Category: News of Note

The Care and Feeding of Rubber Chickens: A Novel

Yep, that’s the title, and it’s certainly one of my crazier ones.  If memory serves, I made a joke years ago saying that was going to be the name of my next book — and then realized that, actually, I kind of liked it if I could find the right book to go with it.  So I jotted it down and forgot about it until I thought of this first line:  “My dad owns a rubber chicken factory.”

With that, I was off and running, and the result is a strange combination of wacky and poignant as I tell the story of Trevor Livingston and his thousand-mile quest to tell the girl of his dreams how he really feels about her.  And of course, nothing goes quite as expected.  More about the book below.  (It’s available as an ebook now, with the paperback to follow in a few months.)

If you liked The Last Great Getaway of the Water Balloon Boys or President Jock, Vice President Geek, you’ll probably like this one.  It has a very similar tone and feel.  It’s aimed at young adults in the 16-18 range, but I think adult readers might like it even more.

And this is also completes, at least for the short term, what I consider my contemporary YA trilogy.  By contemporary, I mean there’s no fantasy, aliens, or any of that crazy stuff that happens in a lot of my fiction — just modern day teens struggling with modern day issues.  I happen to have a pretty broad taste when it comes to both reading and writing, but for now at least, I’ve said what I want to say on this front and I’m turning my attention to other books for a while. 

What will those books be?  Ah, to answer that question would be to spoil the fun, wouldn’t it?  And of course I don’t always know myself.  Sometimes all I have to go on is a strange title . . .

The Care and Feeding of Rubber Chickens:  A Novel

by Scott William Carter

Seventeen-year-old Trevor can’t catch a break. Just when he finds out that Janna, the girl of his dreams, is finally available, his mom tells him he’s being shipped off to a boarding school because of his awful grades. A desperate call to his dad, who owns a rubber chicken factory in Las Vegas, gets him nowhere. His father is more interested in enlisting Trevor’s aid writing what he sees as the perfect gag gift – a how-to manual about rubber chickens. That’s Trevor’s life for you. Everyone around him is totally and utterly insane.

But there’s still Janna. He’s had a crush on her since sixth grade. Can he get himself to say the words to her that he’s been rehearsing for years? He finally musters the courage to visit her house and find out.

That’s when everything goes crazy.

*****

Grade 10 Up – “My dad owns a rubber chicken factory.” With this zany first line, readers are launched on a surprisingly poignant coming-of-age journey. Part buddy story, part road trip adventure, and part ruminations on the difference between love and infatuation, Carter offers up a vivid portrait of a young man – Trevor Livingston – who blunders into a thousand-mile quest to tell the girl of his dreams how he really feels about her. Although the book is appropriate for more mature young adult readers, adults may find even greater enjoyment in Trevor’s distinctive voice and abundant references to popular culture – Star Trek and The Princess Bride, for example, are favorite targets. Fans of Carter’s award-winning first novel, The Last Great Getaway of the Water Balloon Boys, are certain to find this heartfelt look at the angst and insanity of modern adolescence an equally riveting read.

Electronic Edition:
Amazon | B&N | Smashwords   

Paperback Edition:
Coming soon.

The Indie Writer’s Tool Kit: How to Sell Better and Make More Money

Well, the holidays came and went with the usual fanfare.  Lots of food, lots of gift wrapping, lots of good times.  And it’s raining a lot again here in the Willamette Valley.  Rainy and cold in January — no shock.  All the traditions continue.

I’m co-teaching a workshop in “indie publishing” with Dean Wesley Smith next month in Lincoln City, Oregon: “The Indie Writer’s Tool Kit: How to Sell Better and Make More Money,” February 25-28, basically from 7 p.m. on Friday until noon on Tuesday.  My own publishing company, Flying Raven Press, has added a nice secondary income to my life, and I know Dean is doing fantastically well with his own WMG Publishing.  Although I have no plans to abandon working with traditional publishing (Wooden Bones is coming out from Simon and Schuster this August), the opportunities to go direct to readers, and skip the middlemen, are incredible for writers today.  It’s given me tons of options I didn’t have two years ago.

Contact Dean if you’re interested in attending.

This is essentially a “level 2” for those who attended the Think Like a Publisher Workshop last year, or for people who already have the basics of publishing an ebook and POD and want help taking it to the next level.  Should be a lot of fun.  The full workshop description is below, and Dean also has a very good post about why we tweaked the title — and the writer vs. author mindset in general.

Preparing for this workshop has also clarified my thinking about how best to spend my time as a writer and a publisher.  It’s also lead me to what other people might find are some surprising conclusions.  I no longer have a Facebook or Twitter account, for example.  And I no longer feel a need to blog regularly (in fact, I think doing so can actually be counterproductive).  Though I think it’s more important than ever to maintain an informative and accurate website.  It’s amazing how many author websites fail that simple test.

I’ll be talking about all that and more next month.  There are lots of things a writer can do to sell better and make more money.

~|~

The Indie Writer’s Tool Kit: How to Sell Better and Make More Money

For writers who attended the Think Like a Publisher Workshop, or people who aready know the basics of publishing an ebook or POD, here’s a workshop to help you take your publishing enterprise to the next level. Learn the basics of writing effective book descriptions, techniques to make your covers look professional, how to use the Internet to promote (and how not to), and how to get your print books into independent bookstores. Audio books, author bios, loss leaders, pricing effectively, boosting productivity, website tools — all this and more is packed into four
intense days of learning. Includes in depth discussions about the current
state of publishing and the exciting opportunities that exist for writers.  Contact Dean Wesley Smith for more information.

“The Android Who Became a Human Who Became an Android” Reprinted in Russian Magazine “If”

My science fiction story with a rather long title, “The Android Who Became a Human Who Became an Android,” has been reprinted in the Russian magazine, Esli, which roughly translates as “If” in English.  It was originally published in Analog in September 2010.

I got my contributor copy in the mail over the weekend, mailed all the way from Moscow, and it’s a sweet looking magazine.   First time I’ve been printed in Russian, as far as I know.  Only problem?  I can’t read a word of it.  They even translated my name!  The only way I was able to tell which story was mine was the copyright notice at the end of the story, which was in English.  Another weird moment in being a writer.

By the way, you can now buy this story individually to read in electronic format at Amazon, B&N, or, at Smashwords.com.  It’s a longish tale, nearly short novel length, so it’s a good deal for only 99 cents.  Here’s the blurb and the cover:

~ | ~

The Android Who Became a Human Who Became an Android
by Scott William Carter

It ain’t easy being a private investigator in a galaxy that spans thousand of worlds – especially when you make the mistake of putting your heart on the line. When an old flame of Dexter Duff’s shows up out of the blue, claiming her rich husband is missing, Duff has mixed feelings about getting involved. She’s willing to pay top dollar, though, and like usual, Duff is broke. The case turns even stranger when it turns out her husband, who was once an android, became a human for her sake through a costly and risky procedure – and then went back to being an android when she seemed happier with him the way he was before. Then he vanished without a trace.

Readers of this story may want to check out “The Bear Who Sang Opera,” another story featuring Dexter Duff, as well as other stories set in Carter’s Unity Worlds universe.

Available Now in Electronic Format:  Amazon | B&N | Smashwords

Cover of Wooden Bones

Good news and bad news.  The good news is that it looks like you can now pre-order my fantasy, Wooden Bones, from Amazon.  It’s published by the same folks who brought you my first novel, Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers, and it’s aimed at 9-12 year-olds.  (Of course, I’m hoping adults will enjoy it just as much as kids — think Neil Gaiman’s Coraline,which is similar in tone and feel.)  The pitch line?  Becoming a real boy was just the beginning . . . It’s the untold story of Pinocchio, who, after he becomes a real boy, discovers he has the power to bring puppets to life himself. 

The bad news is that publication date is not until August 7, 2012, so you’ll have a bit of a wait.  There’s no description of the book up yet either; that will follow before too long. 

I can, however, now safely post the cover here, since the publisher has posted it on Amazon and elsewhere.  I’m very happy with it.  It really captures the right mood for the story.