Another Meetup

Attended another New York Science Fiction Writers Meetup. Still not sure exactly what to think about it. I got some valid constructive criticism, some was ill-informed, the venue and format of the meeting was not optimal. Maybe future meeting will go smoother. It would help if people brought examples of their work to review and critique (other than me). Otherwise it's just a meeting to talk about writing, which isn't very helpful. I remain doubtful but open to possibility. Might be some good contacts there, after all.

One Down, One to Go... For Real

Finally, finally, finally, I finished my story for Writers of the Future. Just got it out before the post office closed. I am so spent. I still have to finish another story for the Baen Memorial Contest by tomorrow. Man, nothing like a deadline to motivate a guy. I don't think I would have self-imposed these kind of deadlines for myself.

I have to thank my writing group, Writers of the Weird, for all their support and comments. I leaned heavily on their critiques to revise my story.

These are pretty bare-boned stories. I don't know if that's good or bad, but they're concise. It seems to be the kind of writing I'm doing lately. Well, at least there's nothing superfluous in them and they leave the reader wanting more. I'm much more focused now, so I don't think the wait should be so hard this time around.

But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep.

Writers of the Weird

I attended my first Writers of the Weird meeting on Sunday, a very talented group, indeed. My story was critiqued, the only story that was hard sf. The comments were extremely useful and I am definitely going to incorporate many of the suggestions into the revision. I joined the parent organization, Science Fiction Association of Bergen County (SFABC).

Overall, people generally liked the story and I have been getting positive reviews so far. I'm not really used to having such approval and I'll try not to let it go to my head. Instead, I feel encouraged to make sure that I make the work better. Just one month until the deadlines for WotF and the Baen Memorial Award contests. I think I'll go over my honorable mention story again and submit it to one of the prozines.

Writers Groups

OK, I'm jumping into the water. I'm planning to attend my first writers critique group meeting, Writers of the Weird (WOTW), on Sunday. Also going to attend the general meeting for their parent organization, Science Fiction Affiliation of Bergen County (SFABC). Looks like a good group. As they are in Bergen County, NJ, I will be crossing the river. I'm also checking out NY Science Fiction Writers Meetup. Who knew I'd find such groups (or be found by them) by going on Meetup.com?

I've been spending a bit of time working on my Science Fiction Examiner column. I'll try to keep this blog more up to date. If you are reading this please subscribe or write a comment so I know you're out there! TIA.