By day, I'm a television anchor and reporter. I've been in the
business for 20 years and love it. It's taken me all over the world and
given me a front row seat to history. I cover a lot of issues oriented
stories, including the environment, energy, education, the economy...a
lot of politics. When I am not at work, I am home with my awesome wife
and two great kids. They're very supportive of my work. And they've
been great at helping me carve out time to write.
June 30, 2013
June 24, 2013
Writing Tip: The Importance of Building Worlds
[A Guestpost and Image by Ben Galley]
If you’ve ever tried to write a book, you’ll have done some world-building. Whether by design, necessity, or accident, it’s essential to any novel, no matter what the genre
By
definition, world-building is the act of creating a world or setting
for a novel and its plot. It’s a very important task indeed. Why? Well,
if you’re thinking that world-building simply refers to dreaming up the
physical attributes of a room, or a city, or deciding what colour the
sky should be, then think again. World-building is so much more than
that. It can define characters, give life to a plot, and basically
underpin every scene of a book.
June 20, 2013
Man of Steel - Movie Review
Man of Steel is Warners newest attempt to create a successful Superman movie and
another DC Comic hit, beside the already ended Batman trilogy. Now they are
trying the same formula with the biggest comic franchise. Expect a darker, grittier
Clark Kent and an intelligent plot. You could say that the use the exact
different approach than marvel, with their plotholes and humorous action
movies. Did it work? No, at least not for me. The quality of Man of Steel tore
me apart, because it jumps from magnificent to utter boredom within minutes,
but let me explain right from the start.
June 16, 2013
Author Interview with Ben Galley (Part #3)
Welcome
back to part three of my Interview with Self-Publishing Author Ben Galley about
his fantasy series Emaneska. This time we will talk more about his latest books
– the final two in the Emaneska Series. Part 1 / Part 2
Hi
Ben and welcome back. We will get right back into the world of Emaneska. What
are the last two books in the series called and could you explain to us in 20
words what they’re about?
My latest books, Dead Stars Parts 1 & 2 can be summed
up in the following words: An epic, gritty, twisting, adventurous, ambitious,
outlandish, poetic, emotional, deep, vast, dark, brutal, eagerly-awaited
whirlwind of a series finale.
June 9, 2013
Author Interview with Ben Galley (Part #2)
Welcome
back to part two of my Interview with Self-Publishing Author Ben Galley. This
time we will talk more about his epic fantasy series Emaneska and how he
created it. Here is Part One again for everyone who missed it.
What
method did you use to start creating your own epic world? Did it come together
bit for bit as the story progressed or did you carefully put each piece
together?
It started off with a title, like
all of my books. It seems rather clichéd to say it simply popped into my head
one day, but in this case it truly did. ‘Emaneska’ was the first word I wrote
of the Series. The world then grew with the characters and dialogue, until I
was forced to draw a map and solidify my ideas.
June 5, 2013
Hangover 3 - Movie Review
The Wolfpack
is back again to survive another ridiculous hangover, but will this be the last
one. Director Todd Phillips said that he won’t direct another one and also the
beloved cast members share his opinion. If Warner Bros want to milk the
franchise any further, don’t expect it to be the same, which even this last
movie isn’t. It feels different than the previous two, both in style and humor.
But at least for me it was a worthy ending.
June 2, 2013
Author Interview with Ben Galley (Part #1)
I
already did some interviews with self published authors, but none so far felt
as professional as him. Not only has he great looking and not with
stockimages plastered book covers, but also an individual website. You can
imagine how much he cares for his work without even reading the first
line. Now I have the honor to bring you a month full of posts about him,
his thoughts and his works, which will end with a big blast, but more about
that at a later time.
Hi
Ben, first of all, could you tell us a bit about yourself.
My
name is Ben Galley, I’m a young fantasy writer from the UK, author of the
bestselling Emaneska Series, a self-publisher, and self-publishing consultant
at the advice site SHELF HELP.