Latest NewS
Dagger of Adendigaeth on Audible (and Maybe Something About Kingdom Blades)
Today the audiobook edition of The Dagger of Adendigaeth releases on Audible. Yay! Grateful thanks to Podium Publishing and the talented Nick Podehl for bringing my award-winning fantasy series to audio life. (I have to say that for SEO purposes - not just trying to...
Cephrael’s Hand is now on Audible!
I'm thrilled to report to all of you audiobook lovers that today Cephrael's Hand releases on Audible! I know this is a long-awaited moment for many of you, and you have my sincerest gratitude for being so patient. The book is narrated by the talented Nick Podehl, who...
Where is Book Four????
Since I’m being asked this question many times a day in tones varying from polite interest to downright exasperation, I’m getting the idea that people might appreciate knowing where Kingdom Blades stands in the lengthy process that begins with my transcribing the...
In Gratitude – Two Chapters from Kingdom Blades
I'm not sure what inspired me this year (maybe your calls through the ether have reached me subliminally), but it occurred to me that one way I could express my gratitude to you, my readers, is by posting a couple of chapters from Kingdom Blades, the upcoming fourth...
The Treatment of Sexuality in A Pattern of Shadow & Light
Some of you have written in asking me about the presentation and treatment of homosexuality in my novels. You pointed out that the majority of incidents involving homosexual characters portray those characters as being evil. You indicated to me that in presenting...
How to Stay Inspired (and an Update on Kingdom Blades)
Inspiration is one of those elusive words, like “muse” and “success.” It evades us, confounds and confuses us, bewitches when it visits and devastates upon its departure. It’s that girl glimpsed across the subway terminal, or that place in a dream that you just can’t...
Artistic Integrity and The Pressure to Be Other Than We Are
Most people think of the word integrity as ‘adherence to moral and ethical principles,’ but there is another definition equally important to understanding the word: ‘the state of being whole, entire or undiminished.’ The two meanings of integrity are integral to each...
Destiny and Fate in Fantasy (and Life)
Destiny versus choice, fate versus free will—these are core concepts in fantasy. Whether addressed indirectly (“You were born to save the world”) or as a subject of the character’s growth (“Accept this role and take up your sword”), the concepts often form the woof...
Grounding Fantasy in Reality and Tackling Controversial Topics
A reader wrote in to me recently and mentioned that while she didn't have the same visceral reaction to a particular scene (no spoilers) as many other readers had, she didn't like that one of the characters had to use sex as part of the resolution of the conflict in...
The Strands of Elae and Their Associated Adepts
Many of you have been asking about the magical strands of elae and their associated Adepts. This is a pared down version of the chart that appears in Paths of Alir (that chart contains information that would be spoilers for the earlier books). I plan to soon include...
Author Q&A and a Plea to Aspiring Writers
To my readers: please know how much I appreciate your emails, mentions and comments! Recently, many of you have written to me asking similar questions. I thought it would be best to answer all of you here on my blog in order to give your questions adequate address....
How Much Should Authors Interact with Readers?
This new age of social media makes it easier than ever for readers and writers to interact. Whether via reviews posted online, comments on a blog, forum discussions, Facebook or twitter, authors now have the opportunity to engage with their readers via multiple direct...
Immortality and Gods in Fantasy
It’s interesting to me how many novels, plays, poems (and even, dare I say, religions) deal with immortality without really dealing with immortality, i.e. immortality is automatically assumed, more understood than explored. In our concept, gods are immortal. In fact,...
Writing Kingdom Blades (PSOL Book 4)
Many of you have been asking when book four in A Pattern of Shadow & Light will be released. All I can tell you right now is that I’ll have Kingdom Blades to you at some point in 2016 (the Muse willing). For comparison, each book in this series runs around 300,000...
3 Reasons Every Indie Author Should Be Advertising on Facebook
As an independently published author, I’ve noticed a lot of advice floating around about building my author platform, establishing my brand and the importance of having a social media presence. What I haven’t seen people blogging heavily about is the value of Facebook...
Ultimate Epic Fantasy Writer’s Playlist
"Two boys arrived yesterday with a pebble they said was the head of a dog until I pointed out that it was really a typewriter." ~Pablo Picasso Inspiration comes in many forms. There are as many sources of inspiration as there are artists to be inspired. A simple turn...
3 Things Every Indie Author Needs to Know Before Starting Out
Paths of Alir, the third book in my award-winning epic fantasy series, released in stores on Saturday (Yay!!). Along the runway to this book release, I started my own publishing company and created the imprint Five Strands Publishing. Since starting on the indie...
4 Steps to Writing Organically, Part II – Viewpoints, Mimicry and Imagination
Think of writing like sailing a massive ship. There are an enormous number of mechanical actions that synergistically combine to keep the ship plowing forward through the waves. It behooves you, as the captain of the vessel, to have an understanding of all of those...
Pantser or Plotter: 4 Steps to Writing Organically (and the Science Behind Why You Should) – Part 1
After my last blog post on the four things you must know before starting a novel, in which I suggested not inventing a character, kingdom or creature until the story calls for it, a number of readers wrote in to ask, should nothing be planned? My answer is absolutely...
How to Avoid Cliches (or The 4 Things You MUST Know Before Starting A Novel)
A reader recently wrote to me and asked, how do you write a novel when every time you start (oh, so many times!) you get a few chapters in and suddenly become deluged with doubts? And how, when you’re so well-read in the genre that you’ve read it all and seen it all a...
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