Big Idea Category
Jane Yolen on 400 Books
Posted on March 5, 2021 7 Comments
In my professional writing career, I’ve had over 30 books published. That seems a reasonably impressive number — until you compare it to Jane Yolen’s output. In a decades-long publishing career, Yolen has written literally hundreds of books, with her 400th — !!!! — arriving this very week: Bear Outside, written by her and illustrated […]
The Big Idea: Jillian Boehme
Posted on March 4, 2021 1 Comment
First drafts are made to be edited. Author Jillian Boehme talks about the process of rewriting in her Big Idea for The Stolen Kingdom. Read on to see how a fresh take on an old work could end up being your next big thing. JILLIAN BOEHME: The first thing that needs to be perfectly clear is that […]
The Big Idea: Kali Wallace
Posted on March 3, 2021 3 Comments
Science fiction often holds up a mirror to the present day when it imagines what happens in the future. For Deep Space, author Kali Wallace has imagined a scenario that, while specifically impossible in the here in now, involves personal and social dynamics which might feel very familiar to us anyway. KALI WALLACE: This book […]
The Big Idea: E. J. Beaton
Posted on March 2, 2021 3 Comments
The pen is mightier than the sword. At least it is in E. J. Beaton’s newest fantasy novel, The Councillor, where one clever girl is capable of changing society entirely. That is, if she even wants to change it. E. J. BEATON: When you hear the term “Machiavellian fantasy”, perhaps you think of a courtier […]
The Big Idea: Emily R. King
Posted on March 1, 2021 2 Comments
Many of us grew up with the stories and myths of ancient Greece, but as Emily R. King muses in this Big Idea, there are the stories and myths we’ve been told… and the ones that have been left untold. Her new novel Wings of Fury considers the latter. EMILY R. KING: “In the Golden […]
The Big Idea: Juliette Wade
Posted on February 23, 2021 3 Comments
Sometimes it feels like the choices we make don’t matter, and that in the grand scheme of things, the small things we do don’t make a big difference. Author Juliette Wade assures us in her Big Idea that even small things can ripple when we’re all connected. Read on to see how this plays a […]
The Big Idea: Rucker Moses & Theo Gangi
Posted on February 18, 2021 3 Comments
They say that parallel universes exist; what about universes that are pockets and echos? Authors Rucker Moses and Theo Gangi take you on a tour of their version of other realities in this Big Idea for their newest novel, Kingston and the Magician’s Lost and Found. THEO GANGI: A few years back, Emmy nominated screenwriters Craig […]
The Big Idea: Michael Johnston
Posted on February 16, 2021 6 Comments
You know how it can feel like one day is like the next, one month like the next, and each year like every other year… until it isn’t? Well, author Michael Johnston’s about to take that to the next level in his newest novel, Silence of the Soleri. MICHAEL JOHNSTON: I wrote a novel inspired […]
The Big Idea: Mindy Klasky
Posted on February 11, 2021 3 Comments
Online dating has never been more popular — Especially since COVID hit, and dating in person is now kind of… dangerous. So how do you fall in love during a pandemic? Author Mindy Klasky tells us how love isn’t the only thing in the air in her newest novel, The C Word. MINDY KLASKY: About ten thousand […]
The Big Idea: Stephen Deas
Posted on February 9, 2021 6 Comments
The truth hurts. And sometimes, you’re not the only one hurt by it. Author Stephen Deas explores the consequences of telling the truth in the Big Idea for his newest novel, The Moonsteel Crown. Read on to see how some secrets are perhaps better off staying that way. STEPHEN DEAS: The Moonsteel Crown (Angry Robot, February […]
The Big Idea: Sylvain Neuvel
Posted on February 2, 2021 1 Comment
They say our experiences in life shape us, make us into who we are. Author Sylvain Neuvel seems to agree that it isn’t just what’s in our DNA that makes us unique. Read on to see how his newest novel, A History of What Comes Next, takes this concept for a spin. SYLVAIN NEUVEL: What […]
The Big Idea: Mark Matthews
Posted on January 28, 2021 2 Comments
Author Mark Matthews’ Big Idea today brings you a semi-true story about werewolves. Except they’re not actually werewolves, at least not by name. Read on to see how his newest novel, The Hobgoblin of Little Minds, takes the terrifying concept of werewolves and makes it real. MARK MATTHEWS: The Hobgoblin of Little Minds is a […]
The Big Idea: Jeff Wheeler
Posted on January 27, 2021 2 Comments
With great power comes great responsibility. But what if you don’t know what those powers are, or how to use them? What if you had to figure everything out on your own? Author Jeff Wheeler explores the idea of what it’s like to go through things alone, read on to see how this shapes his […]
The Big Idea: Katharyn Blair
Posted on January 26, 2021 1 Comment
How did Katharyn Blair know she was on to something compelling for her novel Unchosen? It involves her office, and something she was thinking of, waiting for her in it. KATHARYN BLAIR: So everyone thinks you’re the prophesied “chosen one.” Probably because you told them you were (you had good reasons, seriously). Now you’re humanity’s […]
The Big Idea: Alexander Weinstein
Posted on January 21, 2021 3 Comments
Is love feasible in this bleak world we live in? Is connection possible in a world where everyone seems so blatantly disconnected from each other? Author Alexander Weinstein says it is! Read on to see how he expresses a hope for love in this world in his newest release, Universal Love. ALEXANDER WEINSTEIN: In the […]
The Big Idea: M. A. Carrick
Posted on January 19, 2021 3 Comments
In today’s Big Idea, the authors behind The Mask of Mirrors are going to tell you the truth, about the fact they’re not going to tell you the truth. Truly. Should you believe them? Read on and decide! M. A. CARRICK: We’re going to lie to you. It’s what you pay us for, after all. […]
The Big Idea: Tim Susman
Posted on January 15, 2021
Independence does not mark the end of a revolution, for a country or for an individual. This is a fact well illustrated in Tim Susman’s newest novel, The Revolution and the Fox. Read on to find out how a revolution turns out after the smoke clears. TIM SUSMAN: The fight is over and the good guys […]
The Big Idea: Tim Pratt
Posted on January 12, 2021 7 Comments
For Doors of Sleep, author Tim Pratt dreamed a little dream… and then another one, and another one, and another one after that. What does all that dreaming mean for the novel? Read on. TIM PRATT: Doors of Sleep is probably the most elevator-pitchy, high-concept thing I’ve ever written. It’s a multiverse adventure, following the […]
The Big Idea: Dan Koboldt
Posted on January 5, 2021 8 Comments
Have you ever wanted a pet dragon? If the answer isn’t yes, is it because you never thought it was possible? And now that the idea’s on the table, hey, do you want one now? Author Dan Koboldt shows us a world in which that’s possible in his newest novel, Domesticating Dragons. Read on to see […]
The Big Idea: Michael Mammay
Posted on December 29, 2020 4 Comments
We view ourselves in a certain way, because we live with ourselves on a daily basis. What happens when people see us differently, and can those differences fuel the plot of a book? This is one of the questions Michael Mammay asked himself for his novel, Colonyside. MICHAEL MAMMAY: The concept of a Big Idea […]
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