Ringworld Encircles the Entire SF Genre

As a music historian, I know the endless value of studying the great masterpieces of the past. Thus I thought it valuable to read Larry Niven's 1970 Hugo-winning Ringworld. (I read, or rather devoured, only the first, but I'm hooked now, of course.)

To continue the analogy to music history, using Niven as a model for sci fi writing is like using Bach as a model for composition. Of course he's great, of course there's much to be learned from him. But one is so unlikely to match his skill and ingenuity that in a certain way any attempt is laughable.

What a perfect balance of plot, characterization, complete world-building, and viable scientific invention. It's breathtaking. And very humbling.

New Story Published: The Crusty-Hearted Man

Delighted that the fantasy ezine Hogglepot will feature my story, "The Crusty-Hearted Man," through March 26th. Here's the link:

http://hogglepot.com/

It's Not the Marketing...

...and it's not the networking.

All those hours on Twitter, FB, my blog and others', message boards, Duotrope, agent directories.

Not one minute of it matters if I'm not constantly producing good writing. It's hard not to get distracted by it all. The essential thing is to have high-quality merch to market.

The Boundaries of Posting

Suppose I have something to say. Do I post on FB? Do I tweet it? Do I post on this blog? Or perhaps I should do a short version for Twitter and a longer one for the blog? And a teaser for FB?

But, wait. What if some people follow me in two or even three places? What's the etiquette? Is it overkill to give them the same content in multiple forms?

Ho-ho. This is America, land of advertisements. Of course you can give people the same content in multiple forms. "Overkill" is an American watchcry.

I think I'm going postal from all this posting.

Red Mountain

I'm pleased to have a second story in Spaceports & Spidersilk, published by good old reliable Sam's Dot.

Here's a free link to the story, "Red Mountain":
http://www.samsdotpublishing.com/spacesilk/redmountain.htm