"The Sea Harvest of Moonlight" out in Sally Port
Trying to catch up on various news items from the past few weeks, I'm happy to announce that this story came out in the January issue of Sally Port. "The Sea Harvest of Moonlight" is a story I wrote to experiment with the kishotenketsu narrative struct......
Writing Goals for 2026 — Same as 2025, Really
About this time a year ago, I was setting my goals for 2025, and I was pretty sure what I was going to achieve in the following twelve months. After finally finishing the first draft of The Empire of Nandesh, the second novel of my octology, in the dying...
Decorating the White Room
Most scenes in a story consist of people having a conversation, in one way or another. Or fighting, of course, which is bizarrely similar. Even if there’s only one character in the scene, the chances are they’re thinking — and that’s communication of a kind. This is fine, but...
The Shape of a Legend & Wyrmbane in Quest — 22 Stories of the Hero’s Journey
It’s exciting to have any story published, but I’m especially looking forward to the release, on 21st September, of Quest — 22 Stories of the Hero’s Journey. An anthology published by Fantasy-Writers.org, which I’ve been a member of since 2004, it features two of my stories among the twenty-two....
Fantasy-Writers.org Anthology —Author Interview with David Staiger
As I highlighted in a recent post, the writers’ group I belong to, Fantasy-Writers.org, is about to publish an anthology of members’ stories. This is Quest: 22 Stories of the Hero’s Journey. To whet your appetite, this is an interview with David Staiger, one of the seventeen authors represented...
The Middle Ages That Never Were
There seems to be a fixed idea that, at least until very recently, most fantasy has been set in a mediaeval-type setting. This is almost an article of faith to many people, in the face of all evidence, and shows that they have very little understanding of what mediaeval1...
Two new poems published!
April showers bring May...poems? Or, well, given the lack of rain for most of April around here, maybe it's April droughts that bring poetry. Anyway, I've had two poems come out this month!The first is "Lesser Zodiacs" in Merganser Magazine. Thei......
Quest — A Fantasy-Writers.org Anthology
There have been a few moments in my writing life that have changed everything. One was a long walk I took the family dog on when I was fifteen, in the course of which I thought up and planned a story which proved to be the germ for much...
Fiction (and other) reading in trying times
The world feels fragile these days. In all this chaos, corruption, and lack of empathy, the arts are as important as ever. So what do you need? I don't know--maybe it's to just breathe and find some way to steady yourself. Maybe it's to take in some (n......
Award Eligibility / 2024 in review
Are you reading for awards? Or simply interested in what work I've had out this past year? I think my story in Factor Four Magazine especially is worth an extra look, if you're considering fiction nominations. One of these years, hopefully there'll be ......