Words Deferred is a blog about writing fiction, in all of its myriad forms.
It’s 2025, and I’m reviewing books and giving away my story ideas!
2024 was my Year of Short Stories. I spent 52 weeks writing sci-fi and fantasy stories and submitting them to publications. I wrote weekly updates to discuss my progress, as well as the ins and outs of writing and submitting short fiction in these markets. Read the kickoff, or see all the posts.
Previously, I spent almost two years writing Razor Mountain, a novel that I updated here twice per month. I documented the entire process, from ideas and outlining to the cover design and back-cover blurb to the chapters themselves. You can read all of it on my Razor Mountain landing page.
If you’d rather read some of my free microfiction or hundred-word drabbles, check out the Fiction section.
If you’re looking for something else, use the search, categories and tags in the sidebar, or check out my most recent posts below.
Week 5 — Year of Short Stories 2026
2026 is another year of short stories. In this weekly series, I talk about short story writing, from idea and draft to submission. This is week five: Jan. 31 – Feb. 6. Stats A New Kind of Rejection I received one rejection this week. Sort of. At first I thought…
Computational Literature — The Story Idea Vault
It’s a common misconception that a great idea makes a great story. The truth is that most great stories come down to execution. A great idea with poor execution rarely works, but a great writer can breathe new life into even the most tired tropes. Like any writer, I have…
Week 4 — Year of Short Stories 2026
2026 is another year of short stories. In this weekly series, I talk about short story writing, from idea and draft to submission. This is week four: Jan. 24 – Jan. 30 Stats Goals and Results The goals I set for this week were: My first goal went very smoothly.…
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Words Deferred 