MGOC Contributor News: Matt Duvall's Column at Fine Living Lancaster

Many Genres One Craft Contributor Matt Duvall is a new columnist for Fine Living Lancaster. Check out his first post for "Manly Living."

And read an excerpt of his article "Powerman Writes Women's Fiction" from Many Genres.

MGOC Contributor: Chun Lee

CHUN LEE
EXCERPT from "Pursuing the Graduate Degree" by Chun Lee in Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction

Success in writing can take many different paths. For some, being a ranch hand for ten years may be the perfect experience necessary to write a particular book. For others success can be found through the wonderful world of academia. There certainly are a fair amount of writers who have a day job in this field so it seems they go hand in hand. If you need to do a bit of research over a topic, you could model a lesson plan around it and I also can’t think of any other job that pays you to talk about books.

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Chun Lee is dodging gators and enjoying amazing Cajun cuisine in Lafayette, Louisiana. His work has appeared in The Late Late Show, Dissections, Sails and Sorcery, and the upcoming anthology Paper Blossoms, Shattered Steel. He is a graduate of the WPF program at Seton Hill University and is currently earning a Ph.D. in English at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

Many Genres Signing at Morgantown B&N

Many Genres One Craft editors Michael A. Arnzen and Heidi Ruby Miller and contributors Jason Jack Miller, Timons Esaias, and Diane Turnshek will be joining a wonderful group of writers for a book signing event this weekend at the Morgantown Barnes & Noble.

You can catch us both Saturday and Sunday at the University Town Center B&N from 1 - 4 PM.

Literary agent Christine Witthohn of Book Cents will also be available to hear pitches.

For more information, check out the event's Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/events/417139628322815/permalink/420084961361615

MGOC Contributor: Catherine Mulvany

CATHERINE MULVANY
EXCERPT from "Lessons from the Vampire Slayer" by Catherine Mulvany in Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction

When my editor suggested I try writing a vampire book (Something Wicked), I had a hard time working up any enthusiasm. I was familiar with Bram Stoker’s classic, Dracula, of course, Salem’s Lot by Stephen King, and Chelsea Quinn Yarbro’s Saint-Germain books, but no recently published work. So my first task was to read a broad cross section of current vampire fiction. Though I found many of the novels entertaining, I still wasn’t sure I could make a blood-sucking demon into a convincing hero.

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Catherine Mulvany is the author of six novels and one novella. She holds a Master's degree in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University and has taught school for fifteen years. Married with three children, she lives in the Pacific Northwest. Visit her website at www.catherinemulvany.com.

Hazard Yet Forward Charity Anthology

Giant multi-author anthology on sale Tuesday, August 7 to benefit cancer fighter.

Matt Duvall, Natalie Duvall, and Deanna Lepsch compiled the nearly 700 page, multi-genre eBook, Hazard Yet Forward, with stories from seventy-six writers who are connected to the Seton Hill University Writing Popular Fiction program.

All proceeds from this project will benefit Donna Munro, a 2004 graduate of the program. Munro, a teacher living in St. Louis, Missouri, was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. An active member of the SHU WPF alumni committee, Munro helps organize the school’s annual writing conference, the In Your Write Mind Workshop.

To aid Munro and her family, faculty members, alumni, students and friends of the Writing Popular Fiction program quickly responded to compile this massive anthology. The book features flash fiction, short stories and even a full-length novella. In total, there are 75 works from various genres, which makes this anthology one that features something for everyone. Genres represented in the book range from horror to romance to mystery – and everything in between.

Many Genres One Craft contributors in the anthology are:
Michael A. Arnzen - who also wrote the foreword
Sally Bosco
Lawrence C. Connolly
David J. Corwell
Penny Dawn
Matt Duvall
Natalie Duvall
Ron Edison
Timons Esaias
Venessa M. Giunta
Steven Harper
Lee Allen Howard
Scott A. Johnson
Jacki King
Chun Lee
Dana Marton
Mike Mehalek
Heidi Ruby Miller
Jason Jack Miller
Barbara Miller
M.A. Mogus
Rachael Pruitt
Diane Turnshek
K. Ceres Wright

Hazard Yet Forward co-compiler Matt Duvall says, "It’s an unprecedented collection of stories from every genre imaginable."

This large volume is available for purchase on Kindle through Amazon starting August 7 for just $9.99.

More information about the anthology can be found at http://hazardyetforward.wordpress.com.

To learn about the unique and exciting Writing Popular Fiction program, please visit http://www.setonhill.edu/academics/fiction.

Contact: Natalie Duvall - hazardyetforwardanthology@gmail.com

MGOC Contributor: Steven Piziks

STEVEN PIZIKS
EXCERPT from "A Primer for Writing Media Tie-ins" by Steven Piziks in Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction

Two weeks before Christmas, 2002, my agent Lucienne called me out of the blue. Like most authors, I love it when my agent calls me out of the blue. It means good news. When it’s bad news, agents send e-mail.

“I have a proposal for you,” Lucienne said. “Have you heard of John Cusack?”

“Yes,” I said cautiously.

“He’s doing a thriller called Identity, and Pocket Books acquired the rights to publish the novel based on the movie. The editor called me to ask if I knew anyone who wanted to write it. The movie deals with multiple personality disorder, and since your first novel was all about MPD, I thought of you. Interested? They’re offering ten thousand dollars.”

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Steven Piziks currently teaches English in southeast Michigan. When not writing, he plays the folk harp, dabbles in oral storytelling, and spends more time on-line than is probably good for him. Visit his web page at http://spiziks.livejournal.com or find him on Twitter as @StevenPiziks.

MGOC Authors at Confluence 2012

Several contributors to Many Genres One Craft were guests at Confluence 2012, a Speculative Fiction Convention in Pittsburgh. Among the attendees were Gary A. Braunbeck, Lawrence C. Connolly, Heidi Ruby Miller, Jason Jack Miller, Lucy A. Snyder, Diane Turnshek, Tim Waggoner, and Albert Wendland.

Heidi Ruby Miller and Gary A. Braunbeck

Tim Waggoner, Heidi Ruby Miller, and Jason Jack Miller

Jason Jack Miller
posted by heidi

MGOC Contributor: Sally Bosco

SALLY BOSCO

EXCERPT from "The Manga Explosion" by Sally Bosco in Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction

A half-werewolf, half-vampire undergoes a mysterious and terrifying transformation during the full moon: he turns into a girl.

A young woman artist meets a vampire who is so beautiful and breathtaking she uses him as a model.

A rebellious angel is sent back to earth. His curse is that he's in love with his sister.

What type of writing has these genre-bending plots? Why, manga of course!

Why do people like them? They are little portals into other worlds that entertain, delight and educate. At sales of $210 million per year, manga, or Japanese comic art, is a huge and lucrative business. Formerly only popular in Japan, manga has exploded into the U.S to the point that schools are putting manga into their curriculum in an effort to encourage students to read. Large book retailers such as Barnes and Noble and Borders have created separate manga sections. In a sagging publishing market, manga is infusing new life into the industry.

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EXCERPT from "From Far East to West" by Sally Bosco in Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction

Fans I've interviewed often state that they like manga because it doesn't follow the typical dramatic formulas we see in western stories.

In the stories we're used to seeing, the good guys almost always win. The Japanese feel that this isn't realistic; good guys usually don't win. It's not unusual for a major character to die, to lose the one they love to another, or to fail at what they are trying to do. Villains can change their ways and heroes can commit horrid acts.

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Sally Bosco has always been drawn to the dark side. A corporate slave by day, at nights and on weekends she writes young adult horror and paranormal romance. Sally recently received her M.A. degree in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. She has published a YA horror novel, AltDeath.com and an adult paranormal romance, Shadow Cat (as Zoe LaPage). Her hobbies include painting, working out, running and traveling. She lives in Florida with the most spoiled cat in the world, MiniKitty. Check out Sally at sallybosco.com and zoelapage.com.

MGOC Contributor News: Dana Marton's The Third Scroll

Many Genres, One Craft contributor Dana Marton has a new novel out--The Third Scroll.

A maiden healer sold to barbarians.

A world of savage warlords and cruel concubines.

When ancient powers collide, can the slave save the realm and the high lord's heart?

Sold into slavery, Tera, a budding healer, is thrust into the savage realm of barbarian warlords, the same realm which claimed her mother years ago. She must avoid the displeasure of her warrior lord and survive the cruelties of the concubines, even as war threatens on the horizon.

Yet a greater danger looms when she catches the eye of the most powerful lord of the land and he takes her for his Pleasure Hall. Tera struggles to escape, while searching for the secret behind her mother’s death. But what she discovers challenges everything she believes in. A path set long ago beckons. A path that could lead to triumph, or the destruction of her world.


posted by heidi

MGOC Contributor: Michael Bracken

MICHAEL BRACKEN

EXCERPT from "I Write Short Stories" by Michael Bracken in Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction

I write short stories. A lot of them.

In a publishing environment where many writers bemoan the lack of markets for short fiction, I've placed almost 900 short stories. That's 2.7 million words, give or take, or the equivalent of 45 short novels.

When I began writing as a teenager in the 1970s, short story publication was considered the first step to becoming a genre novelist. Writers learned their craft by publishing short fiction in the popular magazines of the day before grappling with the complexity and length of novels. They established writing credentials, providing heft to their query and cover letters, and developed a readership before their first novel ever hit the wire racks at the grocery store.

That doesn't seem to happen much today, and many writers, perhaps encouraged by the ease of publication offered by low-cost vanity publishing companies, leap directly into novel writing without first establishing their writing skills and publishing credentials. Among those who succeed as novelists, some write short stories as an afterthought and some established genre novelists write short fiction only at the invitation of anthology editors.

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Michael Bracken is the author of 11 books, including All White Girls, Deadly Campaign, and Tequila Sunrise. More than 800 of his short stories have been published worldwide. His “Dreams Unborn” was named one of The Best American Mystery Stories 2005 and “All My Yesterdays” received a Derringer Award. Bracken edited five crime fiction anthologies whose stories have been short-listed for the Anthony, Derringer, Edgar, and Shamus awards. Bracken served as V.P. of both the Private Eye Writers of America and the Mystery Writers of America’s Southwest chapter. He also belongs to the Horror Writers Association and Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Bracken received his B.A. in Professional Writing from Baylor University.