Columns

10 Beautiful Science Books

May 13th, 2016

As in any genre of writing, not all science authors are created equal. It takes a special kind of genius to explain some of the most complex subjects known to man, in a manner that's both accurate and linguistically elegant. By no means a comprehensive list of books that manage to achieve such heights, these titles are nonetheless a good place to begin exploring the outer reaches of the universe and the deepest corners of the human mind.

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How to Create an Award-Winning Magazine Without Ever Spending a Dime

May 13th, 2016

I’m going to tell you something no one else wants to admit: it’s really easy to run a successful literary magazine. It’s probably one of the least difficult things in the world. I’m not saying it’s easy to start a magazine and keep it alive for a couple months—I’m saying it’s easy to start a magazine and make it become one of the most popular magazines in the history of magazines. You want some awards? No sweat. Naked, beautiful groupies throwing themselves at your feet? You better have a big floor, pal.

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Why Readers are Lazy Fuckers and Why This Needs to Stop Right Now

May 12th, 2016

photo courtesy Quin Dombrowski via Flikr So you’ve finished a book and you have that End of B

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Comic Book vs. Film: "Civil War" (2006) vs. "Captain America: Civil War"

May 11th, 2016

It’s fairly safe to say Civil War, in both its incarnations, has been a success. The comic book crossover event sold well in a time when comic books weren’t supposed to be doing that anymore, and the film seems to be raking in both money and good reviews. But how well does this latest adaptation serve its source material? Be warned, past this point we're going deep into SPOILER country.

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30 Reasons Spider-Man Is the World's Greatest Hero

May 10th, 2016

all images courtesy Marvel When we talk about the greatest comic book heroes, we usually talk about that one A-hole billionaire industrialist who turned into a vigilante, or that other, B-hole billionaire industrialist who turned into a vigilante with a robo suit. There's the guy with the red cape, the lady made out of clay.  All of them pale in comparison to the one, true, hero, the best part of Captain America: Civil War and of comics, in general.

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10 Mothers of Famous Authors

May 6th, 2016

Sunday is Mother's Day, and to honor all the mamas out there, let's take a moment to highlight ten mothers of famous authors who played a significant role in shaping their sons' or daughters' literary careers—all while maintaining careers of their own (or, sadly, falling victim to mental illness and systemic sexism during their lifetime). Some of these moms were/are even famous authors in their own right. Happy Mother's Day! Writers, draft up something nice for your mama.

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7 Starter Ideas For Your Mother-Daughter Book Club

May 5th, 2016

Daughters of the world: Mother’s Day is right around the corner! The obvious gift choice is a book, but what about an unexpected spin on this tried and true staple? Try buying two books. Two of the same book, in fact. One for your Mother, and one for you. I'm talking a Mother-Daughter book club!

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"Some folks sure got a strange idea of entertainment...": The Unlucky History of Friday the 13th Books

May 5th, 2016

People are superstitious by nature, and they love to be scared. And what's scarier than a man in a mask with machete in hand? That's the question that has haunted us for 35 years now.

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Eight Tips For Increasing Your Writing Output, From A Very Busy Writer

May 4th, 2016

My second book came out this past February. The third is scheduled for October. I’m 36,000 words into the fourth. I just finished co-writing a novella with James Patterson. This is on top of running the class program here at LitReactor, and acting as Associate Publisher at MysteriousPress.com. Oh and I have a 15-month-old daughter. I’ve been busy.

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10 Plugins Writers Need For Their WordPress Website

May 2nd, 2016

If you have a website there’s a fair chance you use WordPress as your content management system. After all it’s the most popular blogging system on the web and is used by more than seventy million websites (check out the stats here). One of my favorite WordPress features is the ability to customize and expand both the on-site and backend functionality and features of your website via Plugins.

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