The Necessity of Editing

The Necessity of Editing

The most eye-opening part of being a professional editor has been the fascinating look it offers into other writers' creative process. There's a lot of talent out there that oldpub would never give the time of day. These authors are finding audiences thanks to newpub. At the same time, you…
February 6, 20206 Comments
Books Are Not Head Movies

Books Are Not Head Movies

A number of readers have asked me to explain my frequent editing advice against writing by playing a movie in your head and transcribing what you see. To complement the inherent advantages the novel has over film as a storytelling form, here are a few proscriptive reasons to avoid approaching novel…
November 27, 201920 Comments
SMRT Stories: Reprise

SMRT Stories: Reprise

My earlier post on SJWs cannibalizing the once-mighty White Wolf Publishing occasioned a friend to recommend the 2004 video game *deep breath* Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines. Having lacked a PC capable of running the game back then, I missed it the first time around. I wasn't the only one, either.…
October 22, 201927 Comments
Mecha, Character and Mecha Characters

Mecha, Character and Mecha Characters

One of the unique challenges of writing a mech series is figuring out how to balance your mechs and your human characters. I don't mean that in a pen and paper role-playing game way. I'm talking about balancing reader expectations and the needs of the story. When you're writing a…
September 9, 201910 Comments
Hecklers vs Critics

Hecklers vs Critics

I've been getting a lot of requests for writing advice lately. Knowing how to recognize and take constructive criticism is among the most important skills a writer can master, so I've dug this post out of the vaults. Writers tend to be introverts. Most of us also crave external validation.…
July 11, 20192 Comments
How Does Your Magic Work?

How Does Your Magic Work?

A loyal reader writes: Slowly developing world, characters, etc., but in Reddit's /r/worldbuilding, someone came up with this prompt: How does your magic work? https://www.reddit.com/r/worldbuilding/comments/c6csar/how_does_your_magic_work/ I (/u/Alkalannar) make the comment that goes with your old-school Actual Magic definition from How to Design Magic Systems. It has twice the number of…
June 28, 201930 Comments
Ars Longa

Ars Longa

Hang out around science fiction authors long enough, and you get the sense that they're all crazy. John Scalzi claims that Donald Trump and the weather conspired to give him writer's block. Patrick Rothfuss and George R. R. Martin have cited similarly temperamental reasons for not finishing their popular series.…
March 18, 201930 Comments
Is Allegory Always Bad?

Is Allegory Always Bad?

So asks author Alexander Hellene in this thoughtful piece on the relationship between allegory and propaganda. My question is: Is allegory always bad? Look at William Shakespeare: Why did he write plays about ancient Roman Emperors and former English kinds, if not to draw lessons for his audience to learn…
January 28, 20194 Comments
Book vs Movie

Book vs Movie

In my work as a freelance editor, I've noticed a common tendency among the current crop of science fiction authors to write books as if they're writing movies. That practice is understandable since most science fiction and fantasy novels published after 1980 suck, and therefore today's authors are disproportionately influenced…
January 15, 20198 Comments
Writing Tips: Conflict, Tension, and Action

Writing Tips: Conflict, Tension, and Action

Many writers labor under a common misconception about what makes a book feel fast-paced. Slamming chapters together with no space in-between doesn't necessarily give readers a sense of speed. In fact, it can do the opposite by bringing on action fatigue. Pacing has less to do with keeping lots of…
January 10, 20194 Comments