N.E. White's Blog, page 3

The Debrief

Happy Monday!

(Ug. No one should be that chipper on a Monday.)

Ignore that sad sack. Each Monday is a new beginning!

(Or maybe the start of a week we slog though before the weekend. (sigh))

Oof, what a downer. Such is life, right? Let’s make the best of it.

With that said, I am newly returned home after three days spent in Seattle, Washington for the Worldcon gathering. This post was supposed to go up last Monday (the 18th), but I was behind on my day job so this will be posted a week later. So, a little late to debrief, but I think it will be educational (at least, for me) to go through each of the sessions I attended.

Here’s my list. (Keep in mind, there were hundreds more sessions. These are the only ones I went to.)

Nila’s Worldcon Schedule:Reading by Guest of Honor Martha Wells (Friday, August 15th, 2025, 12:00pm)Cover Art for Self-Publishing (Friday, August 15th, 2025, 1:30pm) with L.J. Melvin, Jeff Brown, Laura Anne Gilman, Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff, and Tod McCoySpeed Friending (Friday, August 15th, 2025, 3:00pm) with Tabby L. RoseHooking Readers With a Series (Friday, August 15th, 2025, 4:30pm) with Maquel A. Jacob, Dan Moren, Michael Michel, Richard Flores IV, and Timothy W. LongThe Power of BookTube and Long-Form Video Content (Friday, August 15th, 2025, 7:30pm) with Palmer Pickering, Bookborn, Joe (JCM) Berne, and John MintonAdvice I Would Give My Past Writer Self (Saturday, August 16th, 2025, 9:00am) with Gwendolyn N. Nix, Alexandra Nica, Guy Morpuss, and Lauren C. TeffeauWorldbuilding Through Structures of Society (Saturday, August 16th, 2025, 10:30am) with Lindsey Byrd, Carol Berg, Cass Morris, Claire Jia-Wen, and Fonda LeeQ & A with Martha Wells (Saturday, August 16th, 2025, 1:30pm)Is It Appropriation? Writing the Other (Saturday, August 16th, 2025, 3:00pm) with James Mendez Hodes, Annie Carl, Shay Kauwe, Gregg Castro, and K. Tempest BradfordWriting to Trend or Writing the Book of Your Heart (Saturday, August 16th, 2025, 4:30pm) with Chris Gerrib, Elizabeth Guizzetti, Elliott Kay, and Joe (JCM) BerneThe (More Than Human) Eye of the Beholder (Saturday, August 16th, 2025, 6:00pm) with Tara Campbell, Beth Cato, Eva L. Elasigue, and Jessie KwakRules Were Made to Be Broken (Sunday, August 17th, 2025, 9:00am) with Jeremy Szal, Henry Lien, Ada Palmer, and Nancy KressEditing Pet Peeves (Sunday, August 17th, 2025, 10:30am) with Atlin Merrick, Elektra Hammond, Gabrielle Harbowy, Heather Tracy, and William C. TracyPitch Perfect: Developing a Solid Book Pitch (Sunday, August 17th, 2025, 12:00pm) with K.C. Aegis, Amanda Cherry, Deanna Sjolander, E. C. Ambrose, and Robin Jeffrey

In the coming weeks, I’ll review each session and note what nuggets of wisdom I came away with. All were worth the price of admission and it was great to tour the event tables.

Until then, enjoy a Science Fiction/Fantasy convention near you.

Nila

Ecotones Review #7

You’ve probably seen my introduction to these mini-reviews enough times. How about we change this up with a nice picture?

Forest top in New Zealand, from the Arapuni Bridge

Now here’s the standard introduction to this series…

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the publication of Ecotones: Ecological Stories from the Border Between Fantasy and Science Fiction, I’m reviewing all fourteen (14) short stories. Start here to read all mini-reviews.

And you guessed it, this is the seventh story in this ecology-related short story collection.

Homo Panthera by Andrew Leon Hudson (professional writer)

This is another action packed short story set within the jungles of Costa Rica in a not-too-distant future. Our hero is a former soldier now a cat bodyguard. Not just any cat, but the last of their kind.

The strength of this story is the immersion into a familiar technological world but in a jungle setting. Mr. Hudson does a great job of keeping the reader informed of how augmented individuals might function in hostile situations. And how competing interests will always be a great source of conflict.

With that said, I’m not entirely sure what the story was about. I don’t want to spoil it for you, so I won’t go into details–maybe it is obvious and I’m the dense one–but I felt there were too many themes introduced, such that when we get to the end, I’m not sure how to feel about our hero or the villain.

With that said, the story is imagery rich. I felt like I was watching a cool movie with well-funded mercs and evil scientists. Lots of fun! I think this is one case where more, as in a longer length of story, would have served this tale well. Maybe we’ll find out exactly where that panther got to in a sequel.

Until next time, enjoy a jungle-filled short story.

What is Ecotones?

ECOTONES is an anthology of speculative fiction featuring fourteen tales from best-sellers, award-winners and nominees, established talents, and up-coming authors.

Ecotones exist wherever different ecosystems make contact. Where forest meets field… where the land meets the sea… where swamp gives way to jungle… where the surface descends beneath the ground… these are borders across which different ways of life come into conflict, and sometimes cooperation.

But in speculative fiction we might envision other borders: where the mundane meets the fantastical. Where countries clash and cultures mix. Where technology is joined to flesh. Where the known meets the unknown. These are ecotones of the imagination — where anything could happen.

Featuring the work of Ken Liu, Lauren Beukes and Tobias S. Buckell, as well as eleven stories from members of SFFWorld.com’s writing community, ECOTONES is a collection like no other — a point of contact between fantasy and science fiction with a timely environmental theme.

If you’d like to follow along, Ecotones is available for free in Kindle Unlimited. Check it out.

All the best,

Nila

I’m going to Seattle Worldcon 2025!

Not for the whole thing, but I’ll be attending the Seattle Worldcon this coming weekend. My husband and I will arrive on Friday morning. I’m excited about attending panels and lectures! I have my whole weekend booked.

If you’re going, hit me up in the events Guidebook app! You can find me under my author name: N. E. White.

I look forward to learning and connecting with other indie authors, and getting a chance to enjoy Seattle this time of year (always gorgeous).

Until then, safe travels,

Nila

Ecotones Review #6

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the publication of Ecotones: Ecological Stories from the Border Between Fantasy and Science Fiction, I’m reviewing all fourteen (14) short stories. Start here to read all mini-reviews.

And you guessed it, this is the sixth story in this ecology-related short story collection.

Stochasti-city by Tobias S. Buckell (another award winner)

I must admit, though I enjoyed the voice and quick pace in Stochasti-city, the story as a whole left me… blah. This rather long, short story told in first-person follows a bouncer as he navigates near-future Detroit in all its grittiness. Think: corporate take over of pretty much everything and on the brink of environmental disasters–perfectly inline with the theme of this collection.

Mr. Buckell does an excellent job of immersing us in a new world of Eddies (the corporate cops), turks (a term used to describe a task or job anonymously assigned or the person doing such tasks), and eco-freaks (that’s us!). We follow our bouncer through this world as he tries to get paid, but he finds himself falling deeper into a conspiracy that aims to change the world for the better.

The story is well done, but I did find myself wondering when the author would get to the point. The ultimate payoff didn’t seem worth the setup. And it all felt very tired. As if we’d read this kind of story over and over again. But I’m just one reader. Maybe I’m jaded, and don’t really think we can overturn our corporate overlords.

No matter, the story is very well written. The author uses some inventive words you can easily see becoming a part of our lexicon today. Mr. Buckell wrote this story over ten years ago and it still feels relevant today. As a matter of fact, turks are all over. We just call them “gig workers.”

Until next time, enjoy a revolutionary short story.

What is Ecotones?

ECOTONES is an anthology of speculative fiction featuring fourteen tales from best-sellers, award-winners and nominees, established talents, and up-coming authors.

Ecotones exist wherever different ecosystems make contact. Where forest meets field… where the land meets the sea… where swamp gives way to jungle… where the surface descends beneath the ground… these are borders across which different ways of life come into conflict, and sometimes cooperation.

But in speculative fiction we might envision other borders: where the mundane meets the fantastical. Where countries clash and cultures mix. Where technology is joined to flesh. Where the known meets the unknown. These are ecotones of the imagination — where anything could happen.

Featuring the work of Ken Liu, Lauren Beukes and Tobias S. Buckell, as well as eleven stories from members of SFFWorld.com’s writing community, ECOTONES is a collection like no other — a point of contact between fantasy and science fiction with a timely environmental theme.

If you’d like to follow along, Ecotones is available for free in Kindle Unlimited. Check it out.

All the best,

Nila

Want to improve your writing? Take a hike.

No one ever asks me about my writing process. Hmm, I wonder why… Maybe because my writing sucks?

Yikes. Okay, maybe I shouldn’t wonder. It’ll just make me depressed.

But I digress.

While no one ever asks me, I see a lot of articles and posts about the subject. How to create your writing process. Why you should establish a writing process. What a writing process should look like. And more.

It’s kind of annoying.

The fact is, everyone is different. What works for one person’s creativity can thwart someone else. If you’re an adult and haven’t figured out what works for you to get the words down, I can’t help you.

Of course, you didn’t ask for my help, did you?

Whatever. I’m just rambling here. Free flowing.

Did I have a point?

Yes! I did. Here it is:

If you ever feel stuck in your writing, consider taking a hike.

Sonoma County in Springtime

You’ve probably heard that one before, but I can assure you this is true.

Physical activity, particularly taking a walk, hike, or running, really puts my mind at ease. I seem to shift into another mind-gear and things become clearer. Plot holes? Filled. Clunky sentences or transitions? Solved. Not sure how my characters should react to an event? They tell me. (In my head, of course.)

As I huff and puff up a trail, the solutions that alluded me while I sat in my chair, come from the recesses of my mind–as if the answers were there all along. I just needed to get out of the way.

Want to improve your writing? I suggest integrating a walking session into your schedule. The same as you plan for your writing sprints, add in a walk around the block. Remember to take a notebook and pencil, or your phone with your favorite note-taking app open and ready to go.

Until next time, enjoy an amble and write your best idea,

Nila

Somewhere in New Zealand… I think.

Ecotones Review #5

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the publication of Ecotones: Ecological Stories from the Border Between Fantasy and Science Fiction, I’m reviewing all fourteen (14) short stories. Start here to read all mini-reviews.

And you guessed it, this is the fifth story in this ecology-related short story collection.

Green Man by P. J. Richards (great author, look her up!)

Best line:

I didn’t understand the nature of the legacy we all carry inside us.

The Green Man tells a story about a budding (no pun intended) colony on a desolate planet.

While it can technically be called a sci-fi story, you wouldn’t know it from the language Ms. Richard uses in this sad tale of opportunity lost. Because it is such a short and punchy piece, I don’t want to give away too much, but suffice to say that I had a hard time deciding which among the many lines I highlighted I should call the “best.” Really, it’s a joy to read for the vivid imagery and thought-provoking prose.

But not for the story.

I have to admit, though it ends on “growth,” suicide (trigger warning launched) plays a large role in the Green Man. At this time in my life, I found it… not hard to read, but… distasteful–despite Ms. Richard’s excellent handling of the subject.

Regardless, an interesting piece I may go back to simply because of how well the author paints a picture with words.

Until next time, enjoy a sad short story.

What is Ecotones?

ECOTONES is an anthology of speculative fiction featuring fourteen tales from best-sellers, award-winners and nominees, established talents, and up-coming authors.

Ecotones exist wherever different ecosystems make contact. Where forest meets field… where the land meets the sea… where swamp gives way to jungle… where the surface descends beneath the ground… these are borders across which different ways of life come into conflict, and sometimes cooperation.

But in speculative fiction we might envision other borders: where the mundane meets the fantastical. Where countries clash and cultures mix. Where technology is joined to flesh. Where the known meets the unknown. These are ecotones of the imagination — where anything could happen.

Featuring the work of Ken Liu, Lauren Beukes and Tobias S. Buckell, as well as eleven stories from members of SFFWorld.com’s writing community, ECOTONES is a collection like no other — a point of contact between fantasy and science fiction with a timely environmental theme.

If you’d like to follow along, Ecotones is available for free in Kindle Unlimited. Check it out.

All the best,

Nila

Ecotones Review #4

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the publication of Ecotones: Ecological Stories from the Border Between Fantasy and Science Fiction, I’m reviewing all fourteen (14) short stories. Start here to read all mini-reviews.

As the title of this post suggests, we are on the fourth story in this ecology-related short story collection.

Seeds by a Hurricane Torn by Daniel Ausema (another award-winning author)

Best line:

The world was bigger and stranger than he knew.

In stark contrast to previous story in this collection, The Green by Lauren Beukes, which was a fast paced sci-fi corporate thriller (sort of), Seeds by a Hurricane Torn doesn’t come in like a hurricane. Or maybe it does in the sense that it slowly builds over the course of the story before delivering a stunning ending.

This story is pure fantasy and follows a young porters dramatic revelation as he travels with a university expedition to a devastated site that once housed his family’s ancestral home. However, the land and the magical plants cultivated there have been severely impacted by the storm. It is in tatters are the destroyed and salted gardens that cultivated the land’s magic.

But slowly, over the course of the short story, we discover along with young porter that at the edge of the sea, the world is indeed bigger and stranger than any of us could know.

Seeds by a Hurricane Torn is a quiet and steady story. It’s strength is not its speed to the punchline, but rather the immersive magical seaside world the story is set in, and the ideas presented by the end of the story.

The story asks: After devastating climatic changes, is restoring and rebuilding the right thing to do? Or will the resilience of the world offer strange and wonderous solutions? In this story, at least, those questions are answered.

Until next time, enjoy a strange short story tackling some big questions.

What is Ecotones?

ECOTONES is an anthology of speculative fiction featuring fourteen tales from best-sellers, award-winners and nominees, established talents, and up-coming authors.

Ecotones exist wherever different ecosystems make contact. Where forest meets field… where the land meets the sea… where swamp gives way to jungle… where the surface descends beneath the ground… these are borders across which different ways of life come into conflict, and sometimes cooperation.

But in speculative fiction we might envision other borders: where the mundane meets the fantastical. Where countries clash and cultures mix. Where technology is joined to flesh. Where the known meets the unknown. These are ecotones of the imagination — where anything could happen.

Featuring the work of Ken Liu, Lauren Beukes and Tobias S. Buckell, as well as eleven stories from members of SFFWorld.com’s writing community, ECOTONES is a collection like no other — a point of contact between fantasy and science fiction with a timely environmental theme.

If you’d like to follow along, Ecotones is available for free in Kindle Unlimited. Check it out.

All the best,

Nila

Ecotones Review #3

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the publication of Ecotones: Ecological Stories from the Border Between Fantasy and Science Fiction, I’m reviewing all fourteen (14) short stories. Start here to read all mini-reviews.

As the title of this post suggests, we are on the third story in this ecology-related short story collection.

The Green by Lauren Beukes (award-winning author)

Best line:

We weren’t used to nature. We didn’t know how hungry it was.

This story is bleak. Our first person narrator is a snarky, underprivileged biotech worker strip-mining flowers and other plant material on a distant planet. The conditions are not quite horrendous, but the diseases potentially contracted from the local fauna are the stuff of horror.

In The Green, Ms. Beukes does a great job of quickly setting the scene for us in this sci-fi eco-thriller while immersing us into a dangerous tropical world where “disposable” humans are used to “advance” technology.

It truly is bleak. But after reading each cringe-worthy line, I can easily draw parallels to events that have happened, and are happening, to those that are easily ignored, those underpaid, uneducated, and unseen workers on the “forefront” of civilization.

Another great line:

What’s better than a dead zombie? I live one.

The only drawback is a little technology disconnect. I think if Ms. Beukes wrote this today, she’d add some AI-operated robots into the treacherous mix, but only because they’d be cheaper and less trouble than a screaming human. With that said, it’s a flawlessly written horror sci-fi short story that will make you question all the cool technology we take for granted.

Until next time, enjoy (gulp!) a short story.

What is Ecotones?

ECOTONES is an anthology of speculative fiction featuring fourteen tales from best-sellers, award-winners and nominees, established talents, and up-coming authors.

Ecotones exist wherever different ecosystems make contact. Where forest meets field… where the land meets the sea… where swamp gives way to jungle… where the surface descends beneath the ground… these are borders across which different ways of life come into conflict, and sometimes cooperation.

But in speculative fiction we might envision other borders: where the mundane meets the fantastical. Where countries clash and cultures mix. Where technology is joined to flesh. Where the known meets the unknown. These are ecotones of the imagination — where anything could happen.

Featuring the work of Ken Liu, Lauren Beukes and Tobias S. Buckell, as well as eleven stories from members of SFFWorld.com’s writing community, ECOTONES is a collection like no other — a point of contact between fantasy and science fiction with a timely environmental theme.

If you’d like to follow along, Ecotones is available for free in Kindle Unlimited. Check it out.

By the way…

I’m running a sale this weekend on the entire Mapmaker Trilogy–only 99 cents each! It’s a steal. For less than $3 (much less in pounds or euros), you’ll get an entire weekend (or more) of fantasy adventure. If you enjoy flying species, a rich immersive fantasy world, and a heroine that ultimately triumphs, check out Mapmaker today.

And if you’ve already gotten it (or not interested), maybe someone you know might be? Please consider sending this email (or the link) along to them. Price will go up (to a measly $2.99) on Monday.

Latest review says:

…I was completely hooked. The plot moved quickly, and I couldn’t put it down. I read it fast and was truly captivated by the world and the characters.

All the best,

Nila

Ecotones Review #2

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the publication of Ecotones: Ecological Stories from the Border Between Fantasy and Science Fiction, I’m reviewing all fourteen (14) short stories.

I reviewed the first one last week (link here).

Let’s take a quick gander at the second story in this eco-related anthology.

Inundated by Jonathan Laidlow

Best line:

The Marines pulled him out of the water with a cheeriness that suggested they had expected him to attempt to take his own life.

Not prophetic or anything, but this story reminds me of the current flooding devastation in Texas.

Though, really, it is nothing like that.

Inundated is about old love, forbidden love, family love–and how far you will go to keep that love close. The story centers around Yuri in a town becoming inundated by the sea. But it’s not just about the water come to claim streets and buildings, but also the complicated relationship it has with people.

Mr. Laidlow’s writing is immediate and immersive. The story will tug at your heart. But while a tale of devasting change, like the unrelenting sea, it offers hope for a different world than the one that came before. Read it today.

Until next time, enjoy a short story.

What is Ecotones?

“ECOTONES is an anthology of speculative fiction featuring fourteen tales from best-sellers, award-winners and nominees, established talents, and up-coming authors.

Ecotones exist wherever different ecosystems make contact. Where forest meets field… where the land meets the sea… where swamp gives way to jungle… where the surface descends beneath the ground… these are borders across which different ways of life come into conflict, and sometimes cooperation.

But in speculative fiction we might envision other borders: where the mundane meets the fantastical. Where countries clash and cultures mix. Where technology is joined to flesh. Where the known meets the unknown. These are ecotones of the imagination — where anything could happen.

Featuring the work of Ken Liu, Lauren Beukes and Tobias S. Buckell, as well as eleven stories from members of SFFWorld.com’s writing community, ECOTONES is a collection like no other — a point of contact between fantasy and science fiction with a timely environmental theme.”

In celebration of ten years in publication, I plan to review each story in a blog post.

If you’d like to follow along, Ecotones is available for free in Kindle Unlimited. Check it out.

Ecotones Review #1

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the publication of Ecotones: Ecological Stories from the Border Between Fantasy and Science Fiction, I’m reviewing all fourteen (14) short stories.

Let’s begin with the first!

The Silva by Rebecca Schwarz

This volume of immersive short stories starts with an interesting and, okay, I’m gonna say it, bizarre tale. We follow a young woman as she navigates the breakup of a long term relationship during a time when questionable encounters throughout the city are reported. Then she meets a dog, but not an ordinary dog. Rather, it is a “silva”. We never really find out exactly what that is, but we do know it is something between, reaching out across the universe for answers just like we are.

Woman and dog go on an adventure that will pit them against challenges neither expect. To say more will detract from the otherworldliness, but it ends on a very sweet and hopeful note, highlighting the better part of human nature.

It’s a hopeful message we sorely need in these times.

Until next time, enjoy a short story.

What is Ecotones?

“ECOTONES is an anthology of speculative fiction featuring fourteen tales from best-sellers, award-winners and nominees, established talents, and up-coming authors.

Ecotones exist wherever different ecosystems make contact. Where forest meets field… where the land meets the sea… where swamp gives way to jungle… where the surface descends beneath the ground… these are borders across which different ways of life come into conflict, and sometimes cooperation.

But in speculative fiction we might envision other borders: where the mundane meets the fantastical. Where countries clash and cultures mix. Where technology is joined to flesh. Where the known meets the unknown. These are ecotones of the imagination — where anything could happen.

Featuring the work of Ken Liu, Lauren Beukes and Tobias S. Buckell, as well as eleven stories from members of SFFWorld.com’s writing community, ECOTONES is a collection like no other — a point of contact between fantasy and science fiction with a timely environmental theme.”

In celebration of ten years in publication, I plan to review each story in a blog post.

If you’d like to follow along, Ecotones is available for free in Kindle Unlimited. Check it out.