Marc Aplin's Blog, page 182
April 16, 2015
Worldbuilding: Creating Bestiaries and Fantastic Monsters
A well-defined bestiary is a must for every fantasy world, unless the creator plans to stick to mundane animals identical to realistic fauna, or there are no animals or creatures at all. In any fantasy world, it is perfectly acceptable to have mundane animals; it actually helps make a world relatable and provides perspective. But […]
April 15, 2015
The Waste Lands by Stephen King
There is just so much right about The Waste Lands it actually hurts my mind to picture anything wrong with the novel. Not only does it maintain the quality of Stephen King’s Dark Tower series, but somehow makes it even more enthralling, making this the best novel yet. The Waste Lands is an amazing continuation […]
Mark Lawrence Going Nowhere…
On March 31st 2015 Mark Lawrence and 150 advanced research scientists were made redundant. Mark, as most of you will know, currently has four books out – Prince of Thorns, King of Thorns, Emperor of Thorns and Prince of Fools – and has had good success with them. The next two books were a certainty, […]
April 14, 2015
10 Reasons to Workshop
People learn to write in many different ways, some by reading masterpieces, some by going to classes, some just pick up a pen and get on with it. You can find all manner of resources designed to help teach the craft of writing, there are guidebooks, websites, courses and much more. But of all the […]
Gollancz’s Far-Reaching Le Guin Project Revealed & Radio 4 Programme Links
Ursula K. Le Guin sits as one of the top 10 most important fantasy writers of all time. The sad fact is though that not enough people have read her work. Likely, it is because she is a woman writing fantasy / science fiction – and we all know the purposeful / accidental ignorance surrounding […]
April 13, 2015
One Man’s Journey Through A Life In MMOs
It has been said that computer games are the enemy of writing, and by extension reading. It might be true. It may also be that some games really do qualify as ‘Interactive Fiction’ and they are capable of telling a good story – I’m looking at you Tex Murphy. There is a subset of games […]
April 12, 2015
The Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie Brennan
When writing memoirs, or indeed anything, it seems essential to cluster events thematically, throwing away all the boring bits in the process (such as laundry and visits to the bathroom) to tighten the story into something resembling a plot. The first two volumes of Isabella Lady Trent’s fictional life story, A Natural History of Dragons […]
April 11, 2015
Arsenic and Old Leaves: The Art of Poisoning Your Fantasy Characters – Part 1
So, you’re contemplating murder. Er, that is, your character is contemplating murder. Effective modes of death and all that. Bloodless versus bloodbath, public duel versus private confrontation, “accident” versus spontaneous sword through the gut. That’s all well and good, sure…but have you considered poison? In the Middle Ages, poison was a highly popular means of […]
April 10, 2015
Attending Your First Convention As An Unpublished Writer
So there comes a time early in every writer’s career when you make a very serious decision. You’ve been writing as a hobby for years, you enjoy it and your head is literally bursting with ideas for all the various stories you want to write. You’ve developed as a writer, either you or friends have […]
Mark Lawrence: Can Dark Fantasy Be Too Dark?
Today is our third Grim Gathering in Bristol, England! Hopefully a few of you readers can make it, but I know that many of you around the world will be wishing you could and sending us your best thoughts whilst you sit at home miles away / in work – and thank you for those […]
