For this month, here’s a double feature! Many thanks to Sally Cronin for promoting my published work, and to Robbie Cheadle for allowing me to discuss how poetry has impacted my life. Check out both!
Guest Appearances
Reading Fantasy and Science Fiction
Many thanks to author Jamie Adams for this opportunity to discuss the appeal of reading fantasy and science fiction stories. I enjoyed his work The Fathers, The Sons, and The Anxious Ghost.
Reading Fantasy and Science Fiction – Guest Post
Happy Holidays, everyone! Don’t forget that books make great gifts!
Marie Sinadjan Interview
Many thanks to singer, songwriter, and fellow fantasy author Marie Sinadjan for the opportunity to be interviewed on her blog:
Author Spotlight: Andrew McDowell
P.S. I’ll be giving my Importance of Names presentation once more, at the Cumberland Chapter of the Maryland Writers’ Association on the 20th at 7:00 PM EST via Zoom. If you haven’t seen it yet and still want to, register online! It’s on Facebook, too! It will also be a hybrid meeting for those who want to be at the chapter in person (my Events page has the address). Though I will be on Zoom, I hope to see you all there either way!
Dusting Off Stories From History
Many thanks to historical novelist Anne Clare for this opportunity to discuss my feelings on using historical fiction to shed light on lesser known events in history!
Guest Post By Andrew McDowell: Dusting Off Stories From History
These are feelings I hope to follow when I venture into historical fiction someday!
The Underground Library Society
Many thanks to author and blogger Charles F. French for this opportunity, inspired by the Book People in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, where I discuss one of my favorite classic stories—why it’s so special to me, and why I believe it’s worth preserving.
Let me say it was a tough decision, for there are many good books out there worth preserving. But when it came down to it—thinking of a classic story I’ve always come back to (in this case every December) and which is special to me—in the end I knew what my choice would be.
If anyone else might be interested in joining and posting about a book that you would choose to become in a world like the one Bradbury envisaged, please consider it!
Nosh with Chef Julie Interview
Many thanks to author and blogger Julie M. Tuttle for this wonderful opportunity! Check out my interview with her if you haven’t yet!
Perseverance and Faith
This is a guest sermon I gave at Nichols-Bethel United Methodist Church yesterday, discussing the importance of perseverance in writing and in other aspects of my life. Even if you’re not religious, I hope you’ll listen to this message and that it touches a base with and inspires you. Perseverance is vital to life, and for me, praying to God has helped me to keep persevering.
Q&A with Elizabeth Holland
Check out this Q&A I did with author Elizabeth Holland:
Author Q&A with Andrew McDowell
Many thanks for this opportunity, Elizabeth!
Happy Holidays, everyone! Wishing you all a Happy New Year, especially after a year like this. Today is the day of the Winter Solstice, which is the origin of many winter holidays. As the light and warmth of the sun will return, may the new year bring new light and warmth for all of us! I am certainly hoping 2021 brings changes and progress both career-wise and in writing.
And don’t forget: books (and book reviews) make great gifts! My Amazon author page was updated to include more anthologies from past and present, including As the World Burns, which came out last month.
Merry Writer Podcast
Many thanks to my fellow authors and bloggers Rachel Poli and Ari Meghlen for featuring me on the Merry Writer Podcast! If you haven’t yet, listen as I discuss with Rachel how I came to be a writer:
The episode is on Podbean too.
Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to listen to their other episodes!
And be sure to keep an eye out on my poetry and short story pages for upcoming links to the anthologies Fae Dreams and Nightmare Whispers: Madness Echoes from Fae Corps Inc! They’re due to come out at the end of the month! Some links are already available for preorder!
Interesting to note that some of my work that will appear in those anthologies are tied with earlier days of writing. “Crossing the Estuary” was originally a high school creative writing assignment I’d thought lost but rediscovered. “Candlelight” was an assignment in college where we had to write a poem in the style of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven,” following specific guidelines (yesterday was the anniversary of Poe’s death). I recall I actually started writing it on Halloween!
‘Through the Eyes’ of a Fantasy Writer
Here is my latest guest appearance, with the talented poet and blogger Vatsarah Stavyah, in which I discuss being a writer as well as my novel Mystical Greenwood:
‘Through the Eyes’ of a Fantasy Writer
Many thanks to Vatsarah for this opportunity!
And for those of you haven’t seen or heard yet, I am going to have some short works appearing in two anthologies from Fae Corps Inc, Fae Dreams and Nightmare Whispers, Volume II, scheduled to be released on Halloween! Another poem will be appearing in another upcoming anthology from Indie Blu(e) Publishing titled As the World Burns. Be sure to keep an eye on my poetry and new short story page for future links!
Also, as today is 9/11, I ask for a moment of remembrance for those who died on this day 19 years ago, and for those who were affected by it.
Andrew McDowell 