H.S. Stone's Blog, page 18

My reading/writing spaces

Have you ever seen those articles where authors show their special writing space (like this one)? It could be an office in their house with a big desk full of writing tools and bookshelves in the background, or it could be as simple as a favorite chair tucked in the corner of a den. Either way, I envy those authors because they have a dedicated place to pursue their craft.

As for me, I read and write whenever and wherever I can. I don't have a writing desk. I don't own a desk, period. And my h...

Book review: The Daughter of the Sea and the Sky by David Litwack

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Description:
After centuries of religiously motivated war, the world has been split in two. Now the Blessed Lands are ruled by pure faith, while in the Republic, reason is the guiding light—two different realms, kept apart and at peace by a treaty and an ocean.

Children of the Republic, Helena and Jason were inseparable in their youth, until fate sent them down different paths. Grief and duty sidetracked Helena’s plans, and Jason came to detest the hollowness of...

End of Summer 99 Cent Sale!

Summer is almost over, so let's celebrate it with a big sale! During the next week, you can download my e-books for 99 cents or less on Amazon. Don't delay. Get your e-books before the sale ends on August 30!

99 CENTS (novels):

George and the
Galactic GamesIn the Hands of
ChildrenBeyond
New EdenKeep Your
Enemies CloseGifted
FREE (short story):
Drive
99 CENTS (novellas and short stories):
ProtectSearchTransmissionsA House in
the Woods

The Brothers (The Breeders 4)

I'm happy to announce the release of the fourth book of the Breeders series, The Brothers. I love the series so far, and I gave every book a 5-star (out of 5) rating. The Breeders was one of my favorite reads of 2013. You can also read my reviews of The Believers and The Benders .


“They tell me it’s for the good of humanity. That I’m saving our way of life with my body. They lie.”

Book Four in the award-winning, best-selling Breeders series.

Riley has survived madmen, deranged doctors, and false...

Titles are hard

Believe it or not, coming up with the title of a story is one of the more difficult parts of the writing process for me. The point was driven home again recently when I finished writing a short story for an anthology that will be published later this year (more news on this exciting development as we near the launch date).

Like other authors, I have a working title in my head as I'm writing a story. In the case of the aforementioned short story, the working title was the wildly clever "Short S...

Book review: [sic] by Scott Kelly

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Description:
Six teens are devoted to a game with one rule: If a player gets tagged, they must change their life within the next fifteen minutes. The better the player, the bigger the change. One might give their car away, or punch the school bully. Another might change identities or sacrifice their virginity. Anything to keep evolving, to avoid fitting into a label or caring about the junk they own. But their quest for enlightenment has taken a rotten final turn - one of the pl...

Farewell, Fortune Cookies

Yesterday, I unpublished With Five You Get Fortune Cookies*, a collection of short stories that I released early on in my career. Never read it or even heard of it? Don't worry, you're not the only one. It was my worst seller. In the three years since its release, the number of people who bought the book can be counted on two hands.


If you're reading this post, and you're now wondering what With Five You Get Fortune Cookies contained, don't worry. I've posted the first story from the collectio...

The freedom of not having fans

Happy Independence Day to those of you in the U.S. or those who celebrate the holiday abroad! For everyone else, happy July 4, 2015, which should be celebrated because it's a weekend!

The holiday kind of snuck up on me because if I had planned things out beforehand, I would've come up with a blog post that ties into Independence Day. So now I'm left scrambling for a topic that's somewhat related. Fortunately (for me, not necessarily for you), I was already planning to blog about freedom in wri...

Book review: Love Songs by Jamie Campbell

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Description:
Sixteen year old Kaley Thorne is invisible. Or she may as well be anyway. All her emotions, thoughts, and dramas go into her secret songbook. Music is her passion, her escape, and her hidden talent. Her songbook is her diary, singing everything she is too shy to speak.

When the most popular guy in school actually sees her and invites her on a date, the experiences she has to write about skyrocket. First love, first kiss, and first heartbreak, everyth...

Execution over idea (or, I thought it would get easier by now)

There's a notion in the tech startup world that execution is more important than ideas. I happen to agree with that because anyone can have an idea, but what separates the successful companies from the unsuccessful ones often lie in their ability to execute on the idea. Can the engineers build the product in a timely manner? Can the salespeople sell the product? Can the operations group fulfill delivery of the product once customers buy it?

The same notion holds true with writing. Story ideas...