I first “met” author Jean Lee virtually in the Spring of 2016, when my second book published. We quickly struck up a Twitter friendship and soon after a collegial working relationship, trading manuscripts back and forth for comment and critique.…
Spotlight: J.D. Lakey’s “Warrior Witch”
A little over two years ago (“New Feminist Science Fiction Series Appeals to Readers of All Ages,” 25 Aug 2016), I had the pleasure of spotlighting author J.D. Lakey’s re-release of the first three books in her Black Bead Chronicles.…
Posted in Author Spotlight, Interview
Hell Week 2018 – A Day in the Life of Haeckel and Carter
Originally posted on Library of Erana:
Today on the Infernal Broadcasting Channel we welcome Ernst Haeckel and Howard Carter. Pull up a seat by the fire and get out the marshmallows…. [Ernst Haeckel]: (Stares into empty interrogation room). “Gutentag. Is…
Posted in Writing Life
Hell Week 2018 – Helen of Sparta
Originally posted on Library of Erana:
Character Spotlight About yourself: *Who are/were you? I am Helen, Queen of Sparta, you would know me as Helen of Troy. I was once the wife of King Menelaus, and lover and wife to…
Posted in Writing Life
Cover Reveal and Book Spotlight – Lovers in Hell (Heroes in Hell) – Historical Fantasy/Fantasy/SharedWorld/Hell Week
Originally posted on Library of Erana:
Only fools fall in love, and hell is filled with fools. Our damned lovers include: Christopher Marlowe and Will Shakespeare, Napoleon and Wellington, Orpheus and Eurydice, Hatshepsut and Senenmut, Abelard and Heloise, Helen and…
Posted in Writing Life
Shall We Begin? Aristotle & Beginnings
The beginning, commonly called the setup, is the initial action of the situation, presented to us as a problem to be solved. The beginning defines your characters and the wants of your major character (or characters). Aristotle says a character…
Author Spotlight: Christopher Lee
This week, I shine a spotlight on the amazing indie story-teller, Christopher Lee. Who is Christopher Lee? Yes, the name is familiar but he’s not Saruman, nor is he Dracula. He’s a somewhat lesser—but no less interesting—version. Christopher Lee is…
Posted in Author Spotlight
Mood and Atmosphere
Stories without mood and atmosphere have an incomplete feeling. They need substance and fleshing out. The dialogue has nothing physical to play against. The characters have no arena in which to move about, and little stage business to enhance the…
Six Tips for Creative Fiction Collaboration
If you’ve been following my newsletter (and if you aren’t, sign up today!), you’ll know that I’ve been working on a creative fiction collaboration with a fellow fantasy author, Jean Lee, to create a work called King Eowain and the Boar,…
Seven Ways to Build Your Author Brand
The thought of selling yourself as though you’re a new watch or a can of fizzy soda may strike you as crass and make you want to stick a fork in your eye, but if you’ve written a book and…
Posted in Author Platform, The Business of Writing
Available from Amazon
