Posted inData+Errata
Posted inNot Dead Yet: Print Reviews
Conscience by John Skipp
As a writer, I always cringe when I hear other writers give the advice that a book should be "cinematic": that it should be written not only to give the reader the same thrill that they'd get at the movies, but also that it be custom-built to try to sell ancillary rights to a film company in order to rake in the dough. While I do think that most writers wouldn't be able to make a living without film option income, I often think that fiction is supposed to be fiction first. In fact, some of the best books in…
Posted inBlather
Grilling the Mermaid
I love women, and I enjoy fish, but for some reason I hate mermaids. They're some of the most horrifying of animal-human hybrids. I mean, they're scaly. And they smell -- well -- like fish! I don't care how good they are at singing and swimming and strategically arranging their lengthy hair, they're gross little monsters. Yet their legend endures. We still get slurred reports from drunken sailors who spot them in the seven seas. And little kiddies everywhere believe in Ariel, the so-called "Little Mermaid" (who isn’t little enough to step on, unfortunately). But get this straight: if mermaids…