Suzanne's Writing Resolutions for 2014

I know I'm six days late, but Happy New Year!

Over at my personal blog, I posted my writing resolutions for 2014.

Like last year, I will likely Tweet more than I blog.

Watch this space for all of the Stop-Watch Gang's writing news in 2014.

On the topic of coolness, my upcoming book: Elements a Collection of Speculative Fiction is now available for pre-order at Amazon.ca!

Echoes in the Bones

My Story, `Echoes in the Bones` is now live to read on Blacktreacle.ca

A brief CanCon report and pictures

http://mikerimar.com/

Stop-Watch Gang members's schedules for Can-Con

Stop-Watch Gang members Suzanne Church, Costi Gurgu, and Mike Rimar will be attending Can-Con this weekend.

Suzanne's schedule:
Saturday, October 5th
11:00 to 11:55 AM The Writing Life Suzanne Church(m), S.M. Carriere, Kate Heartfield, Caroline Frechette, Karen Dudley - Room #2
12:00 to 12:55 PM The Business of Writing Suzanne Church(m), Jean-Louis Trudel, Karen Dudley, Chadwick Ginther - Room #2
2:00 to 2:55 PM Stop-Watch Gang Reading Suzanne Church, Costi Gurgu, Mike Rimar - Reading Room -- come for the candy, stay for the stories!
6:00 to 6:55 PM Horror Elements of Future Technologies Matt Moore, Geoff Gander, Sean Moreland(m), Suzanne Church - Room #2
8:00 to 8:55 PM You're Qualified for SFWA: Should You Join? Matthew Johnson(m), Derek Künsken, Suzanne Church, Andrew Barton - Room #2
Sunday, October 6th
11:00 AM to 2:00? PM Aurora Banquet and Awards - Reading Room

Mike's schedule:
Friday, October 4th
9:00 to 9:55 PM Humour in Science Fiction Ira Nayman(m), Matthew Johnson, Mike Rimar - Room #3
Saturday, October 5th
1:00 to 1:55 PM YA Fiction Neil Godbout, Mike Rimar(m), Jean-Louis Trudel, Lory Kaufman - Room #3
2:00 to 2:55 PM Stop-Watch Gang Reading Suzanne Church, Costi Gurgu, Mike Rimar - Reading Room -- come for the candy, stay for the stories!
5:00 to 5:55 PM Critiquing Groups Alice Black, Nicole Lavigne, John Park, Mary Pletsch, Mike Rimar(m) - Room #2
6:00 to 6:55 PM Researching for Fantasy Stories Matthew Johnson(m), Karen Dudley, Mike Rimar - Room #3
Sunday, October 6th
1:00 to 1:55 PM Making Predictions: Looking Into the Future as a Science Fiction Writer Jean-Louis Trudel(m), Mike Rimar, John Park, Andrew Barton - Room #3

Costi's schedule:
Saturday, October 5th
2:00 to 2:55 PM Stop-Watch Gang Reading Suzanne Church, Costi Gurgu, Mike Rimar - Reading Room -- come for the candy, stay for the stories!

Story Sale!

I sold my story, 'The Devil's Due,' to what is rapidly becoming my favorite horror ezine, Black Treacle. This is one is especially sweet because this is the 24 hour story I wrote during my week at the Writers of the Future in San Diego. It should be out sometime in mid-August.

SWG Writing Retreat 2013 Recap, or Writing Retreat 2: The Quickening

This past weekend was the Stop-Watch Gang's second annual writing retreat, again hosted at the SWG secret southwestern Ontario lair (aka, Suzanne's house in Kitchener). And we are especially grateful to Suzanne and her boyfriend Michael for their hospitality considering that when we arrived there had been no power for 18 hours! They did herculean duty moving frozen and perishable food all over town to friends and relatives with power so that nothing spoiled and the SWG could eat well as we wrote.

Three cheers for Suzanne!

As with last year, Costi Gurgu was the undisputed winner of the 16 hour write-a-thon, with a grand total of 11,068 words of new fiction (and we hate him all the more because he's writing in his second language!)

Full tallies of people's new word counts are:

• Costi: 11,068 words
• Tony: 9548 words
• Ian: 8095 words
• Mike: 7257 words
• Suzanne: 6048 words (and mind you she lost most of Saturday afternoon once the power came back on trying to gather all that farmed-out food!)
• Stefan (oh yeah, somehow during the ride over the fellas decided that my 'real' name was Stefan and thus was I known for the whole weekend...): 3104 words
• Richard: 1950 words

And now, a graphic!

Also, fun fact discovered this weekend: did you know that the 80s SF classic The Last Starfighter was actually an American remake of a German movie whose title translates as The Last Spaceman? In that movie, aliens contact the winner of a pinball game to see when he wants to start intergalactic war. True story.

Or we made it up.

One of the two.

- Stephen

Writing Retreat Weekend 2013 Edition

This coming weekend, the Stop-Watch Gang will be partaking in their annual writing retreat. From roughly noon Saturday to noon on Sunday, various members will write like fiends.

As is tradition, we provide a few challenge prompts to inspire SWG members and those of you playing along with the home game.

For 2013, inspiration is drawn from the letter "S".

Using the five senses...
Taste – saffron, scallops, spinach
Touch – suede, syrup, steel
Smell – stew, sewage, scotch
Sight – snow, sign, syringe
Sound – sand, saxophone, siren

Using Words...

A quote by Socrates: "The nearest way to glory is to strive to be what you wish to be thought to be."

A quote by Robert Louis Stevenson: "Everybody, soon or late, sits down to a banquet of consequences."

A quote by William Shakespeare: "Go to your bosom; Knock there, and ask your heart what it doth know"

Using visual prompts, follow the links below...

"Vice Admiral Sir George Anson's Victory off Cape Finisterre" by Samuel Scott

"The Girl" by Emily Shanks

"Pine Pavillion Near a Spring" by Shitao

Using auditory prompts, follow the links below...

The song "Shake Me Down" by Cage the Elephant

The song "Spaceship" by Puddle of Mudd

The song "Scumbag Blues" by Them Crooked Vultures

The song "Something to Remind You" by Staind

The song "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) (Alt. Version)" by Marilyn Manson

The song "Sofi Needs a Ladder" by Deadmou5

Feel free to post your word counts in the comments section below.