Tag Archives: fantasy

From Olympus to Egypt: Rick Riordan’s Latest Series

Thanks to Rick Riordan’s “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series, I can’t look at the Empire State Building in the same way anymore. I bet countless readers across the country feel the same. As we gaze up at the New York City skyline, look out across the Hoover Dam, or rest upon any other major landmark in the United States, there will always be an impulse in the back of our minds or in the corners of our eyes to search for hints of mythic Greek gods, monsters, and entrances to fabled underground labyrinths. Now Riordan is about to revive … Continue reading →

Author Interview – James Dashner

Today we are joined by James Dasher, author of “The Jimmy Fincher Series.” He’s here to talk with us about the latest developments in his career, his other books, and his really awesome news. James, I had the pleasure of interviewing you in November of 2006. Some really outstanding things have happened in your life since then. Can you tell us a little bit about “The 13th Reality” series? It’s a fantasy/sci-fi series involving everything from alternate realities to creatures called fangen to weird futuristic gadgets like barrier wands and gnat rats. Lots of riddles, humor, and action, too. The … Continue reading →

Take a Break and Pretend you’re Not a Parent (for an Hour or Two)

How about a game of pretend? This time, instead of playing make believe with your child or children, how about playing make believe with yourself? I am not talking about walking away from all of your parental duties and obligations here, but just spending an hour or two pretending that you are NOT a responsible parent—try not to think about, talk about, and focus on parenting and your child for just one or two hours… It may sound like crazy talk, but it really isn’t. We all need a break and then we can come back to our busy lives … Continue reading →

Fantasizing Wives

This morning on Today I happened to catch a segment about “Sex and the Married Mom.” I didn’t catch who conducted the poll. (I want to say it was a collaboration between AOL and Cookie Magazine. Somehow Cookie Magazine must have been involved because two women who worked for the magazine were being interviewed about the poll results.) Who did it isn’t as important as the results they found. The Poll The poll interviewed 30,000 married women about their sex lives. What they found was that most of us aren’t as satisfied as some may have formerly thought. Some of … Continue reading →

What is “Real” to You and What is “Real” to Your Child May Differ

“There’s a monster under my bed!” Or “I saw a fairy today!” Fantasies and imaginations run wild with small children. Even the young toddler may start to tell grand “tales” and have nightmares and fantasies. Our first inclination as parents may be to reprimand our child and try to get him to understand that his fantasies and imaginings are not “real”—but what is real and obvious to us may not be the same “real” that our child is experiencing. Common advice for a parent who is dealing with a three-year-old who has developed a fear of “imaginary” ghosts is to … Continue reading →

Interview with Fantasy Author Joshua Palmatier

I first heard of fantasy author Joshua Palmatier through a friend — she loaned me his first book and I was hooked! Now let me introduce you to him. Aimee: What kind of things do you write about? (Genre, subject matter, themes, what have you.) Joshua: I write fantasy novels that deal with a young girl named Varis who was orphaned in the slums of the city of Amenkor. The books mainly deal with her struggle to survive, and the moral questions that result from the question: what would you be willing to do to survive? There are a lot … Continue reading →

Interview With Laugh-Out-Loud Funny Fantasy Author Jim C. Hines

The next victim… I mean friend… in my speculative fiction writer series is Jim C. Hines. Jim’s written some amazingly funny fantasy tales told from the other side — the main character is a goblin, usually considered a bad guy in that type of story. His first two goblin books made me laugh out loud, and the third one (just recently released) is sure to follow suit. I can’t wait to read it! In the meantime, Jim was kind enough to chat about writing, animals, and family. Aimee: What kind of things do you write about? (Genre, subject matter, themes, … Continue reading →

Interview: Award Winning Science Fiction and Fantasy Author Jay Lake

One thing I love about being a writer is getting to know other writers. And I have met some wonderful people and made some wonderful friends in the last few years! My writer friend Jay Lake is an amazing person. He’s won the John W. Campbell Award for best new science fiction and/or fantasy writer. He’s got a list of publications that’s about a mile long. And he graciously agreed to an interview about his writing and the animals in his life. Aimee: What kind of things do you write about? Jay: I mostly write speculative fiction — fantasy, science … Continue reading →

Author Interview – Rebecca Shelley

Last week I reviewed “Red Dragon Codex” written by R. D. Henham, assisted by Rebecca Shelley. Rebecca has granted us an exclusive interview here on Families.com today. Rebecca, you have just completed the novel “Red Dragon Codex,” a companion book to the “Dragonlance” series. How many books will be in this dragon series? There will be ten books in the series, one for each of color dragon in the “Dragonlance” world. They are meant to go as companion books to the New York Times bestselling “A Practical Guide to Dragons.” “The Bronze Dragon Codex” is coming out this July, followed … Continue reading →

Alice in Wonderland (1999)

This version of the Lewis Carroll children’s classic was filmed for television and includes the characters found in both “Alice in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass,” the sequel. As a Carroll fan (I’ve even read “The Hunting of the Snark”) I was curiouser and curiouser to watch this film, but I’m sorry to say, I was disappointed. It all began with Tina Majorino, the young lady chosen to play Alice. While I generally consider her to be a great actress, I didn’t feel that she gave us the performance we needed. She was fourteen when she made this film … Continue reading →