Yearly Archives: 2013

Published: December 29, 2013

So I was planning this whole other blog….

It was one of those end-of-year things. I was going to muse about 2013, share some photos and pieces of news I never got around to posting. Maybe talk about a few books I liked….

I even had a title for the blog, I was going to call it “New Year’s Resignations.” Which is probably the best title I’ve come up with all year.

I’ll write that blog eventually. Probably. I had some things to say, and until I write them down they won’t leave me alone.

But I’m not going to write that blog today. I can’t.

I was going through my backlog of fanmail today. Trying to play catch-up, as always. And a reader had sent me…

Ah, I’ll just show you:

Mr. Rothfuss,

There is a song by a woman named Dar Williams that always makes me think of you and Worldbuilders. I thought I would share it with you, if you have time to listen to it – just in case you haven’t come across her before. Every time I hear it, it makes me think of things you have said about Worldbuilders, and your most recent blog post about First Book made me think of the last verse, so I had to finally send the link. If you have 3 minutes for it, I think you will really like it.

S.

Generally speaking, if someone sends me an interesting link, I’ll follow it.

So I did. And I listened to the song. And I was doing pretty well until the last verse, which hit me so hard that I felt like there’s been a hole blown straight through me.

It’s a good song, I’ll link it here for you:

After listening to that, I don’t really feel much like writing a pensive blog, the main theme of which is that I wish I were a better father, a more reliable friend, a more  professional writer…. Overall, I wish I was… well… I wish I was the sort of person had his shit together.  Because, generally speaking, I really don’t.

No. After listening to that song, I decided to forgo a vaguely emo retrospective blog.

Instead, I’d just like to thank all of you.

I’d like to thank you for reading what I write. I’d like to thank you for tuning into the blog. I’d like to thank you for being graceful and kind.

I’d like to thank you for making Worldbuilders awesome. For helping out with First Book.

Thank you for making the world a better place. You make me hopeful for humanity.

That’s better than what I’d planned to write today.

That’s how I’d like to end the year.

Fondly,

pat

Posted in blogging, the man behind the curtain | By Pat47 Responses
Published: December 26, 2013

Worldbuilders at the Heifer Ranch

Happy holidays, everyone–and we mean happy! You guys continue the new tradition of knocking our socks off with your generosity by pushing us right past the $175,000 mark. Keep an eye out for more stretch goals to unlock.

But on to business.

Last year Heifer International actually donated something to Worldbuilders–a few spaces at the Heifer Ranch in Perryville, Arkansas. The Worldbuilders team was supposed to head over there for a little training anyway, but they gave us some tickets to auction off. We put a few on the auction block and stuck some of them in the lottery.

Anticipation was high, and in May, the Worldbuilders team and some auction and lottery winners finally got the chance to visit the Heifer Ranch.

Heifer-Ranch1

The ranch started out as a place where Heifer would raise livestock to ship overseas. That all ended in 1960 when they found it was more cost effective, better for the local economy, and more conducive to the health of the animals if they purchased local livestock for their programs.  The ranch has soldiered on. Even though it’s still a working ranch, it’s now an educational facility where they give folks first-hand experiences of what some of the problems are that Heifer is working to resolve, and what those resolutions are.  It was truly a one-of-a-kind experience.

While we were there, we met all sorts of cool people, listened to presentations about what Heifer does, how and why they do it and just how much work goes into helping people pull themselves out of poverty.  We toured their global village and had to prepare our own lunch from limited supplies, we made cheese, and we ate delicious food that was grown and raised entirely on the ranch, which also supplies a few local institutions as well. It. Was. Awesome.

We wrote about the experience as soon as we got back, because we wanted to share what we discovered, learned, and enjoyed with you, as a part of this year’s fundraiser.

Heifer Weekend 2013 11 May 0757

Steve, Pat, Shiloh and Kat prepare lunch while Amber reads a recipe in the background.

“I like to cook, and I was pretty excited when we were given the challenge of cooking a meal over an open fire. All of us had tasks and we eventually got the fire going and the food prepared. No one got burned too badly and there was a lot of ‘white rabbit’ chanting to banish the smoke. We enjoyed our simple meal after several hours of cooking while Nate and Vicki shared facts about open fire cooking.

They told us  that every day over 50% of the world’s population cooks this way, for every meal. It’s dangerous and time consuming. Kids can’t attend school because they are too busy gathering limited fuel supplies and tending the fire. Each year, millions are made ill, injured, or killed by the fires and exposure to the smoke. The novelty of open fire cooking quickly wore off as the sober list of facts grew.

I was relieved to hear about Heifer’s work on this issue. In many of the locations that Heifer International works in, they provide improved cook stoves as part of their educational and training projects. They work with the community to provide them with stoves that fit their culture and environment, ensuring that the stoves are actually put to use. These stoves cook food more cleanly, quickly, and safely.  Kids get more free time for their education. This is just one of the great ways in which Heifer is helping build a better world.” – Kat

Heifer Weekend 2013 11 May 0510

Joyce gets an apple-prompted kiss from a camel.

“From the first time I chipped in with my friends to buy a llama, Heifer International has intrigued me.  Being around the folks at the ranch who deeply understand the need for the Heifer brand of conscientious education and help, who are interested in the causes of poverty, in how to change people’s lives, without changing who they are, completely thrilled me, and rejuvenated my desire to do whatever I can to help the cause.

And I milked a goat.  And kissed a camel (no tongue).  And earned a number of spectacular bruises.  It was pretty much the best weekend I have had in at least a week and a half!” – Joyce

Heifer Weekend 2013 11 May 0255

Nicole milks a goat–we later used that milk to make cheese.

“I came back a mix of so many emotions.  I made new friends and had tons of fun, so I was refreshed.  I connected with my co-workers on a deeper level, so I was warmed.  I worked for my meals, so I was satisfied.  I discovered that the scale that Heifer operates on is so much larger than I thought, so I was stunned.  I realized that I was ignorant and jaded about the reality that so many other people face, so I was lucky.  I learned that Worldbuilders is the single largest Heifer Team in existence, so I was proud.

The most overwhelming emotion I faced upon our return, though, was excitement.  We are doing a really good thing.  And I’m ready to dive back in.” – Nicole

Heifer Weekend 2013 11 May 0197

Maria shows Oot how to milk a goat.

“Our time at the Heifer Ranch and Heifer headquarters was a fantastic experience.  Being at the global village, learning of the challenges many communities are faced with, and seeing what Heifer is doing to try to end hunger, was very inspirational.  What is very encouraging about the Heifer model is its approach to working with communities and how extensive that process is.  It truly represents a model of self-sufficiency and sustainability.  I’m personally excited to take what we’ve learned in such a short time and share it with all of our supporters and the Worldbuilders community.  I think once everyone sees what we saw, everyone is going to get super jazzed for the upcoming fundraiser in 2013.” – Maria

Camel

Not Brett, but a reasonable facsimile.

“Heifer International plays the long game, and they play it right. They only go when they’re invited. They don’t send guys in suits, they accept and train community members to lead projects. Often it’s a year or more before the first piece of livestock or seed is shipped. Most of the time, women in the community take charge, even if the community is traditionally misogynistic. Heifer will work with experts in fields they don’t specialize in to make sure everything is done right. The scope is so wide and varied, I just can’t comprehend it, let alone write about it.” – Brett

Sarah and Oot

Sarah and Oot on the ride to morning chores.

Sarah had a great anecdote about Oot from the stay at the ranch.

“We were sitting on a bench enjoying the beautiful afternoon.  I said ‘I love you Oot,’ and he looked at me and said ‘I love this ranch.’”

Heifer Weekend 2013 14 May 133

 Oot enjoys the shady walkway at Heifer’s Little Rock headquarters.
(Be sure to embiggen and see why Oot’s smiling so much…)

It was a great time. We were there with Vicki, one of the directors of philanthropy and our primary Heifer liaison, Nate, our brilliant and informative guide through all things Heifer, and a small but knowledgeable team of volunteers who showed us everything from feeding chickens to milking goats to how to farm in otherwise harsh environments. We got to learn about zero-grazing, biogas projects and why Heifer puts women in charge. There was a lot to learn.

One of the big things we learned was how much we didn’t know about Heifer’s projects. They offer their gift catalogue and encourage folks to buy goats and ducks for loved ones–that’s easy to grasp. But they also team up with other nonprofit organizations to bring clean water to villages, they teach farmers in Ghana how to raise grasscutters, they help fishermen in Haiti figure out how to get enough fish from a ravaged lake, they help women’s groups set up local co-operatives and they make sure children get a good education. It’s hard to explain that stuff in three words.

Money donated to Heifer International goes to improve the lives of so many people in so many different ways. You’re not just buying a goat. You’re buying knowledge, self-sufficiency, pride, and the willingness–often the excitement–to pass on that gift to the next family. That’s worth so much more than a goat.

*     *     *

To be honest, we can’t capture in words the awe we experienced at the ranch. Everyone came away with something different, but all of us agreed it was a great weekend. Everyone we went with was lovely–it didn’t take long for all of us to click, and that cross-section of wonderful people from such diverse backgrounds just proves the high caliber of all you folks who donate to Worldbuilders and Heifer International.

If you want to, feel free to head over to the Worldbuilders Team Heifer page. A donation there of just $10 sends that $10 straight to Heifer, and you get entered in our lottery.

We also have a few auctions ending this Sunday, but please don’t ignore your family just to bid on them. We’ll have more posted soon.

We’re deliberately going light on the fundraiser posts during the holidays, but we’ll be back before you know it with more posts about books and the cool people who write them, read them, and donate them so you can appreciate them as well.

Thanks, and please continue to have a great holiday.

Posted in Heifer International, Worldbuilders 2013 | By Amanda10 Responses
Published: December 23, 2013

Awesome Books from Cool Readers

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This is a Worldbuilders blog.

Pat, Sarah, and Oot are still enjoying some family time with week-old Cutie Snoo. We figured it’s only fair that we continue getting the blogs up, showing you some of the cool things that keep pouring in to the Worldbuilders headquarters.

We get a lot of donations from a lot of people.  Authors, publishers, and bookstores are always wonderful to us, but some people who don’t get as much glory are the readers.  Folks who have been following Worldbuilders for a while, and find cool, signed, or interesting books that they think would work well for our fundraiser. Every year we get more books from more supporters, and we’re more than happy to feature them.

Speaking of more, we’ll be adding more books into the lottery than what’s listed here. There’s just not enough space for all the coolness.

Let’s do it.

  • Limited, numbered edition of Side Jobs.  Signed by Jim Butcher.

Side Jobs standing

This is a really great collection of Dresden Files short stories.  It’s numbered 885 out of 1000, and would be an awesome addition to the collection of any Harry Dresden fan.

In the spirit of the holidays, we’re putting it (and everything else in this blog) in the lottery, to make sure that anyone who donates $10 or more at the Team Page has a chance of winning this one.

Thousandth Rude God Indignities

These are all beautiful books from Subterranean Press, and each one is going into the lottery.  Four more chances to win something from Subterranean Press, all because a reader was generous enough to share them with us.

“[The novella] leaves an indelible impression on the reader. It is a hauntingly powerful and provocative tale that will have John Scalzi fans, fantasy lovers, and newcomers alike talking about The God Engines.” – Fantasy Literature

“Part of what makes Reynolds so effective—what makes his version of space opera New—is his ability to work at both ends of the scale, from the intimate to the very very large.” – Locus

  • Set of Act of Love and The Best of Joe R. Lansdale. The latter signed by Joe R. Lansdale.

Act of Love and Best of Lansdale

The Best of collection is signed in this cool bundle, and the novel was Joe R. Lansdale’s first one, published in 1981, reprinted by Subterranean Press earlier this year, and completely sold out already.

“Thirty-two years after its original release, Lansdale’s pivotal first novel still retains its shocking horror and clarity… Both [the novel and story] showcase Lansdale’s clean, crisp writing and deft characterization, as well as descriptions vivid enough to give the most jaded reader nightmares.” – Publishers Weekly

  • Copies of Stormdancer. Signed, inscribed, and dated by Jay Kristoff.

Stormdancer

Stormdancer was in last year’s fundraiser, along with it’s adorable counterpart, The Littlest Stormdancer, and it was a big hit.  This novel also features one of my absolute favorite blurbs Pat has ever given anything:

Stormdancer Little Stormdancers

Other, more serious people have also written great reviews for it. For example, Kevin “The Iron Druid Chronicles” Hearne (who isn’t necessarily serious, but you get the idea).

“Kristoff’s debut is a lyrical triumph of chainsaw swords and thunder tigers that steampunk fans and mythology buffs will devour.” – Kevin Hearne

  • A set of The Green Rider Series: Green Rider, First Rider’s Call, The High King’s Tomb, and Blackveil by Kristen Britain. All are first editions.

Green Rider set

“Britain keeps the excitement high from beginning to end, balancing epic magical battles with the humor and camaraderie of Karigan and her fellow riders” – Publishers Weekly

If you’re interested in these, you may be interested in the signed dust jacket and manuscript page for the next book we have up for auction.  Either way, this set of first edition books will be in the lottery for someone to win.

  • Copy of Night Angel (The Complete Trilogy) by Brent Weeks.

Night Angel standing

This epic omnibus has the entirety of The Way of Shadows, Shadow’s Edge, and Beyond the Shadows, as well as a glossary, character guide, and a couple of bonus chapters you can only get here.  It’s definitely worth the cost of a ticket into the lottery.

“I was mesmerized from start to finish” – Terry Brooks

  • Copy of The Shock of the Fall.  Signed and inscribed by Nathan Filer.

Shock of the Fall standing

The narrator of this book is a damaged 19-year-old who is being treated for schizophrenia following a tragedy. The story unfolds in his expertly written voice, giving the reader a compelling look inside his head – and all before the final mystery is revealed. This one needs to be read to be believed, and one lucky lottery winner will get that chance.

“Bittersweet and wonderfully etched…perceptive and moving” – Telegraph

Falcons of Fire

I admit to not knowing much about this one, but I do know that these blurbs have got me intrigued. It takes place in the 1500s, where there are very real natural and supernatural threats, and there’s intrigue, betrayal and a quest. But Karen Maitland wrote it, so you’re in good hands.

“Passion and peril.  A compelling blend of historical grit and supernatural twists.” – Daily Mail

“Maitland’s language feels simultaneously authentic and modern. Invigorating.” – The Guardian

  • Set of Hugh Howey books: First Shift Legacy, Second Shift Order, Third Shift Pact, The Hurricane, The Plagiarist, and Half Way Home.  All signed by Hugh Howey.

HughHowey set - all

Hugh donated a full omnibus set of the Wool series, which we featured in the last blog, so when this donation came in we were all too happy to feature these as well.  If you donate as much as $20 to the Team Page you have a chance to win both prizes, and have a great collection of signed works by this great author.

  • Set of Libriomancer and Codex Born.  Both first editions, the first signed by Jim C. Hines.

Libriomancer Codex standing

Jim has been involved in Worldbuilders many times, most recently contributing our $75k stretch goal by doing one of his awesome cover poses (which you can never unsee here).

So if you win this set in the lottery, think of Jim, and his incredible commitment to his beliefs, and to our cause.

  • Set of Poison, Beauty, and Charm.  All first editions, signed by Sarah Pinborough, and signed and doodled by illustrator Les Edwards.

Poison series

We auctioned off an ARC of Poison from Gollancz earlier, and when we looked at these we were pretty excited.  We were even more excited when we looked at the doodles by Les Edwards.

Poison Sketches

There was some serious debate about auctioning this set, but we agreed this would make an awesome prize. Whoever wins these in the lottery is going to be getting something extra cool.

*     *     *

Thanks to everyone for the kind words for Pat, Sarah, Oot, and Cutie Snoo.  They’re really enjoying their time together, and we’re more than happy to keep the fundraising train going.

There are a few auctions that will be running this week.  If they appeal to you, head over to our eBay page to keep an eye on them.

Keep up with the fundraiser on the blog, and get details about how to win thousands of lovely books donated by authors and publishers.

If it’s something that interests you, head over to the Lottery Library page to see everything we’ve posted so far.

Posted in Worldbuilders 2013 | By Amanda14 Responses
Published: December 20, 2013

Signed Books from Awesome Authors

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This is a Worldbuilders blog.

First, some news: Pat hasn’t mentioned it yet on the blog, but he’s had a baby. So we (the Worldbuilders team) are going to put together a blog or two for him because he’s trying to take care of Sarah, Oot, and the newest edition to the family. Codename: Cutie Snoo.

Now, on to the blog:

Authors are always some of our coolest donors.  The books are always signed, and the authors are always amazingly helpful and willing to participate in fun ways.  Our stretch goals this year are evidence of that.

So be sure to say thank you to everyone who donated if you get the chance.  Let’s check these out…

  • Auction: A set of Inda books: Inda, The Fox, King’s Shield, Treason’s Shore, and Banner of Damned. All first editions, signed and doodled by Sherwood Smith.  Also includes tapestry hand stitched by Sherwood Smith.

Inda Series with tapestry 2

Last year, Sherwood Smith took the time to draw the map from the Inda series, along with donating the full set of books.  This year she outshone even that, by hand-stitching a tapestry to send along with the books, all of which are intricately doodled first printings.

Sherwood's Doodles

(Click to embiggen)

These are truly one of a kind prizes, which Sherwood put a lot of time into.  We’ve put them into an auction so that someone who truly loves them for how special they are can have them.  If you’re that someone, go over here to bid.

  • A set of the UK editions of The Iron Druid Chronicles: Hounded, Hexed, Hammered, Tricked, Trapped, and Hunted. Signed by Kevin Hearne.

Iron Druid All

Kevin’s part in the Thank You Video last year may have been the office favorite, if only for his enthusiastic use of a flagon.  Most of the staff have read at least the first few novels in the Chronicles, and not a one has been disappointed.

“Kevin Hearne’s Iron Druid Chronicles has grown from strength to strength since its publication in 2011. Kevin’s writing style along with his characterization has made him the darling of urban fantasy readers all over the world.” – Fantasy Book Critic

Rig standing

This YA novel won the 2012 Young Writers Prize. It’s an up and comer, and doing pretty well for itself.

It’s also written by a long time fan.  Some of you who have been around for a while may recognize the author – our very own Captain Joe, winner of the previous photo contest and all-around awesome person.

“[The Rig] is a non-stop thrill ride from beginning to end, and as the first book in a series it left me wanting more come the final page. Even better, it did this without finishing on a massive cliffhanger – the story comes to a satisfying conclusion, but the door is wide open for the next installment.” – The Book Zone

  • Auction: Set of first-edition Black Jewels Novels: The Shadow Queen, Shalador’s Lady, Tangled Webs, and an ARC of Murder of Crows from The Others Series. Signed by Anne Bishop. 

Black Jewels standing

This is a great set of novels, all of which are first editions, and the ARC included won’t be published until March 2014.

If you want the sneak peek, be sure to go bid on this.

  • Copies of Marking Time.  Signed by April White, with signed boomarks.

Marking Time standing

It’s always nice when an author adds that extra little something, and these bookmarks are a nice touch to add to these books. This is the first book in a trilogy about a 17-year-old grafitti artist who finds herself sent back in time to fraternize with a bunch of immortals.

CarniePunk lying

We had some of these sent by Kevin Hearne last year, but Rachel Caine took the time to send us a few more.  The authors signed by their stories, and the collection itself is really worth sitting down with.

“The alternating currents of horror and fantasy that course through this volume ensure that readers of several genre tastes will find stories to their liking.” – Publishers Weekly

  • Set of the Ruby’s Song series:  The Creative Fire and The Diamond Deep. Signed by Brenda Cooper.

Rubys Song covers

“An intriguing protagonist, a well thought out setting, and… a fascinating story. I most definitely want to read the second volume of Ruby’s Song.” – SF Signal

Brenda Cooper is one of the authors offering a critique of your manuscript over on eBay.  It’s cool of her to do that, and even cooler that she kicked these books into the fundraiser, for anyone to grab by donating over at the Team Page.

  • Auction: Set of the Ruby’s Song series:  The Creative Fire and The Diamond Deep. Signed by Brenda Cooper.

Rubys Song Standing

Since Brenda was so generous, we were able to throw one set up as an auction.  Head over and bid if you need to be sure you get it.

Breach Zone standing

Hopefully Myke is recovering well from the incident with the straight razor.  He managed to send this ARC of his next book to us beforehand, though, so at least you can get that, even if he doesn’t make a full recovery.

“The best ride that military fantasy has to offer.” – Mark Lawrence, author of Emperor of Thorns

Breach Zone Signature

As an added  bonus, Myke included a second ARC and challenge coin for us to auction off.  The cool thing is that this book doesn’t come out until the end of January 2014, so even though the lottery winner won’t have it before then, whoever wins this auction will.

If you want to be that person, head over to the auction and bid.

Cry Of Justice standing

“An interesting, evocative tale. A powerful story of rebuilding and finding oneself when the world has gone topsy-turvy. Brutal and harsh at times, Pratt creates a real, hard, dirty world that is somehow still fantastical and full of magic and mystery.” – Front Street

Memory of Light 1

This beautiful, lettered edition of A Memory of Light was given to us by Brandon Sanderson.  It’s still unopened, and it’s looming over everyone in the office.

If you want to get your hands on it, we’ve got it up for auction over here.

  • Set of  the Wool Series.  Each book signed by Hugh Howey.

Wool standing

Wool was originally released as a series of novellas (its sequel, Shift, was released the same way). Here it is in its five separate volumes, each one signed by author Hugh Howey. Technically, this is a cool ARC of the Wool Omnibus.  It was actually donated by Dubray Books, then mailed to Hugh Howey to sign and mail along to us, so that’s extra cool.

“This story is terrific. I was completely immersed, watching Howey slowly paint a picture of a society gone wrong through the eyes and discovery of some truly compelling characters.” – Boing Boing

Redwood lying

“Murder, magic, and the transformative power of music are just a few of the things touched on in this vivid historical fantasy novel about two dreamers, an Irish-Seminole man and a hoodoo queen, who leave their backwoods Georgia home for the bright lights of Chicago at the beginning of the 20th century.” – Locus

  • Auction: Dust jacket and doodled rough draft page of upcoming Mirror Sight of the Green Rider series.  Signed by Kristen Britain.

Kristens Manuscript Signature

This is really cool.  Kristen’s novel, Mirror Sight, won’t be out until May 2014, but she’s donated a signed dust jacket, as well as a page of her hand-written draft.  We’re auctioning it off, in the hopes that someone who really loves these books gets it.

If you’d like to bid on it, head over here and do so.

  • Set of The Shadow Campaigns: The Thousand Names and an ARC of The Forbidden Library. Signed by Django Wexler.

Wexler Set standing

The Forbidden Library will be published in April 2014, so whoever is lucky enough to win this one in the lottery will get a nice early read.

“There’s been some serious buzz building for this book, and that buzz should only grow once people get their hands on it. …[The Thousand Names is] sure to hit the spot for fans of military-themed epic fantasy.” – Tor.com

  • Set of Miserere: An Autumn Tale and Manifesto: UF anthology. Signed by Teresa Frohock.

Frohock Set standing

“Teresa Frohock’s debut novel, Miserere: An Autumn Tale, is one of the most grossly under-read novels of the last few years…. Filled with show me now and tell me later prose, it was one of the finest debuts of 2011 and remains a novel that I remember details from nearly three years later.” – Tor.com

  • Limited edition copy of Lest our Passage Be Forgotten & Other Stories.  Signed by Bradley P. Beaulieu.

Beaulieu Lest Our - standing

Bradley Beaulieu is a fellow Wisconsinite, and recently also became a DAW author. Plus, he’s a regular contributor to Worldbuilders, including both a tuckerization and critique up for auction right now.

When he sent this book, which is limited edition with only 100 copies in print, we were only too happy to accept.  And because we love you, it’s in the lottery, for anyone who donates on the Team Page to win.

  • Limited edition set of  The Lays of Anuskaya novels: The Winds of Khalakovo, The Straits of Galahesh, and The Flames of Shadam Khoreh.  Signed by Bradley P. Beaulieu.

Lays of Anuskya standing

All three of these are also limited editions, with only 100 printed, again generously sent by Bradley Beaulieu, and again in the lottery.

  • Auction: UK edition of The Great Bazaar and Brayan’s Gold. Signed by Peter V. Brett.

Great Bazaar Standing

Peter V. Brett has also been a big contributor to Worldbuilders for years, even before he agreed to shave Myke Cole’s head.  A few years before she started working here, Amanda won a first edition copy of his first novel from the lottery.

This is extra cool, because it’s a collection of two different novellas Peter had published by Subterranean Press, both of which are sold out now. This edition was published in the UK.  It’s not exactly easy to grab in the states, so we’ve put it up for auction. Head over and bid if it tickles your fancy…

  • Set of The Demon Cycle novels: The Warded Man, The Desert Spear, and Daylight War.  Signed by Peter V Brett.

Demon Cycle standing

For those of you who haven’t read Peter’s books, we think you should.  We’re putting the full set of his novels into the lottery.  Warded Man and Daylight War are both first editions.

To boot, Warded Man has both its original dust jacket, and the new one they printed so it would match the rest of the novels.  They did the same thing with Name of the Wind, so you know all the cool authors are doing it.

*     *     *

Heads up: all of the auctions for cameos and critiques are ending this Sunday, so make sure to go over to our eBay page to keep an eye on them.

Keep up with the fundraiser on the blog, and get details about how to win thousands of lovely books donated by authors and publishers.

Want to see what sorts of things you can win in the lottery?  Head over to the Lottery Library page to see everything we’ve posted so far.

Posted in Worldbuilders 2013 | By Amanda7 Responses
Published: December 18, 2013

Signed Books from Gollancz and DreamHaven

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This is a Worldbuilders blog.

Before we jump into today’s blog, I should take a moment to explain what an ARC is. ARC is an acronym for Advanced Reading Copy. They’re also called review copies or galley proofs.

These are the books a publisher prints *before* a book is printed, so they can promote the book.

A few things you should know about ARCs:

1. ARCs are usually pretty rare. More so than first edition books.

2. ARCs are sometimes significantly different from the finished version of the book.

(For example, I significantly re-wrote two whole chapters of NOTW between the ARC and the book that hit the shelves. To say nothing of changing about a thousand tiny mistakes and fixing another thousand word choices…)

3. ARCs give you a chance of reading a book before it’s officially published. When I get hold of one, I usually use it to taunt people on Goodreads.

I mention this because today’s blog has a bunch of ARCs, most of them signed by the authors. Some of them are going in the lottery, where anyone can win them by donating on our Team Heifer Page. Others are going up for auction on eBay.

When we have multiple copies, they’re going in both places. The best of both worlds…

Books from Gollancz:

Gollancz is my UK publisher, and while I was over there for World Fantasy Con, they handed me a bunch of donations for Worldbuilders. These are all UK editions which are cooler than the US version because they leave the “u” in “colour” and “flavour” and… um… “parkour.”

Needless to say, it’s tough to find these editions here in the US. Especially signed by the authors. A lot of these will include some promotional swag from Gollancz as well…

Shadow and Bone with Buttons

“Filled with lush descriptions, intriguing magic, and plenty of twists, this memorable adventure offers action and intrigue mixed with an undercurrent of romance and danger.” – Publishers Weekly

NOS4R2 - Standing

“While it’s Hill’s most sprawling novel to date, NOS4R2 contains some of his finest writing yet.” – SciFi Now

Falconer - Lying

“A riveting world, a fierce heroine, and electrifying action–I burned through this sparkling debut!” – Sarah J. Maas, NY Times bestseller.

This book is out in the UK, but won’t be release until May of 2014 in the US.  The lucky lucky lottery winner who gets this book, will be able to read it long before it hits the shelves here in the states.

  • Set of the Gentleman Bastard novels.  Signed by Scott Lynch. Comes with promo buttons.

Gentleman Adventurer - Set with Buttons 2

I’ve already gushed about how much I love these books on Goodreads. So if you’re really interested, you can check out my review over there.

But you don’t need to take my word for it.

“This is a fresh, original, and engrossing tale by a bright new voice in the fantasy genre. Locke Lamora makes for an engaging rogue, and Camorr a fascinating and gorgeously realized setting, a city to rival Lankhmar, Amber, and Viriconium. I look forward to returning there for many more visits.” – George R. R. Martin

  • Set of the Gateway omnibuses published this year – 20 volumes of superb SF classics.

Gollancz Omnibus Standing

These omnibuses are awesome collections of some of the best classic stories in the genre, by some of the best authors in the genre. They’re available through the SF Gateway, which is a great project that is trying to keep lesser-known works by famous authors available for fans.  Most of their stuff is available in ebook format, but every so often they’ll print up physical copies like these. So while you might recognize a few authors, you may not have heard of some of these novels. Either way, you’re in for a treat.

These books are collections of work from Edgar Rice Burroughs, Poul Anderson, Robert Silverberg, Jack Vance, Joe Haldeman, Robert Holdstock, James Blish, Bob Shaw, Frank Herbert, James Blaylock, Kate Wilhelm, Keith Roberts, Sheri S.  Tepper, Gordon R. Dickson, and E.E. Smith.

There’s a set going into the lottery, but since Gollancz is awesome and sent a couple…

  • Auction: Set of the Gateway omnibuses published this year 

We’re also auctioning a set off over here for those of you who really want it.

Coldest Girl - Standing

Holly Black is also one of the authors in our Fantasy Author Calendar.  Remember, every purchase of that has a portion of proceeds donated to First Book, and for the month of December every donation is tripled.

  • Auction: The Coldest Girl in Coldtown. Signed by Holly Black.

We’re also auctioning one off over here, for those of you who really want it now.

Poison - Standing

“Sarah [Pinborough] has a knack of weaving a tale that’ll twist around you making you addicted in no short time.” – Fantasy Faction

Poison is the first book in a new trilogy that follows a more modern, adult take on classic fairy tales. If you like shows like “Grimm” or “Once Upon a Time,” this series could be just what you need.

This is a beautiful ARC, so we’ve put one in the the lottery, but since Gollancz was generous with us we’re also putting one up for auction:

You can bid on a copy of this ARC over here.

  • ARC of Son of the Morning. Signed by Mark Alder.

Son of the Morning - Standing

This huge ARC  is for a book that isn’t due to be released anywhere until April of 2014.  No matter how you get it, you’ll have it before it hits shelves. It’s got quite a hook, too: imagine the Hundred Years War played out in an alternate history where religion is literally true. God Himself really chose the king. Angels and Demons really do meddle in the affairs of men. And Mark Alder knows his history. How can you walk away from that?

  • Auction: ARC of Son of the Morning. Signed by Mark Alder.

For those of you who want to get your hands on this before its release, there’s one up for auction over here.

Discworld Set - lighter

“A sequence of unalloyed delight” – Guardian

Honestly, that doesn’t do the Discworld books justice. Here’s a different blurb I’d give, for a Pratchett book, if he ever needed one from the likes of me: “There might be a few authors as good as Terry Pratchett, but I honestly don’t think there’s anyone better.”

These are some beautiful hardcovers, and Gollancz was generous enough to send a few sets over, so some are going into the lottery.

And one set is up for auction over here. The auction says three books, but Hogfather was late to the party – you actually get all four.

  • ARC of The Boy with the Porcelain Blade. Signed by Den Patrick.

Boy with the Porcelain Blade - Lying

Den Patrick is known for his humorous writing (see his War Manuals below). This is not humorous. This book is downright dark. So far the buzz about this book makes Game of Thrones sound like Happy Rainbow Place (not a thing that exists, but I couldn’t think of a suitably happy sounding thing).

This one isn’t out until March.  It’s signed, and it’s going into the lottery for you to have a chance to win, just by donating $10 or more to our Team Page.

  • Auction: ARC of The Boy with the Porcelain Blade. Signed by Den Patrick.

Anyone who wants to be certain they’ll have their hands on this before the release date should head over here and bid.

  • Hardcover set of “War Manuals” books. Signed by Den Patrick.

Orcs Dwarves Elves - Lying

“This is a handy stocking-filler for those who like their fictional worlds filled with detailed diagrams, or those who are simply nostalgic for books like Volo’s Guide to the Forgotten Realms and the like.” – Starburst Magazine

This is a beautiful set of books: source books about Elves, Dwarves, and Orcs for the average military trainee. I’ve heard Den Patrick’s humor compared to Terry Pratchett’s, which is pretty high praise indeed.

  • Auction: Hardcover set of “War Manuals” books. Signed by Den Patrick.

We’re also auctioning one set off over here, where there are more pictures to show you how cool they are.

  • Auction: Signed, hardcover ARC of The Gospel of Loki by Joanne Harris.

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This is awesome.  ARCs are rare, but a *hardcover* ARC is unheard of.  You can tell just by looking at it that this book is going to be worth the read.  And yes, you can judge books by their covers – that’s why they have covers.

Even cooler, this book isn’t going to be out until February.  We’ve decided to auction this off, so that someone can get it and read it before the official launch date.

If you want to get your hands on this, be sure to bid over here.

Signed books from Dreamhaven:

DreamHaven Books in our neighbor state Minnesota has been supporting Worldbuilders for a while now, and they always send us some really cool collectibles, signed, rare, you name it. They’re an awesome mix of bookstore and publisher, so they send us some of their favorite things every year.

We appreciate DreamHaven with a warm, velvety love.

  • “Warning Contains Language” CD. Signed by Neil Gaiman.

Contains Language - Standing 2

Neil Gaiman reading some of his best short fiction is always worth listening to, and a signed copy of this  2-CD release is a nice little bonus. The selections here are all from his Angels and Visitations compilation which, as you read ahead, you may notice…

  • Auction: “Warning Contains Language” CD. Signed by Neil Gaiman.

One is also available as an auction, so if you’re interested, head over and bid.

  • Hardcover copy of Angels & Visitations. Signed by Neil Gaiman.

Angels Visitations - Front

We’re tossing one of these awesome, illustrated collections of short stories into the lottery.

This collection has some of Gaiman’s earliest writing in it.  It was published before American Gods, Neverwhere, even Smoke and Mirrors, and it was published by DreamHaven.  This is the only place you can find some of his non-fiction from the late 80s and early 90s.

It’s fairly collectible, so having a chance at it just by donating on the team page is pretty awesome.

  • Auction: Hardcover copy of Angels & Visitations. Signed by Neil Gaiman.

This is also available as an auction, so if you’re interested, head over here. For the ultimate bedtime kit, see if you can win Warning: Contains Language as well.

  • Auction: Signed, first edition copy of Practical Demon-Keeping by Christopher Moore.

Practical Demon Keeping - Standing

“Christopher Moore is a very sick man, in the very best sense of the word.” – Carl Hiaasen

I’m a huge fan of Christopher Moore, and this is a lovely first edition copy of the book, so we’re auctioning it to make sure it ends up with someone who will really love it. You can bid over here.

  • Auction: Signed trade paperback copy of Don’t Panic by Neil Gaiman

Dont Panic - Standing

“Certainly the most outstandingly brilliant book to have been written about The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy since this morning” -Douglas Adams

A lot of people don’t realize that before Gaiman did fiction, he was a journalist. And this is one of his earliest books – published in 1988, it was his second book, after, I am not joking, a Duran Duran biography.

Bid on this awesome companion guide over here.

A beautiful, signed, first edition book from Anderida Books:

Anderida Books like DreamHaven, are connoisseurs of limited edition, signed collectibles. This year, they kicked in a very impressive donation that we couldn’t help but auction off.

  • Auction: A copy of The Graveyard Book, British first printing. Signed & doodled by Neil Gaiman.

Graveyard Book - Standing

 

Graveyard Book - Signature

“The best book Neil Gaiman has ever written” – Diana Wynne Jones

I love this book. I’ve listened to it with my boy, I’ve read it on planes and bought copies for friends.

If you want a chance to own this, or just want to ogle more pictures, be sure to bid over here.

*     *     *

No idea what’s going on here?  Learn more about the fundraiser on my blog, specifically, you can get details about how to win thousands of lovely books donated by authors and publishers.

Want to see what sorts of things you can win in the lottery?  Head over to the Lottery Library page to see everything we’ve posted so far.

If you’d like to see *all* the auctions we’re currently running, check the Worldbuilders eBay page.

Posted in Worldbuilders 2013 | By Pat16 Responses
Published: December 15, 2013

Manuscripts Critiqued, Cameos Auctioned, World Improved.

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This is a Worldbuilders blog.

Today, we have some pretty awesome things we’re auctioning off.

First off, we’ve got authors, agents, and editors willing to read your manuscripts and give you critical feedback.

I hope I don’t have to stress what a rare opportunity this is. Authors occasionally read a manuscript for a friend, or do a quick critique at a convention. But generally speaking if you want this sort of professional attention you have to attend a pretty serious workshop, like Clarion. Or you have to be a student at one of the rare universities that takes sci-fi and fantasy seriously enough to bring in a professional to teach a class.

We’ve got a second set of auctions too: Cameo appearances in upcoming books. (Or naming rights, or tuckerizations, or guest appearances… whatever you’d like to call them.)

If anything these are even harder to come by. When I offered one up at this year’s Child’s Play charity auction, it went for 8,000 dollars.

Let’s list those first, actually….

Guest Appearances:

  • Name a character and decide what sort of creature (s)he is in Alma Alexander‘s next YA fantasy novel.

Alma Alexander

In the world of Alma Alexander’s next YA fantasy series, there are many different kinds of Were creatures. Some are obvious – there are the Corvids (who turn into things like ravens, magpies, crows…) and now rare and dangerous true Lycans (the original werewolves); there are creatures known as Random Weres (who can be chaotic – you have to wait until spring 2014 and read the first book of the series, “Random”, to find out just how…) and there are New Moon Weres, who don’t turn at the Full Moon like traditional weres do but rather on the nights of the New Moon, the dark-of-the-moon weres, who are usually (but they don’t HAVE to be…) vampire bats in their were form. Then there are the outliers and the accidents (she has a hapless were-chicken).

If you win this auction, you will get to (a) name a character in the final book of the series (you can negotiate, if the name is something she can’t QUITE fit into this world, until you both get a version that you are happy with), and (b) pick what creature (s)he turns into in their were form. Bonus: you get an ebook of Alma Alexander’s short stories – unrelated to this novel series, but it’s an immediate prize which you won’t have to wait to see happen as you will with the Tuckerization itself.

If you’re interested, go here and bid.

Bradley P. Beaulieu

Bradley P. Beaulieu is pleased to offer one Tuckerization for inclusion in his brand new epic fantasy series, The Song of the Shattered Sands. The character will appear in the first book, Twelve Kings in Sharakhai, and may live beyond those pages. Please see the auction description for the details. All proceeds from the auctions will benefit the 2013 Worldbuilders fundraiser.

Contact details with Bradley will be set up following the auction

Bradley has added in his own mini-stretch goals for his auction, that will activate once it gets past certain dollar amounts, making this auction even cooler.

Interested? You can bid on Bradley’s tuckerization over here.

Mike Martinez

We haven’t found the key to living forever, but you can achieve a bit of literary immortality in the pages of THE VENUSIAN GAMBIT, the third book in Michael J. Martinez’ DAEDALUS series.

In THE DAEDALUS INCIDENT (a best-of-2013 pick by BuzzFeed and Library Journal) and the upcoming THE ENCELADUS CRISIS, Martinez created a world in which the sailing ships of the English Royal Navy ply the avoid between the planets of our Solar System. By bidding here, your name will be used in THE VENUSIAN GAMBIT, due out at the end of 2014, and given to a supporting character – NOT just a redshirt. (Though your character’s survival is by no means guaranteed. Life’s rough in the solar system.)

Head over here to bid on this auction.

  • A Cameo appearance  in Patrick Rothfuss’s next novel.

Dignified winter pat

Here’s the deal. If you win this auction, you’ll win a chance to propose a name for a character in book three. If the name you’re proposing sounds great to me, then huzzah.

If not, the two of us will talk it over.

For example, let’s say you want to get your girlfriend’s name into book three because she’s a big fan, and you’re hoping it will get you that threeway you’ve always wanted. But her name is “Veronica” and that doesn’t quite feel right for my world.

So we start talking it over. Maybe we can use her middle name instead. Maybe we use her nickname and I tweak the character’s description a little bit so that it more closely resembles her. (Though I’ll probably do this a little bit anyway.)

Maybe I put a little twist on the name. “Veronia” for example, would be fine for my world. I like that name a lot, actually.

Or maybe you decide you’d rather use your own name after all. And it turns out that works wonderfully, because your name is Ferrel and that’s exactly the sort of name that would fit on a Vintish Courtier, and I happen to be tweaking the Vintish section of the book right now anyway….

What I’m getting at here is that we’ll negotiate until we’re both happy with the addition to the book.

If you’re interested, go here and bid.

Critiques

Before I list all the read-and-critique auctions, I’m going to have to put on my Dad Voice: a voice which contains all the baritone authority of my teacher voice, with an added subharmonic that implies if you screw this up, I’m going to be *really* disappointed in you.

“Please read the auction descriptions carefully.”

You see, each author, editor, or agent is handling their auction in their own way…

  • Everyone has different skill sets, and they’re each offering something slightly different.
  • Some critiques are for the first 15,000 words of a manuscript, others are for as much as 150,000 words.
  • All the professionals below are busy people. Critiques will have to fit in their schedules.
  • When the auctions mention they’ll read “X pages” of a manuscript, assume standard manuscript format.
  • You’re not buying an introduction to someone’s agent or editor here. That’s not what’s on the block. You’re getting specific writing advice from a professional.

Okay. Enough preamble. Let’s move on to the awesome….

Bradley P. Beaulieu

Bradley P. Beaulieu is pleased to offer one story or chapter critique of up to 10,000 words. Brad will draft a formal review that will cover such things as how well the story opens, complicates, and closes, how well the characterization works, dialogue, tone, pacing, tension, and a host of other issues. Essentially, he’ll provide a formal review on the positives and negatives found in the story.

Bradley P. Beaulieu is the author of The Lays of Anuskaya, which begins with The Winds of Khalakovo, continues in The Straits of Galahesh, and concludes with The Flames of Shadam Khoreh. Brad’s new epic fantasy series, The Song of the Shattered Sands  has been sold to DAW Books in the US and Gollancz in the UK and will release in late 2014 or early 2015. In addition to being an L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Award winner, Brad’s stories have appeared in various other publications, including Realms of Fantasy Magazine, Orson Scott Card’s Intergalactic Medicine Show, Writers of the Future 20, and several anthologies from DAW Books. His story, “In the Eyes of the Empress’s Cat,” was voted a Notable Story of 2006 in the Million Writers Award. Mailing details and contact with Bradley will be set up following the auction.

If you’re interested, go here and bid.

  • Critique of a sci-fi or fantasy short story up to 30,000 words by award-winning writer Brenda Cooper.

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Award-winning Pacific Northwest writer Brenda Cooper will read and critique a science fiction or fantasy short story up to 30,000 words. Her novel-length work is primarily science fiction written for nine to ninety year old readers, and her short stories range across genres and age-groups.

In addition to the critique, Brenda will provide a copy of her latest novel, The Creative Fire.

Brenda Cooper writes science fiction and fantasy novels and short stories. Her most recent novel is THE DIAMOND DEEP, which came out in October 2013. Brenda is also a technology professional and a futurist.

If you’re interested, go here and bid.

  • Critique of a manuscript or short fiction up to 15,000 words by award-winning author D.B. Jackson.

David B Coe

D. B. Jackson, who also writes as David B. Coe, is the award-winning author of more than a dozen novels and the occasional short story.  THIEFTAKER, written under the D.B. Jackson pen name, is the first volume of the Thieftaker Chronicles, a series set in pre-Revolutionary Boston that combines elements of urban fantasy, mystery, and historical fiction.  The second volume, THIEVES’ QUARRY, was published in 2013.

Writing as David B. Coe he has published the LonTobyn Chronicle, a trilogy that received the Crawford Fantasy Award as the best work by a new author in fantasy, as well as the critically acclaimed Winds of the Forelands quintet and Blood of the Southlands trilogy. He has also written the novelization of director Ridley Scott’s movie, Robin Hood, starring Russell Crowe.  David’s books have been translated into a dozen languages.  D.B./David co-founded and regularly contributes to the Magical Words group blog, a site devoted to discussions of the craft and business of writing fantasy, and is co-author of How To Write Magical Words:  A Writer’s Companion.

D.B. Jackson is offering a critique of up to 15,000 words of your manuscript, either a piece of short fiction or the early chapters of a novel.  If you’re interested, head over here and bid.

  • Critique of the first 50 pages of your manuscript by sci-fi, fantasy, and horror editor David Pomerico.

David Pomerico

David Pomerico is an Acquisition Editor at 47North, where he works in all the wonderful sub-genres that make up science fiction, fantasy, and horror.  Still, his passions definitely lie in the realms of traditional fantasy, space opera, military sci-fi, and dystopian novels. Before joining 47North, he was an Associate Editor at Del Rey Spectra.  Some of the great authors he’s been lucky enough to work with include Ari Marmell, Peter F. Hamilton, Sarah Zettel, Chris Wooding, Felix Gilman, Jeff Grubb (and many more that he’d love to list), and future projects by Dana Cameron, Jason Sheehan, Mark Barnes, Jeff Wheeler, SD Perry, and Aaron Pogue (again, among many, many others!).

He’s offering a detailed critique and commentary (but not a line edit) for the first 50 pages or so of your manuscript (double-spaced, please—and no margin shenanigans!), which he will get back to you within three months of receiving the manuscript. While he could possibly be blown away and want to make an offer on your book, this isn’t guaranteed (otherwise this might be a really pricey auction!).

If you’re interested, go here and bid.

  • Critique of the first 75 pages of your novel by author, poet, and editor Jamie Lee Moyer.

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Jaime Lee Moyer is offering a read and critique of the first 75 pages of your finished novel. While she won’t line edit for grammar, she will comment on plot, pacing, character arc, voice, how well the “hook” or opening works, how well the story sustains her interest, and give overall, general impressions of the story. Critique will be done in MSWord via track changes, but please use a readable font and double-space your work. The critique will be returned to you within three months, edit letters and deadlines allowing.

Jaime Lee Moyer is a speculative fiction writer, poet and recovering editor. Jaime is the author of Delia’s Shadow, the first in a three book series coming from TOR beginning in September 2013. Delia’s Shadow won the 2009 Columbus Literary Award for Fiction, administered by Thurber House and funded by the Columbus Art Council. She doesn’t take herself nearly as seriously as that credit implies. Jaime’s short fiction has appeared in Daily Science Fiction, Lone Star Stories, and two of the well-respected Triangulations anthologies. She was the editor of the 2010 Rhysling Anthology for the Science Fiction Poetry Association, a poetry and short fiction editor for a semi-pro zine for five years. For a short period of time she read slush for a literary agent, and has critiqued more novels and short stories than she wants to count.

If you’re interested, go here and bid.

  • Critique of the first 100 pages of your novel by author and editor Joshua Palmatier.

josh

Joshua Palmatier (DAW Books author of the “Throne of Amenkor” trilogy and the “Well of Sorrows” trilogy written as Benjamin Tate) will read and evaluate the first 100 pages of your novel within 3 months of submission. The manuscript must be in standard manuscript format (typed, double-spaced, 12 pt font, etc). He will write a general evaluation of the novel’s opening and mark up the manuscript using comments and track changes in the document itself, although this will NOT be a formal line or copy edit, simply commentary at specific points of the manuscript.

Joshua Palmatier has five dark, epic fantasy novels published by DAW, four short stories in various anthologies, and has co-edited two anthologies with Patricia Bray. His experience is mostly with all forms of fantasy, science fiction, and horror. His intent will be to offer editorial advice on how to improve your novel and to use his experience as both author and editor to make it the best it can be.

In addition to the manuscript review, Joshua will provide the winner with two signed, personalized editions of his books: WELL OF SORROWS and AFTER HOURS: TALES FROM THE UR-BAR.

If you’re interested in this auction, be sure to head over and bid.

Mike Martinez

Michael J. Martinez is the author of THE DAEDALUS INCIDENT (a best-of-2013 pick by BuzzFeed and Library Journal) and the upcoming sequel THE ENCELADUS CRISIS, due out April 1, 2014.

Michael will critique up to 25,000 words of your SF/F novel (or a shorter work), including both an overall opinion on the strength of the work, thoughts on individual sections, and ideas on direction and ways to improve. This doesn’t include line edits, but he’s willing to answer questions and engage in a dialogue to help make your work better!

To put Michael’s expert opinion in your pocket, by all means bid on the auction.

  • Critique of your entire submission packet, up to 15,000 words, by writer and editor Laura Anne Gilman.

Laura-Gilman

Laura Anne Gilman spent fifteen years as an editor for major New York publishers, the last six heading up the SF/F imprint Roc for Penguin USA.  She discovered/worked with such authors as Anne Bishop, S.M. Stirling, Carol Berg, Kristine Rusch, Harry Turtledove, and many others (several hundred, at last count).  She currently runs d.y.m.k. productions, an editorial services company.

As a writer, her work ranges from the Nebula award-nominated Vineart War epic fantasy trilogy to the SFnal/horror collection DRAGON VIRUS, as well as the popular “Cosa Nostradamus” urban fantasy series. Her short fiction has appeared in print and digital magazines, and more than twenty anthologies, including the forthcoming DEAD MAN’S HAND, and the novellas MILES TO GO/PROMISES TO KEEP.  Laura Anne also writes the “Gin and Tonic” mysteries for Simon & Schuster, under the name L.A. Kornetsky.

Laura Anne Gilman will read and evaluate your submission packet (cover letter, synopsis, and first three chapters up to 15,000 words).  She will read and critique, with an eye toward catching – and keeping – an editor or agent’s attention, and help you create hooks that will encourage the reader to ask for “more, please!”  She cannot promise to provide any introductions to agents or editors…but she won’t rule it out, either, if you knock her socks off.

Pat’s Note: The fact that this auction includes an evaluation of your submission packet makes it extra cool – people with great books get rejected because of bad cover letters every day. My book was rejected for two years mostly because I can’t write a query letter worth a damn.

If you want in on this, you’d better hurry up and bid on it.

  • Critique and commentary on approximately the first 100 pages of your manuscript by Del Rey editor Michael Braff.

Mike Braff

Mike Braff is an associate editor at Del Rey Books and has been part of the editorial team there for the past five years. He is in charge of the merciless slaying of enemies by battleaxe, the boarding and capturing of space craft in zero-g, and the management of a sect of magic users that secretly runs the paranormal underground in New York City. Not true, sadly, but he does love to read and acquire books about these things and other related sci-fi, fantasy, and urban fantasy topics.

Though he’s from New York originally, Mike once went to Canada for a few years to study Comparative Religion and World History at McGill University (BA ’07). Much to everyone’s surprise (including his own) the course of study proved useful when acquiring and editing fantastic stories for Del Rey, where Mike has been lucky enough to work with the likes of Kevin Hearne, Jason M. Hough, Richard K. Morgan, Matthew Stover, Ted Kosmatka, and newcomers Pierce Brown and Alan Smale, among many other talented authors. He lives in Brooklyn with a rescued pit bull named Ruby, adorable pictures of whom will be provided in abundance on request.

He’s offering a detailed critique and commentary for the first 100 pages or so of your manuscript (rounded up to the end of the last chapter). This is not a line edit, but Mike will get back to you within 90 days of receiving your manuscript with an editorial letter detailing his thoughts and suggestions.

Bid on this auction over on eBay.

  • Critique of the opening chapters (up to 20,000) words of your manuscript by Pat Rothfuss’s literary agent Matt Bialer.

Matt Bialer

Matt Bialer (literary agent) will read and evaluate the opening chapters of one manuscript (up to 20,000 words) within three months of submission, not including the last few weeks of December. He will read and critique, and help the author think about the issues that could be raised by editors at publishing houses.

He will write a general evaluation of the book, both strengths and weaknesses, but line editing is NOT included. If the book is fantastic or has the potential to be fantastic then offering representation is not out of the question — but representation is not a guarantee.

To bid on Matt’s critique, head over here.

  • Critique of the first 150,000 words of your manuscript by Patrick Rothfuss.

Skeptical

Patrick Rothfuss (international bestselling author, lover of women, and hirsute iconoclast) will read your manuscript and give you critical feedback. (Up to, say, 150,000 words.) We’ll schedule this based on when your manuscript will be ready and the endless madness of my own schedular constraints.

I’ll read through your manuscript, scrawling notes and dirty words in the margins, then I’ll call you on the phone and we can discuss it. Or we could do a Google+ hangout. Or, if you live close, we can get together and chat over coffee.

I won’t write you up a detailed critique because that’s not how I roll. But we’ll chat for a couple of hours discussing the various strengths and weaknesses of the book, your writing craft, and I’ll offer any suggestions I might have. Then I’ll mail you back the manuscript with my notes on it.

Mailing details and contact with Patrick will be set up following the auction.

Go bid.  You know you want to.

*     *     *

If you just joined us for Worldbuilders 2013, you can get learn more about the fundraiser on my blog, specifically, you can get details about how to win thousands of lovely books donated by authors and publishers.

If you’d like to see *all* the auctions we’re currently running, check the Worldbuilders eBay page.

Posted in Worldbuilders 2013 | By Pat32 Responses
Published: December 13, 2013

Tons of Books from DAW

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This is a Worldbuilders blog.

I love DAW with a powerful love. Not only are they the folks that took a risk on The Name of The Wind back when nobody else was much interested. But back when Worldbuilders was all fresh and dewy, they were quick to jump on board. Ever since our first year, they’ve made it a habit to shower us with lovely books.

This year is no exception. We have, quite literally, hundreds and hundreds of books from DAW this year.

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(This is not my best picture ever. My smartphone is a fairly dumb camera…)

They’ve sent us so many books, in fact, that we’re grouping them together into bundles to give them away, because doing it singly would just be unmanageable….

We’ve also got a few items we’re auctioning off at the end of the blog. Make sure to take a peek at them, too.

  • The Big Book Bundle

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DAW has never been bashful about publishing big books. Tad Williams alone is proof of that, but as you can see  from the above image, he’s in good company.

Here are nine of DAW’s delightfully hefty books, gathered together for your enjoyment, featuring Tad Williams, along with Michelle West, Irene Radford, Julie Czerneda, Sherwood Smith, Deborah J Ross, Terry A. Adams, Tanya Huff, and me.

All of them are either stand-alone or first books in a series, so you’ll be able to pick any one up and read it without being confused. It’s like a big book Whitman’s sampler.

  •  The Omnibus Collection

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This is a collection of Omnibuses (Omnibi?) by authors Mickey Zucker Reichert, Stephen Leigh, Sean Russell, Terry A. Adams, RM Meluch, S. Andrew Swann, Emily Drake, and Marjorie B. Kellogg.

Why is this awesome? Because you don’t have to worry that you’re only getting part of a series. These Omnibus editions contain *all* of the books. And since this particular prize includes every book in the picture above, it’s like you’re winning 18 books.

To read about each individual title, check out the Lottery Library on the Worldbuilders website.

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“For sheer skill in storytelling and world building, for wit, for strikingly intelligent development of the concept of telepathy, above all, for continuous concern for people, Bradley has put some more famous sagas in the shade.” – Chicago Sun-Times

This is a metric ton of Darkover books. If you’re new to the world, it might be a little daunting. Fans have two opinions about where newcomers should start: either The Bloody Sun or The Forbidden Tower, both of which are represented in this set, so either way you’re covered.

  • Set of Downbelow Station, Regenesis, and Alien Space by C.J. Cherryh.

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I really enjoyed Downbelow Station. It’s a classic. I’m kinda ashamed I haven’t read the others. I’m probably going to have to fix that…

“Cherryh tantalizes our minds…captures our hearts and involves us completely…a consistently thoughtful and entertaining writer.” – Publisher’s Weekly

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This is another set that looks smaller than it is. The D’neeran Factor actually contains the novels Sentience and Master of Chaos, with Battleground being the third book in the series. DAW’s got you covered.

“Adams writes with an elaborate, intricate prose … [and] weaves an elegant tale that makes for fascinating reading.” – Locus

  • Set of Green Rider novels Kristen Britain.  Includes Green Rider, First Rider’s Call, The High King’s Tomb, and Blackveil.

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“A fresh, well-organized fantasy debut, with a spirited heroine and a reliable supporting cast.” – Kirkus Reviews

  • Sets of Blood Price and Blood Trail by Tanya Huff.

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Did you know these books are a TV show now? If you like “Blood Ties,” treat yourself to the source material.

“An entertaining blend of warmly idiosyncratic characters, cinematic pacing and sharp-fanged humour.” – Locus

  • Set of Rosemary and Rue, A Local Habitation, Artifical Night, and Discount Armaggedon by Seanan McGuire.

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This collection has the first three novels in the October Daye series, as well as the first novel in the Incryptid series (Discount Armageddon).  Just enough to give you a taste, and see if you’d be interested in the sequels.

“[McGuire] tells her story with energy and charm…. It’s all so much fun.” – SF Signal

  • Sets of The Four Forges and The Dark Ferryman by Jenna Rhodes.

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“The intricately plotted, character-driven saga of the Vaelinar’s desperate struggles finds anchors in folklore and legend, appealing to fans of slower pacing and detailed world building.” – Publishers Weekly

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“Roberson doesn’t take the easy way out…she has the courage and the writing ability to let her characters be true to themselves, and the result is a taut and breathless novel.” – American Fantasy

  • Starter bundles of books from DAW.

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This is a cool group of books that are either stand-alone novels, or first in a series. They were hand-picked by some of the awesome people at DAW, so you know you’re getting started with a bunch of great books.

This bundle has Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed, Dead Things by Stephen Blackmoore, The Silent Dragon by Irene Radford, and Silence by Michelle Sagara. And if you like Silence, its sequel, Touch, is coming up in January. Or, just a thought, you can bid on Silence and the ARC for Touch right now at our eBay auction and read it before it comes out. If you’re into that sort of thing.

  • More starter books from DAW

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Here is a second, equally cool set of books that you can just pick up and read – either stand alone novels or first in a series.

This one contains: Elisha Barber by EC Ambrose, The City of the Lost by Stephen Blackmoore, Masks by EC Blake, and A  Turn of the Light by Julie Czerneda.

  • Copies of The Legend of Jig Dragonslayer Omnibus by Jim C. Hines, The Complete Keeper Chornicles Omnibus by Tanya Huff Omnibus, and The Complete Hoorka Trilogy Omnibus by Stephen Leigh.

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These are all awesome collections of great work.  I’m particularly excited to see Jim Hines in there, because not only do we have his fascinating Year of the Poser calendar in the store, but he’s also our $75,000 stretch goal….

Remember folks, we’ve got a lot of these bundles and much more to give away. And every $10 you donate through our Team Heifer page nets you a chance to win one.

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This is particularly cool, because Touch won’t be out until January.  If you win this auction, you’ll have the chance not only to read book one (Silence), but also read and finish book two (Touch) before it’s even released.

If that thought makes you all tingly inside, feel free to go bid on it.

  • Auction: One of Everything Published by DAW in 2013.

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DAW has a tradition of publishing some of the best sci-fi and fantasy in the industry. They’re good to their supporters and to their authors, in every way.

This has got a great mix of books – hardcovers, trade paperbacks, and mass market paperbacks. For example, even though The Wise Man’s Fear came out a while ago, the mass market paperback came out this year, so there’s a copy of that in there.

Don’t miss out on your chance at this many books.  Wander over and bid to your heart’s content.

* * *

If these lottery prizes look wonderful (and they do), all you have to do is donate to the Team Heifer Page for a chance to win. Feel free to swing by the Lottery Library to see all the prizes currently included.

There are also a couple of DAW-specific auctions (and some of my stuff) that will be ending on Sunday night that you can see on our eBay page.

We’re all pretty proud of our new Worldbuilders website, if you want to see why we’re strutting around a little more than usual lately.

Or, if you’re into text, there’s a lot of details about this year’s fundraiser on my blog.

Posted in Worldbuilders 2013 | By Pat19 Responses

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