The Confabulator Cafe

Tag: world building

  • Rewriting the Past

    I have a soft spot for ancient civilizations. I find their history fascinating. If money and time were not an issue, I would learn as much as I could about these ancient civilizations and write texts about them. Is this strictly non-fiction? No.

    One of the reasons I love ancient history so much is because there is so much of it that is unknown. So much that can never be known. Every writer on the subject writes with their own agenda, utilizing the limited primary sources to envision what they think society was like. I suppose in a sense writing about ancient history is like writing a novel. You build from a few small details and use those details to create a larger picture. If you do it right, you end up with a believable backdrop. (more…)

  • The Idea Dump

    That’s me swooping in to pick up an idea for a story. Image source.

    I have a folder. This folder is sitting on the hard drive of my new computer and it’s origin lies somewhere in the depths of either the early days of my first laptop or the last days of my desktop.

    It’s the Idea Dump.

    It has a couple of companion spiral notebooks and far too many offspring comprised of bits of paper that float around my office, in my briefcase, in the car, my office, on the mantle above the fireplace or the shelve on either side of it. 90% of these notes are of the “what if” variety or they’re a snatch of conversation or a phrase that caught my ear on the radio or at a restaurant or on TV.

    (more…)