The Dragon Page » Cover to Cover Shows

7th Son: Descent, Part 4

Summer Brooks — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:28:16 +0000

Welcome to the fourth serialized PDF installment of J.C. Hutchins’ 7th Son: Descent, a high-tech thriller novel. In 7th Son, human cloning isn’t near — it’s already here. If this is your first exposure to our free serialization of 7th Son, you can easily catch up by experiencing part one, part two and part three. You [...]

Cover to Cover #380A: Cherie Priest

Summer Brooks — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 06:25:46 +0000

Show Notes: Cherie Priest Discussion: Sean from Edwards says he received a brutal rejection letter on the manuscript he’d submitted to Writer’s Exchange, and wants to know what comes next; whether he should hire an independent editor, or a different set of eyes to look at. Note from Summer: Sean, which Writer’s Exchange did you submit to? [...]

Cover to Cover #379B: B-Show Bonanza

Summer Brooks — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 23:33:49 +0000

Show Notes: B-Show Bonanza Voicemail: Arkle has trouble believing that some fanfic writers would accuse published writers of “stealing” their ideas; Mari from Michigan wonders how much writing style can affect a reader’s potential enjoyment of a book; Alison from LA wonders why more publishers aren’t following Harlequin’s e-book model for publishing; Mike from Ottawa wonders [...]

7th Son: Descent, Part 3

Summer Brooks — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:05:29 +0000

Welcome to the third serialized PDF installment of J.C. Hutchins’ SF thriller 7th Son: Descent, a novel set in present day featuring human cloning, dangerous technologies, and “beyond Top Secret” government conspiracies. If this is your first exposure to our free serialization of 7th Son, catching up is a breeze. You can find the novel’s first installment [...]

Cover to Cover #379A: Tom Lloyd

Summer Brooks — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 04:12:18 +0000

Show Notes: Tom Lloyd Discussion: Today, Mike Stackpole, referring to a recent Publisher’s Weekly column, has a bone to pick with some of the hype around Cory Doctorow’s expertise as a free digital media evangelist, specifically the lack of numbers supporting the fact that the free ebook giveaways do indeed increase the print sales, and the [...]

7th Son: Descent, Part 2

Summer Brooks — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:00:07 +0000

Welcome to the second serialized installment of J.C. Hutchins’ SF thriller novel 7th Son: Descent. To celebrate the Oct. 27 release of the book, J.C. is releasing Descent in several free serialized formats: PDF, blog text, and audio. “Cover to Cover” is distributing the PDF version of the novel in ten weekly installments. In the last [...]

Cover to Cover #378A: Douglas Clegg

Summer Brooks — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 17:16:42 +0000

Show Notes: Douglas Clegg Discussion: We discuss more feedback from other aspiring writers with physical challenges who find themselves inspired by David Weber’s interview and his use of transcription software tools to write his novels. Keep an eye on the website, and when we’re able to get him back on the show to talk more about his [...]

Cover to Cover #377B: Voicemail Feedback

Summer Brooks — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 05:41:20 +0000

Show Notes: More Voicemail to Answer Listener Feedback: Wild Snorlax is looking forward to Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters… we don’t know why; Mark from DC wants to know if writing advice stops becoming helpful at a certain point; Seth high-fives Stackpole for prescience about the rebirth of serialized fiction; Allison from LA comments on [...]

7th Son: Descent, Part 1

Summer Brooks — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 15:00:05 +0000

The president of the United States is dead. He was murdered in the morning sunlight by a four-year-old boy… Those are the opening lines of J.C. Hutchins’ sci-fi thriller novel 7th Son: Descent, which will be released in North American bookstores on Oct. 27. When dozens of publishing pros rejected 7th Son in 2005, J.C. reckoned the [...]

Cover to Cover #377A: Writing an Epic Saga

Summer Brooks — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 03:36:22 +0000

Show Notes: Writing an Epic Saga Discussion: Trampas asks about tackling a long-running series, from a writer’s perspective. Does the length and anticipated volume of story that lies ahead make the project too daunting to attempt? What might be some of the potential obstacles to getting such a huge project off the ground and published? Visit GoToMeeting.com/podcast [...]

Cover to Cover #376A: David Anthony Durham

Summer Brooks — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 04:00:16 +0000

Show Notes: David Anthony Durham Discussion: Michael, Michael and Brian chat about yet another device: the Espresso Book Machine: The EBM is essentially an ATM for books that automatically prints, binds, and trims, on demand at point of sale, perfect-bound, library-quality paperback books. These books, which have full color covers, are indistinguishable from other books sold in [...]

Cover to Cover #375B: Listener Feedback

Summer Brooks — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 21:04:18 +0000

Show Notes: Listener Feedback and Many Books Discussion: Michael, Michael and Brian are back for more! Tim Low reports that the Paladin role-playing games sourcebooks are being released as e-books; Anna wonders why publishers don’t count library circulation numbers as a factor in determining author popularity, since those numbers are freely available; Jason comments on the discussion [...]

Cover to Cover #375A: Future Tech, Here and Now

Summer Brooks — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 02:24:05 +0000

Show Notes: Future Tech, Here and Now Discussion: Michael, Michael and Brian discuss more gadgets! Anticipation runs high for Apple’s mystery tablet device (whenever it might appear), and curiosity abounds over Microsoft’s dual-screen gadget (similar to the Nintendo DS but with 7″ screens). Visit GoToMeeting.com/podcast for a FREE 30 day trial!! Listener Review: Web Genii brings us a [...]

Cover to Cover #374A: Robert J. Sawyer

Summer Brooks — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 14:40:31 +0000

Show Notes: Robert J. Sawyer Discussion: Michael and Summer continue the discussion from last week about the new Apple products touched upon (or rumored about) from the September 2009 Apple Special Event It’s all about untying yourself from your desktop without losing any power, functionality or flexibility. Visit GoToMeeting.com/podcast for a FREE 30 day trial!! Listener Review: Web [...]

Cover to Cover #373A: Alma Alexander

Summer Brooks — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 01:28:25 +0000

Show Notes: Alma Alexander Discussion: Michael and Summer were left all alone this week, as Brian was overtaken by zombie flu, and Stackpole was off in the wilds of New Hampshire. They chat about the rumored tablet sized iTouch from Apple that may be coming out soon, and how it could be perfectly poised to change the [...]

Cover to Cover #372A: S. M. Stirling

Summer Brooks — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 15:30:34 +0000

Show Notes: S. M. Stirling Discussion: Fair warning: scheduling aberrations may be forthcoming with the fall and winter holidays. Chris from The Jesus Geeks asks for some recommendations on using real life people in fictional works… is there a rule, what counts as fair use, and in what situations would permission beforehand be required? Visit GoToMeeting.com/podcast for a [...]

Cover to Cover #371B: The Fans and The Fanfic

Summer Brooks — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 06:49:20 +0000

Show Notes: The Fans and The Fanfic Discussion: Mike M, Summer, Tim A, and Mike S make up a full studio today, bringing you a variety of opinions. Allison from LA has a bone to pick about the apple orchard analogy that Stackpole used to describe the relationship between the fanfic and the authorized and/or official creative [...]

Cover to Cover #371A: Jane Lindskold

Summer Brooks — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 17:35:51 +0000

Show Notes: Jane Lindskold Discussion: Stackpole tells us about his trip to GenCon, and we touch on the recent fascination with publishers calling serialized audio fiction “new” and saying that they are the first ones to do so. Could the podcasters who have been doing serialized audio fiction be considered the bards of the 21st century? Visit GoToMeeting.com/podcast [...]

Cover to Cover #370A: Moving the Publishing Cheese

Summer Brooks — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:28:26 +0000

Show Notes: Moving the Publishing Cheese Discussion: Tad tells us about Playaway, an MP3 player that comes pre-loaded with a complete audiobook, and they have a Netflix-style rental service for audio books. That leads into a chat about different methods that authors can explore to sell their ebooks and audiobooks at conventions and book signings. Visit GoToMeeting.com/podcast [...]

Cover to Cover #369A: Mike Carey

Summer Brooks — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 14:26:59 +0000

Show Notes: Interview with Mike Carey Discussion: Will Apple get their tablet device out to customers before Plastic Logic gets their new device to market? Mike M is really digging what the new Palm Pre is poised to do, and he thinks that only the lack of apps is their biggest obstacle now. Visit GoToMeeting.com/podcast for a [...]

Cover to Cover #368A: Writing Verbally

Summer Brooks — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 02:33:53 +0000

Show Notes: Writing Verbally Discussion: Continuing from last week’s interview with David Weber, Michael and Michael chat about using voice systems to write books, and the differences and challenges presented by using spoken word to write traditionally expository prose. Can changing to writing using dictation help a writer design a better story? Will the challenges of [...]

Cover to Cover #367B: The Post-Paper Age

Summer Brooks — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 19:15:08 +0000

Show Notes: The Post-Paper Age Discusssion: Mike Stackpole discusses his first experience being BoingBoinged, from a story about his talks at Origins, which led to the essays he’d written over at StormWolf.com about how publishers will not be leading the way into the digital future. This leads into arguing about the recent fallacious assupmtions by several publishers [...]

Cover to Cover #367A: David Weber

Summer Brooks — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 05:15:27 +0000

Show Notes: Interview with David Weber Interview: David Weber joins Michael and Michael to chat about his latest book, By Heresies Distresssed, the third volume in his Safehold series, following Off Armageddon Reef and By Schism Rent Asunder. In addition to giving an overview of the Safehold series, David talks about his writing process, and how switching [...]

Cover to Cover #366B: More on Copyright and Use

Summer Brooks — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 22:31:03 +0000

Show Notes: Fan Fiction, Derivatives, Copyrights and More Voicemail: Anna comments on the “Lifetime Emo Channel” feature books, and the style of story that’s on the Oprah Book Club lists; Trampas weighs in on the reuse of other authors’ work, on both derivative works and fan fiction, which leads to a discussion on some of the [...]

Cover to Cover #366A: On Demand Publishing and More

Summer Brooks — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 05:15:00 +0000

Show Notes: On Demand Publishing and More Discussion: Phil in Texas refers to an article that on-demand books outperformed traditionally published books in 2008, and wonders if the guys have checked out Smashwords more in-depth. This leads to a discussion about print on demand and distribution options. Visit GoToMeeting.com/podcast for a FREE 30 day trial!! Discusion: Michael [...]