I rarely answer submission calls. My brain has trouble working to specs someone else laid out. Once in awhile, if the parameters are broad and I'm given room to run with something off kilter, I'll do it. (My dear colleagues at the Mischief Corner are more than patient with me and gleefully encourage my taking a science fiction angle on any anthology call.) But the force of nature that is Kris Jacen contacted me one night and said, "You haven't ever submitted something to MLR have you? And just why not?" I was a bit stunned and blinked a few hundred times and said, yes, I hadn't gotten up the courage but I didn't have anything new just then to submit. Kris encouraged me to look through the submission calls. With a somewhat jaded eye, I did. OK, yes, that's for contemporary writers and that one, too. Probably that as well, though I could spin it and twist it... Oh, wait, look... A call for Superhero stories. Yes. I'm a geek. I had comic books growing up even though my mom did not approve. I didn't make any snobbish distinction between DC and Marvel - I loved them all. Spiderman, Batman, Superman, Fantastic Four, Daredevil, Conan, some of the odd indie stuff like Poison Elves that I just adored. So, you bet. That sub call flicked a spark on the gasoline puddle lying on the floor of my brain. Damien and Blaze's story isn't a capes and tights take on superheroes though. These boys just happen to have some extra abilities most folks don't. A science fiction take on superheroes? Well, why the heck not? Damien's a mess. Blaze is a bit of a jackass. (Anyone who heard me read at GRL this year can confirm, lol.) But I've come to love these guys and on Friday, November 1, they get their debut over at MLR Press. Join us for the very first novel in the Variant Configurations Series. You can blame Kris. This is all her fault. Blurb: Damien just wants to be left alone. Too bad his variant talent as a locator makes him the go-to contractor for the government’s missing person cases. He can refuse, but it's not so easy when the missing are variant kids. Blaze Emerson is a sparker. People fear him as much for his ability to call fire as his obnoxious, violent temperament. He’s good at what he does, though, and he’s intrigued by the quiet man who can find people with his brain. Conspiracies, treachery, and wild rumors are only the start. First Damien and Blaze have to survive each other. If you'd like to be entered to win an ecopy of the book - stop over to my FB author page. There's a little contest going on... https://www.facebook.com/Angel.Martinez.author
2 Comments
Patricia Nelson
10/31/2013 04:45:50 pm
Its amazing where one idea can lead you!
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10/31/2013 11:32:41 pm
It is! It's kind of a creative cascade when it works right :)
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About Angel
Angel writes (mostly) Science Fiction and Fantasy centered around queer heroes. Currently living part time in the hectic sprawl of northern Delaware and full time inside her head, she has one husband, one son, two cats, a love of all things beautiful and a terrible addiction to the consumption of both knowledge and chocolate. |
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