How to Get Published

by John Bowers
One of the great things about reading a good adventure book is the atmosphere in which the story takes place. If the author is good, you are transported to whatever setting he describes, and wish you were actually there as events take place. Atmosphere is critical to a good novel, but how hard is it to create?

There are many kinds of atmosphere. Initially we think of the setting, like a cool autumn day where the trees blaze with color and a delicious little wind stirs the leaves around your feet; or a sunny beach where the sun bakes you brown and the surf crashes loudly while circling seagulls screech overhead-but atmosphere can be more than that. Atmosphere can be a pall of gloom that settles over a city under siege, a joyous giddiness that infects the guests at a wedding, or a cold dread that stalks the streets where a serial killer remains at large.

You can develop an exciting plot, colorful characters, and lots of action, but without atmosphere, your novel is missing a key ingredient. (more…)

by Al Kalar

Gordon R. Dickson was once asked, “What makes a story tick?” Dickson, one of the more prolific authors with a fan following in the millions, answered, “The time bomb that’s set to explode on the last page.”

He was talking about the type of story that becomes a race against time. The characters must accomplish something or be somewhere before the “bomb”, which can be a good or bad thing, goes off.

The Bomb

The beat of the time bomb needs to be felt throughout the story. Not necessarily on every page, but the reader should not be allowed to forget that it exists and it’s the main problem faced by the characters. (more…)