Analog Science Fiction & Facts has a blog where the editors interview the authors. This is my Q&A session for the latest story, “Living on the Trap”, published in the Nov-Dec 2023 issue of this SF magazine.
And yes, I put on this picture, illustrating the perils of writing hard-SF !
TL;DR : A fun Q&A session about my latest Hard-SF story, “Living on the Trap”, published in Analog SF&Facts magazine (Nov-Dec 2023 issue).
January has been a difficult month this year, since my dear mother Thérèse Lorrain Laframboise passed away on December 29th, leaving her three daughters, three grandsons and six great-grandchildren behind. She was 96, at peace and well surrounded, and we had the joy of benefitting from her advices and moral support for a long time.
On this pic, taken a few years ago, she stood proud and very stylish in her favorite black leather coat. She readily walked without a cane, until a host of health concerns rose their ugly heads in February last year. In and out of hospitals, she kept her amiable character and smile, having worked herself in hospitals (as a dietetician) numerous years ago.
She has joined our father, Jacques Laframboise, a long-time science fiction aficionado who made me discover and fall in love with the genre.
Ursula K. LeGuin has restored my courage a lots of times, by her witty blog and her stories. I did this portrait of her in 2006 at a Wiscon 30, and she signed it! She had shared some of her insights with us.
Arwen Curry, who created the documentary Worlds of Ursula K. LeGuin, offers those short videos, The Journey That Matters. Little moments of inspiration, pulled from interviews with the great SF author.
In this one, Ursula talks about her writing process. Pard, her cat, even makes an apparition!
Here is the link, four minutes of calm and peace, both things we need the most!
Posted in Science-fiction, Writing
Tagged Arwen Curry, On writing, The Journey That Matters, Ursula K. LeGuin, writing process
First, a big, warm thank you to all of you that I met at the Winnipeg Pemmi-Con and other occasions of celebrating science-fiction.
September – new book!
I am launching a French SF book this fall, Rose du désert, Éditions David, about a very pessimistic, troubled teen living on an hostile planet. Rose can’t relate to other teens, is painfully aware of her cognitive lapses and waits for the end. Nevertheless, when the drought threatens everyone’s survival, she must come out of her shell…
For you English-speaking, the illustration on the cover is from me.
It was not supposed to be. I usually send a crude sketch to my publishers, and the graphic designer takes on. But changes in the format of the collection – and to the covers – prodded me to complete this illustration of Rose, entirely done with Clip Studio.
The official launch of the novel will be in the Congrès Boréal, a French-speaking Canadian Science fiction convention in Montréal, on October 21st.
The publisher’s page about the book.
The fast track:
Posted in Event, publication, Science-fiction
Tagged éditions David, Congrès Boréal, LaframboiseSF, Rose du désert, Science-fiction, YA novel
The Pemmi-Con, the 15th North American Science Fiction Convention opens today at the RBC Convention Center at Winnipeg, 20-23 July 2023. Meet me at the dealer’s room with my indie publishing house Echofictions.
Short and sweet chocolate SF stories for the busybodies!
(Echofictions’ corner table at the back of the Dealer’s room)
“Echofictions provides short and sweet books for readers living with a limited attention span (a public nobody seems to care for), for people learning a second language or the everyday busybodies who lack free time! At the end of each book is a blank friendship list that allows the reader to pass it on. Most Echofictions books and graphic novels offer upbeat SF suitable for all ages, created by multi award-winning author Michèle Laframboise. “
With more than 40 titles out and counting, Echofictions stories are never boring and offer a range of hard-to-soft chocolate SF whose flavor will stay with you for a long time.
WHAT: Michèle Laframboise’s books, graphic novels, postcards, in French and English
WHERE: RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg
375 York Avenue, Winnipeg MB R3C 3J3
WHEN: July 20-23
PRICE RANGE: from 5$ to 25$, median 15$
PAYMENT: Cash, credit/debit cards accepted
Posted in Event, Science-fiction
Tagged Michele Laframboise, Pemmi-Con, RBC Convention Center, Science-fiction, Winnipeg
I’m almost one week late with the flurry of activities, and some of you already know about it, but here it is.
On the June 20th Tuesday evening, in Toronto, I received Ontario’s most prestigious literary award, one of the four Trillium Book Awards, for my YA novel Le secret de Paloma.
Michèle, proud, holding her framed prize. (Picture by Gilles Gagnon)
Always fun when I win a literary award with a science fiction novel!
A note, the book encased seems slightly open, but the pages are actually glued together. There is a glass/plastic panel to protect the award.
Ontario Creates had replaced the Ontario Arts Council, but they still treat the finalists as well as the winners. This was my third nomination for a Trillium Award, after 2009 and 2013. I am proud of winning this time, and never hid the savor of my literary ice cream. The two other finalists had fine YA books, also, (see my French blog for details.)
To see more pics on my French blog, go there: https://savantefolle.com/2023/06/23/prix-trillium-2023/
Posted in Event, Science-fiction
Tagged Le secret de Paloma, literary ice cream, Science-fiction, SF books, Trillium Book Award
“Mistress of the Winds” is officially on the Aurora Awards ballot, in the Best Graphic Novel category. This is good news for the English version of Echofictions’ first ever graphic novel. The Aurora Awards celebrate the excellence of Science fiction and fantasy published in Canada.
There will be a voter package compiled, and downloadable. Shortly after it is released, voting will open mid-June. Members are able to download selections from the works under consideration so that they can inform their votes. More information on our voting process can be found here.
Only current members of CSFFA can vote in the Aurora Awards. To register as a CSFFA member, you pay 10$ to the association.
The official ballot can be found there.
To know more about Mistress of the Winds, go there
Posted in BD, Comics, Event, Science-fiction
Tagged Aurora Awards, Comics, Science-fiction
I learned that my SF novel is a finalist in the prestigious Trillium Book Awards, an Ontario distinction. It is a very media-covered prize, so that brought a lot of distractions. My SF novel, Le secret de Paloma (Paloma’s Secret) is finalist in the children’s books category. As the three books are aimed at teenagers/YA, the name children’s book can be a misnomer.
The Trillium Book Awards are managed by Ontario Creates / Ontario Créatif.
It is good to get this nomination, my third for this Award, especially as almost all my YA novels are Science fiction stories. Getting regularly nominated means that my story-telling is improving, as it will, I hope, as long as I keep writing and drawing. It is also a sign that science fiction is getting more acceptance as a literary endeavor.
Science fiction is exploration of different worlds and scientific possibilities that eventually will impact our lives. Like the proliferation of AI in our technologies, a manifestation that I explored in a short-story published in Solaris magazine’s last issue (in French).
I think 2022 has been my best publishing year so far, with a new graphic novel and publications in Asimov’s and Analog. Go check the Echofictions website for more info.
I have been very involved in family affairs and caring fo my dear mother (who is well by now, fingers crossed) so I lacked free time to promote my works, and the Kickstarter fundraising for a special edition of my new graphic novel.
Short-stories
Essential Maintenance (2022) Neo-Opsis 33
Moby Dick’s Doors – in Space Opera Digest 2022 Have Ship, Will Travel, SRP, edited by Tracy Cooper-Posey
I’ll be Moon for Christmas, Asimov’s vol 46 #11-12
Rare Earths Pineapple, Analog July-Aug 2022
Sales Pitch, OnSpec 119
Le coucou de Gutenberg (2022) Géante Rouge 30
Novella-Novelette
Screaming Fire, Asimov’s vol 46 #7-8
October’s Feast, Asimov’s vol 46 #1-2
Graphic novels
Mistress of the Winds, Echofictions
Maîtresse des vents, Echofictions
Short-stories collections
5 Hard and Crunchy SF Tales, Echofictions
5 Hard and Hopeful SF Tales, Echofictions
5 Histoires de SF dystopique, Echofictions
5 Histoires de SF dure et croquante, Echofictions
5 Histoires de SF douce et fondante, Echofictions
5 Cases from the GGPD Files, Echofictions
Indie-pub Novels (NOT SF, be warned!)
Safe Harbor (romance)
Kon Tikki (romance, Safe Harbor series)
A note, the Auroras awards nomination period closes at midnight, April 22. https://www.csffa.ca/members-home/nomination/
And if you missed it?
No problem, those will make fine reading!
Posted in Comics, publication, Science-fiction
Tagged Comics, Michele Laframboise, Science-fiction, Writing
This Kickstarter will land you a solid 6″ x 9″ hardcover edition of Mistress of the Winds, printed in Canada by real nice people. At 92 B&W pages, it will include many sketches and behind-the-scenes extracts. The digital and paperback editions are already out.
Genre: SF, Planet-opera, YA
Length: 92 pages
Interior pages in B&W
All ages
Why a campaign?
Crowdfunding does help authors to bring visibility to their creations. A practical aspect is that the category publication/fiction draws lots of new readers, eager to find new books.
As an artist, I supported many of my creative colleagues’ projects, not only on Kickstarter, but on GoFundMe, Indigogo, Ulule… and I ended up with more books than I can possibly read!
So I discovered formidable writers, whose careers I am avidly following, thanks to their campaigns.
Why in English, if I am French-speaking?
That first campaign is in English because of my writer friends living in the US, who have encouraged me to pursue my writing and get better. really, without them, I would have cease to be a writer… and a comic artist!
Some digital and paper rewards will be in French as add-ons. I point to my friend and colleague Frank Fournier who did the colors of my cover. And I will eventually prep a campaign for a French hardcover edition, too.
When does it start?
On March 28. I do not have a very high ask, but it is essential that each participant to make a contribution in the first hours! A campaign that reaches its goal fast shines more brightly on the Kickstarter website.
Here is the link to register, so you get an email when the campaign launches. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/laframboise/mistress-of-the-winds-hardcover-graphic-novel
What was the hardest part?
Producing the intro video ! Reading a text in front of a camera doesn’t look natural. So I did my best to explain, share my project, without hiding my French accent. It took about six tries to find the right tone.
The project
With Mistress of the Winds, you will discover a richly-developed world populated with vivid and endearing characters. Follow young Adalou as she struggles against powerful foes and her own body’s limits in the most prestigious kite contest of the planet!
This YA graphic novel kidnaps you into an alien civilization so out of this world that you will want to know more about it… and zoom through the pages to devour this delicious coming-of-age story!
It’s a date: my first Kickstarter campaign
To know more about the le graphic novel, here are some news about Maîtresse des vents.
A colorized extract to whet your appetite!
This is it: plunge headfirst in this adventure!
Posted in BD, Comics, Event, Science-fiction
Tagged art, Comics, Kickstarter campaign, Michele Laframboise, Science-fiction
Echoes of a Sunday artist 