Writing craft

New Worlds Theory Post: Unfortunate Implications

The last time we had a theory essay, I talked about thinking through the logical results of one’s worldbuilding. Closely related, but not quite the same, are the unfortunate implications that worldbuilding can sometimes have. By this I mean, not the practical effects on the world — the easy ways to make a kingdom richer …

New Worlds Theory Post: Unfortunate Implications Read More »

The New Worlds series is brought to you by my imaginative backers at Patreon! www.patreon.com/swan_tower

New Worlds: Intellectual Disability

To the modern, western, medical mind, intellectual disabilities are generally distinct from mental illnesses. But as we’ve already discussed, other frameworks for understanding such problems attribute them to different causes, and as such, don’t necessarily differentiate the one from the other. In particular, the responses to them were often the same, so before we turn …

New Worlds: Intellectual Disability Read More »

Confessions of a Ghostwriter: A Dish Best Served Cool

In a prior ”confession,” I talked about the qualities of a hero in context with a book I was writing for a client I code-named Murphy. My pointing out that a master of strong and intelligent followers would be more impressive than a master of weak, incompetent ones prompted Murphy to tell me that toning …

Confessions of a Ghostwriter: A Dish Best Served Cool Read More »

Ghostwriter

Confessions of a Ghostwriter: Recipe for a Hero

A ghostwriting client (hereafter, ”Murphy”) hired me to write a coming-of-age fantasy. He’d written a proposed opening scene in which the reader meets a heroic character Murphy described as a combination of Gandalf the Grey and Obi-Wan Kenobi, both of which were appropriate to the role he was to play in the book—wise mentor to …

Confessions of a Ghostwriter: Recipe for a Hero Read More »