Helen Lowe's Blog, page 28
March 1, 2023
On Supernatural Underground Now: Celebrating The ‘Band of Brothers” in Fantasy #2
“I know” – March! The year is already flying by – but that does mean we’re getting to the first of the month and moar Supernatural Underground goodness more quickly!
(All of which is not to overlook some of the other great posts in the meantime, to which end, check out the links below.)
Meanwhile, back to my Band of Brothers theme. 
Last month I discussed the prevalence of the “band of brothers” in myth and legend, folklore and fairytale, and its unsurprising transition into the fantasy genre – ...
February 26, 2023
The Tao of Writing: ‘The Book That Can Be Spoken of Is Not the Book’ (Reprised, Sort-Of)
Recently, when addressing (the great!) Margaret Atwood’s “a word after a word after a word is power” I also quoted Lao Tzu’s “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”, relating it to how a book begins and ends with a single word.
(But oh my, it’s the betwixt and in-between of that first and last word, dear friends, as we – that’s me and thee, not the royal we 
– know all too well!)
All of which, together with another recent refeature on Writing As Vocation, put me in mind of a...
February 22, 2023
Fun With Friends: Photos #3 & #4 From Marion Drolsbach
Marion Drolsbach, translator extraordinaire 
Just a reminder in case you’ve missed instalments #1 and #2, but this post series is featuring photos taken by Marion Drolsbach when she visited NZ late last year.
Marion is a book translator and we e-met when she translated The Heir of Night into Dutch. She is also a keen photographer and the photos were taken at the mouth of one of Canterbury’s many braided rivers.
As mentioned last time, I particularly love the bird life we saw that day – and toda...
February 19, 2023
What I’m Reading: “Nona the Ninth” (Locked Tomb #3) by Tamsyn Muir
It’s over two years now since I featured Tamsyn Muir’s Gideon the Ninth (Locked Tomb #1) in my worldbuilding series on Supernatural Underground.
Since then I’ve read Harrow the Ninth (but just didn’t get around to posting on it — mea culpa!) Today, though, I’m reporting in on Nona the Ninth, Book Three in the Locked Tomb series.
Nona picks up right where Harrow left off, re-immersing readers in the Locked Tomb’s space-spanning world of necromancers and lyctors, undead legions and Re...
February 15, 2023
About The Characters: Meet The Minor Players In “The Wall Of Night” Series — Meet Mykon Ambard
USA
The About The Characters post series focuses on the minor characters in The Wall Of Night series, in large part because:
“I think it’s the presence of the smaller characters that “makes” a story, creating texture around the main points of view.”
~ from my Legend Award Finalist’s Interview, 2013
Initially, the series focused exclusively on characters from The Heir of Night, but now I’m continuing on with minor characters from both The Gathering Of The Lost and Daughter of Blood — in alphabeti...
February 12, 2023
Thoughts On A Book Quote by Margaret Atwood
~*~
Kate Forsyth identifi
es this as one of her favourite writing quotes and it does resonate with me as well. Especially right now when “a word after a word after a word” is exactly how I’m getting the work-in-progress and WALL series done — as discussed in the “mini update” two weeks ago.
I would probably add that the words need to be to some purpose, but I don’t think there’s any doubt of that in the case of either Margaret Atwood ...
February 8, 2023
On Supernatural Underground Now: Celebrating The “Band of Brothers” in Fantasy #1
Well, I mulled (as per my Happy New Year post) and I have decided on a theme for 2023 on Supernatural Underground (SU) — which as the title has doubtless already conveyed, is a closer look at the “and of brothers” in fantasy fiction.
Unfortunately I wasn’t in a good spot for loading blog posts on February 1, so postponed the initial post until Monday 6, but it’s definitely at the top o’ the SU masthead currently:
Honing In On 2023 — & Celebrating the “Band of Brothers” in Fantasy.
Tom Hiddleston...
February 5, 2023
What I’m Reading: “Dogside Story” by Patricia Grace
Today being Waitangi Day, it seems very fitting to be posting on a book by Patricia Grace.
I have talked about her writing here before, including in several other Waitangi Day posts over the years — unsurprisingly given she is one of New Zealand’s most well-known authors.
The book I’m focusing on today is Dogside Story, but I have been an enthusiast for Patricia Grace’s writing since reading her first novel, Mutuwhenua: the Moon Sleeps. I loved both the story and storytelling, but one of the re...
February 1, 2023
Fun With Friends: Photo #2 From Marion Drolsbach
Marion Drolsbach
On January 19, I commenced a mini post series featuring photos by Marion Drolsbach, The Heir of Night’s Dutch translator, taken on a recent visit to NZ.
We got to spend some time together, which was great, and these particular photos were taken at the mouth of one of Canterbury’s braided rivers.
It’s a favoured spot of mine, and one of the things I particularly like about it is the bird life. In that spirit, today’s photo is of a shore wading bird, the pied stilt.
Enjoy!
Pied st...
January 29, 2023
Writing On: A “Mini” WALL #4 Update
Marching on…
“Mini” because basically ’tis very short! The guts is that I’m still writing, still wrangling with muses and manuscript, and still in the “final boss fight and aftermath” stage, so although things are definitely happening I’m not at the tangible news stage yet.
As soon as I am, though, you can be sure I’ll report it here.
Otherwise it’s a case of head down and keep going. To paraphrase a Zen aphorism (which I believe may be Confucian in origin):
“The writing is easy: keep going; the...
