The anthology theme committee is hard at work narrowing down their submitted themes to a top five for the GA membership to vote on. Stay tuned over the next couple of weeks for the announcement! There are some pretty cool themes up for consideration. In the meantime, be sure to check out the guidelines for the GA Poetry Anthology - Seasons, due April first. It's not too early to get started on some poetry!
Top 8 Most Read Historical - Alternate
Nazi's win WWII, Napoleon win's the Battle of Waterloo, Roman Empire never fell without fantasy/speculative fiction items (other than alternate history). The Man in the High Castle
Capitol Hill - Summer of '22 Book VI by Carlos Hazday Complete
Do Over by dkstories Complete
Engineer Benson by Wayne Gray Temporary Hold
Do Over Redux by dkstories Complete
Let's Do It by dkstories Complete
Doing It Right by d
Well just don't get close. Got home early Tuesday morning and felt a really bad cold come on about 4 hours later. Then proceeded to sleep about 20 to 22 hours per day up until yesterday. Went through all the stages of a really bad cold. Yesterday decided to do a Covid test and either someone on the plane or in Hawaii was kind enough to share . Feeling pretty good though, now.
Many thanks and appreciations go out to Cia for covering me for the last 2 weeks It is nice to have her to take ove
Loose Ends
There is one thing that I think can be horrendously frustrating in a story! And I’m guilty of doing it a few times, myself, despite my efforts to avoid it at all costs...because it makes you want to tear your own hair out at the roots! Hehehe, but for one reason or another...I changed my mind on a few major plot points in my story that took me in a different direction, and it left a lot of plot points left to dangle without any answers. Now that I’m re-doing my stories to put them
What does conversation inevitably drift towards when all other topics are exhausted? Whether you like it or not, it's usually the weather
PT Prompt #199:
You're a weatherman who got the forecast completely wrong before a catastrophic storm hit. What were the consequences?
PT Prompt #200:
Because the weatherman was so colossally wrong, you were taken completely by surprise by this storm. What kind of storm was it? Where did you weather it? What happened
The alarms are going off! Two week have come and gone, so now is the time to see if you guessed our mystery author. If you missed the questions or forgot what the responses were, you can click HERE to read 'em. Let's check the reveal!
It is... a Promising Author!
This author... has written over 1,124,061 words!
This author... is...
kbois
Check out these stories they've written!
Top 10 Most Read General Fiction - Coming of Age
Follows the personal growth and development of a protagonist from youth to adulthood. "growing up"
Gap Year by Mark Arbour Complete
Northern Exposure by Mark Arbour Temporary Hold
The Cockney Canuck by Dodger Temporary Hold
An English Teen, Circumcised in the USA by Riley Jericho Complete
Paternity by Mark Arbour Complete
Adam Blake by CLJobe Complete
What Happened To The Baxter Boys by M
I hope that the weather is treating you well, wherever you are! Our ice finally melted, and I am no longer trapped. Do I plan to leave my house today? No.... LOL Why when I have so many fun things to do here? What about you?
Monday & Wednesday I featured @Mark Arbour 2009 Anthology story, Furlough.
Tuesday @Myr did a deep dive into the Fantasy Genre.
Thursday @Valkyrie announced the Poetry Anthology! Ready to write some prose?
She also posted some prompts on Friday if
Character Empathy
So what is the strong adhesive that keeps people glued to a story once they start reading? What can writers do to evoke emotion and conjure up the craving needed to keep reading all the way to the end without stopping? What makes them think about your story during the day when they’re away from the internet, in the car, on the train, or even while they’re hanging out with friends? It is such a powerful skill that you can wield as a writer to have your words and your ideas
Newly coined word? 2012?
As if our dictionaries, don't have enough to offer.
One of my personal favorites, don't laugh.
*ipty boppity boo
"Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo" is the iconic magical incantation used by the Fairy Godmother in Disney's 1950 animated film, Cinderella. It is the spell that transforms a pumpkin into a carriage, mice into horses, and Cinderella's rags into a beautiful ballgown.
At least with this one*, at the appropriate time, the clock struck 12, everything w
Just the facts:
SONDER Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster
SONDER Slang Meaning | Merriam-Webster
SONDER in Thesaurus: All Synonyms & Antonyms
SONDER Synonyms: 30 Similar Words & Phrases
Instagram
Sonder is the profound realization that every random passerby is living a life as vivid, complex, and deeply personal as your own.
Key Meaning
Main Character Effect: You recognize that every stranger you see is the protagonist
Sonder—the realization that every random stranger is living a life as vivid, complex, and deeply felt as your own—is the cornerstone of rich, resonant storytelling.
Why Sonder Matters in Storytelling:
Breaks Main Character Syndrome: It shifts a narrative away from a single, ego-centric perspective, reminding the audience (and the creator) that the protagonist is only the hero of their own bubble.
Deepens Characterization: It forces writers to treat background figures, minor charac
Sonder is a modern neologism (a newly coined word) created in 2012 by author John Koenig for his online project, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows.
Because it is an artistic coinage rather than a word with a traditional historical evolution, its construction draws from a mix of roots: German sondern: Meaning "to separate" or "set apart". French sonder: Meaning "to probe," "to fathom," or "to measure the depth of" (such as dropping a sounding line into water). Folk Etymology / Inspira
In storytelling, the concept of ensorcell—which means to enchant, fascinate, or place under a magical spell—serves as a powerful tool for shaping character arcs, driving plots, and controlling narrative pacing. It bridges the gap between literal magic and psychological influence.
Here is how the concept of ensorcellment impacts storytelling:
Driving the Plot and Creating Stakes: Ensorcellment often serves as the central inciting incident or conflict in a story.
The Inciting Inc
The verb ensorcell (meaning "to bewitch" or "to enchant") originated in the 1540s and comes from the Middle French word ensorceler, an alteration or dissimilation of the Old French ensorcerer. It is the combination of the prefix -en, meaning "in" or "into" (or an intensive prefix meaning "to cause") and sorcier, the French word for "sorcerer" or "wizard", derived from the Medieval Latin sortiarius, and the ultimate Latin root meaning "lot," "fate," or "destiny".
According to the Oxford