Untitled Writers' Group

A History of Nancy Drew — Lisa

Hark back to your childhood. This one's for everyone who has read Nancy Drew or The Hardy Boys— a short history.

Enjoy!

Angels in the Hood--Steven Harper Piziks

I got my author copies of FIVE SEASONS OF ANGEL yesterday. It's looks really spiffy. My and Laura Anne's essays shine like jewels . . . with a small flaw in mine.

The word "evangelist" was changed to "evAngelust" throughout my essay (except for the first use). I couldn't figure out how this happened at first. It wasn't in the page proofs I got, and the odd capitalization certainly wasn't anything normal.

I think what happened is that in another essay, another author wrote "Angelis" instead of "Angelus" several times. Rather than make each correction by hand, the typesetter told the computer to replace "Angelis" with "Angelus," not realizing that this would also convert "evangelist" to "evAngelust" in =my= essay.

Ummm . . . oops?

--Steven Harper Piziks

Kerrytown Bookfest, September 12 by Lisa

The second Kerrytown Bookfest will be held at the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market this Sunday, September 12. Events run from 11am to 5pm. Come listen to authors, editors, librarians, and others discuss all facets of writing and publishing. Buy cool and unusual books, old and new, from the booksells.

And for those SF&F fans... at 3pm join local SF literature expert Eric Rabkin, UWG author Sarah Zettel, and biologist Kathyrn Tosney discuss science fiction on the "Crossing Imaginations: A Conversation Between Science and Science Fiction Science & Science Fiction Authors" panel.

Interviews--Steven Harper Piziks

Two interviews with me came on-line at the same time! You can find them at:

http://www.bookhelpweb.com/ or
http://www.bookhelpweb.com/authors/piziks/piziksprint.htm

and

http://www.quartertofour.com/bloodynews/interviews/piziks.html

--Steven

EXORCIST--Steven Harper Piziks

EXORCIST: THE BEGINNING has only just hit the stands (the movie doesn't open until August 20), and the fan mail is already coming in. Hmmf. My Silent Empire books never got this kind of attention.

Maybe there will actually be some crossover readership--they got my e-mail address from my web site, so they must know I write other books under another name. Yeah, yeah. That's the ticket.

Bakka Book Store Review of Sarah Zettel

Russian! -- Steven Harper Piziks

Today in my mailbox I found a small package wrapped in brown paper and tied with twine. It had enough stamps on it to start an independent nation. Puzzled, I plucked it out of the box and saw the return address from a publisher in Russia. Light dawned! DREAMER was translated into Russian many months ago, and these must be the author copies.

I opened the package. Hardbacks! With the original cover! And I can't read a word of it! :)

Pics at my blog: http://www.sff.net/people/spiziks/blog.html

--Steven

VOYA Best Genre Fiction List by Sarah

The following titles made the VOYA "Best Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror" list for 2003

THE USURPER'S CROWN Sarah Zettel
MISTRESS OF DRAGONS Margaret Weis
THE WHITE DRAGON Laura Resnick
NEW SKIES Patrick Nielsen Hayden
MEMORY Linda Nagata
DARKNESSES L.E. Modesitt
FLIP David Lubar
THE OUTSTRETCHED SHADOW Mercedes Lackey
THE ALCHEMIST'S DOOR Lisa Goldstein
THE WRECK OF THE RIVER STARS Michael Flynn
THE CRYSTAL CITY Orson Scott Card
FIRST MEETINGS Orson Scott Card
SPIRITS IN THE WIRES Charles De Lint
Best Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Horror

• VOYA is the only publication that deals exclusively with YA and teenage books and book reviews. The publication boasts a circulation of 15,000.

• This list includes only titles that are "highly rated" by VOYA reviewers. All books chosen for VOYA Book lists are chosen based on a code system grading books for Quality, Popularity and Grade Level Interest.

• The Best Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror List is published annually in the April issue.

• VOYA practices youth advocacy and youth participation, facilitating and enabling youth to make their own reading choices and decisions.

· This list significantly influences library and school purchases and recommendation within the educational community.

*For the complete list see the April VOYA*

Needless to say, I'm really, really happy to have a title on this list.

A Fine Review--Steven Harper Piziks

In the May issue of SF CHRONICLE, we have a review of PATH OF THE JUST, the superhero antho in which Steven Harper has a story. The review says, in part:

" . . . [E]very story has its strengths, while some stand head and shoulders above the rest. My personal favorites had to be Steven Grant's 'Citizens' . . . and 'Ion Shells' by Steven Harper, which looks at an unusual relationship blossoming between a superhuman thief and the hero who keeps running afoul of him."

He also mentions "Covalent Bonds," by fellow Untitled Writers Grouper Erica Schippers in a positive light.

We'll take it.

2003 Nebula Award Winners by Lisa

Best Novel: Speed of Dark, by Elizabeth Moon
Best Novella: Coraline, by Neil Gaiman
Best Novelette: The Empire of Ice Cream, by Jeffrey Ford
Best Short Story: What I Didn't See, by Karen Joy Fowler
Best Script: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, by Fran Walsh & Philippa Boyens & Stephen Sinclair & Peter Jackson

The SFWA website has more information about Nebula Weekend, including blogs and reports.

I'm so pleased that Speed of Dark won. It is an amazing story told from the unique point of view of a mildly autistic man.