Columns

LURID: Happy Birthday, Edgar Allan Poe!

January 18th, 2013

LURID: vivid in shocking detail; sensational, horrible in savagery or violence, or, a guide to the merits of the kind of Bad Books you never want your co-workers to know you're reading.

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Sequel Status: How Does 'The Twelve' Stack Up To 'The Passage'?

January 18th, 2013

The Twelve is Justin Cronin’s sequel to the generations-straddling vampire epic The Passage, the second in a trilogy that will be completed in 2014 with The City of Mirrors. And when I say vampire trilogy, I certainly understand your hesitation. “I’m a grown-up,” you might argue. “I read grown-up books.”

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Kickstarter Campaign vs. Kickstarter Reality

January 17th, 2013

Back in August of 2012, after the end of my first (and only) Kickstarter, I wrote about the experience and offered some advice on how to run a successful campaign. Now that more time has passed, and all the emails have been sent, the rewards have been mailed, the packages have been shipped, and the credit card has been thoroughly exercised, where do things stand? Did I make any money? Did I love it or hate it? And most importantly, would I do it again?

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7 Strategies to Outsmart Writer's Block

January 16th, 2013

Header by Rob Young A writer who has never experienced writer's block probably hasn't written very much. Overcoming writer's block isn't as simple as "just writing" or "willing through" the difficulty. However, by understanding writer's block, you can employ strategies that let you maneuver around the problem, effectively outsmarting this common adversary of writers around the world.

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How Not to Ask For a Book Review

January 16th, 2013

As some of you may know, I review speculative fiction for GeekDad over on Wired.com.  As an indie author, one of the things I try to do is review other self-published work. Since the eReader revolution, there has been a great deal of good fiction being self-published, but not many outlets for reviews. I decided that I wanted to try and fill the gap, at least for the speculative fiction that would fit with the audience on GeekDad. Recently, in order to find new fiction to review, I put out a call for pitches over at The Writers Café on Kindleboards.com.

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Five Characters From 'Arrow' That Would Make Better TV Than 'Arrow'

January 15th, 2013

By now you’ve no doubt seen or at least heard about Arrow, DC Comics’ latest hit or miss (pun intended) series. It’s a puzzling piece of television. While it certainly has some potential with its stellar supporting cast and an excellent eye for fight scenes, it continuously steps on its own feet. The drama gets undermined by bad dialogue, and the humor always falls flat, frequently delivered by irritating tertiary characters. Arrow can’t seem to decide what show it wants to be—is it a badass action drama, or a campy cartoon?

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The Blagger's Guide to Sylvia Plath

January 15th, 2013

Just the facts ma’am Sylvia Plath was born in Boston on October 27, 1932, and was raised in Winthrop, Massachussets, with her mother, Aurelia; German-American father Otto; and younger brother, Warren. Plath’s maternal grandparents lived a short distance from her family home and the young Sylvia spent much time in their house, built so close to the sea that she once remarked how after storms they would find the bodies of dead sharks washed up in the garden.

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Storyville: Writing Dialogue

January 14th, 2013

There are many components that go into a great story. You need to have a layered, vivid setting. You need to create a narrative hook that pulls your audience in and a story that keeps them interested. You need characters that are complex, flawed, and realistic. And you need dialogue that rings true.

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10 New Comics To Try In 2013

January 11th, 2013

Last year brought some brilliant new comics that I hope all of you read and will continue reading – gems like Saga, Hawkeye, Stumptown Volume 2, The Massive, Conan The Barbarian, and even intriguing new runs on books like Journey Into Mystery -- but if you’re curious what great ALL NEW comics to look out for in 2013, this is the list to get you started.

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Screenwriting: Insert Woman Here - Sidestepping the Sausage Fest

January 11th, 2013

Back in the day, the original Star Wars movies were a big hit at my primary school, except with the girls at recess.  As the boys galloped onto the playground eager to re-enact the destruction of the Death Star or the defeat of the Imperial forces on Endor, they had a plethora of roles to pick from, male characters of varying ages, colors and body types.

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