Friday, August 15, 2008
Cool Sand Castles
It’s amazing what people are doing with sand castles these days.
Of course, nothing beats the real thing.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
The Secrets of Storytelling
Scientific American has an interesting article about how our love of stories reveals things about the human mind and how it works.
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Abandoned Theaters
If I was a billionaire, I would buy some of these and totally renovate them.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Prologue
[NOTE: I wrote this opening to a novel that I never finished. It was something I whipped out one say for fun years ago. I think this is from the early 90s. Here you go.]
They were coming up the stairs, and Androval knew the time was nigh. He quickly stepped into the pentagram and drew the blade. A bluish glow flickered along it’s silver inlay, each rune in the knife’s metal lighting up in anticipation of what was to come.
All he had to do now was say the word and do the deed.
“Ungram!”
The blade flashed red, then sparkles of slivery light began to appear along the edge.
A loud booming sound told him they were trying to break in the door. It was solid oak and reinforced by a thousand spells. But he had no doubt they’d be standing before him in a short span of time.
He put the blade, point first, over his heart, and with one quick thrust, killed himself.
The door exploded inward in a spray of metal and wood. But Androval was already gone. His blood pooled around his corpse.
Vrtex was the first to enter the room. His eyes were like coals in the furnaces of hell. They looked upon Androval’s body and rage burned in them mightily.
The others came in after him. D’Xrr, his sister. A beauty no one could have. Her eyes like bright crystals. And Abxac, his cousin…a void of darkness shaped like a man, wreathed in red lightning. Both of them snarled when they saw the mage’s dead form.
“Quick! His soul may still be in the room! Search for it!” D’Xrr howled.
The room was large and somewhat classical for a mage’s workplace. The walls were covered with runes of power, the floor painted with all manner of symbols. There were shelves and shelves of books, potions, magical artifacts, and components.
Before they could do anything a small form shot out of a wood case on the shelves, sending glass shards flying. Like a rocket it blasted through a nearby window and went into a storm laden sky, disappearing in an instant. The only thing they were able to see was a flash of metal. It wasn’t a soul. It was some strange device.
Vrtex glared at the dead mage and the body burst into flames. It quickly turned to ashes.
“You can’t escape us, wizard. Nor can the world its fate.”
The three gods reached into other space with their minds and moved elsewhere. Androval’s tower exploded in flames, then crumbled into dust. For ten thousand years hence, no grass would grow where it once stood.
The end of all things had begun.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Free Writing Classes from 10 Colleges
There’s plenty of good courses here and they’re all free. Even though I’ve been writing professionally for 20 years, I still check out books on writing and read courses in case there’s something new to be learned. You can never know everything.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Awesome Book Designs
Most of these have a pop art feel, but they show you what you can do with simple, good graphical design. There’s a lot of covers in here I really like. Beautiful stuff.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Writing Drama
If you’re waiting for my book on writing to come out, you can pick up an excellent one in the meantime called Writing Drama by Yves Lavandier.
The publisher was kind enough to send me a copy and I found it to be an excellent and very thorough book. Very easy to read and clear.
The focus of the book is on plays and films, but it could also be applied to novels and comics. There are excellent references in the book and very fine glossary of terms.
The book is mostly available in Europe but it can be ordered online from the publisher here.
Friday, August 31, 2007
SF Writers Commit Suicide
This is one of the stupidest things I have read all day. I guess sci-fi writers like being in a literary ghetto because this is a great way to stay there.
Viacom isn’t the only organization involved in sending out “bass-ackwards” DMCA takedown notices; the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (abbreviated, for complicated reasons, as the SFWA) is in on the fun as well. The group has issued DMCA takedown notices for sci-fi reading lists drawn up to aid teen literacy, freely-distributed webzines, and Creative Commons-licensed material.
The debacle began a few weeks back when the SFWA contacted Scribd, a site that allows users to post documents in the same way that YouTube allows people to post videos. SFWA alleged that numerous works on Scribd violated copyrights of SFWA members and requested that these works be taken down. They were. But it quickly became apparent that the USS 1701-SFWA had a crack in its dilithium crystals.
Stories began to emerge from the blogosphere, and not the sort of Stranger in a Strange Land stuff that the SFWA exists to promote. Nick Senger, an eighth-grade teacher and promoter of teen literacy, found his sci-fi bibliography targeted in the crackdown. “I’m not sure what the SFWA has to gain by requesting that the list be removed,” he notes. “That list does nothing but encourage people to buy their books.”
Sunday, July 29, 2007
The Teachings of Diogenes
Diogenes was one of the greatest Greek Philosophers. He was also the first cynic. HE was both funny and a contrarian. I consider him one of my inspirations.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Evolution of English Letters
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