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Willpower, Muses, and Other Destructive Myths of Writing
January 13th, 2014
It's little wonder that writing communities have developed a great many stories to explain how stuff works. Among the stuff we try to explain is the act of writing itself. Yet, as with many cultural stories, our explanations have sometimes proven unhelpful or—in the worst cases—downright destructive. Today, I'm going to talk about some of my least favorite myths of the writing community, and explain why they are so prevalent and so damaging.
Read Column →Sci-fi & Fantasy: Out With the Old, In With the New
January 10th, 2014
It’s 2014. A new year and a time, as the tradition goes, for change. I thought it might be fun to discuss several tired and worn tropes from Science Fiction & Fantasy and maybe look at ways in which they could be reinterpreted, transfigured for the future. I’m not declaring any of these dead, by the way — a talented writer can always breathe new life into a dusty old corpse. But I think those below deserve something of a rest, at least for a little while. Romantic Vampires The Old:
Read Column →Dystropia: No More Mr. Vice Guy!
January 9th, 2014
Somewhere situated between Easter Island and Papua New Guinea, perfectly pinned on a straight line between the Great Pyramid and the Nazca Lines lies the Isle of Dystropia, the place where every cliché and worn-out convention sticks out like rubble in the sand. Pawing through the debris, you'll find the trope that may just make or break your story. Each installment, we'll explore a different literary platitude, examining it for its various strengths and weaknesses. Set sail for Dystropia, where you might just learn something about your writing and yourself.
Read Column →Inaccuracies In Literary Nonfiction: A Necessary Evil?
January 8th, 2014
A few months back, Netflix released an original series called Orange Is The New Black. Maybe you’ve heard of it. My partner Lauren sat down to watch it first, binged through the whole first season in something like two days, and then routinely reminded me that I had to watch it, but no really, I needed to watch it.
Read Column →The Best Science Fiction & Fantasy of 2013: An Eclectic List
January 6th, 2014
It’s that time again, when standing in January we look back at the year that was. 2013 was a busy one for me, and I unfortunately didn’t get to read as much or as widely as I would have liked. So my list will be limited and varied, but still, I wanted to point to some of the most important science fiction and fantasy moments of the year. Here they are, in no particular order:
Read Column →Realistic New Year's Resolutions for Writers
January 3rd, 2014
The holidays are stressful for a lot of reasons. You're compelled to travel, hang out with tons of people (some of whom you don't want to see to begin with, some of whom you OD on while they're around), and gorge yourself on food, drink, and cheer. There's shopping, endless parties...it's an all-around orgy of excess that's quickly followed by an admonition that you make a conscious decision to reform mere days afterwards. I'm speaking, of course, of the dreaded New Year's resolution.
Read Column →5 Storytelling Lessons You Can Learn From the Films of 2013
January 3rd, 2014
This column was born out of a desire to inject a little film criticism into my work here at LitReactor. Spice things up a bit. After all, screenwriters and film directors are storytellers too, and we can learn just as much about narrative from watching movies as we can by reading books. So I pitched an article on the best screenwriting of 2013.
Read Column →Write Every Day in 2014: 14 Steps for Forming A Writing Habit
January 2nd, 2014
If you want to be a writer, the single most important thing you can do is write. And writing, oddly enough, isn't the hard part. The hard part is starting to write. The best way to keep yourself from getting stuck in the pre-starting phase is to write consistently enough that it never feels like you need to start up again.
Read Column →UPDATED WITH WINNER: LitReactor's Flash Fiction Smackdown: December (Holiday) Edition
January 1st, 2014
Flash fiction: A style of fictional literature marked by extreme brevity. Welcome to LitReactor's Flash Fiction Smackdown, a monthly bout of writing prowess. You get 31 words and 3 holiday song or movie titles. How It Works We give you inspiration in the form of a picture, poem, video, or similar. You write a flash fiction piece, using the inspiration we gave you. Put your entry in the comments section. One winner will be picked and awarded a prize.
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