The objective of writing science fiction, fantasy, (and fiction in general) is to explore the world of what could be, what should be, what should never be — to challenge your own assumptions, to discover, uncover, or invent new ways of thinking about life and new ways of seeing the world, humanity, and life, to expand beyond what is. Standing … Continue reading →
Before I review No Man’s Sky, you need to know two things about me. Well, three, but if you’re reading my blog, I’m assuming you already know I’m a professional SF novelist. So, two. ONE: Back in 1970 when I was nine, we moved from Ohio — where I’d spent my entire life to that point — to Alaska, and … Continue reading →
I never recommend writing contest sites that charge an entry fee. No exceptions. I’ve never entered one, because I was out to make a living from my writing, and contests were an unnecessary diversion from my path. Your mileage may vary. But I received an interesting request from someone building a “perpetual writing contest site” and once I removed all … Continue reading →
How To Think Sideways is going to change domains as well as software. We’ll be moving to Holly Lisle Online Writing school. And we’ll be adding some domains, because while HollyLisleOnlineWritingSchool.com is a good URL from an SEO standpoint, it’s a pain in the ass to type. So HollyLisleOnlineWritingSchool.com will be just the main page, surveys, and the shop, … Continue reading →
I bitch about Apple being a pain in the ass for not keeping old document formats for me on new systems. I don’t like the Apple store’s “Walled Garden” approach. And I think the newest iPhones are so ugly and crippled that I got a Samsung instead. I disagree rabidly with their “free tech to people in crappy countries” program—which … Continue reading →
I’ve now set the replays for the live chats up so that you can view them and get the downloads without having to login. I’ll add each one after any special offers I do in the live chats have expired (so that I don’t end up with dead coupons on permanent pages). Here’s the link: http://howtothinksideways.com/about-the-htts-qa-live-chats/ … Continue reading →
I’ve finally caught my breath on one of the wilder February/March combos I’ve been through. So now it’s time for me to catch up on a couple of things that have been left hanging. Writers’ One-Step Website Software. THAT’s a big YES. First, Dan’s and my question about whether anyone besides me wanted a one-step writer website was a resounding … Continue reading →
My personal experiences with oceans have been in getting really bad sunburns at the beach a couple of times when I was a kid, and flying over the smaller one twice. But starting from the age of seven, when, on a beach in North Carolina I picked up and examined a dead baby shark, a horseshoe crab, and a sand … Continue reading →
Where this comes from: A new SFWA member happy to have qualified—who is also one of my writing students—contacted me privately to present misrepresentations of what I said here that were being presented in SFWA’s private forums. I will post MY first reply, the reply from SFWA President Steven Gould, and my definitive response: MY FIRST REPLY: The potential for … Continue reading →
No big secret that Dan and I are building new software for my sites. He’s developing classroom software for me for the Holly Lisle Online Writing School, and connectivity software for me for Readers Meet Writers. BUT, using the same framework he’s developed, he’s also building replacement writing site software for me for HollyLisle.com with a single software with which … Continue reading →