My latest blog update is about creating well-written characters –
see http://tinyurl.com/obnp33o
Good fiction stories are about people, not places or things. They give relief from our normal lives and enable us to have other experiences through our imaginations. Well-written characters can come to have a special meaning for us at an emotional level – the trick is to create well-written characters!
At Christmas 1975 I was given a copy of “The Sun annual for Boys” – it led with an article called “Vikings in Space” about the 2 Viking spacecraft that were being sent to Mars. That article kick-started my interest in Space Exploration, Astronomy and Science Fiction – here’s a great image and article from NASA on the Viking 2 landing – very cool
https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/sept-3-1976-viking-2-lands-on-mars
We are living in an age of technological miracles! – Watch this video from ESA of the Philae lander’s descent to comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko at
Many people either simply don’t know that they can load other free books onto an Amazon Kindle e-book reader, or they are too worried about trying in case they ‘break something’. That is a shame because the Kindles can read .mobi format e-books very well, presenting them from the reader’s perspective in the same way as books sent via Amazon’s “whispernet”.
To help with this I have a loaded a short video onto YouTube walking through the process of loading an e-book onto an original Kindle reader and one of the newer Kindle Fire tablets – see – I hope you find it helpful.
Disclaimer: No representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, are made about the completeness, accuracy, reliability or suitability of the information provided for any purpose. Any reliance you place on the information is therefore strictly at your own risk. In no event will I be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of the information in this video.
Between 24th April 1955 to 9th January 1958, NBC broadcast a series of half-hour sci-fi radio stories under the title “X-Minus One”. These were small-cast productions, not just a narrator reading out loud, and the quality is often pretty good. The collection includes some classic stories from well known writers and I have 3 particular favourites:
a) “Nightfall” by Isaac Asimov (#28 in the playlist I’m about to mention) – although the reading by Steve Eley episode 100 of Escap…e Pod has more passion, in my opinion
b) “A Gun for Dinosaur” by L.Sprague de Camp (#41 in the playlist) – I love the very uptight English accent of the protagonist
c) “The Roads Must Roll” by Robert Heinlein – a wonderful blend of social rights & politics
There is a collection of 122 shows on YouTube, they’re well worth a listen if you’re interest in Golden Age sci-fi radio drama
My latest video blog update is about the use of Texture in fiction writing:
To quote BSG – “… Life here began out there…”
Still feel sad that this fantastic machine isn’t flying any more….
STS-4 / Columbia moving from VAB and heading for Pad 39A. Crew of Ken Mattingly and Hank Hartsfield would launch on June 27, 1982.
“Young star offers a glimpse of the Sun’s past” – interesting news story from NASA/ESA at http://www.esa.int/spaceinimages/Images/2016/06/Young_star_offers_a_glimpse_of_the_Sun_s_past
“… Located 1800 light-years away in the constellation Cygnus, V1331 Cyg… may look like a star, it may be called a star, but it does not yet generate energy like a normal star. This is because this star is still being formed.”
This is a good example of how we think the Sun formed 4.6 billion years ago – fascinating!
Lovely feature called King Arthur’s Beard that we saw at Wookey Hole today – apparently the flutes were carved by glacial meltwaters carrying grits & pebbles – pretty cool
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