Tag Archives: ideas

Professional Tuesday: The Creative Origins of RADIANTS

Posted on October 12, 2021 by dbjackson

A couple of years ago, I put the finishing touches on the third book of a time travel/epic fantasy trilogy called the Islevale Cycle. I loved the Islevale books then, and I remain incredibly proud of them today. I think … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: Call For Stories, and Submission Advice Revisited!

Posted on December 2, 2020 by dbjackson

I am co-editing a new Zombies Need Brains anthology with my friend, Joshua Palmatier, who is the founder and owner of Zombies Need Brains. Joshua is co-editing all three of the ZNB anthologies this year, which to my mind is … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: Short Fiction Anthologies — When Does an Idea Become a Story?

Posted on August 12, 2020 by dbjackson

What is the difference between an idea and a story? It sounds like a basic question, but we have just begun the Zombies Need Brains Kickstarter for the coming year’s anthologies, and once again I am hoping to co-edit one … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: The Allure of the New Shiny

Posted on July 15, 2020 by dbjackson

All of us who write have felt it. Many of us have given into it. Others have resisted. Personally, I’ve done both — with different projects and also within a single one. We loves it and we hates it, but … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: “A Feat of Association”

Posted on June 3, 2020 by dbjackson

Sometimes, originality lies not in the absolute novelty of what we come up with, but rather in the connections we make between two or more disparate influences. One of my favorite musicals of all time is West Side Story. The … Continue reading →

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Writing-Tip Wednesday: Ideas — Finding Them, Using Them

Posted on May 13, 2020 by dbjackson

You may notice at this point that I have yet to offer any tangible advice on dealing with or coming up with ideas. That’s right: I’m stalling. Writing about ideas is really hard. Giving advice on developing ideas is nearly … Continue reading →

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Inspiration, Knowledge, and Speculative Fiction: The Blog Tour Continues

Posted on September 30, 2016 by dbjackson

Whether we write horror or science fiction, epic fantasy or paranormal romance, we who write in this genre seek innovative — at times fantastical — perspectives on the familiar. At its best, speculative fiction is a mirror through which we … Continue reading →

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Quick-Tip Tuesday: Being Scooped . . . Or Not

Posted on February 9, 2016 by dbjackson

We as authors have enough to worry about in this business as it is — the market is tough, writing good novels and short fiction is no easy task, finding time amid work and family to do all we want … Continue reading →

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Don’t, Don’t, Don’t

Posted on February 10, 2015 by dbjackson

I’ve debated back and forth about writing this post. Even now, as I type it out, I’m not sure I’ll ever actually put it up. Honesty wars with pride. Fear of revealing weakness and saying “the wrong thing” strives against … Continue reading →

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A New Post About Ideas, and an Interview About Sheep (Sort of)

Posted on September 10, 2012 by dbjackson

“Sometimes an idea really is greater than the sum of its parts.  Each idea on its own might show little potential; but combine them and BOOM!” The Summer-(Now-Fall) 2012 THIEFTAKER Blog Tour continues today with a new post at my … Continue reading →

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