Ideas And Inspiration For Science Fiction And Fantasy Writers

By -
When I started reading the book, I went back to the blurb provided to me. I was told that the book is a collection of articles that could trigger ideas.

The collection contains various topics that can be used for Sci Fi books and fantasy stories. Hence, the book attempts to deliver what it claims. But sadly, there is no introduction or a precursor to what to expect and the like. Thus, jumping straight into the content was like diving into unknown waters.

James has made concerted efforts in compiling the articles and kudos to him for doing so. The only thing I felt that could gave improved the writings were a personal touch or giving examples. There were facts, there were folklores. Yet, I felt something was amiss. Maybe, with a sentence or two in first person the reader would have felt like returning back to the article. Also, a bit of change in the writing style would have succeeded in creating better mental imageries. This would have led to topics becoming better and effective inspirational triggers. Otherwise, the language used is simple and can be easily comprehended.

One high point of the collection is that various interesting topics have been touched upon. The book could have been a wonderful source for Sci Fi and Fantasy writers suffering from a writer's block or seeking ideas and inspirations. However, the narration may act as a bit of a deterrent. A bit more tweaking could have converted this non-fiction into a more interesting read.

To sum up, the book is readable at least once for the efforts that the author has invested in compiling the articles. The collection is good enough to be flipped through at least once by writers wanting to write a science fiction or fantasy story.

P.S - Thank you James for sharing your collection of articles with me. I am sure as a writer you appreciate an honest opinion. Looking forward to your next which would definitely be better.

Popular posts from this blog

Tainted Lionheart

By -
Image
Tainted Lionheart is a collection of prose and poems that touches every chord of human heart.  The collection deals with all the phases of heartache that a person is bound to go through. Divided into three parts, this collection uses a mix of prose and poetry to bring out varied emotions. Sometimes, life brings in pain. Along with it come feelings of anger, contempt, grief, remorse and a host of other negative emotions. This collection attempts to deal with these. The entire collection resonates a powerful message. This anthology succeeds in bringing out that its okay to grieve, feel pain, get angry and hurt.  Christine is an amazing writer, or rather, a prose poet. The choice of words amplify the feelings that each  piece of writing evokes. The imageries are vivid, narration is heart wrenching at times and language is sans profanity. To sum up, the entire collection is a symbol of a lion heart or a lioness heart aka braveheart, who has the courage to go through all the phases associat
Read more

Nina's Memento Mori

By -
Image
Sometimes pain tends to get masked behind a sense of narcissism, especially when it involves your significant other. Nina's Memento Mori is a kind of self introspection that the author indulges in as he writes about himself remembering his wife. He focuses on himself as he narrates incidents revolving around his wife. This elegy is more of an autobiography as per me. Mathias does write straight from the heart. Some readers might find it hard to relate through the narration, however, those who have lost their spouses to death would very well understand the emotions underlying this piece of writing. There are breaks in the narration but these are like deliberate attempts to both break the monotony in writing as well as to portray the train of thoughts as they happened. The language is not simple but that is a trademark of a writer with vast amount of writing experience behind him. To say that Nina was his inspiration to write would be an understatement. In fact, she is exa
Read more

Secret Magic: Evie Everyday Witch

By -
Image
Every child is unique, a universal truth. However, the moment he or she is able to discover the magic within him or her, it becomes priceless. Unfortunately, the very need to be accepted by peer group might hamper the child's development. The plot revolves around Evie Everyday, a witch who has magical powers within her. But she prefers to change herself and hide her magic so that she is liked by her friends. But does this turn out to be in her favour? Well, to know that please read about Evie in this delightfully wonderful story. Elena Paige is a writer to look out for because she creates magic in this piece of her writing. The language used caters for the reading needs of 9 to 11 years old children. The writer also uses imageries extensively. These imageries are vivid and appealing. The only major issue I found as I read it out to my 6 year old was that the narrative was a bit jerky. There were breaks which could have been avoided. Despite the discontinuity, the story is
Read more