Tag Archives: dystopia

July 20, 2012 · 5:13 am

1000 Words: The Socks Project Continued

Good news! I’ve finally started editing the prequel to “Socks,” one of the short stories from my 1000 Words project. I’m happy to announce that the title will be “Ashes.” I’m currently in the process of planning the cover, which shall be done in similar fashion to Socks, as a way to show they’re related. The difference is that “Ashes” is not restricted to a one thousand words word-length, and is currently closer to 7000 words. I’m planning on self-publishing it and selling it for $0.99 on both Smashwords and Kindle.

So, for a little more information about “Ashes,” it takes place in the time before “Socks,” so you’ll get to see a little more about the bunkers and the world she lives in. It’s also young adult, sci-fi romance. I hesitate to call it dystopian, since it’s not technically a dystopia, but it runs along similar worlds to popular dystopian YA right now (Pandemonium is the one that comes to mind, though I wrote this before reading that book). It is a complete story, however, if people like it, there is room to continue it before the actual “Socks” story begins. As well as room for right afterwards. Granted, it’ll be competing for time with Distant Horizon, the novel my husband and I are working on, but we’ll see how well it’s recieved. 🙂

In the meantime, go check out “Socks” if you haven’t already. It’s available on Smashwords, and best of all, it’s free. 🙂

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/154150

Soda Pop Shop/Sci-Fi Photoshoot – Katherine

The moment has arrived! I have new photographic illustrations to show off. This was done with Katherine modeling, and she did a great job doing and portraying what I asked. And the dress fit, two. Definitly helpful (especially when I find the dress I want to use, then find the model, afterward). The theme of this one started out with the idea of doing a Soda Pop Shop or sock hop look. Or really, it came from looking at old Coca Cola Ads and wanting to try to emulate those ads.

So I tried that on a couple of pictures. First one… well… it needed work. So I tried it again using a different pose, and I’m hoping that one captured more of the look and feel of the old ads. Also, thanks to my husband’s grandfather to letting us borrow a time period coke bottle to use. And thanks to McDonalds for having those cool Coca Cola glasses. And funny thing is, I’m not even that big of a soda fan. So there’s my note on the usefulness of finding props that aid in the appearance of time. So yeah, there was my fun experiment with commercial advertising.

Meanwhile, I also did a few images meant more in my usual style of sci-fi, dystopia, and fantasy. And reminder to self… don’t watch MirrorMask right before starting on a manip project. Great movie, awesome effects, but totally messes up how I usually do digital manipulations.

If you’re curious to see the images I’ve just mentioned, take a look at the Flickr Slideshow: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sbibb/sets/72157630562937410/show/

Otherwise, enjoy a few samples here. 🙂

“1000 Words” Anthology Available on Kindle and Developing a Novella

I’m almost done with the “1000 Words” posts, really. 🙂 But I thought it’d be worth mentioning that the anthology is now available on Kindle : http://www.amazon.com/1000-Words-Collection-Stories-ebook/dp/B007WMXV6O/ref=sr_1_24?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1335312063&sr=1-24

The paperback version will be available starting this Friday the 27th, assuming that all goes well. It should be available on Amazon and Createspace. At this point in time I’m not doing expanded distribution, since I don’t think it will have the drive needed to pay itself off. The book will be under $10.00, and will include all ten short stories, have special print formatting, and be in full color (hence the price) that includes each of the ten book covers. 🙂

On a side note, I’ve found that I enjoyed putting all this together. So while short stories themselves may not be my thing (I can now focus on my YA novel, yay!), I’m considering writing a collection of short stories that develop into a novella. Reason being, a few reviews I’ve gotten on Smashwords suggested interest in seeing The Hunter or Socks developed into a longer story. While I don’t see The Hunt becoming much longer (unless I get a few short story ideas I decide to develop), I am considering writing Socks into a two or three part novella. That is– write three sections that are approximately 10,000 words (but not strictly linked to that– I learned from this project that’d be a bad idea). Each one would be a complete story, but the whole project would be linked. Each of the three parts would probably cost a dollar or so.

For a quick reminder, Socks is the YA sci-fi romance short story I wrote for “1000 Words.” It has hints of dystopia, and can be found free on Smashwords if you’re curious to see which one I’m talking about: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/154150

So if you guys are interested in seeingSocksdeveloped into a novella, please bring up your thoughts and comment. That way I know if it’s worth dividing my time between it and the YA novel I’m working on. 🙂

My Recent Discovery of Book Trailers

So after reading the post (http://www.ravven.com/blog/2012/03/la-estrella-book-trailer/) by Raaven, which had the book trailer for La Estrella, I started getting an interest in book trailers. To be honest, I’d never really paid them much attention. I figured that if I’d read the blurb and that would tell me whether I liked it or not.

But then I started looking at book trailers, and the movie-like quality of them fascinated me. Some where less than thrilling, but others quickly caught my attention. The one Raaven mention, La Estrella, has me wanting to read the book, though I know very little Spanish. (Here’s to hoping it eventually gets translated).

Another one that caught my eye was also posted by Raaven (http://www.ravven.com/blog/2012/02/book-trailers/), called Harbinger. Personally, it’s not the type of book that I’d normally pick up, though I was fascinated by the trailer. I would give it a look now if I saw it in a book store, though I probably would have passed it over before.

Now publishers are also promoting thier books with book trailers through Facebook.

Starters instantly caught my eye, and I went on to read the sample chapter. Needless to say, it’s now on my to-read list (consequently, I signed up on Goodreads just to keep track of them all).

Starters: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvNUsW1CItY

The other recent one was Under the Never Sky, which I’d previously ignored. After seeing the trailer, I definatly plan on giving the book a chance.

Under the Never Sky: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0TnH3GEieE&feature=youtu.be

Would I go out and buy the book on the trailer alone? Probably not. But the ones that catch my interest do get me reading the sample chapters.

And one book trailer just made me happy, because it was advertising book two by showing the ending of book one. If you don’t want spoilers for Matched, you might not want to watch the trailer for Crossed. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ovn8-Jp3ckM

Anyways, twas a thought I had. Personally I really enjoy these movie-esque book trailers, and whether I self-publish or traditionally publish the novel I’m working on, I’d want to consider the possibility of making a trailer. 🙂

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Tagged as book trailers, books, dystopia, fantasy, publisher, publishing, sci-fi, self-publishing, Stephanie Flint, writing, young adult