Hunting for Dragons

Ah! It was so amazing to catch up with my former flatmate from Oxford, Megan! She’s my favorite dragon, and it’s gladdening to know that I can just pick up with her as though we’ve never stopped living together, even though it’s been… what, four years?

I had a very non-productive weekend (read: I did NO WORK ON APPRENTICE), but the market was lovely yesterday, and I had yet another delicious lunch. I WILL LOSE A STONE YET!

Heading back to Oxford this week, meeting up with some old friends, doing a SEKRIT SIGNING)… much excitement! I proooomise, however, to make sure I get some work done on Apprentice, as chapter eight is nearly finished and I’ll be proactively hunting for beta-readers.

Also, people are starting to finish up Librarian and the reviews are pretty nice! Check it out on Amazon!

Working Hard (Needz Visa)

Hello from Blighty!

I’m currently sitting in a local pub, drinking far too much beer and eating food less healthful than I should be. I justify this by walking over 5 miles a day, hitting up all the shops in London that I shouldn’t be blowing my royalties on.

That being said, I love pub writing, and I’ve now cleared that horrible hurdle of writer’s block that was chapter six of Apprentice. Clear sailing into chapter seven, and I’m pumping out about 3000 words a day so far (well, it’s only been two days, but stil…)!

Hopefully by the time I head back to the States (1) the first draft of Apprentice should be ready to be torn apart by my editor/beta-readers, and (2) the weather there should be less horrible.

Oh well, back to work! And to my UK fans, my short-run for signed copies of Librarian here are running out, so if you need one, make sure to track me down ASAP!

xoxo

Brian

Almost a Pumpkin

The hour is nearly there! At midnight EDT, my Goodreads giveaway officially ends! Out of the 1000+ people who have entered, the lucky winner could be YOU and you could find yourself in possession of your very owned signed copy of Librarian! If you haven’t entered, you should do so ASAP, ’cause time is running out, and it’s a damn good book.

Due to family issues and misc. drama, not much work was made on Apprentice this week, but on Friday I’m going back to England for a monthAre you excited? I am! IT MEANS WRITING TIME WITH LOTS OF BEER!

On another happy note, my garden yielded its bounty unto me and I’m confit-ing the crap out of it. 🙂 Stay cool outside, kiddos (and read).

Confit Time

July, Come Back!

This month has practically FLOWN by, meaning my Goodreads giveaway only has a week or so left, so if you haven’t entered to win a signed copy of Librarian (paperback only), you should do so! Stat!

We’ve had some miserable weather, some family troubles, and in my own case, a bit of writer’s block this month, so I wish I could rewind and start it over on a better foot. Don’t worry, though, Apprentice is still on track; chapters 1-5 are already out to early beta-readers, and barring any more of this horrific slump I’m in I should be able to get a couple more chapters in before I head off to England.

Worry not, though: I’ll still be hard at work even though I’m technically on vacation (just most likely I’ll be working from a pub instead of my office).

Keep cool, kiddos!

x

Meltybao

Holy crapola, kids, this is quite a heatwave! I woke up this morning at 8 am and it was already 82 F. This week is supposed to be mega-hot-super-sassy-sauce, and it’s making me think of that hysterical Black Books episode when Manny turns into a neanderthal.  Well, those who get it, get it.

I’ll try to keep up my steady resolve, though! Yesterday I cranked out 3540 words on Apprentice, finishing up chapter five. That at least makes me feel a big better about the huge amounts of nothing I did over the weekend.

In further news, the Goodreads giveaway for Librarian is half over, so if you haven’t entered to win a free signed copy, you’d better sign up soon!

WAIT! Summer Vacation

…it’s happening! I had enough miles banked up with Virgin that I scored a free ticket back to England, so I’ll be there from 2 August until 2 September! In addition to being very excited about seeing all my old mates and visiting my haunts in Oxford, it means I’ll have a lot of time to work on Apprentice (from pubs).

Also, I’ve scored my first official book signing of Librarian — September 7th (Sat) at 1 pm and the Barnes & Noble in Brick, NJ.  Nervous as anything, but I have my fingers crossed that it’ll be a success.

No Summer Vacation

There’s no rest for the wicked, it seems. I’m trying to stay positive this morning, even though I DIDN’T SLEEP and the very first pen I touched exploded, so now I have one very black hand. This isn’t doesn’t come off, precious.

In happier news, I’m hoping to get some work on Apprentice done today; specifically chapter four, as my de fact editor was in a bit of a state about the cliffhanger at the end of chapter three. Tee-hee. O:)

BIGGER NEWS! Are you a member of Goodreads? If not, I have the BEST reason to join: for the next month, I’ll be giving away TEN SIGNED COPIES OF LIBRARIAN. Winners will be decided August 1!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Librarian by Brian Fence

Librarian

by Brian Fence

Giveaway ends July 31, 2013.

See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.

Enter to win

I’m American!

Who knew? Finally, a little justice for the LGBT community; common sense and decency prevailed, and now the federal government recognizes that I have the same rights as a heterosexual! Huzzah!

GOODBYE DOMA!

…in further news, the first three chapters of Apprentice are complete and being beta-read. I’m crankin’ this stuff out, so those who haven’t picked up Librarian — you’d better get cracking!

A Bao Flies at 428 mph

The beauty of Virgin America is that if you’re willing to cough up the cash (and I am, of course; it’s a business expense) you get wi-fi, so transcontinental flights aren’t nearly as dull as they used to be.  Combined with the fact there’s a “booze button” in the display panel in front of me, I’d say I’m pretty well sorted.

Though I should be reading Librarian on my kindle YET AGAIN to look for more errors, I decided to tackle a short story starring a character who was actually created long before Lenna and her comrades — Tenny Orange.  In the grand, cosmic scheme of Bao’s universe, Tenny has his own arc much like Lenna, and the discerning reader will start to notice some connection, I imagine.

The short story is going to be featured in Moon Rabbit Publishing’s (our imprint!) first ‘zine, mooncrisis!, which it set for launch this summer.  We’re still looking for submissions — artwork, photography, short stories, reviews, or essays pertaining to science, science fiction, fantasy, and the like.  Interested parties contact ME, the Bao!

Anyway, it’s time to press the booze button again.  Chin chin!