Secrets of Suspense – Shadowed’s “Birdseed Scene”

“When your psychic sens

“When your psychic senses are fading and the gangster's lair has the perfect defenses, how do you break in with birdseed and a rock?”

Sources of Magic – Part Two

If you know where somethi

If you know where something comes from, it gives you a head start on guessing where it’s going, doesn’t it? So when you’re rea

A little Summer Reading

CONFESSIONS of SYLVA SLAS

Sources of Magic – Part One

Where does magic come fro

Where does magic come from? It’s something I’ve noticed in more and more stories: some go further than others in explaining just how s

Story – Find More and Dig Deeper

What makes a good story?

What makes a good story? But that’s a question anyone would answer differently… so it might be clearer written the other way around: what stor

Review: Jim Butcher’s Codex Alera series

Can I write about the Cod

Can I write about the Codex Alera series and keep it out of the shadow of Jim Butcher’s signature Dresden Files books? It ought to be possible… bu

The High Road sample from Chapter Three

One of the pleasures of h

One of the pleasures of having a book on its final draft… yes, in spite of delays The High Road should be out this fall, and n

Review: Brandon Sanderson’s The Reckoners trilogy

When one of the short-lis

When one of the short-list Best Fantasy Authors Out There writes a superhero series, pay attention. But since that author is Brandon Sanderson, the co

Magic In Common interviews

Here are the collected Ma

Here are the collected Magic In Common interviews, where I talk with different authors about their understanding of magic, the paranormal, or other

Masquerade or Unmasqued? Hiding Urban Fantasy’s Magic

It’s one of the longest

It’s one of the longest shadows cast over any story that places the fantastic in our own world: how much can it still be “our” world if the

Magic In Common – Interview with Maurice Broaddus and more

Prepare yourself for a un

Prepare yourself for a unique treat—a Magic In Common interview with the author who says my approach for it was that magic would stand

Magic In Common – interview with J S Moran

What’s the best thing m

What’s the best thing magic can add to a story? How many different meanings does the paranormal have for writers, and readers? This week I’m launc