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This month, The Accidental Time Machine by Joe Haldeman.

Here: Ian, Mark, Michele, Michelle, Tracy

Next Month: Tanya Huff’s Valor’s Choice

Let ‘er rip!

Mark: This is not his best work. This would have made a nice short story.

Tracy: For me this is a short story. I loved the book. I’m a physicist. I thought it was very accurate. I read it in about two days.

Catherine: Is this typical of hard SF?

Michele: Hard science is based on harder principals.

Ian: It’s all tell and no show.

Continue reading “Book Club: The Accidental Time Machine”

Stay tuned for our book club’s discussion of The Accidental Time Machine by Joe Haldeman later tonight!

Meanwhile, today’s Herc-o-meter:

19,695 / 75,000 (25.0%)

And trivia: Mochi Monkey has it totally right again! Hercules had to take a king to court because he re-negged on promised cattle. Do you remember the name of the king who’s stables Hercules cleaned?

Finally, Herculean wisdom!

“They’re smart kids, your brother’s children,” said Nonna. “They were figuring it out without me. When they came to me with the majority of it figured out, I decided it was time to be honest with them.”

Adults should respect the intelligence of children as well.

Things are really getting jumbled now in the rough draft, but still the word count continues, and while yesterday was super, super lame, today’s work looks keepable with expansion.

I also find it very nice to be working on my Mac Air in the living room while Bryon is working away on our computer. I love modernization! And I’ve checked out the tutorial on Scrivener, and will probably upgrade to fully operational soon. Given that I’ve started writing HH: PW via word processor program, I will probably keep that up, and then switch over when I begin the rewrite. Does anyone know if Scrivener does word count before the final draft, or are my achiever days of posting word meter bars over?

Anyway, today’s word count!

18,509 / 75,000 (23.0%)

And yesterday’s answer was Zeus, or Jupiter, or Jove, and I think Kurt got all three.

Today: In which labor did Hercules actually have to settle a dispute in a court of law?

And finally, Herculean wisdom.

“Why do the gods hide, Nonna?”

“You know, Bianca, sometimes the gods just want a chance to start again. All your uncle really wants is a chance to be an average guy, to love someone like Polly, maybe to have a family of his own again.”

Yup, even the gods need a century or two of down time.

I lifted this from Karen Mahoney, and if you’re a YA author, you should probably check this out.

Trisha Telep, who edited the fabulous (and recently published) Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance is looking to become an agent. She needs to show the potential agency her instincts when it comes to saleable submissions. Trisha is not only a professional, but is also a great person. As well as her editorial work, she is the romance buyer at Murder One bookstore here in London – although for this call she is looking for Young Adult submissions.

If you are UNPUBLISHED (i.e., have no novel-length work contracted or published; I believe short stories are OK), and have a YA proposal (good) or sample chapters (better), Trisha would like to hear from you. These are electronic submissions; send your sample chapters (best) or proposal (okay) to her AS AN ATTACHMENT WITH A COVER LETTER to: murderone_vampires@yahoo.co.uk. (The email address does not indicate a bias towards vampire projects!) If, during this process you really wow Trisha, don’t forget that means you will also have wowed a potential agent/agency. You’ve got nothing to lose.

[As an aside, yesterday Trisha told me that she is “not averse to working hard to get something ready to submit.” In fact, she enjoys that – I think this is where her editorial experience will stand her future clients in good stead.]

Disclaimer and directions time: This isn’t a guaranteed offer of representation, it’s a submissions call. Submissions should be sent as a Word ’97-2003 Compatible doc, double-space and 12 pt in a clear readable font (Courier is good). Don’t forget your name, title, and page numbers in the header. Your cover letter should include your name, a way of contacting you, and a little bit about the attached sample–whether the manuscript is finished, how long it is, why Trisha should read it. Last but not least, good luck!

Spread the word if you know of any YA writers who might benefit from this.

Got my words down today. Like pulling hen’s teeth. Man!

But here’s the Herc-o-meter!

17,226 / 75,000 (22.0%)

Yesterday’s trivia was answered correctly by Frankie and Cat. Alcmene was Hercules’ mom. Today’s trivia question is the easiest one so far. No one should miss today’s question!

Who was Hercules’ father?

Herculean Wisdom: No quote today, kids. My wisdom to share is that when you write badly, you might as well keep people from reading your stuff that day until you revise it so it’s better.

HH:PW the Benadryl Report. Word count!

16,031 / 75,000 (20.0%)

Yesterday’s trivia: Mochi Monkey and Tina Gray were right. Gaia gave Hera and Zeus the apples.

Today’s question: What is Hercules Mom’s name?

Herculean Wisdom:

“You could do that with a river,” said Hannah. “That would clean it out in a day.”

“Maybe in the old days we might have done something like that,” said Leo. “Now there are environmental protections.”

Remember, even the Olympian Gods know that protecting the environment is important!

I thought that I would update just a little bit from a technical perspective.

With an eye on the future, I have purchased a new Mac Air to write my stories on. This is wise. One should have a tax write off, and this computer will be used solely for writing purchases.

Why the Mac Air? Well, I have to admit to a little seduction on Apple’s part. Here’s a link to the product.

Sleek and Sexy Computing.

Normally, I’m quite practical about my appliance purchases. Practical!Catherine who usually wins, was looking at an iBook, but then she thought about all the times she compromised on Mini Coopers.

I’m purchasing the writing computer with a Ferrari mentality. I want to set loose Novelist!Cath who should have a computer that reflects the way she is. Practical!Catherine is wonderful in many ways, but Novelist!Cath needs to feel like she’s living on the (very thin computer book) edge.

One of the interesting things I discovered is that Macs no longer come with a word processing program. We installed the Microsoft competitor for free on my keyboard. I wonder about Scrivener. I see I can buy Scrivener for around $40, but before I do that, I wonder what your experiences are with it, and if you think it’s a good investment. I’m also considering the free download of it to see if I’ll really use it, and if it’s as addicting as they suggest.

So, if you have anything to say about Scrivener, please let me know.

Now, I must fight off the effects of Benadryl (an exotic bug bit me yesterday, and the reaction has been a localized allergic reaction. Conventional doctors suggest spiders), and I must get down to brass Mythological tacks before I head out for a long car trip to Minneapolis.

Toodles! Happy writing!

Hey guys! Today’s words were much easier to crank out without the headache.

Word Count Meter:

14,783 / 75,000 (19.0%)

Trivia: Mochi Monkey is cleaning up! The correct names were Nereus, the sea god and shape shifter, and Antaeus, who was the son of Poseidon. One final Hersperides question:

Originally, the apples of the Hesperides were a gift. From whom to whom?

Herculean Wisdom:

“Think about it. He wrestles guys that match up with the 12 Labors of Hercules. He’s already wrestled the Wild Boar and El Torro. Who’s next?”

“Um…” Tony inventoried Leo’s opponents. “Probably Atlas. Okay, I know that looks incredibly incriminating, but really, they are just wrestlers.”

“This is interesting,” said Bianca, taking notes. “What are the other pieces of these 12 labors we need to watch for?”

Sometimes things ARE what they look like.

Catherine

Less headachy, but still sore. But I is discipline writer! My word count, let me show you it!

13,651 / 75,000 (17.0%)

***

Some of you came up with some pretty wild guesses yesterday, but Mochi Monkey is correct that Prometheus was the other titan that Hercules encountered on the way. She added that he drove off a liver-eating eagle and freed him. That is correct.

Today’s trivia: Hercules met two other people on the way to Atlas as well. Can you name them? This is a REALLY hard question.

And Herculean wisdom:

“Leo,” said George. “Can you show me how to do that pile driver?”
“You don’t want to do that at home, okay, George.”
Tony felt superior to George. “Because wrestling isn’t a game. It’s a profession.”

Don’t try wrestling moves at home, kids!

See you tomorrow!

Catherine

Hey.

It’s been a robust day in my real life, given the concentration crushing headache I have in the right side of my head and the lack of cooperation on the part of my washing machine. Meanwhile at work, our phone dies and our students are needy. Hey, it’s that time of year.

There’s a very real chance that we may need one of those Herc-o-meter days I’ve run up in advance. However, I will still give the writing the old college try. At college, anyway. Trying.

Meanwhile, ouch.

Catherine