Helen Lowe's Blog, page 8

Great Leaders in Speculative Fiction — New for 2025 on Supernatural Underground

Made it! The switch from posting on the first day to the second of the month on Supernatural Underground, that is — and with a post theme for 2025.

As the title indicates, it’s Great Leaders — and by implication, leadership — in Speculative Fiction, subtitled Where to Find ‘Em and Why They Rock.

There’s the classics — but I’m not starting here…

The ‘locale’ part being the particular book or series where the said leader lurks, and the ‘Why They Rock’ the raison d’etre of the posts. Both in term...

An Update On The Update

So-o, last time I did an update, I signaled that: “In terms of where to from here, my aim is to get to the end of the current section, at which point I’ll do another update.”

As I’m not quite there yet, this is “not an update.”

I am, however, getting very close, with just a few puzzle pieces left to fit together, so (fingers crossed!) it should be the update soon.

My metaphorical abode until it’s done!
Art by Peter Fitzpatrick

What’s Up on Supernatural Underground?

Some great new posts for 2025, that’s what!

So far, Amanda Arista has posted on Coming Back From The Dead With Some Big Questions – chiefly the perennial “Why Write?” and also why writing paranormal urban fantasy in general, and Shifter tales in particular, rocks her world.

There’s also a great post from Kim Falconer on the Art of Adaptation, with a particular focus on fantasy novels being adapted for the screen in 2025.

Both are well worth a read – as is the From The Backlist post on Characte...

A Touch Of Summer

Here’s a touch of summer for those of you enduring winter cold, or just weathering return-to-work blues.

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Oh, that green and blue…

What I Watched Over The Holidays

That title does evoke early childhood memories.   But the recent holiday did give me the opportunity to watch more shows than everyday time allows.

First off the blocks was Arcane, Season Two. I really enjoyed Season One (having been alerted to its goodness by fellow Supernatural Underground author, Kim Falconer) so I was looking forward to the second. And I did enjoy it, just not quite so much as the first season.

The graphics were fabulous and I loved—and love—the characters, but was pretty m...

Meet Paran: Meet the Minor Players in “The Wall Of Night” Series

USA

Posting an ‘About the Characters‘ instalment certainly feels as if I’m picking up the threads of the new year and reestablishing routines, after what proved to be a very full-on holiday period. A case of returning to the writing desk for a rest—or less hectic rushing about, at least.

Just to run over the “Meet the Minor Players” drill it focuses on the minor (or more correctly—sometimes anyway—“more minor”) characters in The Wall Of Night series because:

“I think it’s the presence of the sm...

Ah, True Dat — A Writing Quote from Victor Hugo

“A writer is a world trapped in a person.”

~ Victor Hugo, 1802 – 1805

Or sometimes — or so it feels, inside the writing life — many worlds trapped in a person, all contending to get out.

As for Victor Hugo, he needs no introduction at all beyond Les Misérables and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Since he knew a thing or two about writing, we may accept his wisdom, if not (necessarily) the opines of yours truly.

My 2024 “Reads O’ The Year”

“I know” — one is supposed to post on these matters before the clock ticks over from the old year into the new. But I, alas, am behindhand again.

In terms of my “Reads o’ the Year”, I focus on those books that leap out when I cast my mind back over the many I’ve read and enjoyed. In 2024, there were three clear standouts, starting with:

The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper by Roland Allen

The link to my in-depth, August 26 post is here.

Here, too, is a small sample of what I had to say:...

“Heat” — A Poem for Summer, Reprised for Kim Falconer :)

Heat

Birds wheel, raucous

on the cool air

that will shortly burn away

as sun muscles

through the tracery of leaves

outside my window, its

heat hurled like arrows

shot by some elder god,

harsher than the cacophony

of birds darting

through the green, their wings

limned against a blue

that is already transmuting

from crystal to crucible

as dawn evaporates

into the vanishing point

of summer…
.

© Helen Lowe

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The current NZ summer is under the sway of the sou’wester, which means it’s cool and bleak —...

Happy New Year!

I know, I know — I’m a day late. And posting late in the day as well, but it’s still holidays so that must count as my excuse.

The sun rises on a new year

I did post on Supernatural Underground for 1 January, but I haven’t decided on a theme yet so just contented myself with the traditional good wishes. For now — which you may take as either threat or promise.

In the meantime, just in case you missed it, Kim (Falconer, that is) completed her ‘Choose Your Weapon’ series with a finale on Espiona...