Exciting Year!
01/15/14 10:53 AMHappy New Year, everyone!
I'm anticipating that 2014 is going to be an exciting year! It marks the 20th anniversary of my press, Via Dolorosa Press, which has me as happy as a parent whose child just graduated. I've also got a few special events lined up that I hope you will join me for! The major one this year is Convergence 20, which is being held in Chicago in April. Check out my Events page to see details. I hope to have the next Jon Hunter book done this year as well. (I'm pushing to get it done in time for Convergence, so we'll see what happens!)
Thanks again for all of your support, particularly for your response to my latest poetry collection, Seventy Times Seven. I am so honored to have such amazing fans!!
Much love and wellness to each of you this year!
By Hyacinthe Raven
- Permalink Tagged: events, fitd, newyear, poetry, update, vdp55, convergence, anniversary, vdp
The sky is blue, my hands untied...
03/12/12 06:06 PM
Somewhere in chapter 6 now (of the next Jon Hunter book). Still planning on having the book in hand in October. Just in time for the next NYC Collectible Paperback and Pulp Fiction Expo!
Yes, I will be heading there again this year.
I will have more details on the website as we approach it.
Thanks again for the continued support!
Yes, I will be heading there again this year.
I will have more details on the website as we approach it.
Thanks again for the continued support!
Happy New Year!
12/30/11 06:57 PM
Thank you, everyone, for your support this year!
It's been a bit quiet these past few months, but that's because I've been working on the next Jon Hunter book. I've got 2 out of the proposed 13 chapters done so far, which should keep me on schedule for an October 2012 release. Fingers crossed and pencils sharpened!
I've also got a few other books in various stages of completion, so I hope that 2012 will bring them to life as well.
Please have a safe and happy new year!
Much love,
Hyacinthe
It's been a bit quiet these past few months, but that's because I've been working on the next Jon Hunter book. I've got 2 out of the proposed 13 chapters done so far, which should keep me on schedule for an October 2012 release. Fingers crossed and pencils sharpened!
I've also got a few other books in various stages of completion, so I hope that 2012 will bring them to life as well.
Please have a safe and happy new year!
Much love,
Hyacinthe
When the shadows were small...
08/14/11 02:09 PM
I'd love some feedback regarding the upcoming Jon Hunter book (Flowers in the Dustbin).
The first book (Dial 999) was written in first-person, from the point-of-view of our protagonist. Should I stick with that or mix it up? The plot in this next book is going to be more intricate, so I'm wondering if first-person won't be good enough or appropriate? What about a mix between first-person and third-person? Is that too confusing?
I welcome your ideas on this. I've read books that have done this, and it worked for a handful but failed for most. So, I'm afraid that I'm being too ambitious if I do it for my sophomore effort.
Thanks again for your suggestions and support! I hope to see you in NYC in October! (Check my 'Events' page for more info.)
The first book (Dial 999) was written in first-person, from the point-of-view of our protagonist. Should I stick with that or mix it up? The plot in this next book is going to be more intricate, so I'm wondering if first-person won't be good enough or appropriate? What about a mix between first-person and third-person? Is that too confusing?
I welcome your ideas on this. I've read books that have done this, and it worked for a handful but failed for most. So, I'm afraid that I'm being too ambitious if I do it for my sophomore effort.
Thanks again for your suggestions and support! I hope to see you in NYC in October! (Check my 'Events' page for more info.)
So it's no surprise my eyes are never heavy...
04/29/11 09:48 AMJust keeping myself busy here, nose buried in a book or pen buried in a journal. I've been working on a few short pieces for a couple anthologies, which is a nice change of pace for me. I'm also working on book two of the Jon Hunter series. And, if that wasn't enough, I had a flash of inspiration to start yet another book! This other one is a bit of an experiment, and I'm not sure what to consider it: popular fiction, literary fiction, pulp? I have no clue yet, and even as it congeals I still have no idea what its form will end up being. But I'm not one to back down to a literary challenge, so even if this turns out to be a failure, I'm going to ride it as far as it will go! I'll keep you all updated once I figure it out!
William, it was really nothing...
03/28/11 06:15 PMI'm so sorry for the lack of communication lately! It's been a bit chaotic here.
The trip to NYC didn't go as smoothly as I had hoped, so I'm sorry if I missed any of you while I was there. Steve Ignorant wasn't issued his visa in time for the show, so he had to postpone it. I will hopefully be back up there in May for the re-scheduled show, so perhaps I can hang out with some of you then!
In the meantime, I'm getting some more work done on the next book in the Jon Hunter mystery series (Flowers in the Dustbin). I think you guys are going to be pleased with it. While in NYC, I made a few more adjustments and got some great inspiration and ideas. I'm also still aiming to finish the book by the end of the year, so I won't make you guys wait to long for the next installment.
Thanks again for all of your support. I appreciate all of you!
Crawling the Walls...
02/18/11 04:14 PM
Going stir-crazy here on a beautiful spring-like day in Cleveland. I hope those of you in the area were able to get out and enjoy this weather, because you know what they say: in 10 minutes it will change, and the pressure headache I'm getting now is proof that's true.
Well, miracle of miracles, that other poetry collection I mentioned in my previous post has been completed! It's nowhere near ready to print yet, but it's written, and I love it more than anything I've ever done! The title is Seventy Times Seven and I've created a new page for it here on the site. It is 77 poems long and is set up like a narrative, so it's a lengthy piece. Antoinette Hancock, the lovely artist who did the covers of The Esoteric and Crush Violets, will be creating the artwork for this book. I'm super excited to share this with all of you.
I'm also super excited that this project is pretty much done! It's been over 10 years in the making, and it was quite a lot to carry around inside me all that time. It chronicles a period that many of you will recognize as the "Hyacinthe dropped off the face of the earth" era, and it is a relief for me to get this out of my system. I wrote it in a style a bit more like Anne Sexton than usual, and I think it works well. It's a journey from hope to horror and back again.
Now that I've birthed that child, I can go back to nurturing the other inside me: book two of the Jon Hunter Mysteries! I've extended the trip I'm taking in March (see the 'Events' page for more details) so that I can spend time writing. I love the energy of NYC, and I'd like to capture that as I write this new installment. This year is going to be very exciting!
Well, miracle of miracles, that other poetry collection I mentioned in my previous post has been completed! It's nowhere near ready to print yet, but it's written, and I love it more than anything I've ever done! The title is Seventy Times Seven and I've created a new page for it here on the site. It is 77 poems long and is set up like a narrative, so it's a lengthy piece. Antoinette Hancock, the lovely artist who did the covers of The Esoteric and Crush Violets, will be creating the artwork for this book. I'm super excited to share this with all of you.
I'm also super excited that this project is pretty much done! It's been over 10 years in the making, and it was quite a lot to carry around inside me all that time. It chronicles a period that many of you will recognize as the "Hyacinthe dropped off the face of the earth" era, and it is a relief for me to get this out of my system. I wrote it in a style a bit more like Anne Sexton than usual, and I think it works well. It's a journey from hope to horror and back again.
Now that I've birthed that child, I can go back to nurturing the other inside me: book two of the Jon Hunter Mysteries! I've extended the trip I'm taking in March (see the 'Events' page for more details) so that I can spend time writing. I love the energy of NYC, and I'd like to capture that as I write this new installment. This year is going to be very exciting!
Shallow then Halo
12/31/10 03:49 PM
This has been a good year. I don’t get to say that often, so I cherish today. Despite the fact that yesterday was covered with ice and I slipped on the slate at the foot of the steps. I don’t think I broke anything, but, damn, is my leg sore. Last night involved Vicodin and birch beer, which I wasn’t sure would be a good combination, but I couldn’t find anything else cold. Turned out to be fine, though I’m still a bit dizzy today. The pain is starting to return, which isn’t good...but I don’t drink, so I can celebrate New Year’s in relative safety with another pill! Lucky me! (Yes, that’s some sarcasm there.)
The cats kept me company this morning, though I question their motive considering they favored my injured leg. I tried to think of it as three vibrating heating pads...even though I’m sure what I was supposed to have were three ice packs! Still, they were too cute to disturb.
Right now I’m relaxing with some tea and considering the roles a couple new characters are going to play in the second book (Flowers in the Dustbin). I admit to being a bit nervous about the sophomore effort. It’s probably the feeling many bands get when they’re working on their second album. Will it be as good as the first? Will it be what people expect, or will it give them a new direction? In particular, I’m nervous about how to treat the characters that are continuing from Dial 999. I don’t want to repeat too much stuff because I don’t want to bore those of you who have already read it. But, I also don’t want to alienate readers who haven’t read Dial 999 yet. Is this a legitimate fear? I welcome your comments on this as I am writing the book. I started chapter one since I’ve outlined the book already, but I’m still putting together the details of the plot so I have lots of room to play.
I’m also pretty sure that I will be releasing those poetry books I found the manuscripts for the other day. One is just about ready to go to print, so that one will come first. I had it just about set up for publication already, so that will be my new year’s gift to you. :-) The other still needs some poems to connect it together (it was written as a series, telling a story), so that one will probably take me a while to complete. I’m so happy to have re-discovered it, though! It was important for me to write, when I had started it, and re-reading it makes me so excited for what I had started. It was such catharsis for me at the time, and now I can appreciate it on multiple levels. The writing is strong and clearly “me”; I love that feeling of having found a voice. My early years of writing poetry had me testing out many styles, but by the late ‘90s I had really fallen into my particular groove (which I do not deny is similar to Anne Sexton). I hope that these two collections will be good enough to make you forgive me for how long it’s been since I published anything. :-)
And, on that note, I wish you all a wonderful (and safe) New Year! If you are in the US, please don’t forget about something called Tipsy Tow. From 6pm-6am on New Year’s Eve/Day, they will take you and your car home for FREE. You do not need to be a member of AAA to take advantage of this. The number is 1-800-222-4357. If you do not have a designated driver tonight, please be sure to call them!
The cats kept me company this morning, though I question their motive considering they favored my injured leg. I tried to think of it as three vibrating heating pads...even though I’m sure what I was supposed to have were three ice packs! Still, they were too cute to disturb.
Right now I’m relaxing with some tea and considering the roles a couple new characters are going to play in the second book (Flowers in the Dustbin). I admit to being a bit nervous about the sophomore effort. It’s probably the feeling many bands get when they’re working on their second album. Will it be as good as the first? Will it be what people expect, or will it give them a new direction? In particular, I’m nervous about how to treat the characters that are continuing from Dial 999. I don’t want to repeat too much stuff because I don’t want to bore those of you who have already read it. But, I also don’t want to alienate readers who haven’t read Dial 999 yet. Is this a legitimate fear? I welcome your comments on this as I am writing the book. I started chapter one since I’ve outlined the book already, but I’m still putting together the details of the plot so I have lots of room to play.
I’m also pretty sure that I will be releasing those poetry books I found the manuscripts for the other day. One is just about ready to go to print, so that one will come first. I had it just about set up for publication already, so that will be my new year’s gift to you. :-) The other still needs some poems to connect it together (it was written as a series, telling a story), so that one will probably take me a while to complete. I’m so happy to have re-discovered it, though! It was important for me to write, when I had started it, and re-reading it makes me so excited for what I had started. It was such catharsis for me at the time, and now I can appreciate it on multiple levels. The writing is strong and clearly “me”; I love that feeling of having found a voice. My early years of writing poetry had me testing out many styles, but by the late ‘90s I had really fallen into my particular groove (which I do not deny is similar to Anne Sexton). I hope that these two collections will be good enough to make you forgive me for how long it’s been since I published anything. :-)
And, on that note, I wish you all a wonderful (and safe) New Year! If you are in the US, please don’t forget about something called Tipsy Tow. From 6pm-6am on New Year’s Eve/Day, they will take you and your car home for FREE. You do not need to be a member of AAA to take advantage of this. The number is 1-800-222-4357. If you do not have a designated driver tonight, please be sure to call them!
Ah...That Time of Year
12/12/10 07:54 PM
I love the soft blanket snow makes when it covers the ground, how it smothers all the sound outside. I'm not sure how winter looks by you guys, but here in Cleveland the sky tends to be a strange grey-orange, and everything feels ominous. Like you're in a Neil Gaiman novel with the good guy (who doesn't quite seem so good) sensing the bad guy (who is exquisitely and properly good at not being good).
I have too much work to do tonight to be getting all dreamy and poetic about the precipitation, but it just can't be helped. This is the stuff that makes me want to curl up and write. My husband, bless his heart, brought me coffee, which makes a fabulous dinner as far as I'm concerned. Holiday cards are spread around me, buried under 2 of our 5 cats, in the half-stages of being completed to send to the post. The Cocteau Twins are fluttering through my laptop as I type, to be followed by Lycia, which truly makes the perfect soundtrack to this season.
Was there a point to this? Yes. It's to say that book 2 of the Jon Hunter Mystery series, Flowers in the Dustbin, is being written...with the hope that by this time next year it will be proper reading material.
Stay safe, wherever you are, and know that you are all in my thoughts as my pen goes to paper.
I have too much work to do tonight to be getting all dreamy and poetic about the precipitation, but it just can't be helped. This is the stuff that makes me want to curl up and write. My husband, bless his heart, brought me coffee, which makes a fabulous dinner as far as I'm concerned. Holiday cards are spread around me, buried under 2 of our 5 cats, in the half-stages of being completed to send to the post. The Cocteau Twins are fluttering through my laptop as I type, to be followed by Lycia, which truly makes the perfect soundtrack to this season.
Was there a point to this? Yes. It's to say that book 2 of the Jon Hunter Mystery series, Flowers in the Dustbin, is being written...with the hope that by this time next year it will be proper reading material.
Stay safe, wherever you are, and know that you are all in my thoughts as my pen goes to paper.