Monthly Archives: November 2014

Depression and Evo Psych: Fighting Yourself, So the Group Can Win

Posted on November 12, 2014 by robertpkruger

There are several models of depression that psychologists have arrived at from consideration of its potentially adaptive function. Some are weaker than others; some are mutually compatible. When I posted a Facebook link to the Wikipedia article giving an overview … Continue reading →

Posted in Evo Psych | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Writing that Moves: Amontillado, Part 3

Posted on November 10, 2014 by robertpkruger

This continues my look at the technique used in Poe’s story. Since this is a longer excerpt, I’m placing it below. General Notes: The narrator recounts how he found and began to deceive Fortunato during a carnival. The narrator does … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing, Writing that Moves | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Writing that Moves: Amontillado, Part 2

Posted on November 7, 2014 by robertpkruger

This continues my look at the technique used in Poe’s story. I’m doing these not so much to critique the story but to test and build up a vocabulary to help myself and others read with attention at the level … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing, Writing that Moves | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Low-Resolution Fantasy, a Defense of “Bad” Art

Posted on November 7, 2014 by robertpkruger

I’ve always felt I missed something important about why my first encounters with Dungeons & Dragons were so powerful to me. When I wrote my essay for Baen early this year, I began to fit some pieces together, but as … Continue reading →

Posted in Dungeons & Dragons, Fantasy, Games, Writing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Writing that Moves: Amontillado, Part 1

Posted on November 5, 2014 by robertpkruger

Poe’s classic short story “The Cask of Amontillado” has gripped my imagination since I first read it in junior high. How does it work? Here’s the first part, taken from the whole story at Project Gutenberg. It’s nice and short. … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing, Writing that Moves | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Writing that Moves: Learning by Reading Reference List

Posted on November 5, 2014 by robertpkruger

Crack open a few books on writing, and you’re liable to get the sound advice that the stories you admire are full of tricks you can learn from. A few of these writing books may even give examples. All the … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing, Writing that Moves | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Writing that Moves: Scare Me

Posted on November 3, 2014 by robertpkruger

How do you hold reader interest in a scary story? This is the first in a series where I’ll share a little writing and comment on it. I invite questions and criticism, because this is as much practice and learning … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized, Writing, Writing that Moves | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Keep Your Reader Reading, an Evolutionary View

Posted on November 3, 2014 by robertpkruger

I was going to title this post “A Hypothesis About Cognition that Roughly Explains Just About Everything,” but I’m most interested in this idea from the standpoint of narrative. Why do we do something rather than nothing, like, say, eat … Continue reading →

Posted in Evo Psych, Evolution, Writing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Revisiting the Threat of AI

Posted on November 2, 2014 by robertpkruger

My friend Alex Lamb, a software developer and author, gave a great response to my casual musing about Artificial Intelligence. If this topic interests you, take a look at the comments on my original post.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment