The Other 13: Walter Dinjos

Posted on Wednesday, April 12, 2017 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Walter Dinjos

Source: Walter Dinjos

I’m here with Walter Dinjos, my fellow Writers of the Future writer-winner from Anambra State, Nigeria. He very graciously volunteered to answer the following questions:

Tell me about yourself. Where are you from? What’s your background?

I am from Nigeria and grew up loving music. It wasn’t until 2010, after reading The Golden Space by Pamela Sargent, that writing first crossed my mind. As naive as I was then, I imagined that through writing I could raise some money for the production of my songs. That plan, of course, failed when the rejection letters started flowing in.

But I didn’t quit. I even gradually pulled away from music, having found much love for writing fiction. In 2012, I enrolled in The Writers Bureau’s Comprehensive Creative Writing course, and in August 2014 I made my first sale to The Literary Hatchet. Continue reading →

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The Other 13: Anton Rose

Posted on Wednesday, April 12, 2017 by Sean Patrick Hazlett
Anton Rose Photo

Source: Anton Rose

I’m here with Anton Rose, my fellow Writers of the Future writer-winner from Durham, England. He very graciously volunteered to answer the following questions:

Tell me about yourself. Where are you from? What’s your background?

I’m from Durham, which is a small city in the north east of England. My background is in Theology, and I completed a PhD here in 2015. I’ve been writing on and off throughout my life, but I picked it up again more seriously back in 2013 and got hooked on writing short stories. Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, Book Reviews, Business, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Special Guests, Uncategorized, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Other 13: Ville Meriläinen

Posted on Wednesday, April 12, 2017 by Sean Patrick Hazlett
WOTF - WRITER PORTRAIT - VILLE MERILAINEN _3291

Source: Ville Meriläinen

I’m here with Ville Meriläinen, my fellow Writers of the Future writer-winner from Joensuu, Finland. He very graciously volunteered to answer the following questions from his cold country:

Tell me about yourself. Where are you from? What’s your background?

I am a university student from Joensuu, Finland, a smallish city about 100 km (~60 miles) from the Russian border. I’ve been learning English since kindergarten, and writing fiction in English since fifteen. Originally these were small humour pieces, but over time I began to expand and experiment with more complex plots, culminating in an attempt to write a novel. I started when I was 19 and finished a year and a half later. It will never see the light of the day, but I was proud of it then. I have since written three more, two of which are available on Amazon.com right now. Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, Book Reviews, Business, Fantasy, Russia, Science Fiction, Uncategorized, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

The Other 13

Posted on Tuesday, April 11, 2017 by Sean Patrick Hazlett
CrimsonDawnCvr_LarryElmore-1024x682

Source: Larry Elmore

In early April, I spent nearly a week and a half in Hollywood with 12 other very talented writer-winners of the Writers of the Future Contest (the 13th writer-winner was unable to attend). Tomorrow, I plan to profile each and every one of them on this blog. As you get to know them, please consider picking up a copy of Writers of the Future: Volume  33 on Amazon or Barnes and Noble today. And if you’re so inclined, please post an honest review.

These authors will appear here at the following times tomorrow:

  • Ville Meriläinen (3 AM PT / 6 AM ET)
  • Anton Rose (4 AM PT / 7 AM ET)
  • Walter Dinjos (5 AM PT / 8 AM ET)
  • Ziporah Hildebrandt (6 AM PT / 9 AM ET)
  • Andrew Peery (7 AM PT / 10 AM ET)
  • Stephen Lawson (8 AM PT / 11 AM ET)
  • David VonAllmen (9 AM PT / 12 PM ET)
  • Molly Atkins (10 AM PT / 1 PM ET)
  • Dustin Steinacker (11 AM PT / 2 PM ET)
  • C.L. Kagmi (12 PM PT / 3 PM ET)
  • Andrew L. Roberts (1 PM PT / 4 PM ET)
  • Jake Marley (2 PM PT / 5 PM ET)
  • Doug Souza (3 PM PT / 6 PM ET)

I hope you enjoy meeting my new friends.

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“Mukden” Featured in Weirdbook

Posted on Friday, March 10, 2017 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Source: Weirdbook

The most recent issue of Weirdbook, which features my story, “Mukden” is now available on Amazon.

“Mukden” is a historical retelling of the prelude to its namesake military engagement. The Battle of Mukden, which took place in early 1905, was one of the largest land battles in history prior to World War I. It is also the second historical fantasy story I’ve ever written.

The tale is the sequel to “Hill of Souls”, which appeared in Outposts of Beyond in 2015. It continues to follow the arcane journey of Japanese soldier Captain Tanaka Hideki, a member of an occult organization known only to Japan’s senior leadership as Unit 108. His mission is to work with local Chinese bandits to determine the size, location, and disposition of Imperial Russian forces operating along the Manchurian rail line, but along the way, he discovers something far more sinister.

Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, Fantasy, Horror, Science Fiction, Writing | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Are Liberals More Educated Than Conservatives? (2016 Election Update)

Posted on Sunday, February 19, 2017 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Four years ago, I analyzed the education levels of those who voted for the Democratic candidate for President and the Republican candidate for President for a total of six Presidential and Midterm elections. In that analysis, I had concluded that  people at both the high and low ends of the educational spectrum had tended to favor Democratic candidates. Below, I’ve updated the original article to include new data and insights from the 2016 Presidential elections. Continue reading →

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“We Hit Back” Featured in Abyss & Apex

Posted on Saturday, December 31, 2016 by Sean Patrick Hazlett
Source: Abyss & Apex

Source: Abyss & Apex

I’m very excited to announced that my first published story of 2017, “We Hit Back“, now appears in the sixty-first issue of Abyss & Apex.

“We Hit Back” was inspired by a thought experiment about the implications of creating and building an offensive cybersecurity company. Today, offensive cyber operations are limited to governments. As such, creating a business that focuses solely on developing cyber exploits would require close coordination with and permission from the government. If I were ever to start an offensive cybersecurity business, this story is almost exactly how I’d approach the task. Continue reading →

Posted in Blogging, China, Crime, Cyber war, Cybersecurity, Defense, Fantasy, Finance and Economics, International Security, Russia, Science Fiction, Tanks, War, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

2016 Writing Statistics and Revenue

Posted on Saturday, December 31, 2016 by Sean Patrick Hazlett

Many authors in the science fiction, fantasy and horror genres track their writing progress and provide a summary of it at the end of each year. For instance, both Nick Mamatas and Martin Shoemaker provide fairly comprehensive years in review that cover what they published in 2016. In past years, Rahul Kanakia presented an excellent summary of his submissions data but stopped this year because of the hassle involved. Jim C. Hines offers a data rich post on the income he generates from writing as well as a summary of his writing statistics. Last year, I published a post tracking my writing progress since I first made a serious attempt to become a published author. This post tracks the entirety of my writing career up to and including 2016. Continue reading →

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“Twinwalkers” Featured in Unnerving Magazine

Posted on Sunday, December 4, 2016 by Sean Patrick Hazlett
Source: Unnerving Magazine

Source: Unnerving Magazine

I’m very excited to announced that my story, “Twinwalkers” now appears in the first issue of Unnerving Magazine.

To be honest, I’m not entirely sure where the idea for “Twinwalkers” came from, but the story has obvious Lovecraftian influences. For instance, it involves an academic whose obsession with the fabled Berkshire mimic spider leads him to investigate things that humanity is better off not knowing. Doctor Saunders also never learns what is driving the creatures he is studying in the same way there tends to be unanswered questions in the typical Lovecraft story. Continue reading →

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“Pinned” Featured in Kasma SF Magazine

Posted on Saturday, December 3, 2016 by Sean Patrick Hazlett
Source: Kasma SF Magazine. Illustration by Jose Baetas

Source: Kasma SF Magazine. Illustration by Jose Baetas

My story, “Pinned”, is now live on the Kasma SF Magazine website.

Prior to reporting to Fort Knox for the Armor Officer Basic Course (AOBC) as a newly-minted second lieutenant in November 1998, former tankers and cavalrymen had warned me of soldiers getting grievous injuries after making careless mistakes when operating the infamous seventy-ton M1A1 Abrams tank. They would regale me with stories of soldiers losing arms when they failed to remove a tank round from the ammunition storage compartment quickly enough before the automated blast door sealed shut or men losing fingers because they failed to remove their wedding rings before climbing onto a tank.
Continue reading →

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