Digging deep into the archives, I pulled this cover of Aileron, A Literary Journal, Volume X, Number 1, from March 1989, featuring my pencil drawing of the ouroboros as a pseudo-knot bounding a dark glass. Click on the image to view it approximately actual size. Not the least symbolic, right? I connect this drawing with a direct line to the dragons and wyverns I sketched fifteen and twenty years later. Representation of elemental dynamism with a serpent is certainly antecedent to both this Aileron cover and the Hidden Dragon of Confabule.

This is actually my second use of the ouroboros. I used a more fanciful styling for the border of a poster for an event, The Metaphysical Jam, staged by poet David Gugin at the Cactus Cafe on the UT Austin campus in 1987. The naturalistic rendering of this drawing is more potent by far. Let us celebrate the excellence of hindsight!

One can compare the Hidden Dragon by visiting the Confabule website, which I am proud to announce has now launched under Amanda Kimmerly’s editorial direction. She has done a fine job assembling a wealth of material, most of it related to Habdvarsha and The Hidden Lands of Nod. My screaming dragon mask—another emblem of elemental dynamism—serves as logo for this new commonwealth of dreams.

Let us also celebrate another cycle of convention-going launched in this new year. Most especially at the moment, let us celebrate the fact that ConJour 4.0 will manifest on the University of Houston Clear Lake campus this coming weekend, January 27-29. The UHCL gamers guild brings its annual sci-fi/fantasy con back to its original start of the year slot. Amanda and I will staff our table in the dealer room, sit on panels, present our “Inventing a Language” workshop, and hang with all the good people who come out to make con and share. This is our first event since Austin Comic Con last November, and so we look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones after a hiatus. If the panels and play of deep geek subculture are not enough to entice you, come sample the con suite, which is overseen by an actual chef, the talented Marie. Besides, how often can one attend a con at a facility with signs warning pedestrians of coyotes, bobcats and alligators?

Well you might ask. It’s the time of year for summarizing records, including figuring various taxes due to various governments, and I have addressed that. Literature has made me a source of revenue for three states, including Texas, which is no mean feat considering how hard it is to find taxes to pay in Texas.  All sales combined came to around 200 books. That would hardly seem worth it, except some of the people who read the books then said incredibly kind things about my fiction, and that reinforced my notion that an audience for The Hidden Lands of Nod and things Habdvarsha is out there waiting to be reached.

Study, Eanna walking, pencil and colored pencils, 12/011

I was once advised to consider myself a successful cult writer. As nearly as I could tell, that meant the market for my fiction is large enough for a publisher to profit from my books, but not large enough to provide an income that would allow me to work full time on the fruits of my imagination. An insurgent heart compels me to resist that ceiling. If profession and vocation will only verge nearer one, my evenings can shift away from the arithmetic of public obligation. To which end, please see items listed for sale in the column to the left. Support your friendly author by ordering early and often!

Fortunately, evenings have not been ground completely under the heel of dry numbers. Several illustrations amble through various stages of development, among them the eventual cover of an eventual edition of my novella, Rose Moon, now appearing serially (see below). At the center of that image strides Eanna, the mysterious woman who looms large in the life of Bigger MacGregor. When I began writing part one of the novella, I thought I held in mind a clear image of her physical presence; however, when I attempted to translate the imagined appearance to illustration, I found I actually had not thought specifically about how a Mesopotamian sex goddess looks. Substantial investment went into a false start that may still have life in another context, another time. Meanwhile, I returned to pencil and colored pencils, scratching on paper to discover my character, and a few days ago some of the scratching managed to capture what I am trying to see well enough to model for the cover illustration. The image did not scan well, but I’ve posted it anyway, as proof I haven’t been stretched on a divan eating bonbons. At least, not without interruption.

Other cool visualizations maintaining traction among extant projects here at HQ will feature in an eventual Confabule website. The launch of an on-line presence for Confabule has been delayed by unforeseen complications that vexed my attempt to contract for site design. Now, in consultation with editorial director Amanda Kimmerly, I’m taking a more active hand in the process than I had originally envisioned, and this is a good thing. An issue of how to divvy time is never settled, and the work cuts into hours I could spend on finishing fiction, but it is, even so, wonderfully satisfying. Crafting a map, creating decorative knotwork, clarifying the visual atmosphere, these activities are great fun, as well as necessary to the effort. Penning and polishing stories get nudged a little later on the clock, a little longer on the calendar. Since the trade-off cannot be avoided, it is not a bad one. The reverse is true, too, meaning that Ms. Kimmerly and I shall launch an interim Confabule website in the near future. Our initial presence will be functional, with play and beauty added as the elements come to fruit.

Also launching will be Confabule’s first Kickstarter project. We will be seeking to fund production of Gary Warner Kent reading my story, “Death on the Toilet,” for release as CD and download. Look forward to an announcement on this subject just as soon as we finish a project video.

“Death on the Toilet,” please recall, originally appeared between the covers of The Sorcerer’s Scrolls #47, from Zarathustra Publishing. Editor and publisher Jeremiah Griffin has now added a second publication from Zarathustra, with release of The Scroll, Vol. 1. Among its features are part one of Rose Moon and reprint of an interview Mr. Griffin conducted with me for The Sorcerer’s Scrolls #45. Parts two, three and four of Rose Moon will run in coming issues of the magazine. To order a copy, visit Zarathustra Publishing.

It seems no time has passed since Wizard World Austin, but it has been two weeks. I almost suspect someone has been pilfering minutes when my back is turned. Truth is, the available hours are so sliced up and distributed between all the active projects that every day seems to whip past. Updates on all these activities is forthcoming. For now, only two have reached a state deserving mention. First, volume 1 of The Scroll, the new magazine from Zarathustra Publishing, is hot off the press. Featured in its pages is part one of Rose Moon, my paranormal romance. This short novel, which will appear over the first four issues of The Scroll, is a story of Bigger MacGregor, a character familiar as a boy in Sleeper Awakes, the third book of The Hidden Lands of Nod, and as an old man in “Death on the Toilet,” my short story available for free download on Smashwords.com. To purchase copies of The Scroll, visit the Zarathustra Publishing site.

The notion of purchase is an expansive one, and I would like to point out that the left column of THIS site provides links to purchase paperback editions of all my currently available books—including newly minted and long awaited, The Way It Grows: An Introduction to Dvarsh, which I co-authored with the esteemed editor of the Blue Moose Press editions of my novels, Amanda Kimmerly. In fact, I herewith issue a seasonal appeal. Please buy copies of my books! They make wonderful gifts for every voyager of the imagination—and there is no better way to support art and literature than by purchasing it! These paperbacks may be available cheaper from your favorite retail bookseller, and they are certainly available cheaper as e-publications from Smashwords.com. If those are your chosen sources, go for them with blessings! Please note, however, that paperbacks ordered through this website are shipped with author signatures on the title pages. That’s not a deal one finds every day.

Follow the link to get all the scoop on Wizard World Austin Comic Con 2011, happening this very weekend at the Austin Convention Center. Doors open to the public Friday, November 11, at 4:00 p.m. Beyond all the celebrity guests, apart from the serious gamers, at a table in artists alley, Amanda Kimmerly and I shall hold forth on all manner of subjects Confabulous and Habdvarshan. Even better, we’ll be selling my novels and our jointly authored The Way It Grows: an Introduction to Dvarsh. Consider this a special appeal to reduce our inventory. Art, truth and beauty are near extinction, and only your support can pull them away from the brink. One of everything would be a dramatic launch into a richly imagined world.

Unless something unexpected pops up during the holiday season, this will be our last public presence for the year. This weekend will be your best bet to get unique oracle dice, signed books and original postcards for the gremlins large and small on your gift list. It would be lovely to see you there!

Questions about the state of Confabule are circulating into Stikmanz HQ, with good reason. Due to an error by the original design team, an unfinished, unarchitected version of the website was public for a time when it should never have been. After some back and forth, we were finally able to have the site in its unfinished state made private. Some few have wondered why the site was up, albeit in an embarrassing state, but then went away. The short answer is that the site remains under development and should never yet have seen public light. It is our hope—mine and Amanda Kimmerly’s—that we shall be able to launch the site soon with the assistance of a new developer. Our plan at this time is to keep the site private until we are satisfied that it does what we wish and represents our vision in an acceptable manner.

Questions about the website, however, are not the same as questions about Confabule, the company Amanda and I have begun. That entity, Confabule LLC, is operational. It is the venue through which the book Amanda and I co-authored, The Way It Grows: An Introduction to Dvarsh, has been released, and more projects are in the works. These go forward even as we continue shaping our eventual web presence.

If you’d like to find out more about Confabule and our plans for near, middle and far futures, come by Wizard World Austin Comic Con, November 11-13 at the Austin Convention Center. Look for Amanda and me at the Stikmanz table in artist alley. We’ll have books, postcards, dice and our own informative selves on hand to grabble with questions about reality.

Mary C. Saunders and Robert Stikmanz stroll the creek trail in Boulder, CO, 10/21/011

Amanda J. Kimmerly and I survived a night on the road at the Nursanickel Inn in Dalhart, Texas to reach Boulder, Colorado in the late afternoon on October 2o. We made the trek a day early in order to keep appointments for acupuncture with my dear friend of many years, Mary C. Saunders. After a couple hours work in a coffee shop, we arrived at Boulder Community Acupuncture for post-long haul treatments at Mary’s expert hands. After our treatments and dinner in a Vietnamese restaurant, Amanda and I followed Mary home for an overnight visit with Mary, her husband Whit and son Martin. Friday morning, 10/21, Amanda, Mary and I walked along a stretch of the creek trail winding through downtown Boulder, before sitting down to breakfast at one of Boulder’s treasures, the Dushanbe teahouse. Ms. Kimmerly and I bid farewell to Mary and Whit a little before noon, aiming the mighty Scion for Denver and MileHiCon.

As I write, the second day of MileHiCon 43 has come to a close. Compared to recent years, attendance at the event seems down. Nevertheless, enthusiasm remains high, and many delightful people are in attendance. One interesting consequence of launching the new book Amanda and I have co-authored, The Way It Grows: an Introduction to Dvarsh, at this event is that people want to hear Dvarsh spoken. First they ask for a book. We gave them a book, but now they want an audible demonstration. In keeping with that request, here is a recording of my reading of “G’teoksh” (my translation of Amanda’s poem, “Rush”): g’teoksh

Tomorrow brings the final day of the con, and then it is back into the Scion for the long drive home. Tomorrow night will find us again in Dalhart. Twelve hours in the car Monday will put us back in Austin, road weary but ready to insert into our ordinary lives.

Order Today!

The promised day has arrived. The Way It Grows: An Introduction to Dvarsh, a primer of the Dvarsh language co-authored by Robert Stikmanz and Amanda Kimmerly, is officially published. One may order it through any bookseller, or right here in this very post! The special “free shipping” pre-publication offer has ended, but I’m holding the price offered on this website at $12.00 for the book. The shipping, however, is no longer free. Such a small price to pay for such a unique semiotic fantasy! Here’s  a button for immediate purchase using PayPal:

Amanda Kimmerly and I shall have copies on hand for sale and signing this weekend at MileHiCon 43 at the Hyatt Regency Tech Center in Denver. This fantastic event is the largest science fiction/fantasy convention in the Rocky Mountain region. From a Stikmantic perspective, it is made even richer this year by the physical fact of The Way It Grows: An Introduction to Dvarsh.

In addition, MileHiCon 43 provides an opportunity for Amanda and me to again co-present our workshop, “Inventing a Language.” Look for us during the Friday afternoon programming. It would be wonderful to see you there!

The Way It Grows: An Introduction to Dvarsh, by Robert Stikmanz and Amanda Kimmerly,is at press. We examined and approved the proof this afternoon. There are a hundred things about it that could be different. It is absolutely beautiful. Its ninety-two pages are thick with charts and tables, lore and history from hidden lands. There is even a poem and a page of adages for translation practice.

Pre-Order Now!

Here is the official annotation entered into the distributor’s system:

The Way It Grows: an Introduction to Dvarsh, by Robert Stikmanz & Amanda Kimmerly, is a concise guidebook to Dvarsh, the constructed language and writing system created by Stikmanz as part of the world of his contemporary fantasy cycle, The Hidden Lands of Nod. Comparable to the Elvish tongues of Tolkien’s Middle Earth, to Star Trek’s Klingon, or Na’vi in James Cameron’s Avatar, Dvarsh is a fully realized language that reflects and embodies the richly textured fictional society from which it springs. Including discussions of grammar, word formation, the writing system, a glossary of several hundred words, and elements of Dvarsh culture and history, The Way It Grows is a playful and imaginative textbook with which to begin exploring this ultimately unique contribution to fantasy linguistics.

For a VERY LIMITED TIME you can pre-order your copy for $12.00, with free shipping–but you must act quickly! This offer ends October 15th!

Last night I lay in bed sleeping, although in that curious state in which I was not aware of having fallen asleep. The dream into which I fell seemed continuous with waking, seamless with the moments in which I breathe slowly, releasing the day, watching my thoughts randomize without attempting to direct or interpret them. Suddenly, a door opened in the wall to my right, and a tall, unshaven man stood in the doorway, looking startled to find me in front of him. Taller even than I am, his head seemed to brush the top of the door. He was about my age and wore glasses, but balding and much stockier. There was a criminal air about him, like a burglar arrived to ransack an apartment he believed empty. Before he could react, I jumped from bed and punched him in the face. My blow was not hard. I was disappointed by the lack of force I mustered even as I struck him, and I was suddenly afraid that I had done nothing more than anger him enough to hurt me. The man, however, seemed genuinely puzzled, like he had walked through the right door into the wrong place. He backed out, closing the door behind him. The wall sealed, becoming ordinary. I woke up. I know I woke up because I was again in bed, under the sheet, my heart racing. I rose and paced through the apartment for several minutes before dropping back into bed. My heart calmed as I breathed deeply and began counting backward from 100, my typical “go to sleep now” exercise. The last number I remember counting was 86. I recall no subsequent dream. The morning was well advanced when I woke. The wall is unbroken.

Quoted from the September issue of the Stikmanz News e-newsletter:

Folks, we’ve given into gimmicks. Contests. But it’s for a good cause (art!). And comes with an excellent prize (a free copy of our upcoming Dvarsh Glossary!).

We want to see your best work—as specific as a character sketch of Meg Christmas or as broad as a vision you inspired by casting the Oracle dice. In addition to receiving the glossary, the chosen artist and artwork will be showcased on our new Confabule home page, with a link to other works, if given. And because we love artwork and community so much, the remaining artists will also have a spot to shine in the tab “Fan Art,” with links to their web site(s).

Send a picture of your stuff to a.kimmerly@confabule.com by October 15th!

Can’t wait to see a piece of your imagination!

I’ve been so focused on The Way it Grows that I’ve completely overlooked checking in here at the ranch. This is good, as TWiG looks ever more like the book it is soon to be, but also bad, as I’ve left no trace in this location of other things happening. Most immediately, the Confabule team is in New Mexico for this weekend’s event, Bubonicon 43. Should you find yourself in the Albuquerque area this Friday, Saturday and/or Sunday, drop by the dealer room in the Sheraton at the airport to find us at the Stikmanz table. More soon! (I hope. I think. I’m certain.)