You know when you hear a song on the radio and it’s not really amazing, but you listen to it anyway because it’s too much work to change the station? And as time goes on, you hear it more and
An Excuse to Learn
One of the best things about books is that you learn new things. This is true both whether you are reading them or writing them. New places, new cultures, new mythology…oh, it is grand. One of my favorite things about
Beloved Characters
Think about it. Throughout the years, there’s been characters that you have adored, whether you’ve identified with them or just thought they were wonderfully bizarre. I can name a handful off the top of my head. As a writer, it’s
Disconnect between Fantasy Books and Gaming?
To go along with Wednesday’s post, there seems to be a bit of disconnect between modern fantasy novels and stories and modern games. As we speak, I happen to be gathered around the dining room table playing a session of
Generational Fantasy
A friend recently loaned me a fantasy trilogy. (I am on the second book.) I started reading and was struck by how…80s…it read. I mean, this trilogy is from the 80s, but even if I hadn’t checked the publication date
The Trope of Destined Lovers
You know the tale. Two people, through whatever circumstances, are thrown together and discover there’s a spark. But it’s more than just that – there can be no one else for them. Fate has brought them together. It was meant
Looking Forward to 2012
Well, Squiders, now that we’ve got the year-end administrative stuff out of the way, we have a whole glorious new year in front of us, full of potential and hopes and dreams. I’d like your feedback on what you’d like
What Did I Read in 2011?
Every year I keep track of what I read, what genre it was, and what I thought of it (on a five point scale). This past year, 2011, I also started keeping track of publication year. Here are the 2011
Christmas: Fantasy?
Instead of our normal Friday subgenre study, I thought we’d take a look at Christmas stories and debate their genre. Christmas stories tend to involve angels, ghosts, flying reindeer, elves, and an immortal who has the power to visit every
Subgenre Study: Mythic Fantasy
Ah, mythic fantasy, where Gods walk the Earth (or…not-Earth), where heroes are born, and where magic imbues the world around us. A simplistic definition is that mythic fantasy is fantasy that weaves mythology into the world. Usually each story focuses
