No, this blog isn’t about fantasy or science fiction, though we’ll touch on these. I’m giving you three Independence Day movies to watch with your family. We’re going to have to go to some older movies, made when America was more celebrated than bashed. Once the 70’s came along, the Hollywood flavor of the decade […]
A fantasy author discussing The Andy Griffith Show seems a bit odd, but this TV series is an out-genre masterpiece of characterizations, which a fantasy or science fiction author would do well to learn from. You’ll notice that my top ten are from the black and white episodes. Once The Andy Griffith Show went to […]
Summer is the time for blockbusters. I remember the summer the quintessential blockbuster opened in theaters. This movie spawned five sequels, an animated series, millions of product tie-ins, and a Christmas special. (The producers would like to forget the Christmas special.) Of course, I’m talking of Star Wars. Why, even minor characters, like Boba Fett, […]
Rules of engagement for impending marriage that is, not rules of war. Marriage isn’t supposed to be a battlefield. Life is the battlefield. You’re both in the foxhole together; don’t turn your rifles on each other. I last wrote in this series about falling in love, leaving my past self ready to propose to Dona. […]
Seeing that monster movies fall within the purview of fantasy and science fiction, I give you a short thinker-blog for consideration. You go to Godzilla ready to cheer on humanity, but often times there’s more than one monster and the monsters fight each other. A simple hierarchy exists in knowing which monster to root for. […]
Hold a book in your hand. Where did it come from? The publisher, of course. The publisher probably got it from a literary agent. The agent represented an author. The author had a story to tell. But where did the story come from? Stories start as a spark of an idea. And a story idea […]
I started “Guys Trying to Survive” because I was (am) trying to survive a loss. So, man, you may find yourself struggling, too. Your lady is gone. Death, divorce, disability, and on and on. Much in life takes away. That’s the way it is, and there’s no profit in being bitter about it. Now your […]
This blog is from my son-in-law Matt Wright, a bona fide linguist. He’s also a fantasy/science fiction fan. But who isn’t? Languages are rich treasures for us fantasy and science fiction geeks. This is where alien cultures get good; this is where another world pulls you in! Let’s get Matt’s professional view. Language is a […]
While Dona and I were at college, we knew some guys who felt it ‘unspiritual’ to date. I wondered if they expected a lady dressed in white to show up at the door and say, “I’m God’s will for your life.” But I do understand their trepidation. It’s a scary thing to be young and […]
This week I’ve invited my daughter Lucy Wright to take a swing for us in the fantasy and science fiction world. Lucy revisits the topic of the pill to swallow in fantasy and science fiction. In our first installment on this subject, I sited some examples where the pills went down easy and the stories […]
