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Discussion

The Amazing, Expanding, Oozing Plot Line

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As I mentioned last week, I’m embarking on a new project – a novella that I want to hit a certain length, and need to finish by a certain date. A date that’s coming up all too quickly. So for the first time in my little writer life, I’ve actually sat down and plotted out the whole thing, scenes and all. It’s a new experience for me, as I usually fly by the seat of my pants. I’m finding that I rather like having the structure. But two scenes in, I’ve already been surprised by several things that happened. They’ve … Read more

Building a Magical (Gay) World

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QSF member Edmond Manning has graciously allowed us to cross-post this one, which originally appeared on RJ Scott’s blog: I have always loved fairy tales. I love stories sculpted out of ancient prophecy and malicious curses, magic healing tears and quests to recapture jewel-encrusted chalices. The problem is that I always wanted to believe in these stories but I had a hard time letting go of reality and explanations. What powers the spells? How does a 900 lb. unicorn fly through the sky on such delicate, prissy wings? How exactly do you make the jewel-encrusted chalice so that it doesn’t … Read more

I’m Just a Regular Guy (In a Wolf’s Body)

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I’m wrapping up a short story about spaceman and wolf shifters, and one of the things that’s come up during the writing of the story is how wolves (or at least shifter wolves) think and act while they are in Wolf mode versus how they think and act in human mode. For instance, in some shifter stories the human mind is entirely subsumed by the Wolf mind, and the shifter acts entirely is an animal, or almost entirely, when in Wolf mode. In other stories, the Wolf is essentially a human in wolf form. And of course there are all … Read more

Writing in Another Land

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Okay, so we’ve talked about writing a different kind of person than you actually are – maybe you’re a straight woman writing gay romance. Or maybe you’re a gay man writing a transgender character. Or someone in Iceland trying to imagine the experience of someone in South Africa. That last one gets to today’s point. There’s an old adage – “write what you know.” But so often, we are challenged to write things and places that we don’t know it all, especially in science fiction, fantasy and paranormal. And these often require research to get the details right. Recently I … Read more

Preferring to Perfectly Plan My Plot

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I’ve been writing for a long time. I mean, like a really long time. I wrote my first short story when I was in fourth grade, and submitted it to a contest at the University of Arizona. It won, and you can probably still see it somewhere in the dusty archives there. In my teens, I embarked upon my writing career in earnest. But I had one big problem. I didn’t like to plot out my stories. Instead, I like to be surprised by what might happen next, like my readers. So I would sit down in front of a … Read more

To Be Takei

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A gay sci fi icon is profiled in a new documentary: The third feature-length project from filmmaker Jennifer M. Kroot, whose previous endeavors include the 2003 sci-fi/fantasy Sirens of the 23rd Century and the 2009 biographical doc It Came from Kuchar, details the professional achievements, political activism, and personal life of Takei, who proves to be as accomplished as he is downright likable. The weight with which Kroot approaches the three principal aspects of Kroot’s life tends to vary, leaning in favor of his work for gay rights, but we find ourselves duly engrossed in his personal and professional stories … Read more

Child, What Be Thy Name?

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Picking names for your sci fi characters for the near future isn’t too bad – just use some of the more modern recent names, throw in a curve ball or two, and you’re golden. But what about when you’re dealing with the far-flung future? Or with an alien race? For your average human in the 25th century, you probably don’t want to go with Brittany, Chelsea, Justin or Tom. But you also have to be careful not to go too far in the other direction and come up with names that people will find too strange and hard to remember, … Read more

John Barrowman Interviewed By Windy City Times

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John Barrowman is that rare person: the multitalented heartthrob. Barrowman – who was born in Scotland and raised in Joliet, Illinois – may be best known for playing omnisexual Captain Jack Harkness on Doctor Who and its popular spinoff, Torchwood, although he’s fulfilling many a fan’s fantasy as Malcolm Merlyn on the CW series Arrow. ( This writer personally remembers him from the short-lived ’90s nighttime sudser Central Park West, or C.P.W.)… Windy City Times caught up with Barrowman last week, talking with him about his sci-fi work, Broadway, Robin Williams and Barrowman’s marriage to Scott Gill. … WCT: So … Read more

My ADD Brain

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OK, so I don’t officially have Attention Deficit Disorder. But I, like many writers, do have a creative brain, one that seems to love to be distracted by just about anything. Especially when I’m writing. Especially when I’m on a deadline. Like right now. I have a short story (well, almost a novella) that’s due for submission 9 days from now. And I haven’t finished the first draft yet. I think I’ll finish it to day if… Oh look, something shiny! Seriously, it’s hard sometimes to focus on the writing. Part of it is that I seem to work better … Read more

Writing in Your Own Tongue

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Some very successful fantasy novels have flirted with inventing their own language or languages – among them the Lord of the Rings (JRR Tolkien was a professional philologist and Old English specialist) and George R. Martin’s Game of Thrones. But many writers just use a few choice words in their new lingua, to give their stories a bit of High Fantasy flavor. To be sure, a new language isn’t an absolute necessity in Fantasy – it really depends on the story you are telling. But it can add a bit of flair and flavor to your work, setting it apart … Read more