I was shocked, surprized, and delighted to get this email last night:
On behalf of the podcasting community, we wish to congratulate you for your recent nomination for a Parsec Award for the following podcast(s):
Quarter Share – Best Speculative Fiction Story (Novel Form)
On the one hand, I think every Podiobook in the Science-Fiction category was nominated. On the other hand, feels good to be nominated in the same category as all those excellent books!
I have to submit a sample audio file for judging — not to exceed 10 minutes or 3 clips. I’ve put together three — I like the beginning and ending but the middle I’m having trouble deciding. So, I’m gonna ask you what you think. I reserve the right to ignore you all, but I’d be grateful if you’d leave a comment below on whether you think a, b, or c represents the book the best.
B. Ishmael meets the coffee urns
C. Ishmael sees the rest of the ship
UPDATE: Well, we didn’t make the top 5. Such is fame. Better luck next year, maybe.
Ishmael meets the coffee urns hands down. Ish and the coffee erns are one of Ish’s most recognizable signatures and the coffee brings him to everyone’s attention. It’s a theme you’ve carried thru the rest of the novels, too. What would the Lois be without clean coffee erns anyway? Just another company ship in the deep dark I’m sure.
I agree. “Ishmael meets the coffee urns” is my preference.
You should use the coffee nate. Of course, I am a coffee snob so, that got me far more excited than it would perhaps another person. And, don’t forget, when he gets back, Ish owes me a cup of coffee!
Coffee makes the world go round!
It shows how one small change in something as simple as a cup of coffee can change the world, or a ship! That one task sets the tone for the rest of the adventures. Its what got me hooked.
Coffee urn. Definitely!
OK, well, that’s the one I picked. The sample has been submitted to the committee. Thanks for all the feedback, folks.
Congratulations and I agree with the coffee urn scene as well. Am enjoying the last chapters of Full Share. Get books published so I can read them!
Congratulations Nate I hope you win!
I just found Quarter Share and can’t wait to finish it and go on with Half and Full Share. Great work! Reminds me of Heinlein’s books with young male heroes. I would like to buy the books (if you have them published?) for my son — I’m sgure he’d love them. Forgive me if you’ve already addressed whether the books are for sale yet as I’ve only been listening for a few weeks. Hope you win the award!
I’m still working on the paper publication. I know that at least ONE publisher is listening. *fingers crossed*
Nate – I like the coffee version. Good luck. The nomination was well seserved.
Joe
Good gravy, I must have been under a rock.
Yes, please use the “coffee urn” portion. IMHO, it’s “classic” Ishmael and is a great introduction to him, his mindset and his problem-solving skills, as well as gives the listener the best over-all view of the whole thing.
I don’t know what the “good luck” expression is for awards like this, but I know that “break a leg” is appropriate for actors. In any event, this is going to be an interesting run!
Ah well. We didn’t make the cut … but it was exciting for awhile.
http://www.parsecawards.com/2007Finalists
Sorry, it should have been you.
Having two seasons of the same podcast make it seems like cheating!
This is — perhaps — one way that putting out so many episodes at once hurts me. All of Quarter Share was produced in the last four months of eligibility. It won’t be eligible again. Half share had one episode put up in last year’s window – on the next to the last day, but all of Full Share will be in a single year.
Frankly, I’m not sure it matters too much given the calibre of the other podcasts. Much more “mainstream” kinds of stories — if that’s the right way to say it — with much less subtle plots, more action, and lots, and lots of violence (at least in some cases).
I’m glad to have been nominated, disappointed not to make the cut, but there’s next year.
I realize it’s a bit late, but I agree with the comments that the Coffee one is the best. However I do have one suggestion for next time, You should put some music dividers in to separate the segments, as you did for separating the chapters.
Also, put me down as interested in dead tree versions of the series. :-)
*smiles slighty at nates last comment* The podcasting community is a fickle audience, but don’t sell yourself short the golden age series is what i’d most certainly consider mainstream.
Speculative fiction is always a hotly contested category and the nomination alone is a testament to the quality of your ability to tell a story that will make people sit down and listen.
I personally only started listening to quarter share earlier this week, and now im already chomping at the bit for the conclusion of full share and hoping there will be more tails from the golden age. Your skill at writing believable 3dimensional characters is superb. I often find myself chuckling out loud when something slightly comical happens and just wanting to see how the relationships between characters will grow.
Your in good company nate. sigler, hutchins to name a couple , sigler considered to be the father of podcast novels by some and hutchins his arch nemisis :P *chuckles again* who rose in a far shorter time than sigler himself still havent actually made it past the nomination/finalist stage yet of parsec’s but are still considered the top class storytellers and you most certainly are on a par with them.
Podcasting though is as much about listening to the feedback of your listeners as it is telling the story and it is a learning process.
As for the comment about more mainstream novels having less subtle plots, more action and lots of violence, while it may be partly true possibly due to the fact that the foundation of podcast listeners initially were typical young males which stereotypically do go for the more action orientated stories, its not completely true that listener base is still growing rapidly and as it does it will balance and become a more realistic representation of what the majority prefer.
I’d also like to point out that a parsec winner this year is The Immortals though there is some action and some violence in the story there are also numerous subtle and sensitive plots through out the story one of the few podiobooks that’s ever prompted an emotional reaction from me the golden clipper series been amongst that few as well.
keep up the good work.
I’m writing up a (positive) review of Quarter Share for my blog, Free Listens, a blog dedicated to reviews of free audiobooks. For each book, I like to have an approximate length listed in hours and minutes. Could you please help me out with the time length of Quarter Share?
Thanks
approx 7hrs 30min in 17 episodes.