As promised, the written version of the talk I gave (to a tiny, self-selected audience) at Legend Haven is up at Noble Cobra Magazine: There is a passage in C.S. Lewis’s seminal essay On Stories which has informed a lot of my approach to fiction. It comes when Prof. Lewis is trying to describe what he calls … Continue reading Payoffs and Ripoffs at Noble Cobra Magazine
Noble Cobra Magazine
‘Discarded Image’ Commentary – Part Three
Part Three of my commentary on C.S. Lewis's The Discarded Image is finally up at my Substack. Parts One and Two can be found Here and Here. Chapters three and four of The Discarded Image deal with some of the chief sources of the Medieval Model. Lewis starts off by stating that a thorough examination … Continue reading ‘Discarded Image’ Commentary – Part Three
The Lot of the Eldest
A new series, The Saga of the Aeneas, begins at Noble Cobra Magazine: It was the greatest engineering project ever attempted by man. Seven kilometers long, and two across at its widest point, the Aeneas dwarfed any other man-made object by a considerable margin. The internal surface area alone, not counting the upper decks, came … Continue reading The Lot of the Eldest
Noble Cobra Magazine Lives: ‘The Discarded Image’
My long-neglected Substack has at last been coaxed back into life with the first of a commentary series on C.S. Lewis's The Discarded Image: Lewis starts off with a lengthy illustration of a key and oft-neglected fact of the Medieval mind: Medieval man shared many ignorances with the savage, and some of his beliefs may … Continue reading Noble Cobra Magazine Lives: ‘The Discarded Image’
Overdog
A short boxing story is now up at Noble Cobra Magazine for your reading pleasure. “Touch gloves.” Manfred ‘Mad Dog’ Dodgson took one more appraising look at his opponent as they touched. Shorter than him by a couple inches; less reach. Five years older than him, though, which might mean less stamina. Glossy black skin … Continue reading Overdog
Commentary: When Good Characters do Bad Things
Another bit of storycraft commentary up at Noble Cobra Magazine. This time discussing some thoughts I had about heroic or righteous characters doing 'mean' or off-color things in fiction: pranks, unwanted jokes, nasty tricks, that sort of thing, and how it can be used for characterization purposes (and yes, more Fruits Basket, since that's on … Continue reading Commentary: When Good Characters do Bad Things
A Christmas Eve Tale
A small Christmas present up on Noble Cobra Magazine: a quick story that came to me last night and which I whipped up on the spot. Pushing, shoving, shouting. So many people! Last minute shoppers, making their rush on Christmas Eve. The clutched their shirts, video games, expensive toys, and groceries as if they were … Continue reading A Christmas Eve Tale
The Knock
A spooky tale for October is now up at Noble Cobra Magazine for your reading pleasure. The failure of the Delphi Mission, the first experiment in establishing a permanent base on the Moon, has, of course, been the cause of much speculation. The rumours that have flown regarding the event have ranged from reasonable to … Continue reading The Knock
The Last Harvest
After missing a few weeks (sorry; life is not orderly), my next piece of short fiction is up at Noble Cobra Magazine. Like The Old Man in the Sky, this was intended for the Planetary Anthology series - in this case Saturn - but turned down, so I offer it now for your reading pleasure: … Continue reading The Last Harvest
NC Commentary: Villain vs. Villain
My latest story commentary essay is up at Noble Cobra Magazine. Yes, I'm again talking about My Hero Academia, though this time I'm dealing with a part where it falls short by discussing its version of the "villain's rise to power" arc and comparing and contrasting it with what I think is a better done … Continue reading NC Commentary: Villain vs. Villain
Serpent's Den 