Willamette Sutta's Blog

As you learned in a previous post, I have a background in physics. And you might have also noticed that I’ve included a lot of science in my fantasy stories. In fact, if you’ve finished Rising on Song, you will know what that post image is all about 😉.

But does the science fly? If you’re a science geek and want to know, I am doing a deeper dive into some of the hidden science behind my fantasy once in a while. Here’s my first shot.

Ballista

The ballista is an ancient missile weapon that...

Please enjoy this excerpt from my novella, Sense Shattered, Riven Origins Book 3, Prequel to the Far Stone Cycle.

“When will Lady Naamit return?” Lord Khoo Geng-Yang demanded, thick black eyebrows furrowed in disapproval, like he were talking to an errant daughter.

Arviser Yaw Yue-Wan schooled her features into equanimity, even if she did not feel it. “Is there a pressing matter, Lord Khoo?”

“The provinces are in an uproar, and she leaves us without guidance,” the Duke of Xindong said w...

Where did you get the writing from?

This question came from a friend, after learning that all my brothers and I studied science or engineering in college. I had never thought about my literary legacy before. What’s more remarkable is that I’m not the only one of my siblings who ended up writing speculative fiction. And both my parents didn’t speak English, the highest level of education between them being third grade in another country. So, where had this writerly bent come from?

Dissectin...

For over two weeks in July, we traveled by car to a writer’s conference in Michigan, a two-star swimming championships in Wisconsin, and then back to Michigan for a family vacation. It was the longest I’ve been away from home since college. The many wonderful experiences form a tapestry of fond memories, but a few surprising takeaways stand out.

Reflecting at the Realm Makers Conference

I’ve been looking forward to this annual meeting of Christian speculative authors since the previous one...

I recently received updates from two authors on the same day. One breathes the exhausted fumes of disillusionment after a long career of solid sales. The other exudes the enthusiasm of unanticipated action as he publishes his first book. In them, I see bookends of the expectations of every aspirant, in writing and life.

Taking a Chance on Abundance

The new author—let’s call him Bob—presents a ticklish dilemma. Not because it is a delicate matter, but for the laughter I could hear in his vo...

When the ideas of the Far Stone Cycle first came to me over twenty years ago, they were just glimpses of a narrative that captivated me and wouldn’t leave me alone. In all my musings to write it down, I did not consider fantasy tropes, because I’d never heard of them before.

What is a Trope?

So, if you are as I was and don’t know what tropes are, let’s define them. Rolling with the times, I asked ChatGPT, and here is what it gave me:

A trope is a common theme, motif, or storytelling de...

Follow this link to read my recent guest blog post on the Creative Cornerstones website: “Why Christians Should Read Fantasy: Can You Imagine Unseen Things?”

The post Guest Blog on Creative Cornerstones appeared first on Air of Another.

I recently heard a story about Martyn Lloyd-Jones, one of the greatest preachers of the twentieth century. Before he went into the ministry, he was a promising young doctor at one of the best hospitals in London. One day, another doctor from the hospital came to his door, requesting to sit by his fire. This doctor had recently lost a woman he’d cared about to a sudden illness. This man sat in front of Lloyd-Jones’ fire for two hours, not saying a word. For all his prominence in medicine and soci...

What kind of aroma do you think that would be?

Why did it have to be pigs?

Marione chuffed at her family’s occupation for the thousandth time as she tucked the crisp corners of the bed linens.

Cattle, sheep, chickens—none of these carried the same stigma. But her father was so proud of his charges. “The best pigs in all Eanverness,” he always said. So he’d gained some notoriety, and his daughter too when she came to work at Amber Walling Manor.

Most ignored her now. But not Vilma and...

Not to sound like the exclamation-prone Boy Wonder (for those of you who remember the old, original Batman series), but the last month was a wild ride. And I don’t just mean the news cycle. My personal life had its own thrills and gut punches, chasing hard on each other’s heels.

Seven HighlightsI had an opportunity to talk to Robin Sullivan, the wife of my favorite living author (You might guess who that is or drop me a note to find out). She was a wealth of knowledge and wonderfully gra...