There’s A Reason You’re Afraid of the Dark (A RavenCon 2023 panel)

Faerie tales used to terrify and in so doing, teach valuable lessons in how not to die. One could argue that they are the original horror stories. Everything in Grimms’ Fairy Tales is particularly… grim. Over the years though, many of these nightmarish creatures became cute and cuddly (or sexy—looking at you, Shape of Water). Have these myths become permanently nerfed or is there hope they can maintain their dark allure?

Creating a Political and Moral Universe (A RavenCon 2023 Panel)

The ingredients of universe-building are morality, science, politics, art, and religion. The interplay of these creates a moral and political universe. Each ingredient packs its own punch, and getting the ratios right means you won’t have an overcooked souffle of a universe.

When you mix morals, ethics, and emotional fears, you get an array of Batman characters. Which match to what world viewpoints?

Post-Con Report: RavenCon 2023

I’m home after a weekend at RavenCon in Richmond Virginia. Final tally: 7 times a panelist, attended 5 panels, 1 launch party, and the opening ceremonies. And more!

Building a Subplot (A RavenCon 2022 panel)

There I was, nearly recovered from Balticon, trying to make time to watch some rerun videos, when I remembered I … More

Writing The Alien: (A RavenCon 2022 Panel)

While some panels are good because of what they say, some are great because of the inspiration they give you. This? Was a great panel.

Here are their 6 tips on writing aliens, a couple of things NOT to do, book suggestions, and the 6 notes I took for my own story.

Pacing the Novel (A RavenCon 2022 panel)

Here are 8 tips from the pros on pacing your novel. Are there any tips you use that they missed?