Erik D. Goodwyn's Blog

Hey Imaginarians and especially all of my subscribers who are interested in creative writing and fantasy fiction. I have a special treat for you today: an interview with Filipa Roque of Fantasy Wordsmith! Filipa is a professional developmental editor and beta reader, and she has graciously agreed to an interview with me today! Hi Filipa! Tell us about yourself and what you do! Hi Imaginarians and all subscribers of this talented author. I am a Portuguese fantasy fanatic who has a degree in...

Greetings Imaginarians! Some news for you--I have another book signing coming up on November 15th at the Elizabethtown, KY Barnes & Noble. I will be there signing copies of King of the Forgotten Darkness from 1pm - 5pm, come one come all! If you get a chance, I'd love to meet and greet. Next up, I just posted a new podcast discussion on my Youtube channel, the Imaginarium. This one is with fantasy author and professor of English literature, Philip Chase. Be sure to hop over to Youtube and let...

No doubt you’ve heard about the standard choices, first person present or past tense, third person limited, third person omniscient, and all that. So, if you’re a writer, which one do you choose? Do you just go with “well, I’ll just pick this one because it just feels right”. What are we a bunch of hippies? No, if you’re going to pick a POV, you should know what you’re doing, why you’re doing it, and what the tradeoffs are. If you're new here, welcome to the Imaginarium! I’m Erik Goodwyn, a...

I have a couple of special treats for you all today, on this glorious day of days--not only the best day of the year, but also my birthday, so HUZZAH to that haha! Anyway, it's been a busy week here, and I have two new podcasts for you all, one on the process of writing for all you creative writers out there. Aster Jewell and I do a workshop on how to put together a great query letter for your novel--it's actually a very important part of the process, not only to get attention for your book,...

I just recently re-watched one of my favorite Guillermo del Toro films, Pan’s Labyrinth. And of course, the big question in that movie is: are the fantasy creatures real, or is it all just in Ofelia’s head? A lot has been said about this award-winning movie, which I won’t rehash. What really caught my attention was the interesting question of whether or not the fantasy elements of the story are real or whether or not they are merely in the imagination of the main character Ofelia, an...

Hey Imaginarians, quick note, philosopher James Cussen has just now posted a great conversation about dreams, meaning-making, and fantasy writing on his channel @TheLivingPhilosophy on Youtube. You can check out our conversation right here: James is an engaging thinker and explorer of all sorts of fascinating subjects, so don't miss out on this one. See you next time! EG

Hey gang, so the latest on The Treacherous Fire , book 2 of the Raven’s Tale: I’m finished with all 5 drafts and now it is in the alpha and beta reading phase. So far I’m getting very positive feedback for it, so that’s very exciting. The Treacherous Fire The story is, of course, a sequel to King of the Forgotten Darkness, set twenty years later, where an investigator in Midworld is trying to track down Liam and his Dream Stone, but Liam turns the tables on him and drags him into Erentyr....

Cinderella is classified as ATU 510A and has variations all over the world. It’s not just a Disney movie based on Brother’s Grimm, it’s found in Finland to Sardinia, from Slovakia to Japan, from India to North American First Nations, from Chile to Egypt, from Namibia to South Africa.  So what is the Cinderella folktale type? In this story, a young woman is mistreated by her stepmother and stepsisters, and forced to live in the ash as a servant. When they all go to a ball or to church, they...

You aspiring writers have heard this advice. You fantasy readers have heard it, and you’re on the lookout for it. I’ve encountered this...

There has been a trend in the last few years in fantasy where the authors are including depictions of mental illness in their fantasy...