Friday Link Salad 9/17/11-9/24/11

Today’s the official day that Near + Far is launched upon the world. Huzzah! If you’re wondering how to buy or spread the word about the book, here’s some details.

There’s a giveaway for jewelry going on here on this blog throughout this week.
There’s a giveaway for a signed copy of the book along with one of the Near + Far necklaces on GoodReads.
David Steffen is hosting a giveaway here.
Here’s a book trailer!

Some of you have received the mail I sent out talking about what you could do to spread word of the book. Here’s some of the pertinent details from that for those as wants such.As you know, publishing is changing and increasingly authors are part of the promotion process. I’m asking — if you should feel so inclined — for your help if getting the buzz out.

So what can you do?

Well, sure, buy the book is top of the list. But we don’t all have the budget. Here’s some other ways that you can assist in getting the word out about Near + Far:

1. Request it through your library. Most will even let you do this online.

2. Request it at your local bookstore. It’s available through Ingram, a major book distributor, so they should be able to get it.

3. Write an Amazon review or tag the book on Amazon. Amazon reviews are great! But if you don’t have the time to write one up, you can still help. One way that often gets overlooked is tagging. Scroll to the bottom of the Amazon page for the book until you see “Tags Customers Associate with This Product.” Add tags that you think might help someone find the book, if you notice anything missing, or just go through and check the boxes next to the tags you think are relevant (which is hopefully all of them.)

4. Review it or add it to your to-read list on book sites. Reviews on Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, LibraryThing (http://www.librarything.com/work/13024203/book/89765198), and Shelfari are great!

5. Blog about the book. Any mention of the book, particularly one that explains why you liked it, is awesome. There’s actually some cool little things about the book:

• The tête-bêche format, also known as the Ace Double. Flip the Near side of the book over, and you’ll find Far on the other side.
• The interior artwork is by long-time friend Mark W. Tripp.
• If you’re one of the people who’s already received a necklace, take a picture of it with yourself to send me for the Near + Far page. Or alternately, the necklace with someone/something/draped across a rotting log/in a bookstore/whatever?
• Stories range from very early to very recent, spanning markets from Asimov’s and Lightspeed to small and somewhat obscure anthologies. I’ve included some of my favorite stories, such as “The Mermaids Singing Each to Each,” “Surrogates,” and “Bus Ride to Mars.”

6. Share news of it on social networks. Sharing links on Facebook and other social networks is great. I’ll be posting links to blog entries about the book on the main networks I use: Facebook, Google +, and Twitter. Just favoriting, plusing or liking posts helps give them a little Google juice. Even going to the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/nearplusfar and clicking “Like” helps.

7. Share news of it on mailing lists and other groups. Pass the news along to your fellows on writing or SF-related discussion boards, BBSes, mailing lists, and other forums.

8. Share links on bookmarking sites. If you use bookmarking sites like Delicious, Reddit, or Stumbleupon, please think about bookmarking pages about the book. Here’s some pages that might be worth bookmarking:

Hydra House page for the book
Overview of the book
Zeppelin Follies, read by Folly Blaine

Resources for Sharing:
Here’s a link to the book on the Hydra House Books page:
http://hydrahousebooks.com/bookstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2&products_id=7

Here is the Amazon listing:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0984830146/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0984830146&linkCode=as2&tag=carawr-20
Barnes & Noble listing:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/near-far-hydra-house/1112139962?ean=9780984830145

Here it is on other networks:
Delicious
FaceBook
GoodReads
Pinterest
Shelfari

Nearly done with this, it’s hovering somewhere between novelette and novella length. Thank you to Mary Robinette Kowal for suggesting the title.

Friendly Village loops and winds, tiny roads scattered among the trailers. Every patch of landscaping is different ““ cacti surrounded one mobile home, followed by a forest of rhododendrons, then dahlias that might have originated in my own garden.

Up along the creek ran a little road, unlined with homes. It led to a trailer of a peculiar pearly hue that might have been mistaken for grime at first. It was a Nordic style, almost, simulated white pine beams, rough wrought ironwork on the walls. Its landscaping was bare: a line of rocks, two tiny fir trees, one slightly larger than the other.

Outside, a massive rock crouched beside the mailbox.

In Greek mythology, such stones were sacred to Aphrodite. But I didn’t think a Greek God lurked within.

I’d taken the time to change into a shirt with a pattern of sunglasses. Not the most subtle enchantment, but that was deceptive. It hung a little oddly due to the lining I inserted, fashioned entirely from a different shirt, one patterned with shells, and it helped that the artist had depicted them as fragile things made of spines and arcs, but thick white clam shells. There was enough protection that shirt that it felt as heavy as a full suit of plate mail, even altered my gate a little, made it more of a shuffle.

A man stood on the front porch, watching me approach. His attitude was expectant, perhaps even a little impatient, as though my visit was overdue. His gray beard hung down to his belly, woolly as a blanket. His eyes were blue and a few golden strands showed among the silver on his scalp to attest to his Nordic heritage.

I stopped a few feet away, looking at him.

“You’ve come of your own accord,” he said. “It would’ve been easier if you just let them bring you.”

I acted unsurprised, and maybe I was. Occam’s razor again. One) move to a new place. Two) be attacked by a powerful magical adversary. More than time connected that chain.

“I’m Forseti,” he said.

I searched through crumbs of mythology. My knowledge might have only the depth of a Wikipedia article, but it was wide. You learn the names of all the gods, once you realize most still exist and are acting out their own plans, few of which are constructed to advance humanity. Or even take it into account, really.

“Justice, right?” I said.

He dropped a slow nod.

“What justice is there in killing me?” I asked.

He said, “Perhaps you should come inside for tea.”