Category Archives: Articles

Error, Error

Posted on June 4, 2019 by jenicek

There was an error on my last post that I’d like to address. I have it on good authority that the inertialess drive first appeared in “Triplanetary” published in 1934, not in 1948. I have adjusted my original entry to … Continue reading →

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Mad Science and Magic, Together At Last

Posted on June 3, 2019 by jenicek

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”-Arthur C. Clarke The above is a very well-known and often quoted rule, at least by fans of science fiction and fantasy. And the reason that this bon mot is so often dropped … Continue reading →

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Why am I doing this?

Posted on May 27, 2019 by jenicek

Why do I write? That’s a question often asked of writers. Of course, there are the stock answers, “I have stories to tell”, or “I’m compelled to by my nature.” There are few writers who don’t feel that way, myself … Continue reading →

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Small and yet full

Posted on May 13, 2019 by jenicek

One of the most challenging things about playing a tabletop RPG, Dungeons and Dragons being the most well know of them, is not learning all the rules. This is not to say that the rules are easily learned and completely … Continue reading →

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It’s not that kind of game

Posted on April 8, 2019 by jenicek

Is the game part of Role Playing Game ruining RPGs? Generally, games are meant to be won, from tic-tac-toe to Monopoly, there is a winner at the end. Of course, tic-tac-toe played by two people trying to win can only … Continue reading →

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Why aren’t you afraid?

Posted on December 5, 2016 by jenicek

Monsters are scary. Obviously. In movies, people are chased and more often than not, killed by them. We describe someone who does terrible things as a monster. They are our fears made flesh, terror brought to life. So why are … Continue reading →

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It will all work out (Not really)

Posted on August 29, 2016 by jenicek

When I was nine or ten, my mother gave me a copy of The Hobbit, thinking quite rightly, that it would be the sort of story I would enjoy. When I got the riddle game with Gollum deep under the … Continue reading →

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The tedium of winning

Posted on February 15, 2016 by jenicek

In all forms of narrative, the protagonists will suffer setbacks, lose conflicts and sometimes get captured. It’s happened repeatedly to Batman and James Bond, (their foes love a deathtrap.) Buffy lost friends, family and her great love. Han got carbon … Continue reading →

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D&D Haiku

Posted on November 2, 2015 by jenicek

Keeping with the D&D theme I established last week, here are five D&D haiku. A sphere with many eyes The grim tyrant are you How can you float Wizard reads his tome Spells all memorized Once cast, all forgotten Tiny … Continue reading →

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Where is the Magic?

Posted on October 26, 2015 by jenicek

I play D&D. A shocking admission from an author of a fantasy novel, but there you have it. Below is an article I wrote about making the game more magical. It might even make ordinary life more magical. In a … Continue reading →

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