Our next book
Stars Uncharted will be published on 14 August 2018. It's a space opera, in the same character-oriented with a bit of fun style, but it's not part of the Linesman series.
Hello, and welcome to S. K. Dunstall.com, the website for authors Sherylyn and Karen Dunstall.
Our latest posts
Read chapter one of Stars Uncharted
Only four weeks until Stars Uncharted is published. Eek. It feels like only yesterday that we tentatively sent off three sample novels to our agent to say, “Which one do you think we should work with?” Her answer, “Well, that was easy.” And that’s how Stars Uncharted came about. If you’re interested, you can read... Read more →
A ragtag band of explorers …
Status today: Ow. I’ve had a lazy week, reading lots of books. I’m a fast reader, I tend to open a book and read through to the end, stopping only for work, dinner and bed. Maybe bed, if the book’s too good I’ll read through the night to finish. Bad me. (The only day I... Read more →
What are some things you like in stories?
A couple of days ago, on Twitter, Isabel Yap (@visyap) started a thread that asked, “What are some things you like in stories (not tropes, necessarily), that you are always down for?” I read all the comments, agree with a lot of them, and came up with my own list of things I particularly enjoy.... Read more →
The same old themes crop up again and again — even when you don’t plan on it
I find that many of our favorite writers have themes, or story ideas, which they carry across from series to series. I don’t know if themes are conscious or not. For example, the female protagonists written by one author are always in formerly abusive relationships. Our stories? Well, we didn’t think they were alike, but... Read more →
How do you write ‘good’ characters versus ‘bad’ characters?
One thing writers try to do is ‘show’ a character by his or her actions. That is, rather than say, Bob Jenkins was a bad man. You show it by Bob Jenkins pulled into the petrol station one midnight, just after Granny Stevens had closed up, and demanded she unlock one of the bowsers so... Read more →