Being a Better Writer: Writing About Disasters · 9:41pm Jun 26th, 2023
Hello again writers! Welcome back to another Monday installment of Being a Better Writer. Which, from the title, is a bit of an odd one, I’ll admit. Sands, I don’t even remember how this one ended up on the topic list, outside of the bare memory that it was very much inspired by a discussion I saw in online spaces.
So yeah, let’s just dive right in. I don’t have much in the way of news to discuss save a reminder that starting this Saturday, July 1st, is the US Independence Day Sale for the entire UNSEC Space Trilogy, in honor of Colony being the first title of mine to pass the review milestone of 100+. Also because one of the series’ characters, Carlos Rodriguez, had a deep respect for the tale of the US Revolution, and that makes this holiday perfect timing. As to why Rodriguez has that respect, who he is to the story, or what he does …. Well, you’ll have to read it to find out. You can whet your appetite for the series by checking out a free, multi-chapter preview of Colony at this link (literally: clicking that link is going to open a new tab and bring up the prologue and the first three-plus chapters for free), and then you can grab the book itself for 99 cents starting this Saturday, July 1st as part of the sale.
The rest of the trilogy will also be on a solid discount as well, so be sure to grab Jungle and Starforge. Colony is only the beginning!
Or, you know, just get Colony, read it, thirst for the other two, and buy them full price later. My wallet certainly isn’t going to begrudge you that decision.
Anyway, don’t forget about that sale, but for now, let it take a backseat in your mind, because I want to talk about writing disaster in fiction. So hit that jump, and let’s get right down to it.
It was, by far, the worst disaster Twilight Sparkle had ever seen, including Tirek. There was really nothing left to do but bury the dead, and she was sorely tempted to shoot the wounded and bury them too. Or at least the few that were left. A far greater problem was what to say.
She took a deep breath, realized that she had done this several times already and was in danger of passing out, then focused on her first words. It was important to begin with some sort of positive statement, despite the amount of negative that would follow, and she settled on the one obvious section of the disaster that was slightly less disastrous than the rest.
"Well, Rainbow Dash, you almost spelled your name right," she began, pushing the red-drenched document slightly away from her on the table, "but the rest of your fanfiction was..."