Nathan Bransford - The Forums

A post on how many supernaturals it takes to get to the center of an urban fantasy. :)

http://urbanpsychopomp.blogspot.com/201 ... ke-on.html

Well, as I'm about to consider setting up a blog, this is gonna be an interesting thread for me.
How does one find out if a blog name is already taken?

lvcabbie wrote:Well, as I'm about to consider setting up a blog, this is gonna be an interesting thread for me.
How does one find out if a blog name is already taken?

I only know about blogspot. If you go to blogspot to create a blog, it will ask you to type in the blog name you want to use, and it will tell you if it's already taken (and won't let you duplicate).

An interview with Sara J. Henry, author of the new psychological thriller, LEARNING TO SWIM

http://www.writernot.com/2011/02/10/an- ... a-j-henry/

Solidarity:

http://theqqqe.blogspot.com/2011/02/overstocked.html

There is also some pink hair, but that's unrelated.

Writing and roleplaying: http://claudiea.blogspot.com/2011/02/wr ... aying.html

lvcabbie wrote:Well, as I'm about to consider setting up a blog, this is gonna be an interesting thread for me.
How does one find out if a blog name is already taken?

You need to search and see if the domain name is taken and, if it's not, you need to purchase it. There are several sites through which you can do that---GoDaddy.com is the first one that always comes to mind, but there are lot of others. You type in the name you're considering and it will tell you what's available. Sometimes the .com version is taken but a .net (or something else) is still available. If you find something available that you're happy with, you purchase it. You then need a web hosting company to host it for you. Some cable companies offer this service so you can check with your internet provider. If not there are, again, tons of sites that offer this service. Google web hosting. There are all sorts of packages and options that come with or without security features, with or without multiple email accounts, there are one year contracts, two year contracts, etc. Customize the package according to your needs. Many web hosting companies already have things like wordpress available to their customers---if they do, it's one-click installation and you can create your site (background, features, etc.) without doing any additional installation. Also, for wordpress, for example, if you already own your domain name then your site will be your domain name rather than being wordpress.xxx/yourdomainname --- a lot of people prefer that as it makes it easier to find their blog with just the name.

Hope that's helpful. Good luck.

My two worlds collided! When a photographer and a steampunk author get together... :D

http://www.amandaplavich.com/2011/02/11 ... s-collide/

charlotte49ers wrote:My two worlds collided! When a photographer and a steampunk author get together... :D

http://www.amandaplavich.com/2011/02/11 ... s-collide/

Awesome pictures. That dress and equipment, along with the entire composition is a real masterpiece. I can imagine an entire movie with this setting.

Gosh, thanks so much! It was a lot of fun. :D

Oh boy I'm feeling so eloquent this morning, and tactful, too... A post on why realism in fiction sucks...

http://urbanpsychopomp.blogspot.com/201 ... sucks.html

Before You Start A Scene... http://claudiea.blogspot.com/2011/02/be ... scene.html What I like to know before I start writing a scene.

And I have a guest post on Tahereh Mafi's magnificient blog, "The Real Reason Writers Should Read" : http://stiryourtea.blogspot.com/2011/02 ... hould.html

Margo wrote:Oh boy I'm feeling so eloquent this morning, and tactful, too... A post on why realism in fiction sucks...

http://urbanpsychopomp.blogspot.com/201 ... sucks.html

Excellent post. I loved this part the most "If you, my fellows, imagine an angel coming down from Heaven to speak to you, do you expect the angel to speak your language?". :) Although you can and must simulate realism to make your world real and beliavable (Just as you mentioned). Fiction is not life, but it must be the real life for your character. A breathing, living world must surround your character as your character must have a life (With minor details or a full background, it's really matter.). Otherwise, that character is not believable anymore.

Idle chit chat, traveling and events can be dry, cliche and boring as hell, just as you mentioned, or really colorful and interesting. These points are all depending on the presentation. Convenient coincidence and blind luck... maybe this is the best point. There should be no such thing as luck in novels, just cause and effects. The only point that with I can't agree is; MInor details. Minor details used to give color to worlds, characters, places and making these things imaginable and believable (Realism simulation.). These details doesn't have to be important at all, yet they can be in the novel anytime. These details used to give the necessary color, otherwise everything would be gray and cliche. If major details has no meaning in the story, now that's a greater problem. That's the true Chekov's Gun effect. The best way to work with minor details is to mask their presence in the story. They won't bother the reader as it's going to touch them on subconscious level.

The process of my first attempted Picture Book: http://josinlmcquein.blogspot.com/2011/ ... -baby.html

Guardian wrote:The only point that with I can't agree is; MInor details. Minor details used to give color to worlds, characters, places and making these things imaginable and believable (Realism simulation.). These details doesn't have to be important at all, yet they can be in the novel anytime. These details used to give the necessary color, otherwise everything would be gray and cliche. If major details has no meaning in the story, now that's a greater problem. That's the true Chekov's Gun effect. The best way to work with minor details is to mask their presence in the story. They won't bother the reader as it's going to touch them on subconscious level.

Thanks, Guardian.

I absolutely agree that these details provide color and a certain depth, but I think they are more powerful if they are not random and not treated as (significantly) less important than major plot details. Though there will be variation across cultures, these details will cue certain reactions and assumptions for a reader and can take the place of telling and more blatant character descriptions. So, no they don't have to be important, but why waste the space and opportunity when more intentional choices do more than add a color or shape? It is because these details accumulate in the subconscious that I prefer not to waste them.

Excellent discussion point, btw. Thank you for bringing it up.

[Edit: FYI, Guardian, I thought this was such a great topic for discussion that I reposted our responses to a separate thread in the writing section. Should make for some interesting ideas all around.]