You know, Squiders, main characters are bad enough. They don’t do what you want them to do, or they forget the plot in a moment of passion, or you turn your back for a moment and they’ve decided being a
The Enchanted Forest Chronicles Readalong: Calling on Dragons
Nooooooooooo cliffhanger. Well, Squiders, we’ve reached book 3. (I think this may have been the one I read first as a kid. It seems…more familiar than the others, if such a thing can be said about a series of books
Where Has All the Hard Science Fiction Gone?
So, I recently finished reading Inherit the Stars by James P. Hogan, a hard science fiction novel from 1985. We talked about some of the things that were a little bit jarring a few weeks ago in the Old Science
Research Makes a Story Richer
Ah, research. I know it doesn’t necessarily sound fun (unless you’re one of those people, like me, who goes, “Oh, I don’t really know anything about evil spirits. Time to go to the library! Glee!”) but a little realism can
For Love of Old Science Fiction
Oh man, I love old science fiction. I’m talking anything earlier than 1980. I love it because it takes so many chances, sends its characters all over the universe, and because I love to see what they got wrong. Am
The Enchanted Forest Chronicles Readalong: Searching for Dragons
(Man, that’s a mouthful of a title, isn’t it?) Well, moving right along here in readalong land, aren’t we? I think I managed to read this in about three hours. Maybe less. Personally, I liked it a lot more than
An Addendum About Beta-Readers
You know, I’ve been around the block a few times, but I still occasionally make silly mistakes. And then I come and post about them here, hopefully to save you from making the same mistakes. Last week (or was it
What is a Frame Story?
This seems to be the question of the week. At my writing group last Thursday we had a discussion of them, and just last night my husband asked me about them as well, though I’m not sure why. So here
The Enchanted Forest Chronicles Readalong: Dealing with Dragons
Hoorah! Here we go, Squiders. If this is your first time through this series, I hope you’re enjoying it thus far. I know I am. What’s the most brilliant about this series, I think, is how it takes fairy tale
Magic Doesn’t Solve Everything
Despite being one of my very favorite sayings (“Why does blah blah blah?” “Magic.”), magic must, unfortunately, make sense. This means if you are creating a world where magic exists, there has to be rules, and the rules must be
