Archive for January, 2008
January 16th 2008
The use and misuse of prologues
It seems vaguely appropriate to talk about prologues in the first month of the year.
If you’re a fantasy reader, odds are you’ve read a prologue. They’re a standard part of the architecture in epic fantasy, and also crop up in other types. But they aren’t as common as they used to be, because […]
January 15th 2008
Make ‘em Laugh
When I was at Wiscon last May, I attended a panel on High Fantasy (or epic fantasy, or quest fantasy, or whatever you want to call it) where the panelists ended up spending a good portion of their time on humor. Not enough of it in High Fantasy, they decided, and I couldn’t agree more.
I’m […]
January 14th 2008
Why I’m a Darksider
I’ve always been a big fan of the dark side of the Force. First of all, tell me it isn’t a sign of the dark side’s awesome skillz that there only needs to be two of them to balance all the light side Jedi. But, more to the point of this post, I find the things that supposedly fuel the […]
January 10th 2008
Top Ten Science-Based Sci-Fi Movies (Revised)
This is a revised version of a list I posted on my blog a couple of days ago that was also farked. I was convinced that the Alien and Aliens movies had a number of shortcomings compared to some other films and have added on a couple of others in their place. The tragedy is […]
January 8th 2008
When did the customer cease being right?
Maybe I’m looking at the past through the viewing screen of a rose-tinted tardis but I’m sure I remember a time when the shopkeeper’s mantra was ‘the customer is always right.’
Today the mantra appears to be ‘it wasn’t our fault.’
Mini-rant warning. Well, I am of a certain age and I have been provoked:)
This summer, Shelagh […]
January 5th 2008
The effortlessness of Gods, or “Did you do it yourself?”
I have this sweater. It’s multicoloured, knitted from what looks like oddments of yarn - but silk yarn, I’ll have you know, this is a heavy silk knit sweater - and I fell in love with it the moment I saw it and circled around it for a while after that because the price tag […]
January 4th 2008
Accused of Mary Sue
I was reading through some of my book reviews when I came upon the term Mary Sue. I had a vague idea what it meant so I went to Wikipedia (yeah, I know, but don’t worry I did check other sites, too).
Here’s what Wikipedia had to say, “Mary Sue, sometimes shortened simply to Sue, is […]
January 3rd 2008
10 Things learned in the course of novel revising
1. Definition of tonight: As in, I will finish this tonight. Whatever odd definitions you might have, the truth is that Tonight doesn’t end until I sleep. So long as I keep my eyes open and I am typing, tonight doesn’t end. Never mind that big ball of molten light out there. […]
January 1st 2008
What’s your plan?
The thing about New Years’ resolutions is, people so rarely keep them. Maybe it’s because they often have a moralizing quality: “I will write every day this year!” Then halfway through January you miss a day, and now you’re a failure and a horrible person.
So I don’t want to hear about your resolutions. […]
Author Information
Marie Brennan
Marie Brennan is the author of several fantasy novels and short stories, including the upcoming Elizabethan faerie spy fantasy Midnight Never Come. Visit site.
S.C. Butler
Butler is the author of The Stoneways Trilogy from Tor Books: Reiffen's Choice, Queen Ferris, and The Magician's Daughter. Find out what Reiffen does with magic, and what magic does with him... Visit site.
Lyda Morehouse
Lyda Morehouse is the author of the science fiction AngeLINK series. She's won the Shamus and the Philip K. Dick Special Citation for Excellence (aka 2nd place). Her books have also been nominated for the Romantic Times Critics' Choice and preliminary Nebula ballot. She lives in the deep-freeze of Saint Paul, MN with her partner of twenty-odd years, their son, and lots and lots of cats (and fish!) Visit site.
Mike Brotherton
Professional astronomer, science fiction novelist (Star Dragon, Spider Star). Visit site.
Chris Dolley
Chris DolleyChris Dolley is an English author of SF mysteries, a pioneer computer games designer, and the man who convinced the UK media that Cornwall had risen up and declared independence. His novel Resonance (2005, Baen) was the first book to be plucked from Baen’s electronic slush pile. His second novel Shift (2007, Baen) has just come out. He now lives in France with his wife, a dolmen, and a frightening collection of animals. Visit site.
Alma Alexander
Alma Alexander is a Pacific Northwest novelist whose new YA trilogy, "Worldweavers", debuted with "Gift of the Unmage" in March 2007 ("Spellspam" follows in 2008, and "Cybermage" in 2009). Her other books include the internationally acclaimed "The Secrets of Jin Shei". Visit site.
Maria V. Snyder
Maria V. Snyder has been writing fiction and nonfiction since 1995. She has published numerous freelance articles in magazines and newspapers. Her first published novel, Poison Study appeared on the shelves in 2005, and chronicles Yelena’s challenges in surviving her dangerous job as a food taster. Magic Study follows with Yelena’s efforts to learn about her magic while searching for a rogue magician turned serial killer. Fire Study chronicles Yelena's adventures with a Fire Warper and was released in March 2008. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Maria earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Meteorology at Penn State University. Much to Maria’s chagrin, forecasting the weather wasn’t one of her skills. Writing, however, proved to be more enjoyable and Maria earned a Master of Arts degree in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. As part of her research for her Study novels, Maria signed up for a glass blowing class to learn how to shape molten glass. The first thing she learned is it is considerably harder to sculpt glass than it looks. Maria now has an extensive collection of misshapened paperweights, tumblers, and bowls. When she’s not traveling, Maria lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, son, daughter and yellow Lab. She is working on her next MIRA novel, Storm Glass, due out Spring 2009. Readers are welcome to contact Maria by e-mail at maria@mariavsnyder.com, or they can find more information on her Web site at www.mariavsnyder.com. Visit site.
Diana Pharaoh Francis
Diana Pharaoh Francis has written the fantasy novel trilogy that includes Path of Fate, Path of Honor and Path of Blood. Path of Fate was nominated for the Mary Roberts Rinehart Award. Recently released was The Cipher, first of The Crosspointe Chronicles, which will be followed by The Black Ship in November 2008. Diana teaches in the English Department at the University of Montana Western, and is an avid lover of all things chocolate. Visit site.
Marie Brennan
Marie Brennan is the author of several fantasy novels and short stories, including the upcoming Elizabethan faerie spy fantasy Midnight Never Come. Visit site.
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