Being in the early stages of a new novel, I've been thinking a lot about openings and first chapters. They are both essential to get right for different reasons: the opening (first couple of paragraphs) needs to immediately engage the reader, while the first chapter kicks off the story and generally provides the hook. Most writers spend a phenomenal amount … Continue reading Where to start? The first chapter
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms
It doesn't really surprise me that N.K. Jemisin's debut fantasy novel The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, has been nominated/shortlisted for just about every SF award possible, including the Hugo and Nebula. It's a beautifully written tale not in the common style; in fact, the author breaks a few taboo rules and gets away with it. Yeine, … Continue reading The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms
Why I write fantasy
Literary agent Rachelle Gardner recently ran a readership poll on her extremely popular blog and has now published the results. Of particular interest to me (and her, as it turns out) is that 26% of writerly survey respondents write science-fiction/fantasy (SFF), making it the most popular represented genre. The next most popular was general/'non-genre' fiction (21%), followed … Continue reading Why I write fantasy
Eona launch at Glenfern
Today I attended the launch of Eona by the lovely Alison Goodman. It's the sequel to fantasy epic Eon, a tale of dragons and power and imperial politics set in a fantasy land inspired by medieval Chinese and Japanese mythologies. I'm actually reading Eon (also known as The Two Pearls of Wisdom) at the moment, and can't … Continue reading Eona launch at Glenfern
Books by friends
Over the past year or so, I have had the great thrill of being able to purchase and read debut novels published by several members of my writing group, SuperNOVA. I can't express how exciting it is to live vicariously through their experiences. Even though each of these novels was completed prior to its author joining … Continue reading Books by friends
With a dash of love
The rise of 'paranormal romance' as a best-selling genre has me reflecting on the role of 'romance' in the wider speculative fiction genre and fantasy in particular. I think it's fair to say that most fantasy novels written over the past few decades incorporate romantic sub-plots, and I'll admit without shame that I for one like a good dash … Continue reading With a dash of love
Manipulating death
I am reading a fantasy trilogy at the moment with rather a different structure than normal. I don't think it all quite works, but one aspect of it I am finding particularly intriguing. The first book opens with a short section (2 chapters) from the point of view of a character that dies. I was stunned … Continue reading Manipulating death
Ellen Gregory 