Author: Foxfier

Former sailor, current geek, conservative, mother and practicing Catholic. Refugee from the Seattle blob. (No, we DIDN'T vote for those taxes!) Elf is my husband, our kids are Princess, Duchess, Baron, Empress, Chief, the Contessa, and the 7th Son.

Because it helped me.

Quoting an online search result:

I read a book as a teenager and I am searching for it. (from around the 90’s)

Things I remember:

  • I remember that one of the players was in a wheelchair and he played a dwarf,
  • Also remember when the wizard woke up in the game world, he set off a lightning bolt and exploded most of their gear.

I wish I could give you more, I read it and it inspired me to start playing D&D. Want to revisit it.

Conversation is here.

Book series is Guardians of the Flame by Joel Rosenberg.

….ignore the new e-book covers, it is NOT a Game of Thrones type depression-sadism-doom fest.  Look at the ’80s covers, it’s “folks pulled into D&D and dealing with it realistically.”

This is the series my uncle gave me along with the first two of the Harper Hall trilogy. (Lest someone get huffy on my behalf, given that uncle– it’s probably because Mellony is a bard, and so is he; Piemur is a bit of a twit, though not BAD, just…. not uncle Dink.)

A plethora of ideas

Meme post!

Mad Genius Club

I woke up late this morning, and feeling drowsy and satisfied with life in general, I thought I’d amuse myself and you, dear readers. What follows are a selection of writing memes that I’ve saved over the last little while, for inspiration and to chuck at my writer friends when they need a laugh. A laugh that will end in a ‘huh. I could make that work…’

Inspector Gidget adds her opinion.

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A Writer’s Guide to Muzzle-Loading Firearmsby by Michael L. McDaniel

Mad Genius Club

A Writer’s Guide to Muzzle-Loading Firearms

by

Michael L. McDaniel

Why Am I Writing This?

If you’re writing (or trying to write) historical fiction, the odds are good that you’ll wander into the realm of muzzle-loading firearms. There’s a lot of myths and misconceptions out there, so I decided to put together a brief guide for authors who aren’t familiar with these arms.

And What Qualifies Me To Write It, Anyway?

This is where I get to blush… I’ve been shooting muzzle-loading firearms for 45 years. Compete with the North-South Skirmish Association (a group dedicated to shooting American Civil War firearms in competition). Certified as a Muzzle-Loading instructor by the National Muzzle-Loading Rifle Association. I’m also a member of the U.S. International Muzzle-Loading Team, and have represented the USA at the World Championships since 1996. Managed to win the Original division of the 50 meter percussion revolver match (Malson-O) and…

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Writerly Sound Bites, Number 12: Emotional Continuity for Characters in Fiction

A Song of Joy by Caroline Furlong

Crossover Queen had a thought-provoking post on her site about emotional investment in the characters of her favorite stories. This was spurred by the tumblr post here, which is interesting reading in itself. Both of them pointed out that plots revolving around “saving the world” and a “Chosen One” – as they are presently presented, at least – lack emotional engagement to some degree for the audience.

This is an issue which I have noticed and more or less discussed previously, though not in-depth, here. Declan Finn prompted that article with his post here, which hinted at the same issue and emphasizes the problem discussed at length in the Writerly Sound Bites series: by and large, the market is saturated with writers who have forgotten how to tell stories. Having been trained that the stakes and/or the plot matter more than the characters, they often leave…

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Eric Flint

May he rest in peace.

Mad Genius Club

My co-author is dead. Many years ago, on Baen’s bar, a monkey and a Red Bear got into a fight about writing. The monkey was his usual cheeky self. A relative newcomer to the bar, I had literally sold my first book to Baen a few months before. It wasn’t public knowledge yet, or due out for a while. The bear – who was now several books into his career, informed the obstreperous monkey, that when he could sell a book, he could opine about how this writing thing should be done.

I sent him a private message… saying well, actually, I had, and it was due out in a few months. I got a message back : with a ‘well, what an idiot I have just made of myself. I am sorry.’ And he proceeded to apologize in public too. Well, where I come from a man who can…

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Paladins and Paladins

Has some good advice on writing decent Paladins.
(is a reblog of a blogspot, click through, it’s worth it)

A Song of Joy by Caroline Furlong

A good look at why Paladins may be Goody-Two-Shoes, but that does not make them stupid or blind fools. Click the link to learn more, readers:

Paladins Wallpapers (84+ images)

Good Isn’t Stupid, or weak, or nice.

Note: Minor edits to clear up a point about the Arthurian tales.

Many years ago I had been only DMing for months when a guy I knew invited me to sit in on a game he played. He said it had a ranger, a cleric, a magic-user and two thieves. I sat with him and rolled up a paladin on my first try. I was very eager to play and described how my character rode up to the small country home they used as a base and dismounted, and introduced myself as So and So the paladin.

At that point the entire party attacked my character and killed him in a single round.

“What was that all…

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