Politics: Kadrin Empire
The Kadrin Empire is the most powerful land in the world of Veydrus. Though not unchallenged in their dominance, the Kadrins have been a major factor in world affairs for most of their six thousand summers of existence. We first learn of them in Firehurler but there...
Agendas and Motivations
What is the difference between a character who is little more than window dressing for a story and one who is vibrant and realistic? The idea that the character is more than just a plot device, someone who has hopes and dreams and aspirations, however humble they...
Write Like a Bulldozer
There is a direction that bulldozers go. That direction is called "forward". When you consider vehicles that can look to a point some ways off and decide to just go toward it in a straight line, it tops the list (unless you picked a tank, in which case you're...
Villains
In response to my "7 Types of Heroes" blog, someone suggested that I take a look at villains as well. That got me thinking about just what it takes to make a real villain. I came to the conclusion that if anything, villains are harder to fit into neat little boxes...
Quiz: How to Tell If You Are Twinborn
At the heart of Firehurler and the Twinborn Trilogy is the mystery of the twinborn. What are they? They are the ones who are aware of other worlds. They are the ones who live separate lives that they can see while sleeping and it works both ways - their twins see...
How to Kill (Your Characters)
The worlds we write can be dark and dangerous places. In many cases, these dangers are a key element of the plot. Sword fights, monster attacks, magical duels and harrowing escapes are all staples of the fantasy genre - and those are just the dangers that come at your...
7 Types of Heroes
You don't need a hero to have a story, but if you want to write about heroic deeds you're going to end up with one somewhere along the lines. Whether you decide on the hero first and let the story follow him from there or work out the plot and fill in with the...
Earth: A Failure of World-Building
There are many elements that go into making a world fit for fantasy storytelling. World-building is a skill any good fantasy writer needs to possess. The beef I'd like to share here though is with the shoddy job someone has done with Earth. It might have once served...
Speech: The High Road and the Low Road
You hear a voice over the phone, a complete stranger. Within moments there are a lot of things you can tell about that person on the other end, even if they tell you nothing outright. You can probably tell gender and what part of the country (or world) they call home....
Amateur Cartography: the Duty of the Fantasy Author
View a larger version of the map From the Shire to Mordor, the Wall to King's Landing and every journey in between, readers have been dragged hither and yon by epic fantasy writers for generations. Back in Homer's day, you didn't need a separate map to keep track of...