(Warning: May contain spoilers.) What do you think of when you hear the word “monster”? Chances are the first thing that comes to mind are creatures like vampires, werewolves, Frankenstein’s creation, ghosts, Godzilla, or some otherworldly beast. Dictionary.com gives a long list of definitions like “a legendary animal combining features of animal and human form…
Author: DremaDeoraich
Confessions of a Writer
One of my classmates submits some of the most beautiful prose for critique. In his last class submission, his character drives through small rural backwater towns with no traffic lights, where the gas pumps still sport analog dials. The character speaks of being a voyeur, seeing only that moment in time, a snapshot of the…
The Left Hand of Darkness
By Ursula K. Le Quin Ace Books, ISBN: 978-0441478125 Paperback, 304 pages. ©1987 On Gethen, human envoy Genly Ai has been sent to convince the planet’s leaders to join the Ekumen, a loose confederation of planets who do not rule one another, but who cooperate in matters of interest to all Ekumen members. Barriers to…
Knowing I Don’t Know
A few weeks ago, I got a rejection from a magazine for my short story “Upshot.” Rejections are part of a writer’s life, but this one was unusual in that along with the “sorry” came some helpful insight. The main character is a Mayan native living in isolation in the cloud forest region of Guatemala,…
Learning From Burnout
Back in the early- to mid-90s, I and a few other volunteers began a small non-profit for the Mid-Atlantic earth-based spiritual community. In the beginning, its sole activity was to produce a regular publication, and a small one at that. Within a few years, the project had become my full-time, all-volunteer (i.e. “non-paying”) job. The…
Non-Traditional Alternatives
My novel (the first book of a trilogy) has been out on query for months now. I’ve gone through a list of agencies and am now trying publishing houses that don’t require representation. I also want to try a few small presses and see what they can do for me. But I have to admit…
Sound the Retreat!
One of my biggest hurdles to meeting a daily word count is diversion. We live in an apartment complex in a populous neighborhood in a busy city. Outside our window is a lovely green space with hollies, crape myrtles and squirrels. A bazillion birds, along with dragonflies and butterflies, flit past my window, dragging my…
First-Timer’s High
Bobby and I were on vacation when my first short story came out. As I said last week, I knew it was coming, just not when. To say we’d been checking the website every hour is not exactly an exaggeration. When PayPal announced receipt of payment from the publisher, I was ecstatic, but it was…
Story Beginnings
Last January, a friend sent me a link to a short-story contest through the American Philosophical Association. The story had to have a philosophical element, and winning entries would be published in Sci-Phi Online Magazine. I read their content, really liked what I saw, and wrote my first ever short story, “Last Call.” Of course,…
Shine Shine Shine
By Lydia Netzer St. Martin’s Press, ISBN: 978-1250007070 Paperback, ©2012, 320 pages Sunny is the social anchor of her neighborhood, coordinating craft shows and support groups, serving as the reliable and rock-steady block mom everyone turns to in a crisis. Maxon, her husband, is a genius engineer who is on his way to the moon…