Just what do you do with a PhD in the History of Science? Write novels–science fiction, urban fantasy, and thriller. Our guest today is Steve Ruskin, PhD. He’s the author of the nonfiction popular history novel America’s First Great Eclipse and countless academic writings, and also of the ExoRok Rebels science fiction series and Trina Piper magical thrillers.

Steve’s unique background in academics and fiction give him great insight to author resources, creativity, and bringing character-driven fiction to life.

In Part One, We Discuss:

Painting targets around the points you want to hit in your plots
On-location research and
Detail writing, and using the five senses to set a scene
Worldbuilding and story development in someone else’s shared universe
Pulling story inspiration from history and integrating it into other genres
Organization and juggling multiple projects

Resources and Guest Links:

- Steve Ruskin: https://www.steveruskin.com/
- Steve’s Newsletter: https://storyoriginapp.com/giveaways/f424f312-0fb9-11ee-938d-7f884ddf8bd0
- America’s First Great Eclipse: https://www.amazon.com/Americas-First-Great-Eclipse-Scientists-ebook/dp/B0716GT8FH
- ExoRok Rebels: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B1BMNQQ1
- Trina Piper Thrillers: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C9KGPCSS

Dean Wesley Smith workshops: https://deanwesleysmith.com/online-workshops/

- Remnants of Empire anthology: https://www.amazon.com/Remnants-Empire-Ashes-Entecea-Book-ebook/dp/B0D52XCZ5D

The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers: https://www.amazon.com/The-Anubis-Gates-Tim-Powers-audiobook/dp/B019G334ZO

Huge thanks to Steve for coming over to record at our dining room table. We love being able to bring field specialists onto the show, and he’s no exception. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we enjoyed recording it!

Host Links:

H.Y. Gregor: https://hygregor.com/
David Shadoin: https://www.davidshadoin.com/

Credits: (all assets licensed through the sites listed)

Intro: Music- Cinematic Epic Trailer by PaulYudin on Pixabay

Animation and Image- From Vecteezy user- kazim hussian; from pixabay users-davidfoxx, DavidGallie, olenchic, stefaniejockschat, AiVreaSaStii, RuneSnow, duyen-nguyen, EnchantedStudios,

Outro: Music- Good Night by FASSounds on Pixabay

Animation and Image- From Vecteezy user-onlydesignz; from pixabay users-olenchic, Placidplace, Evgeniy_Z, Dantegrafico, Shayea_Kim