My lovely and delightful author friend Melissa McTernan was one of my early readers for Ballad for Jasmine Town, and said recently that she found herself still occasionally thinking about the book, months later. Which to me is such a high compliment! And it has led me to ponder: what is it that makes a story, be it book or show or film, stick in ( Read more... )

It recently occurred to me that Howl’s Moving Castle is kind of another retelling of Jane Eyre. No wonder I love it.

HMC is of course in the fantasy genre and is more whimsical, not gothic and set in the real world like Jane Eyre or other novels that also retell it (e.g., Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, or Frances Hodgson Burnett’s The Secret Garden- ( Read more... )

I just watched the new Lady Chatterley's Lover on Netflix. I wasn't expecting much, since adapting this book tastefully is always tricky, but I actually loved it. Yes, there's nudity and sex aplenty-that's an integral part of the story's territory-but to me it felt natural, lush, and highly romantic. In fact, I'd guess that the most valid ( Read more... )

First, a quick piece of writing news: I recently finished the first draft of Ballad for Jasmine Town, my next book! It takes place on Eidolonia, the island of fae and witches where Lava Red Feather Blue is set, but you won't need to have read Lava Red Feather Blue to understand it. Each book can be read as a standalone. The manuscript is currently ( Read more... )

Couple of announcements:
First, an LJ one. I can no longer access my mollyringwraith journal. I did not lose the password; I am a good password steward and I still had it! But when I tried to get in the other week after hearing it was subject to a security hack, LJ helpfully told me the password was too old and I had to change it. Which you can only do by email ( Read more... )

I often see people mourning what Rowling has done to HP fandom. The fandom meant so much to them, they say; they can’t just stop loving it. Ah, but can’t you? If a friend said that about a problematic ex, wouldn’t you say that wasn’t a healthy outlook?

Look, I get it, about fandom being mega-important. Fandoms have kept me out of despair at various ( Read more... )

It's been too long since I've brought on another author for Q&A, and I'm pleased to be doing so again with Darlene Foster! I met Darlene (in an online sense) through our publisher in common, Central Avenue Publishing, and she's one of the most upbeat, easygoing, fun-loving writers I know. Her Amanda Travels series is a wonderful set of books for ( Read more... )

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I haven't posted here about the new book, have I? Here is its magnificent cover!


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Magic systems in fantasy! They are not all alike, as you know, but here's one of the ways to categorize them: a spectrum between "soft" and "hard" magic. Hard magic systems have defined rules on how they work, and the reader is told what they are-e.g., the four element types of bending in Avatar: the Last Airbender have certain basic limits, which ( Read more... )