( Listen with AI audio ) Pneumonia and Writing? May 17, 2024 Dear Reader, I contracted pneumonia last weekend. Writing a serious post for this weekend simply hasn't been possible. Have you ever tried writing underwater? That's kind of what it feels like. Allow me to share a few links to some of the creative things I pulled off while wheezing and coughing like a maniac. Video Quotes I created three new video quotes. I always post on YouTube, but I may consider posting these little snippet videos to other places and see what happens. These were fun to create when I could sit up for a bit. Why these? No one knows, but I enjoyed it and am toying with making a few more. Watch and let me know what you think. Quote from Devil's Sins A Quote from Big Bad Wolf A Quote from Druid Ancestry Book Promotion Druid Ancestry launched wide May 9, 2024. If you like your urban fantasy with steamy paranormal romance dark, this tale is the beginning of a new spinoff, dark and twisted miniseries

( Listen with AI audio )   A Look At Fantasy, Magic, and Characters - May 10, 2024 Dear Reader, This week, I spent an inordinate amount of time wishing I had a magic wand to accomplish more. If I could move as swiftly as Andrei Alexandrescu, maybe I could get everything I want done in a hurry. Sadly, I lack superhuman speed, so I must settle for plodding along in my efforts to bring the dream to light one small step at a time. That led to thinking about magic and the role it plays in fantasy tales, specifically how it shapes characters because I see the stories of the dream as character driven tales. Fantasy literature has always been enhanced by magic. From powerful wizards to magical creatures, magic plays an essential part in shaping both worlds and characters. Elements that violate natural laws of the known world often define fantasy literature and thus qualify as magical elements, from enchanted realms and mythical creatures to wizards and witches casting spells; magic plays an in