AletheaKontis.com

One of the great things about a Con as huge as Dragon*Con is living through it vicariously. Thanks to all the newfangled inventions the whippersnappers of the twenty-first century have drummed up, there are tons of ways you can check out what’s going on as it happens…and even before it happens.

There’s already a buzz going on Twitter if you follow #dragoncon. Dragon*Con TV has already got a clip live called “Klingon Apartment” — you can watch it here. (Not my favorite bit, but I do like the t-shirt the guy on the left is wearing.) You can also check out the slew of updates, articles and interviews over at The Daily Dragon. Once it was just a colored flyer you grabbed each morning to check schedule changes — now The Daily Dragon has its own website and gets the ball rolling far ahead of time. There’s an interview with JF Lewis and one with Robert J. Sawyer… Heck, I already feel behind!

While scrolling back and perusing articles I’ve missed these past few days, I stumbled across the Unofficial Dragon*Con Photo Scavenger Hunt! I am SO incredibly tempted to snag a few of the items on this list, just because they’re hilarious…and Kodak moments in themselves for geeks anywhere.

The list:

1. Picture of yourself receiving your Badge
2. Four people waiting in line doing the YMCA (people do this? Ha…they will now!!)
3. Two people wearing the same t-shirt
4. Steampunk version of a non-Steampunk character*
5. Someone dressed up as a character from I Dream of Jeannie
6. A costume made completely out of duct tape (yeah. I’ve seen that chick.)
7. A Double Rainbow reference
8. Someone with a Lifetime Badge
9. Five Zombies*
10. Stormtrooper sweeping someone offstage at the Masquerade (I’ve never actually attended the Masquerade. I prefer to watch the madness from the green room.)
11. The pirate ship float during the Parade
12. Someone that has given blood at the Blood Drive
13. People eating in costume at a local restaurant
14. Group of people filking (How would a picture denote filking?)
15. An empty elevator at an official Dragon*Con hotel (One has to break sometime.)

Sci-Fi:
16. An Alien and Predator together*
17. A dead Red Shirt*
18. Three Slave Leia’s*
19. A Lego Star Wars costume*
20. Someone wearing Jayne’s orange hat*
21. Doctor Horrible*
22. Two Cylon Sixes*
23. A character from James Cameron’s Avatar with a character from Avatar the Last Airbender* (my personal favorite)
24. Two people in Star Trek uniforms from different series* (You could totally get this at the parade.)
25. Any one of the eleven Doctors brandishing a sonic screwdriver* (oooh, I got one of these a couple of years ago! Parade!)
26. A member of a Stargate Team with a Goa’uld, Tok’ra, or Jaffa*

Fantasy:
27. Four people wearing scarves from each of the Harry Potter houses*
28. Gandalf the Grey with Gandalf the White* (don’t think I’ve ever seen a Gandalf the White…)
29. Any vampire costume not Twilight related

Comics:
30. An original Adam West Batman*
31. A Superman comic book cover from between 1960 and 1970
32. At least 3 X-Men together*
33. A non-Christopher Nolan Joker* (HELLS YES. Gods, I hate that costume.)
34. A Silver Age comic costume*

Anime/Animation/Cosplay:
35. A cosplay from an anime that aired before the year 2000*
36. A full-size costume of an animated robot*
37. Marvin the Martian in any form (score!)

For more information, the full list, and details on fabulous prizes, click on over to The Daily Dragon!

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

By now you’ve heard if it — China’s massive 11-day-and-counting gridlock traffic jam. It apparently started with an overabundance of cargo-bearing trucks and was compounded by road construction. There’s already a microcosm blossoming with its own population and economic system of supply and demand. And more importantly…where are these poor people going to the bathroom?

Some of you may remember Elemental — that fabulous anthology I edited which was released by Tor in 2006, only a few months before the original AlphaOops. All the proceeds went to the Save the Children Tsunami Relief Fund (and they still do). The very first story, “Report From the Near Future: Crystallization” by David Gerrold started exactly like this, only the traffic jam was in LA. It detailed how one simple traffic jam brought Life As We Know It falling down around our ears and changed society forever.

David’s story was picked up for several “Best Of” anthologies — he wasn’t the only one of our authors who did so, a fact that bade me very proud. But I wish there was a special Nostradamus Award for writers like this, who inadvertently put their fingers right on the button of what happens years later, as if they saw it through a magic mirror and were simply reporting straight from the future.

How very Fringe.

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

So I’m packed for Dragon*Con–finally–and I’m waiting for my nails to dry. (Typing on a keyboard is a lovely way to do that without seriously screwing them up.) I’m terribly behind on my geek street cred: I never finished watching the last season of Doctor Who (mostly cause I didn’t want David Tennant to leave), nor did I watch Season 6 of Lost. I have, however, devoured the Hunger Games trilogy and caught up on Stargate:Universe. Most importantly, I feel out of the loop because I was not haunting Sherri’s cabin, breakfasting on hummus and looking over her shoulder while she finished No Mercy…which just feels strange. I don’t even know what her soundtrack for that book was.

I always have this feeling right before Dragon*Con — the feeling that in order to pick up my VIP badge I’m going to be forced to take an IQ test and answer a series of questions as to the true level of geekness in my nature. This year, more than most, I feel like I’d come up lacking. Instead of reading every Blackest Night prequel graphic novel, I went and quit my job, ran away from home, and sold a bunch of stories to a bunch of anthologies while waiting on news about my novel. (I’d say any day now, but it’s been “any day now” for almost a year and I don’t want you guys to punch me.)

It’s that horrible double-edged sword of convention-going: If you don’t go to enough conventions, you run the risk of people forgetting who you are (and you forgetting how to interact with them). If you go to too many conventions, when the heck do you have time to do any work? My dearest bosom buddy Leanna Hieber reminded me that while I do miss my friends–and am going through a rather horrible adjustment and withdrawl regarding them–I need to go back to the beginning. I need to find me again, and find what’s important. I need to finish some things that I started…and then start new things.

The coolest part is, I’m actually starting to THINK of new things. My fairy goddaughters have been my muses. They remind me so often what I was like when I was their age, brimming with emotions and stories untold. Of how happy I was in a room by myself with a pink-papered notebook and a purple pen. (Because we had those things back in the 80′s.) It was just me and the words and no one else…until it was me and Casey sitting on the dock, exchanging stories, and then me and Margo and Chris passing a notebook back and forth and writing a novel.

My friends were always there–and will always be there. I’m going to see quite a few of them tomorrow night. But the writing came first. The writing always came first. So forgive me if you haven’t seen much of me this year in person — please know that I miss you too. Immensely. But an exiled princess is still a princess, and her kingdom will flourish wherever she goes.

If you’re going to be at Dragon*Con, please find me and say hi. I’d love to see you. I’ll be the girl dressed like a fairy princess trying to remember that she’s a geek. xox

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

Remember how Rick Novy (editor of the 2020 Visions anthology) was writing up a brief piece on each person in the anthology and why he picked their story? Well, today is my day and Rick says some very lovely things, both about me and “Pocket Full of Posey”. I won’t spoil it for you — Click on over there and check it out.

I always love hearing the whys and wherefores behind stories and the reasons editors choose them. One can never have enough insight.

There’s your challenge for the day — go be insightful!

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

The cover for Issue #9 Beautiful art by Tom Brown! Design, layout and editing by Danny Evarts. It’s creepy and gorgeous all at the same time. And green, which is my favorite color, so no complaints from me. No sirree Bob.

The funny part is that when I first saw the cover, my eye immediately landed on Lon Prater‘s name. Dear Lon is a longtime friend and fellow Codex Writer. He’s a brilliant poet and not-too-shabby cake chef. He shares another ToC with me this year — in the Dark Faith anthology.

And the first thing I thought was, “That darn Lon gets his name on the cover of the Shroud magazine OF COURSE. Figures I don’t even get a mentio–”

And then I saw the right-hand side of the cover.

Ah. Oh. Uh-huh. Nevermind.I’ll shut up now.

But I still can’t wait to check out what Lon’s got. I’m a big fan.

You can purchase Shroud issue 9 directly from their website (pick up a subscription), or keep an eye on your local newsstand!

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

You kids and your newfangled contraptions…

Thanks to a dutiful Google Alert, I am happy to report that Beauty & Dynamite is available on Smashwords. Check it out here — it lets you read the first bunch of pages for free (score!), but you have to pay (thank you) a mere $2.99 to read the rest. No fancy reader needed; it will display right on your desktop. Voila. Magic.

Looks like you can pick up Harlan County Horrors as well. What a bargain!

(okay…does one “pick up” a book if one downloads the electronic format? Grumblegrumble whippersnappers.)

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

Rick Novy has posted the Table of Contents for his 2020 Visions anthology:

1. Mary Robinette Kowal – Birthright
2. Sheila Finch – The Persistence of Butterflies
3. Randy Henderson – A Shelter for Living Things
4. Jason S. Ridler – Showing Light
5. Ernest Hogan – Radiation is Groovy, Kill the Pigs
6. David Lee Summers – The Revelation of Thought
7. Jeff Spock – Teh Afterl1fe (This is not a typo – Rick)
8. Emily Devenport – If the Sun’s at Five O’Clock, It Must be Yellow Daisies
9. Cat Rambo – Therapy Buddha
10. Jack Mangan – Dead Rookies
11. David Boop – Organ Cloning While You Wait
12. Spencer Ellsworth – The Black Plague of Our Generation
13. Gareth L. Powell – The Bigger The Star, The Faster It Burns
14. Alethea Kontis – Pocket Full of Posey
15. Alex Wilson – Nervewrecking
16. David Gerrold – Time Capsule 2120: Actual Comments from Lunar Tourists

I *just* missed making the lucky 13 slot!  I couldn’t be more honored to be in this amazing company of writers. Aren’t familiar with their names? That’s okay — over on Rick’s blog he is spotlighting one author a day for two weeks. (Week one is already posted.) He talks about the author, who they are, and a little bit about their story (without being spoileriffic). It’s a great way to gear up for the publication!

More updates (cover, release date, etc) as events warrant.

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

Back in July, a bunch of Apex authors received an email from Jason Sizemore outlining another one of his crazy schemes. He was all excited, jumping up and down (one can imagine), frothing at the mouth (one supposes), and going on and on about how great this e-anthology he’s come up with is going to be. He’s offering nickles for reprints and dimes for originals, but it’s going to be available almost instantly for pennies. The stories have to be horror, just horror, no other constraints. It will be a great avenue for promoting Apex and her authors (I always think of that Alien Head as the Queen) and please send Jason something by the end of the month, thanks.

I chuckled as I closed the email and set it on the back burner. I write fairy tales and dark fantasy and the occasional ghost story, but I’ve never just written horror. Hmmm.

I told the Fairy Godfamily about Jason’s email on the way to the beach for the 4th of July weekend. I heard a similar “Hmmm” from Ariell in the backseat. She and I had previously discussed doing a collaboration. Perhaps this might be the venue? I told her I’d forward her the details when we got home. Perhaps we could think of something.

Two days later, Ariell and Kassidy and I were lying on sandy beach towels in massive amounts of pain, having been stung by stupid jellyfish. Tomo, who skedaddled when we spotted the first jelly, was attempting to distract us with a story of some girl in high school who got crapped upon by a seagull and was called an unfortunate name (think “craphead”, only worse) for the rest of term.

“We could write a story about a boy who gets crapped on by a seagull and then kills everyone who laughs at him,” I thought aloud. “A summer teen slasher short story. Why not?”

“You could kill all the kids from Awesome Porch,” offered Kassidy, who is never at a loss for victims.

“I could write the death scenes,” said Ariell, who knows my weakness when it comes to writing. I just don’t get gory.

“We’ll call it ‘Life’s a Beach,’” I said. I pulled out my little yellow notebook and we all decided who should die and how. Ariell took the notes and emailed me the death scenes when we got home. Then she hounded me for days asking if I had finished the story…because Ariell knows all my weaknesses when it comes to writing.

I finished it. For her. We read it aloud to Kassidy, who approved. We sent it off to Jason and crossed our fingers. He responded, highly amused at what we’d done and said it would be perfect for the anthology.

The last time I spoke to Jason, he didn’t even have a title for the anthology yet. I guess he got one quick — Apexology: Horror — as well as a cover, ’cause it went on sale yesterday. Go on, order it. Support Ariell’s first professional sale! For only $2.99, you download a .zip file with all the epub fonts and pdfs your little heart desires. Scanning the ToC, I’m not sure which stories are originals and which are reprints, thought I recognize a few. All I can tell you is, if you’re up for a silly teen slasher story, the one Ariell and I wrote is definitely worth $2.99 all by itself.

Thanks, guys. And congratulations Ariell!

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

So here’s what happened:

Rich Ristow put together a poetry chapbook called These Apparitions, containing poems written in the style of Ezra Pound or William Carlos Williams. He accepted submissions and completed the chapbook…and then the project moved to a different publisher (Needfire Press). With the move to Needfire came a bonus: the book will now be available on major websites (like Amazon) and not just the publisher’s site. It also came with a caveat: the chapbook needed to be 20 pages longer to meet Needfire’s publishing requirements.

My lovely friend Kevin Lucia was already part of the poetry chapbook. When he found out about the need for more content, he sent the word out to those of us in his address book who might be inclined to participate in such a venture.

The pay was minimal, but poetry has always been a love of mine, so I figured: What the heck? Give it a shot! I scribbled something down, Rich got back to me quickly with his comments, and we worked to make an acceptable poem out of my concept. It was a wonderful experience…and one I thought would be fabulous to share with Ariell Branson — my student, Padawan, and co-author of “Life’s a Beach” (more on that later). I encouraged Ariell to submit to the chapbook, for the experience if nothing else. (Rich is very generous with his feedback.)

What emerged was far more than I expected. That damn girl’s a natural…it kid of makes me sick. She’s a breeze at cover letters, she shrugs at rejection, and when Rich gave her guidance and asked her to write another poem she did. TWICE. He accepted her third entry. I didn’t even help on that one. She did it all by herself.

So THAT’S what happened.

I am proud to say I will now be sharing a ToC with Kevin Lucia AND Ariell Branson, along with a laundry list of many other talented genre poets. These Apparitions will be released in September or October. It’s not up on Amazon yet, but keep an eye on the Needfire website for updates. I’ll also be posting the information here as soon as I know it.

Hip, hip, hooray! Thank you, Kevin. And congratulations, Ariell!

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...

Here’s the review in full.

They got my name, the title, and the ISBN right this time. AND a star. I really couldn’t be happier.

***********************

AlphaOops: H is for Halloween

Alethea Kontis, illus. by Bob Kolar, Candlewick, $15.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-7636-3966-2
In a raucous follow-up to AlphaOops! The Day Z Went First, chaos ensues when the letters of the alphabet put on a disorderly stage production about Halloween. Z insists that H kick things off, and the letters show off their costumes–G is a goblin, V a vampire–except for B, whose buccaneer and blackbird ideas are stolen by P (a pirate) and C (a crow). The letters appear in correct order along the bottom of the pages, but with a surplus of witty asides, the emphasis is on fun. Ages 4–8. (July)

(No Ratings Yet)

 Loading ...