Sorry everyone for taking sooooooooo... long to post again, here I am at last!
Editing has me in its merciless grips; the first draft of Book 3 is far too long so cut cut cut, condense condense condense. One of my initial errors (which happened in Books 1 & 2 as well) is that I put in too much world detail - fascinating to me (and my mate Will) but not so great for a well flowing plot or more general reader interest. My second pass involves reducing this to something smoother and less thrombotic to read, some plot-extraneous matter being put into the back matter where it fits much better (thank you Lord for the Explicarium!) The balance for me is having enough detail to fully build in the experience of the Half-Continent whilst not over-indulging (well, too much anyway...)
To those who contend that MBT is self-indulgent and has too much world in it, I answer, what is the point of writing (not "righting" as I had carelessly had previously... you should see my drafts!!!) about a pretend world if it is only briefly touched upon and has no real impact on the story told? Having said that, I have still got to tell a good story - well, the best I can at least.
So, I suppose you could say, my contention has some merit for I learnt recently that Monster-Blood Tattoo Book 2, Lamplighter has made it into the 2009 CBCA Awards Book of the Year shortlist for Older Readers. Very very chuffed that it has been recognised in the same award that honoured Foundling two years ago. Brilliant!
The complete list is as follows:
EATON, Anthony Into White Silence
FRENCH, Jackie A Rose for the Anzac Boys
MARCHETTA, Melina Finnikin of the Rock
MOLONEY, James Kill the Possum
TAN, Shaun Tales from Outer Suburbia
CORNISH, D. M. Monster Blood Tattoo Book Two: Lamplighter
(Check me out with my egocentrically loooonnngggg book title... ;)
Brilliant for us all and all the Notable Books with us.
Showing posts with label shortlisting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shortlisting. Show all posts
NSW Premier's Literary Awards 2009 Shortlist.
Delighted to be able to say that MBT 2, Lamplighter has been shortlisted in the 2009 NSW (meaning New South Wales for the uninitiated) Premier's Literary Award's The Ethel Turner Prize for a work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry written for young people of secondary school level. The list of us all goes a little like this:
Dianne Bates - Crossing the Line
Michelle Cooper - A Brief History of Montmaray
D.M Cornish - Monster Blood Tattoo Book Two: Lamplighter
Alison Goodman - The Two Pearls of Wisdom
Nette Hilton - Sprite Downberry
Joanne Horrniman - My Candlelight Novel
I feel like a bit of an upstart occupying a list with such luminaries. VERY VERY gratified to be recognised in one the countries big awards, thank you so much to those that put me there. With all this good news I just might explode with joy... if, of course, my stupid character flaws would just stop getting in the way and spoiling the glee...
For all the shortlistings for the entire gamut of the NSW Premier's Awards for this year go here!
Dianne Bates - Crossing the Line
Michelle Cooper - A Brief History of Montmaray
D.M Cornish - Monster Blood Tattoo Book Two: Lamplighter
Alison Goodman - The Two Pearls of Wisdom
Nette Hilton - Sprite Downberry
Joanne Horrniman - My Candlelight Novel
I feel like a bit of an upstart occupying a list with such luminaries. VERY VERY gratified to be recognised in one the countries big awards, thank you so much to those that put me there. With all this good news I just might explode with joy... if, of course, my stupid character flaws would just stop getting in the way and spoiling the glee...
For all the shortlistings for the entire gamut of the NSW Premier's Awards for this year go here!
Cybils Fantasy/SciFi Shortlist 2008
Well, it is near two weeks since the peep of the year and have you heard anything from me..?!
I am very chuffed to break silence (as it were), do as others have done and post up a shortlist from the up and coming Cybils Awards in my own chosen genre, Fantasy & Science Fiction:
Cabinet of Wonders written by Marie Rutkoski, Macmillan
Graveyard Book written by Neil Gaiman, HarperCollins
Magic Thief written by Sarah Prineas, HarperCollins
Savvy written by Ingrid Law, Penguin USA
Airman written by Eoin Colfer, Hyperion
Curse Dark as Gold written by Elizabeth C. Bunce, Scholastic
Explosionist written by Jenny Davidson, HarperCollins
Graceling written by Kristin Cashore, Harcourt
Hunger Games, The written by Suzanne Collins, Scholastic
Wake written by Lisa McMann, Simon & Schuster
... and (*drum roll*)
Lamplighter written by some weird fellow surrounded by notebooks in a darkened room, Penguin USA.
A true and dare I admit astonishing honour - (watch for my over-use of this word in Book 3... :( - to be included amongst such lights. Congrats to us all, to the judges for hour upon hour of reading to get to this list, to anyone who dares attempt to write a book - shortlisted, awarded or otherwise - and to you most excellent folk who read! Thank you R.J. Anderson for pointing my shortlisting out to me; thank you Laini Taylor-Di Bartolo for you great summary and to you all for your continuing support.
Only a couple of weeks away from the 2008 Aurealis Awards too.
My head is so swollen at the moment I am having trouble fitting through doors and cannot drive my car. Of course, ego takes a big hit when confronted by the daily struggle with the English language, which often feels a lot like...
English language & Plot not doing what it ought to: 1 - D.M.Cornish: nil.
Never-the-less, we are getting there folks!
Klesita (welcome to you!) was asking... "Is it true that Jim Henson Co has the rights of the series? Do you still retain some kind of rights over the script that will allow you some control over the final product? It would be a shame if the movie trashes this beautiful/fearful/incredible world and its inhabitants..."
Yes, the Henson company does indeed have the rights to MBT; no, I think they have to right to make the story what they want it to be, and if I get any say in how it turns out it will be purely on the condescension of the director etc. I too am nervous of what the final product my morph into; I reckon at this very moment the Henson Company are probably nervous how I actually end the story (and me along with them) - so nerves all round.
Ben Bryddia ponders... "Do they have land mines in the Haacobin Empire? You know, big ceramic or porcelain spheres full of mordants, just waiting for some hulking unterman to step on, and crack open? Which makes me wonder, are there any poisonous potives of the gas variety?"
Not in the way we have landmines, no. More like buried or hidden bombs with long fuses, and with or without potives. There are devices known as belchpots (amongst other names): large cauldron-shaped pots of cheap iron or clay with a metal base plate and filled with black powder (sometimes called cannon char) and lots and lots of langridge (or langrage, read: shrapnel). These pots are then buried into the soil, their mouths pointed in the desired direction of the blast, and when needed are set off with a long fuse. Variable and messy, but very cheap and relatively simple to produce.
Most repellents and the like work on a rapid expansion in air principle, so it that sense much of a skold/legermain's arsenal is somewhat gaseous, if not to start with, certainly once "deployed". There are a few pure gas potives, but they are rare due to difficulties of storage (usually in a tightly stitched animal bladder of some variety).
Breakfast today: Apricot Fruity Bix
I am very chuffed to break silence (as it were), do as others have done and post up a shortlist from the up and coming Cybils Awards in my own chosen genre, Fantasy & Science Fiction:
Cabinet of Wonders written by Marie Rutkoski, Macmillan
Graveyard Book written by Neil Gaiman, HarperCollins
Magic Thief written by Sarah Prineas, HarperCollins
Savvy written by Ingrid Law, Penguin USA
Airman written by Eoin Colfer, Hyperion
Curse Dark as Gold written by Elizabeth C. Bunce, Scholastic
Explosionist written by Jenny Davidson, HarperCollins
Graceling written by Kristin Cashore, Harcourt
Hunger Games, The written by Suzanne Collins, Scholastic
Wake written by Lisa McMann, Simon & Schuster
... and (*drum roll*)
Lamplighter written by some weird fellow surrounded by notebooks in a darkened room, Penguin USA.
A true and dare I admit astonishing honour - (watch for my over-use of this word in Book 3... :( - to be included amongst such lights. Congrats to us all, to the judges for hour upon hour of reading to get to this list, to anyone who dares attempt to write a book - shortlisted, awarded or otherwise - and to you most excellent folk who read! Thank you R.J. Anderson for pointing my shortlisting out to me; thank you Laini Taylor-Di Bartolo for you great summary and to you all for your continuing support.
Only a couple of weeks away from the 2008 Aurealis Awards too.
My head is so swollen at the moment I am having trouble fitting through doors and cannot drive my car. Of course, ego takes a big hit when confronted by the daily struggle with the English language, which often feels a lot like...
English language & Plot not doing what it ought to: 1 - D.M.Cornish: nil.
Never-the-less, we are getting there folks!
Klesita (welcome to you!) was asking... "Is it true that Jim Henson Co has the rights of the series? Do you still retain some kind of rights over the script that will allow you some control over the final product? It would be a shame if the movie trashes this beautiful/fearful/incredible world and its inhabitants..."
Yes, the Henson company does indeed have the rights to MBT; no, I think they have to right to make the story what they want it to be, and if I get any say in how it turns out it will be purely on the condescension of the director etc. I too am nervous of what the final product my morph into; I reckon at this very moment the Henson Company are probably nervous how I actually end the story (and me along with them) - so nerves all round.
Ben Bryddia ponders... "Do they have land mines in the Haacobin Empire? You know, big ceramic or porcelain spheres full of mordants, just waiting for some hulking unterman to step on, and crack open? Which makes me wonder, are there any poisonous potives of the gas variety?"
Not in the way we have landmines, no. More like buried or hidden bombs with long fuses, and with or without potives. There are devices known as belchpots (amongst other names): large cauldron-shaped pots of cheap iron or clay with a metal base plate and filled with black powder (sometimes called cannon char) and lots and lots of langridge (or langrage, read: shrapnel). These pots are then buried into the soil, their mouths pointed in the desired direction of the blast, and when needed are set off with a long fuse. Variable and messy, but very cheap and relatively simple to produce.
Most repellents and the like work on a rapid expansion in air principle, so it that sense much of a skold/legermain's arsenal is somewhat gaseous, if not to start with, certainly once "deployed". There are a few pure gas potives, but they are rare due to difficulties of storage (usually in a tightly stitched animal bladder of some variety).
Breakfast today: Apricot Fruity Bix
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