Category: Writing

Science Fiction and Paranormal Fantasy with a Noir Twist

Interview with Corvid Design

My cover artist, Duncan Eagleson, interviewed me as part of his “Cover Stories” feature at his website, Corvid Design. You can find about some of the things that went into The Somniscient, Foundlings, and my other books. You can also read my thoughts on cyberpunk, the research I do before writing, my favorite word and…
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April 26, 2016 0

The Brass Ring for Indie Writers

I don’t sell tons of books. Let me say that right up front in case you’re looking for one of those posts that promises something like: Here’s The Key to Indie Author Success!!! If that’s what you’re after, you can stop reading now. I will add that just about every one of those kinds of…
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March 10, 2016 0

Yet Another Key to Success–Being a Giver

There’s a lot of advice out there on how to make splash as an indie writer, most of it just a re-hash of the same ideas and strategies: write a great book, invest in a cover artist and editor, build your platform, manipulate SEO, manipulate Amazon’s search fields, etc. I’ve  written before on some of…
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April 18, 2015 0

Following One’s Muse–Sign of Artistic Integrity or Fast Track to Obscurity?

Many, many years ago, I remember reading this advice for novice writers: write the kind of stories you would like to read. I don’t know who said that, but I remember thinking it was great advice.  I was going to create art–or let’s make that Art with a capital A. No least common denominator stuff…
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April 10, 2015 0

Growth Mindset Essential for Self-Published Authors

There’s a lot of buzz in academic circles these days about “growth mindset“–an idea based on these principles: (1) the human brain actually grows new neural connections when we learn things, and (2) when people are aware of this brain growth and believe that they can grow their brains, they actually persevere in the face…
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February 1, 2015 2

New Release! Foundlings Is Now Available!

It’s been a lot of work, but I’m pleased to say I’ve reached the end of the road with Foundlings–all the research, drafting, revising, working with beta readers, revising some more, proofreading, editing, cover design, marketing, blogging, posting, elevator-pitching, and so on have all come together, and now the book is officially available in e-book…
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January 29, 2015 2

Getting from Point A to Point Z–The Evolution of Foundlings

Sooner or Later, Everyone Needs to Be Found I’m pleased to be releasing my fifth full-length novel, Foundlings, this month. Getting all the finishing touches completed has taken up much of my time over the last several weeks, which is mostly why I haven’t been posting much of late. The book is now available in paperback…
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January 14, 2015 0

Time for Some Pulse-Taking

It would appear to be time to re-think the whole blog thing. I mean, blogging for fiction writers is kind of tough. You know? Conventional wisdom says indie writers need a website, a landing page for people to find their books. That’s not necessarily the same as a blog. The idea with a blog is…
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June 13, 2014 4

Cover Reveal–The Devil You Know

I’ve been a bit quiet the last couple of weeks–the semester came to an end at Fullerton College, and with it came a lot of work. At the same time, I’ve been working on getting the finishing touches put onto my next book. This one’s going to be different, dipping more into Urban Fantasy than…
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May 25, 2014 0

Passion and Obsession, or Second-Guessing the Market: How a Writer Ought to Choose a Project

Last week, I had the good fortune to stumble onto Emma Donoghue being interviewed on Michael Silverblatt’s “Book Worms” show on KCRW. I’m generally not a reader of historical novels, but I’d seen a review of Donoghue’s latest book Frog Music: A Novel in a magazine a couple weeks back, and so I got sucked…
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May 7, 2014 2