Recent content by skip.knox

There is a magic system for Altearth, but until modern times no one knew what it was. Instead, different people in different times and places had different theories--they had their own systems. This could be as simple as each wielder of magic has their own powers that are unique and not...

That information is over in the Promotion section. Have you looked there?

I don't think one finds good beta readers, in the sense of a sort of pool where one can cast one's line and draw out a fine fish. Rather, finding a good beta reader is a bit like finding a good friend. One has to put in the time. This means finding communities (like this one), putting in the...

In what sense do you mean? As in, you've given up on traditional publishing, given up on any sort of publishing, or given up on writing altogether?

Let there be an end of direct personal attacks and direct responses to those attacks. It's all ad hominem. Ironic, isn't it, that these direct attacks (and replies) are to be found on a thread about collaboration. Let's all labor together rather that squabble together.

I think I understand. I sell almost nothing and am content. I believe I caught a whiff of what you describe when I get (at a book fair) someone wanting to know if this (they point to one of my books) is part of a series. No, it's a standalone. Don't ask me to feed you a series. Because it is...

Like many others here, I've always read. Having for my sins gained a doctorate in early modern European history, the number of books I have read is a sketchy sort of rendering. There's I scanned it, consulted it, browsed it, read it superficially, read it cover to cover, read it multiple times...

I've seen that list elsewhere but not here. It's a bit like writing prompts for world building. Thanks for the post.

Audiobooks for fiction works okay for me, especially as my eyes are letting me down (cataracts, but repairs some time this year). For me, the hierarchy is ebook, physical book, audiobook, for ficiton. For non-fiction, physical books move to the front because it's far easier to browse, scan, and...

I have four novels, two novelettes, and three short stories, but I can't for the life of me figure out what types they are, still less choose a favorite form. I do know that my current WIP was supposed to be a locked-room mystery, but is pretty far from that now. I just try to write a story that...

>How much success have you had completing/promoting/selling your novels? There are three items in the list. Completion, promotion, and sales. It's important to be clear on each. Completion is easy. How many stories (any length) have you completed? And by completed I mean not merely finished...

I wonder if perhaps there are cultural differences here regarding the meaning of the word "proofreader", at least as a profession. Everything I know about the various stages or forms of the editing process says proofreaders correct grammar, spelling (including spelling consistency with invented...

Yeah, on my first couple of projects I never even thought about themes. I knew about them, they just didn't seem to matter during the actual writing. Then someone said something about themes in my books and I started looking and thought I agreed. Lately I've tried at least thinking...

When it comes to the one tool, all I can really recommend is that it be digital. Analog doesn't cut it for organization, as you have noted. Analog has some real advantages, for sure, but organizing large quantities of information is not one of them. Choosing that one tool is, I'm afraid, a...

>you do in fact need an editor well of course. Everything needs editing. I don't view it as spotting themes that need developing. I usually don't see themes as I'm writing, and I definitely don't start out meaning to put forward themes. I'm just trying to tell a story that a) makes sense, and...