The Okal Rel Universe in evolution and in the world.

 
Far Arena appears on the left in this slide from the Edge Spring launch. For the rest of the side show, including shots of some of our favorite people - Brian Hades, Justyn Perry, Robert Sawyer, Randy McCharles and Susan Forrest - see today's homepage at Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing. Just got an exciting sneak preview of Steph St. Laurent's video of ORU event at Bridges, as well, which David Lott will be helping me get up on the blog here some post soon!

Labels: Brian Hades, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, Far Arena, Justyn Perry, Marie Bilodeau, Randy McCharles, Robert Sawyer

posted by Lynda at 12:12   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 


Pictured here is one of the three banners created by Michelle Milburn for the Absolute X-Press website. Thank you, Justyn Perry, for putting them up.

Labels: art, Justyn Perry, Michelle Milburn

posted by Lynda at 07:37   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 
News from KP about the Part 5: Far Arena batch of buttons.

>Hi Lynda, a road trip, what fun! I certainly hope to have the buttons by
>then (they finally got the order in from the States, and started work on
>them yesterday). Cheers Kathy Plett

Mel Farrow is thrilled to be contracted to do a fan art booklet that will make its first appearance in a 'soul touch' package for Con*Cept http://www.conceptsff.ca in Montreal, which I'll be shipping to contact Cathy Palmer-Lister the first week of September. Mel says:

>:D Will do right away! :D Hurrah!

Craig Bowlsby has agreed to advise me on Horth's big fight scene in Part 7: Healer's Sword and I've a less formal but equally game offer of medical advice from nursing faculty member and Horth-lover Heather Ouellette who said, with a threatening scowl, "If you wound Horth, you wound me!" Bless her. I asked Craig if he was "game" to advise and he said:

>Yes. I got game.
>Let me know the details.
>Craig

Publisher Brian Hades has approved the new cover for OR Legacies novella Mekan'stan by Michelle Milburn, as the first step in unifying the look of the novellas in a direction parallel the character-focused covers of the saga. Michelle has also agreed to to new covers for The Lorel Experiment and Kath to match the theme. The good work done by previous cover artists will remain in the ORU hall of fame, of course, as significant and appreciated contributions to the greater whole. But it's time to get serious about look and feel for the OR Legacies. Artist Richard Bartrop will continue to do cover and interior art for the anthologies. Next two scheduled are 4 and 5. Michelle has also agreed to apply her certificate in web design to the ORU website since it is time I stopped being stubbornly Demish about changes to my 'messy desk' organization on that front and got some professional help. Look forward to discussing it with her on our trip to Terrace in May if arrangements for going together pan out ...

Labels: Brian Hades, buttons, Justyn Perry, Kathy Plett, Mel, Michelle Milburn, Terrace

posted by Lynda at 07:16   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 

Yippee! It's been a long resurrection spell to cast, but this weekend all seven of the Okal Rel Legacies books, which began life with the Fandom Press imprint of Windstorm Creative, are now available for purchase in e-format from Absolute XPress, an imprint of Hades Publishing in Calgary. Anthologies four and five are being worked up this summer.

BIG thank you to Justyn Perry!

Labels: Absolute XPress, anthology, Justyn Perry, Okal Rel Universe Anthology 1, Virginia O'Dine

posted by Lynda at 16:27   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 
Justyn Perry, Lynn Perkins and Mel Farrow are helping me give Kathy Plett input on which quotes from Part 5: Far Arena to use for buttons. We're thinking of using Lynn's art for one button and one or two of Mel's chibies for others. Kathy Plett will pick eight ideas from our list. She's got the tough job. :-)

Here's a quote from Lynn on one of the prospects for a button:

>"May the gods ignore you" has become a houshold saying here;-)
>--Lynn

Justyn really liked Horth's infamous quote from this book.

> Some people need killing. (this is my biggest favourite)
> -- Justyn

Labels: buttons, Justyn Perry, Kathy Plett, Lynn Perkins, Mel

posted by Lynda at 07:58   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 


Back from World Con with a cold (grumble) and good memories. ONLY books were welcome in the dealer's room. There was a lovely art display next door, too, but it was nice to be in the company of fellow bibliophiles instead of feeling like an inconvenience to the gaming gang by getting underfoot. (Some of my near and dear are gamers! Just not my thing these days.) This is one of many pictures I'll be sharing as I can. The big banner used here as a backdrop for featuring Anita Hades and Justyn Perry of Edge was unfurled at the Wednesday night bash, and contains the covers of all the Hades Publications titles. The four titles of the Okal Rel Saga are there, all in a row, off to the left of this picture but you can see a bit of the Throne Price stack on the lower right.

Labels: Anita Hades, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, Justyn Perry, World Fantasy Convention

posted by Lynda at 07:43   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 
Pleased to have a half-page spread in the program for Conversion 24. It wasn't a large turn out this year but we had good people-times at the bar and it was awesome to see the growing display of ORU books at the Edge table in the dealer's room. It was fun to have Tegan and Mel there, too. They even dressed up for the ORU event and joined us in the bar - for Shirly Temples in their case. Justyn Perry had out the first Absolute XPress catalog which includes two of the ORU anthologies, thus far, and three of my novellas. Making progress with Craig Bowlsby's novella and the third anthology. See David's choices of all the pictures we took on my Con's Attended Page for ConVersion 24.

Labels: Absolute XPress, Con-Version 24, David Lott, Justyn Perry, Lynda Williams, Mel, Tegan

posted by Lynda at 11:58   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 
Edge announced the coming of Absolute X Press in its last newsletter. The first six books in the lineup belong to what I'm calling, this week, the ORU Traddodiad: that is, anthologies, novellas and reference works expanding the ORU legacy. Traddodiad is a very cool Welsh word meanind 'cultural transmission' in the sense of passing on tradition. It's a mouthful, of course. The other candidate in the works is ORU Emporium. Justyn Perry and I have been using the working title Okal Rel Universe Collection to distinguish this expandable, POD/e-book line from the finite, ten-novel Okal Rel Saga in trade paperback. "Collection" is too vague and misleading, though, since a single book could be called a "collection". Naming things is hard. Absolute X Press will include more than just the Traddodiad, the ORU books just happen to be the first in the pipe here. I am editor for the Traddodiad.

Labels: Absolute X Press, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, Justyn Perry, Okal Rel Traddodiad

posted by Lynda at 07:19   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 
Justyn Perry is starting to roll out the completed covers for ORU books in the Absolute X Press line, which he and I have been referring to by the working series title of the "Okal Rel Universe Collection". This new series of works set in the universe of the Okal Rel Saga, will be available in e-book format later this summer and in Print-On-Demand format later. Edge will also carry the books in its catalog and carry print versions for sale at cons. I'll feature the other covers here, one by one.

Labels: Absolute X Press, Justyn Perry, Lorel Experiment

posted by Lynda at 20:22   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 
I am interviewed by Marie Bilodeau on this week's On the EDGE. There'll be more coming in the podcast realm from the ORU, so sign up to the EDGE podcast using your favorite podcast aggregator. In this interview I talk about the origins of Okal Rel in my disgust at the cold war mentality, the character Horth Nersal, and the theme of opportunism vs. integrity in Righteous Anger.

Labels: Horth Nersal, Justyn Perry, Lynda Williams, okal rel, Righteous Anger

posted by Lynda at 14:23   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post

 
Righteous Anger interview with Edge's Justyn Perry is featured on Edge Podcasts this week. Be patient after clicking! It might take a moment to load up! In this podcast I answer questions about:

• How much of me is in my characters


• Where do I write


• Mapping Okal Rel to real life religion - in the abstract


• Realism in combat as something more interesting than over-the-top violence


• The ACTION, ACTION, ACTION falacy for books - books as books not as second rate movies or video games


• The question regarding technlogy is not how to get more: We have it, what are we going to do with it? How about social engineering challenges.


• How do you live with the enemy?

Labels: Edge, interview, Justyn Perry, Morality, podcast, Power, Religion, Righteous Anger

posted by Lynda at 08:17   0 comments permalink comment? e-mail lynda@okalrel.org 0 comments links to this post