The Things You Learn Doing Research

Guest Blogger: DP Lyle Writers are constantly doing research to make the story at hand more realistic, or at least more believable. That “willing suspension of disbelief” thing. One false move can yank the reader right out of the story and that’s never good. The reader loses confidence in the …

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ON RESURRECTING AN ICONIC CHARACTER

Guest Blogger: Eric Van Lustbader I wrote THE NINJA in 1980 and it became an immediate worldwide sensation, ultimately spending twenty-four weeks on the NEW YORK TIMES bestseller list. The book was picked up by 20th Century Fox to be made into a film. Five more novels featuring the protagonist, Nicholas …

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Phoenix Island Inspires TV Series Intelligence

Guest Blogger: John Dixon All over the world, proponents of transhumanism (or H+) are looking to give the human race an upgrade. Relying on emerging technologies and pharmaceutical enhancements, transhumanists are looking to engineer an accelerated evolution that would push us past our limitations. Faster, stronger, smarter, and more aware, …

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The Eye of a Writer

Guest Blogger: Khaled Talib After I had finished writing my first novel, SMOKESCREEN, a thriller, I promised myself not to write another.  I wasn’t sure if I had energy left to struggle with the same problems and obstacles of writing:  the lack of time, rejection, and the frustration of revision.  …

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5 Things I Bet You Didn’t Know (or maybe you do)

So, I’m reading this great book — An Uncommon History of Common Things by Bethanne Patrick and John Thompson– that’s filled with interesting facts and stories behind the invention of all kinds of items we use today from pizza to football to naming traditions, etc. I originally picked it up …

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10 Great Books About Those Who Have Served in the Military

In honor of Veteran’s Day, here’s some of my favorite books about those who have served in the military: 1. BLACK HAWK DOWN by Mark Bowden -“On October 3, 1993, about a hundred elite U.S. soldiers were dropped by helicopter into the teeming market in the heart of Mogadishu, Somalia. …

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High Crimes, High Drama and Current Events

Guest Blogger: Richard Craig Anderson In COBRA CLEARANCE, an elite group of counter-terrorist operatives are out to stop a presidential assassination. Okay, fine. But what separates my newest novel from other stories about plots and plotters? The answer is clear: COBRA CLEARANCE’s relevance to current events, coupled with its credibility. …

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Headline News or Headline Blues?

Guest Blogger: Jon McGoran This past May, millions of people around the world joined together to protest how genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are being silently forced upon them. In June, there were headlines about GMO wheat mysteriously appearing in a field in Oregon, and super fast-growing GMO salmon breeding with trout …

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The Seam Between Fiction and History

Guest Blogger: D.B. Jackson My newest novel, THIEVES’ QUARRY, the second book in my Thieftaker Chronicles, is to be released today, July 2.  Like the first book in the series, THIEFTAKER, this latest installment is a historical urban fantasy set in Colonial Boston, against the backdrop of actual historical events leading …

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When Does Your Writing Project Become a Novel?

Guest Blogger: Joshua Isard I began my novel, CONQUISTADOR OF THE USELESS, while sitting in a cafe and writing a short story which I’d had no intention to write. It just came out. A few weeks later it was accepted for publication in the excellent journal, PRESS 1, and I …

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