Valkyrie Flightsuit

  I never cosplay anymore because all the cons I go to now requirement me to be in author mode, not fan mode. Trust me, it's a bit hard to sell books, meet fans, and be taken seriously while dressed up as my favorite Final Fantasy character. So, I needed a work around. How can I be in author mode and still play dress up? Solution: commission a Vladia cosplay from The Valkyrie Profiles! The only problem with that is, unlike a movie, anime, or video game, there are no visual references.

I'm not the best artist, but I did my best (meaning a I traced a body form then added on the details I imagined) and here is the first attempt. I'm actually pretty happy with it, but what do you folks think?

 This is Vladia's Valkyrie flightsuit. All the pilots have this standard design; the only variations are by position and rank. Vladia is in a Defender unit, so her colors are black and maroon. The Gunslinger units are black and emerald. Last, the Captain of the squad, Tolen Malthus, has a uniform of black and blue. Rehel, of course, doesn't get a flightsuit, so he is in all black with an off-centered red stripe down the front to denote his status as the Valkyrie squad's robot.

I've got a girl in New Orleans all set to create whatever I send her way. So, perhaps the next con you see me at, I'll be sporting this baby! You my address me as Lt. Robespierre. =D

Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award: Round 1 has been pwned!!!!

So excited that I have made it through the next round of Amazon's Breakthrough Novel Award. I beat out 1,500 other entries to get this far! Next round will take us down to only 25 entries. I honestly never expected to make it this far. I am competing not just against other SF novels, but fantasy and horror as well. I feel a SF novel in this market really has no change against the current popularity of the other two genres. Two of the biggest franchises of the last 10 years came from fantasy and horror (Harry Potter and Twilight). Sure, The Hunger Games was sort of SF, but let's be honest, no one is really willing to label it as SF.

Despite my pessimism, I am super excited and honored to make it this far. You can check out my ABNA entry page HERE to read the sample that got me to the next round. You can also leave a review for the excerpt as well (do that, you will).

Though the quarter-finalists were announced on the 12th, it wasn't until a few minutes ago that I noticed the judges actually put two editorial reviews for the excerpt on the ABNA page. And guess what: They are awesome!!!! I'll post them below, though you can also find them by clicking the link to the entry page. Wish me luck guys! I'm gonna need it!


Editorial Reviews:

Amazon.com Review
The author has imagined an intriguing scenario, and adeptly placed the reader into it. A changing culture of robots is interesting and piques curiosity. Vladia is a sympathetic protagonist, one is cheering for her already, and in these opening pages, the writer has placed her in a precarious situation after the death of her mother. With a title hinting at Vladia’s future as a strong participant in coming war, opening pages that introduce a character worthy of rooting for, and very good writing skills, this author has created a world the reader wants to enter. This excerpt has a strong hook and is a great start to an absorbing read.

Amazon.com Review
Overall, the excerpt gives us a plucky and resourceful heroine who is brave but still understandably childish in her response to her plight. The robot plot sounds familiar, but with such a short beginning, it remains to be seen what twists the author comes up with.