Author: T.D. McKinnon

Scottish author T.D.McKinnon ‘Survived the Battleground of Childhood’ in the coal mining communities of Scotland and England before joining the British Parachute Regiment at fifteen where he remained for five years. He has trained in the martial arts for most of his life and had five Karate schools in Scotland before immigrating to Australia. He writes across several genres and has completed five books that are all available as eBooks. He lives in Tasmania, Australia with his wife. Learn more about T.D.McKinnon at his website and Amazon author page.

Writing is Like Sex

I thought that might get your attention…

Writing is to being an author like sex is to being a lover. There may be some natural ability, and the first, fumbling steps may even hold the promise of some wondrous things to come. It’s possible to get by, at least initially, with a measure of natural talent; a degree of youthful exuberance certainly doesn’t go amiss either (even if the individual concerned is not that young). However, without practice and (we all know that it’s not practice that makes perfect but rather perfect practice that makes perfect) probably tutoring, and most certainly some guidance will be needed to help and encourage that budding, and talented individual to reach their full potential. Continue reading “Writing is Like Sex”

Legacies of Empire

Regardless of any assertion of virtuous intent; at its core, the motivation for the building of empires, by and large, is the accumulation of wealth for the minority at the expense of the majority. There are of course other, just as avaricious, incentives for empire but they all align with its primary purpose. However, regardless of its grandeur or period of reign, following its downfall (and eventually all fall) it is judged not by its initial motivations, or by the destruction it causes whilst coming into being, and certainly not by the wealth and accomplishments it accumulates during its reign; in the end, it is judged by the legacies it leaves.

Throughout history man has built empires, one hundred and eighty seven, recorded, nation-based empires alone. The first on record, the Akkadian Empire, began in 2334 BC, and the last, the Portuguese Empire, officially ended in 1999. The empire with the shortest reign, less than two years, was the first Mexican Empire (1821 – 1823), and the longest reigning empire, the Mayan Empire (2,000BC – 1540 AD) was a staggering 3,540 years in duration.

Continue reading “Legacies of Empire”

Storyteller

2013 is going to be a great year for everyone at IU, I can feel it in my bones (you can feel a lot of things in your bones as you get older).

It seems that we (the IU staff and guest contributors) gravitate around subjects that are akin, usually at about the same time. ‘That’s probably because we all face similar obstacles in the pursuit of our literary goals,’ I’m paraphrasing, but that was Stephen’s response to that statement I made not too long ago.

I’m not totally convinced that the explanation is as practical as that. I believe that we operate on more than just a physical level and that the coming together of any collection of personalities is much more than just a chance occurrence. Continue reading “Storyteller”

The Competition?

The establishment would have us believe that, as writers, we have to compete and that, regrettably, there is no level playing field on which to conduct the competition. To begin with, just knowing all the rules of the game is an almost impossible task, there is a secret covenant; just when you think you’ve got the rules they change them.

According to the establishment – the established, traditional publishers, the established, traditional media, some of the established, traditionally published authors, all of which make up the established, traditional mind set – there are only so many readers to go around; and they don’t want to share! Continue reading “The Competition?”