Robyn Paterson's Blog, page 38
August 5, 2013
D.I.Y.O.F.S. Culture
(Warning! Incoming rant! Warning! Explicit Language!)
So yesterday, the new 12th Doctor Who was revealed. A Scotsman named Peter Capaldi will replace Matt Smith, and by all rights Capaldi is a fine actor who will do credit to the job. However, this being the internet, what almost immediately followed was a cascade of whining.
He’s too old!
He’s too male!
He’s too white!
And infinite variations of the above.
To this, I have two responses. One, fuck you. He’s fine, and you’ll prob...
July 4, 2013
Getting your Readers over the Infodump Hump!
“A spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down- in the most delightful way.”- Mary Poppins
In some of the writing forums I frequent, a very common situation comes up. A new (usually young) writer will come on, and ask if people will look at the first couple chapters of their new science fiction or fantasy novel and tell them if those chapters are any good.
Nine times out of ten (and I’m being generous with that statistic), the answer is that the chapters in question are complete crap. One of...
July 1, 2013
Why I Launched my New Novel Ascenion by Giving it Away For Free!
I blame Goodreads.
During the two years it took to write and prep my new novel Ascension, I worked hard to make sure that I could release the best product I could. I wanted it to be a book I could be proud of, and something that could start my journey as a writer on a positive foot. I also wanted it to be something I would be compensated for, after all, while I did it because I love writing, I also did it in hopes of making a little extra cash.
So, why did I give it away for free my opening wee...
June 29, 2013
Reminder- Ascension is Free this Weekend on Kindle!
Just a reminder that as a special new release promotion, I’ve put my first novel Ascension- A Novel of the Twin Stars up for free this weekend only on Kindle!
A young military officer and a space pirate find themselves caught up in missions that will either save humanity’s first Empire of the Stars or bring it to civil war. But is the Empire worth the cost of saving?
This post is from my blog at robynpaterson.com.
June 26, 2013
Middle Grade vs. Young Adult Fiction
On a recent Writing Excuses podcast, author EJ Patten discussed Middle Grade fiction writing, and put forth a fascinating comparison between Middle Grade (fiction for grade 4-6 students) and Young Adult (fiction for grades 7+ students).
He said that Middle Grade fiction is all about supporting or maintaining the establishment. The characters in these stories are trying to learn to become part of the world, both by learning its ways and finding a way to support the status quo in some way.
So, fo...
June 25, 2013
Superman vs. Tony Stark
I didn’t come up with this, it’s from Tumblr, but it was so brilliant I had to grab it and share! 
This post is from my blog at robynpaterson.com.
Ascension- A Novel of the Twin Stars Is LIVE!!
My very first novel, based on the Parsec Award Nominated Podcast (which has had over a Quarter of a Million Listeners) is now up and available for Amazon Kindle. Not only that, but to celebrate, I will be offering it for free this Friday and Saturday only, so if you’re low on cash but want some great weekend reading- here it is!
This post is from my blog at robynpaterson.com.
June 2, 2013
Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) Review (Spoiler Lite)
So, I finally got around to watching Attack on Titan, one of the new hit anime of the current season, and I’d have to say my feelings about it are mixed.
For those not familiar with the story- in essence, the story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where an army of semi-indestructable giants called Titans appeared and killed off most of humanity. What’s left of humanity lives in a walled-off territory preseumably somewhere in Europe. Since most of the Titans only operate on the level of...
May 18, 2013
Voyage of the Star Wolf- A Review
I just finished reading David Gerrold’s “Voyage of the Star Wolf”, a book that has somehow managed to end up as a “classic”. In an odd situation, I think this is actually the third time I have read it, but I had to re-read it again to realize that.
Let me explain-
At some point in the 90′s, I took this book out from the local library, read the first couple chapters, got bored, and returned it.
At least, that’s what I remembered happening. However, as I read the book, I was overcome with a sense...
