SFR Galaxy Award Winner and Giveaway

I was writing away on a B-movie story by L.K. Hatchett, so engrossed with it that I wasn't checking my social media. At some point on Friday, I decided to take a break and what do I do when I'm taking a break from writing? Jump straight on social media, lol. It's such a time sink that I try to stay away from it, but fail.

I have two twitter accounts (one for each penname) and there was a message from Pippa Jay asking, "Have you checked your FB?" on my L.K. Hatchett account. Um, no...So I hop right on over to Facebook and there's this buzz about some sort of writing awards. People waiting and posting as each round of the awards was posted. Then I see it...Then I check the blogs, find websites I didn't know about...

And, OMG, it has taken several days of "Is this really happening?" for it to finally sink in.

'The Stranger,' my short story that was published in "Tales from the SFR Brigade," has won the "Outstanding Debut Story" in the 2014 SFR Galaxy Awards. I am so excited! I am now an award-winning author!

Here is the announcement: SFR Galaxy Awards: Round Four by Laurie A. Green.

This is what it says:

Outstanding Debut Story

 

The Stanger - Kyndra  Hatch (Tales from the SFR Brigade anthology)

There are so many things to love about this short--but very powerful--SFR, the first published work by debut author Kyndra Hatch. It takes place amid a terrible war with an alien species, centering on a battle worn soldier who has sacrificed everything for her cause. This tale of survival artfully blends high stakes, suspense, mystery, heartbreak, duty, and honor in a succinct mix that completely engages, and then delivers a twist that thoroughly satisfies. The Stranger is truly an outstanding debut effort by a "Next Generation" Science Fiction Romance author.

End announcement.

I am completely floored! This story has come a long way from the story that was initially rejected. Thanks to the SFRB Anthology team, I was given the chance to revise the story with advice from published authors. Thanks to my wonderful editor, Diane Dooley, I was given the chance to make it the best story it can be.

I am embarrassed to admit that I am such a newb I didn't even know what these awards were, but I will definitely know from now on. You may be wondering too, so here's a short blurb from the SFR Galaxy Awards website and the link with more information.

"The SFR Galaxy Awards is an annual, multi-award event for science fiction romance books. Launched in 2012 by bloggers Laurie A. Green of Spacefreighters Lounge and Heather Massey of The Galaxy Express, the goal of this event is to honor a variety of standout stories."

Read more here: SFR Galaxy Awards.


This award couldn't be more timely for a special giveaway of a rare print edition of "Tales from the SFR Brigade." Of course, I'm biased, but it's such a beautiful book!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Tales From The SFR Brigade

by J.C. Cassels

Giveaway ends February 14, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

If you're not looking for more paperbacks to clutter your space, or you're a completest and want to collect both, the e-book is always free: Tales from the SFR Brigade.

Tales from the SFR Brigade On Amazon

The SFR Brigade is happy to announce that "Tales from the SFR Brigade" is finally up on Amazon. You may have already seen a previous post about the book on my blog a few months ago, but this is a science fiction romance anthology by eight different authors. My story, 'The Stranger,' was one of the stories chosen and it has been very exciting to be a part of this anthology.

Warm yourself up on a cold winter day, or night, with this free book!

Did I mention it was free? It's totally FREE!

Check out the description:

Experience love and adventure among the stars in ‘Tales from the SFR Brigade,’ a digital anthology of eight Science Fiction Romance stories.

• A space captain discovers the cyborg she loves just might be her greatest enemy.
• A mind-wiped prostitute risks all when she recruits a dangerous stranger to help her escape a terrible fate.
• A prisoner-of-war confronts the comrade who loved her, then left her for dead.
• A space-obsessed physics teacher is kidnapped by a far-too-charming alien.
• An apocalypse survivor battles the biomech-enhanced hunter who seeks to capture her.
• A young artist must choose between her comfortable life on Earth or a war-torn space colony with her beloved.
• A daring thief is on the run from the alien law man who is determined to bring her to justice.
• A widowed rebel leader tries to save the last remnants of humanity, one stranger at a time. (This one is for my story, 'The Stranger.' ;))

From Earth to the furthest reaches of the galaxy, explore the worlds of Science Fiction Romance with stories from Linnea Sinclair, Marcella Burnard, Erica Hayes, Liana Brooks, Pippa Jay, Berinn Rae, Amy Laurens, and Kyndra Hatch.

 

 Download it from Amazon here.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

The Science Fiction Romance Brigade Anthology

Tales From the SFR Brigade 

The Stranger by Kyndra Hatch

I am happy to announce my debut publication! It is a very late announcement since the publication came out in late June, but I was moving right as the book came out and things have only just now slowed down enough for me to blog about the good news. 

So much has happened since January that I don't know where to start, so I'll try starting at the beginning:

I am a member of the Science Fiction Romance Brigade. It is a fantastic group of authors, readers, and SFR enthusiasts who help each other with writing questions, book promotion, and even book production. Late last year, sometime around November, a submission call was sent out for group members to send in short stories for an anthology. It was an experiment to get a free publication out for SFR awareness and promotion. 

But it wasn't just any 'ol experiment. They weren't looking for random half-hearted stories. They wanted good, professional, works and put together a stellar team of editors to decide which stories were publication worthy. 

Something about this submission call really spoke to me. I didn't have anything out at the time and the same self-doubt that kept me from writing before was trying to creep into my subconscious. They were asking for professional stories. They never straight up worded it that way, but I knew that's what they were looking for. I knew it had to be good. Was my work professional enough? Did I know the right formula for writing a SFR story? Was there a formula?

I already knew I could write, having gained that confidence through writing fan fiction. I just didn't know what it takes to write a publication worthy story. I'm still not entirely sure what it takes, but it's a learning process that I'm enjoying.

Writing a short story felt doable and I wanted to submit something so bad that I simply went for it. I spend a couple of weeks thinking about what I would write. Ideas are always bombarding my brain, but nothing was coming through that would be short enough. I started out with the thought that I could write a flash fiction, but quickly realized just how hard it is to write flash fiction. Seriously, sit down and try to write a story with only 1,000 words. Obviously, people can do it, but I think it might be more difficult than writing a full on novel.

I took numerous breaks, reading flash fiction to hopefully get the right frame of mind to write it. Unfortunately, I can't remember what I read since I was reading so much, but something about a couple being trapped in a cave sparked my imagination. I immediately stopped reading and started writing. I'm not even sure how that cave story ended because I haven't been able to find it again (I was perusing a lot of free sites on the web).

As Christmas holidays set in, I began to lose heart because it didn't look like I would make the beginning of January deadline. Then, the deadline date was moved to the end of January, so I continued the story with renewed vigor and was able to submit it on time. 

Then came the inevitable waiting game I hear so many authors talking about. Thank goodness I didn't have to wait as long as most of those discussions imply. I received an email in March. Knowing what it would be about, I put off opening it for a day, too nervous about the shortcomings I knew my story had. 

When I finally opened the email, I wasn't surprised that it was a rejection letter. I had researched and learned several things about points of view, voice, and showing versus telling after the story submission and I knew my story had all those issues.

However, with the rejection letter came a surprising second chance. It turned out that they really liked the story idea and gave me suggestions on how to bring it up to speed. If I was willing to revise it based on their suggestions, then I had another deadline. If I wasn't willing to revise, then they wished me luck in submitting the story elsewhere.

Now, I'm not proud and certainly not too proud to take direction. I'm an amateur and these folks were the professionals. Flattered that they liked the story idea and a more than willing student to improve my writing skills, I went through each suggestion with the enthusiasm of a preschooler with a new box of crayons. The best part about it was that I understood each and every issue they were addressing. All I needed was that little extra advice, because the story simply popped after that. 

Of course, the second chance wasn't a guarantee that the story would be accepted, but that part no longer mattered to me. What mattered was that I was getting help from proven authors. What mattered was that I was improving my writing skills. What mattered was that I would be more prepared for the next time I submitted a story for publication.

They said to submit the revised story to Diane Dooley, which make me even more excited because I had read and liked her works. She was also the person that helped me get more involved in the group and, therefore, indirectly responsible for all the stuff I had learned about writing through the group discussions. The thing I love about being a part of the SFR Brigade is how accessible and helpful all the authors are.

It wasn't two days after I submitted the revised edition that Ms. Diane Dooley forwarded it on for acceptance, that it was exactly what they were looking for. I was so excited, I couldn't stand it!

Naively, I thought that would be it, that the story would be published in the summer and that my job was done. I had no idea about the editing process...Since that is where I admit I am such a noob that I had no idea who the famous SFR authors were either, that is another story. 

For now, enjoy "Tales From the SFR Brigade" and my short story within, 'The Stranger,' as well as the fabulous short stories by Linnea Sinclair, Marcella Burnard, Erica Hayes, Liana Brooks, Pippa Jay, Berinn Rae, and Amy Laurens!

Smashwords: Tales From the SFR Brigade

Website: Tales from the SFR Brigade Anthology


Like the SFR Brigade Facebook Fanpage: Science-Fiction-Romance-Brigade-Fanpage