Karavansara

East of Constantinople, West of Shanghai


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Italian style

toppi11Many years ago I met a guy that was an excellent comic artist, in a sort of “classical” Japanese manga style.
And I mean, he was really good.
So one day he picked up his portfolio, bought a ticket to Tokyo, and did the tour of the comic publishers there, showing his stuff around.
And the Japanese publishers were absolutely impressed.
There was just a little glitch – they had buildings full of people doing exactly that kind of artwork.
“This is very good,” they said, “but can’t you do something… Italian? Like I dunno, Pratt, or Toppi, or Crepax…”

I thought about this story last week, when the usual “Italians should write Italian stories in Italian” popped up on the web, as it usually happens once every two or three months.

I am in a pretty awkward situation. Continue reading →


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Tanith Lee, 1947-2015

tumblr_nmasfaoUoY1r0uc86o1_500I just learned of the passing of British author Tanith Lee.
This was shattering news – I an a great fan of her writings, and The Birthgrave was one of the first books I read in English.
Some of her novels – Don’t Bite the Sun/Drinking Sapphire Wine, Volkhavaar, the Paradys sequence… but I could mention many others – stand very high in my favorites lists, and her style was always a source of wonder and frustration – because I’ll never write like that.

Lee was a master storyteller, often breaking the boundaries between genres, and defied categorization.
Her catalog is full of extraordinary stories, beautifully told.

This is really a chunk of my life that goes away.
I am very sad.


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Sit down and write!

41vE++wPhKL._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_I think my friend Claire over at Scribblings calls it free writing, while I call it writing practice, because I discovered it as a form of Zen practice in a wonderful little (but great!) book called Writing Down the Bones, by Natalie Goldberg.
Yea, I mention it quite often.
It’s one of the two books that got me back to writing when I was in university.
Anyway, writing practice or free writing, no matter what you call it, is one of those things writers sometimes do, basically setting a timer and writing whatever comes to mind.

How it is done?
Just like that.
You sit in a place you like, pick the writing tools you prefer (pens, pencils, loose paper, copybooks, keyboard and software… anything goes) and then you write what comes to you.
As simple – or hard – as that. Continue reading →


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Starting up again

And so, having delivered my manuscript to the editor, and having spent a long weekend basically reading, eating and sleeping – not necessarily in that order – I am ready to start working on the next project.

Or am I?

quote-there-is-a-similarity-between-juggling-and-composing-on-the-typewriter-the-trick-is-when-you-tom-robbins-262205

Right now, there’s a full plate of stuff to do for my game writing job – books to author or co-author, stuff to be researched, plans to be made.
This is not much a matter of inspiration – the projects are more or less solid – but of scheduling the work to be done and then stick to the timeline. Continue reading →


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Five things to do after you send your final draft in

Ok, so the final draft of my second novel, Tethys is in the mail, and on its way to the editor’s desk.
Now what?

Because me, at this, point, I normally feel a sort of post-whatever depression.
Like I had to say goodbye to old friends, my life is empty and all that.

So here’s a few things that might help – certainly they help me. Continue reading →


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On the writer’s need for a garish Rippingtons T-shirt

Last week someone I hardly know added me to a facebook group dedicated to I can’t remember what heavy metal band.
The rationale – I read (and write) fantasy, therefore I am obviously a heavy metal fan.

spinal-tap

Sorry no.
I do have rather varied musical tastes (or lack thereof)… just two nights back I discovered Kazakh pop music, for instance1.
But I do not listen to a certain genre because I read/write a certain genre, or vice-versa.
And if subscribing me to any group without asking is the sort of aggressive, bounder’s act that’s granted to make me get out of said group just for the pleasure of being contrarian, this bit about heavy metal is really getting on my nerves.
Not to the point of losing any sleep, but… Continue reading →