211 ratings | 1 review | avg rating:4.11

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Collin Piprell

Goodreads Author

Born

Canada

Website

http://www.collinpiprell.com/

Twitter

collinpiprell

Genre

Science Fiction, Thriller, Humor and Comedy

Member Since

July 2010

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Collin Piprell is a Canadian writer and editor living in Thailand. He has also lived in England, where he did graduate work as a Canada Council Doctoral Fellow (later, a Social Sciences and Humanities Fellow) in politics and philosophy at Pembroke College, Oxford; and in Kuwait, where he learned to sail, waterski, and make a credible red wine in plastic garbage bins.

In earlier years, he worked at a wide variety of occupations, including four jobs as a driller and stope leader in mines and tunnels in Ontario and Quebec. In later years he taught writing courses at Thammasat University, Bangkok, freelanced as a writer and editor, and published hundreds of articles on a wide variety of topics (most of these pieces are pre-digital, hence effect ...more

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What’s the best thing about being a writer?

Collin Piprell As a writer I get to engage with activities and ideas that interest me and, sometimes, synthesize these in the course of spinning stories. Whatever I …moreAs a writer I get to engage with activities and ideas that interest me and, sometimes, synthesize these in the course of spinning stories. Whatever I learn, and however I learn it, tends in some often pre-articulate way to shape my overall fiction project—both the books I’m writing and those I’m hoping to write in future.

Another pleasure: as I draft and revise fiction I learn more and more about the craft of writing and the art of making prose as readable as I can.

Being a writer can also enrich the experience of reading. Not that I tend to read fiction very analytically, but I can’t help but appreciate good writing on levels I might not see if I hadn’t faced similar challenges in my own writing.

But the real payoff as a writer, at least for me, comes after I’ve been banging my head against some story for days, frustrated with my wooden prose and dumb ideas. Then one morning I go straight to my computer of clipboard and start churning stuff I must’ve been struggling with all night long, on some unconscious level. It can be magical; I have no idea where some of it comes from. This may be the experience that, all those thousands of years ago, inspired the legend of the Muse.
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How do you get inspired to write?

Collin Piprell Being a fiction writer sensitizes you to finding inspiration almost anywhere. An idea for a character, a bit of color, a snatch of dialogue, an intere…moreBeing a fiction writer sensitizes you to finding inspiration almost anywhere. An idea for a character, a bit of color, a snatch of dialogue, an interesting metaphor, and arresting idea or fact — any of these things can in itself feel pregnant with story. Often I have no idea where the words are leading me, yet I’m confident on a gut level that, if only I persevere, the story will emerge.

That makes a good argument for jotting such obervations down and keeping them somewhere to hand.
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Collin Piprell’s books

Average rating: 3.45 · 204 ratings · 27 reviews · 15 distinct works

	Kicking Dogs 3.54 avg rating — 24 ratings — published 1991 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bangkok Knights 3.92 avg rating — 13 ratings — published 1989 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	MOM (Magic Circles Book 1) 3.50 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 2009 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Too Many Women it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 2 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Yawn: A Thriller 3.33 avg rating — 3 ratings — published 2000	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Genesis 2.0 really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 1 rating — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bangkok Old Hand: A Collection Of Stories liked it 3.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Genesis 2.0 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Genesis 2.0 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Nixon et autres oiseaux exotiques 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Collin Piprell is now friends with Kirsten Marion
Dec 08, 2021 08:30PM · like
Collin Piprell made a comment on Peter’s review of Resurrections " Peter wrote: "Collin wrote: "So much for my working title for the third novel in the Magic Circles series. :)" Ah! What a drag. Why didn't you ask Beld ...more "
Jul 23, 2021 08:29PM · see review
Collin Piprell rated a book it was amazing Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I admire Ishiguro in part for his willingness to set himself new challenges, and I find each of his novels presents a pleasing surprise. In Klara, he tackles difficult and timely themes, with some of his most interesting observations concerning both ...more
Jun 15, 2021 11:01PM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Collin Piprell rated a book really liked it Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 15, 2021 10:58PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Collin Piprell rated a book really liked it Number9Dream by David Mitchell	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jun 15, 2021 10:58PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Number9Dream by David Mitchell. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Number9Dream by David Mitchell <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Collin Piprell made a comment on Peter’s review of Genesis 2.0 " Haha. Ha. "
May 03, 2021 02:25AM · see review
Collin Piprell liked Peter's review of Genesis 2.0:
May 03, 2021 01:22AM · see review
Collin Piprell wants to read Genesis 2.0 by Collin Piprell (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 03, 2021 01:21AM · like