Author: M.E. Garber

I'm an itinerant Ohio-born speculative fiction writer now living in central Florida.
awards, conventions, Nebula Awards, the dog

Nebula Award Conference 2023

M.E. Garber

I’m “back” from a weekend attending the virtual component of SFWA’s Nebula Award Conference. It was a great time, filled with meeting new people, rekindling old relationships, and enjoying the company of other SFF writers–those who just “get” my time of weird. I had so many great conversations in the breakout rooms, and wonderful insights listening to the panelists, and to the other audience members’ comments in the livechat feature of the online panels, too.

Congratulations to the winners (who can be found here or here at File 770), and the new award recipients (Octavia Butler for the new Infinity Award–hurray!!) and especially to our new Grandmaster, Robin McKinley! And you can still watch the livestream of the ceremony over on YouTube here. And let me remind you that if you missed out, you can still buy a membership to the Awards Conference and gain access to the full spread of panel recordings, and watch those panels at your leisure over the next year! You’ll also be able to participate in other Nebula-member activities throughout the year, including the Weekly Writing Dates hosted by a variety of interesting and wonderful authors (including some timed specifically for parts of the world outside the US), Romancing SFF Monthly Meetups, and many other “Connecting Flights” of interesting programming throughout the year. Look HERE under “Upcoming Airship Events” for upcoming events and to sign up.

Now that I’m back on Eastern Time (well, almost. I’m still a bit tired and out of sorts today, after living a full weekend on Pacific Time), I’m back at the “normal” writing routine. In addition, today I played catch-up on all the chores that fell by the wayside, including reading work for my crit group this upcoming weekend, and playing “submission Tetris” with my short fiction. Whew. Oh, and of course, time was spent spoiling the dog, who hated the fact he had only ONE human at his beck and call for the length of the weekend. Poor spoiled thing!

Requisite picture of the dog, looking regal in his “Mona Lisa” pose–two different backgrounds, and showing a slight, indefinable smile around his tennis ball.

Tomorrow I get to return to the plotting and wrestling into shape of the a new novel–one dealing with crows, and magic, home and belonging (or not), family and obligation (or not). And who knows what else, since I’m not done with this part yet!

Speaking of which, I need to get back at it. Happy Monday to you all!

Today's Desk, Writing

Writer’s Desk, 04/22/23

M.E. Garber

Out the Window: a pure blue arc of sky that presages a really HOT and HUMID day. A very good day to stay indoors and write–how convenient!

On the Desktop: a total mess of notes, notebooks, 3″ x 5″ cards, a copy of the book “Story Genius” by Lisa Cron, a water bottle, pens…. You get the idea. I could lose a hamster on this thing.

Today’s Work-in-Progess: Figuring out the next book. I have the basic idea, but need to work out a plot (yeah, I know, that tiny detail–LOL) and the why behind the plot. So yes, I have lots of work ahead of me.

Once I get the basics down, though, I get to the fun part: outlining!

No, really! I love outlining. It’s where my creativity is allowed to shine, where I move characters and actions around, decide on smaller plot points, and really dig into the “meat” of the story. My method has changed with each novel, but with the last one I seemed to have hit on something that really worked for me, so I’ll be using that again. It’s a combination of notes in Scrivener, 3 x 5 cards of random plot points, following prompts in “Story Genius” for the initial ideation, and eventually moving over to an Xcel spreadsheet (honest!) for the story plot, chapter by chapter. It sounds messy as anything, but hey–it works for me.

And Another Thing: Warmer weather means the pool is open, and Dasher is thrilled beyond measure! He loves swimming, and leaping into the water after his frisbee. And swimming is easy on his arthritic joints, so he can be active far longer than he can run in the yard chasing that frisbee (so I’m happy, too). Of course, we usually join Dash in enjoying the water. It feels good on our joints, too. 🙂

And A Second Another Thing: You might want to flip on over to the “Library” link, where reader Ellie has kindly shared a link to a lovely trove of writing information–from getting started to getting published to publishing yourself. Thanks, Ellie!

Nature, the dog, Writing

Spring Renewal

M.E. Garber

It’s been quiet here recently. Too quiet. I hope that’s about to change.

Winter was a difficult time, with lots of “baggage” piling up on me and dragging my ability to post here into non-existence. I won’t bore you with the details, because we all know life is full of woes, so let’s move on to good news.

What good news, you ask? I finished the last editing draft of my novel, and yesterday it went out into the world, on its first round of agent querying. Hurray! It’s a book I love, with characters I adore, and a calligraphy-based magic system that I only wish were real (um, maybe; there is a dark side to the magic, of course…).

In more good news, Dasher remains seizure-free for (checks calendar) going on a year-and-a-half! I’m ready to call the vet neurology department and see about reducing his seizure meds–cross your fingers! At 9.5 years old, Dash certainly deserves to live his silver years as happily as possible.

Dasher shows his silver, but still loves a tennis ball

Spring is here, going on the third time around, I think? We keep blasting by pleasant into summery HEAT, then diving back down again. But it’s Florida, so I guess I should expect the unexpected, right? Anyway, I’ve enjoyed the weather letting me enjoy the outdoors, and I’m really glad for the return of rain! We’ve been too dry for months, and it was getting hard keeping up with watering needs. My orchids have been pouting, let me tell you!

Let me leave you with a pair of pics from the garden. I took the chrysalis picture yesterday, after having found it while cutting the grass. The other I took this morning, when I found the newly-emerged monarch butterfly drying its wings. How lucky I was to get each of these shots! Hope you enjoy them, and whatever springtime Mother Nature is sending your way.

Magic of the Everyday, Personal Life, winter holidays

A Quick Post on the Coming of the Winter Holidays

M.E. Garber

Santa’s Little SweatshopTM has been open since late October, and isn’t done yet. Today I’m making pecan pie truffles and stuffed gnomes, and perhaps some kind of cookie, too. The dog is snoring contentedly on the upholstered chair in my office, the one that keeps me in his sight (he’d prefer my lap, but I’ve got things to get up for, over and over again.)

In light of that, my post today is short. I wish each of you a happy holiday season, regardless which version of the winter holidays you may celebrate. I wish the world itself a better 2023, and peace worldwide. To every person, healing, health, contentment, and community. And here’s my gift to you: this amazing poem, which honestly I’ve forgotten how/where I found:

Magic of the Everyday, Nature, Personal Life, Writing

We Survived Hurricane Ian Just Fine, and other updates…

M.E. Garber

So yeah, you might have heard of Hurricane Ian? It passed nearly overtop of us. Fortunately, not as a hurricane, but “only” as tropical storm.

We got incredibly lucky. We lost an old grapefruit tree laden with nearly-ripe fruit, and a banana tree with a bloom-spike covered with our first banana harvest, and had sticks, branches and such everywhere. But that was all. We didn’t flood, though for some few hours we were confined to our subdivision by deep water at the entrance–not an issue as the rain and winds were still more than I wanted to go driving through. Somehow, amazingly, we didn’t even lose power.

After prepping for the storm, then clean-up, then putting things back where they normally are (and removing hurricane shutters), we’ve gotten back to what our definition of “normal” is. Even Dasher is happy, now that we’re done being stressed. Especially since his sunshine is back for daily sunbathing, which is his second most favorite thing, right after peanut butter.

On Monday, I completed the edit of my novel draft. I honestly can’t believe it. The Mastery Books is coming in at about 92,000 words, and I think it’s one of the best works of long fiction I’ve ever written. I had a momentary “YAY” moment, and now…I get the sheer drudgery of writing the query letter, then the synopsis. It’s a necessary evil, I know that. And I’ll work at it until I craft one that works–however long that may take. But as far as I’m concerned, it’s still an evil.

The days are warming up again, but the nights and evenings are staying deliciously cool and non-humid. It’s “windows open” time, and I’m enjoying this so very much. This afternoon, the sound of leaves crunching outside my office alerted me to what became an amazing sight: two anoles repeatedly attacking one another, rolling into balls of frenzied action before one would throw the other 3 or so inches away. Then a standoff, and they’d do it again. This went on for some time, eventually moving out of my view (no, I’m not sure who won).

I’d never seen anoles do more than posture at one another, doing their “menacing push-ups” and flashing their throat sacs. I didn’t know they’d actually fight so viciously, or for so long! Thank you, open window!

Now I’m beginning to work up my ideas for my next novel, and get that rolling, though I can hardly believe it. I’ve got a few thoughts, but they need more work and expanding. This is the truly fun part, where everything and anything is possible! Wheeeeee!

sale, Viable Paradise

Sale Announcement!

M.E. Garber

I’ve just received an acceptance letter! Excited to announce that my story, “Two Letters Crossing Paths through the FairyMail” will appear in the anthology 99 Fleeting Fantasies, a collection of flash fiction fantasy stories. From the call for submissions:

Magic and mystery, gods and goblins, curses and crystals. Give us your fleeting fantasies. All of them. From traditional to epic to urban to science to whatever you can come up with as long as it is fantasy. Give me fantastical stories that delight, amaze, frighten, and mystify. Gritty and low level to universe shaking. Swords and sorcery. Djinns and elder gods in the garden. Fairy rings in space. Spells gone awry. Broken curses. Stolen artifacts. Prophecies come true. Wishing wells with personality. Any type of fantasy is on the table as long as it has a fantastical element to it.

In addition, I’m also pleased that I’ll be sharing the table of contents with one of my VP XVII cohort, Elizabeth Walker, for the first time. So awesome!

I don’t have much more information right now, but I’ll be sure to make more available to you once I have that info–as if you had any doubt, lol. Anyway, it makes a great start to a short, post-holiday week.

Magic of the Everyday, Personal Life

Autumn’s Arrival

M.E. Garber

Even here, in the heat and humidity of central Florida, it’s clear that the season is shifting from summer into autumn. For the last few weeks, the oaks, in particular, have drooped a bit more as if weary from battling the heat, and their once-intensely-green leaves have shifted to a drab olive. Now they’re beginning to drop acorns onto the sidewalks, where they crunch mightily underfoot (and boy do I enjoy that crunch, the way it pops and the sense of that pop shivers up my foot and ankle with the sound!)

Add to this the mushrooms suddenly sprouting everywhere–small ones under the oak tree. A huge one in the neighbor’s lawn where just yesterday nothing marred the green of their St Augustine grass, and another like it halfway around the block, and equally isolated! Such mysteries they are, secretive yet lovely.

The squirrels are busy eating every magnolia seedpod, stripping the “fluff” to get the nutritious red “berries” nestled within, and the hawk who earlier this year was catching anole lizards has finally–finally!–progressed to eating squirrels! The ibis flocks are all the of white adults, with no more brown or speckled juveniles in their midst, and the tiny ducklings are grown.

And, finally, after weeks and weeks of little rain, the rain has returned, and now the National Hurricane Center is tracking two disturbances that could become hurricanes, one red (very likely to progress) and the other orange (maybe will progress). So, yes, it’s autumn, even here in the south.

I’m looking forward to opening my windows, to sitting outdoors, to becoming more active in my gardens–all the things folks up north do in the summer, I do in fall and winter, when it’s cool enough. Even Dasher’s been perkier during the evening walks, since the rains leave the temps dropped to bearable for a few hours, at least. His pace is fast, and I’m forced to speed-walk–something I’ve almost forgotten how to do since all the long summer I’ve been the one pushing him forward!

Did I mention fall is my favorite season? Even here, in the south? LOL, I bet you guessed.

I do miss nature’s vibrant leafy displays from up north, and those first frosty nights, and the hearty meals to counteract them. But I’m looking forward to the new crop of fresh citrus, and freshly-pressed orange juice for breakfast, and eating outdoors. Raking leaves? Well, not so much joy there. St Augustine grass has runners that the rake catches and it’s just annoying. But it’ll be that time all too soon, and the exercise will be good for me.

Until then, back to writing, and reading, and other indoor pursuits. And may fall be glorious for us all.

goals, Writing

Draft Finished!

M.E. Garber

Yesterday I finished the first draft of my calligraphy-magic novel, The Mastery Books.

Let me repeat that: I finished my novel’s first draft! OMG you have no idea I just…HURRAY!

I’d anticipated the book coming in between 90,000-95,000 words, with an goal of the finished book (however many edit drafts later that comes) to be closer to 90,000 words. And guess what? This draft ended at 91,450 words. I just…Wow. I’m in shock. It’s so close to my anticipated goal!!! I’m done and 100% on target!

I used a new outlining method for this one, and man did it work for me like nobody’s business! My outline was 2-3 columns in an Excel spreadsheet for each chapter, one column for actions, the next for emotions and immediate reactions that lead to the next chapter, and the third for “hey don’t forget this; the bad guy is thinking this,” etc–notes to myself more than story plotting.

Now I get a couple weeks to play with short fiction, read a crit partner’s book, drink daiquiri’s in the sun… well, okay, maybe not that last one (not too much, at least). But some time away, to let me forget this story so that when I come back to read and edit, it’ll seem fresh and I’ll see the stuff I need to fix.

How am I celebrating, you may ask. Well, the AC repair guy is here…so with continued air conditioning! (yeah, not my favorite way to celebrate, either) Actually, I’m giving myself an entire day to play one day next week. A complete day off, no time spent at the keyboard at all, no errands. It sounds glorious.