Steven M. Moore's Blog, page 9

Friday Fiction (on a Wednesday): Aging Gracefully…

[Note from Steve: I’ve been remiss in offering these short stories and novellas. If anyone cares, I’ve been doing what the title says. (I hope…although, some who also read my political blog might argue that my retirement from running novelistic marathons is far from graceful!) In any case, I thought it was appropriate to end this series by returning to my intrepid Detective Rolando Castilblanco, one of my earliest creations. I hope you enjoy the story!]

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Aging Gracefully

Copyright 2024, Steve...

When is sci-fi actually fantasy?

Far too often!

The Star Wars series turned me off with its very first film (whatever number that was in their all-too-cute numbering scheme). I knew immediately that it was basically a fantasy filled with references to Japanese ninjas, Edgar Rice Burroughs’s characters (even the names!), and Isaac Asimov’s plot devices (the Foundation). Where were the lawyers at that time who went after plagiarists? (Or the ones even now?) Jedi warriors and fairy-tale princesses with light sabers? C’mon! (Okay, ...

Authors who are accomplices and/or complacent…

From 1984 to Atlas Shrugged and Ender’s Game, authors have stated their political positions. When their works take extreme positions and/or are morally extreme, one way or the other, readers and critics can react. All three novels just mentioned are political, debatable, but shouldn’t be banned.

This article applies not only to the past, however. In fact, it’s more about authors failing to state their positions now. As Tom Clancy, certainly a successful author if not a philosophical or political...

N. Scott Momaday…

Many professors influenced me in various ways as a student; among them: James Hartle, the young physicist who later often worked with Stephen Hawking; the old Jesuit priest who taught Latin American history (I forget his name—like Mr. Biden, this old author can forget a few things, but this priest didn’t avoid the scandals or fail to mention the many leaders who fathered so many illegitimate childdren—and he became the model for Bastiann van Coevorden’s priest involved in that Interpol agent’s m...

Pros and cons of first-person stories…

Last week’s post about James Patterson, Inc., reminded me of some of the pros and cons of first-person stories. They’re usually first-person past, with the main character or chronicler relating what happened, but they can be first-person present as well. They’re good for mystery, crime, and thriller stories when the author wants the reader to learn what’s going on in lock-step with the person telling the story.

It’s also good writing technique even in sci-fi for the same reason. I’m into the thi...

James Patterson, Inc.

Sorry, Mr. Patterson, I refuse to read your latest book. I haven’t read what comes off the assembly lines at James Patterson, Inc., in fact, for quite a while. You’ve continued to be like the greedy thesis adviser who puts his name first on an academic publication so he’ll get all the credit and citations, not his student; i.e., the second author’s name is below yours in small print…and for exactly the same reasons! Mr. Patterson, you haven’t written anything really original or interesting in a ...

Review of Adam Kinzinger’s Renegade…

Renegade. Adam Kinzinger, author (2023). Between Liz Cheney’s book (reviewed last week) and this one, the reader will have most of the full story of what led up to January 6, 2021 and what has come after in the years that followed, laying the foundation for holding DJT accountable for the mayhem and murder that occurred as a consequence of his futile attempt to lead a coup against the duly elected new president Joe Biden and American government in general. You will only need to add the select co...

Review of Liz Cheney’s Oath and Honor…

Oath and Honor. A Memoir and a Warning. Liz Cheney, author (2023). I have the official report from the January 6th Select Committee. While there are glimpses into the author’s political thoughts here in this book, I hasten to state that, like that committee’s report, her book is more a bipartisan indictment of the ex-president Donald J. Trump and proof that he’s a clear and present danger to democracy in America.

There are a few nits to pick besides those I might have about the author’s politica...

A good laugh provided by traditional publishers…

I had a good laugh when I read “A Character-Driven Approach to Diversifying Fiction” in the NY Times a while ago (12/10/2023 “Sunday Business” section). ‘Twas a report on a meeting hosted by Electric Postcard Entertainment, and it provided some comic relief from all the bad news related to that “f&^%ing moron” (not my quote but ex-SecState Tillerson’s—Il Duce, he of the imperious scowl, would have fired him if he hadn’t resigned). Not to belittle Dhonielle Clayton’s creativity (she leads the afo...

National settings versus international ones…

When writing her famous mystery stories, Agatha Christie must have had to decide whether her tale takes place in England or abroad. Death on the Nile, for example, has an international setting; Towards Zero has a national one.

Perhaps my choices about settings have  been easier than Christie’s in the sense that I had more options? I could go with the US, UK, countries in continental Europe, or others…or even outer space. (Many Dr. Carlos stories are sci-fi mysteries, as is part of Survivors of t...