Cassandra Rose Clarke's Blog

I have been neck deep in revisions the last two months and have let some promo stuff lapse. But no more! I have Announcements!

Announcement the First: The Assassin’s Curse + Pirate’s Wish Rerelease!

That’s right, Ananna and Naji are coming back! The Assassin’s Curse and The Pirate’s Wish have been collected together under the title Magic of Blood and Sea. The new cover is GORGEOUS–if you follow me on Twitter, you’ve seen a little snippet of Ananna’s face, but here’s the full thing:

ISN’T IT AWESOME? ISN’T ANANNA AWESOME? I’m so excited the books are coming back into the world. The Hanna duology is going to follow, too, so her story will finally be finished.

Magic of Blood and Sea will be released by Saga Press on February 7, 2017. You can preorder on Amazon here!

Announcement the Second: Four Sisters!

Take a lil bit of Aliens, a lil bit of Prometheus, and mix it all together with a King Lear base, and you might get something approximating Four Sisters, my next adult novel. No cover yet, but the book is currently available for preorder on Amazon. It will be released by Saga Press on March 21, 2017. Have a description:

A new space opera about a young woman who must face the truth about her father’s past from critically acclaimed author Cassandra Rose Clarke.

The Coromina family owns a small planet system, which consists of one gaseous planet and four terraformed moons, nicknamed the Four Sisters. Phillip Coromina, the patriarch of the family, earned his wealth through a manufacturing company he started as a young man and is preparing his eldest daughter, Esme, to take over the company when he dies.

When Esme comes of age and begins to take over the business, she gradually discovers the reach of her father’s company, the sinister aspects of its work with alien DNA, and the shocking betrayal that estranged her three half-sisters from their father. After a lifetime of following her father’s orders, Esme must decide if she should agree to his dying wish of assembling her sisters for a last goodbye or face her role in her family’s tragic undoing.

I’ll be posting more about Four Sisters as we get closer to the date–remember those revisions I mentioned earlier? They were for this one. I’m excited for you all to read it!

ETA: Special thanks to Tez Miller for letting me know these had gone up on Amazon!

In two weeks, I’ll be at Comicpalooza, a huge comic convention in Houston that’s always lots of fun. It also has a pretty sizable literary tract, with multiple panels devoted to both traditional and indie publishing, which is a fact it doesn’t get enough credit for.

Anyway! I’m going to be on several panels over the weekend, so here’s my schedule! Including

Friday, June 17

The Storytelling of Star Wars | 10 AM | Rm 271 E

For nearly four decades, Star Wars characters and storylines have captivated the public. What is it about Star Wars stories that so attracts us?

Spoiler:

Writing in the Sci-Fi Genre: Lasers, Lightspeed and Little Green Men – Oh Dear! | 1 AM | Rm 350 B

Focusing on the science fiction genre, a panel of authors talk about how they create entire galaxies of worlds, dotting the page as the sky is dotted with stars. Learn about the ins and out of writing in the science fiction genre, and ask them from where they draw their inspiration to boldly go where no writer has gone before.

Spoiler:

Saturday, June 18

Marketing for Writers: How to Sell What You Write | 11 AM | Rm 350 F

You’ve just finished writing your great story, so now what? Hear from the pros on how to promote your novel or short fiction. Tips from published writers on how to promote your novel or short fiction.

Spoiler:

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Cross-Genre Explorations | 2:30 PM | Rm 350 B

Join Writespace faculty members as they explore a new phenomenon in literature: genre blending. Panelists will discuss how popular authors like Kazuo Ishiguro, Margaret Atwood, Stephen King and J.K. Rowling have crossed genre lines to create great stories. How do these writers successfully use elements of different genres within one story? Where are genre lines drawn? We’ll explore how to write within and outside of genre, blending mystery, science fiction, historical fiction, fantasy, horror and more! Panelists include writers from a variety of genre backgrounds.

Spoiler:

Sunday, June 19

Signing | 11 AM | Exhibit Hall @ the Barnes and Noble Booth (#2801)

Bring me things, I’ll sign them.

Spoiler:

A History of Science Fiction | 4 PM | Rm 350 A

Journey through the history of science fiction genre, from its basis in ancient literature to today. When did robots first appear in science fiction? Was Shakespeare’s The Tempest the first Mad Scientist story? What was the first dystopian story? We’ll explore how science fiction has evolved throughout the years, and our panelists will give their insights on what the future of science fiction literature holds.

Spoiler:

And on a final note, there is a panel on Sunday at 1 PM that I am in no way involved in, I don’t even know who’s going to be presenting it, but I will be there like it’s my patriotic duty. That panel is called A BRIEF HISTORY OF BUCKY BARNES and it will be in room 352 B.

RUN LIKE BUCKY TO BE THERE!

I have some Things coming up that you may be interested in!

Thing the First: I’ll be having a belated Our Lady of the Ice release party at Writespace Houston this Friday, March 18, at 7:30 pm. There will be cake, snacks, and giveaways! Maybe tango music if I can swing it! Stop by if you can. Here are the directions to Writesapce. It’s hard to find if you’ve never been before. PS: This event is freeeeeeeee!

Thing the Second: I will be teaching a six-week Fiction for Beginning Writers workshop at Writespace starting March 21. Classes will be every Monday evening from 6-9 PM, running from March 21 to April 25th. We’ll be focusing on the building blocks of writing fiction–plot, character, setting, pov, and dialogue, and all students will have a chance to have a story or novel excerpt workshopped. We’ll also be reading published short fiction and doing a bunch of hands-on writing exercises, because that’s how I roll. Cost is $245 if you’re not a Writespace member (and $215 if you are).

Thing the Third: I’ve been invited to participate in a reading at the Contemporary Arts Museum of Houston in conjunction with their current exhibit, “The Interview: Red, Red Future,” an installation piece examining the future of Martian colonization. I’m going to write a new piece especially to read, and there will be other local writers and poets reading as well. Read more about the event here!.

My February was basically consumed by Writefest, but I’ve still got some things to round up!

Books Finished

Gutshot by Amelia Gray. A short story collection that I’d been reading on and off for several months. Most of the stories are very short, and they have an overwhelming, dreamlike quality that I loved dipping into. Reading them was a bit like stepping into freezing water: there’s a sudden jolt, a moment of numbness, and then you have to move on. Which is not to say I didn’t like them.

Also, one of the stories referenced my hometown so

Dark Force Rising by Timothy Zahn. My Star Wars obsession continues. Second book in the Thrawn Trilogy. More delightful Star Warsian batshittery.

Southern Gods by John Hornor Jacobs. I’ve been drifting back to my horror roots lately, and this book really hit the spot. It’s a Southern Gothic story with a Lovecraftian bent. Jacobs did a great job with the setting, really capturing that humid, creepy southern underbelly. I really enjoyed this.

Flesh and Gold by Phyllis Gotlieb. This book showed up on a list on the B&N blog of space operas that aren’t Star Wars. It’s a dense book, despite having a relatively simple plot–the language reads more like poetry at times, and it works surprisingly well for a space opera. I also liked how small scale the plot was, while still capturing the feel of an epic, galaxy-spanning society.

Stuff Watched

I was going to talk about the X-Files revival here, but except for one episode, it was such an overwhelming MEH. The one episode strong episode was REALLY strong, though. I always loved the funny episodes of the X-Files the best, where the show gets weird and whimsical at the same time. A lizard person who turns into a were-human after a psychopath (played by Kumail Nanjiani

Words Written

I wrote 17,279 words of fiction this month. I’d feel bad, but so much of my time was spent with Writefest, which recharged my writer energy BIG TIME. I spent a week teaching and interacting with new writers, and nothing helps you overcome your cynicism about the perfidy of the publishing business like hanging around people just starting out. I’m also trying my hand at more short fiction–something I’ve been wanting to do for awhile, but WF really gave me the boost I needed–as well as dabbling more in the straight literary fiction of my roots.

Parting Shot

I give you one of the greatest cat videos of all time. SHE IS THEIR GOD NOW.

知唔知咩叫『痴身』，喵星人BB完美示範俾你睇！Source: MİYA==========================#etnetshare #搞笑 #有趣 #得意 #短片#喵星人

Posted by ET Net 經濟通 on Tuesday, January 12, 2016

I thought I might start doing some monthly roundups with things I’ve read, watched, and written. Just so you can get a taste of the glamorous writing life. Let’s look at what I did in January.

Books Finished

Star Wars: Before the Awakening, by Greg Rucka. Three novellas about Finn, Poe, and Rey prior to the events of the movie. Everybody loves the Poe story but tbh the stories for Finn and Rey stuck with me a lot more. Also, this book is illustrated by my art bae Phil Noto. So they’re beautiful, is what I’m saying.

Heir to the Empire, by Timothy Zahn. Somehow I missed this trilogy the first time I was obsessed with Star Wars (which was in 7th grade). It’s, um, kind of amazing? I see why people were pissed about the EU being thrown out now. I’m also learning What The Deal Is with Mara Jade and that Deal is that she is the best.

Stuff Watched

I started watching The Clone Wars TV series this month, to get my Star Wars fix in without having to actually watch Episode 1. I’m only into the second season and I’ve already cried during an episode. Keep in mind this is an animated kids’ show. Except it’s also a lot more than that. Like, it single-handedly made me care about Padme and Anakin’s relationship, and I love love looooooove Anakin’s padawan Ahsoka Tano.

Words Written

I wrote 25,371 words of fiction this month. Only about 400 of that was Star Wars fanfiction. I can’t decide if that’s a win or a lose.

One thing I’m doing a little bit differently, word-count wise, this year, is to keep my daily word count expectations low (about 250 words a day). That takes me about 15 minutes, and it’s a lot less pressure than telling myself I have to write 1000 words when I also have classes to plan and Star Wars Clone Wars episodes to watch. So while my daily word counts have been a bit low, I’m also being a lot more consistent, which I appreciate.

I’m hoping in February to get that number up to 27K or so!

ETA: Pictures Drawn

How could I forget my Star Wars sketches? First off we have the Neko Atsume Star Wars Characters, aka my most popular post on Tumblr. I also did some sketchy portraits of Finn, Rey, and Kylo Ren while I was at a writing retreat. Art!

Stories Published

The Witch Who Came In From the Cold kicked off this month, and will be continuing for thirteen glorious episodes! Spies! Magic! Golems! I am so in love with this project, you guys.

Parting Shot

In keeping with the Star Wars theme, here’s the video to one of the greatest Weird Al songs of all time. I might not be able to bring myself to rewatch The Phantom Menace, but I will listen to this song:

Today is the launch of my latest project, a collaborative serial called The Witch Who Came in from the Cold. We’ve been working on it for pretty much the last year, and I’m so excited its finally out in the world for you to read!

Here’s a summary from the publisher, Serial Box:

Through a haze of cigarettes and vodka there lies a version of Prague where spies practice sorcery in their games of intrigue. While the world watches the bitter rivalry between East and West fester along the Iron Curtain, the Consortium of Ice and the Acolytes of Flame continue waging their ancient war of magic. Kept to the shadows, this secret contest crosses the lines of politics and the borders of nations with impunity – the intrigues of spies may know clear sides but the battles of witches spill out over all.

Tanya Morozova is a KGB officer and the latest in a long line of Ice witches and sorcerers; Gabe Pritchard is a CIA officer and reluctant Ice recruit. Enemies at one turn, suspicious allies at the next, their relationship is as explosive as the Cold War itself.

Cold Witch isn’t an ordinary novel, though. It’s a collaborative effort–lead writer Lindsay Smith led the rest of us (Max Gladstone, Ian Tregellis, and me) through a super-intensive brainstorming weekend where we plotted out the entire first season. For Cold Witch, that’s thirteen episodes total. We divvied up the episodes and set to writing them, then revising them, with lots of dialogue back and forth to ensure we got the story perfect.

As a writer, it was an awesome experience. I loved working with my brilliant co-authors, and I am so in love with the final version that I’m just like

The episodes will be released every Wednesday, and the pilot, out now, is free! If you subscribe, you’ll get audio and text versions of every episode for just $1.59 each. That’s a pretty sweet deal!

Serial Box also runs a Tumblr with lots of extra goodies, like author interviews, link roundups, and insights into the experience of creating each episode. Aaaaand there’s a Cold Witch-specific Tumblr with lots of cool spy and witch stuff. Consider giving ’em a follow!

I’m going to ConFusion this year with all the cool kids (shh, don’t tell them I’m not actually cool). It’s held in Detroit which means it will be cold and there will be snow (I think? I hope? This winter has been weird) so I’m also excited about that. I’m on some panels, so if you’ll be there maybe stop by and say hello!

Anyway, here’s the schedule…complete with

Saturday, Jan. 23

10 AM: Whose Subgenre Is It, Anyway?

One hat is filled with titles of well known novels. The other hat is filled SFF’s favorite sub-genres. Panelists draw from the hats and reconcile their selections. How would you defend _Little Women_ as a grimdark tale? Tom Doyle, Cassandra Rose Clarke, Dave Robison (M), Ken Schrader, Sal Palland

Spoiler:

11 AM: The Value of Fans’ Work

Fan-fiction, fan vids, gifsets on Tumblr, fan meta: what value to fan works bring to TV and movie fandoms? How is the value of these works measured or dismissed based on gender, source material and where fanworks are posted and discussed? Cassandra Rose Clarke, Susan Dennard, Julie Winningham, V.E. Schwab

Spoiler:

12 PM: Novel Gazing

The Male Gaze is often discussed in relation to how women are objectified in fiction. Less common is the Female Gaze, which is often confused as a direct opposite to its Male counterpart. What are the Male and Female Gaze? How are they different? And how is the Female Gaze changing fiction for the better? Diana Rowland, Doselle Young (M), Jim C. Hines, Cassandra Rose Clarke, Kimchi Zerbe

Spoiler:

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5 PM: Autograph Session

You know the drill: I sit at a table, you bring me stuff to sign! Or you can stop by and chat, even if you have nothing to sign! I might give away a copy of Our Lady of the Ice, too.

Spoiler:

Sunday, Jan. 24

11 AM: Formative Fiction: The Books That Hooked You

Every one remembers the book that turned them into a reader for life. The panel will discuss the books that were formative in their reading lives. What makes a piece of fiction formative? How does formative fiction evolve with time? Is this work different for today’s new readers than it was for the previous generation or, even, the one before that? Mary Lynne Gibbs, Ferrett Steinmetz, Cassandra Rose Clarke, Mur Lafferty, Sarah Gibbons

Spoiler:

It’s December, my classes are almost over, and I’ve got a pile of excitement to share with you all!

Excitement No 1: This is the biggie, and I’ve been plastering it over my assorted social media accounts the last few days. I’m delighted to announce that Saga will be publishing all of my Angry Robot backlist: The Mad Scientist’s Daughter, The Assassin’s Curse, The Pirate’s Wish, The Wizard’s Promise, and the heretofore unpublished The Nobleman’s Revenge! All the books will be getting new covers (I’ve already seen the cover for The Mad Scientist’s Daughter and it’s GORGEOUS) and a new lease on life! I can’t wait to release these books back into the world. Check back here (or to the books’ individual pages) for more information about the specific release dates and other key details.

Excitement No. 2: About a month ago, I started offering editorial services through Writespace. I’m available for content/developmental editing, and I can also work with students on school writing assignments. Perhaps most exciting about this arrangement is that I’m available to meet both in-person and online, so you don’t necessarily have to live in Houston to take advantage! For more information, check out my editor profile at the Writespace page.

Excitement No. 3: Well, it’s that time of the year again, when all the Best-of Lists start popping up around all corners of the Internet. I’m honored and delighted that Our Lady of the Ice has made some appearances!

Bookworm Blues

The Speculative Herald

And while not a true Best-of List, Our Lady was also selected as one of 56 fabulous holiday books by the LA Times (and the Chicago Tribune)!

Last week I learned that Our Lady of the Ice has been nominated for the RT Reviewers’ Choice Award in the science fiction category! Super exciting!

And for a nice balance, let’s go from my latest book to my first, with this awesome write up about The Assassin’s Curse and the Pirate’s Wish. Those books have been getting some attention lately, which is very cool consider a year and a half ago the publisher closed down. It also goes to show that writing really is a long con.

Finally, I’m happy to announce some more details about the Serial Box project I’ve been working on with Lindsay Smith, Max Gladstone, and Ian Tregellis. It’s serialized project called The Witch Who Came in From the Cold, and the link says it all:

The Cold War rages in the back rooms and dark alleys of 1970s Prague as spies and sorcerers cross murky lines to do battle for home and country. The fate of the East and the West hangs in the balance right along the Iron Curtain—and crackling beneath the surface of it all is a vein of magic, raw and waiting to be tapped.

Trust me, it’s AWESOME.

The pilot episode will be released in January, and there are thirteen episodes total, all weaving together to tell a larger story.

That’s right, today is Our Lady of the Ice’s release day! It’s available in hardcover or ebook wherever books are sold. Like, oh, these places…

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

IndieBound

Or you can go into a bookstore or library and look for the cover:

an aesthetic post over at my Tumblr.

ETA: My friend Maki made a playlist for Our Lady of the Ice! Freaking awesome!

Thank you to all who have read and reviewed the book so far. And thank you to those who will read in the future. You are all the best!