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This Issue:
Chance Encounters | Events
| Online Stores | Chance for the
Future | Hope for Tomorrow | Faith
in the Past | Upcoming Projects
October
7 , 2002
The temperature
has started to drop. We've been getting some much-needed rain here in
Colorado. And Faith in the Past is finally with the publisher.
I apologize for not putting out a September edition of the Chance Encounters
Update but I was, to say the least, busy.
In addition
to finishing the editorial tweaks needed to complete the third Fairlight
novel and facing some changes in my duties to my online community (see
below), I've also had a few side projects to work on. I've been helping
fellow author, Jonathan Martin, in an editorial capacity on some of his
work. I've been working with upcoming author Chuck Moses on a series of
fourteen cartoon illustrations for a book he is writing. And I've recently
designed the cover for Aaron Buche's latest book, 73 More Things That
Make Me Say Bad Words.
Read
on to discover the fate of the Chance Encounters online author community
as well as the possibility of getting your hands on a hardcover Collector's
Edition of Faith in the Past.
Chance
Encounters
| iU
Sci-Fi & Fantasy Community
| PaulCarhart.com
Let me just say
that there are no new articles at Chance Encounters. Indeed, the last
article to be posted at the Chance Encounters online author community
has likely already been up for many weeks.
Allow me to elaborate.
This newsletter update originally started as a means to keep my readers
and supporters up to date regarding new articles in the community known
as Chance Encounters as well as my own various writing endeavors. However,
as in all things -- especially things technology-related -- change is
inevitable. The host of Chance Encounters, who also happens to be my
publisher, has opted to change the community technology. The new system
will be much more robust, offering discussion threads on every story.
The down side of this is that their current community system is not
compatible with the old technology. So, although an official announcement
has yet to be made to the iU community leaders, it appears that, as
of October 31, Chance Encounters the online author community will retire.
If you've missed recent articles, you might want to pop by and catch
up before they disappear. http://communities.iuniverse.com/chance (update:
this community has now been shut down).
However, that doesn't
mean that I'm done posting articles, stories and observations on a regular
basis. Viewed from the right POV, this is actually a good thing. I'm
keeping the name Chance Encounters for this newsletter and for the online
stores. The same hosts who are shutting the doors on the Chance Encounters
community (and many other iU author communities) have asked me to be
the community leader for their brand new Sci-Fi & Fantasy Community.
I was honored and I accepted. To me, I'm merely switching names. Readers
can still stop by and post their own articles and stories, but with
the added ability to start and respond to discussion threads for every
story and article posted. And I will continue the tradition of (at least)
monthly articles at SF&F. I'll also benefit from the reader/writer/fan
interaction and the increased exposure of leading an officially promoted
community. I encourage you to stop by the new SF&F community and
join so we can continue our community uninterrupted. There's not a lot
there right now -- just the bare bones of initial set-up -- but you
can expect content to be added over the next couple weeks... or heck,
add your own content today and beat me to the punch! http://community.iuniverse.com/sffantasy/
(update: this community has now been shut down).
Many of the articles
that have been posted at Chance Encounters over the past two years will
likely be re-posted at SF&F. Those that maybe don't fit the theme
so well, will likely be posted at PaulCarhart.com, most likely after
the site's redesign (see below).
Next Issue:
Don't worry. I haven't forgotten. With all of the changes going on,
I thought it was best to make sure I would have a place to post the
article before writing it. It's still on my plate though, whether it
winds up at SF&F or PaulCarhart.com. So keep your eyes peeled for
the second installment of my cover design series, Crafting the Cover:
Hope For Tomorrow.
Events
It's been nearly
a year since my last event. After all of the hard promotional work done
for CFTF, I was just plain tuckered out. That posed a different problem.
I never really promoted HFT and that book's readership has likely suffered
because of it. I never meant to treat it as the stepchild book but there
you have it. If you haven't read HFT, I urge you to do so. It's actually
a great story and close to my heart. I wish I wouldn've be able to get
it into more readers' hands.
That said, now that
the release of FITP is closing in (likely mid to late November), it's
time to get on the promotional bandwagon. Rather than promote only the
third book, however, I intend to promote the trilogy (as it is now,
at least). So time has not run out of HFT. Wherever I do a signing,
I'll likely have copies of all three books. So keep your eyes peeled.
I'm looking into event possibilites already and hope to have some lined
up for the end of the year or early in 2003.
I'm also looking
into the possibility of having Jonathan Martin (Threkjshanelle 1
& 2) and maybe even Aaron Buche (73 Things That Make Me Say
Bad Words and 73 More Things...) join me on a few occasions.
More info as it
becomes available.
Online
Stores
New products
on the way:
3" x 5" vinyl stickers -- rectangular and oval versions for
all three books -- should be available later this month. These stickers
are perfect for any ocassion. They're printed using water and UV resistant
inks, which means no fading in the sun or bleeding in the rain. I'm
also looking into the possiblity of retro lunch boxes (just because
I think it would be so cool to have a CFTF lunch box). At this stage,
if I do a product for one book, I'll probably do it for all of them.
No since in leaving out someone's favorite story.
For winter, I hope
to add ski caps
for all three books. There are also some other fun possibilites that
I'm looking into, including a possible twelve month Fairlight Character
2003 Calendar. More info later.
And don't forget
the fleece pull-over jackets and fleece vests that were added for each
store last month!
CFTF
Online Store: http://www.cafepress.com/cftf_store
HFT Online Store:
http://www.cafepress.com/cftf_store
FITP Online Store: http://www.cafepress.com/cftf_store
FREE Super Saver
Shipping!
Oh, I almost forgot!
Take advantage of
the special shipping promotion this October. Until October 31, 2002,
all orders over $40 will receive FREE Super Saver Shipping!
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Don't forget
to stop by the new Faith in the Past store!
To coincide with the upcoming release of Faith in the Past
(see below), there's now a new FITP online store, which features
artwork and logos from the upcoming third book in the series.
This is the first place you'll be able to see how it all fits
in with the other two books and the only place you can get the
coolest wall clock ever to be created by man (in my humble opinion).
I've got one in my office! Don't you want one too?
There are
now online stores for each Fairlight book. Some products from
the three stores overlap (caps, shirts, etc.), but others do not
so make sure you check out all of the stores before making all
of your buying decisions. Each store also includes links to the
other stores in the introductory paragraph and the shopping carts
are shared. So buy what you want from the different stores as
you go and check out only once.
What's that?
You want to visit the FITP Online Store? Then
click here!
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UPDATE:
THIS CLOCK IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE. |
Chance
for the Future & Hope
for Tomorrow
Nik Tavarone
Lives -- or so the rumor goes...
Riot Act, a short story featuring Nik Tavarone, will be featured
in an upcoming anthology of sci-fi and fantasy short fiction. The title
and cover art are now being finalized. Although each contributing author
has done his or her best to make sure the stories have been edited for
content, the current status of the project is that it is going through
one more editor in its compiled state before going to the publisher.
Riot Act tells
the story of Nik's internment in a cleansing camp and the events that
ultimately lead him to join up with Chance and the resistance. Unlike
Taking Chances, which was made into a booklet and distributed
at my author events and signings, Riot Act has not yet been made
available to my readers. It'll be exclusive to this collection, so you'll
want to get yourself a copy of this anthology when it releases. You'll
also be able to check out a lot of other great modern speculative fiction
voices at the same time. I'm excited about this opportunity to be included
with many of my peers in this collection.
Faith
in the Past
I Take That Back...
I mentioned last time that a special sneak peak at Fairlight #4, currently
titled Faith Restored, would be included in the published version
of Faith in the Past. Well, I hate to make myself into a liar,
but I've decided, in the interest of keeping down the page count (and
hopefully the cover price), to scrap that plan. However, there's another
surprise in store...
Special Hardcover
Collectors Edition of Faith in the Past
The wide release of Faith in the Past will be available in trade
paperback format, as are the other two Fairlight novels. However, a
special hardcover Collectors Edition will also be available exclusively
through the publisher. I'll likely have a few copies to sign as well.
The cover price of the hardcover Collectors Edition wll be $10 more
than that of the trade paperback. Of course, the publisher hasn't given
me pricing information for either version of the book yet. To better
facilitate signing books and getting them out, I'm also looking into
setting up my own online book store at PaulCarhart.com. This way, I
can sign books from my own stock and get them out to my readers in one
fell swoop. In the past, the only way I've been able to do this (other
than through book signings) is to have readers buy their book somewhere,
pay to ship it to me so I can sign it and then pay to have it shipped
back to them. What a hassle! So I'm looking into some alternatives,
especially with the hardcover version of FITP on the way. Whatever happens,
you'll hear about it here first.
Manuscript
The manuscript, front and back matter and cover art was delivered to
my publisher in September. I'm told the book is in production now. I
expect galleys before the end of this month. The trade paperback version
of the book will probably be available from the publisher in mid to
late November. A few weeks after that, it'll probably show up at online
retailers such as amazon.com and bn.com. The hardcover Collectors Edition,
I'm told, may take a little longer to be available, but it will only
be able to be purchased through the publisher (and me), so it may even
out with the trade paperback version at the online retailers. Whatever
the case, both versions of the book should be available before Christmas.
I hope you like it.
ISBNs for each version
of the book are as follows:
Faith in the
Past Hardcover Collectors Edition ISBN: 0-595-65140-2
Faith in the Past Wide Release Trade Paperback Edition ISBN: 0-595-25385-7
Website
Since I've got a lot more books available than I used to and since I
am working on even more projects, the new website design will be expandable
to allow for additions as needed. Not only will it feature a section
for the Fairlight series of novels, but it will also touch upon some
works in progress as well.
The website should
be up and running by the middle of October. Most of the work is done.
It's simply a matter of putting together the marketing information for
the new book. Around the same time that the new website debuts, I'll
have new flyers for the trilogy as well. If you'd like a stack to give
out to your friends, shoot
me an e-mail.
Upcoming
Projects
The new website
design is designed to feature much of this information on the homepage.
Therefore, the next edition of CEU will likely be much shorter. For
now, round and round the priorities go, where they stop, nobody knows!
One of the
Girls
This contemporary,
non-Fairlight series adventure story of twin teenage girls, one of whom
discovers that she has extraordinary abilities, has finally been plotted!
Woo hoo! Not only that, but I've finished chapter one and am looking
forward to gaining some momentum. This one is going to be fun!
Travel Tips
for Every Day
Seems that I'll always put off my nonfiction for a good tale. In the
past couple months, I've made significant progress on this list book
of useful tidbits that I discovered while traveling that can also be
applied to every day life.
Still, I love to tell a good story and somehow, I got sidetracked away
from this book. I'll get back to it, probably early next year.
The Crockett
Chronicles
This
is the never-ending series of "enhanced" short stories about
a friend Chris (co-author, Chris Weil) and I share... A guy I've known
since kindergarten named Shawn Crockett. Oh the humor. Oh the exposition.
Oh the inside jokes. The sad reality of this project is that Shawn continues
to provide ammo for the stories. Chris and I have drawn a line in the
sand though. It's time to share the exploits of our friend with the
world. Despite the sometimes ruthless nature of our ribbing one another,
I expect this book to be a testament to friendship, despite the differences
of those involved.
Life is But
a Dream
I hate to leave this nonfiction piece about discovering and following
one's dreams this far down on the list, especially since I've got some
potential agent interest. I'd like to sit down and write the whole thing,
but I'll probably put the thing into a proposal. Expect this one to
be shopped around, folks (which could mean quite a while before anyone
sees it on a shelf). I hope to get an agent and a hefty advance out
of it.
Faith Restored
Unfortunately, the aforementioned teaser for Fairlight #4 will no longer
be included in the published version of FITP. One of the reasons for
this is, although I've actually written the opening sequence for chapter
one, it's just too far away from my writing the whole story for me to
commit to the teaser. Indeed, the opening for FITP is different now
than it was during most of the story's existance. I probably won't even
get around to plotting or writing Faith Restored until next summer.
So, rather than put something together that would be possibly inferior
to the book it would be attached to and might not even be part of the
final version of FR, I opted to cut the teaser. Another reason I opted
to cut the teaser was to keep Faith in the Past's page count,
and hopefully the cover price, down. However, the story for FR is tied
very tightly to FITP so I don't expect it to languish very long.
Thanks again for your
support and readership. God bless!
Paul
M. Carhart
Author, Chance for the Future, Hope for Tomorrow and Faith
in the Past (coming soon)
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