Language in Fantasy and Science Fiction

One of the things that really pulls me into a story and transports me to a fantastical or future setting is the language, specifically the invented slang and terminology for various things. For example in Star Trek we have "phasers," "beaming," "transporters," "replicators," "tricorders," "hyposprays," "Jefferies tubes," "Turbolifts," and on and on. Firefly didn't have …

I’ve Lost That Christmas Spirit

Or maybe I found it. Most folks probably know I've been out of work for the majority of this year, and that hasn't changed. I had some promising interviews with Large Company that will not be named, but has so far come to nothing, so I'm still looking. Not sure if they're ghosting me, or …

A Year of Loss

As years are wont to do, this one is at last beginning to wind down. This has not been one of my best. It started January 4, with the sudden death of my younger sister. I've been very sad to discover I have no recent pics of her, and none of us together. It had …

Read a Preview of Revenants Abroad

Direct link to preview of Revenants Abroad

Side

Kicked aside. Left by the side of the road. Sidelined. Side against. Not as shiny as that thing over there. Out of sight. Off to the side. Something on the side. Side dish. Sidetrack. Brushed aside. A side note. That's my life.

New Year, New Focus

So the new year is approaching and while I don’t make New Year’s resolutions anymore, the timing coincides with a resolve to stop wasting time and get more writing done and submissions sent out, as well as work on the sequel to Revenants Abroad, and finish the romance I started and have been posting at …

When Door Knobs Attack

My house is old.  It was built in 1957, and has had precious little updating since. With an old house you expect things to go out and need repairs/replacement. It's had lots of plumbing issues over the years (although the worst turned out not to be anything specifically to do with the pipes in the …

Belonging

I'm still trying to settle in to my new job. I started in late October, and it really took awhile to even begin to feel like I was "one of them." I'm still paranoid about everything I do. There have been some shakeups in the upper echelons already just since I've been there (one right …

Time

  Time is not my friend. Every day that passes makes me that much more frustrated that I spend my life using all my energy and time in the pursuit of other people’s dreams. Time I can’t get back. I can only spend it once. Like that Daffy Duck cartoon where he keeps trying to …

Author Interview – Paul Magnan

Today I am delighted to present an interview with a writer acquaintance, Paul Magnan. His debut novel,  Kyu, The Unknown: The Coming of Dis (Book 1) is the first in an urban fantasy series set in an alternate world.   The Territories have been unified for a thousand years, brought together under the sword of Harra …