Paul Martz

Paul is a prizewinning science fiction author, technology blogger, and former punk rock drummer. At age six, he saw 2001: A Space Odyssey on the big screen, which lead him to a collection of Clarke’s short stories and a lifelong insatiable appetite for mind-bending science fiction. Paul’s edgy, techno-smart stories were influenced by his career as a virtual reality software developer and the time he spent drumming for punk and alternative bar bands. He puts his protagonists in bad situations, then makes sure they end up worse off. Originally from Flint, MI, Paul resides in Colorado, where he tries to avoid reliving his punk rock days. He is still trying to teach his cat to play drums.

A Computer Wrote My Story

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Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming an increasingly powerful tool for authors, providing new opportunities to generate creative fiction. With the ability to analyze vast amounts of data and understand natural language, AI can help authors generate new ideas, develop characters, and even write entire stories. In this article, we’ll explore the ways in which AI can assist authors in their writing process, from idea generation to story development, and examine …

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Four Steps to Revising My Opening with a Critiki Bar Hangover

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Ugh. I just woke up with a wicked headache, and my tongue feels like it’s taped to the roof of my mouth. That’s what I get for drinking at The Critiki Bar, my pick for best workshop of the 2022 RMFW Gold Conference. The bartenders (er, moderators) were Katharine Sands, an established New York literary agent, and David L. Robbins, a best-selling author and creative writing professor. Prior to the …

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Paul Martz Named 2022 Roswell Award Finalist

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Paul Martz is administering self-defibrillation after finding out that his story, Dr. Harriet Hartfeld’s Home for Aging AIs, is a finalist for the 2022 Omega Sci-Fi Roswell Award. Prizewinners will be announced during the May 21 awards ceremony, in which finalist stories will be read aloud by celebrity narrators. Attend the ceremony, and see if Paul is still wearing that same stupid hoodie. The Omega Sci-Fi Awards seek to empower …

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Expert Advice from a New Writer

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Writing advice surrounds me. Everyone, it seems, is an expert. One day, all that information on self-publishing, pitching a story, and writing query letters will come in handy, but for now I feel like I’m drowning in unhelpful advice. Sink with me to the bottom of the writing-advice ocean, where I talk with Mark Stevens, author and host of the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers (RMFW) Podcast. Why would Mark bother …

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Writing Query Letters

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3 Query Letter Tips for Writers with Disabilities

Getting Wild

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Paul Martz’s science fiction short story, The re-creation of Sahmik Ghee, will appear in the 2020 RMFW Anthology, Wild: Uncivilized Tales, available September 11. The story was inspired by the classic poem by Robert W. Service and reflects Paul’s love for both kaiju and dark humor. This will be Paul’s first published work of fiction. On a planet where deadly snow elementals roam the frozen poles, two traders embark on …

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Five Lessons from NaNoWriMo

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NaNoWriMo seemed intimidating. Until last month, I’d only written short stories. How could a hack like me possibly write a 50,000-word novel in 30 days? What if my story is pathetic? Can’t they schedule this for a month without a major US holiday? Many of my writer friends were participating, but I heard my mother’s voice from beyond the grave. “If all your friends jumped off a cliff, would you …

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