The Einstein Prophecy by Robert Masello. 338 pages. 47North. It’s always fun to mix a little history, a little military, in with your science fiction and/or horror. In this case, the story is of an art history professor who serves during World War II in Europe and is assigned with another soldier to recover precious … More Review: “The Einstein Prophecy” by Robert Masello
I got a notice yesterday from WordPress that I have had this blog now for seven years. Wow. Time sure flies when you are having fun. So I guess this calls for a little explanation as to how it all started. Back in 2009, I was a traditionally published author who also happened to be … More It’s Not the Years, It’s the Miles
One of the websites I’ve gotten quite fond of is quora.com. It’s simply a forum where people can ask questions or go and answer other people’s questions. I get asked a lot of questions about writing there, and get to ask professionals questions that help me in the writing of my books. Yesterday someone asked … More Beyond the Big Picture
Belisarius II: Storm at Noontide by Eric Flint and David Drake. 859 pages. Baen Books. My daughter Melissa, the English major purist that she is, rolls her eyes when I talk about alternate history stories, as if they were worse that pornography. And I guess it is sort of an eye candy to me, especially … More Review: “Belisarius II: Storm at Noontide” by Eric Flint and David Drake
I’ve been asked what the hardest part of writing a novel is, and my answer tends to be directly related to how well my novel-building is going at the time. My dad used to have a saying: “Some days you eat the bear, and some days the bear eats you.” Some books come together quickly … More Brick By Brick
I was just out mowing my lawn in the early morning hours, trying to beat the Texas heat, when I heard Billy Joel sing his song, “Piano Man.” If you listen to the words, most of it is about people who wish they were doing something other than what they were doing. Henry David Thoreau … More If Not You, Then Who? If Not Now, Then When?
I was watching The Late Show with Stephen Colbert the other night when the actor Paul Dano was being interviewed. Stephen Colbert talked about how “intimate” his acting roles tend to be, and it got me thinking about writing (of course). Intimacy. Privacy. Vulnerability. It’s what we all resist sharing, and yet it’s what we … More The Yin and Yang of Storytelling
Starship Eternal (War Eternal Book 1) by M. R. Forbes. Quirky Algorithms. 433 pages. I’m a member of Amazon Prime (which I recommend), and one of the benefits is that once a month I get a free ebook to read on my Kindle. Pretty cool. Of course, you have to choose from their list, but … More Review: “Starship Eternal” by M.R. Forbes
Here’s a sneak peek at the writing project I am working on this summer. Some of you may recognize some of the names already. Prologue: Land of the Free July, 1892 Off the Coast of New York Fritz Lowenstein let the cool morning ocean breeze hit his face as he leaned against the ship’s … More “Land of the Free”
The City of Mirrors: A Novel (Book Three of The Passage Trilogy) by Justin Cronin. Ballantine Books. 624 pages. Back when I was a kid, there was a well-known, very successful author named James Michener. He was known for novels centered around specific geographic locations, with perhaps his most famous being his book, Hawaii. He was also … More Review: “City of Mirrors” by Justin Cronin
