Lori Philbin, Futuristic Romance

Published under pen name

2009-11-16T10:27:00.002-05:00

I'm excited to say that I am now a published author under a pen name in the paranormal romance and science fiction romance genres. I will still be pursuing publication of Science Fiction/Fantasy novel under this name, but for now, I'm focusing on the other half of my career. I'll be taking a hiatus for a while on this blog, but I'm still reachable through this website.
Thanks for visiting!

Tweebox

2009-04-21T15:23:00.002-04:00

The gadgets that a Science Fiction Romance author can't do without.

Creating a choose your own adventure book with twitter?
I'm checking out Tweebox, recommended by a friend. Hmmm... The possibilities.

Self Editing and Revisions

2009-04-21T08:24:00.003-04:00

Diving into revisions on three manuscripts at once can seem daunting.
Some resources that are helping me get started:

A friend, Bria Quinlan, a YA Fantasy novelist, who is revising her own manuscript, and her own revision process.
Tips from author Lori Handeland.
Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, Second Edition: How to Edit Yourself Into Print by Renni Browne & Dave King

More as I go...

onedollarorbit.com

2009-04-07T16:54:00.006-04:00

Interesting new ebook program, check it out. $1 for SF/F books. yay!

Winterbirth
By Brian Ruckley
This month, get book one in Brian Ruckley's Godless World Trilogy for just $1!

"Putting the epic back in epic fantasy." — scifi.com

Readers who like their fantasy dark, multi-threaded and political will sink their teeth into this one." — Kirkus Reviews

The Prism through FF&P has kicked off its 2009 Published Contest

2009-03-17T09:53:00.000-04:00

The Prism is a prestigious contest for the Fantasy Futuristic and Paranormal
romance author with discounts to entrants who are present FF & P members,
renewing FF & P members and new FF & P members.

Accepted published titles include the categories of Dark Paranormal, Light
Paranormal, Futuristic, Fantasy, Time Travel, Erotica/Romantica, Novella
(between 20,00 and 40,00 words) and Young Adult. E-books and small
press-published books are welcome, as long as they are
non-vanity/non-subsidy as defined by RWA.

All written work accepted entered MUST be published during 2008 only.

Please consider volunteering to judge. Each judge will keep the book(s)
they are assigned. Questions? Email the coordinators at
PrismContest@romance-ffp.com.

Deadline: March 20th, 2009

For more information, visit the main contest site at
http://www.romance-ffp.com/prism2009/index.htm

Writing Historical Paranormal Romance with Some of The Hottest Authors in the Genre

2009-03-06T15:58:00.001-05:00

Writing Historical Paranormal Romance with Some of The Hottest Authors in the Genre

March 20th & 21st at Romance Divas

Featuring:

Colleen Gleason

Melissa Mayhue

Jennifer Ashley

Sharon Page

Jennifer St. Giles

Want to know how to write romance that brings a mysterious and paranormal twist to history? Romance Divas is hosting a 2-day workshop with some of the hottest names in the Historical Paranormal genre. It will take place at the Romance Diva Forum. All are welcome. To get access to the forum you will need to register.

Galaxy Express interview with Samhain's Angela James

2008-12-10T21:48:00.006-05:00

My favorite blog to read, Galaxy Express, and the executive editor for the publisher that tops my list of small presses. All in one day!
Check out the interview with Angela James, especially if you're interested in Science Fiction Romance and don't miss the lively discussion of heat levels in the comments. And yes, if you visit the Samhain site, the covers show some skin.
And, an earlier post about Samhain, here.

Nokia N810 and e-books

2008-11-27T10:07:00.006-05:00

The gadgets that a Science Fiction Romance author can't do without.

The loverliest new toy, the Nokia N810. Love it. Love it. Love it.
Only drawback for me is that my previous mobile device was a PocketPC, so my ebooks with DRM are in Microsoft Reader .Lit format. The N810 has a Linux operating system, so no way to view all my older ebooks without hacking.
FYI: We have both the N800 & N810, but the N810 has a slideout Querty keyboard (I don't really like on-screen keyboards), and a GPS. So, I prefer the N810.

Kindle and the Sony Reader don't do it for me. The N810 is a powerful little PC right in my hand. I can surf the web. I can update my blog, check facebook, take pictures & videos, get driving directions, and I could even make phone calls if I had a wireless plan (which I didn't get, but I can still make calls on it if I'm in a WiFi hotspot). The list goes on. So far, I've mostly shopped stores that provide the formats I can use on the N810.

My last purchase was from Samhain Publishing: Duality by Renee Wildes. This is a fantasy romance written by a talented friend. Wonderful book with excellent reviews. So, run out, get the N810 and load it up with Duality, and in January, book two of the Guardians of the Light, Hedda's Sword. I was able to surf over to the Samhain site, buy, download, and read the book, all on the N810.

Update on voice dictation software

2008-11-27T10:02:00.003-05:00

Follow up on previous post on Dragon NaturallySpeaking.

Well, using dictation software isn't something I'll be doing for now. It's not fast enough, at least not on my laptop. Training the software was easy, and it worked well in recognizing my speech, but it couldn't keep up with me. It ended up being frustrating. Oh well, maybe in a few years I'll try again if the tech has improved.

Dragon NaturallySpeaking

2008-10-20T22:29:00.002-04:00

The gadgets that a Science Fiction Romance author can't do without.

I'll be attending the NJRW Put Your Heart in a Book Conference this coming weekend. I'll be in the car a bit. So, I've decided to try out another gadget. Dictation is the name of the game in a car for long periods of time.

I have Nuance's Dragon NaturallySpeaking and will be donning the headphones and microphone to try my hand at dictation.

I'll report back with the results & a page count.

Pinnacle PCTV HD mini Stick

2008-10-11T09:58:00.002-04:00

The gadgets that a Science Fiction Romance author can't do without.

Sigh.
I lurve this little gadget. The Pinnacle PCTV HD mini Stick.
Reviewed here: http://www.coolest-gadgets.com
and here: http://www.engadgethd.com/

Pinnacle has a nice USB tuner that allows a person to get HDTV up and running on their PC with a minimal amount of fuss.
This is a sensitive tuner that picked up more stations than my console HD tuner did. Very nice. Small. Easy to install. BUT, the software and remote that ships with it, not so great. Not to fear, I'm using Vista/Media Center, and I already have a Firefly remote, which we're using. If you don't have Vista, this little guy, sadly, may not be as easy an install.

**update** The Firefly doesn't work with Vista without jumping through more hurdles than I'm willing to deal with. so... we're using a bluetooth mouse and keyboard. Not as elegant as a remote, but it's working fine.

The tuner works great with our HTPC (Aspire X3200) as well as our laptop. Why would we want it on our laptop? I'm not sure, yet, but I'll let you know if I find a use for it. I can't imagine live TV would work on a long vacation drive with the kids, but recorded TV would. If we want HD while camping? Good to go. Well, maybe not, but you get the idea.

Fantasy & Fantasy-Romance Workshop

2008-10-06T13:38:00.001-04:00

I'll be attending this online workshop this weekend at Romance Divas!

Friday October 10th and Saturday October 11th, we will be joined by some huge names in fantasy and fantasy-romance for a workshop on what the difference really is between the two genres.

Acer Aspire X3200 Mini-Desktop

2008-10-03T21:47:00.007-04:00

The gadgets that a Science Fiction Romance author can't do without.

This week after reading reviews including one from Boing Boing, we schlepped down to Best Buy and bought the Acer Aspire X3200. We'd been wanting an HTPC (Home Theater PC) for grabbing over-the-air digital TV (HD DVR). It has all the necessary requirements: support for HD, quiet, doesn't run hot, processor power, DVD burner, HDMI, and more. Did I say QUIET? Can't stress this enough. This is quiet. It comes with Vista, which yes, I prefer for this use since it comes with Media Center built in (it has all the TV guide schtuff). This is also a sleek, powerful system for desktop use as well. Affordable, but with all the bells and whistles.

Under $500 with tax.
Out of box & connected to TV in no time.
I love this machine. It's a sweet little thing.
I'm now watching free HDTV from my local stations. I can record TV without paying subscription fees. We're using a preview Pinnacle PCTV HD mini stick tuner with this. I love that, too. I'll be posting about that one next.

Banned Books Week

2008-09-29T22:49:00.013-04:00

One of my favorite futuristic books ever, frequently the target of banning:
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. An absolutely stunning book about reproductive exploitation and the dangers of a restrictive society. A life-altering read.

Science Fiction Romance Week

2008-09-29T09:42:00.000-04:00

Check it out over on the Spacefreighter's Lounge.

Check out the websites I maintain

2008-08-19T14:48:00.002-04:00

Futuristic, Fantasy, and Paranormal RWA chapter.
NEC, New England Chapter of RWA.
Ella Drake.

Resigned from these sites to concentrate on writing.

The Phoenix Warrior - Futuristic/SFR

2008-08-05T21:50:00.001-04:00

1st place-Futuristic, On the Far Side 2007 Contest
FF&P RWA chapter.

Anna has earned her place in the Alliance as Captain of her own ship. With her dreams finally coming true, she has no room for love.
Piotr is a Phoenix, a race of shape shifters who have hidden from humans for centuries. Now he must trust the aloof Anna to help save the entire Phoenix race.

2008 Events Attending

2008-05-20T12:40:00.003-04:00

Southern Lights Writers Conference
* First Coast Romance Writers
* March 28-30 2008
Let your Imagination Take Flight
* New England Chapter RWA
* April 11-12 2008
Romantic Times Booklovers Convention
* Romantic Times Magazine
* April 16-20 2008
Ignite Your Muse Conference
* Connecticut Romance Writers
* May 30-31 2008
Put Your Heart In a Book
* New Jersey Romance Writers
* October 24-25, 2008

About Me

2008-05-19T11:32:00.002-04:00

An unpublished author, I have finished a novel length manuscript, several shortstories and novellas, and am plugging along in my next projects. All my fiction is in the Fantasy, Futuristic, and Paranormal Romance (FF&P) genre. For the past 15 years, my day job has been as an interactive app and website developer. Starting in 2008, I'm writing full-time and finishing my thesis to complete a Masters in English and American Lit.

Contact Me

2008-05-05T22:07:00.007-04:00

Leave a general comment below, or email me:

Web/Interactive Application Developer

2008-05-01T14:32:00.002-04:00

Lead Developer
7/2000 - 11/2007. Waltham, MA

Developer for large directory website and lead developer, team lead for co-branded directory sites.
Senior Interactive Application Developer for prototyping & user experience testing.
Web and technical support for cross-functional team.

HTML, JSP, javascript, Macromedia (Adobe) Director, Photoshop, Premiere, Video editing & compression utilities, Flash, Microsoft Expression Blend, C#, and company custom mark-up language.

Interactive Application Developer
1/1994 - 6/2000. Atlanta / Duluth, GA

Multimedia developer w/ Macromedia Director.
Prototypes and demos for tradeshows and User Centered Design (UCD) testing.
Website development and interactive web apps using Director, Shockwave, HTML, javascript, ASP, and other emerging web technologies.

Education

9/2004 - 6/2009 , Harvard Extension, Cambridge, MA.
Masters in English and American Lit Coursework complete, working on Thesis
9/1988 - 6/1992, University of Georgia School of Journalism, Athens, GA.
Bachelor's Degree