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24 March 2011

The next three days: Sydney meet up and the Australian Romance Readers Conference


I have a lovely few days planned, and it all starts tonight! Tonight is the meet up we have organised for the online book community! I get to meet some lovely people I've been talking too online, some times for years. I've met people in the real world through book clubs, signings and writing groups, but that isn’t quite the same as 30 odd bookish people chatting over cocktails at a bar LOL There is an impromptu book swap, so if you have any books you wish to offload, please feel free to bring them along! I was distracted by the internet last night and forgot that I was going to do a cull around the edges of my collection *blushes* Anyway, if you plan on coming, you will need to RSVP, and if you wish to watch for updates, please follow me on twitter on @obsidiantears83. I should be turning up some time between 6pm and 6:30pm, so I shall see you there! If in doubt, look for the people with books! (It takes a special breed to take a book or three into a bar LOL)

This weekend is ARRC, or the Australian Romance Readers Convention. I couldn’t afford to go for the entire weekend (it kicks off with drinks tomorrow night) but I will be attending for the Awards Dinner on Saturday night and the Sunday sessions. For all the goss, follow me on twitter, or follow the #ARRC2011 hashtag!

I really wanted to attend the morning session on Saturday. Lexxie Couper, Nalini Singh, Maggie Nash and Rhian Cahill talk about Paranormal Romance and why it is “so damn seductive”. It would have been interesting. Instead, I decided to attend the Sunday sessions (I could only afford the one day) and am really looking forward to the session with reader Kate Cuthbert (@katydidinoz) and writers Nalini Singh, Keri Arthur, Denise Rossetti, Erica Hayes and Karen Simpson Nikakis. It is entitled Fantasy, Sci-Fi and Futuristic Romance: Our world, otherworlds – romance in the realms of the imagination. Looks interesting!

I do have the problem of where to sit for the dinner. You get to choose your tables Saturday morning, but I won’t be there until the Awards Dinner later that night. I am at a friend’s Divorce High Tea (definitely worth celebrating!) most of the day, voting in the morning (why is the election the same weekend as ARRC?!), and live too far away to pop in to write my name on the seating plan *sigh* We talking about having a twitter table (two actually) but I am not sure if we are going ahead with that. My friend Maria is attending for the first time too, but she only knows our book club members attending There are four of us, so Maria and I wanted to sit together. I know a number of people in the community now, and will know more after tonight’s drinks, but that isn’t the same as a close friend to hang with. If we don’t have a twitter table, I am thinking of asking one of my other friends to pencil us down for the same table. But at the same time, I like the idea of bonding over books with a random set of people I would not have normally talked to. I don’t know. I guess I’ll bring it up at the meet up tonight.

Have you attended readers or writers conventions before? I don’t mean cons like Supernova or Dragon*Con, but more serious affairs where the focus is on the books, the authors and the writing rather than cosplay and actors? I haven’t! This should be interesting!!

If you are attending either our meet up tonight, or ARRC this weekend, I hope to see there. Come and introduce yourself if we haven’t already met! I’ll be the one wearing a lot of black and with a pink* stripe in my hair LOL






*Oh yes, the pink! The red faded, the lovely metallic magenta faded, and now it is a rose colour… I hate pink! But I guess this colour isn’t too bad LOL

23 March 2011

Teaser Tuesday: Little (Grrl) Lost by Charles de Lint


Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My Teasers: 


“I don’t think it would be like that. I think it’d be more like they’d put you in a terrarium in a laboratory to study you. And everybody’d be tearing up their baseboards looking for more of you.” She paused for a moment before adding, “Do you have, like, a house back there?”
Page 9 of Little (Grrl) Lost by Charles de Lint

I used to love books about the Littles and the Borrowers as a kid. I love that one of my favourite authors has moved the myth into modern times and that the Little in question is a punkish girl. His punkish girls are always my favourite characters LOL


17 March 2011

A question of storage for the book addicts


I have a question for book addicts like myself. Do you ever put part of your collection in cold storage? I have too many books for the space I have to shelve them. I either need to buy two large bookshelves (and find somewhere to put them!) or buy some large plastic storage boxes and put them on top of my wardrobe. My mother muttered that I should stop buying so many books and sell some of mine (!) but we all know that will never happen (“OVER MY DEAD BODY!” was my actual response). Currently my largest bookshelf is double stacked, with the books laying flat. Where I used to have five paperbacks standing up, I now have about twenty laying down. That bookshelf is just under 2m high by maybe just over 2m long. On top of the hardcovers standing on the top of that bookshelf, I have stacked more books on their bellies, as high as I can get safely them. Lucky I have vaulted ceilings, hey?! In front of the large bookshelf I have a small bookshelf I bought during my first year of university. It is about a metre by a metre, and was made in someone’s shed in Townsville. It is a bit wonky, but it has a nice design for display purposes. That display capacity is not being made use of right now! I have all my Nora Robert’s books (I own most of them now) crammed in this bookshelf any way I can fit them, and on top I have books stacked about ten high. Next to this I have 2 teetering piles of books about waist high. They are holding each other up, and braced by the smaller bookshelf on the left and the large bookshelf behind them. Yes, the smaller bookshelf is placed immediately in front of the big bookshelf. I need more room! I also recently took my shoes out of their shelf and replaced them with books. The shoe shelf is kind of like a dvd cabinet. I have books crammed in there two books thick, and it is about 2.5m tall, although only about 50 cm wide. There are still more books under my bed and on my desk. So what is the solution? I think I need to buy two new tall bookshelves, throw out the smaller ones and move my desk around so there is more wall space. It is expensive though. If I was leasing by myself I would just buy some bricks and 2by4s. I grew up with bookshelves like that and they may be cheap and nasty, but they WORK! The problem is, if they get bumped, they can scratch the wall. The lease on the sharehouse I am currently living in isn’t in my name and Lachlan would kill me if I scratched the walls. I just don’t know what to do. I can’t really afford to buy bookshelves, but the books aren’t stacked safely and I am always worried some fell breeze will knock them over. I don't want to be a Jacq pancake! (although, what a way to go!) I am hoping to move this year, but that isn’t a given because I buy books instead of dumping that $40 in the bank every fortnight. Books are a necessity of life, I refuse to listen to my Mum when she says they aren’t! If I lived anywhere near my parents I would just ask Dad to make me a big arse bookshelf, but they live fourteen hours away, so that is not going to happen.

Yes, I know, I am talking myself in a circle. There isn’t really anything I can do. I think I need to buy some large plastic storage containers and go through my books and figure out which I am unlikely to read in the next year or so. The biggest problem with storing my books like this is that our house is prone to damp. Can you recommend a way of keeping the damp out of plastic boxes? I don’t want to hurt my books. At least on the bookshelves there is nowhere for damp air to gather…Is there a product which will attract the moisture without hurting my books with chemical?

What are your solutions when you have too many books? Do you buy new bookshelves, cull your collection, stack them creatively or put them in storage? And do you have suggestions on the best way for me to put some of my preciouses out of the way on top of my wardrobe?


16 March 2011

Australian Speculative Fiction Blog Carnival 1.0

I took over the reins of the Australian Speculative Fiction Blog Carnival for March, run by the A Writer Goes On A Journey arm of the Australian Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association.  From the 15th of February to the 15th of March I collected all the snippets I could find regarding the Speculative Fiction world in Australia. This is the collated final version for the blog carnival.

If you are so inclined, you can read my previous Blog Carnival posts using the “ASFFWA” tag below.



Blogs & Reviews
Librarian In Black: "Library eBook Revolution, Begin" {link}*
Adventures of a Bookonaut: "Yellowcake and Burn Bright hit the shelves" {link}
Mary Victoria: "Writing Strong Women round-up", includes posts by Australian speculative fiction authors {link}
Bothersome Words: "The stigma of working in fantasy" {link}
MyShelf.com: "Review: Death's Sweet Embrace by Tracey O'Hara" {link}
Dark Side DownUnder: "Darklight On...Mel Teshco Q&A" {link}
Adventures of a Bookonaut: "eBook Review: Realmshift by Alan Baxter" {link}
Booktopia: "Fiona McIntosh answers Five Facetious Questions" {link}
Alan Baxter: "The Borders and A&R collapse" {link}*
Galaxy Bookshop: "Special on Fantasy - ABC TV" {link}
ARRA: "Author spotlight: Tracey O’Hara" {link}
Horrorscope: "2010 Judge's Report: Stephanie Gunn" {link}
Ripping Ozzie Reads: "Is Fantasy a bit of a Boy’s Club?" {link}
Book Bites: "A guide to ebooks in Australia" {link}*
Bookin' It: "Full Moon Rising - One Of The Best Paranormal Romance Werewolf Books" {link}
Bookish Ardour: "Discovering Ebooks and The Sony eReader" {link}
Mel's Random Reviews: "The Farseekers by Isobelle Carmody" {link}
Book Thingo: "Aussie Author Month 2011 – Come and join us!"{link}
Galaxy Bookshop: "Pamela Freeman: What makes a favourite author?" {link}
Nicole Murphy: "Swancon: Romancing the West" {link}
Tez Says: "Six New Covers" {link}
Book Bites (via Book Thingo): "ARRC 2011 and what it has to offer Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy readers" {link}
Boomerang Books: "The Devil’s Diadem by Sara Douglass" {link}
ARRA: "Feature book: Archangel’s Consort" {link}
Tez Says: "Thyla – Kate Gordon" {link}
Zena Shapter: "Times have changed for fantasy writers… or have they?" {link}

Events
24th Febuary, Keri Arthur, Library Lovers Lunch @ Belgrave Library {link}
1-31st March, Open Door Month @ Angry Robot Books**, accepting manuscripts from "unagented authors" {link}
2nd March, Fiona McIntosh, Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link 1}{link 2}{link 3}
5th March, Nicole Murphy, Infinitas Bookstore, Parramatta {link}
5th March, Nicole Murphy,  Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link}
19th March, Animania, Sydney {link}
21st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Ultimo Library, Sydney {link}
23rd March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link}
24th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Kinokuniya, Sydney {link}
25-27th March, Australian Romance Readers Convention (with Paranormal Romance authors Erica Hayes, Karen Simpson Nikakis, Keri Arthur, Nalini Singh (NZ), Nicole R Murphy, Tracey O'Hara), Sydney {link}
29th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Strathpine Library, Brisbane {link
29th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Narangba Library, Brisbane {link
31st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Redcliffe Library, Brisbane {link}
31st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Victoria Point Library, Brisbane {link}
27th March, Writing the Fantastical with Kate Forsyth, course {link}
27th March, Nominations close for the Chronos Awards {link}
1st April, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Pulp Fiction, Brisbane {link}
1-3rd April, Supernova, Brisbane {link}
3rd April, Voting opens for the Chronos Awards {link}
6th April, Robin Hobb, Dendy Theatre, Sydney {link}
6th April, Jennifer Fallon, Galaxy Bookshop {link}
8-10th April, Supernova, Melbourne {link
9-10th April, Bellingen Readers & Writers Festival includes Sophie Masson & Ian Irvine {link}
15th April, 2010 Australian Shadows Awards winners announced {link}
15th May, Voting closes for the Chronos Awards {link}
21st May, Aurealis Awards, Independent Theatre, Sydney {link 1}{link 2}
25th May, Leanne Hall & Cassandra Clare, Palace Westgarth Theatre, Melbourne {link}
21-25th April, Swancon, Sydney {link}
17-19th June, Supernova, Sydney {link}
24-26th June, Supernova, Perth {link}

Competitions
Win Above & Below by Stephanie Campisi & Ben Peek, closes 24th Febuary {link}
Win The Seventh Wave by Paul Garrety, closes 25th February {link}
Win The Company Articles of Edward Teach & The Angaelian Apocalypse by Thoraiya Dyer & Matthew Chrulew, closes 28th February {link}
Win Power Unbound by Nicole Murphy, closes 28th February {link}
Win the Kim Falconer book of your choice, closes 1st March {link}
Win The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee, closes 6th March {link}
Win Glitter Rose by Marianne de Pierres, closes 28th March {link}

News*
Bookbee eBooks: "Dear HarperCollins, Why Should Library Ebooks Only be Lent 26 Times?" {link}
Library Journal.com: "HarperCollins Puts 26 Loan Cap on Ebook Circulations" {link}
Bookseller+Publisher: "RedGroup administrators: staff owed $7.8 million, unsecured creditors $44 million" {link}
Horrorscope: "2010 Bram Stoker Award finalists" {link}
The Courier Mail: "Dark fantasy burns brightly" {link}
Horrorscope: "2010 Australian Shadows Awards finalists" {link}
Bookseller+Publisher: "Dymocks attempts to woo A&R/Borders loyalty card holders" {link}
Bookbee Ebooks: Further news regarding Borders US filing bankruptcy and how it effects the Australian Market {link}
SMH: REDgroup (Borders Au, Angus & Robertson and the Whitcoulls) goes into administration {link}
Bookseller+Publisher: Industry reacts to REDgroup news {link 1} {link 2}
Bookbee Ebooks -  Borders and A&R not honouring Gift Vouchers {link}
ABC News: Internet spells the death of bookstores {link}
Murdoch University: "Funds needed to preserve unique science fiction collection" {link}

Editorial*
Harper's Magazine: "Staying awake: Notes on the alleged decline of reading by Ursula K. Le Guin" {link}

Advice & Discussions**
Patty Jansen: "How the size of a planet determines its atmosphere" {link}
Stepcase Lifehack:"10 Reasons You Should Write Something Each Day" {link}
Patty Jansen: "So you want to be a space farmer?" {link}
Bothersome Words: "How stories are distilled" {link}
Erica Hayes: "Chapter breaks and pacing" {link}
Patty Jansen: "How to punctuate dialogue" {link}
Lillith Saintcrow: "Avoiding the 'hard sell'"  {link}
Ripping Ozzie Reads: "‘Words’ a writer’s tools" {link}
Rachelle Gardner: "Myths About Agents" {link}
The Voyager Blog: "Emerging Writers: don’t give up the ghost" by Kim Falconer {link}
Plotting Made Easy: "The Complications Worksheet" {link}
Blood and Barricades: "Writing well versus writing (and tweeting) for the market" {link}
Blood and Barricades: "Bloggers, writers and ‘negative’ reviews" {link}
Patty Jensen: "What to put in a cover letter" {link}


*Reading culture. May not pertain to speculative fiction.
**May not be Australian, but may be of interest to Australian writers.

Australian Speculative Fiction Blog Carnival 0.4

I am taking over the reins of the Australian Speculative Fiction Blog Carnival for March, run by the A Writer Goes On A Journey arm of the Australian Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association.  From the 15th of February to the 15th of March I will be collecting all the snippets I can find regarding the Speculative Fiction world in Australia, with a focus on the Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy genres (because, let’s face it, that is where my niche is these days). At the end I will be collating and summarising a final version for the blog carnival. I do have to warn you, I plan to extend this over to late March on my blog only, as the Australian Romance Reader’s Conference  is taking place on the 25th – 27th of March and that is big news in the Paranormal Romance and sexy Urban Fantasy calendars. These won't be included in the official summary for the blog carnival, as someone else will be taking care of March 16th and onwards, but I think, with the lead up to ARRC there will probably be a lot of news to share.

I will be finding a lot of these links, blog posts, news items, etc., on twitter,  so if you think I am missing something whilst in my little bubble world, please let me know! I will be updating this frequently, although I am not sure yet if I will post updates weekly or bi-weekly. A lot of these links (to competitions and signings, etc.) can be time sensitive which is why I have decided against posting them all at once in mid-March. Rather than listing the dates in the title, I will be including these as instalments. I'll be writing up one large post at the end of my share of the Blog Carnival to be submitted to the A Writer Goes On A Journey listing after the 15th of March.

You can follow these Blog Carnival posts using the “ASFFWA” tag below.

I am compiling all four lead up posts this afternoon. I'll post them within the next 24 hours.

Blogs & Reviews
Book Thingo: "Aussie Author Month 2011 – Come and join us!"{link}
Galaxy Bookshop: "Pamela Freeman: What makes a favourite author?" {link}
Nicole Murphy: "Swancon: Romancing the West" {link}
Tez Says: "Six New Covers" {link}
Boomerang Books: "The Devil’s Diadem by Sara Douglass" {link}

Events
24th Febuary, Keri Arthur, Library Lovers Lunch @ Belgrave Library {link}
1-31st March, Open Door Month @ Angry Robot Books**, accepting manuscripts from "unagented authors" {link}
2nd March, Fiona McIntosh, Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link 1}{link 2}{link 3}
5th March, Nicole Murphy, Infinitas Bookstore, Parramatta {link}
5th March, Nicole Murphy,  Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link}
19th March, Animania, Sydney {link}
21st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Ultimo Library, Sydney {link}
23rd March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link}
24th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Kinokuniya, Sydney {link}
25-27th March, Australian Romance Readers Convention (with Paranormal Romance authors Erica Hayes, Karen Simpson Nikakis, Keri Arthur, Nalini Singh (NZ), Nicole R Murphy, Tracey O'Hara), Sydney {link}
29th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Strathpine Library, Brisbane {link
29th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Narangba Library, Brisbane {link
31st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Redcliffe Library, Brisbane {link}
31st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Victoria Point Library, Brisbane {link}
27th March, Writing the Fantastical with Kate Forsyth, course {link}
27th March, Nominations close for the Chronos Awards {link}
1st April, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Pulp Fiction, Brisbane {link}
1-3rd April, Supernova, Brisbane {link}
3rd April, Voting opens for the Chronos Awards {link}
6th April, Robin Hobb, Dendy Theatre, Sydney {link}
8-10th April, Supernova, Melbourne {link
9-10th April, Bellingen Readers & Writers Festival includes Sophie Masson & Ian Irvine {link}
15th April, 2010 Australian Shadows Awards winners announced {link}
15th May, Voting closes for the Chronos Awards {link}
21st May, Aurealis Awards, Independent Theatre, Sydney {link 1}{link 2}
25th May, Leanne Hall & Cassandra Clare, Palace Westgarth Theatre, Melbourne {link}
21-25th April, Swancon, Sydney {link}
17-19th June, Supernova, Sydney {link}
24-26th June, Supernova, Perth {link}


Competitions
Win Above & Below by Stephanie Campisi & Ben Peek, closes 24th Febuary {link}
Win The Seventh Wave by Paul Garrety, closes 25 February {link}
Win The Company Articles of Edward Teach & The Angaelian Apocalypse by Thoraiya Dyer & Matthew Chrulew, closes 28th February {link}
Win Power Unbound by Nicole Murphy, closes 28 February {link}
Win the Kim Falconer book of your choice, closes 1 March {link}
Win The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee, closes 6 March {link}
Win Glitter Rose by Marianne de Pierres, closes 28 March {link}


News*
Murdoch University: "Funds needed to preserve unique science fiction collection" {link}



Editorial*


Advice/Discussion**
Rachelle Gardner: "Myths About Agents" {link}
The Voyager Blog: "Emerging Writers: don’t give up the ghost" by Kim Falconer {link}
Plotting Made Easy - The Complications Worksheet" {link}
Blood and Barricades: "Writing well versus writing (and tweeting) for the market" {link}
Blood and Barricades: "Bloggers, writers and ‘negative’ reviews" {link}
Patty Jensen: "What to put in a cover letter" {link}



*Reading culture. May not pertain to speculative fiction.
**May not be Australian, but may be of interest to unpublished Australian writers.

You can follow these Blog Carnival posts using the “ASFFWA” tag below.

Teaser Tuesday: Web of Lies by Jennifer Estep


Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!



My Teasers: 
The dwarf had been Goth before Goth was cool – a hundred years ago or so. In addition to her skull collar and matching T-shirt, Sophia Deveraux sported black jeans and boots. Pink lipstick covered her lips, contrasting the black glitter shadow on her eyelids and the natural pallor of her face. Today, the colour motif extended up to her hair. Pale pink streaks shimmered along her cropped black locks.
Page 5 of Web of Lies by Jennifer Estep

^Sophia is my favourite character of this series. The world needs more goths. Also, change pink to red, and you have just described me!

14 March 2011

Guest Post: Australian Romance Readers Convention 2011 and what it has to offer Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy readers

I have invited one of my friends to write about the ARRA conference I am attending in two weeks. I have not been to ARRC before, although last year I sat by my computer watching tweets and checking my text messages for the latest updates. If you are attending ARRC, please let me know, and we can grab a flute of champagne together at the dinner!

Decadence has been a romance reader for a decade, mainly paranormal, urban fantasy and Regency romance. Follow her on twitter (@my_lheage) or read her reviews at Book Thingo. As a member of the Australian Romance Readers Association, she wants to let other paranormal and urban fantasy readers know what's they can look forward to when love comes to town.



With some of the best local talent in attendance, paranormal romance readers are in for a real treat at the Australian Romance Readers Convention overlooking stunning Bondi Beach on 25-27 March. Keynote speaker Nalini Singh is an awesome addition to the mainly Australian line-up; her speech kept everyone well-entertained at last year's Australian Romance Reader Awards, where she revealed the title of her third Archangel book for the first time.

Panels

Lexxie Couper asks Nalini Singh, Keri Arthur, Maggie Nash and Rhian Cahill why we love creatures of the night and when they stopped being the monsters that scared us and became our darkest fantasy heroes. Urban fantasy readers are not left out either. Nalini Singh, Keri Arthur, Denise Rossetti, Erica Hayes and Karen Simpson Nikakis answer readers' questions in the Fantasy, Science Fiction and Futuristic Romance panel.

Some of these authors also appear in other panels to discuss the crazy side of being a published author (think crazed fans, how far they go to bring their books to life and what they do in their non-existent free time) and the sexy side of romance.

Awards Dinner

These awards are voted for by real Australian romance readers and the paranormal crowd can always be relied upon to bling it. It's just like the Oscars, only without the bad jokes.

Silent Auction

In the wake of the flood disaster in Queensland this year, the Australian Romance Readers Association is holding a silent auction with all proceeds going to the Premier’s Flood Relief Appeal. Generous authors from all over the globe have donated some amazing items to bid on including a signed House of Night set from PC Cast, a Kiss of Snow ARC from Nalini Singh, canvas prints of photographs taken by Keri Arthur. There are also book bundles and ARCs from authors including Charlaine Harris, Christine Feehan, MaryJanice Davidson, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Lynn Viehl, Tracey O'Hara, Rachel Caine and many more. The auction has so much on offer and supports such a worthy cause.

For a full list of items you can bid on, check out http://australianromancereaders.wordpress.com/silent-auction/

Book Signing

We all know that personally signed books are amazing, but even better than that, the book signing session also offers a little face time with your favourite authors. Ask that burning question about their series or your favourite characters.

There is another highlight from the convention that we can't find the right place for in the program and that is the atmosphere. You can just feel something in the air when you're surrounded by other readers just like you, all celebrating the books you love, swapping recommendations and discussing your favourite authors with other people who share your love of paranormal romance and urban fantasy that you simply can't find anywhere else.

To register or find out more, please visit us at http://www.australianromancereaders.com.au/2011.html

Membership has its perks. For discounts on entry and books from a number of independent bookshops, a monthly newsletter and access to our online romance reading community, join the Australian Romance Readers Association. With membership currently only $10 a year, you get real bang for your buck. Find out more at http://www.australianromancereaders.com.au/join.html


09 March 2011

Teaser Tuesday: I Am Legend by Richard Matheson


Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
* Grab your current read
* Open to a random page
* Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My Teasers: 
He took that drink now; he needed it. He held up his hand until it stopped shaking. All right, little boy, he tried kidding himself, calm down. Santa Claus is coming to town with all the nice answers. No longer will you be a weird Robinson Crusoe, imprisoned on an island of night surrounded by oceans of death.
Page 73 of I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

This is my favourite line in I Am Legend so far: "No longer will you be a weird Robinson Crusoe, imprisoned on an island of night surrounded by oceans of death."

08 March 2011

Sydney Book Bloggers Meet Up


We are having a book blogger meet up in Sydney! It will be lovely to meet up with all the people I've met online and waxed lyrical about books with. We can discuss books, the ins and outs of blogging, twitter and the like over a few drinks at a fabulous location. If you are attending ARRC, this will be a great opportunity to meet some people before the dinner.

If you are in Sydney on the 24th of March and are part of the online book community, would you like to join us? If so, please RSVP below.


When: Thursday, 24 March from 6pm
Where: Arthouse Hotel*, 275 Pitt St, Sydney 2000 http://thearthousehotel.com.au
Who: Book bloggers, tweeters, Facebookers, Goodreaders, Shelfarians or anyone who
is part of the online book community
Dress Code: http://thearthousehotel.com.au/#/About_Us 

If you are interested in attending, please fill out this google form to RSVP


If you plan to go I’d love to hear about it :) If you are an out of towner and need directions, let me know.

*Subject to change, depending on RSVP numbers.

Australian Speculative Fiction Blog Carnival 0.3

I am taking over the reins of the Australian Speculative Fiction Blog Carnival for March, run by the A Writer Goes On A Journey arm of the Australian Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association.  From the 15th of February to the 15th of March I will be collecting all the snippets I can find regarding the Speculative Fiction world in Australia, with a focus on the Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy genres (because, let’s face it, that is where my niche is these days). At the end I will be collating and summarising a final version for the blog carnival. I do have to warn you, I plan to extend this over to late March on my blog only, as the Australian Romance Reader’s Conference  is taking place on the 25th – 27th of March and that is big news in the Paranormal Romance and sexy Urban Fantasy calendars. These won't be included in the official summary for the blog carnival, as someone else will be taking care of March 16th and onwards, but I think, with the lead up to ARRC there will probably be a lot of news to share.

I will be finding a lot of these links, blog posts, news items, etc., on twitter,  so if you think I am missing something whilst in my little bubble world, please let me know! I will be updating this frequently, although I am not sure yet if I will post updates weekly or bi-weekly. A lot of these links (to competitions and signings, etc.) can be time sensitive which is why I have decided against posting them all at once in mid-March. Rather than listing the dates in the title, I will be including these as instalments. I'll be writing up one large post at the end of my share of the Blog Carnival to be submitted to the A Writer Goes On A Journey listing after the 15th of March.

You can follow these Blog Carnival posts using the “ASFFWA” tag below.


Blogs & Reviews
Librarian In Black: "Library eBook Revolution, Begin" {link}*
Adventures of a Bookonaut: "Yellowcake and Burn Bright hit the shelves" {link}
Mary Victoria: "Writing Strong Women round-up", includes posts by Australian speculative fiction authors {link}
Bothersome Words: "The stigma of working in fantasy" {link}
MyShelf.com: "Review: Death's Sweet Embrace by Tracey O'Hara" {link}
Dark Side DownUnder: "Darklight On...Mel Teshco Q&A" {link}
Adventures of a Bookonaut: "eBook Review: Realmshift by Alan Baxter" {link}


Events
24th Febuary, Keri Arthur, Library Lovers Lunch @ Belgrave Library {link}
1-31st March, Open Door Month @ Angry Robot Books**, accepting manuscripts from "unagented authors" {link}
2nd March, Fiona McIntosh, Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link 1}{link 2}{link 3}
5th March, Nicole Murphy, Infinitas Bookstore, Parramatta {link}
5th March, Nicole Murphy,  Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link}
19th March, Animania, Sydney {link}
21st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Ultimo Library, Sydney {link}
23rd March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link}
24th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Kinokuniya, Sydney {link}
25-27th March, Australian Romance Readers Convention (with Paranormal Romance authors Erica Hayes, Karen Simpson Nikakis, Keri Arthur, Nalini Singh (NZ), Nicole R Murphy, Tracey O'Hara), Sydney {link}
29th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Strathpine Library, Brisbane {link
29th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Narangba Library, Brisbane {link
31st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Redcliffe Library, Brisbane {link}
31st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Victoria Point Library, Brisbane {link}
27th March, Writing the Fantastical with Kate Forsyth, course {link}
27th March, Nominations close for the Chronos Awards {link}
1st April, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Pulp Fiction, Brisbane {link}
1-3rd April, Supernova, Brisbane {link}
3rd April, Voting opens for the Chronos Awards {link}
6th April, Robin Hobb, Dendy Theatre, Sydney {link}
8-10th April, Supernova, Melbourne {link
9-10th April, Bellingen Readers & Writers Festival includes Sophie Masson & Ian Irvine {link}
15th April, 2010 Australian Shadows Awards winners announced {link}
15th May, Voting closes for the Chronos Awards {link}
21st May, Aurealis Awards, Independent Theatre, Sydney {link 1}{link 2}
25th May, Leanne Hall & Cassandra Clare, Palace Westgarth Theatre, Melbourne {link}
17-19th June, Supernova, Sydney {link}
24-26th June, Supernova, Perth {link}


Competitions
Win Above & Below by Stephanie Campisi & Ben Peek, closes 24th Febuary {link}
Win The Seventh Wave by Paul Garrety, closes 25 February {link}
Win The Company Articles of Edward Teach & The Angaelian Apocalypse by Thoraiya Dyer & Matthew Chrulew, closes 28th February {link}
Win Power Unbound by Nicole Murphy, closes 28 February {link}
Win the Kim Falconer book of your choice, closes 1 March {link}
Win The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee, closes 6 March {link}
Win Glitter Rose by Marianne de Pierres, closes 28 March {link}


News*
Bookbee eBooks: "Dear HarperCollins, Why Should Library Ebooks Only be Lent 26 Times?" {link}
Library Journal.com: "HarperCollins Puts 26 Loan Cap on Ebook Circulations" {link}
Bookseller+Publisher: "RedGroup administrators: staff owed $7.8 million, unsecured creditors $44 million" {link}
Horrorscope: "2010 Bram Stoker Award finalists" {link
The Courier Mail: "Dark fantasy burns brightly" {link}   
Note: I decided not to report every link on the REDgroup troubles. Sadly that is all that seems to be in the news at the moment. Please contact me if you have other news items I should be sharing!



Editorial*


Advice**
Patty Jansen: "How the size of a planet determines its atmosphere" {link}

*Reading culture. May not pertain to speculative fiction.
**May not be Australian, but may be of interest to unpublished Australian writers.

You can follow these Blog Carnival posts using the “ASFFWA” tag below.

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