Brainstorming

I finished the short story I was writing, and now I'm already planning the next novel. Shorts are too short! I want to dig in and put some real thought and effort into something again. This one is going to be a murder mystery... in space. It has a lot more characters than I usually …

More thoughts on Disappeared

After thinking further about this book, I am even more annoyed by it. SPOILERS: The main premise of the story is that in order to have alliances and trade agreements with several alien species, humanity has come to an agreement with the aliens. They will each obey each other's laws in their own lands. This …

The disappeared

I finished it, and was over all underwhelmed. A detective story is not very entertaining when there is no mystery. That is the number one rule to learn from this, I think. Second thing to learn is that I don't care about a character's emotions just because you tell me to. Show, don't tell. A …

How many POVs is too many?

I have been listening to The Disappeared: A Retrieval Artist Novel, by Kristine Kathryn Rusch, because I wanted a sci fi detective story, and so far it is interesting and fairly exciting, but I am finding myself somewhat annoyed by how many POV's it has. I find myself annoyed by the cliff-hangers every time it switches …

Can pantsers write mysteries?

I've always wanted to write a murder mystery. I'm a big fan of Columbo, Poirot, Jessica Fletcher and all the other sleuths. I've often felt the desire to create my own detective, but am held back by the perceived complexity of writing a mystery, and my own improvisational writing style. In other words, I feel …