Books have always struck me as a transaction between writer and reader.  I create a world and some characters and tell a story there–but the story is not complete until it comes to life in the mind of the reader.  Writers talk about making a “contract” with the reader just by beginning a story in [...]

A good game for readers! Here are 10 (well, okay, a few more than 10) books that have long stayed with me (in a good way). 1. THE LOST PAINTING: THE QUEST FOR A CARAVAGGIO MASTERPIECE by Jonathan Harr. (Nonfiction.) I read this book last winter. After a week, I was still thinking about it, [...]

You know how some stories change in mid-stream? Well, this is one of those. I started writing this blog saying that it was a work in progress. That I was “telling you upfront that there’s no ending – happy or otherwise – to this tale. Not yet.” I was wrong. There is an ending. And [...]

Yesterday I FINALLY finished work on a novella for Ellora’s Cave and emailed it to my new editor. All right, I’ll say it right up front, that story has been a pisser. I can’t believe that the first time I sent it off, I told the editor (a different one) that it had written itself. Maybe [...]