And so, while I was running up and down the local highways to go and sit on a panel in Turin on Friday and get lost at a con on Saturday, Mickey Spillane’s centenary came and went.
Let’s try and make up for that.
Mickey Spillane was born on March the 9th 1918. He fought in the Second World war and wrote for the comics before he started a very successful career as a crime writer, creating the character of Mike Hammer, and selling – to date – 225 million copies of his books. Continue reading
Here we go.
It’s the International Woman’s Day, and I thought… why not do a post about women authors I love?
A post about those authors whose books have influenced my writing, setting a very high standard and making me go
“That’s what I want to write! That’s the way I want to write it!”
I did a post, a long time ago, about non-fiction women writers whose influence I felt and still feel.
This time, let’s go for fantasy and science fiction – a limited list, only five names, the ones that are at the top of my list, and without my disrespect for all the fine writers I’ll leave out.
Here’s my top five, in no particular order… Continue reading
This is going to be a killer week.
I’ll be in Turin on Friday night to present the Dark Italy anthology, and I’ll be in Milan on Saturday to help at my publisher’s stand in the Cartoomics comics and fantasy fair, and to get my copy of Nightbird signed by Lucia Patrizi.
At the same time, I have to nail shut the coffins of three jobs… Continue reading
So, the votes are in (had we not just left this party?), and unless some last-minute, momentous turn of events happens, it looks like I will be writing a whole new fantasy story for my Patreon supporters.
Which is fine with me – obviously, or I would not have listed it as an option.
I’m a bit sad about Asteria, but she was always the outsider in my catalog.
But I got more than votes – I got suggestions, too.
And I had plans and ideas of my own, so let’s see what’s on the plate. Continue reading
I’m reading a lot about writing these days.
Helps keep my mind off the Italian political situation.
But let’s not get into that.
I’m re-reading a number of books about fighting – because the sort of stories I write sometimes… heck, often feature a few rounds of fighting.
Bladed implements, usually, are involved.
And I’m not very good at writing fight scenes.
But I’m improving, and here’s my essential bookshelf of fighting references for writers. Continue reading
Yesterday I had a few things to celebrate…
The Tyrannosaurus Tex podcast, of course (despite the fact that they got my name pronounced wrong). New patrons on my Patreon page. And the great start of my worldbuilding course online.
Plus six (SIX!!) new commissions, five for articles and one for a script (my first script).
And it was Saint David, patron saint of Wales.
So I decided to spend some hard-earned cash on a book, and finally got me a copy of Lawrence Block’s Writing the Novel, in its expanded, updated edition.
What a refreshing read! (Yes, I started it straight away) Continue reading
Yes, Kindle users can now get their copy of the second episode on *AMARNA** directly to their device through this link.
Karavansara 