Hi everyone! This month we have Joshua A. Johnston with us. During the day, he’s a high school teacher and at night he’s spinning stories about space. His first novel, Edge of Oblivion is available now and his second book, Into the Void, comes out February 6th. Yes, that’s right, in a couple of days! In the meantime, here he is to answer seven questions. 1) What is your favorite part of speculative fiction? I love venturing into worlds that I could never see in real life. The idea that I could visit an alien world light years from Earth, or a …
What Video Games Taught Me About Speculative Fiction Writing
I’ve being playing video games since I was a kid. As a child of the 1980s, my earliest gaming happened on a TRS-80 with a tape drive, followed a few years later by a DOS-based PC. My first console was an NES, which I received—along with a stern lecture from my father about not playing it too much—not long after the system released in North America. From the beginning, it was clear that games with more involved storylines appealed to me, such as Zork or Final Fantasy. I didn’t mind playing games like Zaxxon or Super Mario Bros., but …
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Seven Questions with S.D. Grimm
Hi Everyone! We are excited to have S.D. Grimm with us today, especially since her latest fantasy novel, Amber Eyes, comes out this month *squee*. So without further ado, here are Seven Questions with S.D. Grimm. 1) What is your favorite part of speculative fiction? Possibilities. There’s something majestic about watching a gryphon fly over a battle scene. Something amazing about a ship that can “make the jump to light speed.” The thought that things outside of our “normal” realm of what’s possible holds a magical quality that makes me feel like a kid experiencing wonder, and I love it. …
Keep the Candy, Crush the Saga
By Joshua A. Johnston, originally posted 7/29/2013 at Nintendojo If you are a regular to Facebook, you may have noted a recent uptick in the word “saga” in your news feed. (By leading off with this I am probably dooming this article to being outdated if it is read even six months from now.) Candy Crush Saga and its various kindred apps (Farm Heroes Saga, Papa Pear Saga, Pet Rescue Saga… you get the idea) have become mainstays for gamers using Facebook or packing a smartphone. Nary a day goes by where I don’t have several people reminding me that they’ve completed Level 164 …
Interview with Charles Franklin
Hi everyone! Today we have debut author Charles Franklin with us. Charles was born and raised in Texas. From there, he joined the United States Army and has traveled the world. Along the way, he saw the most beautiful set of eyes he had ever seen. They belonged to a girl … and he married her right away. Twenty years later, they have three children and are finally headed back home to Texas for good. Upon retiring from the Army after 23 years, Charles will continue to serve others as a teacher in the town he grew up in. When he’s …
The “Saviors” of Speculative Fiction
By Joshua A. Johnston FAIR WARNING: there are spoilers here of various science fiction and fantasy movies and novels. In general, I’ve tried to avoid spoilers from less than 5 years from the time of this post (2012 and later) but if you’ve never watched Star Trek or read Lord of the Rings, expect spoilers. “Well, look on the bright side. We’ll all have high schools named after us.” – a crew member of the spaceship Messiah in the 1998 film Deep Impact, after the crew realizes they all have to die to save Earth. Whether you’re a Christian or …
Interview with Amy Brock McNew
Today we are excited to have urban fantasy writer Amy Brock McNew with us! Amy doesn’t just write speculative fiction, she lives and breathes it. She enthusiastically explores the strange, the supernatural, and the wonderfully weird. She pours her guts onto the pages she writes, honestly and brutally revealing herself in the process. Nothing is off limits. Her favorite question is “what if?” and she believes fiction can be truer than our sheltered and controlled realities. This wife and mom is a lover of music, chocolate, the beach, and cherry vanilla Coke. Her home is a zoo, filled with teenagers–both hers and those …
The Dark Side of Fiction
I write fiction, and I love it. Fantasy, sci-fi, and my latest book is a dark fantasy paranormal, so it kisses the border of horror. If I’m being honest, it’s not a book I thought I’d write. It includes things like ghosts and divination and temptation. Did you catch that “D” word? Divination is one of those really bad, frowned-upon sins. I wondered how Christian readers would react to something like this in a novel written by another Christian. I mean, my father-in-law is a pastor for crying out loud. It begs the question: should Christians be putting evil things …
Interview with Kristen Stieffel
Today we are happy to welcome debut author Kristen Stieffel. Kristen is a writer and freelance editor specializing in speculative fiction. She has edited a variety of projects, including business nonfiction and Bible studies, but she is a novelist at heart and has edited novels for both the general market and the Christian submarket. Kristen is a member of the Editorial Freelancers Association, Christian Editor Connection, and American Christian Fiction Writers. Thank you so much for joining us today, Kristen! Now onto the interview. 1) Everyone seems to have a “how I got published” story. What is yours? Hoo-boy. That’s …