Last fall (or was it last summer?), Codex Writers Group held a captive collaboration contest. I was thrilled to learn I was paired with Ruth Nestvold, a writer who has collaborated with several writers, including Jay Lake. We completed about 4500 words before we both got pulled off the project… Continue reading
For all I complain about the heat, it sure beats a foot of snow on the ground. I got my first sunburn of the year this afternoon during my continuing battle against rogue bermuda grass. This stuff is nasty. It grows where you don’t want it and doesn’t grow where… Continue reading
Mary Robinette Kowal was a classmate of mine at the 2005 Orson Scott Card Literary Boot Camp. She’s had a pretty charmed literary life since then, I think the first of our class to qualify for full SFWA membership (though Brad Beaulieu might have been there first). She is definitely… Continue reading
Curiosity got the better of me, so I went and took the trouble to plot stories against first submission date. I haven’t been recording the actual date written, so this is the closest thing I have. Several of the pre-bootcamp stories sat on my hard drive for several months before… Continue reading
Referring to the chart in the previous post, you might notice some flat spots around 2000, 4000, etc. I don’t think this is any kind of rhythm as we discussed on Codex. I believe those flat spots are an artifact of word count restrictions from markets. For example, if I… Continue reading
In Codex writers group, we are having a discussion on rhythm, in other words, looking for a typical word count on short fiction. I didn’t really remember noticing any trends, so I opened up my spreadsheet and made a plot. Seems I don’t have any preferred length, other than novelettes… Continue reading
I’m not quite sure what to make of this review of my story “Cats” that appeared in the February issue of The Written Word. Rick Novy’s very short tale of feline plans for insurrection and world domination exhibits the complexity of flash fiction. I had to read “Cats†three times… Continue reading
One of the benefits of getting older is that you have plenty of interests that wax and wane, only to emerge again after many years. That’s rediscovery. I often experience rediscovery with music. Back in the mid 1980s, I had a college roommate who was into New Age jazz. In… Continue reading
The Arizona elementary and junior high all-state band festival finished up a couple of hours ago. My daughter, Audrey, qualified for the second year in a row. Once again, they held it in Gilbert at Higley High School. It has to be a good 40 miles from the house. Last… Continue reading
Today, Brett Favre finally announced his retirement. This time, I think it’s real. He has nothing left to prove. 13-3 at his age is a great accomplishment. Say what you want about his play against New York in the NFC championship game, New York had the Green Bay screen pass… Continue reading
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