Author: Author John G Dyer

Born in Chickamauga, Georgia, John Dyer moved to Asia in 1956, when his father took an engineering assignment with a power utility. He attended grades 1-12 at an international school, touring with his family through 29 countries before settling in the Midwest. A computer scientist turned author of fiction, he is a founder of an IBM-affiliated software company, and an early innovator in electronic commerce. He brings a lifelong interest in science and engineering to everything he writes.

Hammer and Tong

Now that storylines in Anye Legacy books 2 & 3 are in pretty good shape, it’s time to go back and apply writer’s craft. I’ve been away from Quantum Soul long enough to be objective, and I can see it needs some work.

This is always a dilemma for a writer – you fall in love with the details and end up writing material that, while it might be lovely, contains fundamental defects.

The pacing was off, there were too many details that readers probably won’t care about and some of it was boring.

So, I’m working on a new beginning, picking up the protagonist at age 17 instead of age 11. In order to focus on what I need to be doing, I made a short list.

  • Interiority of characters
  • Sense of place
  • Meaningful exposition
  • Interior dialogue
  • Advance the plot
  • So what

If you want to see what I’m setting aside, go here for a look at a sample of the most recent draft. What follows is the first 2 chapters of my current thought experiment. It’s early to be sharing this, and it still might not be any good, but I’m not shy. Comments welcome.

Continue reading “Hammer and Tong” →

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Found on the editing room floor …

… is a bit about an author who wanted to show off his mastery of craft by executing metaphor and irony in a single passage, so he wrote about his dog’s “cough syrup” eyes at dinnertime — meaning “expectorant” — but looked it up and learned it was the wrong usage.

Author’s note: Having just suffered a terrible bout of influenza, I believe I have a good excuse for this. Even so, if you find the gag vaguely amusing, please say so in the comments.

It would be a kindness, on account of I sure didn’t get any validation at home for it.

 

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John’s Amazing Waffles

Serves 2

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tbs sugar

4 tbs Kraft vanilla malted milk powder

1/4 tsp salt

mix dry ingredients thoroughly, then add

1 egg, beaten

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbs melted butter

buttermilk (about 3/4 cup … add to desired consistency)

For best results,  let batter sit for 1 hour …

Whole milk mixed with sour cream, cottage cheese or yogurt may be substituted for buttermilk … Blend thoroughly before mixing with dry ingredients …

For extra fluffy waffles, separate egg white from yolk, beat egg white with sugar and fold into batter as last step of preparation.

When adding pecans or other nuts, put nuts on cooking surface BEFORE adding batter …

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How to get to Laghu …

There are several routes, but it’s best to go by aircar.

(Cymbal crash)

I’m revisiting old posts for an email campaign. While loitering here, I replaced a first-draft map of the Anye home world Vidura with the final product.

Are you curious about my books? Science Fiction for grown-ups, and an adventure/love story, so far. You’ll my Amazon author page here.

Y’all come back.

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Oh, no! Forty characters!

Yesterday, I posted a partial list of cast members in Resilient. I finished the section this morning.

The book has forty characters!

It made me groan with sorrowful anticipation. Somebody — another writer, a reader, a critic — is sure to complain, even lecture me about my ignorance of some fundamental rule that authors of fiction must adhere to regarding the size of one’s cast.

What does one do when faced with a dilemma of this gravity? Google it.

Whew. Jami Gold says I’m not a fool.

“A sweeping family epic needs a lot of characters to create the sense of scope.”

That’s a relief. Thanks, Jami!

Here’s the finished section. Continue reading “Oh, no! Forty characters!” →

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All those weird names

I just started the Dramatis Personae pages for the front of Resilient. It’s the first time I’ve written one, and I admit to a little trepidation — there will be cries of “See, that’s what I’ve been telling you” from certain people in my circle.

Yes, the book has a huge cast, and the names are non-Western. Here’s a sample — please, somebody, tell me you don’t mind.

The Cast

In order of appearance

Bina Dhava Raji Limar. Mother of Suban Dhava. Captain/Owner of the fishing campaigner Kevarta.
Dani Yantur Iravat. Relief captain aboard Kevarta. Born in the Daza Islands. Amil Leyta’s first love.
Matsika Dhava Mahat Limar. “Mat”. Father of Suban Dhava. First Mate/Owner of Kevarta.
Barun Mahat Limar. “Baba”. Nephew of Matsika Dhava, son of Mat’s sister. Deck hand aboard Kevarta.
Suban Dhava Mahat Raja. “Raj Zaramalla”. Son of Mat and Bina. Adopted son of Stena Zaramalla.
Sarvaga Pala Mahat Limar. “Vaga”. Computer engineer/materials scientist/physicist. Co-founder of Deva Karu Science and Engineering. Friend, collaborator and business partner with Amil Leyta. Co-architect of the Soul Camera, Soul Vessel and a wide range of technologies derived from the discoveries of Bishen Parsanda and Rivan Saraf.
Lavani Pala Raji Limar. “Vani”. Wife of Sarvaga Pala. Daughter of Anand Suwanetra and Ojal Sinaya. Gravitics engineer employed by Pazca Military Industries.
Masala Brahmarsi Mahat Limar. Prefect of the SagGha, otherwise known as the Brotherhood of Monks. Guru Brahmarsi is the order’s most elevated spiritual leader. A Cadre veteran of senior rank. Former officer of the Cadre Policy Office, also called the Vartula — the administrative high command of Vidura’s non-aligned military.
Amil Leyta Iravat. “Mil”. Solon of Physics. Apprentice to Rivan Saraf in the advancement of Trans-Dimensional Physics. Co-founder of Deva Karu Science and Engineering. Friend, collaborator and business partner with Sarvaga Pala. Inventor of the Soul Camera and Soul Vessel. Lead scientist responsible for a wide range of technologies derived from the discoveries of Bishen Parsanda and Rivan Saraf. Associate Director and interim lead scientist at Parsanda Resarch.
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