Research by psychologist Sonja Lyubomirsky and others suggests that when you are in a positive state your brain performs significantly better than when you’re in a negative or neutral state. Your intelligence, creativity and energy levels all rise when you’re feeling “The Happy.”
This opening line to Julia Sidorova’s debut novel pulls the reader into an immersive and intensive read and compels us to follow the life of Prince Alexander Velitzyn in his quest to find the answer to his immunity to ice. The Age of Ice is a novel rich in historical detail and the scientific problem of Prince Alexander’s physiognomy is presented in a plausible and intriguing manner.
How can taking an improv acting/comedy lesson improve your writing? Well, for one thing, it forces you to think differently about story.
The other aspect of Heinlein’s work that I’ve tried to emulate is his ability to choose and present just a few precise details to convey a different world, be it the future or another planet. The classic example from his own work is the phrase, “The door dilated.”
When I get professionally jealous it’s often an exciting thing. “Wow! I never thought of doing that. That’s amazing!” But excitement can turn into sad feelings…
On July 2 John Scalzi, immediate past president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, announced his new Convention Harassment Policy. When my friends and fans go to conventions, I would like them not to have to worry, if they are skeeved on by some creep at the convention, that the convention will take […]
A letter from Chris M. Barkley to the science fiction and fantasy community:
Over a week ago, I started two online petition drives at Change.org and We the People, to gather support to establish a series of commemorative stamps honoring America’s finest artists, writers, editors and publishers of sf, fantasy and horror.
San Diego State University’s Walter Fisher is endeavoring to build a comprehensive collection of science fiction material.
This June, John Scalzi stepped down as SFWA President. He took office in 2010—twelve years after beginning his wildly successful blog, Whatever, and five years after he published his first novel.
SFWA member Carrie Cuinn ventured into Scalzi’s lair (aka, the Internet) and conducted the following interview.
The workload on the elected Board and on our part-time office manager, Kathryn Baker, has grown to such an extent that we cannot efficiently and productively deal with the numerous issues involving our members or the industry we support. It was clear that a more dedicated effort was needed.
A science-fantasy-noir novel inspired by the Nebula-nominated “Tower of Mud and Straw.” Towers, politics, alternate worlds. Kirkus called it “mind-expanding” in a starred review; Daily Mail, “a towering achievement and a genre-busting tour de force.”
Katherine Quevedo hails from Portland, Oregon, where she works as an analyst and lives with her husband and two sons. Her Pushcart and Rhysling nominated fiction and poetry appear in Nightmare Magazine, Asimov’s, Fireside Magazine, and elsewhere.
