Other than fame, what do Rowling and Meyer share?

So I'm on the CSUS English E-mail list. I received an e-mail from the list service concerning a high school boy who was writing a paper on Twilight. I think I over responded to the question: "Who spread the word?" (about Twilight, that is). I made the case that it needed nothing. And as I built my argument, citing the history of the industry, I found out...well, that was market analysis. And now, creepy as it is I can see why Twilight was a hit. Just by looking at the trend. Wanna know why? Fantasy has always had vampires. We share them with our Horror brethren, and get the creeps from them. Then in the early years of this century Paranormal Romance boomed. And it didn't boom small. It took over the romance genre so rapidly that Harlequin released an imprint, Luna that shook...

Read more »

Posted in: genre fiction,market analysis,Twilight

Moving Foreward

In my interest to grow as a writer and a person, I found the idea presented by Anastasia V. Pergakis on her blog "Labotomy of a Writer," fascinating. I fully intended to create my own collage out of old magazines... However, when I pulled out my poster paper and searched the house...well, I recycle many old fashion mags. The magazines that still hang out on bookshelves are old Realms of Fantasy, MZBFM, Asimov's, etc. Nothing I want to cut up. So I took up my colored pencils and paper and created a rough poster: From 2010-09-16 The main goals are the large images. Directly in the center is a desk, one side represents "work" and the other "writing." The left hand corner features a picture odf a kitchen :P The goal represented here is...

Read more »

Posted in: creative writing,goals

This is me jumping on the band wagon. Below is a tidbit from Arrelle...shelved 6 years ago after 5 years of writing/revising/rewriting. Be warned, I shall blast my own writing to shreds after the excerpt! :P (To know: Arrelle is in hides, kicked out of her homeland. She and Evridon are in a prison cell. Velrehn is Evridon's home, its people enemies to Arrelle's.) Evridon, though-- "Eh...uh...Arrelle." Someone was shaking her, Someone quite strong since she felt as weak as a leaf...and that was not a sense she liked. She opened her eyes. Velrehni! Her hand, of instinct reached for her side: nothing. Her back: nothing. Her--an animasl smell returned her to the present. "Blahk." The Velrehni made a face. "Those really smell." "I don't trust you." "Fine. Good. That means...

Read more »

Link to Steven Sylva-aRT's Blog Entry

I'm sure there's any easier way to link this, but I wasn't sure how to do it myself.  So I decided to post a link to my blog post for the week here.  http://faroutfantastic.blogspot.com/2010/09/movie-review-of-avatar-special-edition.h...

Read more »

Lyra!

Humbled by Mel's bravery in posting her first stumbling efforts into the world of fantastic fiction, I have decided to post my own part in it. Sadly, I cannot even claim that this was my first attempt at writing. I was actually working on a novel at the time (the first in a proposed quintet, after which would come a second quintet. I was a very ambitious twelve year old. Obviously something has changed.) Like Mel, I have preserved every painful word. In this installment you will witness info-dumps and a rather poignant example of why I no longer even attempt to write fight scenes. Somewhere along the line I lost the first page of this story so it begins in the middle of a sentence. Essentially, Lyra, our protagonist, is handing out orders to the gang of thieves she runs. “... usual posts....

Read more »

Morgana Continues!

The next three chapters of Morgana follow.  First, though, I'd like to make note of the fact that I started a new short story last week, alleviating my fears that revisiting this catastrophe would permanently stunt my writing.  Anyway, onward: Chapter Three     The ball was nearing its end; only one event was left: star reading.  The reading of the stars was the most exciting part of every centaur gathering, but tonight, there was only one message.     “Morgana Stargazer, the soon-to-be warrior will be sent on a quest with a dragon and a fairy.  She shall be a heroine for all eternity.”     All eyes turned to Morgana; she couldn’t be a warrior.  Only men could be warriors!  Morgana felt her world crash down on her...

Read more »

It's My Birthday and I'll Cry if I Want To

So today I turn 27. I feel 30 around the corner. If an age can stare at you and accuse you of all your shortcomings...30 is doing that to me right now. I can't get that Simpson's kid's voice out of my head "Ha-ha!" and the feeling of his accusing finger. I woke up depressed. I've learned a ton this year, but I feel like I'm in the same position I was last year. I know I'm not. But when I mark my list of goals I have so many "In Progress" and so few "Achieved." How would I explain myself to the person I was ten years ago? Ten years ago, I felt that I had a lot to prove. Not to my parents. Not to my teachers, and not really my peers, but to myself. I externalized it as "society" as if I could somehow collect that whole abstract notion and bundle it in a bag. Then give it the...

Read more »