I’ve also got a new iMac.  What a beauty!  I’ve been playing around with drawing on Artrage 2 and a Wacom tablet.  The idea of getting back into artwork is a good one…  I was an artist long before I was a writer, and am much more comfortable with airbrush and pencil than novels.  It’ll be a learning curve as I get used to drawing on the computer versus the visceral feel of paper and pencils.

Work is going well.  I’ve been able to focus more on the storylines, the ideas, the bits and pieces of artwork that spark in my mind.  It’s such a relief from the constant stress and worry from my previous position.  I still miss the guys, but I’m glad to be out of there.  I’m a lot happier.  To combat the RA, I spend three days a week at the hotel health club after my shift.  I’ve noticed some toning of my arms and thighs… maybe I’ll get rid of my pot belly, yet!

Surgery for my right ear has been scheduled in early May.  I’ve got an endoscopy next month to check the damage from five years of popping ibuprofen tablets, too.  My doctor put me on Prisolec, and OH MY GAWDS I feel so much better!  WOOT!

Hope everyone else is doing well.  (Especially you, Zero!)

The first site I hit today was this one. Talk about a healthy toy for your children! LOL! “Sweetheart, bodily functions are nothing to be ashamed of…”

Here’s an intriguing site. The Mouth & Foot Painting Artists. Wild. I really like Kim Howard’s work. No way could I do that! And Jean Michalski? It’s amazing!

Another art site, Final Redemption, has this tutorial on human proportions. Not much else there except a gallery, though.

Oh, wow! I just found my new favorite artist! I’m off to drool. See ya!

We Don’t Need Another Hero

From Kimball Kinnison to Dylan Hunt, strong-thewed heroes have strode the spaceways, protecting the galaxy from evildoers.  But the trend in contemporary literature is shifting from “heroes” to “protagonists” to “viewpoint characters”.  What are the ways that main characters can be used in science fiction?  How can ensembles and event-based plots build great story lines and lovable groups?

Sheila Simonson, Mary Robinette Kowal, phyllis irene radford, Jean Lamb, Michael A. Martin

- a tragic, dramatic departure from the norm is what creates a hero.

- Jo Clayton, author – look her up.
- in order to have a Hero (with a capital H,) there must be a villain – who’s the villain in Iditarod, Tiopa?  Circumstances, at the very least.  Thereby assuming that none of those characters are truly heroines.

- is a heroine simply a female hero?  Or is she something more?  Not so much a difference as a different dynamic created between a heroine and villain…

- writing an ensemble piece ain’t easy – Freya’s Tears, when completed will result in the loss of at least two crew members – will the next book (assuming there is one) focus on a different protagonist?

- it’s not enough for a heroine to decide to take control of a situation. She must choose to END it.  (Azrael, Dusky, Els, Kathleen.)

- a woman’s heroic journey follows a similar path as the hero except she gets to a point where she must decide between two paths, nurturer or warrior.  The journey continues until both paths merge again, and she finds herself doing both.

Orycon and the Future

The Death of OSFCI and what you can do to keep Orycon alive after Orycon 30.

Andrew Nisbet, Patty Wells, Linda Pilcher

Considering how much I enjoy Orycon, I had to attend this panel to see what was going on.  Apparently there’s a dearth of people willing to fill the long term, committed openings that are required to put together a convention.  Things have been in flux with Orycon for the last four years and don’t appear to be letting up.  This was a panel to drum up fannish support.

I dunno, man.  I’m interested, truly, but …  I do enjoy attending the panels.  If I worked a convention from planning stages to culmination, it’d have to be in a position that wouldn’t deter me from attending the panels.  I’ve worked Dealer’s Room as assistant, and that takes a lot of time out of the day.  Same goes for several other positions in a large con.

We’ll see.

Role-playing Game Design and Publication 101

How writing for the role-playing market differs from writing for the fiction market, what is involved in designing and publishing a role-playing game, and how much reward one is likely to get for all one’s work.  A beginning writer’s guide to the RPG market.

Greg Gorden, Gwendolyn Kestrel, Joseph D. Karriker, Jr., William B. McDermott, Riannon Louve, Anthony Pryor

Not that I’m particularly interested in writing a RPG.  I like gaming, and my primary reason for attending this panel was to consider another potential money-maker.  (Anything to get out of my current job, doncha know?  LOL!)

- contact the game developer, ask what he or she needs, and give them EXACTLY that.

- gaming articles are good for background and resumes.

- prove comprehension of the material when writing a module.

- website, website, website!  If a particular game inspires artwork, be sure to give credit (‘based on’…)

- Note to self – business card.

- write novels based on a gaming system as a sideline for money making (‘based on’…)

- keep up on the comings and goings within the company.  Not much different than the regular or small publishing world, really.  In fact, the gaming industry is just as political and incestuous as any other.  Be professional, and don’t quit your day job until you have a year’s salary in the bank.

- the more complete the module, the better.  Don’t just write up the specifics.  Create the characters needed, the maps, artwork, tech data, the whole shebang.

THEN I was going to go to another panel or two.  Instead, I got sidetracked by work (the dangers of attending a convention in your workplace.)  So I ended up leaving property for a quick lunch downtown and returning for a trip through the art show.

Bought two prints from my current favorite local artist, Alan M. Clarke.  He’s got some great stuff, morbid as hel, and a very smartass sense of humor. Also made note of Sarah Clemens.  She’s got some great pieces with Magnus and Loki — a cat and a small dragon who get into various troubles.

How to Make a Living as an Artist

How do artists make a living? Can you break the starving artist traditions and really make some money?

Margaret Organ-Kean, John R. Gray III, Jeff Fennel, Jeff Sturgeon, Alan M. Clarke, Vincent DiFate

- “Diversify!” Clarke

- Pinging off that comment, I can go digital (sell prints at conventions, sell online, pick up work via gaming companies.) In Second Life (virtual world), I can design and build virtual clothings, behaviors, items, buildings for sale.  I can possibly offer services as book cover illustrator with my current contacts with authors and publishers.

- I need a high quality Epson printer and a scanner.

- Create book covers for books I’ve read (‘inspired by’,) and put them on my website – use the web as a portfolio of digital artwork.

- “Art is about making pictures. The tools you use are irrelevant.” Vincent DiFate

A’ight… end of day two (Saturday.)  I went home to take a nap, with every intention of returning that evening for a concert by Heather Alexander.  Yep… you guessed it.  I stayed home.  I REALLY have to stay in the hotel next year!

Yesterday I spent the morning helping the guys finish the room sets.  Then I spent a good portion of the afternoon attending panels.  I’m going to note the panels and some odds and ends notes here to keep them on file for future reference…  Prepare to be bored… or not…

The Effects of Space Travel on Earth Religions

Will a Christian, Jew, Muslim or other Earth religious believer, have trouble tolerating the religions of Aliens?  Will Earthlings need to reevaluate how they believe about “being created in God’s image” if the other beings look differently than they do?  What hapens if Earth was seeded and we run into the society responsible?  What about those aliens that display powers that some fundamentalists consider to be evil?

Mick Shepherd Moscoe, Judy Lazar, Elton Elliott, Richard A. Lovett

About the only direct quote, per se, I recieved from this panel was from Judy Lazar.  She said there’s a direct correlation between lifestyle and religious development.  Those societies that have chaotic lifestyles, fraught with uncertainties, tend to develop deeper and stronger mythos and dieties to explain their world.  Those with milder lifestyles have no use for such trappings, and their mythos tend to reflect that.

Notes, Ideas, Questions:

- created in ‘God’s Image’ (future title?) – aliens = angels? – theology = alien method of control?

- aliens also have theology of being in ‘God’s image’ – which is right / true? – could result it war?

- tie the rapture into alien visitation – disappearances of true Christians are actually abductions…

- an UNbenevolent diety responsible for creation – no God, but a devil responsible

- God an King, a monarchy – what about using a different political system to base a religion upon?

Law and Social Order in World Building

How can a writer design the basic legal structure of an alien, futuristic, or fantasy civilization? How do laws, courts, and government organizations arise from the basic legal structures and concepts, the constitution (formal or informal), common law, and other sources of justice? What are some of the options a writer has in making their civilization unique?

Rory Miller, Richard A. Lovett, Sara A. Mueller, phyllis irene radford, Andrew Nisbet

Again, no quotes from the panelists were interesting enough for me.  I took what they said and let my mind wander here and there, scribbling down things that came to me.

- dichotomy between law and societal taboos – illegal to beat and harass, yet acceptable for children to thump and terrorize one another through school.

- some taboos aren’t truly taboo unless they’re witnessed in other cultures – some things are only illegal if witnessed.

- laws exist because of criminal definitions – DEFINE THE CRIME!

- defining the crime will determine the society’s view on it, and reveal deeper issues and taboos involved in it.

How to Reproduce Your Artwork

You have finished your masterpiece, now how do you make the prints? What reproduction options are out there and what works best?

Jeff Sturgeon, John R. Gray III

Unbeknownst to most of you, I used to be an airbrush artist.  My first year in ‘business,’ I was only a hundred bucks in the red.  I airbrushed SF & F type people and sold it at conventions like this one.  I began writing when I had to pack up my airbrush study from lack of space.

My arthritis has made returning to airbrush an impossibility, but I’ve decided to learn digital artwork, using a tablet and pen connected to the computer.  Hence the reason I attended this panel.

- Jeff Sturgeon highly recommended Epson printers and high quality Epson archival paper for prints.

- John Gray uses Canon printers.

- both use small labs to print larger than 11×14.  Both use Pro-lab in Seattle.  (Research for Portland area!)

- CYA not RGB

- Keep in mind there’s a difference between what’s on the screen and what prints up.  Do a print proof first to compare your idea and the reality.  Tweak artwork to match.

- Research print proof types.

- small booklet of artwork? Cafe Press?

When the Heroine Isn’t 18, Blonde, and a Size 3

Why do some authors and filmmakers think a lab coat and glasses on a young blonde heroine can convey the same level of expertise as a grey-haired male scientist? Is it credible for the young post-doctorate researcher to also be a martial arts black belt in her spare time? Writers will talk abouth the why and how of writing female protagonists who break the mold.

Madeleine E. Robins, Alma Alexander, phyllis irene radford, Judith R. Conly, Dianna Rodgers

- give the heroine only what she needs to do what she has to do.

- Azrael – too beautiful, too much like Xena in abilities? Create more scarring?

- flaw the character!

- look into Alma Alexander’s books

And that was that!

Started to sit in on another panel, but it wasn’t going where I was interested, so I bailed early.  Today’s panels include artwork and writing oriented stuff.  Tonight is a concert by Heather Alexander…  I’m debating whether or not to stay for it.  I hear she’s good, but it’ll be way past my bedtime…  LOL!

Oh, yeah!  I picked up a sword in the Dealer’s room, too!  WOOT!