we Christians forget, myself included. And yet it is there in scripture, and in the examples of the saints, where good men and women everywhere do right and pay for it. Jonathan, son of Saul and David’s friend, comes to mind. Joseph with Potiphar’s wife. Uriah the Hitite, husband to Bathsheba. Rahab, who people forget loses everything she knows except her life and her immediate family. Those and many others paid heavy prices for simple choices to do the right thing--when it would have been so easy to justify a different path. I believe we must school ourselves to always take the good path in small things, no matter what the price, or we will never be given the opportunity to take the noble path in great things. And taking the noble path in great things is to me the stuff of life itself, what Jesus called taking up one’s cross, the reason losing one’s life for His sake means finding it. And the cross, defined that way, is the only thing that makes for a compelling and inspiring story.

BB: Okay, that's it for now, come back tomorrow forPART TWO.

And in the meantime, check out the rest of the CSFF bloggers covering Blaggard's Moon.

Brandon Barr
Beth Goddard
Jennifer Bogart
Keanan Brand
Melissa Carswell
Amy Cruson
CSFF Blog Tour
Stacey Dale
D. G. D. Davidson
Jeff Draper
April Erwin
Karina Fabian
Alex Field
Marcus Goodyear
Todd Michael Greene
Ryan Heart
Timothy Hicks
Cris Jesse
Jason Joyner
Kait
Carol Keen
Mike Lynch
Magma
Margaret
Melissa Meeks
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Nissa
John W. Otte
Steve Rice
Crista Richey
Chawna Schroeder
James Somers
Rachel Starr Thomson
Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Jason Waguespack
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Jill Williamson

Blaggard's Moon part one: a story of pirates, heroes, and faith

This is PART ONE, a review of Blaggard's Moon.

PART TWO will be the first half of an interview with George Bryan Polivka, where he talks about writing Blaggard's Moon. PART THREE will be an interview with Polivka that might interest other authors out there, as Polivka talks about writing in general.

And now...onto the review of Blaggard's Moon!

I became a fan of Bryan Polivka's storytelling when I first reviewed The Legend of the Firefish in 2007. After reading Blaggard's Moon, I was left stirred spiritually and emotionally yet again. The best way I can think to put it is: Brian writes the kind of stories I like, and he writes them beautifully.

There is adventure, daring, heroism, faith, battles, heart-wrenching struggles, and characters so alive and so human, I find myself right there with them, holding my breath in their peril, and jumping for joy at their triumphs.

Blaggard's Moon is a prequel to the Trophy Chase trilogy. The cast of characters is large, and the story is epic. This isn't your typical good guys win in the end type of story. There are tremendous consequences for those characters who choose to do good in the face of evil. I think that is what makes this story so compelling, because just as in real life, the heroes don't always come home alive. Sometimes good men die, and sometimes bad men live. And that is exactly the question Blaggard's Moon presents: will you choose to do evil and live, or to do good and possibly pay the ultimate price?

It's hard for me to think of a con for this book...and since any con I can think up seems kind of trivial, I'm skipping the cons! I guess some authors just hit all the right buttons for you.

I must add this: Polivka's pirates are among the most three-dimensional bad guys I've read in a long while. Though cruel, and murderously wicked, they often surprised me in circumstances where their humanity shows through. Polivka writes his pirates in a way that teeters back and forth between humorous, mirthful buccaneers, to bloody, merciless cutthroats. It's as if he's captured the ideal pirate in every one's imagination and then slammed them together into a motley, jovial bandit living for gold, laughs, and preserving his own hide.

If you enjoy adventure, romance, faith in action, and good characterization in your fiction. Buy this book!

If you're interested in my review of The Legend of the Firefish, you can find my 2007 review and interview with Polivka HERE.

And please, check out my fellow CSFF bloggers also featuring, Blaggard's Moon!

Brandon Barr
Beth Goddard
Jennifer Bogart
Keanan Brand
Melissa Carswell
Amy Cruson
CSFF Blog Tour
Stacey Dale
D. G. D. Davidson
Jeff Draper
April Erwin
Karina Fabian
Alex Field
Marcus Goodyear
Todd Michael Greene
Ryan Heart
Timothy Hicks
Cris Jesse
Jason Joyner
Kait
Carol Keen
Mike Lynch
Magma
Margaret
Melissa Meeks
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Nissa
John W. Otte
Steve Rice
Crista Richey
Chawna Schroeder
James Somers
Rachel Starr Thomson
Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Jason Waguespack
Fred Warren
Phyllis Wheeler
Jill Williamson

Co-writing a book PART ONE: general formats for Co-writing a novel

Have you ever wondered how two individuals are able to come together to co-author a book? There are, in fact, many formats and methods for co-authoring. In Co-Writing a Book, PART ONE, we will look at general formats.

In PART TWO and PART THREE we will look at deeper issues, such as: How does the process work? How do the two authors not kill one another? How does one pre-plan, begin, write, and finish a complete polished novel with another author?


-----The name recognition co-authorship-----

There are many ways to co-author a book. One of the most common methods is to have one author write the entire first, second, and third draft of a manuscript, polish it up as best he can, and then a second author comes along and gives it “his touch.” In this case the second author is usually a big name marquee writer, whereas the first author, though talented, is not generally well known.

You can see these types of co-authored books all over the place, such as grocery store checkout lines, big name chains like Walmart and Costco, and your garden variety book store. Below the titles of these books it reads, "A novel by James Patterson (the big name author),” with (insert little known author here). This is intentional on the part of publishers since they know you are much more likely to buy a book if they can get you to believe that Patterson, for example, wrote more than he actually did. In fact, it is fairly common for the little known author to essentially write the book (likely after some plotting with Patterson’s input), and then after the book is finished, Patterson probably went in, did some tweaking, and gave it his touch and his blessing...and most importantly, his name.

The trick in this scenario is getting a marquee writer to partner with you. However, since big name authors are inundated with requests from up and coming writers to co-author a novel with them on a regular basis, the chances of this happening are extremely remote.

There is also a version of the name recognition co-authorship where a highly skilled ghost writer writes the novel, or highly improves upon a marquee writers work. Whether the ghost writer actually writes it, or just patches a shoddy manuscript, it's that big name that gets stamped on the front cover.


-----Mentor/novice co-authorship-----

Let's turn to another method that is similar in format, but done for different reasons. In the mentor/novice co-authorship a fledgling writer is taken under the wing by a seasoned writer. In this format, a novice writer with a gleam of unexplored talent writes a novel. Then comes along a seasoned writer who recognizes the novice’s great potential.

One of two things happens at this point. The novice either asks the experienced writer if they would be interested in more than just a "critique" of the novel, and offers them co-authorship of the book if they’ll go through it and give it their "seasoned" touch, OR the skilled author might offer this themselves. In either scenario, it is always best to let the experienced writer put the final touches on the novice’s promising work.

There are many reasons why a seasoned writer would agree to co-author a book with an unknown. One reason is that they see themselves in the novice, and remember back to when they were a fledgling writer, trying to get their first break. Perhaps a more experienced writer may have taken them under their wing years back, and now they want to repay the “debt” as it were. The seasoned author may also be a teacher at heart, and when they come along another writer who shows promise, is compelled to help strengthen the new writers skills. The seasoned writer may also enjoy the camaraderie of working on a book with another wiser author. Let’s face it, writing is a lonely business. Writers create characters, plots, and places in their imaginations. They are whole worlds that belong to them and them alone, with no one to really share it with. Sure, they can tell other people about their work, but their descriptions are merely faint shadows of what the story is truly about. But with a co-author, he has a partner who has agreed to come along him on his quest, and pledges to see it through to the end. Going on a journey can be a wonderful thing, but going on a shared journey is often much more satisfying.


-----Novice/novice or expert/expert, equal-grounds co-authorship-----

In this kind of relationship, we have two authors coming together to co-author a book who generally possess equal talent. This is the type of co-authorship that PARTS TWO and THREE will be devoted to in further detail.

I believe most of the readers following this article will find themselves in this category...or at least the most curious about this category. Unlike the aforementioned types, both authors are on equal grounds, and thus, there is no automatic structure for them to fall in step with. Where the talented yet unknown author automatically knows he must obey and follow the big name author, and the same with the novice following the lead of the seasoned writer, here we find no such foundation.

Whether they are both novices or experts, this format is the same. So from now on, I'll simply refer to this type as the "equal ground co-authorship."

It should first be noted that there are many different variations within the equal ground co-author relationship. Some co-author relationships may have writer #1 spending most of his time plotting the novel, and writer # 2 writing the novel. Or perhaps writer #1 is really good at dialogue, and writer # 2 is great at narration. You may also have a dynamic where writer #1 thrives in the creative environment, where he crafts the characters, plots, and story lines, whereas writer #2 is a master at polishing, and really getting a story into publishable form. How the co-authors tackle a book really depends on their personalities and preferences. With that said, I believe most equal ground co-authorship's fall into one of two categories:

1) Writer #1 writes the first draft of the novel, and writer #2 goes through and does the heavy editing of the piece.

2) Writer #1 and Writer #2 work on the outline together, and then alternate writing chapters.

The first time I wrote a book was in the first format. An author by the name of Mike Lynch approached me after a few shared e-mail critiques of some stories we had written on our own. We were both unpublished (except for a few short stories) and were certainly on equal terms as fledgling, hard-working novices trying to break out as writers.

When Mike approached me about co-authoring a novel, he'd already finished his book and was seeking a second pair of eyes, feeling that he could no longer look at it objectively anymore.

I said yes, and went through the novel twice, all the while offering suggestions, cutting, adding, whatever I felt would sharpen an already good story.

Because our first foray into co-authoring worked out much better than we anticipated, Mike and I decided to keep writing together, and have to date co-authored two more novels, but in these two later books we used format #2. Together, we decided what kind of story we wanted to write, figured out who the characters were going to be, established their psychologies, set up the plot points and setback, and then went back and forth as we wrote the chapters. Two books later, we both feel our skills have been honed and refined because of this process, with more books planned in the future.

It is in PART TWO and PART THREE that I will dig deeper into the more personal side of co-writing, such as looking at the actual co-author relationship, compatibility factors, meshing authorial voice, creating rules, creating boundaries, creating a contract, and of course...how one might go about choosing a good co-author fit.

Heroic fantasy short stories

An open submission call caught my attention this week. Rogue Blades Entertainment has a quite an interesting span of Epic and Heroic fantasy in the vein of Robert E. Howard's Conan series.

The call for submissions was for an upcoming release titled "Demons: A Clash of Steel Anthology".

Here's what they want the story's to be about:

For this shall be an anthology devoted to the devilish fiends who seek to wreak havoc among mankind upon the mortal plane – and of the paladins and warriors who return the vanquished denizens of all the hells to whence they’ve come!

So basically the publisher wants stories about evil bad guys, and the heroes who conquer them. I love these kind of stories when done right. Unfortunately there are those writers who make the heroes not so heroic and kinda bad themselves. But then there are Aragorn's and the Frodo's and the Gandalf's who I love to root for. It's these stories that I love.

Well, I'm half tempted to write a short heroic fantasy for this anthology and see if they like it. Robert E. Howard and Edgar Rice Burroughs fiction has left its mark on me (though I could do without the male chauvinism and racism).

Anyone else interested? There's nothing more rewarding than writing a short story once in a while. To be able to sit down and finish something in a week is refreshing after toiling on a novel. Maybe when I have some spare time, I'll write something up for this antho.

I'm tentatively titling the piece:
"Bane of the Serpent Prince"
or maybe
"The Warrior Princess and the Dungeons of Doom"

You gotta love heroic fantasy titles!

Giant Dino Snake!

Okay, I like reptiles, and the bigger the better in my estimation. I just ran across this cool article about a giant 2500 pound snake called a Titanoboa. This gargantuan snake was 43 feet long and it ate crocodiles! I just had to share this cool discovery with everyone. If you want more on this magnificent snake, read the full article HERE.