brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jan 11, 2012, 12:03 am
My standard disclaimer: this post is not about writing, genre, books, movies, or any of the typically fun or diverting topics usually addressed here. This one's political/social and if you're not up for that sort of thing, HERE's something you might check out instead.
First, rea... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jan 8, 2012, 5:25 pm
A couple works that are eligible for awards consideration (Hugo/Nebula.) This is the sort of post that I inevitably feel is akin to slapping 'Titanic' on the side of your ship, but if it gets a few more eyeballs checking out my little bit of output in 2011, that's great.
Short Story:
Plastic Trees... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jan 7, 2012, 11:56 pm
"Another example of the kind of zine I tend to like, when done well: surreal and strange fantasy based on unusual ideas. This one is clearly a labor of love. It has a variety of content: fiction, verse, interviews and other editorial matter, and full-page illustrations." --Lois Tilton,... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Dec 13, 2011, 8:28 pm
Any day now we'll have brought Fantastique Unfettered to it's first birthday and fourth issue. Contained in issues one through four are dozens of stories, poems, nonfiction editorials & reviews, and some pretty nifty artwork.
This is the sort of project that, stepping bac... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Nov 15, 2011, 1:47 am
The forthcoming issue, subtitled (Ralewing), will feature the most nonfiction we've had in a single issue, the most poems in a single issue, a special Mike Allen Feature, original stories from Hal Duncan, Alma Alexander, and D. Harlan Wilson, (and several other fine authors), a di... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Nov 5, 2011, 6:22 pm
I find if I actually state what I am working on, it helps me to feel some pressure to follow-through and complete it. Right now I have a few stories in the pipeline...
A Child's Image of Her Father - This story is more familial/ real life than SF, though it has an element of the ... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Oct 19, 2011, 1:08 am
Please take a moment to read this wonderful post by Fantastique Unfettered #3 (Prolefeed) contributor Zen Cho, discussing the fantastic in Malaysia in general and the elements that grew into her story.
From the post:
"Fairy is a misnomer, of course. Malaysia is populat... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Oct 15, 2011, 2:26 pm
Please consider making a small donation to Fantastique Unfettered. We are prepping our fourth issue, marking year one of this venture, and also preparing to launch the Aether Age ezine. Fun stuff, and more information here. Thank you!
Personal update... with the work o... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Aug 17, 2011, 7:37 am
A new Aether Age MARKET is right around the corner, and it ain't what you're expecting.
In the mean time, grab a copy of the print edition in hardback or paperback or get your Kindle edition for just $2.99. I'm a Nook Color owner, and we are working on a B&N version too.
... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jul 13, 2011, 6:15 pm
This post is mostly for Facebook readers. Mostly.
I am restructuring my social networks.
The truth is, ubiquitous as FB has become, there are writerly connections here who have no interest in... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jul 9, 2011, 1:28 pm
"It is 100BCE and the ancient world has mechanized itself.
The Earth passed into a breathable Aether several centuries before.
Now something is coming, out of the dark, out of the Aether...
And so begins the war for Helios." Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jul 4, 2011, 4:28 pm
Please check out my latest flash fiction, Plastic Trees. One could say too much about a flash story since it is so short. Brevity aside, this does a good job of capturing where I was at emotionally when I was laid off and then found a job that treated its workforce with what, in my assessment, w... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jun 25, 2011, 9:00 am
I've tried to make my stories and other creative endeavors more accessible, looking at if the blog and my other sites do their job well: delivering stories and such to interested readers. An ongoing process, I'm sure, but I realized all these efforts have focused on my work in print.
... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jun 24, 2011, 6:22 pm
I've noticed a nice stream of readers jumping over from Aaron Polson's site, which I really appreciate. If you are coming here from Aaron's site, give me a shout...
Shoot me an email, and I'll send you some free reading material (that normally is not free.) Let me know which you'd like most:... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jun 23, 2011, 1:47 am
Vernor Vinge's A Fire Upon the Deep is one of the most exciting and adventurous modern space operas. It's (prequel?) A Deepness in the Sky was a different sort of story, but awesome in its own right. Grab those books if you haven't read them yet.
There is something satisfying abou... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jun 14, 2011, 6:40 pm
"It is not these well-fed long-haired men that I fear, but the pale and the hungry-looking." --Julius Caesar
On seeing the Hail Caesar article linked under the Motivations heading on this Creative Commons page, I thought I'd go ahead and share the article out from my blog.
Write s... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jun 8, 2011, 1:22 am
We might see the book go live tonight on the various book sites! I'm quite pleased with how well this has come together, and humbled to see my story featured alongside Mr. Jeffers. So Cool! :) Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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May 23, 2011, 1:55 am
"Why did people think the world was gonna end this weekend, dad?"
I had to pause. It's not good form to tell your kid, "Because people are stupid." And maybe that's not fair. The best I could come up with was, "Because people believe crazy things." That worked well enough.
But I ... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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May 14, 2011, 3:58 pm
I was thinking about what books fascinated me so much that I'd want to write a story like Elegant Threat. I thought I'd offer another list post while awaiting the Double's publication at the end of the month. The interesting thing about these books is that in each case they work withing a give... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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May 11, 2011, 2:00 am
My publisher described Elegant Threat in this way... [It is] "the story of people who wrangle aquatic fauna from the harrowing tides of the moon Shanama against a backdrop of imminent conflict with the mysterious Post-humans and sectarian strife within their own ranks."
Here's a list of reasons t... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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May 10, 2011, 6:30 pm
(You can pre-order the M-Brane Double NOW: click HERE)Some truisms I've discovered over the past couple years:Promotion is par for the course for writers & small press editors
It's damn hard to attract eyeballs toward your efforts
Reviewers, professional or reader-level, are the rarest o... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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May 1, 2011, 8:34 pm
M-Brane Press has opened a pre-order for the M-Brane Double, featuring Alex Jeffer's The New People and my own Elegant Threat... On the Demise of Captain Fantomas Patton-Guerrero and Loss of La Amenaza Elegente.
I have a page HERE that outlines some information about Elegant Threat.
The ... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Apr 6, 2011, 9:18 pm
A Map of Carcassonne
Labeled in the Provençal dialect, but with a smattering of Catalan, Venetian, French, and English, the map is an obvious fake to those familiar with the Cite de Carcassonne. The fortification is without egress –a solid wall– and encompasses a collection of anachroni... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Apr 4, 2011, 12:28 am
Please check out all the stories in Issue Three of the Lovecraft eZine, including a reprint of my own Things We Are Not. I already kind of went on and on about this story HERE, so I'll leave it at that. :) Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Apr 1, 2011, 6:05 pm
(Here there be spoilers.)
This weekend the Lovecraft eZine releases their April issue, including a reprint of my story Things We Are Not, originally published in the M-Brane Press anthology of the same name.
I recall my sixteen year old self, and what he would think cool. The Lo... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Mar 28, 2011, 1:42 am
The first issue of Fantastique Unfettered has been reviewed over at The Future Fire, in an overwhelmingly positive and thorough reading by Nader Elhefnawy. He has also released the review using the same Creative Commons license that we use at FU, so if you follow his attribution text, you ca... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Feb 23, 2011, 1:13 am
I've refrained from any comments on the ol' blog about revolution, Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, and related matters because I feel ill-informed to do so.
It's sad to watch the video of Egypt, to see these people fighting for what they desperately wanted but didn't have, even as elected officials in ... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Feb 15, 2011, 12:03 am
Please check out the latest Outer Alliance podcast by Julia Rios, featuring, among other goodness, an interview with Frank Ard and myself talking about Fantastique Unfettered, Creative Commons, and related topics. http://blog.outeralliance.org/archives/755 Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Feb 4, 2011, 2:56 pm
Whatever the causes and conditions giving rise to the fact, the wider SF&F community does not have the time or interest in the output of small press publishers.
Certainly, there are exceptions, but these serve to prove the rule. Small press gets less and less publicity these days. Major... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jan 27, 2011, 8:47 pm
Patrick Richardson asks over at Pajamas Media, Is Science Fiction Getting More Conservative?
ESR pulls the rug effectively out from under those that would love to think so... and he actually showed up in the comments to point out his essay.
ESR is one of those guys that I have some admi... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jan 17, 2011, 6:03 pm
Listening to NPR's special on MLK, the thought occurred to me: The people who Hated back then sound just like the people who Hate today --purveyors of popular wisdom that they claim to be, never hating or hateful.
Shortly after that, I'm listening to a follow-up show covering Gandhi and his... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jan 10, 2011, 7:00 pm
WARNING: This post has nothing to do with writing, reading, genre, or any of the fun, fluffy stuff that I usually address here. Furthermore, nithska.blogspot.com is not a democracy. If you don't like what you find here, go start your own blog. It's free.
#1: We are each, as adults, respo... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jan 5, 2011, 6:48 pm
I put these two posts up, more as a matter of principal than anything else: Aether Age: Helios & Fanstastique Unfettered #1. Small press doesn't get a lot of attention from the awards, and when it does tenure tends to matter. And that is as it should be.
We have good work, maybe even som... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Jan 2, 2011, 4:16 pm
Please check out Rise Reviews, the new site that reviews pay/semi-pro publications. In light of review sites such as Tangents deciding not to review markets other than those that pay professional pay rates, efforts like this are even more valuable to small press publishers and their readers. Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Dec 28, 2010, 6:04 pm
If 2009 saw me produce what was, for me, a huge number of stories (at one time I had 20 stories 'live' and in various phases between being critted at OWW or subbed to markets,) 2010 came down to a mere three projects and a handful of stories. The part of me that is never satisfied observes this an... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Dec 17, 2010, 5:01 pm
The podcast is live and features much good stuff:
"Welcome to Outer Alliance Spotlight #60. The Spotlight features news about (and sometimes interviews with) allies who are active in supporting and celebrating LGBTQI speculative fiction. This week we’ve got the second Outer Alliance Podcast episod... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Dec 14, 2010, 6:30 pm
My good friend, Mr. Wilson (I didn't mention that I'd name him in the post, so we'll keep it to last names,) knew that I love me some good ol' action SF, and invited me to a screening of the new Tron film. I thought I would not so much offer a review of my own as my general impressions.
If you ... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Dec 9, 2010, 8:03 pm
I thought of this today... check your music player and list all the 'I songs'. I'm, I've, & I'll count. And more fun, I think, if you don't post the musician. I, at least, have a ton of these and it exposes a nice little slice of what you _really_ listen to. lol.
Here's mine...
I am... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Dec 8, 2010, 12:56 am
I'm not the most religious person. There was a time when I tried really hard to be the Buddhist equivalent of the Christians I did volunteer work alongside a few years back. It's all a part of the path, I guess, and there was value in that experience. With time, the real me reasserts itself, ... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Dec 4, 2010, 12:25 pm
"Some storytellers use the distant future as the setting to make fantastic extrapolations and to explore compelling ideas. In this volume, however, the writers look forward a mere decade and present stunning scenarios, reveal exciting possibilities and warn against the harrowing pitfalls that may li... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Dec 4, 2010, 11:54 am
Caveat: this post is not about the Aether Age: Helios writers, that's just the example I have to reference. This will apply to every issue of FU or any other project with more than one writer.
The bad thing about The Aether Age: Helios is that it is a pie split so many ways. This is exactl... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Dec 2, 2010, 12:56 am
Today Crossed Genres officially released their
first novel, New Zealand author RJ Astruc's A Festival of Skeletons!
The novel was edited by Outer Alliance member Kay T. Holt.
From the back cover:
"When Kamphor’s west end sees a series of prostitutes murdered, its
... Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Nov 29, 2010, 12:35 pm
http://www.amazon.com/Aether-Age-Helios-Christopher-Fletcher/dp/0982725671/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1290994948&sr=8-2
The hardcover will be available soon as well. Comment - Like
brandon bell posted an article on
Nithska: SpecFic writer Brandon Bell
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Nov 25, 2010, 6:05 am
Television and Movies:
The BBC-produced Sherlock has seen its first three episodes aired on our local PBS station, and it is the best television going. I can't wait for more. Oh, and how much like Sherlock is Doctor Who?! The should nix the love interest and have a season or two with a guy compan... Comment - Like
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