Category: Books

Book Review: UNION STATION by Ian Welke

UNION STATION by Ian Welke is a modern fantasy novel set in Los Angeles and published by a cool, boutique publisher, Omnium Gatherum. The story focuses on books. Its protagonist is a magician and ex-librarian with a complicated backstory, Tom Jackson, whose magical talent is to locate rare, valuable books (including a first edition Hemingway!). … Continue reading Book Review: UNION STATION by Ian Welke →

Fantasy novel just released: THE JINN AND THE TWO KINGDOMS

My latest fantasy novel is now available on Amazon ( https://amzn.to/38BAvCg ). It's a literary fantasy with a fast-moving plot and strong male and female characters. Here's a description: Thiago doesn’t think of himself as a demon, but he is. He’s a thief too, and therein lies this story. A portal connects medieval Arabia to … Continue reading Fantasy novel just released: THE JINN AND THE TWO KINGDOMS →

TROPES AND TRAPS – Avoiding Cliché in Fantasy Writing (part 2)

Trope and cliché aren’t that different. Maybe a good working definition can be that a ‘cliché’ is a badly done or over-used ‘trope’, while a ‘trope’ is a ‘cliché’ used imaginatively to remind the reader of what’s familiar and likable in a genre. In the former situation, the author is lazy; in the latter, they’re … Continue reading TROPES AND TRAPS – Avoiding Cliché in Fantasy Writing (part 2) →

TROPES AND TRAPS – Avoiding Cliché in Fantasy Writing

It’s tricky to balance writing originally while still pleasing readers. If a fantasy author does this right, they’ve made magic. But it isn’t easy. Fantasy readers generally like more of what they’ve liked in the past, so an author needs to 1) be aware of the genre’s tropes and 2) include at least some of … Continue reading TROPES AND TRAPS – Avoiding Cliché in Fantasy Writing →