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January « 2016 « Once & Future

Once & Future

Charlotte Ashley – Book seller, collector, writer, editor, historian

January 6, 2016

Want to Read La Héron?

I’ve had quite a few links lately from readers looking for “La Héron,” my fairy-swashbuckling story from the March/April 2015 issue of F&SF. Here’s a quick PSA on that front:

When the March/April 2015 issue was new, the story was available to read free on Kindle. THIS IS NO LONGER THE CASE. To find the story now, you need to either rustle up a copy of the issue (available for sale through the F&SF website) OR, if you are an SFWA member, you can read it at the SFWA forums.

Why the SFWA privilege? Well, my pretties, that’s because “La Héron” is on the 2015 Nebula Suggested Reading List! I’m pretty pleased about this, and absolutely flattered that people are still interested all these months later. If you’re able, I hope you’ll read it! And if you like it, feel free to click the “suggest” thumb and encourage others to read it too! It will put a smile on someone’s face – even if it’s just mine.

January 4, 2016

2015 By the Numbers

I do enjoy statistics. I like to look at my accomplishments as sheer numbers, compare them year to year. Find the way of spinning them that makes me look best. 2015 was a rotten year personally, but maybe it wasn’t so bad from a writerly point of view?

In 2015, I submitted 10 stories 30 times. I sold 6 of these 10 stories, trunked 2, and continue to submit another 2. In 2014, I submitted roughly the same number of stories 76 times and only sold 4, so this is a distinct improvement.

In 2015, I read 14 novels. Much better than 2014’s “fewer than 10!” I also read scores of short stories, anthologies, and some Hesiod – the Theogony. A dozen of the novels I read this year were by women, half of those were women of colour. The other two novels were Jeff VanderMeer. My favourite book of the year was probably Hillary St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven, though Helen Oyeyemi’s Boy, Snow, Bird came close (the problematic ending ruined it,) as did Jo Walton’s Among Others (a wonderful, cozy book!) I’m starting 2016 mired in Herodotus’s Histories, though, so I don’t expect nearly so good a show of 2016.

In 2015, I attended my first two conventions as a panelist (Ad Astra & SFContario) and did my first “author reading” at the former. I published reviews at Apex Magazine, Publisher’s Weekly, and the Quill & Quire. I ran the Friends of the Merril Short Story Contest once again. I was invited to submit to my first two (!) anthologies. I did a SFSignal Mind Meld, was on io9, and went out to more book launches & SpecFic talks than I have ever been to before in my life, ever, total. I did a whole bunch of interviews and was even File 770‘ed, which was cool. I got around.

In 2015, I wrote 40,000 words of new fiction and another 17,000 words of non-fiction. I completed 3 new short stories and made significant headway on another two. This despite nearly three full months without writing a word. I’ll take it. It will do.

In 2015, I slowed down, but I did not stop. I like statistics because they give me something concrete to look at. My feeling will always be that I did nothing or, at least, not enough. But looking at the numbers, I feel better. If 2016 is at least this successful, I will be satisfied.

May 2016 be even better.