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Author Interview—William Bernhardt

At Soonercon last month, I met many authors. One of them, William Bernhardt, has led a jam-packed life. I’d find it easier to list the things he hasn’t done. Reading his bio makes me want to get off the couch and swim the Atlantic just to say I’ve done something he hasn’t. (Note to self—check if he’s done that, too.) I’m guessing he has to update his bio every week just to keep it current. Here’s this week’s version:

Bio

William Bernhardt is the #1 bestselling author of over sixty books, including the nonfiction book The Superman Wars and the Daniel Pike legal thriller series (The Last Chance Lawyer). His previous works include the historical novels The Florentine Poet and Nemesis, The Final Case of Eliot Ness, three books of poetry, children’s and young adult books, and several books on fiction writing. In addition, Bernhardt hosts an annual writers conference (WriterCon), an annual writing cruise, small-group writing retreats, a magazine, plus a free e-newsletter and podcast. He is also the president of Bernhardt Books.

Bernhardt has received the Southern Writers Guild’s Gold Medal Award, the Royden B. Davis Distinguished Author Award (University of Pennsylvania) and the H. Louise Cobb Distinguished Author Award (Oklahoma State), which is given “in recognition of an outstanding body of work that has profoundly influenced the way in which we understand ourselves and American society at large.” He has been nominated for the Oklahoma Book Award over twenty times in four different categories and has won the award three times. In 2019, he received the Arrell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award.

In addition to his novels and poetry, Bernhardt has written plays, a musical (book and score), humor, children stories, biography, and crossword puzzles for The New York Times. He is also a Jeopardy! champion (2013). He has edited two anthologies (Legal Briefs and Natural Suspect) as fundraisers for The Nature Conservancy and the Children’s Legal Defense Fund. In his spare time, he has enjoyed surfing, digging for dinosaurs, trekking through the Himalayas, paragliding, scuba diving, kayaking, caving, zip-lining over the canopy of the Costa Rican rain forest, and jumping out of an airplane at 10,000 feet.

OSU has called Bernhardt “Oklahoma’s Renaissance Man.” When Bernhardt delivered the keynote address at the San Francisco Writers Conference, chairman Michael Larsen noted that in addition to penning novels, Bernhardt can “write a sonnet, play a sonata, plant a garden, try a lawsuit, teach a class, cook a gourmet meal, beat you at Scrabble, and work the New York Times crossword in under five minutes.”

Interview

Poseidon’s Scribe: How did you get started writing? What prompted you?

William Bernhardt: I knew I wanted to be a writer when I was seven, or so my mother says, and since she’s my mother (age 97), I think we have to take her word for it. Once I realized people were writing those books I loved, I knew that’s what I wanted to do. The problem was, being a kid in a small town in Oklahoma with no writers, figuring out how to accomplish that!

P.S.: Who are some of your influences? What are a few of your favorite books?

W.B.: Superman comics, for starters. Comics led to science fiction, like The Martian Chronicles and Slaughterhouse-Five. Comics also led to Shakespeare and ancient lit classics—many of which are basically superhero stories.

P.S.: When I add up all the things you claim to have done, I conclude you are either 200 years old, more than one person, or never sleep. Which is it? If none of those, how to you manage your time?

W.B.: Ha! I hope I get 200 years, but that may be a stretch. I do prefer to stay busy. Keeps me out of trouble. I get up early in the morning and work through the day, first writing, then dealing with other matters. I think I was born with a fortunate gene. Where some people might think, Wouldn’t that be nice?, I always think, How can I make that happen?

P.S.: Your recent book, The Superman Wars (love the cover, by the way), isn’t fiction, but provides a cautionary account of the intellectual property rights to the Superman character. What is the major point of the book and what should writers learn from it?

W.B.: (I love the cover too. I told them I wanted a book anyone could hold without embarrassment, no Zap! Zowie! Pow! or any of that. I thought they did a terrific job.)

This is a cautionary tale I hope all creatives will read. The vultures are still out there, more than happy to take advantage of writers and artists and internet content creators. We still have corporate sharks, plus vanity presses and AI scams and many other threats to the ability of artists to benefit from their work. Protect yourself! Connect with other writers (even if you aren’t the most social person in the world). Get the knowledge you need to succeed. And never sign anything without getting an expert opinion!

P.S.: You’ve been described as Oklahoma’s Renaissance Man, and as a polymath (or a practitioner of Crichtonism, a word I just learned today, named for James Crichton [1560-1582]). Why such varied interests, when most people are satisfied with expertise in one area?

W.B.: Look, we get one life and it isn’t that long. Probably as a result of voracious reading, I have a lot of interests, so I never get bored. And I don’t want to spend my entire life doing the same thing over and over. I practiced law for ten years. That was enough. I wrote a lot of thrillers. But after several of those, I thought it was time for new challenges. As I started researching this book, I realized there was so much more to it than most people, even in the comics world, realize.

P.S.: Do your varied non-writing interests (gardening, cooking, games and puzzles, surfing, hiking, scuba diving, kayaking, caving) interfere with your writing, or supplement it in some way? Do these activities find their way into your novels?

W.B.: The truth is, you can only write so many hours a day. Usually by mid-afternoon, it’s time to do something else. Like prep for WriterCon, the writers conference I co-host, or Bernhardt Books, my small publishing company. I don’t know if that works its way into my books—but my love of comics has over and over again. And we do take vacations. In May I spent a week roaming around New Mexico with my daughter Alice, hiking and rock climbing (nothing dangerous) and exploring caves. I consider myself fortunate to have built a life that allows me to do so many things I enjoy.

P.S.: What is WriterCon, and why did you start it?

W.B.: WriterCon is my annual writers conference, every Labor Day weekend in OKC (September 4-7 this year) and 2026 is our 20th anniversary! We have over 60 speakers, writers, agents, publishers, and others in the industry offering writing tips, publishing advice, marketing angles—whatever people need. We have contests and lots of chances for consultations with pros. I may be biased, but I think it has become one of the leading conferences in the country. Every year I see attendees get agents or publishing deals, which makes me very happy. I started this as a way of giving back. I remember what it was like being a punk kid in a small Oklahoma who wanted to be a writer—but with no clue how to make that happen. I hope WriterCon is making it a little easier for the next generation.

P.S.: What are the easiest, and the most difficult, aspects of writing for you?

W.B.: Writing is hard, and nothing is ever going to make it easier (including AI), so I just accept it. My first drafts are always terrible (or so I think), but I will revise and revise until it starts looking like something. I don’t think there is an easy part, but I enjoyed all the research I did for The Superman Wars, even though it ultimately took more than twice as long as I anticipated. I ultimately traveled to eight different states, combed through twelve archived library collections, interviewed more than fifty people and read hundreds of books, periodicals, and unpublished manuscripts. I was able to interview the members of Jerry Siegel’s family, his daughter Laura and her sons Michael and James, who have been reluctant to talk in the past. I even visited Jerry’s childhood home!

P.S.: Tell us about Ben Kincaid, the main character of your nineteen-novel series beginning with Primary Justice. What is he like, and what sets him apart from other lawyer protagonists?

W.B.: He’s Clark Kent with a briefcase. He’s smart, persistent, and wants to help—but he’s also socially awkward, insecure, and needs a partner to fill his vacancies. Christina is his Lois Lane. I’ve started a 20th book in the series but set it aside when I became obsessed with the Jerry Siegel story.

P.S.: You appeared on the TV show Jeopardy! and performed well. Tell us about that experience.

W.B.: That was a blast! I’ve been watching Jeopardy, usually with my mother, since I was four. When they started doing online tests around 2010 I took it and got a callback, then went to New Orleans for an audition, then was asked onto the show. I learned how important speed and buzzer control are. Everyone there was smart, but some people, including me, struggled with the buzzer. During our rehearsal, I didn’t get a single chance to answer a question. The producer actually came up to me and whispered, Bill are you trying to ring in? Yes, of course I am! but I wasn’t as quick as I wished (I was the oldest person in the green room by almost 20 years, not that I consider that an excuse). Anyway, once the questions got tougher, I managed to get in enough correct responses to become a Jeopardy champion.

P.S.: What is your current work in progress? Would you mind telling us a little about it?

W.B.: My next book will be The Batman Wars, and I’ll bet you can guess the subject. Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson and…that other guy. You know, the one who took all the credit. This is a story that is much less well known, and perhaps even more heartbreaking, than the Siegel story.

Poseidon’s Scribe: What advice can you offer aspiring authors?

William Bernhardt: Keep writing! Learn as much as you can, but the most important thing is to write. Listen to the WriterCon podcast (it’s free). Put in your 10,000 hours. The more you do the better you’ll get. Then come to WriterCon, learn what you need to know about the business, pitch an agent or publisher. It will happen eventually, if you keep writing and don’t quit!

Poseidon’s Scribe: Thank you, William. Great advice from the man who’s done (nearly) everything.

Web Presence

As befits a guy who’s been everywhere, you can find William Bernhardt everywhere online. That includes his website, Facebook, Instagram, Amazon, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, and Threads. You can buy The Superman Wars here, learn about, and sign up for, WriterCon here, and subscribe to William’s newsletter here.

July 3, 2026Poseidon's ScribePermalink Leave a comment

Why I Love My Mourning Dove

Sometimes Nature teaches us lessons. I learned one from a mourning dove.

Backstory and Surprise

Last year, birds nested on the brick ledge outside our bathroom window. This year, to discourage a repeat of that behavior, I pounded dozens of nails through a board and placed it, with nail points up, on the ledge. A few days ago, after returning from a trip, I spied a bird’s nest resting amid the nails. I climbed a step-ladder and chased the bird away. In the nest lay a single egg. Had the egg not been there, I’d have removed the nest and pounded more—and longer—nails in the board. Instead, soft-hearted me allowed the nest, egg, and bird to stay.

Classification and Assessment

Not being a bird-watcher, I’m guessing, by appearance, this one is a mourning dove. I started calling her Momma Mourning Dove. I’ve since learned both expecting dove parents take turns minding their nests. Half the time, I suppose, Pappa sits there.

I wondered what kind of pea-brained idiots would pass up a pleasant and traditional home in any of the plentiful trees in our area, and instead build their nest on a ledge full of nails. That can’t be comfortable.

Realization and Apology

Then it hit me. I know the sort of idiots who do that. I’ve written a book about people who do something similar. The book is The Seastead Chronicles. In it, my characters abandon the safe and long-established location for housing—the land—to live on the danger-filled oceans. They do this for various reasons—economic, political, religious, etc. But they don’t act from stupidity. So, doves, I get you now. Sorry I called you idiotic and pea-brained.

(However, when you’re done with that nest, I still plan to remove it and put more nails in the board.)

As I write, a dove sits there, as one has for many days, incubating and turning that egg, unbothered by nails. Unaware, too, I imagine, how its behavior inspires—

Poseidon’s Scribe

June 28, 2026Poseidon's ScribePermalink Leave a comment

Triumphant Return from my Soonercon Voyage

This past weekend, I participated in Soonercon 34, Oklahoma’s premier pop culture convention. Sponsored by the Future Society of Oklahoma, this year’s con chose “Through Salt & Storm” as its motto.

Food on the Seas

Michael Dean moderated my first panel of the weekend—“Ship’s Biscuits, Limeys, and Rum: Food on the Seas.” My fellow panelists—Tim Frayser and Cody Clark—held a lively discussion about hardtack, grog, and other maritime sustenance. Weevils also came up. Afterward, no one in the audience seemed inclined to ride an old-time sailing ship for long periods.

Michael Dean, me, Tim Frayser, and Cody Clark

Non-Human Protagonists

I moderated the next panel, titled “Writing the Inhuman: Crafting Non-Human Protagonists.” With no sentient non-humans willing to serve as panelists (at the prices Soonercon could pay), we made due with humans, in particular A.C. Smart and Joe Haldeman. Yes, that Joe Haldeman. Both of them delighted the audience with valuable information about robots, aliens, and other non-humans (even cats) as main characters. They gave budding scifi writers actionable tips about how to create vivid, believable non-human characters.

Book Signing

Several people, those without anything more pressing to do, stopped by the table I’d set up for selling books.

Stars and the Sea

Charlie Clark moderated my only Saturday panel, “Stars and the Sea: Constellations in Myth and Legend.” The panel consisted of Dr. Dara Fogel, Gypsy Jess, and me. A member of the Choctaw Nation, Charlie told the audience about Choctaw legends involving solar eclipses. Both other panelists described how star patterns and their stories affected most cultures throughout history.

Charlie Clark, me, Gypsy Jess, and Dr. Dara Fogel

Building the Temple

On Sunday at 11:00 (appropriately), I moderated a panel titled “Building the Temple: Believable Religion in Speculative Fiction.” Though I started it off much like a religious service, panelists Dr. Dara Fogel and Laura J. Underwood helped the audience understand the elements of a religion and how to create a credible one for a fictional work, citing examples from their own and others’ books.

Me, Laura J. Underwood, and Dr. Dara Fogel

Golden Age

At 3:00, I moderated a panel titled “The Golden Age of Sci-Fi: What Makes Classic Stories Endure?” Panelists Frank Hood, William Bernhardt, and Mark Alfred covered the classic definition of science fiction’s Golden Age (late 1930s to late 1950s), but also the more universal definition (whatever scifi you started reading at age 12). They covered the prime examples of Golden Age literature and what qualities keep them readable today.

William Bernhardt, me, Frank Hood, and Mark Alfred

Overall

Though Soonercon got its start 34 years ago focusing on science fiction, it has broadened to pop culture. Now the vendor booths display anime, manga, stuffed animals, stickers, and other trinkets rather than books. Most of the panels and activities focus on cosplay, e-sports, hentai, and painting, etc., with science fiction as a minor sideshow. Thousands of attendees showed up, most young, and most in costumes I didn’t recognize.

I couldn’t ignore a con with a nautical theme, of course. Wherever and whenever fans go “through salt & storm,” you’ll find—

Poseidon’s Scribe

June 23, 2026Poseidon's ScribePermalink 2 Comments

Sail the Soonercon Seas With Me

This coming weekend, from the 19^th through the 21^st of June, I’ll participate in Soonercon 34, a pop culture convention in Norman, Oklahoma. Despite Oklahoma’s distance from major bodies of water, their theme this year is “Through Salt & Storm,” which suits me well. Here’s my schedule:

Ship’s Biscuits, Limeys, and Rum: Food on the Seas

Friday 2:00 – 2:45

Panelists: Michael Dean (moderator) Cody Clark, Tim Frayser, and me

Writing the Inhuman: Crafting Non-Human Protagonists

Friday 3:00 – 3:45

Panelists: Joe Haldeman, Vickey Malone Kennedy, A.C. Smart, and me (moderator)

Book Signing

Friday 5:00 – 5:45

Stars and the Sea: Constellations in Myth and Legend

Saturday 10:00 – 10:45

Panelists: Charles Dane Clark (moderator), Dara Fogel, Gypsy Jess, and me

Building the Temple: Believable Religion in Speculative Fiction.

Sunday 11:00 – 11:45

Panelists: Dara Fogel, J.H. Fleming, Laura J. Underwood, and me (moderator)

The Golden Age of Sci-Fi: What Makes Classic Stories Endure?

Sunday 3:00 – 3:45

Panelists: Frank Hood, William Bernhardt, Mark Alfred, and me (moderator)

Location

You’ll find Soonercon 34 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Norman, Oklahoma.

Though you might have to sail “through salt & storm” to get there, please make the effort. If you do, be sure to shout a hearty “Ahoy!” to—

Poseidon’s Scribe

June 14, 2026Poseidon's ScribePermalink Leave a comment

How to Use Weather in Your Fiction

Most fiction writers refer to weather in their books. Average writers use it to complete a scene description, to paint a complete tableau. Better writers give weather reports that pair with the action or mood of a scene, or foretell an upcoming scene. The best writers do both of those, but do them with style, enabling the reader to experience commonplace weather, even a clear blue sky, as if seeing it for the first time.

Inspiration

Dr. Peter Schulman, of Old Dominion University, inspired this blogpost. He spoke on the topic of “The Poetry of Weather in Jules Verne” at a recent meeting of the North American Jules Verne Society. That talk got me thinking about weather as a tool for all fiction writers.

Universality

All humanity experiences weather. We all enjoy it, suffer from it, marvel at it, endure it, etc. When an author discusses weather—on Earth or on any planet with an atmosphere—readers relate. We see it and feel it with the characters. No matter how strange the characters, how bizarre their actions, how weird their motivations, how bewildering their speech, readers understand the weather when the author describes it. Weather unites us all. It ties together all humans in all places at all times in history.

Variety

Imagine a painter’s palette with infinite dabs of color available, or a workman’s kit containing an infinite number and type of tools. In a similar way, weather provides an unending spectrum of phenomena for writers to employ. No need for me to belabor the point, since every day of your life confirms the fact. In simplistic terms, the sun, clouds, rain, snow, fog, lightning, and wind all hint at the innumerable combinations available to writers.

Style

How do great authors use weather? What separates them from the common crowd? We all know and recognize common tropes—a journey starts at dawn with a clear sky, fierce storms occur later with thunder cracking to punctuate a key line of dialogue, and the hero rides off into the sunset at the end.

The best writers use these techniques too, but with greater flair and nuance. Their prose puts us in the scene. The sound and cadence of the words and clauses mimics the weather being described. We feel the weather along with the Point of View character. Weather matches a character’s mood, or the scene’s mood, or contrasts with them to make a larger point. Perhaps the character feels one way and the sky is sending a hint of how the character should feel. A master writer uses just enough words, and no more, to convey all this, in a way that doesn’t interrupt the flow of the plot.

Taming Weather

“Everyone complains about the weather,” Charles Dudley Warner once quipped, “but nobody does anything about it.” Here’s a deeper meaning behind his joke—writers do something about it. Writers control the weather in their stories, blowing wind like Aeolus, hurling lightning bolts like Zeus. If you hope to write well, implement my guidance in the Style section above.

Also, take some time to log the weather yourself. Write descriptions of extreme and commonplace weather as you find it, or from others’ pictures and videos. Go beyond a bare accounting. In your journal, convey the impressions on all your senses and all the emotions the weather evoked. Armed with these passages, you can use them to enhance your stories, to serve purposes in your plots, and to reflect some truth about your characters.

As the crimson orb kisses the distant horizon, dragging narrow clouds of fuchsia, lavender, and violet along with it, a singular silhouetted figure rides into the sunset of this blogpost. Who could it be? Of course, it’s—

Poseidon’s Scribe

June 7, 2026Poseidon's ScribePermalink Leave a comment

Why Young Adults Should Love Tom Swift

In a significant way, Tom Swift guided me toward a career in engineering, and also toward the genre of fiction I write. I wonder if authors of young adult (YA) fiction understand the seeds they plant in young minds.

First book in the Tom Swift Jr. (second) series 1954-1971

Tom Swift and Me

As a young boy growing up in the 1960s, I enjoyed reading the Tom Swift Jr. series, attributed to Victor Appleton II (a pseudonym for several contributing authors), and published by Grosset & Dunlap during the years 1954 to 1971. One of my aunts gave me the first book in the series, Tom Swift and His Flying Lab, as a gift. After that, my collection grew to include most of the thirty-three books in the series.

I loved reading about Tom Swift’s inventions and adventures. He built a nuclear airplane, a submarine, a spaceship, a robot, and earth-blasting machine, and many, many more. Each book fired my imagination. In my mind, I traveled along with Tom and his sidekick, Bud Barclay, in their amazing vehicles.

Tom Swift, I believe, influenced my later choice to major in engineering (specifically, Naval Architecture) at college. After serving in the military, I spent a career as an engineer and program manager at an engineering organization. However, I didn’t end up building my own nuclear airplane, submarine, spaceship, etc.

First book in the Tom Swift Sr. (first) series 1910-1941

The Senior Tom Swift

The 1960s-era Tom Swift series I loved followed an earlier series, published from 1910 to 1941. That first series of forty books showcased the father of Tom Swift, Jr. and his inventions and adventures. I’ve collected a few of them, but their racism makes them difficult to read now.

Tom Swift vs. Harry Potter

Not meaning to disparage the Harry Potter series, but I’d rank it a step below Tom Swift. You can’t become a wizard in real life, but you can become a scientist, inventor, or engineer. Yes, I understand Harry Potter inspires qualities besides magic, such real-life attributes as friendship, hard work, cleverness, and a willingness to confront and overcome evil. All of those virtues will serve Harry Potter fans well in their later working lives.

I also know, if I point out how unrealistic a magic academy is, you’ll counter with how unbelievable it is for an eighteen-year-old to be inventing the gadgets Tom Swift does. You’ll tell me how Tomasite plastic and Swiftonium nuclear material and “repelatrons” violate just as many laws of physics as Harry Potter’s magical conjuring does.

Still, Tom Swift inspires kids toward real lines of work, but Harry Potter doesn’t.

Tom Swift Reborn

Sixth book in the fourth series 1991-1993

First book in the third series 1981-1984

Modern authors have updated Tom Swift for today’s young readers. I know of five such series:

1981-1984, Tom Swift III series, 11 books
1991-1993, Tom Swift IV series, 13 books
2006-2007, Tom Swift, Young Inventor series, 6 books
2019-2022, Tom Swift, Inventors’ Academy series, 8 books
2018-2023, Tom Swift Lives! series, by Scott Dickerson, 50 books

I hope one or more of these series gains in popularity and serves to steer many children toward science and engineering.

Past attempts to bring Tom Swift to the screen in movies or TV series have all failed. Perhaps with good screenwriting, realistic computer graphics to depict the inventions, and a strong focus on the target audience, a Tom Swift show could succeed.

Two to three decades ago, when society lamented how few women graduated in male-dominated fields, I considered writing a series of YA books about a female version of Tom Swift. I never wrote that, but now, women hold their own in most fields. You go, girls!

Perhaps someone could write YA novels featuring twins—a boy and a girl—working together on amazing inventions, and experiencing perilous adventures.

I offer that idea for free—go crazy with it. The world would have to wait a long time for those books to get written by—

Poseidon’s Scribe

May 31, 2026Poseidon's ScribePermalink Leave a comment

3 Fallacies About the “No Time to Write” Excuse

Even the most bumbling, unskilled person on the planet excels at making excuses for not doing things. We’re all experts at that. For people who wish to write, some of our excuses involve the relentless ticking of time.

Fiction writer and poet Lorraine Horsley wrote a great post on this topic. Read hers first, and then click back here for my take. Here are her three lies about time that we tell ourselves:

1. I don’t have time.

Your clock matches mine. I checked. Same number of hours in a day, etc. Each second and minute lasts the same for all of us, since, here on Earth, none of us travels at a significant fraction of the speed of light.

In other words, those who do make time to write have no more time than you. Other, non-writing tasks crowd their days too. Life interferes with their writing dreams too. They’re just as busy as you are.

How do they find time to write? They don’t start with an excuse about a lack of time. They turn it around to a positive—“I want to write, so I’ll make time.” They establish a habit of daily writing.

2. I’ll need several hours a day.

Again, you’re making an excuse, a reason for taking no action. If you tell yourself this one, you’ll never get started. What if you could only spare ten minutes a day for writing? At first, you wouldn’t produce much output as your brain adjusts to this new task. You’ll be tempted to give up.

If you persevere, you’ll see improvement in a few days. You’ve formed a habit and you’re seeing some output. On a few glorious occasions, you’ll achieve flow.

Here’s a chronological paradox for you—a severe time constraint can improve your writing. As an example, Ray Bradbury started out poor and couldn’t afford his own typewriter. But he knew he could find rental typewriters in the basement of the library at the University of California at Los Angeles. Ten cents bought a half hour of typing. Time is money, indeed. He typed his classic novel Fahrenheit 451 there, with the typewriter’s clock ticking.

3. I’ll make time when…

…when I graduate…when my kids are in school…when my kids move out…when I retire. Sure.

You’ve heard the one about writing a novel being a one day event? As in, “One day, I’ll write a novel.” Except you keep putting that day off, because you don’t have time now, but you think you will in the future.

Consider turning this excuse around and telling yourself, “I’ll never have more time than I do right now.” In the grand scheme, that’s true for all of us. We pay attention to little clocks, but we all have a personal, invisible Big Clock destined to stop someday. Reckoning by the Big Clock, you’ve got more time now than you will later.

Enough Excuses

To sum up, you do have time to write, you don’t need huge chunks of time to write, and you’ll never find more time to write than now. So get writing. As the comic character Snuffy Smith often said, “Time’s a’wastin’.” Not just for you. It’s also a’wastin’ for—

Poseidon’s Scribe

May 24, 2026Poseidon's ScribePermalink Leave a comment

A New Holiday—Virtues & Sins Day

That’s right. Virtues & Sins Day. One of the five major holidays of the Oceanism religion. Haven’t heard of Oceanism? That’s the new religion that caught on in the world of my book, The Seastead Chronicles. Today also marks one year since the book got published.

All the priests in the Oceanism hierarchy call it Virtues & Sins Day, but everyday Oceanists call it Shalls & Shants Day—better alliteration. For Oceanists, the holiday presents an opportunity to reflect on how they’re living their life. Are they living in accord with the five virtues of Oceanism and are they avoiding its five sins?

The Seastead Chronicles

Stories in the book span the near-future construction of the first permanent seasteads through a century spent colonizing the seas and creating a new, oceanic culture. A part of that culture includes the rise and spread of Oceanism.

What’s a “seastead?” Like a homestead, it means a home in a new and previously unclaimed area. Unlike a homestead, the area of a seastead lies in an ocean or sea.

Though I mention Oceanism in a few of its stories, nobody would call The Seastead Chronicles a religious book. Its stories include adventure, mystery, love, war, music, mankind’s relationship with nature, and other themes. I’ve written stories about people struggling to survive and thrive in homes at sea. The environment they set out to change, changed them.

You may purchase the ebook and/or paperback versions of The Seastead Chronicles on Amazon here and here, at Barnes & Noble, at Books2Read, at Rakuten Kobo, at Abe Books, and at Thriftbooks.

This wish for a happy Virtues & Sins Day comes to you from—

Poseidon’s Scribe

May 17, 2026Poseidon's ScribePermalink Leave a comment

The 9 Most Interesting Monuments to Writers

On a recent trip to Scotland, I saw a monument glorifying the writer Sir Walter Scott. That got me thinking about, and researching, monuments to writers in general. In this post, I’ll examine the ones I found most interesting.

By “interesting,” I mean something other than a statue or bust on a pedestal. Those who commission, design, and build monuments to authors honor them in a wonderful way, so I don’t mean to disparage the statue-on-a-pedestal design. Most author monuments fall into that category, though, so I’m posting about the less common types.

I’ve put my list in order of monument completion date, earliest to latest.

Scott Monument

Finished in 1846 in Edinburgh, Scotland, this giant monument stands 200 feet tall—second tallest of all monuments to authors (for the tallest, see José Martí below). Spiral staircases allow access up to platforms with commanding views views of the city. George Meikle Kemp designed the monument and John Steell designed the statue of Scott (along with his dog) between the pillars. The monument includes depictions of sixty-four characters from Scott’s novels.

The Scottish people take great pride in Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832), both for his poetry, including “The Lady of the Lake” and for his historical, romantic novels, including Waverley and Ivanhoe.

D’Israeli monument

In Buckinghamshire, England stands this fifty-foot monument to writer Isaac D’Israeli. The top may look like a statue, but it’s an urn. Raised panels with inscriptions and a profile portrait of the author decorate the pedestal. Designed by Edward Buckton Lamb, the monument had been commissioned in secret by D’Israeli’s daughter-in-law Mary Anne Disraeli as a surprise for her husband, Benjamin Disraeli, then Chancellor of the Exchequer. Later he became Prime Minister.

Isaac D’Israeli (1766-1848) wrote romantic novels and essays, but is most famous for Calamities of Authors and Curiosities of Literature.

Johannes Ewald and Johan Hermann Wessel Memorial

The only monument on my list honoring two writers, it stands ten feet tall. Located in Copenhagen, Denmark and completed in 1879, it features two nude, winged boys, one with lyre and the other with pan flute. The pedestal contains portraits of the poets and inscriptions honoring their works. Otto Evens designed the memorial.

Born in Copenhagen, Johannes Ewald (1743-1781) wrote plays, psalms, and poetry. He’s most famous for his dramatic work Balders Død (Balder’s Death) and his poem Rungsteds Lyksaligheder (The Happiness of Rungsted).

Though born in Norway, Johan Hermann Wessel (1742-1785) studied, lived, and died in Copenhagen. A poet and playwright, he employed parody and wit in his writings. Among his most significant writings are Kierlighed uden Strømper (Love without Stockings), and Smeden og Bageren (The Smith and the Baker).

José Martí Memorial

At 358 feet in height, this monument dwarfs all other writer memorials. Completed in 1958 and located in Havana, Cuba, it takes the form of a tall tower with a star-shaped cross section. Nearby stands a statue of the author. Jean Labatut designed it, under the guidance of architect Raoul Otero de Galarraga. Unlike the Scott Monument’s stairs, the Martí Memorial includes an elevator at the center of the star shape. Visitors can ascend to the observation deck, where, from Havana’s highest spot, they can enjoy a panoramic view of the city.

The size of the monument suggests the adoration Cubans feel for their national hero. Through his writings, José Julián Martí Pérez (1853-1895) pushed for the liberation of Cuba from Spain and has been given the appellation “Apostle of Cuban Independence.” His roles included publisher, professor, translator, journalist, essayist, philosopher, and poet. His most famous writings include the children’s book La edad de oro (The Golden Age), the poem collection Versos sencillos (Simple Verses), and his essay Our America.

Ernest Hemingway Memorial

Cuba hosts another writer memorial of note. This one stands in the fishing village of Cojimar, near the bar where Ernest Hemingway often drank. Designed by the Cuban architect José Luis Sert, it features six Ionic-style columns supporting a stone ring. Inside stands a bust of the author sculpted by Fernando Boada Martín. For the bust’s material, he melted down propellers, anchors, and chains supplied by local residents. Completed in 1962, the memorial’s simple, yet profound, design reflects the character of Hemingway’s prose.

Though American, Ernest Miller Hemingway (1899-1961) spent a lot of time in Cuba and wrote many novels there, including The Old Man and the Sea, for which the residents of Cojimar most celebrate him. He also wrote For Whom the Bell Tolls, A Farewell to Arms, and The Sun Also Rises.

Monument to Raul Brandão

Located in Porto, Portugal, this monument takes the form of a hollow, granite rectangle enclosing two scenes featuring several statues. Separating the scenes is a relief image of the author with his name. Architect Rogério de Azevedo and sculptor Henrique Moreira completed the monument in 1967 to mark one hundred years since the author’s birth.

A Portuguese journalist, writer, and army officer, Raul Germano Brandão (1867-1930) wrote several books, often featuring sailors and the ocean, including Impressões e Paisagens (Impressions and Landscapes) and Os Pobres (The Poor).

The Dream of Humanity Monument to Ferreira de Castro

Also in Porto, Portugal stands this abstract monument. Called O Sonho da Humanidade, Portuguese for “The Dream of Humanity,” and designed by José Rodrigues, it got completed in 1988. I found no information about why it looks the way it does, or how its appearance symbolizes the author’s writings.

A Portuguese journalist and writer and journalist, José Maria Ferreira de Castro (1898-1974) helped father the genre of Portuguese social-realist fiction. Among several other works, he authored A Selva (The Jungle) and A Volta ao Mundo (Around the World).

Monument to Mikhail Sholokhov

The year 2007 saw the completion of this monument in Moscow. Sculptor Alexander Rukavishnikov depicted author Mikhail Sholokhov rowing a boat. Behind the boat, over a dozen horses swim with just their heads showing. Real water flows down the sloped surface to show the horses swimming, making this the only kinetic sculpture on my list.

Earning the 1965 Nobel Prize in Literature, author Mikhail Aleksandrovich Sholokhov (1905-1984) wrote novels about the Don Cossacks. And Quiet Flows the Don reigns as his most popular novel. As an additional honor beyond the monument, an asteroid is named for him—2448 Sholokhov.

A Sculpture for Mary Wollstonecraft

I started my list in the United Kingdom, and I’ll finish it there as well. In this London monument, a nude female figure emerges from a swirling, curving mass of chaos. Designed by artist Maggi Hambling and completed in 2020, the monument honors the author Mary Wollstonecraft. At its base appears a quote from the writer: “I do not wish women to have power over men but over themselves.” Though meant as a tribute to one woman, the depicted female represents all women, thus showing how Wollstonecraft lifted womankind from nameless, shapeless anonymity.

An early advocate for women’s rights, Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797) wrote a children’s book, a conduct book, a history of the French Revolution, a travel narrative, and several treatises and novels. Her most famous treatise remains A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. She’s become a hero, a founding philosopher, of the modern feminist movement. She died soon after the birth of her second daughter, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, author of Frankenstein.

**The Real Monuments**

Consider this irony. Monuments of stone and steel, while quite a tribute, will erode and crumble in time. But the words of these authors, written on mere paper and now with even more fleeting electrons, will endure much longer than the monuments. As the Romans said, Vita brevis, ars longa, meaning “Life is short, art is long.” In that sense, these authors created their own long-lasting monuments.

Do you know of other interesting author-honoring monuments I should have included? Send a comment to—

Poseidon’s Scribe

May 17, 2026Poseidon's ScribePermalink Leave a comment

You Bored Your Reader—Here’s How to Prevent That

As a writer, you can’t afford to bore readers. Modern technology has dwindled their attention spans to a few seconds before they hit Delete. I’ll give you some techniques for writing stories that capture and sustain attention.

The Problem

We live in a fast-paced age. Busier than ever, your readers get blasted every day with an information fire-hose, spewing mostly useless noise. What doesn’t attract attention gets deleted or remains unclicked.

The book you’re writing will vie for reader eyeball time against many competitors—other author’s books, TV shows, movies, Facebook, X, Instagram, Tiktok, etc. Readers abhor boredom. They’ve no time to read dull prose. If the story’s first paragraph doesn’t trigger a dopamine hit, readers won’t continue.

Anti-Boredom Techniques

I drew inspiration for today’s topic from this post by Sabyasachi Roy. I’ll list his techniques, put into my words.

Learn from other’s successes. Consider techniques proven to work. Sabyasachi Roy suggests you analyze what it is about certain Facebook or X posts, or Netflix series, that grab attention and tell a story too irresistible to ignore.
Seize interest from the start. Your opening sentence and paragraph must compel the reader to read on. Spend time crafting and re-writing this hook, since it serves multiple purposes.
Use the high-low-high-low technique. As the story goes, alternate high-tension moments with low-tension moments.
Understand high-tension moments. High-tension needn’t mean a fist fight, a car crash, or an explosion. It means putting your protagonist under high emotional strain. Use short sentences and short paragraphs here to hasten the pace.
Use low-tension moments to let characters and readers catch a breath. Don’t put them to sleep, though. Pack these moments with meaning—thoughts and emotions that suggest the themes of your story. Allow the characters time to react to what just happened, and to wonder—or dread—what will happen next.
Add surprises and twists. Disrupt the reader’s notions of where the story is going.
Start with high stakes for the character. Then raise them. What bad thing will occur if the character fails? Lost love? Poverty? Diminished social status? Death? If possible, make the consequences more dire as the story proceeds.
Leave your character hanging from a metaphorical (or actual) cliff at each chapter’s end. Cliffhangers deny readers the chance to end their reading session there.
Kill darlings. When re-writing, cut all unnecessary words, sentences, paragraphs, scenes, and chapters. Delete or condense the parts that bore you, since they’ll also bore readers.

Your Book

I hear you. You’re telling me your book doesn’t belong in the thriller genre. It’s a slow-paced, thoughtful book, a deeply philosophical tome meant to be savored, not sped through on the way to something else.

Even so, you don’t want to bore readers. Some of the above techniques may still apply to your book. It still needs to pass the “So What?” Test.

As Lincoln said, “You can bore all of the people some of the time…” Wait. That wasn’t Lincoln. That was—

Poseidon’s Scribe