J.D. Moyer

science fiction author, beatmaker, against fascism

Category: Word Craft Series Page 1 of 2

Word Craft #9: Spencer Ellsworth

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On August 7

In Fiction Writing, Word Craft Series, Writing

Spencer Ellsworth generously volunteered his time as my SFWA mentor and taught me a thing or two about the publishing business. Like me, he’s a fan of Octavia Butler. Unlike me, he’s writing from 4:45am to 6:45am, hours in which I prefer to be soundly asleep.

Word Craft is a deep dive into writers’ methods and practices. Please welcome Spencer Ellsworth, author of The Great Faerie Strike (just released on Aug. 5th) as well as The Starfire Trilogy.
-J.D.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tell us a little about yourself and what inspired you to become a writer.

A little bit… Well, I sometimes dream of climbing on a war mammoth and forging a path northward, where the sky lights up from the battles of the gods. That good?

Seriously, I’m one of those who always wrote. I made picture books before I could string sentences together. I have a vague memory of working on an Ewok story at age 5, sitting in church with my family penning an epic sequel to that unappreciated cinematic gem The Battle For Endor.

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Word Craft #8: Brian Pinkerton

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On June 14

In Word Craft Series, Writing

I’m fascinated by how one aspect of an author’s writing process can influence others. Brian Pinkerton writes first drafts by hand, which is probably why he doesn’t do any revisions until his first draft is complete. He maps out his novels using note cards, which is something I’ve always wanted to do but I never seem to have enough table space. 

Word Craft is a deep dive into writer’s methods and practices. Please welcome Brian Pinkerton, author of The Gemini Experiment!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR – BRIAN PINKERTON

Brian Pinkerton deep in plotting mode.

Tell us a little about yourself and what inspired you to become a writer.

I’ve always been fascinated by stories and storytelling. My earliest aspirations were to be a cartoonist and book writer. I wrote my first novel when I was very young. I enacted the entire plot with the Fisher Price Little People Village and then wrote it all down as quickly as I could remember it. I still have that manuscript somewhere. It was written on lined, three-hole-punch paper. The pages were tied together with string.

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Word Craft #7: Russell James

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On April 18

In Fiction Writing, Word Craft Series, Writing

Russell James has been writing daily, apparently without any extended breaks or even weekends off, since 2001 (personally I feel pretty good if I write four days out of seven). I admire that kind of consistency, even if I can’t particularly relate to it.

I can relate to having my wife as my first reader. There’s no one I trust more with that raw, flawed draft.

I enjoyed reading Russell’s responses to my Word Craft questions, and I hope you do too. Please welcome Russell James to Word Craft!

-J.D.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tell us a little about yourself and what inspired you to become a writer.

Author Russell James

I’m currently a technical writer for a Fortune 50 company. When my wife and I used to go on long drives, I’d say “You know what would be a good story?” and then tell her about a plot idea I had. Eventually she said “Why don’t you write these stories down and get them published.” I said “Because no one would ever pay to read something I wrote.” But I did end up trying what she suggested, and here we are.

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Word Craft #6: Michael Haspil

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On March 28

In Fiction Writing, Word Craft Series, Writing

As a fellow RPG enthusiast and miniature painter, I can relate to Tor author Michael Haspil. A few things stuck out and especially impressed me from Haspil’s responses, including:

  • Good discipline in regards to suppressing impulses to revise or fact-check while getting the first draft down (I need to work on this).
  • Redundant and systematic backup (I do this too).
  • The use of FATE dice, StoryForge cards, and Nordic runes for inspiration and brainstorming — great idea!

Please welcome Michael Haspil to Word Craft.

-JD

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tell us a little about yourself and what inspired you to become a writer.

I’ve been a storyteller all my life. A large part of what made me want to become a writer came from attending military school at New York Military Academy. There, my friends and I played a lot of role-playing games and even made up our own. The school had its own small literary magazine and I submitted some stories. People adored them and that really helped me. I continued writing short stories for my high school magazine “Slant of Light” and I even placed in a couple of writing competitions too. Then I joined the Air Force and, regrettably, I put my pen away for a while. Glad to have picked it back up, though.

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Word Craft #5: Betsy Dornbusch

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On March 12

In Fiction Writing, Word Craft Series, Writing

Up until now Word Craft has exclusively featured my fellow Flame Tree Press authors, but this week I’m officially opening Word Craft to authors with other publishers. Please welcome Betsy Dornbusch to Word Craft! I enjoyed reading her honest responses and I can relate to many of them, especially managing to succeed at writing despite the many distractions life offers.

Those who have read the previous Word Craft Q&A’s may notice that my questions are evolving, and that process will continue. I’ve also added a new “Additional Reading” section at the bottom — previous posts I’ve written that relate to the author’s responses in some way.
-J.D.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tell us a little about yourself and what inspired you to become a writer.

I wrote since fourth grade  and took creative writing in college, but life got in the way and I quit. Then after the birth of my second child I started writing a book I’d been noodling for years. That turned into Archive of Fire, my first novel published in 2012.

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