CSFF Blog Tour - The Sword Review ezine

Hi all:

I'm participating again in this month's Christian Science Fiction & Fantasy (CSFF) Blog Tour. For one or more of the next three days the following blog writers will be commenting on The Sword Review: Fantasy, Science Fiction, & More (TSR):

Jim Black
Amy Browning
Jackie Castle
Valerie Comer
Karri Compton
Frank Creed
CSFF Blog Tour
Gene Curtis
D. G. D. Davidson
Chris Deanne
April Erwin
Kameron M. Franklin
Beth Goddard
Marcus Goodyear
Andrea Graham
Jill Hart
Katie Hart
Sherrie Hibbs
Heather R. Hunt
Becca Johnson
Jason Joyner
Kait
Karen
Dawn King
Tina Kulesa
Lost Genre Guild
Kevin Lucia and The Bookshelf Reviews 2.0 - The Compendium
Terri Main
Rachel Marks
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Eve Nielsen
John W. Otte
John Ottinger
Cheryl Russel
Hanna Sandvig
Chawna Schroeder
Mirtika Schultz
Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Daniel I. Weaver
Russell Griffith
Jason Waguespac
Holly
Brandon Barr

I haven't had time to peruse the site in much depth yet, but it looks fantastic. They publish fiction and poetry, some columns, essays, and reviews. They have a forum, store, and MySpace page. And they have gorgeous art. Check out a few recent covers:

[6/4/07 - pictures removed at artists' request. Visit the TSR site to see the smashing artwork.]

You can also get print versions of the magazine starting with the January 2006 issue. It looks like they've put out 24 issues already, so they aren't a newbie operation.

If you love science fiction and fantasy with a Christian worldview (think C.S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien), check out The Sword Review. And if you're a writer in these genres, TSR is a paying market! Check it out!

Enjoy!

hrh

May Full Moons and New Writing Challenge

Hi all:

Sorry you may get this post a bit late to catch May's first full moon - but maybe you can catch the second one!! Here's the scoop on the moon in May from Space.com:

May 2, 6:09 a.m. EDT - The Full Flower Moon. Flowers are abundant everywhere. It was also known as the Full Corn Planting Moon or the Milk Moon.

May 31, 9:04 p.m. EDT - The Blue Moon. The second full Moon occurring within a calendar month is usually bestowed this title.

Although the name suggests that to have two Full Moons in a single month is a rather rare occurrence (happening "just once in a . . . "), it actually occurs once about every three years on average.

On another note, as you can see from my April Fool's progress bar, I only made it to about a third of my goal. Guess I'm the fool ...

But never fear, another month, another challenge, this time over at the American Christian Fiction Writer's members' forum. This one is called Book in a Month (BIAM) and is project oriented rather than word oriented, so I'm going to continue the project I worked on for the April Fool's challenge.

Happy May Day!!

hrh

April Fool's Writing Challenge!

Hi all:

I signed up for the April Fools' Writing Challenge:

and committed to writing 15,000 words in April. That works out to 500 words a day. What was I thinking? Am I a fool or what?

Many different kinds of writing count for this challenge, but I signed up mainly for my fiction and script writing. I've only actually done about 500 words in that area ... but I've done lots of qualifying writing! Honest!

Seriously, here's my word count progress meter, which is already in progress, because it's already April 9 ...

2,000 / 15,000 (13.3%)

I'm also going to post the progress meter in my sidebar.

You can help me out by checking my Word Progress Counter throughout the month and sending me a gentle reminder to "GET WRITING!!"

Thanks so much!

hrh

Best Actual Headlines of 2006

Hi all:

In the spirit of last week's "Church Bulletin Boo Boos" blog, I present these headlines that apparently appeared in some newspaper somewhere in 2006 (these have been making the e-mail rounds, so I'm not sure of their original source - but they sure are funny, especially the asides beneath):

1. Crack Found on Governor's Daughter
   Imagine that!
   
   
2. Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says
   No, really?
   
   
3. Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers
   Now that's taking things a bit far!
   
   
4. Panda Mating Fails; Veterinarian Takes Over
   What a guy!
   
   
5. Miners Refuse to Work after Death
   No-good-for-nothing' lazy so-and-sos!
   
   
6. Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant
   See if that works any better than a fair trial!
   
   
7. War Dims Hope for Peace
   I can see where it might have that effect!
   
   
8. If Strike Isn't Settled Quickly, It May Last Awhile
   You think?!
   
   
9. Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures
   Who would have thought!
   
   
10. Enfield Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide
    They may be on to something!
    
    
11. Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges
    You mean there's something stronger than duct tape?!
    
    
12. Man Struck By Lightning: Faces Battery Charge
    He probably IS the battery charge!
    
    
13. New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group
    Weren't they fat enough?!
    
    
14. Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft
    That's what he gets for eating those beans!
    
    
15. Kids Make Nutritious Snacks
    Taste like chicken?
    
    
16. Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half
    Chainsaw Massacre all over again!
    
    
17. Hospitals are Sued by 7 Foot Doctors
    Boy, are they tall!
    
    
18. Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery; Hundreds Dead
    Did I read that right?

My favorites are 3, 4, 6, and 17. What are yours?

As a writer/editor, I'm constantly trying to make sure boo boos like this don't make it into my work. It's pretty hard sometimes!

Enjoy!

hrh

Two Television Scripts

Hi all:

I just added links to two of my television "spec" scripts in the sidebar under "My Scripts:"

1. Joan of Arcadia "The Bridge"
   This one was a Finalist in the WriteSafe.com quarterly contest. Woohoo!
   My inspiration for this was an article in Christianity Today magazine about a ministry to homeless people who live under a bridge.
   Sadly, this show was cancelled after the second season. But Season 2 is coming out on DVD in November!
   
   
2. Stargate SG-1 "The Nephilim"
   My inspirations for this were Genesis 6:4, when the Nephilim still walked the earth in the time before the Flood, and Madeleine L'Engle's Many Waters, which is a time-travel novel about Noah and the earth before the Flood. [Wow! 97 customer reviews on amazon give Many Waters 4 out of 5 stars - yep, it's just that good.]
   Sadly, SG-1 has just been cancelled after 10 seasons, which still makes it the longest running U.S. SciFi show.

You can read mine and other scripts at WriteSafe's online directory. Works are listed by Author's last name. Scroll down to "Hunt" for my scripts!

[FYI: WriteSafe is a registration and display site, so all works are legally protected by the authors.]

Enjoy!

hrh

Scriptwriting for Stage & Screen

Hi all:

Monday & Tuesday of this week we had our play and film scenes read at the Branford Mansion at Avery Point. It was great fun to see these wonderful local actors bring our written words to life. Since scripts are meant to live in real space and not on the page, writers learn loads by seeing their words acted out. It brings a wonderful thrill when something works and a stark clarity when something doesn't ...

Our sports nut teacher, Nick Checker, also invited what he calls his "heavy hitters" to comment on our works in progress. They included off-Broadway playwright and director of the Avery Point Playhouse, Michael Bradford, playwright and director Kato McNickle, and playwright and actor Michael McGuire.

On the film scenes night we also had some great local filmmakers to comment on how certain scenes would or would not work in front of a camera. This was the first time for film scenes to be staged this way and it was an adventure. A successful one I think anyone who attended would agree.

The actors also piped in with comments about lines and staging that are of invaluable help to writers. You could tell which scripts worked just by the enthusiasm the actors put into their performances!

The classes that lead up these final performances are great fun, and I recommend them highly to any writers who are tired of slaving away in isolation. They're offered by the Groton Parks & Recreation Department. The next sessions begin March 20 & 22.

TTNF,
hrh