Daniel R. Marvello's Blog, page 8

Will England Interviews Me

Fantasy author Will England interviewed me for his blog "Random Musings of a Summer Dreamer" as part of the Summer 2012 Magic Appreciation Tour. In the interview, I reveal what got me started in writing, who I see as my primary influences, and much more:

Magic Appreciation Tour: Interview with Daniel R. Marvello

While you are there, check out Will's other posts and consider giving him a follow.

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Magic Appreciation Tour Flash Fiction - "Final Exam"

The Magic Appreciation Tour is running a flash fiction contest through the end of this month, and I promised my fellow authors that I would write an entry of my own. Since I'm running the contest, my entry doesn't count for winning the prize, but it was fun to write anyway.

[image error]The rules are pretty simple. The entry has to start with the sentence, "Some days I wish I had never met that woman," and it has to be 500-750 words in length. My entry Final Exam is exactly 750 words. My first pass ended...

Summer Solstice Free Fantasy - June 20-21, 2012

Tomorrow is your big chance to get some great summer reading for a price that can't be beat: FREE!

[image error] I've joined with 23 other fantasy authors who are offering our books for free on June 20 and 21. The event is appropriately called Summer Solstice Free Fantasy. Vaetra Unveiled is one of 29 fantasy titles you can download for nothing...zip...nada...zero.

In order to qualify for the promotion, all books had to have at least 4 reviews and an average rating of at least 4 stars, so it is definitely...

MA Tour Proceedings + RIP Ray Bradbury

I was saddened to hear that Ray Bradbury died at the age of 91 yesterday, June 5, 2012. I must admit I haven't read most of his work, and I read the Martian Chronicles so long ago that I barely remember it. However, I recognize Mr. Bradbury as being one of the pioneers of the genre that I love. The Martian Chronicles is probably considered classic science fiction, but his depiction of life on Mars was certainly fantasy as well. Perhaps fantasy is just science that hasn't happened yet (with a...

Flash Fiction Story "Sorcerer's Staff"

Just for fun, I decided to enter a flash fiction story into Mysti Parker's May Flash Fiction contest. The basic rules were that the story had to be 600 words or less and begin with the following sentence:

I never expected to be in this position so soon, saying goodbye to my son.

I'm not a parent, so at first this prompt didn't "speak to me." However, as sometimes happens, the sentence percolated at the back of my mind and just wouldn't go away. I started writing notes about what kind of thin...

Creature Feature: The Spirits of Mundia

[image error] This creature feature started out as a brainstorming session on what form religion would take in the Vaetra Chronicles world of Mundia. I could have adapted a pantheon from human history, made up my own gods, or (unusual in fantasy) gone for the mono-theistic approach that has evolved in our own world history. But I thought it would be more fun to start with well-known fantasy beings and put my own spin on them. The spirits and their various forms were the result of that session.

Spirit Doma...

Location Lore: The Archives Sanctuary Network

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The first book of The Vaetra Chronicles briefly introduces readers to a sorcerer sanctuary in the town of Northshore. In Vaetra Unveiled, agents Sulana Delano and Daven Prost leave the sanctuary to speak with the town's captain of the guard. That brief reference only hints at the significance of the sanctuaries and the role they play in the world of Mundia.

Since the end of the Wizard Wars and the enactment of the Sorcery Accords that forbids sorcerers from holding any...

Book Review: "Sorcerer's Code" by Christopher Kellen

[image error] Sorcerer's Code is the second book in Christopher Kellen's Tales of Eisengoth series. However, having read The Corpse King (book 1 of the series), I can attest that this novelette stands completely on its own. It is the tale of Edar Moncrief, a sorcerer who discovers a magical artifact and inadvertently attracts the attention of a dangerous warrior/priest known as an Arbiter.

Technically, Sorcerer's Code is probably dark fantasy, but the humor Kellen weaves into the story lightens up the dre...

On Writing Reviews

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The view from our lanai in Princeville, Kauai

I spent the past couple of weeks in Hawaii enjoying my first vacation in about 2 1/2 years. Yeah, I know, to all you workaholics out there that's nothing, but for someone who is used to regularly vacationing for two weeks each year, it was a long haul. My wife and I own a couple of timeshare weeks, and one of the best things about those "use it or lose it" weeks is that they encourage us to get away for two weeks each year.

While on vacation, on...

5 Reasons Why Book Ratings Are Useless

No, I didn't just get a 1-star review (at least as far as I know). So this isn't about sour grapes. It's about something that has bugged me as a reader for a long time: book or "star" ratings. It bothers me that they get such prominent placement on the retailer sites when they mean absolutely nothing!

Do you buy a book based on its overall rating? If so, you are doing yourself and a lot of authors out there a great disservice. Don't get me wrong: reviews are wonderful. But I'm not talking abo...