Hello readers! Have you ever wondered what a star rating really means? Our online purchasing choices are often guided by tiny rows of stars, but their meaning isn’t as clear as their simplicity would suggest. Ratings are everywhere, whether they are individual scores given by respected critics, or mean values harvested from thousands of users … Continue reading Reading into ratings – what do they mean?
Category: Miscellaneous Waffle
General life updates, descriptions of cool rocks, barely philosophical musings and the occasional smattering of music theory from someone with no authority on the matter.
Highmoor Maps: World Map
Hello readers! This week I am presenting the first draft of the world map from my Highmoor series. It is very much a work in progress, as you can probably tell from the fog I have applied to the unfinished northern and western regions. However, it has been a couple of years since I published … Continue reading Highmoor Maps: World Map
Clayton vs. Microsoft Word
Hello readers! I recently finished the second major draft of the third book in the Highmoor series. This means that I have now addressed the concerns raised by my diligent and brutally honest review team, and we have reached the final stretch of our journey towards getting this book on the digital bookshelves. The review … Continue reading Clayton vs. Microsoft Word
I built some Lego.
Hello readers! As anticipated, the frequency of blog posts has been declining as I write up my PhD thesis. All the drafting, re-drafting, writing, editing, re-writing, and re-editing has left my literary batteries running a little low – which is why I have been craving mind-numbing, semi-productive activities to fill the hours when I’m not … Continue reading I built some Lego.
Progress Update: April 2024
Hello readers! It’s time for another progress update – and for a big thank you. Last weekend I reached a major milestone: over 1000 of my books have been downloaded from the Kindle store. Even though this book-writing business is just a hobby of mine, this still feels like something worth celebrating. We’re still in … Continue reading Progress Update: April 2024
Concept art: The obsidian sword
Hello readers! This week I thought I would share some concept art from my Highmoor book series. For those of you that haven’t read it, this is Joseph, one of the four protagonists, and he’s wielding an obsidian sword that makes its first appearance in the second book. Obviously, this is no ordinary sword; its … Continue reading Concept art: The obsidian sword
What is science fiction? Part two: a discussion
Hello readers! Welcome to part two of my attempt to define science fiction. Last week I gave a brief history of the genre and mentioned some very old stories that have each been labelled “the first science fiction” by various academics. This week we will delve a bit deeper and explore the dividing line between … Continue reading What is science fiction? Part two: a discussion
What is science fiction? Part one: a history
Hello readers! I thought I would kick off the year with a somewhat philosophical post. What is science fiction? You’d think I’d know, given how much of it I create and consume, and yet it is a fascinatingly broad genre. If you go searching for science fiction books on Amazon, you will be offered a … Continue reading What is science fiction? Part one: a history
The twelve wasps of Christmas
Hello readers! I present to you this week a haunting tale of home invasion. For the last ten days, an ominous presence has lurked within my house, detectable only through the slightest scuttling movements in the corner of my eye, or by a dull, incessant droning through the darkness. Locking the doors and securing the … Continue reading The twelve wasps of Christmas
The blog is one year old!
Hello readers! The 27th of November was this blog’s birthday, so I thought I’d take the opportunity to reflect on the first year of film reviews, summaries and miscellaneous waffle. The first blog post “Hello readers! The year is 2022, and I am starting a blog. Very innovative, I know - but with the current … Continue reading The blog is one year old!
C. W. Clayton 