Trusted by 500+ fans to find the fun in the funereal, the absurd in the macabre, and delight in the darkness. Join fiction author Morgan Delaney three times a week for genre-bending stories of cozy horror, dark fantasy and a brain with mind of its own...
Say Hello To Wet Sneeze
 Terry Pratchett taught me that names have power. In doing so, he put me right off a lot of fantasy. Specifically, high or epic fantasy. Because I can’t stand the names. You know, like K’rniluf the Doomswerver. If I’m reading a book with a name like that, I’ll look at it once and never read it again. I’ll just skim it, relying on the shape of the word to get me through. Part of it is laziness. How do you pronounce K’rniluf? And why do I have to work it out, when the author couldn’t be bothered? (I would guess it’s pronounced “Korny-love”, but could be wrong.) And although the author must have thought it looked cool, it’s just a muffled wet sneeze to me. But the main reason I dislike those names is the lack of history in it. Every Smith you meet is (at least historically) descended from an actual smith. The same for Carters, and Wrights and Baileys, and so on. One occupation sadly missing from the list is Taxi-dancer. These weren’t people who danced in – or with – taxis. They were mostly women who charged per song when men wanted to dance with them. Big at the beginning of the twentieth century, when they emerged around San Francisco’s Terrific Street (and isn’t that a terrific name), there aren’t many now. So you’re as likely to meet a John Taxi-dancer as a Billy the Doomswerver. The point being, I feel strongly about getting names right, and put a lot of effort into finding the right ones for my characters. Names are descriptions. Take the Reverend Gresstart, for example. I spent ages looking for the right combination of syllables. The petulant, sniffy “Gress-“ and the fussy, old-fashioned “-tart.” Together hinting at a previously well-to-do family, now somewhat come down in the world. That’s what I think, anyway. Make up your own mind by reading The Squared Circle here now. Chat soon, Morgan P.S. More Morgan? Get 2 of my books free here: morgandelaney.info/newsletter |
Dark, Strange and Fantastic Fiction
Trusted by 500+ fans to find the fun in the funereal, the absurd in the macabre, and delight in the darkness. Join fiction author Morgan Delaney three times a week for genre-bending stories of cozy horror, dark fantasy and a brain with mind of its own...
We’re in what used to be East Berlin. Tip: If there are trams, you’re probably in East Berlin. East Berlin had trams. West Berlin ripped them up for being old-fashioned and stupid. They’re regretting it now and want more, but trams still mostly don’t go further west than Hauptbahnhof (Main Station). So if you’re on a tram, you’re probably in old East Berlin. Seeing the most incredible things… Taking the tram yesterday, we passed a big vet (animal doctor, not war hero), and the surgery windows...
George Orwell had blue spots or circles tattooed on each of his knuckles. Probably done while he lived in Burma before becoming a writer. Possibly the tattoos are the reason he became a writer. “Writing can hardly be more painful than getting my knucks tatted,” he thought. “Let’s have at it!” The poor fool. Here’s the thing: What makes tattoos difficult is that you get only one chance to do it right. What makes writing difficult is that you get as many chances as you like. Unless you’re under...
My two favourite things are music and books. But I recently watched mclusky on KEXP and was blown away that some people can play music and sing at the same time. I don’t have the concentration to listen to the music and the lyrics at the same time. When I listen to music, I’m only listening to the music. Of course, I like a lot of growly metal, where the vocals sound like the Cookie Monster trying to eat his way out of a quarry. Good luck with those lyrics, but still. I’ve never been...