Archive for August, 2007
Just because I don’t let my guests talk about fiction writing doesn’t mean there aren’t great tips and insights from the world of fiction that we can all use.
This morning I listened to Mur Lafferty of I Should Be Writing interview one of my favorite authors, Connie Willis. It’s a great interview. Along with topics such as character creation and plot, Connie discusses the knotty issues of time management and working from home.
On time management: There’s no magic bullet. This is a problem that never, ever gets solved once and for all. Life will always get in the way of writing, but there are ways to find writing time every day, and build up good work habits.
On working from home: There are some kinds of work that she can do at home, but she doesn’t write at home.
Also: Writing is really, really hard.
Give it a listen!
And do yourself a huge favor and read Doomsday Book.
August 29th, 2007
I’ll be attending the Penny Arcade Expo this weekend in downtown Seattle. (In fact, it starts in just a few hours!)
If you’re there and you catch sight of me, please say hello. I’d love to meet you.
It would be awesome if you could do it while my co-workers are nearby, because I want them to think I’m totally famous.
August 24th, 2007
Part Two of our conversation with writer, editor, and game designer Wolfgang Baur.
- 0:58 - What Wade is up to lately, writing-wise.
- 2: 18 - Wolfgang’s Open Design project: writing for patrons!
- 6:11 - Keeping the patrons entertained while they’re waiting.
- 8:05 - Why the relative lack of advice and how-tos in the game industry?
- 11:05 - Open Design vs. the open source software movement.
- 12:44 - Weeding out the Internet trolls.
- 15:00 - Some pitfalls of the patron system.
- 19:26 - When writers need to tell their patrons no.
- 20:25 - The project as a conversation.
- 20:55 - Empire Of The Ghouls!
- 22:31 - Wolfgang’s new magazine, Kobold Quarterly.
- 24:10 - How you can get a copy.
- 25:46 - Advice to aspiring writers.
- 28:05 - Will publishers be interested in your awesome game ideas?
- 28:48 - Your first audience is the editor.
- 29:47 - Submit your square-peg queries to Kobold Quarterly!
- 30:40 - So many URLs do we have.
Wolfgang Baur’s Web site: www.wolfgangbaur.com
Publications by Wolfgang Baur:
Music by Morgansorange
August 22nd, 2007
Wade talks to Wolfgang Baur about the glories and perils of doing game design under the patron system, and about Wolfgang’s new magazine Kobold Quarterly.
Show notes at http://writingforpay.org
Standard Podcast [31:37m]:
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August 22nd, 2007
Doug Cohen recently made an impassioned plea to science fiction fans and writers to subscribe to SF short fiction magazines in order to resurrect the market.
Jeremiah Tolbert responded by comparing this effort to buggy whip manufacturers struggling to save their endangered industry. He agrees that the short fiction market is dying, but thinks that writers should move on:
There is no solution. The public’s interest has moved on. If you’re a writer, go write video games, movies, television, or books, in that order of popularity. That is where the public’s interest is right now, and if you don’t like it, then I’m afraid that you should probably get used to the idea that short fiction is a small, niche hobby of little importance. I’m fine with that. I find that I enjoy writing it, and that’s enough for me. Short fiction for me is a way to learn writing, but I won’t regret leaving it behind if I were to crack another (more popular and better paying) medium, or find some amalgam of several of my own.
I gotta side with Tolbert here.
August 11th, 2007
Caught up in Pottermania, WFP geeks out with writer, editor, and game designer Wolfgang Baur.
- 0:25 - At Third Place Books, buying Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows.
- 2:07 - Wolfgang Baur takes a break from training his hordes of clockwork ghouls to have a word with us.
- 2:39 - From gamer to writer to editor at TSR.
- 5:50 - The subject of fiction comes up, and Wolfgang is apprised of the “not getting laid” rule.
- 6:26 - The day job: technical and benefits writing.
- 8:35 - Breaking into the tech writing field with relatively little tech experience.
- 12:20 - Nuts and bolts: juggling multiple internal clients and budgets.
- 16:08 - Freelancing in the games industry.
- 16:29 - Wolfgang plugs his new books Expedition to the Demonweb Pits and The Forge of War.
- 16:55 - Nuts and bolts: how a role-playing game book gets made.
- 19:24 - We discuss the difference between game design and game writing.
- 22:06 - The sad realities of work for hire.
- 22:42 - Finding freelance work.
- 24:54 - I can’t for the life of me pronounce “Wingardium Leviosa” correctly.
Wolfgang Baur’s Web site: www.wolfgangbaur.com
Publications by Wolfgang Baur:
Music by Morgansorange
August 9th, 2007
Wade restrains himself from diving right into his new Harry Potter book and interviews writer, editor, and game designer Wolfgang Baur. Part one: technical and HR-type writing at the day job, and freelancing in the games industry.
Show notes at http://writingforpay.org
Standard Podcast [25:13m]:
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August 9th, 2007
Loyal WFP listener Jes asked if I could provide links to publications that come up in conversation when I’m interviewing writers. I think this is a brilliant idea, and I’ve updated the first episode’s show notes with links to my guest Jaq Greenspon’s books:
These are Amazon Affiliate links; so if you use them to buy the books, I receive several pennies’ worth of store credit. Everybody wins! Especially Amazon!
Fig. 1 - More book sales = more sandwiches.
August 2nd, 2007
