There has been a rise in public conversation recently about authors and deadlines since George R.R. Martin noted that the next season of Game of Thrones was now going to be coming out before the next book, as he was unable to meet the publication deadline. Lots of authors have talked about their struggles with […]
Committed to the Drop: Writing Deadlines, the Fear of Success, and Mitigating Failure Read More »
DISCLAIMER: I am going to say some tough, true things in this essay. It’s not NEW stuff, but stuff that writers talk about a lot in the bar at conventions on in email with one another. This is not meant to be a jibe at any publishers I’m currently working with (well, except the usual
Traditional Publishing, Non-Compete Clauses & Rights Grabs Read More »
I want to talk a little about kindness. We like to think that geeks are kind, that geeks understand what it is to be outsiders, and so we open up our circles and are super inviting to everyone. But what happens more often is that once we find our groups, we jealously defend them to
On Kindness and Conventions Read More »
People often ask me why I work so hard at the writing game. I’ve answered that question in long form dozens of times over the years, but the short form is simply, “This is all I ever wanted to do, and I know the time in which I have to do it is limited.” We share
Yes, We’re All Going to Die Read More »
I remember when I used to be really annoyed with John Scalzi’s arrogant swagger about being a good writer. No, scratch that. It wasn’t annoyed so much as jealous of the fact that he had confidence in his writing abilities. This was way back in 2005/6 when I was still working a shitty admin job
Don’t Tell Me I’m Talented Read More »
However you feel about New Year’s resolutions, hard data backs up the fact that those who write down and refer to their goals throughout the year are more successful in keeping them. I spend enough time reading up on psychology and marketing that I know it works, so that’s why I’m doing it. YMMV. Note
Team Hurley’s Goals for 2016 Read More »
A lot of people think authors take reviews personally, and I suppose there are many who do. Those are the folks who should really steer clear of reader reactions to books, or rather, what some readers believe the books say about the author, which is always far more amusing. There are great reviews with insightful
Faces I Make When Reading Reviews Read More »
It will surprise no one that the most popular posts in 2015 on this blog were about writing and money. People are hungry for numbers, and they’re here. Fandom topics – Mad Max, Man in the High Castle, my tongue-in-cheek awards posts – also rated high. Just missing the top 10 was the post on
10 Most Popular Posts of 2015 Read More »
This has been a hell of a year. Like, a HELL of a year. But as goes the saying largely attributed to Churchill (but probably not actually his): “If you find yourself going through hell, keep going.” And I did. Which brings us here. In February the final book of the God’s War Trilogy, RAPTURE
2015 in Review: All that’s Fit to Print (and Some That’s Not) Read More »
I’ve been working at my new day job for a few weeks now, and as my lack of constant twitter chatter will tell you – I’ve been very busy. I’m up early to work on novel writing, and engaged in pretty much 100% billable agency work all day. I get asked, often, how it is
Does Having a Writing Day Job “Ruin” You for Fiction? Read More »