Real Life (Revisited)
Category: Life

A while back I lamented abot all that needed to be done to prepare for my daughter's upcoming wedding, and several people have asked how things are going as that day draws ever closer.

I am pleased to report that the backyard is nearing completion.  The new dogwood trees (seven), camellias (nine), azaleas (fifteen), and yellow bells (five) were planted today and the sixty (!) bales of pine straw have been spread over the "woodland" we are creating at the back of the yard.  The new lawn has taken root and is greeing up fast with all the rain we've had recently.  I've still got to build the new patio (the deck will have to wait until later this summer) and build some more flower beds, but that will be done this coming weekend.

The new guest bedroom is also completed - two coats of white primer on walls and ceiling, followed by two coats of pale yellow (walls) and bright white (ceiling).  The burnt oak plank flooring is in place, as is the new closet system and mirrored sliding closet doors.  The guest bathroom has also been completely refreshed with sky blue walls, a new medicine cabinet, new lights, and a new water-saver toilet.

My wife has just about finished the wedding dress and it will be ready for the final fitting next week.  Did I mention the bumblebee theme for the wedding?  Embroidered into the sheer lace are tiny white bumblebees whose flight paths all form entwined hearts - very cute. 

So, as it stands this minute, we are on track to be ready for the big event in three weeks.  The tables, chairs and awnings have been leased and will be set up the day before the wedding (and taken down the Monday after).  All we can do now is pray the weather will be fair and not too hot or wet.

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The thrill never changes
Category: Writing and Poetry

Today the postman brought the print test copy of my sixth novel and I realized the thrill from holding a printed copy of AEthereal’s Children was exactly the same as I felt holding the print test copy of the very first one.  It is still an incredible rush!

Of course, now I need to rush through the book looking for any typos of format errors so that it is ready to be printed.  Release is in just TWELVE DAYS!

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Book 1 of AEthereal series now available for free
Category: Writing and Poetry

As a part of their fifth anniversary celebration, Whiskey Creek Press is giving away free copies of my first novel, Æthereal, to everyone who wants one.  If you have ever thought about checking out this best-selling series, now is your best chance.  You can download the novel starting Sunday, March 16, through Saturday, March 22, and it is available in most popular formats (HMTL, PDF, LIT, and MOBI).  Follow the link below:

https://www.whiskeycreekpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=417

The fifth novel in the series, Æthereal’s Children, will be released April 1, 2008.  The advanced reviews have all been very positive:

"Christopher Wilcox creates a wonderful universe full of creatures not yet seen or found.  The characters are engrossing, the situation feels real, the story moves at a great pace, and you can’t put the novel down.   For a wonderful afternoon or two of reading, this is a must have book. "

 

Michael D. Johnson, Sage Fire Reviews,

http://sagefire.pencraft.biz/feb08/ReviewAEthereal_Children.html

 

"Æthereal’s Children by Christopher W. Wilcox, Sr. is part of the Æthereal series.  This book easily stands alone. Wilcox successfully weaves the threads of the story together to form a tapestry that comes to life on the pages of Æthereal’s Children. The characters were well-developed and matured as the story progressed. The plot was entertaining and flowed smoothly. Fans of fantasy and science fiction will enjoy Æthereal’s Children."

 

Debra Gaynor, ReviewYourBook.com,

http://www.reviewyourbook.com/review.cfm?reviewid=292

 

"Mr. Wilcox has once again penned an engaging future for humanity. Taking what is known up to this point in the Æthereal series and adding a new twist to things, he has also brought forth some SciFi and special effects favorites from my own past movie watching experiences. Bravo for incorporating the classics into this soon to be classic series.  As this is the fifth installment of the Æthereal series, Mr. Wilcox has included an introduction of what has gone before, and a glossary of who’s who as an appendix to the book. But it would be my recommendation that you simply read the entire Æthereal series to enjoy the excitement and emotion of the stories as they build one to the next.   Æthereal’s Children carries the excitement, intrigue, and full-on SciFi adventure begun in the first installment, Æthereal, and continued through Æthereal Revealed, Æthereal’s Clans, and Æthereal’s Pride. It will be a long wait for me until the sixth and final novel, Æthereal’s Destiny."

 

MargeAnn Conrad, Novelspot.com

Come see what all the excitement is all about!

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Real Life

Some people recently took me to task regarding both my web site and my blog, asking why everything was so out of date and stale.  What have I been doing?  Didn't I know how important these places were in terms of marketing?  As they used to say on TV, "Yada, yada, yada."

Of course I know those things, but as many of us have found, you need to balance real life with writing, and sometimes real life wins.  Lately, it seems like real life has been ganging up on me…and winning.

This coming May, my youngest daughter is getting married and the decision was made that the ceremony and reception would both occur in our back yard.  On the surface that seemed like a terrific idea, except for the fact our backyard resembled the forest primeval at the time the decision was made.  We had an in-ground swimming pool that had become a frog pond, most of the yard was completely overgrown by massive azaleas gone wild, along with a great many 'volunteer' trees that had grown up to respectable trees (oak and birch, for the most part.)

Back in November, I had the bottom broken out of the pool and it filled in, creating the biggest planter you ever saw.  I also had a service come in a remove ninety percent of the overgrowth and excess trees.  Of course, in the process of hauling in twelve truckloads of dirt, the grass was wiped out. 

Anyway, in the three months that remain between now and the wedding, I have a bunch of work to do, including build a deck, build some patios, build a gazebo, plant lots of bushes and flowers where I want them, and reseed the yard, install lighting in a couple of venues, and replace some of the fencing. Oh, and make a bunch of picnic tables for the reception (backyard barbeque).

Of course, that list does not include what now must be done on the inside of the house.  Like most of us, one of the bedrooms had become a storage room for all the extra "stuff" that accumulates.  With the upcoming influx of relatives, that must be cleaned out and converted back into a functional bedroom for guests (new flooring, new paint, new closet area, new furniture, bedding, etc.)  The connecting bathroom also needs to be overhauled, as well.

All this bleeds over into the rest of house, too.  The granddaughters' room, which was set up last summer, now must be upgraded to two twin beds and what was the guest bedroom will become a combination office and gym (home to the bowflex and treadmill), plus a futon couch (just in case).  The den, which is presently my office, will become an honest-to-goodness den once more.

All this in three months?  Working only on weekends? Did I mention that my spouse is working on her Master's degree and spends all weekends doing course work so I'm basically on my own for most of this?  If it sounds like I am complaining, I'm really not.  The decision to spend the cost of a big wedding on the house rather than on renting a church etc was a great one since we'll have something tangible afterwards besides a new son-in-law … and the yard renovation was long overdue anyway.  It's just that I look at the calendar, count the available weekends, and wonder how on Earth I will ever get it all done. 

So when (if) you look at my website and wonder – gee, when is he ever going to update this thing – now you know "the rest of the story."

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Book Contracts
Category: Writing and Poetry

For those who keep track of things like this, the contract on my first novel was set to expire on December 31, 2007.  I recently received an email from my publisher wanting to use that particular novel as a part of their anniversary promotions this coming March, so I mentioned that their publishing rights were soon going to expire.

Of course, within an hour, I had a new contract to extend publication for a few more years.  I have to admit, I was of two minds about it.  It is very flattering to be wanted, and the publisher has the rights to the other books in the series already.  In fact, the fifth one is going to be released in April 2008, so the big promotion thing in March would make a nice build-up for that release.  At the same time, each of us in epublishing would like to make that jump into the bigger world of print - you know, chain stores Wal-Mart, etc.  So I agonized for a bit about whether to sign the contract.

In the end, I decided to stay with them and signed.  They have been good to me, and the plans they have for expanding their business seem to be heading in the direction I want to go.   So for all you fans of the AEthereal, you'll still be able to get ALL of the books for a long time to come, and I will even write the sixth one sometime in the coming months.  The same for those who are fans of the epic fantasy Westfell.  There will be a second book.

Meanwhile, I am hard at work on a completely new science-fiction novel set in today's world.  I will probably use this one to see if I can get the attention of one of those more traditional houses. Who knows?

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Pets (An Update)
Category: Pets and Animals

Yesterday we took the old dog in for the surgery and I am pleased to report that she came through very well.  According to the team of doctors who performed the surgery, her heart rate never dropped and her pulse-Ox (the amount of oxygen in her blood) never dropped below 90.  What was incredible is what they removed - a malignant tumor that weighed over two pounds.  She went in to the surgery weighing 20.4 pounds and now weighs 18.2 pounds.

She's got a bounce in her step and prances when she walks.  All her biologic functions are working, which she demonstrated on a walk around the neighborhood after we reached home.

It's going to be a great Christmas.

9:19 PM - 2 Comments - 1 Kudos - Add Comment

Pets
Current mood: pissed off
Category: Pets and Animals

Today has been a rough day for me.  We have this wonderful dog, part beagle, part cocker, who is now an amazing twenty years old.  That's right, twenty people years - one hundred forty in dog years.  The hair on her head has turned mostly white, and she has a touch of arthritis in her hips, but her heart is sound and she can still see quite well.  She's partially deaf and you have to clap your hands to get her attention, but somehow she can still hear you open the food bin from another room.  Over the past few months, she has developed a growth on her hip.  I took her to the vet last month and was told they would prefer not to operate on her because of her age, and they gave me some medicine for her.

Three days ago, she rubbed a hole in her hip.  We're talking blood everywhere, and of course this happened at night.  We cleaned her up, gave it a dab of Neosporin antibiotic and covered it with a big band-aid.  Of course, she chewed off the band-aid the next day and we had to do it all over again.  I swear that if a CSI unit came into our house, they would think an axe murder must have happened.

Today I took her back to the vet.  A different doctor this time, and he prescribed some antibiotics and then drew a sample from the growth.  You guessed it, blood everywhere again. He packed the needle site with gauze squares and wrapped her hips in a blue elastic bandage, and then gave her a shot of vitamin k to help coagulate the blood. 

When I asked about treatment for the growth, the man virtually exploded,  For fifteen minutes he ranted about the care we lavish on animals, and how he's seen things in other parts of the world where human beings are given less dignity, and then how he wasn't surprised that people flew planes into skyscrapers because our society is so out of touch with reality.  He summed this diatribe up by recommending I "put her down because she's had a long full life and, after all, she's just a dog."  Then he stormed out of the examining room without another word.

I've scheduled to take my dog to another vet for treatment and written a letter to the owner of the clinic to tell her why, after sixteen years, I am never bringing another of my animals to her clinic.  Why would someone with so little compassion for animals work in such a field?

9:46 PM - 1 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

New Release Delayed
Current mood: sad
Category: Writing and Poetry

I am sorry to announce the long-anticipated release of the fifth book in the AEthereal series, AEthereal's Children, has been delayed by the publisher until April 2008 due to production issues.

I did receive the new cover just before this decision was made, though, and I have added it to the pictures section.  Please take a look and see what you think.

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Creative Writing and High School Students
Current mood: contemplative
Category: Writing and Poetry

I was invited to our local High School to talk with the students of several English classes about my books and the creative writing process.  This was all part of a new program at the school, a week long celebration of Teen Reading.

So I gathered up copies of my books, dusted off my biographical information sheet, and then went to school.  I arrived early, set up a nice dsplay of my five published novels (all of which are carried in the school library), and then spread out all the information touting the New Voices competition sponsored by EPIC.

No matter what I thought this would be like, nothing prepared me for the reality of today's teens.  For the most part, they were there because they had to be, and they made no effort to disguise their disinterest in what I had to say.  It was the few, though, that made the hour worth the efort.  These were the ones that came up to speak with me afterwards - to tell me privately about their own efforts to write a story.  I had about six who picked up all the literature about the New Voices competition, and my wife (who works at the school) identified them as the ones who were actually most likely to submit something to the contest.

What surprised me the most was the reaction when I asked how many of them enjoyed reading for fun. All of the English teachers raised their hands, of course, but only a few students did so (the same ones that picked up the New Voices papers).  I pointed out the high correlation between reading and success in most endeavors.  Those who read for pleasure generally had much larger vocabularies and a greater sense of the world around them.

Did I change any minds today?  Probably not.  But if I motivated one or two to put their tales on paper and submit them to the contest, then I think I did my job today.  Who knows, maybe I just lit the spark under the big name writer for the next generation.

I sure hope so. 

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E-Publishing
Current mood: Introspective
Category: Introspective Writing and Poetry

For the past several days, I have been reading with interest the discussions on various groups regarding the on-going efforts of various professional writers associations to diminish the impact of the small press houses that specialize in electronic publishing.  These writing associations have long held ties to the big conglomerate publishing houses (commonly referred to as the NY houses, even though most are now internationally owned and managed).  One common thread of their efforts has been to paint the small press as "vanity" or "subsidy" publishers, saying that the authors must pay to have their books published and imply that the resulting books ar somehow of lesser quality.

Ironically, at the same time these organizations are doing this, those same big press houses are starting to release their own books as ebooks.  Granted, they charge as much for their ebooks as they do for a hardbound copy but it does show the big houses are seeing the impact of epublishing upon the industry.  At a time when traditional book stores are closing and sales are dropping, the epublishing venues are showing ever increasing profits. 

It looks like these writers association are serving as stalking horses for the big boys - trying to smother the small presses so the vast, relatively untapped electronic market remains for the big houses to exploit.  Not going to happen, is it? 

The electronic generation is leading the way.  IPods, PDAs, IPhones, Blackberries, laptops are all means of gathering information, including reading for pleasure.  There are also a great many dedicated ebook reading devices available.  School systems are starting to examine the use of electronic versions of their textbooks to both reduce the cost and storage of their textbook inventories plus reduce the staggering weight of those backpacks that kids seem to carry everywhere.

There was a time when I wanted to be a member of the Science Fiction Fantasy Writers Association, but they are one of the leaders of the effort to crush the small press and new writers like me.  Between them and the Romance Writers Association's recent "redefinition" of qualifying publishers, I have lost interest in becoming a member of any of these groups. 

Instead, I will just keep writing and publishing my stories.  I'll never be "rich and famous" as a writer, but I still have the deep satisfaction of holding one of my books in my hands and, more importantly, having a reader tell me how much they enjoyed one of my stories.  That actually means more to me than money.

WILL

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