Michael G. Munz

The official website of Seattle sci-fi/fantasy author and geek Michael G. Munz

  • Novels
    • Memory of Dragons
    • Zeus Is Dead
      • Praise for Zeus Is Dead
    • Zeus Is Undead
    • The New Aeneid Cycle
      • A SHADOW IN THE FLAMES
      • A MEMORY IN THE BLACK
      • A DRAGON AT THE GATE
    • MYTHED CONNECTIONS
    • Four Fantastical Ways to Lose Your Fingers
      • Get it FREE!
  • Geek Notes Blog
    • Blog Archive
    • Farscape Re-Watch
    • Michael Reads Percy Jackson
  • Bio
  • Contact
  • Press

The Legacy of Legacy of Memory

October 4, 2010 By Michael G. Munz Leave a Comment

Last month (give or take), I mentioned my decision to, for now, abandon any attempts at getting Legacy of Memory published and instead move on to focus on a new book entirely unrelated to either it or its self-published predecessor, A Shadow in the Flames. I’ll write a little more here about the new novel (Murdering Zeus for Fun and Profit, for which I just sent out the first agent query yesterday) in a future entry. For now I want to explain a little more about why Legacy of Memory will sit on the shelf, at least for the foreseeable future.

First, my thanks to those who have written asking when they could read a sequel to A Shadow in the Flames. It’s gratifying to know there are people out there who don’t otherwise know me from Adam’s housecat (whose name is Uriel, by the way) who have read the first book and are interested to know more about Michael, Felix, Gideon, and just what the heck is going to happen next.

The problem lies in A Shadow in the Flames being self-published. Yes, the publish-on-demand (POD) publisher I went through does screen books in order to elevate their offerings above other POD publishers, but self-publishing a fiction book still often carries about as much weight in the industry as a dead mule. I don’t necessarily think that’s unfair, either. (That said, I’ve received enough independent praise about ASITF to believe it’s a decent effort. I wish I’d known more when I made the decision to go POD with it and at least tried going directly to some small publishers who take unagented fiction rather than going for agents or nothing, but no matter.) The point is, I don’t want to self-publish again, and the chances of selling a second book in a series when the first book is so obscure are slim to none. My efforts are, unfortunately, better directed elsewhere.

Let me go back and say that I don’t entirely regret self-publishing ASITF. I had a great need to get the story “out there” and read by at least some segment of the public. Part of that need translated into continuing the story into a second (and then planned third) book. There was a danger of my contracting “sequelitis” (see an explanation of that term in this blog by Nathan Bransford (an agent for Curtis Brown, Ltd. with a very helpful publishing blog) and continuing to write further books that had little to no chance of being published in a more traditional fashion. Self-publishing gave me at least some feeling of closure, allowing me to set the story and characters from ASITF and LOM so that I could move on and write my third manuscript.

This is not to say I relish abandoning those earlier books. (Nor is “abandoning” completely final in this case, either. Perhaps in the future I can return to the series, though my thoughts on that are probably another blog entry waiting to be written.) It pains me to think that LOM, by my estimation a much better book than ASITF, will remain read by only a few folks for a while. Yet of some comfort is the fact that I know that I learned quite a bit in writing those first two manuscripts. My craft has improved. I’m quite proud of my latest work (and I confess I cringe a bit when I go back and look at those first two novels) and I would not have been able to do the job on manuscript three without having written one and two. I only wish I didn’t have to lose Michael, Felix, Caitlin, Marc, Marette, and Diomedes to a learning experience. …Wow, my characters have names that start with M a lot, don’t they? What’s up with that?

So, for the moment, Legacy of Memory remains on the shelf. Three people have read the entire thing (besides myself), and it may continue to be so for a while. I may release it electronically somehow, someday. I may hang onto it and find some way to polish it up a little more. (I looked at it again a short while ago. The beginning needs more work than I recognized previously.) Time will tell.

They say a writer’s first novel is a learning experience only, unlikely to see the light of day. That’s not something one likes to hear when while spending so much effort to create it. Two manuscripts down the line, though, I think it’s something I can accept.

And Murdering Zeus for Fun and Profit is a damned good novel. Okay, so I’m slightly biased. I’m also quite proud of it. More about that soon…

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Filed Under: Miscellaneous, Writing Tagged With: Writer

Faster? Well, not yet…

December 21, 2008 By Michael G. Munz Leave a Comment

Another writing update for my as-yet-unnamed 3rd novel (which, again, is an entirely different animal than the first two)…

So far it seems that my attempt at writing this one a lot faster than the previous two is suffering a few setbacks. For the moment I’m choosing to blame this on a busy holiday season and the difficulty in starting a new book (establishing characters, not overdoing exposition, and so forth). I’ve rewritten the second chapter three or four times now, just trying to get it right, and it’s still not to my liking.

On the plus side, I THINK that once I get over this particular hurdle, I’ll have gotten over the initial creative energy hump. Then I can better continue forward with the proper momentum.

I realize I’m being terribly vague about all of this, but oh well. Right now Seattle’s being hit by a rather nasty blizzard (by our standards, anyway), and my brain is iced. Here’s hoping the power holds out…

Michael G. Munz
www.michaelgmunz.com

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Filed Under: Miscellaneous, Writing Tagged With: Writer

“Pre-production”

November 30, 2008 By Michael G. Munz Leave a Comment

So I’m back to blogging after having taken an even longer break from this place than my previous one. What have I been up to? I’m glad you asked, imaginary person! In my last blog I wrote a bit about coming up with ideas for a third novel; not the follow-up to Legacy of Memory (2014 note: this became A Memory in the Black), but rather an entirely unconnected stand-alone with something of a different tone than what I’ve written for novels before. As I said, working with an entirely blank slate is both freeing and frustrating. As I write this, I’m sitting in a Barnes & Noble café having just finished the step-sheet for what I hope to be a darned amusing book.

In case you’re wondering, the step-sheet is basically a rough outline of the scenes (or at least the general happenings) of the plot and character development. Before I did that, I had to come up with the whole freaking premise of the setting (which wasn’t TOO hard, as it’s actually set in the present day with one liiiiittle difference–and no, I’m not telling what that is yet), at least a general idea of what the major characters are like (I’m fairly sure about most of the details now on those, but they still need the breath of life that only actually writing the book will give, I think), and the whole darned premise of the story. The step-sheet helps me to make sure all the Chekhov’s guns are in place, the exposition is portioned out properly (without being overwhelming), and helps me to see where possible problems are–or at least realize what sort of details I still need to come up with.

This particular novel is going to be…somewhat less serious than my previous ones. I suppose, given the stakes involved, it may be considered “epic,” but it’s my plan to thumb my nose at such things and have little or no respect for my own work. …If that makes sense. Actually, it doesn’t, but oh well. A better way of putting it is that this novel is not going to be taking itself seriously–at least that’s the plan. It won’t be entirely comedy, either. If anyone’s read my short story “Playing With Hubris” or maybe even “Finding Victor,” that would be something akin to the mix of humor that I’m going for. But I suppose I’ll know more once I start the actual writing and find the right voice.

Choosing just HOW to start the book is giving me some trouble, though. I’ve got two different options, and while I think one might be a better hook plot-wise, it doesn’t involve any of the main characters. I need to talk over my ideas with some folks and see what they think, because right now I’m rather torn.

It’s my goal to write this one a LOT faster than the previous two, which will take a bit of discipline on my part. I suppose that’s part of why I’m really taking care to line up all of my ducks at the moment so once the actual writing starts, I know the characters, I know the details of the setting and everyone’s agenda…and I can just shove everyone into the arena and let them do their thing.

…And if anyone gets out of hand, I’ll zap ’em with a lightning bolt.

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: Writer

What I’m Currently (Back to) Writing…

October 7, 2008 By Michael G. Munz 3 Comments

The 5,000 or so of you out there who read this blog without commenting (and I know you’re out there! Don’t try to deny me my fantasy, you imaginary people!) may have noticed I haven’t written in a little bit. It’s a side-effect of a week-long writing break I’ve been on until, well, today. (Bonus points if you can guess when I started.)

A quick writing update: While I wrote an ending to Legacy of Memory at the end of June, I’ve since been tweaking and rewriting, little by little. This is based both on my own general read-throughs as well as comments from a few people I’ve got reading. (Thanks again to you three, by the way. And Joe? Hurry up with those final chapters!) A couple of weeks ago, having gotten to a place where I didn’t want to tweak any more until I heard back from said readers, I decided to turn my attention toward writing something else.

This wound up presenting a problem as my momentum from trying to finish one book carried over into my trying to start another, and like a rollerblader who speeds down a hill off of smooth cement into mud, my creative feet got tripped up plowing through the thickness of an as yet undreamt-of plot and sent the rest of my creative body hurling head over heels into the writing miasma…or something. Clearly the metaphor’s buckling under it’s own weight here, but you get the idea. So I opted to take a week off, not think about ANYthing related to writing, publishing, or blogging, and just let my brain reboot itself a little.

So I’m back! Now for those of you wondering about what the new book is about, the short answer is I’m not sure. I’ve always said that Legacy of Memory was only the second in a three-book arc, so it would make sense that I’d now be working on the third and final book, right? Ha! Shows what you know. I’m the guy who came up with the battery-powered battery recharger and once folded an 10′ origami crane on the middle of the UW campus at 2am, so if you’re expecting me to make sense all the time, rabbit football doodlewhomp.

While it is possible that the next book I write will be a sequel to A Shadow in the Flames and Legacy of Memory (and I’ve always liked the title Here Be Dragons for that one, but who knows?), I may instead try to publish a single, stand-alone book that will hopefully get me further into the publishing world than I currently am and thus help get more attention to the three-book series. The up-side of writing something completely new is that the utterly blank slate gives me a chance to scratch some creative itches that I haven’t yet been able to explore in novel form. The down-side is that it’s an UTTERLY BLANK SLATE! So for the moment I’m mostly in what Terry Brooks would call the dreaming stage, which essentially involves a lot of walking into things while pondering my creative options (when I’m not in a café doing the same thing only sitting down and caffinated). It’s both fun and frustrating, which I suppose describes a lot of things in life.

I’ve got a few ideas that I’m working on exploring, but no one thing that I’ve decided on. I suppose I could tell you at least one: rabbit football doodlewhomp.

…I’m probably not going to go with that one.

Michael G. Munz
www.michaelgmunz.com

(Technorati tags: writing, fiction, Legacy of Memory)

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: Writer

Speedily Submitting Short Stories (or something)

August 13, 2008 By Michael G. Munz Leave a Comment

One of my favorite quotes (which for the longest time I mistakenly attributed to Dan Simmons, having read it first in Hyperion–it’s actually Peter De Vries) is “I love being a writer. What I can’t stand is the paperwork.”

I bring it up in this case because actually SUBMITTING my writing for publication is something I don’t do nearly enough as I probably should. I like writing stories, I hate writing cover letters (or even the short email prefaces for electronic submissions).

However, since it’s been a little while since one of my short stories found a home (okay, not too long; “Playing with Hubris,” one of my favorites, was in NexGen Pulp a few months ago), I’ve thrust my butt into the self-booting machine ($199.95, Sharper Image catalog) and sent out a flurry of submissions.

…by which I mean about four. Here’s a quick teaser/rundown of the stories I’ve sent to various fiction magazines, otherwise known as a few children I hope to hear about finding homes for soon:

“The Atheist and the Ferryman”
Many of us have lots of things in our basement. Old clothes, washing machines, giant Olmec heads of Xtapolapocetl, etc. Marcus just happens to have a cave leading to Hades. This is one of my favorite stories that I’ve written, if not THE favorite, though I’ve not yet found a place for it. Do I like it so much that I can’t see it’s flaws, I wonder? Then again, it mixes Greek myth with modern times and a somewhat macabre sense of humor, so it IS an odd one to try to squeeze into a genre label.

“Beyond Memory”
This one’s a bit different from what I usually write and probably closest to magical realism than anything else I’ve written. If you could connect with the actual spirit of a lost loved one when you dreamed, would it be worth it if you couldn’t remember when you woke? What price would you pay to not forget your time together? I came up with this one for a PNWA contest a while back, but at the time I had to rush it and quite honestly it wasn’t ready then. After some polishing, I’m sending it out into the world once more.

“Katy’s Deal”
This is a short one that I wrote a while back and recently polished. It’s pretty short (only 975 words) and makes for an amusing diversion if you like the idea of a technophile teenager trying to both get a job as Death’s assistant and help him to get Wi-Fi access. (Yeah, I write weird ones.)

“Pen Pal”
Another short one, this time without humor and going more toward creepy. How would YOU feel if after three years of agoraphobia you started receiving death threats demanding a murdered man’s gold watch hidden in your attic?

(Hmm. Attics, basements. I should write something dealing with a scaaaaaary linen closet! The towels! The towels are scratchy! Ruuuuuuun!!)

Michael G. Munz
www.michaelgmunz.com

(Technorati tags: speculative fiction, short stories)

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Writer

I made my deadline!

July 3, 2008 By Michael G. Munz Leave a Comment

Okay, so I didn’t make my previously stated goal of updating this thing EVERY Thursday, but I did make my self-imposed June 30th deadline for finishing the first draft of Legacy of Memory. I still need to run it all through my assembled reading group to see what they think, not to mention do a lot of polishing that I see the need for already. There’s a few continuity issues that need ironing out as well, and one or two things I just want to develop a little more.

One example: There are two female characters in LoM, Caitlin (whom readers will recognize from A Shadow in the Flames) and a new character. There are definite parallels between them in terms of a situation they’re both dealing with, and I want to do a better job of contrasting the different paths they take.

One of my readers is currently 2/3rds of the way through it; I did something that surprised the heck out of him and, in his view, upped the stakes for the characters in a way the reader really feels. I love trying to do stuff like that, and it’s a fantastic feeling to know I’ve managed to pull it off.
So there’s an ending now, and I’m even fairly certain (no bets, though) that the last paragraph will remain completely untouched in the editing process. (I’m tempted to quote the whole paragraph verbatim here, since it’s a line of dialogue from a character the reader hasn’t seen talk much that I think really gives an exciting punch to the very end–there will, of course, be a third and final book–but I don’t want to spoil anyone. …Actually, that’s not true, I DO want to spoil people, but I know I’d regret it. But hey, I’m excited about it!)

As for the whole “every Thursday” blog thing, I’m actually having some alternate ideas for just how this blog will be developing, but I’m still working on that. Be sure to check back soon to see what happens…

Michael G. Munz
www.michaelgmunz.com

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Writer

Writing Update (and Mass Effect)

June 19, 2008 By Michael G. Munz Leave a Comment

Blogging note: I’ve decided to try to update this blog once per week on Thursdays, so be sure to check in every week for writing updates and general geekery!

I’m looking at (let’s see, what day is this?) eleven more days before my self-imposed deadline to finish writing Legacy of Memory (pre-polishing). At the moment, I think I’m doing pretty well. The denouement of anything is always a difficult thing for me to write; having to tie together so many things and give a little resonance to the entire thing without it coming across as cheesy or forced is a challenge.

With the help of a mocha, I just finished the “final” chapter, and have only to write the epilogue. Once that’s done, I go into full editing mode, polishing language, fixing continuity issues, and generally making sure the characters are both ringing true and have made the transition from my brain to the page. This isn’t to say I don’t edit as I go, of course. The way I generally write is to get a chapter down, then go back and massage it into better shape before moving onto the next chapter. There are certain things you can only see once you’ve got the entire thing written, however. It’s both due to the fact that no matter how well you (or I, at least) outline something, it always evolves a little in the process of getting it onto the page, and the fact that it’s easier to see where some small things need fixing once you’ve got it all done and can stand back and view it as a whole.

We’ll see how quickly THAT stage goes, I guess. One of my chief readers is currently in the middle of selling his house, so he’s selfishly slacking off in his critiquing duties. I suppose I can forgive him.

In other news, I mentioned Mass Effect in my last blog. After a quick RAM upgrade (RAM is CHEAP these days!), I’ve been playing through it and finding myself surprisingly addicted. It’s got a great many of the good qualities of two other favorites of mine: Deus Ex and Knights of the Old Republic. I’ve been playing through it this first time Diomedes, reacting as he would (sticking to a plan, motivated by money, and being a general surly hard-ass). It leaves a lot of game branches and dialogue options unexplored, so it gives me a fun way to experience the game while at the same time leaving a lot for a second playthrough with a different (and more benevolent) attitude. No major review from me yet, though.

It’s June, but here in Seattle it still feels like March. At some point I suppose the sun might come out, but I’ll believe that when I see it.

-Michael G. Munz
www.michaelgmunz.com

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Filed Under: A Memory in the Black Tagged With: Games, Writer

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • Next Page »

Subscribe to my Newsletter!

Read My Books:


B089LY6VFP cover

Memory of Dragons: A Contemporary Fantasy Adventure

Price:
$4.99

Purchase at amazon.com


B01GF5QWGE cover

Zeus Is Dead: A Monstrously Inconvenient Adventure

Price: $3.99

Purchase at amazon.com


B01GF5QWGE cover

Zeus Is Undead: This One Has Zombies

Price: $5.99

Purchase at amazon.com


B01GF1CT1A cover

A Shadow in the Flames (The New Aeneid Cycle Book 1)

SALE! $0.99

Purchase at amazon.com


B01G9P1JN6 cover

A Memory in the Black (The New Aeneid Cycle Book 2)

Price: $2.99

Purchase at amazon.com


B01JKJLD98 cover

A Dragon at the Gate (The New Aeneid Cycle Book 3)

SALE! $2.99

Purchase at amazon.com


B00EUU0588 cover

Mythed Connections (short story collection)

Price: $0.99

Purchase at amazon.com


B072XXDTV7 cover

Four Fantastical Ways to Lose Your Fingers

Price: $0.99

Purchase at amazon.com

My Tweets

Recent Blog Posts

  • The Characters of Memory of Dragons
  • Preorder Memory of Dragons for a Discount
  • Cover Reveal: Memory of Dragons

Search: