Originally posted on Eclectic Theist:
We’re now in the round of semi-finalists for the Self-Published Science Fiction Contest (SPSFC), and I’m reading and reviewing all of the semi-finalists! Check out my SPSFC Hub for all my posts and reviews for the contest. Shadow of Mars by I.O. Adler Carmen is starting a new job and…
Who’s your favorite odious protagonist? Some characters aren’t warm and fuzzy. Some are downright mean. Others fit into negative redemption arcs and you actively root against them.
Read more "Unlikeable Characters"How important is the length of a novel to you? Do you ever purchase novellas, novelettes, or short stories?
Read more "Story Length Survey"Here’s the winning entry!
Read more "The Post-Apocalyptic Purple Prose Contest Winner"“Thank you for coming, Mr. Kim,” Beatrix said. “It’s my daughter. She’s missing. And I thought a person like you…”
“You can say cyborg. It’s not a bad word. At least not with everyone.”
I thought we could have some fun with the release of The Atomic Ballerina by celebrating purple prose, post-apocalyptic style. (This is the second time I’ve done one of these. Author Matt Fraser won when I did this a few years back.) What’s purple prose? Elevated language where none is needed. Overly flowery descriptions of […]
Read more "The 2022 Post-Apocalyptic Purple Prose Contest"Do you listen to audiobooks? Or perhaps dramatic podcasts? What qualities make or break an audio sample for you? Do you like a dramatic reading, with nuance and accents for each character? Or, do you prefer a neutral narration style, a storyteller who keeps a steady tone and doesn’t act out each part? Do you […]
Read more "What’s an Essential Quality for a Narrator?"There were three things Miles Kim didn’t like about the bandits who had stopped the atomic grav train bound for Seraph. First, one of the robbers, a rangy puke wearing a tattered duster and a paisley bandana around his mouth, had punched the porter, who had unlocked the passenger car to let the two men […]
Read more "The Seraph Engine"’m continuing to work on the upcoming release for The Seraph Engine while planning its sequels in the Old Chrome series. The stories are turning into a fun blend of crime and detective story in a tech-noir western science fiction setting.
Read more "New Project Poll"How do characters speak? I have a row on my outline spreadsheet for each character with a comment or two about their pattern of speaking. Terse. Argumentative. Interrupts. Interrogates. Conciliatory. Deflects with humor. Occasionally it’s a mannerism. Calls people partner. Always uses last names. Repeats a phrase for emphasis. These tags help when returning to […]
Read more "Funny Dialogue"
The Capricious Narrator 