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Read “The Masochist’s Assistant” in this month’s F&SF Magazine!
Adding to my joyous publication news, I’d like to draw your attention to the July/August issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (F&SF) wherein you will discover my story, “The Masochist’s Assistant.”
I’m pretty proud of this one, folks, and I’d love for you to read it. Set in the same world as Tyvian Reldamar, it tells the story of a young Akrallian famulus and his struggles to cope with the master mage who employs him to assist with his various plans to commit suicide and then resurrect himself. Sounds fun, eh?
But it’s not just me in there! There’s a whole host of other tales by extremely talented authors whom I am privileged to share a table of contents with. I haven’t finished it yet, but so far:
- William Ledbetter takes us on a search for a lost sister in the far-flung reaches of space in “In a Wide Sky, Hidden.”
- Robin Furth gives us a spine-tingling tale of necromancy and fey bargains in “The Bride in Sea-Green Velvet,” which I found both beautifully written and seriously creepy.
- David Erik Nelson’s novella “There Was a Crooked Man, He Flipped a Crooked House” is a grade-A horror tale about a creepy house in Detroit with a dark secret. This one had me flipping pages as fast as any Stephen King novel – you’ll love it!
- “A Dog’s Story” by Gardner Dozois is a short but touching tale of the secret lives animals lead when humans are out of the picture. Very well realized and a lot of fun.
- G. V. Anderson’s “I Am Not I” so far wins the prize for “creepiest story I’ve read in years.” So imaginative and so, so well done – I’ll be thinking about this one for a long while.
- “Afiya’s Song” by Justin C. Key is a powerful alternate history of slavery in America in the early 19th century. Stomach churning and beautifully done – you’ve got to read this one!
There are two more stories I’ve yet to get to yet, but both of them look pretty cool and I couldn’t wait to blow the trumpets on this one. Go get it! There’s book reviews, too, and a ton of other stuff.
You can subscribe to the magazine through their website and it can also be found on Weightless Books or on Kindle via Amazon. If you’re just looking to buy the paper copy in person, though, it is carried in most Barnes and Noble locations nationwide.
Go and check it out – you won’t regret it!
Story Sale! (and brief writing update)
Hey, friends! I’m here to announce that my story “Lord of the Cul-de-sac” (which originally featured in Galaxy’s Edge last year) has just been sold to Digital Fiction’s Hic Sunt Dracones anthology. It’s been a little while since my last short fiction sale (back in the fall, I think it was) so this is especially welcome news. I’ll keep you all updated on when it publishes.
On that note, my short story “The Masochist’s Assistant” is set to be published in the July/August issue of Fantasy and Science Fiction. I’m especially excited about that one, as I think it is some of my finest work to date and is going to be in a major market like F&SF. For you Tyvian fans, it is a story also set in Alandar (Tyvian’s world) though, as usual with my short fiction, a different corner of it.
And on that note, some of you might be wondering a few things about this here blog:
Thing the First: Why haven’t you been posting as much, Habershaw?
Thing the Second: Is there ever going to be any more Saga of the Redeemed?
Well, the answer to those two things is related. I’ve been working feverishly on a few novel projects for the last 6-8 months or so which has cut into my blog-time. As of this writing, ink has fallen on contracts of various descriptions, but I have not, as yet, been given leave to openly discuss said contracts. When I do, you folks will be the first to know. Suffice to say I am very excited about them, very grateful to have the excellent agent that I do, and am almost certain when I say we haven’t seen the last of that scoundrel, Tyvian Reldamar.
Now then, back to outlining!
My Crazy Good Year
Yaaaay!
You know how your social media feed is starting to sprout all those posts about how hard this year was? This ain’t one of those, folks. Not because it wasn’t hard, but because it was totally awesome.
My (professional) year by the numbers:
Novels Published: Either 1, 2, or 3, depending on how you count. The Iron Ring was released in February, Iron and Blood in June, which are the two halves of The Oldest Trick, released in August. All parts/versions of the same book (my debut), mind you. Yes, it’s complicated. But also awesome.
Stories Published: 2 (“A Revolututionary’s Guide to Practical Conjuration” in The Writers of the Future Vol 31; “Adaptation and Predation” in Escape Pod)
Stories Sold: 3 (to WoTF, Escape Pod, and Fantasy and Science Fiction)
Awards Won: Writers of the Future Award, 2nd Place, 1st Quarter 2014 (award ceremony was in April)
Memberships Achieved: SFWA Active Membership
Conventions/Workshops Attended: 3 (WoTF Workshop, ITVFest, World Fantasy Convention)
Novels Written: 2 (3, if you count total rewrites)
Stories Written: 6 (only counting complete, saleable stories currently on submission/accepted)
Total Words Written: ~300,000 (an average of about 820 words per day)
Along the way of this bang-up year, I made a bunch of new friends, found new groups of support and keen eyes to read, made a bunch of fans (I think/hope), and even got some fanmail. Hard to beat that.
As for this blog, its followership continues to grow. I’m up over 1300 followers now, which is really cool (and thank you, all of you, for reading…assuming you do. But since you’re reading this that would seem to imply that you…you know what? Never mind.).
What About Next Year?
Well, I’ll still be posting here, of course. In terms of Writing, No Good Deed is slated to come out, though it’s been moved back AGAIN by my publisher to April (no idea why). I would expect to see a few more stories from me to come out, given the contracts I have in hand (or will have shortly). My personal goal is to write more short fiction and publish more of same, score another book deal (hopefully extending The Saga of the Redeemed by another two books, if possible), and maybe even nab myself one of those elusive literary agents.
Stay tuned, folks! I’ll see you on the other side of the New Year!
New Story Sale! Anthologies! Time Travel! VICTORY!
I have big news. Actually, I have a variety of news on the writing front, and so this will be a (long overdue) update on my writing activities:
Pictured: My eight year old self feeling awesome.
Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine has bought my short story, “The Mithridatist,” a fantasy story set in Alandar (Akral, to be specific). This is big, big news for me, and for a couple reasons. First, this is a great market that I’ve been reading for ages. When I was a kid, I had stacks of these things piled up all over my room. They’ve published the likes of Ursula K LeGuin, Walter Miller, Stephen King, and tons of other writers I have admired for years. The idea that I’d be in that same publication is humbling and very exciting, to be sure. The editor, CC Finlay, has been extremely encouraging with his rejections to me (I know – it sounds strange, but it’s true) and I’m very happy to have finally met his exacting standards.
The other reason this is big news is that this counts as my third professional story sale (the previous being Analog and The Writers of the Future Anthology), which qualifies me for Active Membership in the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA). My novel(s), incidentally, haven’t qualified me yet since I wasn’t paid an advance and haven’t made me sufficient money. Now, though, I get to join (once I figure out how to prove the sale, as it won’t be in print for a while) and take one step further along the road to Serious Professional Author, No Really, You Have Heard Of Me Or Read My Work For Serious. If there were a checklist of my professional goals, we would now be about halfway down the list. Go me.
Trippy, eh?
The next piece of news has more to do with all of you fine people than it does me. My friend and colleague, Zach Chapman, has decided to become a big-time story anthology editor in addition to being a talented scifi writer himself. His editorial debut is to be a time travel themed anthology. I have already promised a story as has the extremely talented Martin Shoemaker, but the anthology needs more. Zach has an open submission period, open now until January, for folks to submit their time travel stories. Submit! He’s paying pro rates, so this is no joke! Do it, and best of luck to you all!
Getting back to me for a moment, we’re approximately three months out from the release date for Book 2 of The Saga of the Redeemed, No Good Deed. The publication date is currently February 23rd, with pre-orders already up on Amazon and other places, as well. Of course, in order to be ready for it, you need to have read Book 1, The Oldest Trick. To make this easier, the first half of book 1, titled The Iron Ring, is going to go on sale next week (I’ll give you the details soon).
For those of you already up to date on the adventures of Tyvian and the gang, here’s my little pitch for Book 2 which, as of this moment, is going to serve as the jacket copy. This is an exclusive, first look at the continuing misadventures of Tyvian Reldamar, grouchy and very reluctant hero:
Cursed with a magic ring that forbids skullduggery, Tyvian Reldamar’s life of crime is sadly behind him. Now reduced to fencing moldy relics and wheedling favors from petty nobility, he’s pretty sure his life can’t get any worse.
That is until he hears that his old nemesis, Myreon Alafarr, has been framed for a crime she didn’t commit and turned to stone in a penitentiary garden. Somebody is trying to get his attention, and that somebody plays a very high-stakes game that will draw Tyvian and his friends back to the city of his birth and right under the noses of the Defenders he’s been dodging for so long. And that isn’t even the worst part.
The worst part is that somebody is his mother.
Sounds cool, right?
Talk to you all soon, and thank you all for your continued support!
Auston Habershaw 