Repercussions This is a short one. A note to myself more than anything. I just ran across this: [He] knew from his limited reading on the subject that because of their longevity elves had built a society with a massive emphasis on conflict resolution. Something that made sense when he thought about it. For whenContinue reading “Learning 2 Write – VIII”
Author Archives: Mark
Speaking of Trust Issues
The Rapid City Post is a new newspaper, of all things. I’m pretty sure the HomeSlice Group owns it. They’re a radio (at least) conglomerate that’s based here. They seem fine. They published an opinion piece with the very long title/headline of Opinion: Choosing Facts Over Fear Ahead of the 2026 Legislative Session. It’s dreadful,Continue reading “Speaking of Trust Issues”
“No” on Trust Issues
Rapid City is having a special election today to vote on Tax Increment Financing district. To drastically oversimplify: A developer wants the TIF as collateral for a loan. The concept is simple: The taxing authority locks in the current assessment. As property values increase, the tax difference between the locked-in assessment and the actual assessmentContinue reading ““No” on Trust Issues”
Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – Retro
Pie Crust I thought I had this down, but if you’ve read about my last several pies, you know I did not. Since we have it again, I read the “how to make pie crust” section of The Joy of Cooking. One of the things that makes that such an excellent resource is that itContinue reading “Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – Retro”
Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – LXXXVI
French Silk Pie No pictures. It’s not worth the effort. They _look_ great. The filling is great. The crust is a disaster. Since I got the recipe from a random website (Sally’s Baking), here’s the filling: French Silk Pie Filling (aka chocolate custard)From: Sally’s Baking 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream or heavy whipping creamtwo 4-ounce quality bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate bars (113g each),Continue reading “Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – LXXXVI”
Dark Matter
This is not a post about dark matter. This is an experiment. I left a question in a YouTube video comment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffLDGr2pW0Q&lc=UgzZ-A4PMWQYeTATemZ4AaABAg. There are two things I’m looking for: We’ll see what happens. In case that’s not a link to my comment, this is what I asked: I was wondering where I could ask thisContinue reading “Dark Matter”
Learning 2 Write – VII
Names It may not be possible to win when it comes to names. I just (as in “last week”) found out that Rhys is pronounced Reese. This broke both Torchwood and the Deryni series, for opposite reasons. With Torchwood being TV, I only heard the name “Reese” and assumed the spelling. With Deryni being print,Continue reading “Learning 2 Write – VII”
Learning 2 Write – V
Time This may be the hardest part about writing a novel – other than actually typing it out. Authors get this wrong a LOT. Time in novels must be “stretchy” simply due to the medium. As a counter example, movie scenes must run in real-time because we’re watching people do things – including talk toContinue reading “Learning 2 Write – V”
Hang It or Throw It Away
We planned to leave Denver about 18 months before we decided where we were going. For that time, “frame it or throw it away” became a mantra. We had so much stuff in boxes (or art tubes) that we decided that if it were not important enough to be framed in Denver, it was notContinue reading “Hang It or Throw It Away”
Learning 2 Write – IV
Structure I’m talking about paragraphs, chapters, and books, not plot structure. At least paragraphs are straightforward: Nominal English paragraphs. I will cheerfully admit that I am not aware of the exact details and corner-cases of English paragraph structure. I do know that quote-source changes need new paragraphs. I also know that a paragraph should beContinue reading “Learning 2 Write – IV”
Marked Up 