I like to think that there is some value to writing about people living in space, or in worlds where magic works. Reflecting on the human condition, what it means to experience the universe, even the enduring question of consciousness, human consciousness, might be putatively valuable when we’re confronted with the specter of general artificial … Read more
It’s not uncommon for a fantasy work to take a crack at how racism is bad. The way this is often done is to have elves or orcs or goblins or trolls and find out they are just “people” just like you and me with thoughts and fears and feelings, they love their children and … Read more
Then I know what I actually Think When I was sixteen I thought I was a good writer. I thought good writing meant grandiose, florid, bombastic, purple prose with excessive use of adjects and incredibly complex sentences that were near to being run-ons; it meant the kind of writing that necessitated reading and re-reading, not … Read more
Romance, Science Fiction, Mystery, Fantasy, Young Adult, Thriller, Contemporary, Non-Fiction There are a lot of different genres, and when you boil it down, there are a lot of different sub-genres. You might write fantasy, or you might write dark urban fantasy supernatural romance. The first one covers everything from the Dragons of Pern to Game … Read more
On December 10th, 2009, Red Letter Media published on Youtube a 7 part review of The Phantom Menace. It’s harsh, brutal even, and somewhat gross. There’s a sub-plot in the reviews about who the reviewer is that is quite dark, but it’s also a genius review. In fact, I would argue that this review of … Read more
Readers love mysteries and will endlessly work to justify or figure out the details. Whereas if you pedantically point out every little pointless factoid they’ll quibble with you and you’ll probably get some things wrong, and you’re probably not a: Biologist, and an Historian, and a Geologist, and an Astrophysicist, and a Vulcanologist, and an … Read more
One of the most frequent settings of fantasy novels, even secondary world fantasies, is some sort of take on Medieval, or Dark Ages, or Renaissance Europe. Usually Western Europe. Sometimes it’s actually analog Italy or analog Spain, but usually, it’s a mishmash analog of France and the British Isles. Authors frequently borrow concepts and institutions … Read more
Great villains often make for great stories. And in the last few years, there’ve been a number of memorable retellings of tales from the point of view of antagonists. Some of this began with post-modern deconstructions of faerie tales, asking questions like “why would a witch be luring two children to her house to eat … Read more
Every day I try to write a very short story and post it under the hashtag #vss365. VSS365 was born out of Flash Dogs, a website which appears to no longer exist, but can be viewed on the Wayback machine, the specific entry for #VSS365 is here: Flash Dogs VSS 365 post. Each month a … Read more
But Chop some Wood too If you’re struggling as a writer, one really successful method of procrastination is to get better at writing. You can read, and think critically about what you’re reading. Take writing classes. Go to seminars, conferences, workshops, conventions. Read books on writing by famous successful writers. Listen to podcasts. At some … Read more