On Window Screens and Other Things
When I was somewhere in the range of 7-9 years old, I opened my bedroom window and pulled the tab on the screen, curious about… Read More »On Window Screens and Other Things
writing
The Lesser-Known Fifth Horseman
The Narrator says feminist like it’s a bad thing. Silly Narrator. As I said at the beginning, this comic series mainly serves as a light-hearted… Read More »The Lesser-Known Fifth Horseman
Got Low Self-Esteem? Meet One Girl Who’s Had It.
I’ve had more than a usual amount of reading time lately (*coughprocrastinationcoughcough*), which has reminded me of why I previously took a time-out from reading.… Read More »Got Low Self-Esteem? Meet One Girl Who’s Had It.
7 Things Every Writer Should Know about Linguistics
It’s a big, complicated word, “linguistics,” stuffed with technical concepts and broad theories. If writing is your craft, though, this particular study could well be… Read More »7 Things Every Writer Should Know about Linguistics
Writerly Confessions
This post has languished in my draft file, in one form or another, for well over a month. It’s not meant as a pity-party post,… Read More »Writerly Confessions
Deadlines Are My Mortal Enemy
Happy June, everybody! Here’s a new book for you to read! Click here for the Kindle version! The print version should show up in a… Read More »Deadlines Are My Mortal Enemy
Sneak Peek: The Legendary Inge
Prologue Dirt and blood filled his senses, gritty and glorious. The heady reek of his midnight kills always exulted his spirits, confirmed that he was… Read More »Sneak Peek: The Legendary Inge
My Swedish Grandmother Made Me Do It
“And now, Beowulf, best of men, I wish to love you in my heart as my son. From this time forth, keep well this new… Read More »My Swedish Grandmother Made Me Do It
Literary Influences: Beowulf
Hwæt!
(Did it work? Do I have your attention?)
Beowulf is one of those works of literature that, quite honestly, never interested me. Some beefy warrior kills a monster, and then he kills another one, and there’s a dragon in there somewhere, and at the end (spoiler alert!), he dies. I maintained a scornful disinterest for this epic over the course of a decade, until my conversion in my mid-twenties. Here’s how it went down.
Literary Influences: Lloyd Alexander
“Melancholy men, they say, are the most incisive humorists; by the same token, writers of fantasy must be, within their own frame of work, hardheaded realists. What appears gossamer is, underneath, solid as prestressed concrete. What seems so free in fantasy is often inventiveness of detail rather than complicated substructure. Elaboration — not improvisation.” ~Lloyd Alexander, “The Flat-Heeled Muse”
When it comes to fantasy, everyone has a starter series, right? That first set of books that gives you a glimpse of worlds beyond, that whets your appetite and cultivates your imagination: the starter series sets the bar for every series that follows. Is it better? Is it worse? Does it have similar themes? Similar characters? Similar plots? Similar settings? Does it evoke that same sense of wonder, or a greater sense of wonder, or does it leave the acrid taste of disappointment in your mouth?