writing

The Notebook

At various times in the last 10 years, key parts of Aurora Renegades, Aurora Resonant, Asterion Noir, and Riven Worlds have all been brainstormed in this notebook on long drives.

When I initially posted this pic on social media, in real time, I said, “Wonder what I'll write in it today?”

Now, of course, I know what I wrote in it. And that’s all I’ll say about that. For now. ;)

I have words on the moon!

It's a historic day for private space exploration. Early Sunday morning, Firefly Space's Blue Ghost stuck the landing, making it the first fully successful private, commercial moon landing!

On a tiny nanofiche onboard Blue Ghost reside two of my short stories, "Apogee" and "Solatium," as part of the Lunar Codex. All the thanks to Samuel Peralta for making so many writers' and artists' dream come true.

Blue Ghost is ALSO carrying a bucketload of science. Instruments will investigate the structure and composition of the moon’s mantle, the heat flow at different depths beneath the lunar surface, the interaction of solar wind and Earth’s magnetic field, and the impact of solar radiation on the lunar surface.

The lander also carries the Lunar PlanetVac, which is designed to collect regolith from the lunar surface that could be returned to Earth as part of a separate mission, and the Lunar GNSS Receiver Experiment, which will test the ability to use GPS signals at lunar distances.

Blue Ghost will operate for about 14 Earth days on the lunar surface. On March 14, Firefly expects to capture high-definition imagery of a total eclipse when the Earth blocks the sun above the moon’s horizon. How amazing is that going to be?

The gang's all back together

I'll have more to say about * this * in a few weeks, after more people have finished The Universe Within and I've caught my breath from many goings-on. But over here, we're getting this party started.

P.S.: For those of you who haven’t seen this kind of image from me before, this is a storyboard outline of the next book, created in an app called Plottr. Each row/color corresponds to a character or related set of characters. I won’t give them all away, but blue is Alex and Caleb. The content of the blocks is strategically blurred out so you don’t get spoiled way, way early - but maybe it gets you thinking about what those blocks could involve. :D

The Universe Within Teaser

No, we can't expect any such thing.

So Valkyrie and Akeso have to, for the most part, sit this adventure out. This gave me a chance to right Alex without Valkyrie and especially Caleb without Akeso. I think you all will enjoy how this plays out for them. In some ways, it's like the old days...but not in every way, for they've experienced so much since then.

The Thief

It's been a banger of a month for THE THIEF. It's just been named a Quarterfinalist in this year's Self-Published Science Fiction Competition, a huge contest celebrating indie science fiction founded by Hugh Howey in 2021. https://thespsfc.org/

The competition lasts for many months, as 6 review teams read through hundreds of entries. Next up, after much more reading, the semifinalists will be announced in March.

I'm so proud of this book - though its success is less my doing and more Eren's innate ability to bring flair, style, wit and heart...and explosions...to every room he walks into.

To The Moon

Two of my short stories, APOGEE and SOLATIUM, are trying for the moon again! Overnight, Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost lander launched aboard a Falcon 9 rocket carrying (among numerous NASA and commercial payloads) the Lunar Codex, Samuel Peralta's passion project, a beautiful collection of stories, art, music and more. I am honored beyond words to have my these stories reach the stars and find a home on the moon!

It'll be a little while before Blue Ghost attempts a lunar landing, however. It will spend the next 25 days in Earth orbit, undergoing a variety of systems checks and gathering data. It will then conduct an engine burn and hopefully reach the moon 4 days later, where it will orbit for 16 days before attempting a touchdown in Mare Crisium.

If the landing is successful, Blue Ghost will deliver the Lunar Codex to its home on the lunar surface. Then it spend 2 weeks capturing imagery of the lunar sunset and provide critical data on how lunar regolith reacts to solar influences during lunar dusk conditions, before retiring with the lunar night.

<tech>

This conversation with Mr. Jennsen took place 7 years ago, while I was writing RUBICON, but it’s just as funny (to me) as it was back then. As I said then:

“If you can't laugh at yourself, what are you working for, right? I give you the essence of my characters, distilled to their purest features. *Warning: cursing follows. Because Alex.*

Also, if anyone wondered if my husband really reads my books, I believe he has now dispelled that notion in glorious style.”

Best Sci-Fi Books of 2024 Nominations

Nominations for Discover Sci-Fi’s Best Sci-Fi Books of 2024 award are now open, and THE THIEF is eligible!

DSF is leveling-up the award in a big way this year. There are now multiple categories, and the overall winner gets a REAL, LIVE TROPHY.

I would be honored if you considered nominating THE THIEF (note: it won 2nd place in the half-year poll). So here's how it works:

  • you can nominate a book in as many categories as you want - you don't have to choose just one.

  • THE THIEF is definitely a fit for "Best Science Fiction Novel" (the top category) and "Best Alien Sci-Fi Novel.” One can quibble about whether it qualifies as space opera for "Best Space Opera Novel" - I leave that to your discretion.

  • Nominations are open through 12/18. The finalists will be announced, and final voting takes place 12/19-12/31.

You can find the nominations form here: https://discoverscifi.com/nominate-the-best-sci-fi-books-2024/

The Universe Within Update

And the first draft of THE UNIVERSE WITHIN is complete!!

It clocks in at 64,451 words, which is a hefty chunk considering all the [skipped scenes] and [vague notes and instructions] and [half finished chapters], lol. *motions at Alex and Caleb and all those rich, fully formed worlds and stories that burst to life wherever they go*

I don't think a story has come together this quickly since Abysm, which is really saying something. But boy, do I have a ton of work ahead of me. I was flinging brackets left and right as fast as I could type them, just to get the plot out of my head and onto the page.

So, yeah. Time to grab the fire extinguisher..

The Results Are In

You guys rock (of course, I already knew this ). Despite only being out for 3 weeks, THE THIEF won 2nd place in Discover Scifi's Best Sci-Fi Books of 2024 (So Far)! I could not be more thrilled. I adore this book so much, and it makes me happy to know you all do, too.

You can see the Top 10 here: https://discoverscifi.com/the-best-sci-fi-releases-of-2024-so-far/

The Best Sci-Fi Books of 2024 (So Far)

My readers are the absolute best. THE THIEF has only been out for 2 weeks, but you've spoken up so much that it's now in the running for The Best Sci-Fi Book of 2024 (So Far) over at Discover Sci-Fi. And hey, Eren deserves every bit of recognition he gets (he would agree, I think).

If you're so inclined, head over and vote! https://discoverscifi.com/time-to-vote-first-half-of-2024-best-scifi/

Alex, what have you done?

It’s time for the occasionally annual celebration of the unofficial theme of the Amaranthe series:

This year, it struck me that this excerpt from INVERSION between Alex and Nika is rather on point.

Miriam wasn't on scene to exclaim "what have you done?" when Alex did this on Portal Prime in VERTIGO, but I'm pretty sure Caleb *thought* it, lol.

Of course, the answer to the question, "what have you done?" was "save everyone, obviously."

I wonder what utterly audacious stunt she's going to pull off in THE UNIVERSE WITHIN?