How often we recall, with regret, that Napoleon once shot at a…editor and missed him and killed a publisher. But we remember, with charity, that his intentions were good. -Mark Twain. Letter to Henry Alden, 11 November 1906. First you have the writer who can write but can’t spell. Then you have the editor who…
Hello all. Today’s interview is with R. F. Bruce, author of The Life and Times of Dinah Marton. (Before reading the interview, you might want to read my review of the book first. Read it here.) About R. F. Bruce: Although Bruce is an avid writer, professionally he is a video game design instructor for a…
[Note: This post was originally published on the Writers’ Co-op page back in February. I was going to post it here too at the time, but I guess I was just too depressed to bother. Sorry about that. ] Well, my publisher just called it a day, announcing a couple of weeks ago that Bookkus…
I enjoy short stories. Why? Well, many are the times I just want to read something at the end of the day, something that I can enjoy in its small completeness. Sometimes I just want to take a break from writing, and I know if I get involved in a novel I’ll keep finding excuses…
Atthys Gage is a writer with a lifelong love for myth, magic, and books. His second real job was in a bookstore. As was his third, fourth, fifth and sixth. Eventually, he stopped trying to sell books and started writing them. He has always had a fascination for that cloudy borderline between the normal and…
Hello All, Welcome to my interview with Michael R. Hagan, author of the paranormal thriller DEMIURGE, Blood of the Innocent, published by Bookkus Publishing. Just for full disclosure, I’ve know Mike for a few years, since meeting him on Book Country, the writer’s web site. We’ve posted comments, along with many others, helping each other…
Post 24 Character Development – Keeping notes. My first bit of advice about character development is simple – keep notes. Especially if you want to write a story laden with multiple characters it’s very important to strive for consistency in characterization. I know, I know… we’ve all read and seen stories where the coward suddenly…
[Disclosure statement: I’ve know Mike Hagan for a few years, having met him through Book Country where we helped each other by commenting on early drafts of our writing. Since then Mike and I have both had books published by Bookkus Publishing. When I decided to start reviewing books (gives me something to write…
Looking back over my old posts I realized I haven’t spent much time talking about characterization, having devoted only one post (#12) to it. Well, let’s change that. In many stories (especially genre stories) characterization is the ignored feature. How often have you read a review (for a book, a movie, or a tv series)…
The last don’t do I want to discuss for now is really simple – don’t steal plots. Every so often I come across a posted story that elicits a sense of déjà vu as I continue to read. Then it strikes me – this is just (put title of famous novel or movie here) rehashed…