Category: Books
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Re-Thinking Singapore Writing
The closure of Kinokuniya at JEM leaves just two branches of the iconic Japanese bookstore in Singapore. Neil Humphreys penned a Facebook post describing his thoughts. While I share much of his sentiments, the reality is that the fiction industry has changed. Things are never going to return to the way they used to be.…
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Book Review: CARBON by Andrew Vachss
Cyberpunk. Fantasy. Noir. Blend them together and you get Carbon. Late noir grandmaster Andrew Vachss wrote his Burke novels to expose the horrific reality of child abuse in America. With Carbon, he opened a new front in his crusade against abusers and predators, stepping into the world of science fiction and fantasy. Carbon begins with…
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Book Review: Blood Line by Andrew Vachss
Andrew Vachss was a master of American crime noir. Where most other writers can only attempt to summon imaginary demons on the page, Vachss has stared true monsters in the eye—and locked them away. By profession Vachss was a lawyer who specialized in child protective work. He had previously worked as a federal investigator in…
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Writing the Weapon and the Cultivator
Different cultures have different ways of treating weapons and martial arts. Bound up in historical, legal and cultural cornerstones, a society’s relationship with weapons speaks to deeper underlying norms. To reach a higher level of worldbuilding in the art of writing, think about how your culture views weapons and warfare. Here are some real-world examples…
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Saga of the Swordbreaker continues!
The IndieGoGo campaign for Saga of the Swordbreaker has been extended! The campaign will now run for a further 28 days, finishing at the end of the month. Although we failed to hit the original campaign goal of $2200 by 31st December, we still made a good show of ourselves. The campaign now stands at…
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The Way of Wuxia
The romance of the jianghu crosses borders and cultures. It is freedom from cultural strictures, skill with martial arts, an iron code of honor. In China, its greatest appeal comes from its sharp contrast with Confucian norms, with its emphasis on rigid social hierarchies and complex etiquettes. The West sees parallels with the knights-errant of…