“All the world will be your enemy, Prince with A Thousand Enemies. And when they catch you, they will kill you. But first they must catch you; digger, listener, runner, […]
Read moreCategory: fantasy
Worldbuilding: Art and Culture in the Fantasy World
The most fundamental way to define a culture is through its art. Geography, food, religion, technology and government are critical as well, of course, but none of those quite get […]
Read moreA Deep Bench of Tertiary Characters
I have to confess, there’s a small part of me that cringes whenever I realize I need another character. Or characters. Especially a character with a name. Because I know, […]
Read moreWorldbuilding: Complexity in the Political Landscapes
As part of Way of the Shield, I’ve been delving deeper into the politics of Druthal. In doing so, I’m taking into account the same thing I said about strawmen […]
Read moreGoals for the Coming Year
So, from my clock, 2012 has a mere 13 hours and change left to it. 2013 is coming, so its high time to set some unrealistic goals for the year: […]
Read moreThe Dark Side of Outlining
So, I was reading back through what I had written for Way of the Shield, trying to figure out what wasn’t working, and why it wasn’t. I am still most […]
Read moreRiding the Muse Where it Takes You
Sometimes it just doesn’t come together. And that’s okay. I’m in a strange position, writing-wise. Three novels are out there, shopping at various publishing houses. Any or all could hit […]
Read morePerils of the Writer: False Starts
It hits like lightning across the forebrain. The Brilliant Idea that will be the Next New Book. And every thought is consumed with the “Oh, wow!”ness of this new idea. […]
Read moreWorldbuilding: Mapping in 4-D
There’s a neat little video out there that shows the various political shifts in Europe over the course of a thousand years. It’s the sort of thing you have to […]
Read moreNeural Traffic Jam
The challenge of the creative mind is sometimes being overwhelmed with ideas. Only so much can get out your fingers at any given time. The challenge of focusing one the […]
Read more