Tony Talbot's Blog, page 7
August 23, 2015
Rambles: An Unfortunate Anniversary
In my work in progress, a character says, “Some days you don’t forget, no matter how long ago they were.” 4:20am, 24th August 1990. There’s a knocking on the door of the house where I’m sleeping – an aunts house. Insistent and persistent. Barely awake; then there’s a figure at my bedroom door, unmistakably a […]
July 7, 2015
Review: The Handmaid’s Tale
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... 4/5 In a harsh dystopian America, women are stripped of all rights… It’s scary how prophetic this story is. A coup overtakes America – most members of Congress are killed in a terrorist attack and the constitution is suspended. Fundamentalism takes over, a fundamentalism that regards women as nothing. The reduction of women to […]
June 29, 2015
Writing Whimsy: AfW’s Sunday Write Up
Aside From Writing’s Sunday Write up! http://asidefromwriting.com/2015/06/2... Using the words: alone growing slowly life beautiful There’s no sense, at first, of where I am. Nothing to cause me any alarm. Just static in my left ear. Either my eyes are closed, or I’m blind; there is darkness absolute. I inhale, feel something constrict my chest. […]
June 20, 2015
Writing Whimsy: Fearsome Fred and the House of Red
Over the furthest mountains to the west, past the highest cloud and over the deepest ocean, just past the Post Office and up the hill, there once stood the house of the most terrible of ogres, the King of Ogres, the Lord of Ogres. His name was Fearsome Fred. Fearsome Fred was so terrible, so […]
June 3, 2015
Rambles: A front end for KindleGen
For those of you going, huh? at that title, you can skip this post. The Kindle authors out there can dig in and enjoy… Last year, I had to demonstrate to a small group of people the way to create a .mobi file. I’d been using Calibre (http://calibre-ebook.com/) for a while, but it seems like […]
June 1, 2015
Writing Whimsy: Aside from Writing’s Sunday Write up.
Aside from Writing’s blog (http://asidefromwriting.com/2015/05/3... having a little Sunday Scribble…Just for fun. The prompt for this week are the five words: follow missed bird delivery eye My hand shook as I extended it towards the door, rattling the handle. I snatched it back, trying to still my nerves, spreading the fingers wide to steady […]
May 29, 2015
Writing Whimsy: Dust
It’s been said that no good phone call ever comes after nine at night and before seven in the morning. And when my mobile rings at exactly 6:36 this morning and the caller ID pic is my mum, I know what’s happening before she speaks. He hasn’t been well for over a year, after all. […]
May 25, 2015
Review: The Hunted, Charlie Higson
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20... 4/5 Everyone over the age of fourteen has been turned into a flesh-craving monster, with a taste for teenage meat…The kids that are left are fighting to survive. Book six of seven. I reviewed Book five here, and went straight on to The Hunted. In terms of pacing, as a comparison, it took me […]
May 18, 2015
Review: The Fallen, Charlie Higson
3/5 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... Everyone over fourteen has been infected with an illness that makes them crave human flesh…Only the kids are left to fight and survive for themselves… This is book five in a seven series set. Luckily, I’m reading them back-to-back which helps a lot. There’s no way I’d remember all these intertwining stories with […]
May 12, 2015
Writing Tips: Short stories 101
I was emailing an Australian friend the other day (Anna Hub). She’s written four novels and just finished a fifth (The Ninth Hunter, well worth looking for when it comes out). But…she’s not sure where to start with short stories. Most writers start with short stories and progress to novels, so it’s curious to see […]
