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Silverthorn Press & The Bleeding Pen

January 25th, 2010 | Comments

Silverthorn Press & The Bleeding Pen

Silverthorn Press Ezine is a free bi-monthly paranormal fantasy ezine. Corbin Silverthorn and  Staff brings us writing industry news and highlights, as well as Creative Writing advice and inspiration. Each issue of Silverthorn Press Ezine features authors and artists of the speculative fiction and fantasy genres. The Bleeding Pen Writer’s Showcase presents proactive writers of paranormal fantasy. The aim is to help spread the word about their work and engage readers and industry professionals alike. I … Read entire article »

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The MAG Short Story Writing Contest

The MAG Short Story Writing Contest

While it should be well known by now, that I’m personally an advocate of all manners and new mediums for presenting fiction, it’s only fair to give a nod to good old fashioned Literature at its finest. In the spirit of encouraging and promoting the Art of Writing, The MAG has brought forth it’s first annual Short Story Writing Contest. The contest which is open to all genres of fiction, will focus on the talent of … Read entire article »

Why I Said NO to DRM

Why I Said NO to DRM

As an avid reader, I prefer my books in print be it paperback or hard cover. I love books for what they are, the texture of paper, the smell of old books. I love that feeling you get from leisurely flipping through the pages of a very old and very well-written piece of work. Sadly, the physical space I would need to accommodate all of my books is simply not available. Luckily, I also have … Read entire article »

Avatar: Predictable Plot, Phenomenal Experience

Avatar: Predictable Plot, Phenomenal Experience

If you’ve ever read a history book, sci-fi novel or watched an anime, I doubt much of Avatar will take you by surprise. The premise is quite predictable. A more technological advanced culture swaggers in and tries to stake a claim on the resources and land occupied by those they deem to be–conveniently, less evolved than themselves. The ensuing conflict and cross-cultural, romantic entanglements are not unexpected. Here’s the thing to note about Avatar: the plot is … Read entire article »

Start Something Wonderful

Start Something Wonderful

I have a thorough distaste for making New Year’s Resolutions. It’s a tradition that goads me into setting unrealistic goals, with which I often soon become impatient and wind up casting aside. Even so, I don’t just want to keep getting swept away by the soul crushing and mind numbing inanities of life, year after year. I want to be productive and proactive without letting high expectations get the better of me. At the … Read entire article »

Magazine Review: Survival by Storytelling Issue#1

Magazine Review: Survival by Storytelling Issue#1

The first issue of Survival By Storytelling Magazine abounds with burgeoning talent. Although Kaolin Fire’s fantastic Science Fiction themed cover led to some disappointment due to the absence of a “true blue” Science Fiction story, I feel privileged for having been given a glimpse of what might emerge from the fertile minds of such a diverse group of young writers. In addition to a nicely balanced collection of short stories, Issue #1 features two non-fiction articles, … Read entire article »

Review of Media Whores by Made in DNA

Review of Media Whores by Made in DNA

Made in DNA is the pseudonym of an American author, living in Japan. He describes his special brand of fiction as sex-punk/sex-fi. After reading a short teaser from one of his latest works, I jumped at the chance to read the erotic, cyberpunk novella, Media Whores. Media Whores takes place in New Tokioh, a techno-punk’s dystopia lurking beneath the radiation contaminated mess that was once Nippon. The unapologetically depraved sex-idol, Kurarua is the product of an … Read entire article »

Google Wave and Writers

Google Wave and Writers

If you’ve been paying attention, you already know that there’s been a lot of buzz lately about Google’s latest endeavor, Google Wave. Google Wave is an online tool for real-time communication and collaboration. A wave can be both a conversation and a document where people can discuss and work together using richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, and more. Members such as Made in DNA and Jim Hanas are already forging ahead and exploring all the … Read entire article »

God in Girl Bones – A Character Profile

Cassandra Baron is the star character of my NaNoWriMo novel, tentatively titled CASSANDRA.  In this second novel of a series Cassandra Baron, becomes infatuated with a human named David Kilpatrick. David happens to be the right hand man for Dominic Locke, the interim leader of the ancient race of predecessors to werewolves, known as the Rath. She becomes embroiled in the internal conflicts of the Rath and soon find herself facing off  with Dominic’s daughter, who is destined to be another new Power in the world. Origin & Circumstances Cassandra’s mother was the progeny of an amphibious civilization, long gone. Her father is the human musician, Jonathan Baron who discovered that his mother was a sea-dwelling, aboriginal remnant of that ancient race. Her genetic makeup was determined by the avatars of an ancient … Read entire article »

NaNoWriMo Wk#1: Summoning Confidence

NaNoWriMo Wk#1: Summoning Confidence

In two days, National Novel Writing Month will kick off for the 10th time. Many of us will immediately launch into the writing-frenzy and use this momentum to get as far ahead with our word-counts as we can. Invariably, some will stall out at the very beginning and find it difficult dredge up the will to continue or catch up. It can happen to anyone. It happens to me more frequently than I’d care to recall. It … Read entire article »

Modern Subculture Meets Feminist Archetype

Modern Subculture Meets Feminist Archetype

Japanese girls with darkened faces and glaring make-up is something I’ve noticed cropping up in anime, from time to time. I’d heard the words yamamba, mamba and in some cases, ganguro being bandied about but never gave it much thought, until recently.  At first glance, yamamba and mamba struck me as nothing more than a psychedelic parody of the goth subculture. Looking more closely, it becomes apparent that there’s more to the dark tans, white … Read entire article »

November, Month of Madness and Mayhem.

In early October of 2005, someone on my LiveJournal “friends” list mentioned something called NaNoWriMo. I became curious about this “National Novel Writing Month” that a bunch of people were suddenly talking about and decided to check it out. I was blown away by the idea of trying to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. I was amazed at the fact there seemed to be a worldwide movement of sorts, as thousands of people were participating in what had somehow become a global event of unbelievable proportions. I decided at the very last minute that I would hop on the bandwagon, as well. My first attempt at NaNoWriMo was a bust. Nevertheless, I had a blast. With the exception of 2008, … Read entire article »

Observing Human Behavior

Writers are natural stalkers. Sure, it’s a little creepy but that’s what makes it fun–I mean, er… Educational. Productive. Absolutely not criminal. Think of it like being on a safari or bird-watching. See? Totally harmless. It has been said that a story isn’t just an art. It’s a wild beast that we must hunt down, capture and make a meal of, if we must. Figuratively, of course. We’re not complete psychopaths, are we? Are we??? Most creative individuals are in the habit of observing the people and things around us. We’re not even usually conscious of what we’re doing. We study people, the way events unfold. We do this intently and unthinkingly. We become avid spectators in an … Read entire article »

The Thing About Humans

The Thing About Humans

I been bothered lately, by the notion that some human proclivities seem to exist in purer concentrations in certain places on this earth. Places like Darfur, in Sudan exemplifies the topsy-turvy reality of a civilization seething with poverty, ignorance, and unimaginable cruelty.  I’m not claiming the absence of kindness in the world. That would be unfair. I’m constantly amazed by the resilience of humans and the adroitness with which we walk the line between … Read entire article »

Creativity and Perseverance

I recently came across a few uplifting and affirming words from the a few of authors and poets who inspired my love of writing and the Speculative Fiction genres. Today, I thought I’d share some of them with you. Isaac Asimov “I write for the same reason I breathe – because if I didn’t, I would die.” “You must keep sending work out; you must never let a manuscript do nothing but eat its head off in a drawer. You send that work out again and again, while you’re working on another one. If you have talent, you will receive some measure of success but only if you persist.”  Ray Bradbury “Love. Fall in love and stay in love. Write only what you love, and love what you write. The key word is love. You … Read entire article »

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