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Hey all! I hope that 2016 is starting to settle into some good of good groove for you all, now that the bustle of the Holiday season is over. I’m always bummed out, a little, when the Holidays end; for all the hectic activity and commercialism, the Holidays always do seem to me like a time when we all try to make the world feel (and look) a bit better. Plus, this year my family had a truly wonderful Holiday season, starting with a trip to New York City at Thanksgiving and culminating in a Christmas with my entire familyDown the rabbit hole….

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Here are some things that I’ve seen around the neighborhood of the Blogistan Writing Community: Briana Morgan released her first book, Blood and Water, a month or two back (I read several chapters of it in draft, and if the final version — which is on my To Read list — is as good, it’s a keeper), and now she is selling signed copies. (Note to self: Get off arse and start offering signed copies!) Ksenia Anske (whose site needs to be on your “Visit several times weekly” list now) has thoughts on how writers shoot themselves in the foot by notDown the rabbit hole….

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So there was a thing the other day on Twitter in which a lot of writers were suddenly defending the idea of writing fan fiction. I didn’t understand why at first, but as far as I can tell, someone wrote an article somewhere – I think for a teen-oriented publication of some sort, whether print or web I don’t know – attacking the idea of writing fanfic. Now, I did not read the article in question, or even track it down, because…well, I’m not so interested in refuting specific points. I’d rather just generally say that no, writing fanfic isDown the rabbit hole….

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Hello, all! Time for another post on characters and how to approach them…or how I approach them…or, in this case, how another writer approached them. So let’s talk about Calvin and Hobbes. This legendary comic strip is still well known today, despite that fact that its creator, Bill Watterson, ended it nearly twenty years ago (in fact, this coming December 31 will mark the 20th anniversary of the final strip of Calvin and Hobbes). Watterson created a bunch of interesting and memorable characters, and at the center of it all was six-year-old Calvin and his beloved stuffed tiger, who in Calvin’s presenceDown the rabbit hole….

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Writers love to rabbit on and on all day about their characters and how they develop their characters and how they decide what characters do and all that kind of thing. I, of course, am no different. This will, though, require more than one post, hence “part the first”. So, where to start? Well, with someone else’s thoughts on characters, of course! In this case, screenwriter William Goldman. This is occasioned by a post by blogger Lance Mannion, in which he reviews the movie The Ghost and the Darkness. I never actually saw this film, but I know of it; it isDown the rabbit hole….

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A couple of items of possible interest: Item the FIRST: I’ve been working on getting Stardancer available on more platforms than just the Kindle, and I can now report initial success: the book is now available for Nook, right here! Zap! Pow!! Item the SECOND: Now that Stardancer is no longer Kindle-exclusive, I can also repost sample chapters. To that end, Chapters 1 through 3 are now available on Wattpad! Item the THIRD: I always dreamed of having success to the level of being a guest on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Sadly, that can no longer happen (although we’ll see how thisDown the rabbit hole….

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…but not mine! (Not yet, anyway.) Two author-folk for whom I have quite a bit of admiration revealed the covers for their new novels this weekend. Huzzah for them! First up is Carrie Morgan, with her cover art for her novel The Road Back From Broken. Road is the story of Jacob “Fitz” Fitzgerald, a U.S. Army sergeant whose struggles with alcohol, post-traumatic stress and survivor’s guilt have estranged him from his wife and son. When a DUI car accident leaves Fitz facing the possibility of losing both his Army career and his family, he realizes that his relationship with his family can beDown the rabbit hole….