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  • Cia

    Secret Author Event-Forbidden Knowledge is due July 15th!

    By Cia

    Wow, it's July 1st already?! There's a time warp somewhere, I swear. Or some sort of spell on my life at times, perhaps from a book of Forbidden Knowledge? Or each day I pass through the front door and enter a rift through which I lose time due to... well, who knows? What isn't forbidden is reminding all my site author friends that they need to get their themed stories to me ASAP if they want to participate in this year's fun! Click the banner to go to the event details. And readers, get ready t
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Weekly Wrap Up

Weekly Wrap Up (Dec. 10 - Dec. 16)

On the 8th day of Christmas, by true love gave to meeeeee, divorce papers!!! 😮    Well, that isn't how the song goes  But if any of you do get divorce papers on Sunday, I am so sorry    To tell the truth, all I can remember from that song is the five golden rings, two turtle doves and a penguin in a pear tree  This shall lead into the question of the week! Hmmm, do I have a question of the week every week? So rather than just asking what your favourite Christmas song is, I want to know
wildone

wildone in Weekly Wrap Up

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Writing Tips

Character Combos

Character Combos As many of you guys already know...I absolutely LOVE to work with ensemble casts in my own work! It gives me so much freedom and extra room to build characters up (or tear them down) without having to resort to long bouts of exposition to do it. I’ve always thought that the true identity of a character was more impactful by centering on their positive or negative interactions with the other characters in my stories then just talking about them, second-hand. It says soooo muc
Comicality

Comicality in Writing Tips

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Prompts

Happy Holidays?

The holidays aren't always the picture of perfection depicted in Hallmark movies or on holiday cards.  In fact, it's pretty safe to say that the opposite tends to be more true to reality for most people.  We all have that relative with opposite views who loves to start in at the dinner table, or a busybody who's all up in everyone's business and then proceeds to pass judgment on it.  Then there's making sure the food is perfect, the table is set, and the house is clean.  Planning for the holiday
Valkyrie

Valkyrie in Prompts

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Author Guess Who

Author Guess Who #18

You know what I like about the holidays? There's the food, the gatherings, the booze. But there's also games, and it's time to play! Right here, right now. Get your guessing hats on because it's Author Guess Who! For those who aren't familiar, we have a lovely interview with a mystery author. It will be your job to deduce who it could possibly be, which may or may not be easy. After you've taken some time to think about who it might be, make your guess in the comment section!  Let's get int
astone2292

astone2292 in Author Guess Who

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Genre Deep Dives

Science Fiction Deep Dive

Sci-fiction sub-genres explore the possibilities of what might be generally through the power of technology.  There are certain sub-genres of science-fiction that have some very strong tropes that you must follow (The tropes themselves define the sub-genre).  Be aware of them when tagging your stories.   Sub-genres: Apocalyptic and Post-apocalyptic, Cyberpunk/Tech Noir, Dystopian, Hard Science Fiction, Libertarian Sci-Fi, Military Sci-Fi, Science Fantasy, Soft Sci-Fi, Space Opera,
Myr

Myr in Genre Deep Dives

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Reviews

Featured Story: Aunt May’s Magic

It is the time of the month for another spectacular review from our Review Team. This month @spike382 gave us the review.   Aunt May's Magic by Mancunian Reviewer: spike382 Status: Complete Word Count: 3,008   I was actually having quite a debate with myself about which story I would read for my last review of 2023. There were a couple of classic stories, that I wanted to draw new readers to, and a few newer stories that I thought would also be fun to take a look
wildone

wildone in Reviews

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Weekly Wrap Up

Weekly Wrap Up (Dec. 3 - Dec. 9)

It is starting to look a lot like Christmas   I may have mentioned we had a big dump of snow before Halloween, but that was all melted off since the first week of November. Then we have had temps in the mid to high teens without a drop of moisture until last Thursday. We got a good dumping of snow. I would like my Christmas to be white, but not looking like it as the temp will be in the mid teens (celcius) again next week. Maybe I will have to make a trip to the North Pole   In the mea
wildone

wildone in Weekly Wrap Up

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Writing Tips

Endgame

Endgame There was a time when a majority of people saw the world in black and white. Well, some still do...but, for the most part...we’ve all grown to realize that things aren’t always that simple. The days of some mad scientist doing awful things simply because he’s crazy and terrible are kind of coming to an end. There are reasons for people that do the things that they do. Sometimes they’re selfish reasons, yes...but it’s not just a matter of good and evil all the time. Everything can’t b
Comicality

Comicality in Writing Tips

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Prompts

Random Acts of Description

I've never been a writer who enjoyed using much description.  I never thought the color of the carpet, the shadows on the flocked wallpaper or the nuances of a woman's dress did much to drive a story.  At least, that's what I used to think. Lately I've been reading more gothic short stories where the effect of the light on objects, the influence of color on mood, and the idea of space shapes impressions of the scene. As a result, I've been trying to use a bit more description in my writing.
Cole Matthews

Cole Matthews in Prompts

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Announcements

2024 Writing Events

As the new year approaches, it's time to start thinking about what's on the agenda for 2024. We've already announced one event for 2024, and the first story for Carlos' tribute has been posted.  I'm super excited to announce what else we have planned for next year.  It should be a great year with lots of opportunities to participate in site events! So without further ado, here is what's coming up in 2024.  2024 Writing Events Long May You Run - A Tribute to Carlos Hazday - Due December
Valkyrie

Valkyrie in Announcements

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Author Interviews

Ask An Author 3.0 #35

December is here, and you know what that means... There's one song I'll be muttering under my breath for the next three weeks. No, it's not Mariah Carey's Christmas song. The husband is already wanting to strangle me for singing Trixie Mattel's "All I Want For Christmas is Nudes" nonstop the past couple of days. But you're not here to hear me sing, and if you are, you've come to the wrong blog article.  December also means y'all get another Ask An Author! Let's see, lemme dig around. I know
astone2292

astone2292 in Author Interviews

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Genre Deep Dives

Romance Deep Dive

Romance stories focus primarily on character relationships and development.  There is a strong trope in most if not all, the sub-genres for Romance for a Happily Ever After (HEA) or Happy For Now (HFN).  Violating the HEA/HFN trope should not be done lightly or at a whim, as this tends to turn off readers of this genre.   Sub-genres: Contemporary Romance, General Romance, Historical Romance, Paranormal Romance, Regency Romance, Romantic Fantasy, Romantic Sci-Fi, Romantic Western
Myr

Myr in Genre Deep Dives

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