Editing

One of my manuscripts is Day 10K, a science fiction novel for adults with some humorous elements. On the advice of a couple of professional beta readers, I need to get people down from their spaceship to a colonized world faster.

The main problem was chapter 4. The entire chapter has good writing, but much of it was getting in the way. A difficult decision for a writer is not so much getting rid of bad writing, but getting rid of good writing.

So after taking out chunks, chapter 4 went from nineteen pages to nine pages. More work will be done on chapter 5, but the changes to chapter 4 were the largest.

Norwescon III – Supplemental

I’ve been delayed in doing this supplemental post because I was sick for a while, but here is the penultimate post, which is mostly cosplay.

Before we get to the costumes, I appreciate how Norwescon had the front rows of each panel session marked off for handicapped/disabled/differently abled people. Here is one of the typical signs for the seats:

If you don’t get it, ask someone who is devoted to comic books.

Okay, here we go. First we have these two friends. The sign reads: “Will debate Star Wars v. Star Trek for alcohol.”

Here are a few more costumes. Just to let you know ahead of time, a number of women protested that they had no makeup on because they had been wearing masks.  

 

 

Not to bias anyone, but this fellow was greatly praised for his Witcher costume.

 

 

 

Here is a young woman dressed as Padme. 

 

 

 

 

I had to choose from a number of poses. I just couldn’t choose between these two. 

 

My next post should have the last of the cosplay pics I took.

Norwescon II – Supplemental

I attended an interesting panel on how AI is portrayed in fiction. One of the panelists was Eva L. Elasigue, who wrote about AI and has a scientific background in botany.

 

 

In a panel on the biology of monsters, I spoke up, saying Star Trek once portrayed a silicon-based lifeform—the Horta—as opposed to carbon-based. I recounted how as a child I snuck out to the living room past my bedtime and saw the Horta incinerate a man. I ran out of the room screaming.

As I recounted this, the speakers simply stared at me without changing expression. I thought I was coming off as weird, but they were just concentrating. They went on to comment on the possibility of silicon-based life.

I had a nice conversation after the panel with Charlotte Lewis Brown, a paleontologist. I knew that either Allosaurus or Tyrannosaurs was considered barrel-chested, while the other was not. She confirmed that Allosaurus had been the one considered barrel-chested (my term, not hers). But more recently with the discovery of Tyrannosaurus collarbones, they are both considered barrel-chested.

 

Charlotte Lewis Brown has a series of books for children

 

People enjoy walking around in their costumes. Here is Victoria Schaeffer.

 

Her dress was rich in detail.

Here is another lovely dress.

 

 

Notice the masks can be chosen to match the rest of the material. 

On the theory that if a person stays in one place long enough, the whole world will pass by: I was standing on the second floor of the convention hotel lobby when I heard a woman’s voice floating up from the first floor saying she had once dressed as Captain Marvel. I went down and found Torrey Stenmark in her floor costume. (Some people have one costume for walking around on the floor, and another to show off for judging.)

 

She definitely did appear as Captain Marvel one year.

 

To make sure, I asked her if she had once been Power Girl. She had to think a moment before saying yes.

 

So I’ll see what she comes up with this year.