Leonard Nimoy and Spock – The Actor Who Became an Ambassador
Leonard Nimoy passed away on February 27th, 2015, at the age of 83. He was William Bell in the TV series Fringe, and appeared in Mission Impossible (TV version), Get Smart, and even an episode of The Twilight Zone (for those born post 1990, it was not vampire...
Worldbuilding Part 01 – Introduction to Worldbuilding
Transcript (for whoever might prefer it): What is worldbuilding? The term gets thrown around a lot when talking about science fiction and fantasy. People use it to talk about magic systems, geography, cultures, and races. But what it really boils down to is this:...
The Best Fantasy Story Ever… Hasn’t Been Written Yet
What's the best fantasy story ever? The Odyssey? Alice in Wonderland? The Lord of the Rings? A Game of Thrones? Odds are, as good as those are, the best is yet to come. It's an easy trap to fall into. Certain time-honored tales or the latest bestseller are the go-to...
7 Types of Villains
Not every hero has a villain. A hero can battle faceless foes, the environment, or even his own inner demons, but if you want to write about heroic deeds you may find yourself looking for a villain to pit against your hero. A villain is a complement to a hero, a...
5 Self-Editing Tips for Maintaining Point of View (POV)
It's common for stories to be told from multiple points of view. It allows you, as a writer, to explore and show different sides to a conflict. It can be as simple as the back and forth between detective and villain in a mystery novel or as complicated as the wars and...
Sci-Fi Time Capsule: The Terminator
This week in Sci-Fi Time Capsule, another take on time travel. Lost in the Hollywood blockbuster horror is the fact that The Terminator is, at its heart, a classic time travel story. (WARNING: Spoilers begin below link) Brief Summary In 1997, AI starts a war with...
Ask an Author: How did you get started on Amazon?
Courtesy of /r/fantasywriters: I'm genuinely curious how you got started on Amazon? When I started, I was clueless. I didn't really start any significant groundwork until I had already published. It was slow going. Really slow. I told everyone I knew and badgered...
Sci-Fi Time Capsule: The Twilight Zone “Escape Clause”
This week in Sci-Fi Time Capsule, we go way back. The Twilight Zone started in 1959, and "Escape Clause" is an all-time classic from the first season. (WARNING: Spoilers begin below) Brief Summary A miserable, abusive hypochondriac named Walter Bedeker is terrified of...
The 5 Keys to Seamless Worldbuilding
When you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all. -God Entity (Futurama) One of the biggest mistakes in worldbuilding is letting people see the edges. The goal of worldbuilding is to create a believable world, and leaving obvious clues that...
Divide and conquer: Collaborative author platform building strategies for self-published authors
This week I'm introducing a guest feature from my publisher / wife. Since she handles the majority of the business, it's an opportunity for you to get an in-depth perspective on some of operational and entrepreneurial aspects of being a self-published author....