Category: Fiction
Time Travel and its Discontents
I was a few days into writing my first time travel story when I realised I was screwed.
After a particularly difficult session involving much grinding of teeth trying as I tried to figure out the implications of time-travel on …
The Writer’s Training Regime, Part 4 – Lessons from Poker
I used to play a lot of poker. Took it pretty serious, as well: serious enough to make the trip to Vegas in 2009 to play in the World Series of Poker.
I played regularly for about ten years, every …
Gorgeous Galleries of Science Fiction and Fantasy Art
If you want to look at galleries of gorgeous science fiction and fantasy art, then look no further. The dozen young artists (and they are all very young) who were the winners of this year’s Writers and Illustrators of the …
Writing About Vietnam (For Beginners)
After a quiet start to the year I’ve had two acceptances in quick succession. The first is a novelette to the excellent Interzone magazine, my third sale there.
The Writer’s Training Regime, Part 3 – 500/500
While possessing very left-wing views on most matters, when it comes to writing I’m a downright fascist.
500 words a day. No exceptions. Ok – when I’m editing a long work, maybe that day is an exception. But otherwise, whether …
Two New Stories Out Now
Well, not that new, I guess. One of the stories – The Line – was the second I’d ever written. But I reworked and rewrote the damn thing over a year as I felt the central idea was worth pursuing …
Writing Fiction: Year Two in Review
The Writer’s Training Regime Part 2: The Short Story
Trying my hand at short stories was the single best decision I made when I started writing fiction.
A couple of years back I started a novel – like just about everyone else does when they decide to take up …
George R. R. Martin’s Sister: the Economics of Being a Writer
It’s the perfect storm for the struggling writer: average author income is collapsing, social mobility is in decline across nearly all wealthy countries, and inequality is on the rise. These structural changes are leading to an inescapable reality: it is …


