Review of ‘Choose Your Truth’ by Jo Miles

‘Choose Your Truth’ by Jo Miles is a very dystopian look at ‘market share’ of the viewing public. The story begins with a look inside one of these companies and a meeting on how to decide to regain their lost market share to rival companies and how they are influencing the public with lurid bits of information that may or may not be factual.

The pacing is steady with an undercurrent of insecurity because no one’s job is truly safe unless the market share increases. There is a small group that opposes the large conglomerates of media distribution, but they … [READ MORE]

Review of ‘Snail’s Pace’ by Susan McDonough-Wachtman

‘Snail’s Pace’ by Susan McDonough-Wachtman has two interesting adages which define it. The first being ‘Be careful what you wish for because it could come true’ and ‘In any situation, endeavor to keep an open mind’. The first comes true very quickly, and the latter is a constant struggle for the protagonist Susannah Maureen Chambers McKay, as she learns that her new employers are aliens. Not foreigners with a different language but ALIENS, from another world. The governer is intent on having her teach diplomacy to his son and this is where keeping an open mind continues to be a … [READ MORE]

Review – The True Son by Vanessa McLaren-Wray

‘The True Son’ by Vanessa McLaren-Wray is definitely a teaser, a short story that directly points to her novel ‘Shadows of Insurrection’. It is also a good short standalone story that sets the stage for your imagination to wonder at the world of Jeska and what else might go on beyond the small glimpse of the life of a purchased ‘son of the king’. The main character is a son purchased from a father who struggled after his wife died to care for his son. In order to provide a better chance in life, he sold the child to the … [READ MORE]

Review of ‘A Classic Beginner’s Mistake’ by Philip Brewer

‘A Classic Beginner’s Mistake’ is an interesting title in the sense it’s about a situation that is minor to the story but does encompass the entirety of the story. The main character is a fencer, currently closer to a beginner than a master swordsman. Asking a question prompted by his instructor Odessa Rae Clover, to swordmaster Vergil whom he was reporting to in order to correct a problem, Trevo was told by Vergil that if he wanted the answer he would have to fight for it.

The story is well crafted and detailed enough to help the reader through the … [READ MORE]

Review of Dangerous Inspiration by Greg Stone

Dangerous Inspiration is very much a nuanced statement for the title and the novel itself. it describes the situation all the artists that are accepted at the art colony ‘Interlude’ only to be trapped by a Nor’easter storm that traps them in the colony where an exotic series of murders occur. Interestingly, every member of the colony has a situation where violence and/or death occurred in their past life that they may or may not have deliberately taken part in.

The protagonist, Ronan Mezini, also has his own brush with death, being the detective that solved a notorious serial killer … [READ MORE]

Dragon Zombies of the Kuiper Belt

You have @BraveLittleTeapot to blame for this. She had started talking about wanting to do an anthology, and in my own snarky way, suggested I might think about joining such an endeavor. Well, all the chat on Discord convinced me that it might be fun to see what happens.

The biggest hurdle at the beginning of everything is actually beginning. Therefor, I have begun with this forward so that you can properly praise or otherwise inform the person(s) responsible. I include you @Ryan Southwick and you @Steven Radecki for assisting @BraveLittleTeapot in making me get off my lazy rear and … [READ MORE]

Review of ‘One Man’s Trash’ – by Ryan Southwick

One Man’s Trash starts oddly slow. There is a lot of descriptive action going on at the beginning but it’s more like watching the action happen rather than experiencing it with the characters.

This changes once the main characters get onto the station – The Truck Stop at the Center of the Galaxy. Ryan Southwick does a marvelous job of delicately fleshing out the main characters with thoughtful and engrossing looks at their motivations, the situation they’re in, and whom they meet and interact with on the station. (Spoiler note: ‘Eckle’ is an interesting character.) Their adventure changes direction midway … [READ MORE]

The cutting room floor

Sometimes despite a lot of writing, some parts of a story have to be cut out.  Either they mess with the flow, or are too jarring, or too repetitive, or just somehow off compared to the rest of the story.  With ‘Brandished Destiny’ I had to through out my first beginning as it was rushed, extremely dark, and not what felt right for the novel.  I’m including it here.  A side note – I keep everything as I’ve found that what doesn’t work in one story can be a godsend to another one.  So I keep the pieces and every … [READ MORE]

What a day can bring you

Writing is about imagination, clarity, precision,  and communication.  Depending on the subject and the nature of the writing,  one or more of those will be the major focus and the others will back it up.  Writing is also about well, writing – doing the actual job of putting words on paper and doing the work of writing rather than the preparation.  It’s all in your hands whatever the subject of the dissertation is – fantasy, Ph D paper, technical paper, news, poetry, music.  It comes down to writing in a manner that creates the proper details for the subject.

Since … [READ MORE]