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Practical Magic

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Today’s topic comes from QSFer R.l. Merrill: “Part of the reason I’ve only written one paranormal is because I don’t think I’d have anything original to say on the topic of shapeshifters, vamps, etc. I do like to include elements of magic in my contemporary romances, but it’s more a part of the characters than part of the story line… I’d love to read more/discuss more on practical uses of magic i.e. Wicca, Voodoo, etc.” Oooh, I like this one. I could see this fitting into a number of categories, including High Fantasy, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy, or Magical Realism. In … Read more

Announcement: Invisible Curtain, by Alex Morgan

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Alex Morgan is out with his third book in his paranormal sleuth series: Paranormal sleuth Corey Shaw is enjoying vacation with his family in the Baltic Sea when terrorists bomb restaurants hosting World Cup parties in London and Copenhagen, just as his cruise ship leaves port. Although the United States isn’t attacked, Corey and his colleagues are unavoidably drawn into the investigation with or without the blessing of international intelligence agencies. When a third bomb goes off in St. Petersburg, Russia, Corey is convinced the terrorist is aboard his ship, or at least connected with it. Corey is torn between … Read more

Big Brother is Watching You (And He’s a Corporation)

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Do you remember that awkward moment during the 2012 presidential campaign when Mitt Romney said “Corporations are people too, my friend?” Well, maybe they’ve also taken on the role of Big Brother. Back in 1949, George Orwell famously forecast that the US would be a surveillance state by “1984”. He may have gotten the year wrong by a bit, but we now know that the NSA has its fingers in almost every datastream in the country. People kinda freaked out when they realized the government could get their cell phone data, their browsing history, and even their emails. But on … Read more

Amazing New Timelapse of the Sun

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If you’re working on a sci fi story that includes solar flares, sun spots, or other solar science, you have to see this new 4K timelapse video of the sun, made from over 17,000 images. Make it full screen and just watch – it’s truly impressive.

Humor in Sci Fi and Fantasy

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Today’s topic comes from QSFer John Allenson: “What, if any, is the role of humour in science fiction and fantasy?” Most sci fi and fantasy tends to be pretty serious stuff – looking at the social and cultural impacts of current trends on the future, aka climate change, overpopulation, technical advances, etc for sci fo, and the imminent end of the world as dark forces converge in fantasy. But I’ve also read my share of humorous works, especially on the sci fi side – see Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, or Piers Anthony’s Xanth. I’m wracking my brain for some examples on … Read more

Take to The Sky Blog Tour

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We’re participating in the Blog Hop for Gregory Jonathan Scott’s new book, Take to the Sky. We’re also giving away a copy – just leave a comment on this post with your name and email to enter by 11/20. Description An angelic romance that’s Powerful, Suspenseful, Sexy, Uniquely Erotic, and Romantic. In a secret Michigan Laboratory, an experiment developed a superior creation that was anticipated but not expected. He was the ultimate conception, a core life-being merged with avian. He was born with a gift, a rare one; the ability to fly. His wings instinctively brought out the urge in … Read more

Throw Some Plot Bunnies on the Fire

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It’s that time again. Every now and then we ask our readers and FB Group members to tell us the topics you wanna discuss. So bring it on… what questions do you have as a writer about sci fi, fantasy, or paranormal? As a reader? What possible futures do you see for the planet? For mankind? For the LGBt community? What do we need to be exploring through our books and novellas and short stories? Are there were critters you’d like to see more stories about? Fantasy ideas as yet unexplored? Bring us your plot bunnies and we’ll roast ’em … Read more

Interview: Andrew J. Peters, Author of the Werecat Series

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Today we’re fortunate enough to have an interview with Andrew J. Peters, author of the Werecat series and the book The Seventh Pleiade. So how many books have you published? I have three books out in my Werecat series, the début book in my Atlantis series The Seventh Pleiade came out last year, and its sequel Banished Sons of Poseidon is forthcoming in 2015. I also recently published a free short story called Mike’s Pond on Smashwords. Did you start out writing MM fiction? Some of my books, especially the Werecat series, are tagged or labeled MM, and I certainly … Read more

Me Me Monday!

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Welcome to ME ME MONDAY at our FB discussion group – your chance to pop in and tell us about your latest success. Have a new book or short story coming out? Let us know. Just sell something? Let us know so we can cheer you on. HOW IT WORKS: I’ll pin this topic to the top of our FB discussion page for the day. –Please post your announcement as a separate post, so I can also share it over to our FB page (as opposed to this discussion group). –If you want, send me your book announcement info at … Read more