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The Publishers Strike Back

The Publishers Strike Back

The publisher backlash against the Wylie Agency creation of Odyssey Editions and the exclusive, two-year ebook deal with Amazon is neither surprising in its vehemence nor its lack of understanding of the ebook market. Random House immediately went for the throat. They suspended contract negotiations with the Wylie Agency and have told Amazon that they’re [...]

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Recovering from Phoenix Comicon

Recovering from Phoenix Comicon

Phoenix Comicon was nothing short of an exciting and fun weekend. Okay, exhausting, too; but all the best conventions are. The last Phoenix Comicon had been out in Mesa, and it had outgrown its site. It moved downtown to the Phoenix Civic Center, more than doubling the floor space. It seemed pretty clear that it [...]

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Digital Career Guide

Digital Career Guide

I have just released a new product in my store: The Digital Career Guide. I’ve been working on this for the last three months. It covers what you need to know to set up a successful writing business on the Internet. I talk about everything from attitudes to how to produce captivating fiction, on through [...]

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21 Days to a Novel Class in Second Life 4/17

21 Days to a Novel Class in Second Life 4/17

On Saturday afternoon, starting at 3 PM Pacific time, I will be offering my 21 Days to a Novel class as a fundraiser for the American Cancer Sociey Relay For Life. The class will cost 2,000 game dollars (or $8 US, which is what you’d pay at a convention). You can take the class through [...]

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Stress and Frustration

Stress and Frustration

It has been one of those weeks.
For reasons I cannot share publicly, I’ve been decidedly stressed. Nope, nothing to do with health or writing, save that part of the frustration is that I’ve not been able to get as much writing done as I wanted this week. Certain events and forces beyond my control have [...]

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The Secrets Issue 136: Serendipity

The Secrets Issue 136: Serendipity

I just released the most recent issue of my newsletter, The Secrets. This issue is titled Serendipity. In it I go through the thought processes that shaped my recent story Chance Corrigan and The Tick-tock King of the Nile. (It will be coming out some time this year from DAW—I’ll post on its availability when [...]

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The Secrets issue 133: Likable Folks

The Secrets issue 133: Likable Folks

The latest issue of The Secrets newsletter is up and available for subscribers. In this issue I go through all the parameters of how to create a likable character—someone the readers warm to fairly quickly and consistently. It’s one of the toughest things to do in fiction, and writers always run the risk of becoming [...]

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