My Gen Con Author Signing

Linda Baker, Paul Genesse, & Brad Beaulieu

at our Author's Alley Book Signing at Gen Con 2007

Hello,

I'm back from Indianapolis and Gen Con 2007. I had a great time with my Writers' Symposium friends. My book signing went well and I sold out of all my Pirates of the Blue Kingdoms books, so that was great. I should have got a few more books from the publisher, doh! My signing was with my great friends Brad Beaulieu and Linda Baker. We had a good time and met some cool people who came by to see us. Then my editor and fellow writer, John Helfers asked Brad and I to stay an extra hour and hang out with him. We stayed for a full two hours and kept busy with folks coming by--though I was out of books to sell.

My author reading went well later that night. I read from my short story, Almost Brothers, which is featured in the DAW anthology Fellowship Fantastic edited by Kerrie Hughes, coming out January 2008. I can't wait. I'm in the book with some great authors, like Alan Dean Foster, who I've loved for so many years. It's great being in a book with authors that I've grown up reading.

I met a lot of great people at Gen Con and it was my best Gen Con ever. I've been going for ten years now and just love Gen Con. Getting to see my friends is the best part. There just wasn't enough time to visit everyone long enough!

I'm just so happy that a bunch of my friends are breaking into writing. Kelly Swails got in with her short story Cake and Candy in the Pandora's Closet anthology, which also features Anton Strout. Anton has his first novel coming out soon and I can't wait to read it. Brad's story in the Man vs. Machine anthology is amazing and his career is starting to take off.

I of course bought lots of great books, some amazing art prints, and some other cool stuff. Gen Con just goes by so fast.

I really enjoyed being on the Writers' Symposium panels, which I think I was on seven? It was a good time. I attended the panels for years and now being on them is cool.

It was great meeting a ton of new friends and I'm looking forward to seeing them all again. The Writer's Symposium Ezine is about to get off the ground as well.

Well, I need to get back to writing a story due at the end of the week, then I'm off to work at the hospital tonight. Life is good and I hope all of you are doing great.

Best wishes,

Paul Genesse

Author of The Golden Cord
Book One of the Iron Dragon Series
Five Star Books (April 2008)

Imaginary Friends Anthology

Hello,

Well, just when I thought I couldn't get any busier, I've been invited as of August 7, to do a short story for an anthology called Imaginary Friends, from DAW Books, editors John Helfers and John Marco. The kicker is that the deadline is August 25. I'm going to have to get going fast to make this one, but I'm going to do it. I have Gen Con next week, August 15-19, but I'll make time and get it done somehow.

The description for the anthology is this: Many people have had them as a child--or perhaps even into their teen years or adulthood. This collection about those "real" imaginary friends would run the gamut from light and funny children's tales to dark fantasy and horror. The "friend" could be a ghost, a pet, a machine, something existing completely in the mind of the protagonist, maybe even a twisted take on something like a snowman, who only comes alive when a certain person is nearby.

So, my task is to get going and get a lot done in the next two weeks. I need a rough draft done soon. I have a rough story outline at this point, but the story is far from done. I've been prepping for the convention I'm going to in a few days. I'm on six panels on writing, and will be doing a signing and a reading. I'll be hanging out with three of my editors as well as a bunch of writing buddies, plus meeting the publisher of my Pirate Witch story. It's going to be great, but I need to write the Imaginary Friend story!!! So far, my idea involves a set of twin boys, hence the picture above. I don't want to write any more, but suffice it to say that something terrible might happen . . .

If any of you have had imaginary friends, send along your memories of them.

Oh, here's a writing update: I got two critiques back on my newest story, The Queen's Ransom. The second one came from my buddy Brad tonight. I've got to implement the corrections, but it's looking good. Then I have to send off the story tomorrow. The deadline is August 15, so I'm okay. Three deadlines in August. August 1 was my God Pays story for the Dimension Next Door anthology, then August 15 for The Queen's Ransom, now August 25 for Imaginary Friends. Ouch! Wish me luck.

Best wishes,

Paul Genesse

Author of The Pirate Witch
in Pirates of the Blue Kingdoms
www.popcornpress.com

Author of The Golden Cord
Book One of the Iron Dragon Series
Five Star Books, April 2008