The Dying Earth by Jack Vance

Do you remember those creepy-weird montages from those old 60s and 70s era Disney movies?  The ones like Dumbo, or The Three Caballeros–or heck, the entire thing of Fantasia–where all these weird kaleidoscopic shapes and psychedelic colors just move in and out of each other in twisted, convulsing ways?  Well, guess what?  Jack Vance’s The… Continue reading The Dying Earth by Jack Vance

F is for Faster Than Light

Remember that moment in Star Wars when the Millennium Falcon went into hyperspace?  When Harrison Ford shouted “go strap yourselves in, I’m going to make the jump to light speed,” and the sky lit up as the stars streaked by?  That was my first introduction to faster-than-light (FTL) travel, and I haven’t looked back since.… Continue reading F is for Faster Than Light

Trope Tuesday: Supernatural Aid

Getting back to our discussion of the Hero’s Journey, I think it’s important to briefly touch on one of the earlier stages: supernatural aid.  At some point between refusal of the call and crossing the threshold of adventure, the hero typically encounters a mentor figure from the unfamiliar world who gives him something supernatural or… Continue reading Trope Tuesday: Supernatural Aid

Bringing Stella Home is now up on Amazon!

That’s right–after a whole lot of work, my novel is now up on Amazon for $3.95.  Check it out! This novel is the first of a much larger series that I have planned.  It’s not a series like Ender’s Game or Song of Ice and Fire, though; all of the novels are supposed to stand… Continue reading Bringing Stella Home is now up on Amazon!

The King Beyond the Gate by David Gemmell

Tenaka Khan was a child of two nations and an outsider to both.  Half Nadir, half Drenai, the only home he ever knew was in the ranks of the Dragon, the elite fighting forces of the Drenai.  But now, a mad dictator rules the land, and the Dragon has been destroyed. With all his friends… Continue reading The King Beyond the Gate by David Gemmell

Sabriel by Garth Nix

Sabriel doesn’t know it, but her father is more than just a powerful necromancer; he is a key in the political intrigue of the Old Kingdom–the land beyond the wall. When he interrupts her class at Wyverly college by sending a hand–an enslaved spirit–from beyond the fourth gate of Death to drop off his sword… Continue reading Sabriel by Garth Nix