Columns

Ten Books to Celebrate Asian Pacific Heritage Month

May 10th, 2019

Heritage months! So much to learn in such a short time. May is Asian Pacific Heritage Month and, my goodness, there's a lot in there. Starting in 1978, Asian Pacific Heritage Week was designated by law as the first 10 days in May and was officially made into the month of May in 1992.

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Writers In Movies: What Do They Get Right?

May 9th, 2019

Ever tried to watch an action movie with a gun nut? It’s impossible. It’s non-stop “11 shots from what’s CLEARLY a revolver? Please.” Listen, buddy. We’re about to see Stallone kick Wesley Snipes’ flash-frozen head clean off his body, and then it bounces and shatters on the ground, shards of frozen gore everywhere. I’m fine with the reality breaking a little bit.

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The Seemingly Inevitable Relationship Between Writing And Imposter Syndrome

May 7th, 2019

photo: "Luke Alike" by JD Hancock / Flickr / CC BY 2.0 Every writer knows about imposter syndrome: those moments when you feel like a total fraud and a joke to your friends and family, a sad sack with unrealistic dreams, who isn’t doing anything a million other people aren’t doing, and, compared to other writers better than you, you’re failing at

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Writing Comics vs. Writing Novels

May 6th, 2019

Comic books are not graphic novels. The term “graphic novel” was popularized in the 80s to make collections and other long form comics more palatable to outside readers (i.e.: anyone who doesn’t frequent a comic shop) who might otherwise never pick up a copy of Watchmen. But comic books do not tell stories in the same way a prose novel does. Comic books are comic books.

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20 Comics To Cure Your 'Avengers: Endgame' Hangover

May 3rd, 2019

You saw the movie. It’s over. It’s all over. Doesn’t it feel a little like the day after Halloween? All this build-up and excitement, then it’s just...over? The awesome Demolition Man costume you made is trash. That great party left you with nothing but cleaning tasks, sweeping, bathroom duty, rinsing out the skull/spine beer bong. That feeling, that “it’s all over” thing, it’s a form of hangover. How do you cure a hangover? How do you drag your sorry carcass through this, the toughest hours?

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5 Key Things to Know About Harry Potter Day

May 2nd, 2019

‘... evacuation will be overseen by Mr Filch and Madam Pomfrey. Prefects, when I give the word, you will organise your house and take your charges, in an orderly fashion, to the evacuation point.’

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Not There Yet: Diversity in Big Five Publishing

May 1st, 2019

Nothing brings racists out on Twitter quite like asking for more diversity in publishing. Last week I tweeted: So the authors making ridiculous money according to Forbes are James Patterson, J.K. Rowling, Stephen King, John Grisham, Jeff Kinney, Dan Brown, Michael Wolff, Danielle Steel, & Nora Roberts...but we need to shut up about diversity & identity politics ruined your career, right?

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7 Supernatural Urban Legends from Japan

April 30th, 2019

There are a multitude of urban legends and folktales from Japan. So many, that today I’m focussing exclusively on supernatural urban legends, and even then, this is by no means an exhaustive list. Want more? Let me know in the comments or over on Twitter and I’ll make it happen.

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Storyville: What is Head-Hopping and Why Should You Avoid It?

April 29th, 2019

When I was first getting started as a writer, some eleven years ago, I can remember some editing and criticism from my peers in workshop, and professors in my MFA. It had to do with head-hopping, and it’s something you should actively avoid when writing your fiction. Head-hopping is when you fluctuate between more than one person or POV in a scene. It can be extremely disorienting for the reader, pulling them out of the narrative. Let’s dig deeper, and I’ll explain what I mean.

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Writing on the Spectrum

April 26th, 2019

Photo by Magda Ehlers As a child of the eighties, my understanding of the autism spectrum came entirely from pop culture and the media: Rain Man, Bill Gates, the odd news piece. Autistic people were almost always men, usually children, hopelessly separated from society by their condition and barely able to function without assistance. Usually with a set of savant-like skills, sure—counting cards in Vegas or graced with superhuman technical abilities—but they weren’t normal.

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