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Archive for the ‘Writing’ Category

Today only (well, yesterday and today, for any time travelers out there)!

Free free free book giveaway from a wide array of science fiction authors. I heard about it through Krista D. Ball, another SFCanada member who is part of the event. 

Here’s the main link: Sci-fi Book Blast March 15 – 16, 2024

Books available in the following categories: Adventure, Alien Invasion, Colonization, Crime & Mystery, Cyberpunk, Dystopian, First Contact, Galactic Empire, Humor, Military, Post-Apocalyptic, Short Story Anthologies, Space Opera, Time Travel

Note: it does say to be sure to check that the link is free because database updates don’t always work like they should, and I did run across a few that were either not free or not available. That said, there are over a hundred books in the list so lots to choose from.

I ended last night in a bit of a funk because I 1) finished my book, and 2) the ending was disappointing as hell. Was it supposed to be a dramatic climax and just fizzled, or was the author so committed to his (also annoying) cliffhanger that he decided to just bypass the climax altogether? Ugh.

Either way, I am very much in the market for a new book and new authors, so this giveaway is excellent timing. Hope you find something you like!

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The four sayings that lead to wisdom:
I was wrong
I’m sorry
I don’t know
I need help.

― Louise Penny

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Photo by Richard Lee on Unsplash

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“The one thing that you have that nobody else has is you. Your voice, your mind, your story, your vision. So write and draw and build and play and dance and live as only you can.”

— Neil Gaiman

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Photo by Evgeni Tcherkasski on Unsplash

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I was all excited to work on a story but thought, “No, I shall do some quick adulting in the form of taxes, and then I shall feel worthy of fun times spent in Funlandia!”

You know how this story goes. I am chest-deep in forms, statements, receipts and more, with no end in sight. 

Sorry, Funlandia, just one more mountain to climb.

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Photo by Todd Trapani on Unsplash

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To achieve great things, two things are needed: a plan, and not quite enough time.

— Leonard Bernstein

I found this line at a fun site that serves up quotes based on your mood: APLIFT. And given my lack of time today, it fits.

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Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

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The award-winning SFF magazine Clarkesworld recently released their Best Of 2023 list based on reader votes. While I don’t always love every Best Of story out there, I do like using those lists as starting points to explore new and interesting writers. 

If you do too, check out the top 3 short stories and longer-form works.

Editor’s Desk: The Best from 2023

Best Novelette/Novella
3rd Place: “Imagine: Purple-Haired Girl Shooting Down the Moon” by Angela Liu (novelette)
2nd Place: “Light Speed Is Not a Speed” by Andy Dudak (novelette)
2023 Winner: “To Sail Beyond the Botnet” by Suzanne Palmer (novella)

Best Short Story
3rd Place: “Window Boy” by Thomas Ha
2nd Place: “Day Ten Thousand” by Isabel J. Kim
2023 Winner: “Better Living Through Algorithms” by Naomi Kritzer

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Photo by CONNOR BOTTS on Unsplash

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It’s the weekend and I feel I should be using my time for creative work, but instead I have a long and growing list taking up space in the back of my mind (and on Post-its fluttering from desk to pocket to pile). This list includes both the ignorable (“clean basement, for real this time”) and the not so much (“Taxes!”). 

So I’ll just go take care of that, shall I?

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Photo by Mindspace Studio on Unsplash

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“Thankfully, persistence is a great substitute for talent.”

― Steve Martin

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Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

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Today’s Now I Know (a fun free newsletter, recommended) talks about some of the fundamental elements of being a successful spy. Essentially, the key is to play a character as truthfully as possible. 

When I moved to Canada I was suddenly surrounded by people and places that were just subtly different from what I was used to. The way people dress, talk, eat, smile, and yes, stand, are all signifiers of culture and place. It made me more conscious of what was the same and what was different, or what made me look at an actor in a commercial and immediately say, “Sooo Canadian!” when Mr Man didn’t register a difference.

Here’s the video referenced in the article, with Jonna Mendez, former CIA agent and Chief of Disguise:

What makes a character look “right” or not, or act as if they are rooted in a particular time and place? Understanding those fundamental cues is a great way to think about adding depth to stories and the characters who drive them.

While we’re here, Mendez also has a fun video critiquing scenes in spy movies, useful to anyone writing a story with espionage:

Alias for the win!

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Photo by Debby Ledet on Unsplash

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One of my first drabbles, originally published in Grand Science Fiction. Scroll right to read it in full.

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Photo by Maegan Martin on Unsplash

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