To Query or Not to Query
There are two words in the English language that never fail to give me a painful case of writers block: Query Letter. Just the thought of it has me wiping sweaty palms on my jeans. […]
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Playing the Short Game: How to Sell Your Short Fiction (Part 5)
Why You Never “Sell” a Story: Understanding rights and licensing (conclusion) Welcome back. This is the fifth in my weekly series of posts on how to market and sell short fiction. You can check out […]
A Kepler’s Dozen
NASA’s Kepler mission has been watching a swath of the Milky Way watching for the signs of stars being eclipsed by planets in orbit around them. This takes patience and favorable geometry, but Kepler has […]
E-Zines vs. Dead Tree Zines: the more things change…
I have been producing fanzines off and on since 1976, shortly after encountering science fiction fandom and this particular aspect of that hobby interest. As anybody who has ever pubbed (that is fanspeak for “published”) […]
Am I A Science Fiction Writer?
Now that’s an interesting question. We’ve just launched my first novel, Shh! It’s a Secret: a novel about Aliens, Hollywood, and the Bartender’s Guide, at Arisia. It got written up in both Publisher’s Weekly and the […]
A Novel Dilemma
How do you get published when the rules and the markets are constantly shifting? Book stores are closing, mega-publishers are adopting their smaller cousins as in-house imprints, and the internet has made the leap from […]
Fiction and the Happy Brain
STORY HORDER As a child, I was a story horder. I couldn’t get enough of them. I was very fortunate to have parents who read to me, and looking back, they were saints in this […]
Publishing Options – Many Choices Now Viable
Many fans of fantasy & science fiction have dreams of joining the ranks among their favorite authors someday. But as little as five years ago the publishing landscape was much different than it is today. […]
Playing the Short Game: How to Sell Your Short Fiction (Part 4)
Why You Never “Sell” a Story: Understanding rights and licensing Welcome back. This is the fourth in my weekly series of posts on how to market and sell short fiction. You can check out my […]
The Speed of Science
Science deals with a lot of high speed phenomena, like the speed of sound and the speed of light, which can make the topic seem fast and exciting. We also see science news on tv […]
Time Travel Defined: A device for repairing a poorly thought out plot. Usually.
Time travel is one of those devices that seems to turn up eventually in most long running Science Fiction shows, particularly in the later seasons when they’ve worked out their main story arc already. I’ve […]
Nothing New Under the Sun
How does an editor manage to still be moved by a story when she has to sift through ever-growing stacks of unsolicited manuscripts, looking for a nugget of something new? I mean, how many ways […]
Playing the Short Game: How to Sell Your Short Fiction (Part 3)
Why Short Fiction?: The benefits of the short game to a writing career Welcome back. This is the third in my weekly series of posts on how to market and sell short fiction. This week, […]
Scientists and Stereotypes
Older male (check), glasses (check), white lab coat (check). A scientist! Even without the funny hat or breaker full of red liquid, everyone recognizes the stereotype. Stereotypes can be based on a nugget of truth […]
Five Signs You Should Self Publish
With all the changes going on in publishing these days, new writers are often left wondering if they should just publish their work themselves. While there is no one-size-fits-all answer, the following five situations will help […]
It’s Getting Crowded In Here
Who decides what makes a good book? How does an editor know what readers will want? A writer’s friends and family might thrill at every new story but it still has to impress an agent, […]
Playing the Short Game: How to Sell Your Short Fiction (Part 2)
Why Are You Writing?: Deciding on the writing career that you want Welcome back. This is the second in my weekly series of posts on how to market and sell short fiction. In my initial […]
Satan’s Imagination Stations
I was 8 years old, and I had gotten my greedy little hands on a copy of The Hobbit. I read it by nightlight early in the morning before my family awoke. The Lord of […]
Inspiration and Writing, or: OMG It’s Full of Light Bulbs!
Where does fresh-squeezed idea juice come from? Read on, and see what helps produce it.
Playing the Short Game: How to Sell Your Short Fiction (Part 1)
Introduction: Who I am and what this series will cover Hi and welcome. This is the first in a weekly series of posts I’ll be doing on how to market and sell short fiction. In […]
About Author
Doug is an award-winning Canadian writer whose fiction has appeared in twenty-five languages and thirty countries. His works include The Wolf at the End of the World, Chimerascope, and Impossibilia.
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