(This post is part of my Patreon-supported New Worlds series.) Our modern craze for competitive sports may be noteworthy in its scale, with top athletes being paid enough to put them firmly among the economic elite, but the passion for … Continue reading
Auntie Deborah is back at her advice desk… If two authors want to collaborate on writing a novel, how much should each author contribute? Auntie Deborah: It all depends. There are so many different ways to do this. I’ve seen … Continue reading
(This post is part of my Patreon-supported New Worlds series.) Shortly after we invented intelligence, we invented boredom. And shortly after that, we invented games. I said in the discussion of toys that they’re intended for play, and associated primarily … Continue reading
My inestimable agent, Trodayne Northern, decided that what he really would like to have on the new Prentis Agency website he’s building is a series of love letters from his writers to their beloved genres. Here is my “how do I … Continue reading
(This post is part of my Patreon-supported New Worlds series.) In studying the archaeological record, it can be a bit difficult to tell when you’re looking at a toy. After all, toys are mostly defined by their use: they’re intended … Continue reading
Auntie Deborah is back at her advice desk… I’ve been told that as a new writer I should write what I know. How can I apply this to writing a historical novel? Auntie Deborah: First of all, that old saw … Continue reading
(This post is part of my Patreon-supported New Worlds series.) It’s all well and good to take an extended tour through all the different corners of stuff your fictional world might contain. But as in the proverb about the elephant … Continue reading
It occurred to me some years back that if you were a devoted fan of something – might be anything: music, science fiction, art – it could open the door to a career doing something you loved. So if you … Continue reading
(This post is part of my Patreon-supported New Worlds series.) It might seem odd to bundle a discussion of poison in with our exploration of medicine, but as the sixteenth-century Swiss physician known as Paracelsus said, “All things are poison, … Continue reading
Elsewhere on the net, a talented new writer made a comment about the damaging effects of another person’s careless behavior. We can encounter destructive relationships in every area of our lives, but when it comes to our creativity, they can … Continue reading
