Tag Archives: writing

WIP: No Clue What the Title Is Yet

Posted on March 10, 2016 by Cat

Working on a far future space story that is getting very complicated with its gender stuff. This is one of the things that annoys me sometimes about future space stuff — that it superimposes early 21st century (sometimes earlier) gender patterns in a way that I know is hard to avoid but which infuriates me when it’s unquestioned. I just reread The Pride of Chanur (OMG how is that out of print in hardcopy??) yesterday and love the way Cherryh handles the question.

Hence this story of two cultures clashing, and both the gender norms and the norms around the sex act are getting tangled up in interesting ways.
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Posted in teasers | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

WIP: The Mage’s Gift

Posted on February 24, 2016 by Cat

I’ve got a new Patreon story brewing, that I hope to finish up today and let sit for a few days before posting. I recently finished up a bespoke story, title still TBD, and that’s sitting in the mental fridge drawer chillaxing before I go back to its rewrite and polish.

So for Patreon, another Serendib story, and a return to The Dark and Tericatus. Here’s some from yesterday: Continue reading →

Posted in patreon | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Class Excerpt: On Story Basics and Ways into Stories

Posted on January 21, 2016 by Cat

I’m finishing up the Moving from Idea to Draft class, or rather finishing up the writing phase and still need to shoot a couple dozen little videos, ugh. But I wanted to share this from the introduction to the class because I thought it might be useful for some people plus maybe tantalize a few into trying one of my on-demand or live classes.

I begin with some basics of story mechanics. Quite probably much of it will be familiar — feel free to skim if you feel like you’ve heard all of this before.
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Posted in Writing | Tagged , , , , | 21 Comments

On Clarion and Privilege and the Internets

Posted on January 18, 2016 by Cat

People are, understandably, saying that the equation clarion + student = pro writer is not the only way you can reach that particular sum, and they are absolutely correct, although the drama is — as is often the case on the Internet — a bit hyperbolic.

This is the fact of F&SF writing — there are people disadvantaged by gender, or race, or sexuality or other physical circumstances. But there’s also a big group — which contains a disproportionate number of those differing physically — affected by economic issues. Continue reading →

Posted in career | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 90 Comments

Welcome to the Funhouse, 2016

Posted on January 4, 2016 by Cat

f I were truly organized, this would have appeared on New Year’s Day, but I had a very nice weekend instead. Now it’s Monday, and I’ve had my coffee and homemade yogurt and done some stuff. I’m feeling good about the year and have made the usual sorts of resolutions. Things that I’m trying in 2016:
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Posted in daily life | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Retreat, Day 3

Posted on July 4, 2015 by Cat

Words achieved today: 5022 Current Hearts of Tabat wordcount: 85264 Total word count for the week: 10022 Total word count for this retreat: 10022 Worked on Hearts of Tabat, Christmas story for anthology (“My Name is Scrooge”) Time spent on … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Guest Post from Halsted M. Bernard: Critiques, Counts, and Quests: Motivational Tools for Writers

Posted on June 3, 2015 by Cat

When I first became aware of BIC-HOK a few years ago, it enthralled me. I love a good acronym, and doubly so one that promises to whisper the secret to being a writer right into my eager ear. Butt in … Continue reading →

Posted in guest post | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Guest Post from Everett Maroon: Becoming a Writer

Posted on March 24, 2015 by Cat

Everyone always wants to know the writer’s writing origins, when for many of us we can’t recall the first time we scratched out a story. Was it a moment of inspiration, they want to know, a story we’d run across … Continue reading →

Posted in guest post | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Writing Through Pain

Posted on March 11, 2015 by Cat

…sometimes bad stuff happens. Sometimes you’re dealing with a loved one’s illness, or your own, or a natural disaster, or something else, because the world is one filled with tragedies, large and small. Continue reading →

Posted in Writing | Tagged , , , | 30 Comments

Writers and Natural Talent: More About that MFA essay

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Cat

Recently, Ryan Boudinot wrote an essay for The Stranger titled “Things I Can Say About MFA Writing Programs Now That I No Longer Teach in One“. Among other things, he observed: Either you have a propensity for creative expression or … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing | Tagged , , | 25 Comments