Category: Genesis Earth

C is for Cover Art

They say not to judge a book by its cover, but the truth is we all do. In fact, the cover probably sells a book more than the book blurb does. Whether in print or in digital format, it’s the first part of the book that readers see, and often makes the difference between “meh”… Continue reading C is for Cover Art

Lindsey Stirling, Nichieri, Susan Boyle, and thoughts on discoverability and greatness

I saw a couple of things on Youtube that made me think recently about the importance of quality work, especially in the arts. I’m a casual fan of Lindsey Stirling–I’ve watched most of her videos, put them on in the background from time to time, and get a kick out of following her career. For… Continue reading Lindsey Stirling, Nichieri, Susan Boyle, and thoughts on discoverability and greatness

Trope Tuesday: Forbidden Zone

For the next few Trope Tuesday posts, I’m going to pick apart some of the tropes I’m playing with in my latest WIP, Sons of the Starfarers.  One of the things I love to do when brainstorming a new story is to use tvtropes like a menu, finding the tropes that best fit my story… Continue reading Trope Tuesday: Forbidden Zone

Trope Tuesday: Curiosity is a Crapshoot

Is curiosity a bad thing?  Well, it depends how genre savvy you are.  It seemed to work out pretty well for Alice, but not quite so well for Pandora (or the rest of the ancient Greek world, for that matter).  Curious monkeys seem to come out all right, and their constantly curious counterparts also seem… Continue reading Trope Tuesday: Curiosity is a Crapshoot

Do you like your chapters named or numbered?

There’s an interesting article linked on The Passive Voice blog about the importance of a table of contents, especially in ebooks.  The article is geared mostly for non-fiction, which is a whole different beast from novels and novellas, but the discussion on TPV got me thinking: for ebooks, is it better to name chapters or… Continue reading Do you like your chapters named or numbered?

July Smashwords sale–all books 50% off!

Every summer, Smashwords does a sale in which authors can enroll their books.  This year, I’ve enrolled all of mine at 50% off, so all of them are under $2.50.  Check it out! Genesis Earth A boy and a girl on a voyage to an alien star. Price: $4.95 $2.48 Bringing Stella Home He’ll go… Continue reading July Smashwords sale–all books 50% off!

Y is for Yesteryear

They say that the golden age of science fiction is about twelve years old.  That’s definitely true for me. My first exposure to the genre was Star Wars: A New Hope.  I saw it when I was seven, right around the height of my dinosaur phase.  Everything about the movie completely blew me away, from… Continue reading Y is for Yesteryear

V is for Vast

If you don’t know anything else about the universe, you should know this: it’s big.  Really, really, REALLY big. How big, you ask?  Well, for starters, take a look at Earth in the picture above.  Can you see it?  It’s the pale blue dot in the beam of starlight on the right side of the… Continue reading V is for Vast

S is for Space Station

Planets are not the only setting for science fiction stories–space stations are common as well.  From the Death Star (“that’s no moon…”) to Downbelow Station, the Venus Equilateral to ISPV 7 to the Battle School in Ender’s Game, space stations are a major staple of any space-centered science fiction. The reasons for this should be fairly… Continue reading S is for Space Station