L.G. Estrella's Blog, page 42

On Subverting Expectations

You might have heard people talking about subverting expectations recently. Indeed, the phrase itself has become something of a meme recently given the, ahem, unfortunate ending of a certain famous television series. So today, I thought I’d talk a bit about what subverting expectations means and how it can be both a good thing and a bad thing.

In simple terms, subverting the expectations of the reader involves doing something they wouldn’t expect. When done properly, this can actually be a go...

Happy Mother’s Day

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there.

Honestly, if I could give my mother an actual award, I would. She deserves it after how much weirdness she has had to put up with over the years.

How Long Should A Novel Be?

Today, I’d like to discuss what looks like a fairly simple question: how long should a novel be?

The answer, as with so many other things involved in writing, is that it depends. Rather than rules, what you have are closer to guidelines. In general, novels are usually between 60,000 and 120,000 words long. However, the length of a novel also varies by genre.

Some genres, like epic fantasy, tend to veer toward longer word counts. It’s not unusual for an epic fantasy to measure more than 150,00...

Progress Report 02-05-2019

It’s about time for another progress report, so you guys can have some idea of what’s going on at the moment. There are two mains things to cover:

I am currently working on the sequel to  The Trouble With Werewolves . The second draft is done, and although a couple more drafts might be necessary, I aim to have it out within a month. At the moment, it’s projecting to be around 30,000 words long. Plotting is mostly complete for the next part in  The Unconventional Heroes Series . It will be Part F...

Another Season

So… another season ends for the San Antonio Spurs. Normally, I’d be filled with rage at this point, filled with the belief that this year could have been the year if only the refs weren’t blind or if only a few more shots had fallen.

Not this year.

I first became a Spurs fan in the days of David Robinson, and my love for the team only grew after Duncan joined, followed by Parker and Ginoboli. 1999, 2003, 2005, and 2007 are years I won’t ever forget, especially 2003 when Duncan basically had t...

Attempted Vampirism Is Now Available On Amazon

Ready for some adventure? Eager for more fun? Keen for a good dose of laughs? Well, you’re in luck. Attempted Vampirism has arrived! Can one scholar triumph against the odds and get his castle back, or will the Department of Taxation reign supreme? It won’t be easy not with former paladins, werewolves, mermen, and even eldritch entities on the prowl.

You can get Attempted Vampirism from Amazon here, and here is the blurb:

It’s not easy being a vampire – just ask Jonathan.

As the 32nd Lord of...

The Importance of Predictive Power

Given a particular set of data, there are an infinite number of theories and models that can be proposed to explain that data. After all, nobody would propose a theory or model that doesn’t at least explain or fit the existing data. With that in mind, how are we to choose between competing theories and models if all of them can explain existing data? The key lies in predictive power. The best theories and models not only make strong, testable predictions but also get those predictions correct...

A Note On Methodology

When writing about your research, explaining your methodology is of critical importance. This applies not only in the method section but also in the results section.

One of the hallmarks of good scientific research is that others can recreate the experiment for themselves to see if they obtain the same results. If certain results can only be produced by one lab or one experimenter, then they will rightfully be considered dubious. If an experimental result is real and the effects uncovered dur...

Clarity and Brevity

One of the most common mistakes I see in high school students is a tendency to ramble when writing essays or other pieces of more formal writing. I don’t think this is on purpose. Rather, it stems from a lack of expertise and confidence. When someone doesn’t know how to properly express themselves or is not confident in their argument or understanding of a topic, it is not unusual for them to ‘pad’ their writing in a bid to make it seem more sophisticated while still leaving them room to mano...

Some Thoughts On Research

One of the more common questions I get is about how much research is required when you’re writing a story. As it so often is, the answer is that it depends.

If you’re writing about an area in which you’re already familiar, you probably won’t have to do all that much research. If I had to write a story that involved Roman history, I would likely be able to get away with simply refreshing myself a little since Roman history has been an interest of mine for almost as long as I’ve been able to re...