Noble Pen Meeting

June 10th, 2010
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

Rimmer: …Lister! There’s so many things that are strange and
odd. So many things we don’t have any explanation for.

Lister: Like, um, why do intelligent people buy cinema hot dogs? Do you
mean that sort of weird and mysterious thing?

Rimmer: No, Lister, I mean like the pyramids. How did they move such
massive pieces of stone without the aid of modern technology?

Lister: They had massive whips, Rimmer. Massive, massive whips.

–RED DWARF, Episode 4, Waiting for God

Victories

George started his podcast. So if anyone wants to be driven completely insane, they can go to his website and listen.

Dylan managed to write 50,000 words in four days. Unfortunately, they are all the same word. It’s a rather bad one.

Ciuin is up to chapter 20 in her massive revision. She wants to finish her re-writes and revise once more before her writers conference, next week. She really knows how to take it easy on summer vacation.

Shannon went to Wiscon and stood in the corner of parties, watching other people network.

Shannon has been asked to write a short screenplay, which he readily agreed to as he doesn’t know any better.

Special Event

The Noble Pen Welcomes Tyree Campbell, author and Managing Editor of Sam’s Dot Publishing. Based in Cedar Rapids, Sam’s Dot publishes novels, novellas, collections, and online and print magazines.

Tyree will be joining us on June 10th.

News

Lynne Viehl wrote an article on settings.

Garrison Keillor thinks this is the end of publishing as we know it.

Upcoming Schedule

Noble Pen Meeting

May 27th, 2010
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

“How many languages do you speak, Nutt?”

“Three dead and twelve living, sir,” said Nutt.

“Really. Really,” said Ridcully, as though filing this away and trying not to think How many of them were alive before you murdered them?

–Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals

Victories

Dylan has another commission. Lucky bastard.

One of Cuin’s professors wants her to re-write her research paper so the U of I can publish it. But first she needs a document of archaic German legalese signed by Heinrich Himmler translated.

I attended Demicon, the Des Moines science fiction convention and enjoyed speaking to many authors and publishers and the open bar.

Lena got another letter into the Gazette. The Linn Newsletter has published her account of her Israel trip and they want her to write a letter about Poland. Unfortunately, we probably won’t be seeing her until after farmers market season. I have no jokes or silly videos about farmers markets–farmer’s daughters sure, but not farmers markets.

Special Event

The Noble Pen Welcomes Tyree Campbell, author and Managing Editor of Sam’s Dot Publishing. Based in Cedar Rapids, Sam’s Dot publishes novels, novellas, collections, and online and print magazines.

I believe Tyree will be joining us on June 10th.

News

Lynne Viehl has a nice article on the merits of being a self-taught author.

Barnes and Noble is launching a self-publishing service . I’m pretty sure they still won’t put your book in their store.

JA Konrath announced his next book in the Jack Daniels series, Shaken, will be released for the Kindle several months before the paper edition.

Upcoming Schedule

Noble Pen Meeting

May 20th, 2010
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

My muffin hasn’t had a cherry since 1939.
–Betty White

Victories

Nick was a powerhouse this week. He sent three photos to a magazine and sent his western to an editor for critique. Tuesday, he will be juggling chainsaws in Ellis park.

Welcome Bob. Thanks for checking us out.

News

Borders will be selling an e-ink reader for $149. Commence lamenting for the 1000th time how far we have to go to find a Borders.

Toys!

Another infographic: The most Controversial Books in America. Oddly enough, they did not include Ecstasy and Me: My Live As a Woman, by Hedy Lamarr, which I keep on my nightstand.

Upcoming Schedule

Noble Pen Meeting

May 13th, 2010
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

Sure I’ve been called a xenophobe, but the truth is I’m not. I honestly just feel that America is the best country and all the other countries aren’t as good. That used to be called patriotism.
–Kenny Powers, Eastbound & Down

Victories

A small press editor got back to me on my “Panic No More” project. He said it showed promise but decided to pass. I thanked him for his input and then reported him to Homeland Security as a possible enemy combatant.

News

As they say in Bad Boys, shit just got real. Google has announced a new ebook service which will launch this summer. While not everything Google does is a game-changer–I’m looking at  you Orkut, they certainly are above the curve. (Actually, I hear Orkut is huge in Brazil.)

Upcoming Schedule

Noble Pen Meeting

May 6th, 2010
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

Novels for me are how I find out what’s going on in my own head. And so that’s a really useful and indeed critical thing to do when you do as many of these other things as I do.
–Cory Doctorow

Victories

Dylan’s side projects continue to stay up  in the down economy. He just received a commission for a 15,000 word short story.

News

Behold the EPIC PUBLISHING INFOGRAPHIC.

Why agents pass on your queries. See, I said “pass.”

Upcoming Schedule

Noble Pen Meeting

April 29th, 2010
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

“Empire” had the better ending. Luke gets his hand cut off, finds out Vader is his father, uh, Han gets frozen, taken away by Boba Fett. It ends on such a down note. I mean, that’s what life is, a series of down endings. All “Jedi” had was a bunch of Muppets.
-Dante, Clerks

While Miss Tarabotti was a proper English young lady, aside from not having a soul and being half Italian, she did spend quite a bit more time than most other young ladies riding and walking and was therefore unexpectedly strong.
– Gail Carriger, Soulless

Victories

Nick is still looking for a good editor for his western. I am still looking for a TARDIS or at least a balloon.

Lena was asked by the Linn-newsletter to write a story about her trip. Her dog will be writing a rebuttal.

News

IO9 looks at the worst Science Fiction and Fantasy book covers. I particularly like Conquest of the Amazon.

Authors talk trash.

Upcoming Schedule

Noble Pen Meeting

April 22nd, 2010
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

Bill: The only true knowledge is knowing that you know nothing.
Ted: Dude, that’s us!
– Bill and Ted’s Excellant Adventure

We thought something would happen.
We thought something would happen… something…
Rock ‘n Roll was played for the first time in Public Middle School #4. But…
Not a damn thing happened…
– 20th Century Boys

Victories

Christine was accepted into the 8-week Iowa Writer’s Workshop summer class with James Alan McPherson, who is not the James McPerson who writes books about the civil war but the James McPherson known for fiction short stories. It is unknown whether he invented the McPherson strut, defined as a stiff but sexy gait and not to be confused with the MacPherson strut, a type of car suspension which uses the axis of a telescopic damper as the upper steering pivot.

News

In seismic news, a volcano limited New York’s access to the London Book Fair.

Carlisle Cullen is the richest fictional man alive. I guess Scrooge McDuck just doesn’t have the clout he used to.

In a head-scratching mood, The Library of Congress has announced plans to achieve every Twitter message. So soon, the Library of Congress with have a picture of Danny Devito shirtless.

Upcoming Schedule

Noble Pen Meeting

April 15, 2010
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

Special effects are really just a tool–a means to help tell the story… A special effect without a story is really a boring thing.
– George Lucas

Live every week like it’s Shark Week.
-Tracy Jordan

Victories

Dylan submitted a cowboy story to a small press. [Insert your favorite Western double entendre.]

News

At an Apple event yesterday, Steve Jobs claimed 600,000 books had already been sold for the iPad.

At the Harvard Business School, Peter Olson, formerly of Random House, has an interesting commentary on the state of the industry.

Upcoming Schedule

Noble Pen Meeting

April 8, 2010
Happy Chef, 1906 Blairs Ferry Rd NE, Cedar Rapids

If I lose the light of the sun, I will write by candlelight, moonlight, no light. If I lose paper and ink, I will write in blood on forgotten walls. I will write always. I will capture nights all over the world and bring them to you.
–Henry Rollins

Victories

Dylan won first prize in a writing contest. His prize was a scarf and a trip to Tatooine in a ship which can make the Kessel run in less than twelve parsecs.

Nick is actively seeking an editor for his new novel. His previous plan of kidnapping a homeless person and making them do the edits didn’t work out, as his kidnap victim was weak with gerundive phrases.

News

IO9 has a good rundown of the Google Book settlement.

Agent Nathan Bransford has a video on pitching.

Upcoming Schedule

Thursday, April 8th. Happy Chef.