S.A. Etter | The Official Website

11-11-11

Submitted by Stuart on Fri, 11/11/2011 - 3:09pm

In honor of this auspicious day, I'm creating all the documentation I can with today's date. This blog being no exception.

To add actual content to this abuse, here's my eleven-word story posted on Twitter using the #11Words hashtag:

He needed two shots to end his life. Whisky, then lead.

Are you on Twitter? Let me know so I can follow your 140-word diatribes too. :) My Twitter handle is @SA_Etter.

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Awesome Idea in Publishing

Submitted by Stuart on Thu, 08/04/2011 - 9:00am

I'm not even sure how a trail of links led me there, but Tobias Bucknell has assembled what I'd term the Justice League of SF Writers over at SFNovelists.com. In browsing around, I discovered a masterful marketing plan: twenty-five of their members have offered up their first chapters in a single free e-book. That's twenty-five free samples of books you may or may not have discovered. I see many familiar names, like Jim Hines, Carol Berg, and C.E. Murphy, but also some new names too.

Genre Mash-up

Submitted by Stuart on Wed, 07/27/2011 - 12:37pm

Ok, I confess. This post is about a movie that I absolute love, warts and all. It’s uneven at times, and has elements that stretch credibility, and gives characters sudden abilities not previously established or even hinted. For all of that, Brotherhood of the Wolf is a story that I wish I had written. It’s the ultimate mash-up of genres.

Journey Versus Destination

Submitted by Stuart on Mon, 06/20/2011 - 10:00am

Some books I read for the story, or to put it differenty, for the destination. Others I read for the rich characters and the interpersonal drama. Once in a while, I find a book where I simply enjoy the prose, so the journey of reading becomes the highlight. Patrick Rothfuss' novels are perfect examples of the later, so much so that his blog is nearly as enjoyable as his books.

Plan Your Big Mystery

Submitted by Stuart on Wed, 05/18/2011 - 12:21pm

Back in 2001, I tuned in on the first episode of Alias by accident. At the time, I didn’t really watch any television on a regular basis. But for some reason, I had the TV on that Sunday night and was introduced to student/spy Sidney Bristow and the mystery around the Renaissance scientist/prophet named Riambaldi. I was hooked.

By 2004, I was a devoted JJ Abrams fan, and so tuned in for the first episode of Lost just because he was involved. I was immediately sucked in by the characters and the mystery of the Island.

I came to Battlestar Galactica late, but quickly became engrossed in the compelling characters and the questions behind the Cylons, “Head Six,” and eventually the Final Five.

All three of these shows had solid characterizations to support the framework behind their Big Mysteries. How and why their characters succeeded is a different post. What these shows also had in common was the writers introduced Big Mysteries without having a clue they would be resolved.

July, 22 2010

Echoes of Truth is revised and polished. I'm ready to start querying agents, the next step in seeing this novel published. In the meantime, work on the Condotierre is underway. I'm as excited to start this new book as I am to have finished my last.

September, 2 2008

SAEtter.com version 2.0, the Professional Edition is now live! Feel free to explore the new site and features.

While reading The Fellowship of the Ring at the age of twelve, Stuart A. Etter was told by his teacher that he should be reading shorter books. Undaunted, he finished the trilogy and promptly moved on to other novels ranging from fantasy/sci-fi to historical fiction to horror to thrillers.

Prologue: The Prisoner

Damion rubbed the dull ache of age from his hands. Countless years wielding a sword had strengthened his tendons and muscles, but time had worn them down, replacing power with chronic pain. Closing his eyes, Damion dreamed of his youth. Battle and victory marked most of his memories, but darker images tainted his successes, reminding him of his one great...