I know everything swings on a pendulum: politics, parenting, fashion, etc. Nothing remains static. Just about everything can be examined and change found throughout history. Except chicken noodle soup, that remains eternal. But the question is, how does that change affect literature? Tracing the path and growth of lit from the earliest examples of epic …
I recently starting reading Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn with my son as a bedtime story. Some of you who have followed my musings for a while know that my son is mildly obsessed with Star Wars. Well, let's just say some issues have arisen. The further we get into the story the …
As I continue down this rabbit-hole of querying, it has really struck me how unique my book is in most sub-genres of fiction and film. Even in general fiction, father-child stories are rather rare. Now I know there are some out there: Lone Wolf and Cub, The Rifleman, or Taken for example. And then there …
It's been a few years since Genesis hit the shelves world-wide, (I can actually say that as I sold some copies in India) and people have been asking about when Trinity will be available. At the moment, all I can say is that I'm working on it. The manuscript is complete and I'm just trying …
We all carry baggage with us, some of us more visibly than others. We can't change our past, even though we would all love to. As I sit here staring at the budding trees outside my window, I'm turning over how much experience plays into my creative process. I know there is quite a bit …
I took a week off from writing to spend time with the family on spring break. It was almost rejuvenating. The weather was perfect. I wish we had been on the beach, but cookouts and slip'n slides in the backyard are the next best thing. Our van needed a new oil pan and I spent …
Easy. As any really good magician truly knows: “the trick is . . . to hide the ‘trick.’” Or for those of us who labored through Latin classes, back in the day, Ovid’s usually credited with: “the art . . . is to hide the ‘Art.’” [ Ars est celare artem. ] And whereas the …
I'll flat out say it, setting is almost always overlooked by a reader. I'm not even sure how much writers think about their setting. I mean, we tend to focus on our characters, the interactions, the personalities. In reality, a setting is simply a backdrop for the stories we mean to tell. Authors will spend …
The last but by far not the least of the 4 Tools in the Writer’s Toolbox: Dialogue. This may also be the most fun tool for both the writer and the involved & engaged reader. Afterall, who doesn’t like to over-hear someone else’s conversation – and who doesn’t really like eavesdropping on someone’s …
Is what lies ahead. Or so I was told in the animated version of The Hobbit from my youth. It's true, we can't go back and change the decisions of yesterday. We can only learn and grow from what came before. Focus on today and tomorrow. Take the next step in the journey that is …
