Adam Heine's Blog, page 25
June 25, 2012
Books I Read: The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Title: The Maze Runner
Author: James Dashner
Genre: YA Science Fiction/Dystopian
Published: 2009
My Content Rating: PG-13 for violence
Cliffhanger Ending: YES
Thomas wakes up in a dark elevator with no memories of who he is or what he's doing there. He emerges in the middle of a giant maze, surrounded by boys who have likewise been stripped of his memories. They've spent the last two years trying to escape, while struggling against the creatures that live in the maze. But Thomas is differ...
June 22, 2012
Leviathan Fan Art
This is probably my favorite thing I've ever drawn for Anthdrawlogy, and not just because Scott Westerfeld posted it on his blog.
Okay, yeah, maybe it is because of that.
What's your favorite mythological monster? I think mine's the kraken, but I bet one of you can name one I like even more.
Okay, yeah, maybe it is because of that.
What's your favorite mythological monster? I think mine's the kraken, but I bet one of you can name one I like even more.
June 20, 2012
Blog Growth: 2012
About a year ago, I took a look at the growth of this blog, what I thought was working and wasn't. It looks like a heck of a lot has changed in a year.
WHAT GETS HITS
(1) Google Bait
I don't intentionally write Google bait, but the vast majority of daily hits come here from Google. They come looking for images of steampunk, board games, Lord of the Rings, Dune, and various classic novels (assuming those last two are students looking for an easy book report: let me know what grade I'm getti...
WHAT GETS HITS
(1) Google Bait
I don't intentionally write Google bait, but the vast majority of daily hits come here from Google. They come looking for images of steampunk, board games, Lord of the Rings, Dune, and various classic novels (assuming those last two are students looking for an easy book report: let me know what grade I'm getti...
June 18, 2012
About E-Readers and Free Books
One of the interesting things about the e-pocalypse is the proliferation of free books. Plenty of smart authors -- self-published and otherwise -- are releasing free books into the wild as a promotional effort.
In theory, this is a great idea. Heck, in practice it's probably a great idea, but I've noticed something about the free books on my Kindle.
I forget about them.
Seriously. I mean not all the time, and not forever. But yeah, most of the time: I hear about a free book; if it sounds...
June 15, 2012
Books I Read: The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
Title: The Knife of Never Letting Go
Author: Patrick Ness
Genre: YA Science Fiction/Dystopian
Published: 2008
My Content Rating: R for violence and effing language (except he doesn't say effing)
Todd has grown up his whole life being able to hear everyone else's thoughts, and having everyone else hear his. A germ that hit before Todd was born killed all the women, and the men who survived couldn't keep their thoughts to themselves. But it turns out you can keep secrets even if you know eve...
June 13, 2012
When Characters Are Too Safe
(Remix)
So, you're watching The Incredibles.
You get to the part of the climax where the giant robot knocks Violet
out and is about to crush her. Is it tense? Are you afraid Violet might
die? Well, a little, but deep down you know that something will happen
at the last second to save her. Why? Because she's safe. She's a major
character -- and a child at that -- in a movie in which nobody has yet
died on-screen.
For The Incredibles,
that's no big deal. We don't need the added tension of "som...
So, you're watching The Incredibles.
You get to the part of the climax where the giant robot knocks Violet
out and is about to crush her. Is it tense? Are you afraid Violet might
die? Well, a little, but deep down you know that something will happen
at the last second to save her. Why? Because she's safe. She's a major
character -- and a child at that -- in a movie in which nobody has yet
died on-screen.
For The Incredibles,
that's no big deal. We don't need the added tension of "som...
June 11, 2012
So You're Thinking About Quitting Your Blog
Every time I see a blog shutdown, or hear someone lament how nobody reads blogs anymore, I get all worried. "Is my blog a waste of time? Should I focus my energy somewhere else, like Tumblr or Pinterest or dear-God-anything-but-Google-Plus?"
I don't think this blog is a waste (and your response to our family's emergency a couple of weeks ago just proves it to me). Blogs are basically the same as all the other places online. It's just a matter of how people interact and whether you prefer to...
I don't think this blog is a waste (and your response to our family's emergency a couple of weeks ago just proves it to me). Blogs are basically the same as all the other places online. It's just a matter of how people interact and whether you prefer to...
June 8, 2012
The Downside of Critiquing
Critiquing others' work has a lot of things going for it.
It helps you identify weak points in your own writing. You know that whole plank/speck thing? All those things you can't see in your own writing are easier to see in someone else's. And the cool thing is, the more you do it, the more likely you are to catch them in your own work.
It helps you learn from people's strengths. Like, I'm terrible with the descriptions. So when I'm critiquing for someone whose good at them, I'm all, "Oo,...
June 6, 2012
Getting Unstuck
I've been working on revisions for Post-Apoc Ninjas, and it's been taking way too long. I once again have questioned whether I really should be writing, whether I deserve an agent, whether Air Pirates is some kind of one-hit wonder. I keep thinking if Air Pirates doesn't make it, Ninjas will be my next shot. Which means it has to be not just as good as Air Pirates, but better. And it's not.
But that's totally unfair. Of course it's not better. I've been working on Air Pirates for 4 years. It...
But that's totally unfair. Of course it's not better. I've been working on Air Pirates for 4 years. It...
June 4, 2012
Books I Read: Quiet: The Power of Introverts by Susan Cain
(For those of you wondering how our daughter is doing, here is the latest update. Now back to our regularly scheduled blog post.)
Title: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Con't Stop Talking
Author: Susan Cain
Genre: Non-Fiction
Published: 2012
My Content Rating: G
If you are an introvert who grew up in America, you very likely felt like there was something wrong with you. Like you should speak up more in class, make more friends, be more popular, assert yourself to get what y...
Title: Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Con't Stop Talking
Author: Susan Cain
Genre: Non-Fiction
Published: 2012
My Content Rating: G
If you are an introvert who grew up in America, you very likely felt like there was something wrong with you. Like you should speak up more in class, make more friends, be more popular, assert yourself to get what y...
