I have a new writing project. I drafted next year’s school play in July, so now it’s time to move on to something bigger. It’s an SF comedy with lots of laughs and suspense aimed at a middle school audience. So far I have written 85 pages. This has been one of the easiest writing […]
Around the Moon in 85 Pages Read More »
I have a new writing project this summer. Now that next year’s school play is drafted, it’s time to move on to something bigger. So far I have an outline, character sketches and a lot of ideas about tone for my new kids novel. It’s an SF comedy with lots of laughs and suspense. What
I’ve been reading and critiquing during my summer holidays. The good news is, I have completed a first draft of next year’s musical school play. Okay, time to get back to writing. Happy (summer) reading!
Draft of school play done! Read More »
To inform my current novel-in-progress, I went to all the vendors at WorldCon, requesting books of biological takeover and spores from outer space. Bios was one of the recommendations. There is a much more thorough review here, which you might want to look at, since I read Bios with impure motives. This is half-review, half encouragement
Bios by Robert Charles Wilson Read More »
From WorldCon I went into preparation mode for a weekend spent at the cottage with friends. I did some writing and read a book to review (more about that in a later post) but I haven’t felt like blogging about WorldCon. The experience was too overwhelming to sort out in a week. I got lost
WorldCon – Aug 6-10 Read More »
I met Lesley Livingston, author of Wondrous Strange, at the AD Astra SF/ Fantasy conference in Toronto. She launched the book there and took place in a couple of interesting panel discussions. My favorite of these was a discussion of fight choreography and fencing. Livingston is a principal performer and founding member of the Tempest
Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston Read More »
I just finished reading Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger. It is one of my favorite types of novel, a literary page-turner set in India with a unique voice and point-of-view. I recommend it highly and can see why it won the Man Booker Prize for 2008. Currently I’m reading the Watchmen graphic novel which is
Despite the cheesy title, Donald Maass’ book, Writing the Breakout Novel, is a guide to writing good novels, not a guide to selling out. Maass is not fond of generic thrillers and has a soft spot for literature as a genre. A novelist and New York agent, Mass is in a unique position to help
Writing the Breakout Novel Read More »
Now reading: Ages of Wonder , edited by Julie Czerneda and Rob St. Martin. This is one of a pile of books I brought back from Ad Astra. It will take me months to get through my stack of new SF novels, especially since I’m supposed to be writing. So far I’m really enjoying this
Ages of Wonder — Czerneda & St. Martin Read More »
I have to recommend Christopher Moore’s Fool: A Novel. It’s a rollicking pastiche of Elizabethan and Pagan sensibilities, played for maximum sex and mayhem. I was impressed that an American who has not lived in England got the mix of Shakespearean and colloquial English right. Historically accurate language would get in the way of farce,
Fool — Christopher Moore Read More »