In the fourth installment of his A Song of Ice and Fire series, George R. R. Martin veers from his juggernaut of a fantastic story, slowing down to pick up the pieces left over from A Storm of Swords. Here, with only a select cast of his trademark and ever-expanding (and sometimes murderously contracting) pageant [...]
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I spent the week on vacation with my family. We drove to Denver to stay with my wife’s sister and enjoy the tourist attractions. Among those was the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, where they had a special touring exhibit, Real Pirates! The exhibit was wonderful, and inspiring for my current writing project. The [...]
UK author Mark Charan Newton writes one hell of a blog. (He also writes fantasy novels — check out Legends of the Red Sun series). Two recent posts from him dive in to writing styles and second world building. He talks about his approach to both as a writer, but also acknowledges other techniques. And, [...]
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While we’re living in interesting times, we might as well enjoy the show. Brave New Worlds is a great companion to an increasingly acrimonious and digital world. Editor John Joseph Adams has assembled a relevant anthology of dystopian short fiction for the 21st century. The anthology assembles dystopian classics along side more contemporary works. Included [...]
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In 1996 while on a dinner break from my night job as a college newspaper copy editor, I discovered a new paperback with an interesting cover. It had some wolves and a young heroic looking fellow in the snow. I’d never heard of the book, nor the author. My friends, who also loved reading fantasy [...]
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I’m still reading Brave New Worlds. My reading pace is normally pretty slow. Throw on to my schedule a new workout regimen and my and my wife’s new addiction to watching Dexter on Netflix means I’m way behind here. The anthology is fascinating. It’s been a long while since I read any short fiction, especially [...]
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I’m 35. This year, my wife and I moved into our dream house after six frustrating and stressful years of trying to move out of our first home. Now, we and our two children have a wonderful place to live. When I was 15, my dream was to be one of two things – bass [...]
Full disclosure: I’ve met Matt Forbeck a few times. I can’t say I know him well, but what I do know is he’s an extraordinarily nice guy. Angry Robot Books just recently released Amortals by Matt Forbeck in the U.S. It’s been making rounds in the UK on reviews, and is currently gathering up good [...]
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Getting emotionally invested in narratives
My Kindle robotically tells me I’m 93% through Brave New Worlds. It’s a depressing reminder how slow I am in reading this collection of short fiction. I was on a tear in December and January for reading, and now I see I’m back to my plodding pace. So, instead of my usual whining, how about [...]
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