Since posting this, I've removed my books from Amazon, and am moving them to Project Gutenberg Self-Publishing Press. They're all pdf ebooks, all free, and always will be. I apologize if you wanted one of the trade paperbacks.
If you've only read the free fiction I've posted here or on Goodreads, I probably haven't shown you what my novels and short story collections are like (although the Bear and Mouse story comes close to my novels). (Edit: It's now become one, titled In Solstice and in Peril.) Other than Aunt Gabby Saves the Universe, which is young adult, I've so far done nothing but science fiction (Department G is also horror), although I've got some fantasy in the works.
So, what do I go for when writing novels? What can you expect? Well, here are eleven things I try to do every time (I've already talked about what I don't do):
11. Carry you along with flowing sentences. Here's an example from Across the Worlds with Aimee and Phineas: "This moment, this moment when this woman looked into my eyes, this moment when I saw into those limpid depths, when I saw beauty, innocence, self-possession, strength and compassion, this moment my life stopped."
10. Build the worlds. I try to create settings that have pasts, that then developed into their presents. I try to give them cultures that aren't all at the same point on the Society and Culture Curve. I want them to feel real while I draw you in and immerse you in them.
9. Create interesting characters. Even my first novel, Roads Between Worlds, had an antagonist that I still think has exceptional depth. Rock Alvarez in T-Man is larger than life, or at least is inspired by people like that I've known, but is still as three-dimensional as I could make him. Phineas in Across the Worlds with Aimee and Phineas is a rascal, and likeable, I hope. And I've tried to do likewise in later works.
8. Create diverse characters. Most of my novels have protagonists, if not viewpoint characters, who aren't my gender, along with someone who isn't purely male or female in gender either. They aren't all the same race as me, not even always the same species. I try to keep my worlds rich in the kinds of people inhabiting them.
7. Create strong relationships. There's nothing wrong with going through life alone, but in a novel, dialog helps break up the narrative and establish characterization. If I'm thus going to have two characters, I'm not going to stop with trying to make them engaging. I'll try to make the bond between them engage you too.
6. Give them witty dialog. As long as I'm putting words in their mouths, I might as well put in wit as well. Here's a small part of an exchange between the viewpoint character and Rock in T-Man:
"So, what were you asking about?"5. Keep it dynamic. Scenes where "nothing happens" can be highly readable, but are all too easily filled with static prose. My approach is for things to happen, and I try to keep the prose dynamic and moving as well.
"The plan," I said.
He glanced at me indignantly. "I thought you had the plan!"
"What's the penalty for striking a superior again?"
"Finally," he said, "you admit it."
"What?"
"My superiority."
4. Provoke some thought. I don't want to provoke you otherwise, but I do want to give you something to think about; that's why all my novels reveal more and more about the characters, societies and worlds as they go along. So I give you things to think about, but I won't make you figure them out, since it's my job to make all clear. I want you to end up thinking, "That was really interesting" for as long as possible.
3. Avoid the expected. I've been reading science fiction for decades, and I make every effort to avoid giving you plot developments or worlds or scenes that either of us might already have encountered. I do my best to be as original as I can.
2. Have something to say. I've read novels written purely to entertain, and did have a good time. On the other hand, I see no reason why something that takes so long to write, and somewhat less to read, can't have something more to be gained, and be memorable.
1. Entertain! When I want to write an essay, I do, and I post it on the blog. I'm not going to put my time or yours into an essay disguised as a novel (no self-indulgence!), because I want to have fun writing it, and even more for you to have fun reading it. And I hope you do!