“If you don’t imagine, nothing ever happens at all.”
― John Green
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Posts Tagged ‘Fiction’
Make Things Happen
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, creativity, Fiction, Thoughts, Writers, writing on February 25, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Read, Read, Read
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, creativity, Fiction, inspiration, quotes, Thoughts, Writers, writing on February 21, 2022| Leave a Comment »
“Read, read, read. Read everything — trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You’ll absorb it.
Then write. If it’s good, you’ll find out. If it’s not, throw it out of the window.”
― William Faulkner
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Sharing the Love
Posted in Holidays, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, Fiction, free fiction, genre fiction, Murderbot, sff, Valentine's Day on February 14, 2022| Leave a Comment »
I can’t share the lemon meringue pie I made for Valentine’s Day, but I can share three free books from Tor.com.
Download Tor.com’s BUNDLE O’ LOVE — Before February 19th! | Tor.com
You’ll need to sign up for Tor’s free e-book club, which means they’ll offer you a free book every month. I don’t mind that. (Yes, they’ll use your email to promote other books but you can always use a throw-away address if you don’t want to hear from them.)
This bundle is only available for the next few days but if you haven’t read these titles it’s a great opportunity for three good books.
Especially Murderbot. Because everyone loves Murderbot.
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2021 Fiction from Tor.com
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, Fiction, free fiction, genre fiction, inspiration, sff, Writers, writing, yay on February 10, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Looking for new fiction? Like free stuff? Me too, and Tor.com has just released its free compilation of delicious good stuff from 2021. Click the Buy Now button here to access the ebook via major retailers.
Have fun!
Some of the Best From Tor.com 2021 Is Out Now!
Table of Contents
- “Masquerade Season” by ‘Pemi Aguda
- “The Lay of Lilyfinger” by G. V. Anderson
- “The Red Mother” by Elizabeth Bear
- “The Tinder Box” by Kate Elliott
- “Questions Asked in the Belly of the World” by Aliza Greenblatt
- Black Leg by Glen Hirshberg
- “The Wonderful Stag, or The Courtship of Red Elsie” by Kathleen Jennings
- “Blood in the Thread” by Cheri Kamei
- “Sand” by Jasmin Kirkbride
- “Now We Paint Worlds” by Matthew Kressel
- “#Spring Love, #Pichal Pairi” by Usman T. Malik
- “Let All the Children Boogie” by Sam J. Miller
- “#Selfcare” by Annalee Newitz
- “The Far Side of the Universe” by noc
- “A Better Way of Saying” by Sarah Pinsker
- “Baby Teeth” by Daniel Polansky
- “The Future Library” by Peng Shepherd
- “Aptitude” by Cooper Shrivastava
- “Judge Dee and the Three Deaths of Count Werdenfels” by Lavie Tidhar
- “L’Esprit de L’Escalier” by Catherynne M. Valente
- “An Easy Job” by Carrie Vaughn
- “Small Monsters” by E. Lily Yu
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For the Writers Among Us
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, creativity, Fiction, genre fiction, publishing, sff, speculative fiction, speculative fiction novels, submissions, Writers, writing, writing a novel on February 7, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Attention writers!
Are you un-agented? Have you been waiting for a high-profile publisher to send out a call for submissions? Do you happen to have a science fiction, fantasy or horror manuscript lying around the house, waiting for its dare-to-be-great moment?
Then this, my friends, is your lucky day!
Angry Robot has announced a week-long open submission period for un-agented works. I don’t happen to have one handy but maybe you do? If so, may the odds be ever in your favor!
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The Submission period will run for one week, from Monday the 21st of February to Monday the 28th February.
We are looking for:
– Novel length works.
– A synopsis of the full work in a separate Word document.
– An elevator pitch and author bio in your email.Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror.
– Adult fiction.
– Finished manuscripts.
To apply, please send us:
– A sample that consists of the first three chapters of your work (or first fifteen pages if the chapters are short).
– A synopsis of the full work in a separate Word document.
– An elevator pitch and author bio in your email.
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Holes, the Filling Of
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, continuing education, Fiction, inspiration, reading, Writers, writing on February 2, 2022| 1 Comment »
I have a minor confession: I have never read Charles Dickens. I may have started A Tale of Two Cities but I don’t think I finished it. Scratch that, I know I didn’t finish it.
Many of Dickens’ major novels were written for publishers who paid by the word. The man wasn’t stupid. He wrote A Lot of words. He also wrote across class boundaries, giving readers a window into the lives of those they might not otherwise encounter.
We live in a world shaped by his works and ideas. Movies, characters, what makes up some of the foundations of modern Christmas, a lot of that has to do with Dickens’ works.
But I haven’t read the original source material.
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If someone wanted to remedy a hole like this in their literary education, where to start?
One nice thing about the classics, they are everywhere.
- Books by Dickens, Charles – Project Gutenberg
- Tips and Tools to Make Reading Charles Dickens More Enjoyable: Dickens also wrote shorts, including sketches of life at the time.
- Discovering Dickens – A Community Reading Project: As a bonus, this site contains a lot of detailed notes on the anachronistic elements in the stories covered. If you’ve ever wanted to know what a copper-stick, jack-towel, plaister or tarwater was, they’ve got you covered. Check out the notes for Great Expectations.
- Where To Start Reading Charles Dickens
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Writing A Better Future
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, cli-fi, climate change, creativity, Fiction, genre fiction, inspiration, sff, Writers, writing, writing contest on February 1, 2022| 1 Comment »
tl;dr scroll for climate fiction contest info
You may have noticed that we are in the midst of a climate shift that is affecting all facets of life. What comes next, and how do we fix it?
Science is great for understanding what will change but to better understand the squishier bits like how it will impact our lives and societies? That is where fiction excels.
I’ve mentioned climate fiction before but if you’re interested in what’s out there, here are a few examples:
- Stories to save the world: the new wave of climate fiction | Books | The Guardian
- The definitive climate fiction reading list – 20 books to explore cli-fi | Fix
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Want to try at hand at writing us all into an optimistic future? Good news, Fix is back with another short story contest titled Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors.
We’re looking for stories of 3,000 to 5,000 words that envision the next 180 years of climate progress — roughly seven generations. The winning writer will be awarded $3,000, with the second- and third-place winners receiving $2,000 and $1,000, respectively. An additional nine finalists will each receive $300. Winners and finalists will be published in Fall 2022 in an immersive collection on Fix’s website and celebrated during a virtual event.
- Entry is free!
- Submissions close May 5, 2022, 11:59 p.m. U.S. Pacific Standard Time.
- The contest is open to writers anywhere in the world.
- Authors must be 18 years or older at the time of submission.
- Submissions must be fictional stories between 3,000 and 5,000 words.
- We do not accept previously published or simultaneous submissions (stories can only be submitted to this contest and not to others, until we have informed you of the result).
- Only one submission will be accepted per entrant.
There is no cost to enter and story copyright and ownership remains with the author. More details here.
Let’s write ourselves a better future!
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It’s Alive!
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, creativity, Fiction, Thoughts, Writers, writing, writing advice on January 19, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Today, some useful writing advice from award-winning writer Nalo Hopkinson.
The point of fiction is to cast a spell, a momentary illusion that you are living in the world of the story. Fiction engages the senses, helps us create vivid mental simulacra of the experiences the characters are having.
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On A Mission
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, Fiction, history, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers on January 12, 2022| Leave a Comment »
I’ve always liked coins.
Maybe it was my love of fantasy tales where every dragon had a horde and every economic transaction involved coinage (paper bills? what are those and why would I accept them when I could have a lovely gold piece?). Or the fact that coins encapsulate a wealth (see what I did there?) of information about a society’s evolving history, economy and culture. Or it might have had a little to do with my not-entirely-transitory pirate fixation (they were often bad, sometimes misrepresented, always fascinating).
Regardless, I like coins. Back when we still went out and touched other people’s money, I saved the shiniest examples of each new coin I came across. I have a pressed penny collection. And I love new coin designs. When they have one of my favorite female writers on them? Win!
Maya Angelou becomes the first Black woman to appear on the U.S. quarter
Check out the U.S. Mint site for more on the America Women Quarters program.
And next Christmas, shiny new Maya Angelou quarters will be on my list!
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“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.”
― Maya Angelou
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Another Reason to Read
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, creativity, Fiction, genre fiction, inspiration, sff, Thoughts, writing on January 4, 2022| Leave a Comment »
I am a re-reader. Sometimes I pick up a book that I’ve already read in order to study some aspect of craft, like a fight scene or character introduction, but my primary motivation is usually entertainment.
I love knowing that the piece I’m reading has a great story, compelling characters, and a satisfying conclusion. Often, that last element is where things fall apart. Over the holidays three books in a row ended with a whimper, and left Reader Me at loose ends, feeling out of sorts and disappointed. Writer Me was not impressed.
Good openings pull readers deeper into the story.
The first scene can be anything—a funny incident that introduces one of your protagonists, or perhaps an argument that leaves your reader shocked. Maybe you’ll write a scene that will leave your reader admiring your protagonist and cheering for her, or perhaps you’ll introduce your tale with a gruesome murder that will leave the reader horrified but burning with intrigue. Whatever you do in your opening, a great opening scene will almost always find some way to arouse a powerful emotional response in the reader—and the impact of that scene will convince the reader to delve further into the tale, hoping for more.
— David Farland’s Writing Tips – Be Excited
All excellent advice. But a good opening isn’t enough. It’s a promise. Endings should deliver on that original promise by giving the reader a satisfying emotional conclusion. If a story opens with a question the ending must close with the answer. Not any answer. Not a conclusion (dramatic or otherwise) that has no relationship to the questions posed at the outset. And not, for the love of all that’s holy, a cliffhanger.
This is why so many books fail, in my experience. Open with a lost dog, close with a found dog. Open with a murder mystery, close with the murderer being brought to justice.
What if The Return of the King had ended as the One Ring went into the lava? That’s it, right? Game over, no reason to continue. Not quite, and the fact that the story didn’t stop there is one reason I went back to The Lord of the Rings every year for decades. Our emotions are tied to characters, and in this case to one group in particular. Start with hobbits all nice and cozy, end with slightly battered but stronger, more capable, still cozy hobbits tucked up nice and safe at home.
There’s also a reason I have several reliable series on call at all times. I don’t do well with literary disappointment. That’s also the reason I return to some shorts over and over again.
I’ve mentioned this story before and may well again. Do I like young adult stories? Frequently not.* Do I like horror or monsters? Not usually. But everything about this story works for me, and it’s about time to read it again:
Holly Black’s Ten Rules for Being an Intergalactic Smuggler (the Successful Kind) is everything I love about a story: it’s funny, poignant, trying and triumphant. And fun.
I hope you enjoy it. I know I will.
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* There are exceptions. This story is one, and there are others like The Scholomance and Rory Thorne books.
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