Author Archives: Rati Mehrotra

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About Rati Mehrotra

Science fiction and fantasy writer. I blog at: ratiwrites.com Thanks for dropping by!

Reading Science Fiction in Calgary

Posted on August 21, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

A fat silver moon hangs low in the clear Calgary sky and I’m thinking about wolves. And the endless excuses we make for ourselves. According to Bob Broadhead- protagonist of the Gateway by Frederick Pohl – the only reason big, … Continue reading →

Posted in Books and media, Science fiction and fantasy, Travel | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Humans good, aliens better

Posted on July 25, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

Yesterday I picked up this incredible book titled “First Contact: The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence” edited by Ben Bova and Byron Preiss. Okay, it’s a bit dated at 1990, but still worth a read, with articles by Isaac Asimov, Frank Drake, … Continue reading →

Posted in Science, Science fiction and fantasy | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

The Columbia mission: Dreams, life and the magic of hard work

Posted on July 13, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

A few days ago I visited the Seattle Museum of Flight. Just outside the museum, I paused, and there was this moment that made the entire trip west worthwhile – the ghastly little propeller plane from Calgary, the nauseating three … Continue reading →

Posted in Life and all that stuff, Science | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Moose, trains and icebergs: Traveling in Newfoundland

Posted on July 2, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

Some are born car-less, some achieve car-lessness and some have car-lessness thrust upon them. I am a proud combo of all three. I don’t drive (Canada is the first country I’ve ever felt the need to). I’ll take buses, walk, … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment Matters, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Writing Romance in Newfoundland: Interview With Victoria Barbour

Posted on June 20, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

Despite the fog, the forbidding crags, the marshes and the stormy Atlantic – or perhaps because of all these things – Newfoundland is an amazingly romantic place. The perfect setting for Victoria Barbour’s light-hearted and enjoyable romance novel: Against Her … Continue reading →

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Black holes, wormholes and time travel

Posted on June 15, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

It’s cold and rainy and foggy, not a bit what summer should look like. Perfect day for seeing a video on quasars, black holes and galaxy formation! One word: awesome. Did you know: A black hole is not empty space. It’s a … Continue reading →

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What Cugel the not-so-Clever teaches us about character

Posted on June 3, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

Jack Vance died on 26th May in California aged 96. Enough has been said on the blogosphere about this amazing genius of a writer who wrote over 60 genre fiction books, and I’m not going to repeat it, except to … Continue reading →

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Breaking the deadly loop of the debut writer

Posted on May 28, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

I’ve heard it time and again. If you’re a debut science fiction and fantasy novelist out there shopping your nine part epic fantasy on the Aardzork empire wars – don’t. Your first novel must stand on its own, regardless of … Continue reading →

Posted in Science fiction and fantasy, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Monsters, myths and machines

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

I hid in the closet for years. Everyone around me is so literary, I never really admitted to my love for writing fantasy and science fiction. That’s changed now but the conversation still leaves a little something to be desired: … Continue reading →

Posted in Books and media, Science fiction and fantasy, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

The tears of the second draft

Posted on May 13, 2013 by Rati Mehrotra

I just finished the first draft of a new 47000-word middle grade fantasy. “Tada!” I thought triumphantly as I tapped out the last line. Now I can relax and celebrate go back and read it and discover just how crappy … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments