Archive for the 'About Writing' Category
Cory Doctorow reads, a juggler talks, and I sign
I’m a fan and supporter of the Clarion West writer’s workshop, and have been attending the reading series when I can. I made it to Cory Doctorow’s reading, and he was, of course, fabulous and interesting. He read part of a story that will be coming out as free fiction and as a podcast on [...]
Science, Social Questions, and Science Fiction
I’m starting a series of blog posts related to THE SILVER SHIP AND THE SEA, which comes out in paperback July 1st, and FREMONT’S CHILDREN which has it’s hardcover release July 22nd.
Sometimes science fiction is just a good story. And all of the best science fiction is a good story, even if it’s also more. [...]
William Gibson Interview
I’ve never understood why most lectures aren’t better attended. There were a hundred or so of us at the U last night listening to Nancy Pearl interview William Gibson, but in a city the size of Seattle, every seat should have been taken. The best news, is many that were taken were taken by my [...]
Reading Recommendation: Good Daily Newspapers
The futurist and the writer in me adore the morning paper. Why?
It’s an industry that matters - read it online or get ink on your fingers. But we need a free press, and while the blogosphere is a grand part of that, we need press that has some funding and staff as well. Think of [...]
Opening Chapters
A few years ago, after BUILDING HARLEQUIN’S MOON but before I finished THE SILVER SHIP AND THE SEA, a fellow writer who was one of my first readers (Darragh Metzger) commented regularly on chapter openings. She took me to task everytime I opened with anything except specific sensory details. Well, for my writer’s reading group, we’re [...]
A Sense of Place
I’m finishing up THE DOWNBELOW GIRLS this weekend so I can finally get it in the mail. A last step was getting a sense of place into the book. I set it in Seattle, which I live a five minute bridge ride away from in off-peak traffic. It’s seventeen years away (set in 2025), but [...]
Watching Recommendation: Orwell Rolls in his Grave
I watched Orwell Rolls in his Grave, a documentary made in 2004 about the media. What curious science fiction writer could ignore that title, right? The pointer I got to it was from Mark Anderson, of Strategic News Service, who is one of the brighter thoughtful futurists I know. It turns out that’s is a movie [...]
Writer’s Read Posted What I’m Reading!
Pretty cool. You can see the entry here.
I’m listening to Cabaret over and over, now on the Joel Grey and Liza Minelli version. Boy, when I get obsessed, I get obsessed. Jeez. I’ve even been listening to it on my walks and runs. In this case its the story - Cabaret has so much in such a [...]
Place and Time in Story
I saw Cabaret at the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle last week. Although I have seen the movie, this was the first time I’d seen the play staged. It was fabulous. I also gave some thought as to why it has been such an enduring story. Many works about the same time period have stayed [...]
Writing on the Lake, with the Lake, and Many Others
There are many different kinds of writing workshops. I’ve been tasked to write all night - given a 10,000 word story assignment and told to finish it in 24 hours (yes, its possible). I’ve been on Kelley’s Island in Ohio with some fabulous east-coast and mid-country writers. critiquing novels. It’s good for my soul to [...]
