A return to the round up this week. Though I’m going to try to editorialise a little less, and link a little more. Otherwise compilation will once again take most of the week.
In the Guardian Review Patrick Ness reviewed Our Tragic Universe by Scarlett Thomas. This is a novel which argues against the tyranny of narrative. How I long to read the reviews of outraged story-freaks.
Plot to Punctuation covered character growth. Some excellent techniques for showing rather than telling the extent to which a character evolves throughout your story. Followed up by a piece on creating believable character arcs.
Nathan Bransford reminded us that we’re going to get rejected. Get used to it. Learn to like it. Learn to love it. You like that don’t you? Hmmm? Yeah!
Natalie Whipple has been growing vegetables and flowers. Tangential? Maybe, but so have I — in my study, so I identified. We’d better get that house soon, because otherwise I’ll need to hack my way through french bean and tomato plants (see picture) just to get to my desk.
SF Said reviewed The Diary of a Doctor Who Addict by Paul Magrs. A YA novel that apparently uses regeneration as a loose metaphor for the pains and transformations of adolescence.
In io9 Monica Valentinelli suggested and described three science fiction writing exercises: creating an alien, ending the world and designing an invention. Since I’ve still got nine story outlines to get through, I’ll be returning to this.
Alison Flood wrote in the Guardian about unpublished author Peter Riley who has posted his novel online, and is offering to pay readers by means of a competition. Charlie Jane Anders covered this too in io9.
The Guardian also featured pictures of a charming model of Bag End, The Shire created by Maddie Chambers. And once again io9 covered this too. This time in a posting by Lauren Davis.
io9 commenter Cristoval reimagined Doctor Who as a Disney Movie. Not for those with a weak stomach.
HiLoBrow.com announced a new microfiction competition. As I’ve submitted two previous efforts, I might go for third time lucky. Or not.
