AnachroCon Post #2: Useful Things Learned

Here's my second post about the 2013 AnachroCon, which will be more general than my last one.

One of the panels I attended was entitled "Viking and Norman Re-Enacting," which taught me a lot of useful information. Much of the information I learned will appear in the Wastelands novels, which feature a Norse-analogue culture known as the Sejer. In particular, the Norse used A-Frame tents whose wooden poles were elaborately carved. I've started tinkering with the second novel Battle for the Wastelands: Escape while I wait to hear back about the first Battle for the Wastelands and the tents of the Obsidian Guard, the tyrant Grendel's personal troops, will be like that. The Norse also used box chairs--no legs and the seat could be used for storage. Grendel's throne will be based on this design.

(Norse shoes were also held closed with toggles, which I'll squirrel away in my files for later. The Sejer in the Wastelands world have shoes with laces.)

I also attended a panel featuring my friend James R. Tuck that discussed the directions writers other than H.P. Lovecraft have taken the Cthulhu Mythos. This included the Delta Green stories about an American covert-operations group fighting the cosmic horrors as well as the works of Brian Lumley. I'll have to check these out--the Delta Green world sounds particularly interesting and I'd love to write stories set there someday. There're also more whimsical works, like a cookbook of all things entitled Cuisine from Beyond.

At the "State of Steampunk" panel, I learned a bit of welcome movie news. Cherie Priest's novel Boneshaker has been optioned as a movie. A bit more digging revealed that the film rights have been bought and work is underway. Although I had my issues with the book, I'd still see the film more than likely.

I also learned about a small press called Combustion Books that is putting out steampunk books. Their business model is unusual--they pay the author a set amount per print run, no strings attached. If there's a second print run, they'll pay for that, and so on and so forth. If a larger publisher expresses an interest in the work, no problem. I'll keep them in mind.

Another publisher I encountered is Georgia-based MV Media, whose representatives were there selling "sword and soul" books. Rather than taking place in faux European environments like most sword and sorcery, they take place in faux African environments. I'd found Griots: A Sword and Soul Anthology on Amazon awhile back, so I'd already known about them. Those of you with an interest in Afrocentric fantasy fiction, whether you want to read some or sell some, should check this out.

Finally, I met up with a member of my alternate-history message-board who is attempting to revive the site's defunct podcast. I have begun discussing an interview with him, since my alternate-history short story "Coil Gun" appeared in Pressure Suite - Digital Science Fiction Anthology 3 and my self-published story The Beast of the Bosporus is essentially "secret history." He's already agreed to host "Beast" tie-in I've already posted here.