Last August, I boldly went where I hadn't gone before:  To Hawaii. In the weeks leading up to my trip, I knew I was up for a feast of th...

As a longtime writer, I have always believed that the heart of a story is crisp, right to the point dialogue. I am all for strong narrat...

Three children had fallen into the crater of a volcano and I had no way to help them get out. To make matters worse, they were my children, ...

In my last post, I talked about “quick” and “slow” suspense. Quick suspense is fast off the page by calling the reader’s attention immediat...

For the second (or is it third?) year in a row my post falls on Thanksgiving Day. I originally was going to post on things I am thankful f...

Raymond on the peak of  El Tucuche, Nov. 2010    My first piano teacher was a short, rotund, elderly nun. Sister Lucy was so ravaged wit...

I went to World Fantasy Convention (WFC) 2011 in San Diego at the end of October, and the second panel I attended was on mixing science int...