Phil Giunta's Blog, page 44
March 30, 2018
Book Review: Robert A. Heinlein’s Assignment in Eternity
Arguably some of Heinlein’s best short fiction, Assignment in Eternity offers four fantastic tales including:
“Gulf” – A secret agent named Gilead is rescued from captivity by a clandestine organization of highly trained supermen and women. Although they seem nefarious at first, Gilead soon realizes that they are, in fact, noble and agrees to join them. After being trained in their ways, he undertakes a mission to stop a weapon of mass destruction.
“Elsewhen” – A university professor engages five students in an experiment to travel to across space and time merely by the power of hypnotism, opening portals to strange and distant worlds, one of which is engulfed in war with an alien race while the other is a serene paradise of godlike beings.
“Lost Legacy” – A physician, a psychologist, and a parapsychologist manage to tap into their latent abilities of clairvoyance, telepathy, levitation, and telekinesis. Soon after, they find themselves drawn to Mount Shasta in Northern California where they encounter a group of mystics who have long ago mastered such abilities and are waiting for the right opportunity to reveal themselves to the world in the hopes of setting humanity on a path to enlightenment. First, they must overcome evil forces as ancient and powerful as they, forces who wish to keep humanity ignorant and servile.
“Jerry was a Man” – A wealthy couple visits a genetic engineering firm where animals of almost any configuration can be manufactured. During a tour, the wife encounters a polite, elderly ape named Jerry who can speak, but is on death row as he has outlived his usefulness. She is appalled and demands to adopt Jerry, against the company’s policy. The situation escalates to a court hearing for the purpose of determining whether Jerry is entitled to the same rights as humans.
March 28, 2018
About This Writing Stuff…
This week, Jami Gold explains the role of a line editor while K.M. Weiland cautions us about using coincidence in our fiction. Gill Andrews offers advice to improve your author website (I made some minor changes to this site as soon as I read his article!).
After nine novels, soon ten, Jeff VanderMeer shares eight insights into the writing process. Over at Mythcreants, Oren Ashkenazi analyzes Kurt Vonnegut’s Eight Rules of Writing and presents common pitfalls of deep story ideas.
All that and a little more… Enjoy!
How Useful are Kurt Vonnegut’s Eight Rules of Writing? and Five Common Pitfalls for Stories with Deep Ideas by Oren Ashkenazi
Inhabiting Our Scenes: Information Versus Experience by Peter Selgin
8 Writing Tips from Jeff VanderMeer via Chicago Review of Books
Want More Readers for Your Blog and Books? Fix These 5 Website Mistakes by Gill Andrews via Anne R. Allen
Zoom In, Zoom Out: An Exercise in Creating a Memorable Setting by Steven Cooper
How Long Should a Book Be? Word Count Guidelines by Anne R. Allen
Coincidences in Fiction: What You’re Doing Wrong by K.M. Weiland
What is Line Editing and What Should Line Editors Do? by Jami Gold
Complete Fiction: Why the ‘Short Story Renaissance’ is a Myth by Chris Power
This will be the last edition of About this Writing Stuff for the next six to eight weeks (at least). Over the next few months, I shall be busy prepping not one, but two new books for release while projects at my full time job threaten to consume much of my personal time. On top of all this, I have the first draft of a science fiction novel in progress that I am determined to finish this year. I’m treading water and the tide is rising. Hey, two clichés in one sentence. Go me!
March 20, 2018
Kickstarting A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS
I’m excited to announce the launch of the Kickstarter campaign for A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS, an upcoming paranormal fiction anthology from Smart Rhino Publications.
My short story “Bottom of the Hour” will be included in this collection and I’m honored to be joining such an august body of writers including Jane Miller, Maria Masington, Billie Sue Mosiman, Carson Buckingham, Greg Smith, Graham Masterton, Patrick Derrickson, Jeff Strand, Joanne M Reinbold, Jacob Jones-Goldstein, Gail Husch, Jasper E. Bark, Shannon Connor Winward, Jeff Markowitz, Patrick Conlon, Jennifer Loring, Justynn Tyme, Weldon Burge, Stephanie M. Wytovich, and more.
Our funding goal is modest and the various reward levels are fantastic. I hope you’ll take the time to explore our Kickstarter at the link above or click on the cover image below. We appreciate your support of small press authors!
March 16, 2018
Book Review: The Best Short Stories of the Modern Age selected by Douglas Angus
This superb collection of 20 stories gathers the work of such legends as Edgar Allan Poe, Ernest Hemingway, Shirley Jackson, Jean Paul Sartre, Franz Kafka, William Faulkner, James Joyce, D.H. Lawrence, Anton Chekhov, and more. I’d read about half of these stories in years past and was delighted to find just how much detail remained with me. My favorites included
“The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe – A deranged killer, sickened by an elderly man’s bulging eye, murders the man in the middle of the night and buries the body under the floorboards. He considers it a perfect crime, even when the police arrive, until he hears a ringing in his ears, which turns into a ticking, then a heartbeat…
“The Jewels” by Guy de Maupassant – A young clerk becomes annoyed at his wife’s penchant for collecting costume jewelry. When she passes away, he eventually takes to them to a jeweler for an appraisal…
“A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” by Ernest Hemingway – A lonely man refuses to leave the outdoor cafe he frequents—to the chagrin of one young exhausted waiter, but his coworker understands that there are those, desolate and unloved, who need a clean, well-lit place…
“The Rocking Horse Winner” by D.H. Lawrence – A young boy flawlessly predicts the winners of horse races by rocking on his hobby horse, but each time he must exert more effort until…
“The Devil and Daniel Webster” by Stephen Vincent Benét – A hapless farmer strikes a deal with the devil, but when it comes time to pay up, he reaches out to legendary farmer, lawyer, and patriot Daniel Webster to save his soul.
“A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner – An reclusive elderly woman, once popular in the town and a source of gossip, passes away, leaving behind a grisly revelation.
“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson – A small town, steeped in tradition, holds an annual lottery, but the winner is far from lucky.
“The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka – A young traveling salesman awakens one morning to find himself transformed into a giant cockroach.
“The Ledge” by Lawrence Sargent Hall – A fisherman and two boys venture out to a small island for Christmas morning for a day of duck hunting—until they find themselves stranded as high tide rushes in.
March 15, 2018
About This Writing Stuff…
This week, Anna Elliott offers three tips for “kicking your readers right in the feels” while Chris Winkle and Damon Suede explore various facets of character. Peter Selgin boils fiction down to two plot types and explains how to introduce foreshadowing in your story’s opening.
Juliet Marillier defines the fantasy genre, Blake Morrison delves into the often distressing burden of managing a deceased writer’s estate, and Olivia Mason presents a top-ten list of best works from one of my all-time favorite writers, Harlan Ellison.
All that and a little more… Enjoy!
3 Tips to Hook Your Reader’s Emotions by Anna Elliott
What Is Fantasy, Exactly? by Juliet Marillier
Take Cover! by John Gilstrap
The Six Traits of Strong Characters by Chris Winkle
Characters: More Than Just Imaginary People by Damon Suede via Jami Gold
How Works of Fiction Can Be Boiled Down to Two Types of Plots and How Your Story Opening Foreshadows What’s to Come by Peter Selgin
Up in Smoke: Should an Author’s Dying Wishes Be Obeyed? by Blake Morrison
The Best of the Best: 10 Must-Read Works by Harlan Ellison by Olivia Mason
Scam Down Under: Love of Books Brisbane / Julie “Jules” McGregor by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware
March 10, 2018
After Action Report: Monster Mania 39
Back from yet another Monster Mania Horror Convention and Autograph Show in Cherry Hill, NJ. My wife and I have been attending Monster Mania’s semi-annual cons for many years. We watched it grow from a small horror convention with a few guests to an extravaganza with several major headliners.
This year included Tim Curry, John Carpenter, Sean Astin, Joe Pantoliano, Kathleen Turner, Ally Sheedy, Richard Dreyfuss, and many more. Since I’d seen Richard Dreyfuss and Joe Pantoliano before–and was not about to deal with the lines for Tim Curry or John Carpenter–I focused on Sean Astin (Lord of the Rings, Goonies, Stranger Things 2, etc.), Kathleen Turner (Romancing the Stone, Jewel of there Nile, Peggy Sue Got Married, etc.), and Ally Sheedy (St. Elmo’s Fire, The Breakfast Club, Short Circuit, etc.).
While I was able to have my photo taken with Ally Sheedy and Kathleen Turner, there were no photos allowed with Sean Astin at his autograph table. Nevertheless, all three stars were wonderful to the fans, taking the time to chat and even give hugs! All told, it was a fantastic day despite the intense crowd, one of the largest in the convention’s history. It probably rivaled the March 2017 con, when John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale were the headliners.
March 7, 2018
About This Writing Stuff…
This week, Peter Selgin offers ideas on dramatizing the routine in your story, writer pal Donna Galanti shines light on how to build your author persona, and Sue Weems suggests ways to combat multitasking that will improve your writing and save your sanity.
Despite arguments to the contrary, author blogging is not dead according to Anne R. Allen, and she provides eight solid reasons why.
Struggling to avoid hackneyed methods to describe your first-person POV character? Laura DiSilverio has some advice for you while James Scott Bell wants to pump you up—or at least your prose—by showing you how to immerse your reader in both action and emotion.
All that and a little more… Enjoy!
Four Ways to Create Your Author Persona by Donna Galanti
How to Make the Best Use of “Routine” Events in Your Fiction by Peter Selgin via Jane Friedman
‘The ebook is a stupid product: no creativity, no enhancement,’ says the Hachette Group CEO by Harsimran Gill
‘Laughably bad’: Terry Goodkind Apologises After Insulting Cover of His Own Book by Sian Cain
Get Some Blood Pumping in Your Prose by James Scott Bell
Why Multitasking is Killing Your Writing by Sue Weems
How the Internet Archive Infringed My Copyrights and Then (Kind of) Blew Me Off by Victoria Strauss
8 Reasons to Start an Author Blog by Anne R. Allen
6 Tips for Describing a First Person POV Character by Laura DiSilverio
Facebook’s Algorithm has Wiped Out a Once Flourishing Digital Publisher by Mike Shields
March 1, 2018
The Plague is Coming!
Received an update this morning from Delaware-based Smart Rhino Publications about their upcoming horror anthology, A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS. This collection will include my paranormal tale, “Bottom of the Hour” about a young man, cursed with the ability to hear death approaching, who is talked into buying a haunted Camaro.
From Smart Rhino Publications Executive Editor Weldon Burge:
We’re now pulling together A PLAGUE OF SHADOWS: A WRITTEN REMAINS ANTHOLOGY. Smart Rhino Publications collaborated with the Written Remains Writers Guild to publish SOMEONE WICKED a few years ago. PLAGUE is our second collaboration. We intend to have a Kickstarter campaign to defray some of the costs.
Here are the current writers in the TOC:
Jane Miller
Maria Masington
Billie Sue Mosiman
Carson Buckingham
Phil Giunta
Greg Smith
Graham Masterton
Patrick Derrickson
Jeff Strand
JM Joanne M Reinbold
Jacob Jones-Goldstein
Gail Husch
Jasper E. Bark
Shannon Connor Winward
Jeff Markowitz
Patrick Conlon
Jennifer Loring
Justynn Tyme
Weldon Burge
Stephanie M. Wytovich
As with SOMEONE WICKED, we’re juxtaposing WR members with guest writers–and the content of the anthology so far is astounding!
February 23, 2018
About This Writing Stuff…
This week, Ava Jae looks at simple POV mistakes to avoid, while Jo Eberhart explains the difference between foreshadowing and callbacks and how each can be used in your story.
Over at the Kill Zone, James Scott Bell calls out writing flubs that throw readers out of stories, Mythcreant writer Oren Ashkenazi offers tips on creating immersive fantasy settings, and Susan Perabo expounds on a method for developing characters with background and experiences entirely different from our own.
All that and a little more. Enjoy!
10 Books Every Leader Should Read to Be Successful by Deep Patel
Amazon Author Insights – Understand Your Formatting Options by Honorée Corder
Is 99¢ Too Cheap a Price for Your Book? by Dana Isaacson
Different Kinds of POV Slips and How to Avoid Them by Ava Jae
Foreshadowing vs. Callbacks by Jo Eberhardt
Creating Fully Developed Fictional Characters (That Are Not Secretly You) by Susan Perabo
Stuff That Takes Readers Out of a Story by James Scott Bell
Six Tips to Make Your Fantasy Setting More Immersive by Oren Ashkenazi
The New Face of Vanity Anthologies: Z Publishing House and Appelley Publishing by Victoria Strauss
Agatha Christie was Investigated by MI5 Over Bletchley Park Mystery by Richard Norton-Taylor
February 17, 2018
Book Review: 50 Short Science Fiction Tales edited by Isaac Asimov and Groff Conklin
Typically when I review an anthology, I will enumerate my favorite stories and briefly provide a blurb about each one. In the case of 50 Short Science Fiction Tales—edited by the legendary Isaac Asimov and renowned anthologist Groff Conklin—that would be a daunting and tedious task.
Suffice it to say that like any collection, certain stories are better than others and this one is no exception. However, the majority of the entries are some combination of witty, engaging, chilling, thought provoking, or amusing. Of course, how could it be otherwise with such luminaries as Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, Robert Heinlein, C.M. Kornbluth, Robert Sheckley, Theodore Sturgeon, and A.E. Van Vogt, just to name a few.
Most of the stories here are no more than 3,000 words. The book opens with a short poem by Poul Anderson and closes with six haiku written by his wife, Karen. I highly recommend this anthology both to aficionados of the golden age of SF or as an introduction to many of the top talents of the time.
