Okay, you’ve done it! You’ve written a fantastic story; your beta-readers have torn the hell out of it; you’ve fixed the weird bits; you’ve trimmed off the fat. Â You formatted it following William Shunn‘s excellent advice. Â (You did format it using William Shunn’s excellent advice, right? Â Maybe you should double check, especially on the section […]
Archive > January 2011
Guest Post by Susan Forest: Inspirational vs. Mechanical Writing
Today’s guest post is by Susan Forest, editor and award nominated science fiction, fantasy, and horror writer. Thank you, Susan!  Ever write in “flow?” Oh, to be transported to that other world, to live there, to have the words pour unconsciously onto the page, coming from some deep, hidden well of the soul. That is a […]
Creationism vs. Evolution as Metaphors for Writing
Ever tried? Ever failed? No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better. Â – Samuel Beckett There are all kinds of cultural narratives that address our place as tiny creatures in this vast and cold universe. One popular story says–and I’m reaching waaay back to my days as a Mormon missionary here–that we humans are the […]
Organization: Keep Moving Forward
Staying on top of things and staying ahead or at least along the curve both come down to a few points, which I’ll bold and number without priority for your convenience. I managed to keep it to five, which is pretty good, methinks.
Lessons From the Slushpile: Good vs. Great
When I got stuck for a blog topic this week I asked for suggestions on Twitter. Three of you said you’d like to read about what I’ve learned from working for Lightspeed Magazine. This is timely, actually, because January 9 marked one year since I joined the team, initially as a slush reader, and later […]
Day Jobbery: Who wants to work forever?
When I was eighteen, I traveled north to Milwaukee and attended my first GenCon in the mid 1990’s with some friends from college. It was the first time I’d experienced anything of the sort. I’d been reading Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance stuff for ages, and idolized Margaret Weis & Tracey Hickman; I’d known I wanted […]
The Author’s Voice
The Author’s Voice I recently read “The Fire in Fiction†by Donald Maass (Founder and President of the Donald Maass Literary Agency) and in one chapter he discusses the voice of your novel, something that new authors often struggle with. Donald Maass has this advice to writers: “It is when the words on the page demand […]
Resolution: organization
Hellooooooo! Welcome to the new year. If you’re like me, you’ve made some resolutions (you, ten pounds–you’re going down!). If you’re a writing type–also, like me–you’re getting ducks in a row, setting goals and starting new projects. And if you live in the real world (don’t look at me, I just rent on this planet), […]