Critters^TM Workshop

Weekly Notes

Notes for 13-Oct-2021...

Helping the Critters Fund Drive this week we have another new release!--

	BREAKING POINT by (SFWA Grandmaster) James Gunn - $3.99

		ReAnimus Press Store: www.ReAnimus.com/1651
		Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B08LF1CFXN/?tag=critters3a-20
		 (available in both ebook and paperback)

	These are stories about character--about beings--in unusual circumstances, facing difficult choices, pushed to the point where they must bend or break.

 James Gunn has the credentials: author of over 40 books and a SFWA Grandmaster, with a television series and a movie adapted from a novel--and a former president of the Science Fiction Writers of America. BREAKING POINT is a kind of retrospective--eight stories through which "interested readers may note the evolution of a writer."
Gunn notes that the latest generation of science fiction writers "had grown up reading science fiction, but they also knew literature and the humanities and they wanted to write stories and novels which met the critical standards of the mainstream."
A case in point being, of course, James Gunn.
--St. Louis Post-Dispatch

                                   -+-
Woohoo!  Congratulations to...

	- Russell Adams, who sold his (Critter'd) stageplay, "Psychelysis
	(The Play)" to	Samjoko Magazine. {Psychelysis (The Play) is a
	one act adaptation of my original short story Psychelsis which
	went through the critters queue quite a while age. [And thanks
	to everyone who critiqued it.]	Samjoko Magazine is based in the
	Republic of Korea, about as far from where I live as it's possible
	to get without becoming an emigré from earth.	The inaugural
	issue is scheduled to be published in mid-January '22.}

	- Richard Zwicker, who sold his (Critter'd) short story, "None
	So Blind as Those Unseen" to Best Indie Speculative Fiction.


Please report your Woohoo!s via the www.critters.org/telldaworld.ht web page.


                                   -+-

This week's Most Productive Critter award, for 3 critiques (at time
of judging), averaging almost 1800 words each, goes to...

	David Murphy

To redeem an MPC, visit:  www.critters.org/usempc.ht

Congratulations!  To everyone else -- Crit early and often!

(For an explanation of the MPC award, see the www.critters.org/award.ht page.)

                                   -+-

Recommended Reading...
One of the best writing books - Secrets from the 6-time Best Editor
Hugo Award Master, Ben Bova: THE CRAFT OF WRITING SCIENCE FICTION THAT SELLS 
http://ReAnimus.com/store?item=1144
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Critters Workshop
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This week we have... [get from https://www.critters.org/private/mss.php ]...
                                                 
     Title                      	Author
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Week of 13-Oct-2021 (Crits due 20-Oct-2021):
 SF  Interstellar Womb                  Guy McDonnell -#30195
 SF  Dear Editor                        Sandra Keisling -#30196
 F   The Departed Chapters 3-4          Laura Mortensen -#30197
 F   Gold Is All But Guaranteed         Madeline Jacobson -#30198
 SF  Emotive, Chapter 18                Jeff Naylor -#30199
 F   Lilith's Story                     Sandy Kulhavy -#30200
 F   Dancing Lady Golden Figurine       Robert Young -#30201
 SF  Possumsaurus Amicus                [@] Marc A. Criley -#30202
 SF  Dead to the World                  Carla Hennes -#30203
 SF  Aegan and the Sea Monster          David Murphy -#30204

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Recommended books on writing:

THE CRAFT OF WRITING AND SELLING SCIENCE FICTION by Ben Bova
	ReAnimus Press Store: https://ReAnimus.com/store?item=1144
	Amazon: https://Amazon.com/dp/B006MAZPEI

HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR SPECULATIVE FICTION OPENINGS By (Critter member) Robert Qualkinbush
	https://ReAnimus.com/store?item=1184 | https://Amazon.com/dp/B007O272ZI

STAYIN' ALIVE - A WRITER'S GUIDE by three-time SFWA President Norman Spinrad
	How things really work in the art and commerce of publishing
	https://ReAnimus.com/store?item=1179 | https://Amazon.com/dp/B007SIC4I8

EXPERIMENT PERILOUS: THE 'BUG JACK BARRON' PAPERS by Norman Spinrad
	(A 99cent essay on SF and writing)
	https://ReAnimus.com/store?item=1180 | https://Amazon.com/dp/B007MF3MS8
 
Because you might enjoy it... THE BOX: AN ORAL HISTORY OF TELEVISION, 1920-1961 by JEFF KISSELOFF
An oral history of TV from those who were there 'Wondrous' - New York Times Book Review
https://reanimus.com/store/?item=1336
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Pieces up for critique in other workshops...

In the lit workshop - https://critique.org/lit :
 L   They Sang of Green Pastures Chapters 1-3  Stephen Secor -#29841

In the mystery workshop - https://critique.org/mystery :
 M   Obsession                          Heidi Hunter -#30194

In the nonfiction workshop - https://critique.org/nonfiction :
 NP  I *Experience*, Therefore I Am     Robin niCathain -#30061

In the script workshop - https://critique.org/script :
 SC  Emergency                          Joe Latessa -#29381

In the kids workshop - https://critique.org/kids :
 YL  The Most Unremarkable Dragon       Jillian LeNoble -#30062

In the comics workshop - https://critique.org/comics :
 CG  Magna. logline/ synopsis           Brent Claridge -#28885

In the western workshop - https://critique.org/western :
 W   Black Dust Trails, Chapters 0-2    Michael ANDRE -#29724

In the romance workshop - https://critique.org/romance :
 R   Romance-WIP                        Roxanne (Roxi) Rowan -#29876

In the video workshop - https://critique.org/video :
 VS  The Gallery of Henri Beauchamp     Jay DeTalente -#21424

In the music workshop - https://critique.org/music :
 MP  The Shade Riders and Nocturnal Ned song  Beth Zurkowski -#21675

In the photo workshop - https://critique.org/photo :
 PH  Tree Reflection                    Jen Forte -#30097

In the art workshop - https://critique.org/art :
 AH  Art Man, a portrait                Robert J Cleary -#27847

In the website workshop - https://critique.org/website :
 WW  Franklin's Palindromedary          Ray N. Franklin -#29498

In the critters workshop - https://critique.org/critters :
 SF  Interstellar Womb                  Guy McDonnell -#30195
 SF  Dear Editor                        Sandra Keisling -#30196
 F   The Departed Chapters 3-4          Laura Mortensen -#30197
 F   Gold Is All But Guaranteed         Madeline Jacobson -#30198
 SF  Emotive, Chapter 18                Jeff Naylor -#30199
 F   Lilith's Story                     Sandy Kulhavy -#30200
 F   Dancing Lady Golden Figurine       Robert Young -#30201
 SF  Possumsaurus Amicus                [@] Marc A. Criley -#30202
 SF  Dead to the World                  Carla Hennes -#30203
 SF  Aegan and the Sea Monster          David Murphy -#30204
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You might also like... THE STEEL EYE by CHET GOTTFRIED
The robot private eye is on the case! 
https://reanimus.com/store/?item=1669

Standard notes:

HELP:
If you need help with anything, see https://www.critters.org/help -- there
are FAQs and a form to ask questions.

HELPING CRITTERS:
Critters is donation funded & volunteer run, so if you'd like to
help out with our current fund drive or otherwise, please visit
https://www.critters.org/donate.php -- Thanks!!

HOW TO SEND CRITIQUES:
Remember to send the critiques directly to me, critters@critique.org, so
I can forward them to the authors _and_ give you credit for your effort.
Please send only one critique per mail message (makes it easier to
archive).  Please make sure the "#" symbol and manuscript number are in
the email Subject: line, like Subject: #1234.  (Conversely, if you want
ol' Aburt to personally read the message, i.e., it's _not_ a critique,
don't put a "#" in the subject or I won't see it.  Also -- put my current
anti-spam code word in there: see https://www.critters.org/antispam.ht .)

You may also send your critiques via https://www.critters.org/webcrit.ht .

Note that all critiques will be available to everyone to read the next Saturday.

DIPLOMACY:
Remember, authors and critiquers, we're all friends here.  Be polite.  Be
considerate.  Be tactful.  You can say you thought a story was drivel in a
courteous way.  Try to point out the good and the bad; offer alternatives
if you can.  Never, ever, attack the author -- only the story.  Authors:
Remember that some reviewers may lack tact.  Try to be understanding,
but if you get any that you feel are just plain mean-spirited, too short
to be of any use, or too "feel good," let me know and I'll withhold the
reviewer's "credit" for that story and/or cajole them into something
more insightful.  See https://www.critters.org/diplomacy.ht for more...

CRITIQUE LENGTH:
If you want to send a short critique that you know is too short for
credit (200 words or less of your own meaningful content) please put
"NC#" in the Subject (NC=No Credit, like Subject: NC#1234) -and- say
something like "not for credit" inside your critique.  (Remember also that
for MPC purposes, a critique must be 300 words or more.)

CHATTING:
Comments -other- than critiques (such as discussion of the critiques,
or Woohoo! announcements, or chit chat) should be posted to one of the
official Critters discussion forums (See the https://www.critters.org/newsgroups.ht
web page for full info, guidelines, etc.)  Don't post stories or critiques
(mail those to critters@critique.org).

QUOTING:
Please pare the ms. down if critiquing in-line (don't quote the whole ms.!).
Other format rules are at https://www.critters.org/format.ht .

EVERYTHING'S ON THE WEB:
Past reviews are on the web page.  The current week's manuscripts are
also there, as are prior mss. and even some rewrites.  There's a Master
Page Index (site map) with tons of links to common items.

AUTHORS:
Authors for this week -- if you aren't getting email'd critiques from
me (as they come in) within a couple days -- ask me and we can verify
I'm sending them to the correct address.  (Send me a phone# in case I
can't get email to you.)  Check the format of your story ASAP to make sure
it's all there and readable.

EMAIL ISSUES:
If you want to change your email address or preferences (# mss. emailed,
SF/F/H type, or whether you get the huge critique batches at week's end),
point your browser to https://www.critters.org/admin.ht .  Please don't
ask me to do this by hand, it's quite a chore!  (E.g., if you're going
on vacation and want to suspend mail from me -- do this before/after
your trip.)

BACKUP SITE:
If you're unable to reach www.critters.org to get manuscripts, I've set up
an emergency backup site at https://backup.critters.org where you can get the
week's manuscripts (but not much of anything else :-).  Speaking of backups --
don't forget to back up your own manuscripts so you don't lose them!

QUITTING:
If you want to quit or go inactive, drop by https://www.critters.org/admin.ht .

DONATIONS:
Critters is funded by donations, so visit https://www.critters.org/donate.php
if you'd like to help out.

Because you might enjoy it... VANISHING LIGHT by ROBERT N. STEPHENSON
Mikolev thinks he's stumbled onto a secret... has he just opened Pandora's box and put all of utopia at risk?
https://reanimus.com/store/?item=1590

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