Here is a fascinating discussion laying out 10 forces that drive change.

Science fiction writers may have fun picking one or more of these and using them as a basis for story development. For maximum fun, map out a set of 10 alien races or political bodies and assign each one a different change-driver. Then bang them briskly together and listen happily to the screams.

Yes, I'm mean. I make my characters learn foreign languages and deal with xenotropic ideas. If they can't take the heat, they can find some writer who will only put them in front of cannons or women scorned.

Tags: news, science fiction, writing
Current Mood: busy

ozarque has posted a brilliant set of story openings, all with the same beginning phrase, about finding an alien stuck in a storm drain. They are quite different from each other, in terms of the story they set up and the characters they introduce. If you're looking for examples of idea brainstorming, instant characterization, or in media res ("in the middle of things") openings, here's something to tack on your wall and label "Like This."

Tags: fiction, networking, science fiction, writing
Current Mood: busy

Yesterday's Poetry Fishbowl went very well! Thank you all for joining the fun.

I wrote 16 poems. Of those, I posted "Air Beyond Breath" as the freebie; arielstarshadow sponsored "Long Live the Queen"; and janetmiles sponsored "Growing Panes." There were a total of 36 comments on the main post, plus a few elsewhere -- not much feedback on posted poems this time. At least 11 people posted prompts while the fishbowl was open.

Donors and sponsors this time were haikujaguar, janetmiles, and arielstarshadow. I'll try to get the perk post up later today. (We're going to see Prince Caspian this afternoon, and I've got a ton of backlogged work, but I'll do my best.) So far I've made $35 from this fishbowl, and it looks like more will be forthcoming. Your generosity and enthusiasm are deeply appreciated!

I had some fun mixing and matching prompts this time, although some of the poems were inspired by single prompts. I got to try a couple of forms that I rarely use, the abecedarian and terzanelle forms. Most of the poems were medium length, with a couple of short ones and a few long ones. There was a trend towards cautionary and creepy poems, but I also got a few with notable humor. On the whole, I'm pleased.

Now if I can just find time to make a few more magazine submissions...

Tags: cyberfunded creativity, fantasy, fishbowl, poetry, science fiction
Current Mood: busy

This poem is brought to you by janetmiles. Many science fiction writers have explored the motif of sentient crystals; here's my take on an old and honored concept.




We’re growing, but we’re growing awful slow.
This truth above all else is crystal clear.
We hardly even know what we don’t know.

We cannot let ourselves be formed in fear.
That fire burns more than it births. Believe:
This truth above all else is crystal clear.

We must grow out, not in, and learn to leave
The world that formed us. Give no heed to hate.
That fire burns more than it births. Believe

In life on other worlds. It’s not too late.
How can we plan to kill what we’ve not met?
The world that formed us gives no heed to hate.

Believe we have not doomed ourselves. Not yet.
We must take time to think before we act.
How can we plan to kill what we’ve not met?

This is unacceptable. That’s a fact.
We’re growing, but we’re growing awful. Slow!
We must take time to think before we act.
We hardly even know what we don’t know.

Tags: fishbowl, poem, science fiction
Current Mood: busy

This steampunk poem is brought to you by arielstarshadow. It's about history and religion and unintended consequences, and science helps save the day.





We thought it was the thing to do.
It seemed like a good idea at the time.
“God save the Queen!” we chanted, and
“Long live the Queen!”
God, we were fools.

At first, the signs were subtle.
Her Majesty moved with a light quick step and
Her face remained as fresh as a girl’s.
“What remarkable cosmetics,” the ladies cooed,
And sought in vain for the formula.

As the years passed, Queen Victoria’s peers
Turned wrinkled and gray, then passed away.
She remained as sprightly as ever, pinpoint arguments
Pricking away at all our proposals. Her wisdom outstripped us all.
By the time we were sure, it was far too late.

We had made the Queen immortal –
We had prayed the Queen immortal.
The scientists proved it with whirring gadgets;
The priests proved it with Bible verses;
But Time’s evidence was the most impeccable of all.

What could we do?
We couldn’t stop praying.
That would be a sin.
Don’t think for a minute we considered it.
(All right, so we considered it, but we would never do it.)

It was the Bishop of Canterbury who found the solution.
“The meek,” he said, “shall inherit the Earth.”
The rest of us set about leaving as expeditiously as possible.
Space dirigibles were built, crewed, and stocked for lengthy voyages.
As we left, we prayed.

“God save the Queen,
Meek and mild.”
“Long live the Queen,
Meek and mild.”
“The meek shall inherit the Earth.”

Tags: fishbowl, poem, poetry, science fiction
Current Mood: busy

Here is the free poem, a sijo inspired by tabard:

Air Beyond Breath

What is the breath of life? What is the life of breath?
Before us the Earth was barren, only air before breath.
After us, we do not know, but it may become barren again.
Life inhales. Air becomes breath. Death exhales.
We are the breath while it’s held in Earth’s lungs.
We exist only in this instant, until our spirits are released into air.

Tags: fishbowl, poem, poetry, science, science fiction, spirituality
Current Mood: busy

Starting now, the Poetry Fishbowl is open! I will be checking this page periodically throughout the day. When people make suggestions, I'll pick some and weave them together into a poem ... and then another ... and so on. I'm hoping to get a lot of ideas and a lot of poems.


Cyberfunded Creativity

I'm venturing into cyberfunded creativity. If you enjoy what I'm doing and want to see more of it, please feed the Bard. The following options are currently available:

1) Sponsor the Fishbowl -- Here is a PayPal button for donations. There is no specific requirement, but $1 is the minimum recommended size for PayPal transactions since they take a cut from every one. If you make a donation and tell me about it, I promise to use one of your prompts. Anonymous donations are perfectly welcome, just won't get that perk.

2) Buy It Now! -- Gakked from various e-auction sites, this feature allows you to sponsor a specific poem. If you don't want to wait for some editor to buy and publish my poem so you can read it, well, now you don't have to. Sponsoring a poem means that I will immediately post it here, with the name of the sponsor (or another dedicate) if you wish; plus you get a nonexclusive publication right, so you can post it on your own blog or elsewhere as long as you keep the credits intact. You'll need to tell me the title of the poem you want to sponsor. I'm basing the prices on length, and they're comparable to what I typically make selling poetry to magazines (semi-pro rates according to Duotrope's Digest).

0-10 lines: $5
11-25 lines: $10
26-40 lines: $15
41-60 lines: $20
Poems over 60 lines, or with very intricate structure, fall into custom pricing.

3) Commission a scrapbook page. I can render a chosen poem in hardcopy format, on colorful paper, using archival materials for background and any embellishments. This will be suitable for framing or for adding to a scrapbook. Details are here.


Additional Notes

1) I customarily post replies to prompt posts telling people which of their prompts I'm using, with a brief description of the resulting poem(s). If you want to know what's available, watch for those.

2) You don't have to pay me to see a poem based on a prompt that you gave me. I try to send copies of poems to people whose eddresses I already have. If you want to see the poem inspired by your prompt, give me your eddress; I recommend using {at} and {dot} to discourage spammers. These are for-your-eyes-only, though, not for sharing.

3) Sponsors of the Poetry Fishbowl in general, or of specific poems, will gain access to an extra post in appreciation of their generosity.


Feed the Fish!
Now's your chance to participate in the creative process by posting ideas for me to write about. Today's theme is speculative fiction. I am especially looking for:

• characters


• settings


• events


• alien or phantasmagoric motifs


• and poetic forms

But anything is welcome, really. If you manage to recommend a form that I don't recognize, I will probably pounce on it and ask you for its rules. I do have the first edition of Lewis Turco's The Book of Forms which covers most common and many obscure forms.

I'll post at least one of the fishbowl poems here so you-all can enjoy it. The rest will go into my archive for magazine submission.

Tags: cyberfunded creativity, fantasy, fishbowl, poetry, science fiction, writing
Current Mood: busy

I've finished the first sweep of revisions on "Pebbles from the River Lethe." We went through it in three sections. I've printed out the revised version for Doug to read. Next will be an overall sweep of the whole thing. Hopefully we've caught the major structural issues (two scenes out of sequence) and all that's left will be little changes for continuity, clarity, and correction of typos.

Tags: science fiction, writing
Current Mood: busy

Writing is usually considered a solitary pursuit. One exception to this is a fascinating exercise called a "fishbowl." This has various forms, but all of them basically involve some kind of writing in public, usually with interaction between author and audience. A famous example is Harlan Ellison's series of "stories under glass" in which he sits in a bookstore window and writes a new story based on an idea that someone gives him. Writing classes sometimes include a version where students watch each other write, often with students calling out suggestions which are chalked up on the blackboard for those writing to use as inspiration.

I'm going to host a Poetry Fishbowl on my blog on Thursday, May 15. This time the theme will be speculative fiction. I'll be soliciting ideas for characters, settings, alien or phantasmagoric motifs, events, and poetic forms in particular. Chances are I'll spend a good chunk of the day, from afternoon to evening or more, alternating between this site and doing stuff offline so my back doesn't weld itself to the chair. I will post at least one of the resulting fishbowl poems on the blog for everyone to enjoy. The rest will go into my archive for magazine submission.

If you enjoy my poetry -- or if you just love poetry in general, or want to promote speculative poetry -- please mark the fishbowl date on your calendar. Drop by and give me some ideas, comment on the posted poetry, encourage people to come look, whatever tickles your fancy. I hope to see you then!

Tags: fantasy, fishbowl, networking, poetry, science fiction, writing
Current Mood: busy

There is a new community, query_eagles, devoted to helping writers create good queries to submit to agents. Fiction only, speculative fiction inspired by not required. Open to readers and writers alike.

Tags: science fiction, writing
Current Mood: busy

I've spent the last several days working on revisions for "Pebbles from the River Lethe." For those of you not familiar with what revision is like, the steps go something like this...

1) Open wringer.
2) Insert brain.
3) Latch wringer.
4) Crank vigorously.
5) Type up the results.

It's not fun, but it does improve the writing.

Tags: science fiction, writing
Current Mood: busy

Today I discovered a new word which is tremendously useful: "biodiversicide." I gather that it refers to the culpable reduction of multiple species in a life zone, with the concurrent effect of weaking the biosphere as a whole. Homo sapiens is clearly guilty of this. No doubt the term will also be of use to science fiction writers who wish to explore future legal or moral issues relating to the appropriate or inappropriate usage of extraterrestrial biospheres.

Food Security: Neither Technology Nor Free Markets Nor the World Bank
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/041608G.shtml
Editorials by Anne Bauer and Christian Pees in France's business paper, Les Echos, torpedo, respectively, GMO and unregulated markets as the answer to food security, while Le Grand Soir publishes an Olivier Chantry article accusing multinational seed companies and the World Bank of "Biodiversicide."

Tags: environment, news, politics, science fiction, writing
Current Mood: busy