Author Archives: Kenneth Jobe

My In-laws Bring a Curse With Them Every Time They Visit My House

I love my wife’s parents. And although in-laws have been the butt of jokes practically since the dawn of time, I really hit the in-law lottery when I married my wife. You couldn’t ask for two nicer people to be in your extended family. But…there’s a problem. They carry a curse—a jinx, a hex, callContinue reading “My In-laws Bring a Curse With Them Every Time They Visit My House”

What Has Two Thumbs and Just Got a Short Story Published?

I had to read the email three times to make sure I wasn’t seeing things, but yes indeed, one of my short stories is being published! My sci-fi flash fiction piece Tale of the Revolution is going to appear in the upcoming issue of Nebula Rift magazine, Volume 2  Number 4, put out by eFictionContinue reading “What Has Two Thumbs and Just Got a Short Story Published?”

You Know Who Manages to Pull Off Some Pretty Wild Plot Twists? Life, That’s Who.

Up until maybe a year ago, I would’ve told anyone who asked that my life was really pretty boring. With an odd sense of pride I would’ve said my life contained zero drama, and I wouldn’t have had it any other way. I would write a little in the morning, go to work, write aContinue reading “You Know Who Manages to Pull Off Some Pretty Wild Plot Twists? Life, That’s Who.”

I’ve Been to a Magical Land, Full of Free Books for Every Man, Woman, and Child—They Call It a “Library”

When I was in Junior High/High School, the library was nothing more than the place that housed the encyclopedias and whatever else I might need to complete a research paper or other such project. I never appreciated the library for what it was—never saw its full potential. It didn’t help that the local branch, whileContinue reading “I’ve Been to a Magical Land, Full of Free Books for Every Man, Woman, and Child—They Call It a “Library””

The BOJ Quarterly Book Report: Spring Edition

One of my New Year’s resolutions was to read more. I set a goal for myself of at least 12 books this year; I thought that was attainable without stretching myself too thin. So far I’m right on pace with my book-a-month goal—in fact, I seem to be picking up a little steam as timeContinue reading “The BOJ Quarterly Book Report: Spring Edition”

On The Joy of Discovery

This post mainly serves as a way for me to knock the rust off, as it were. As you may or may not have noticed, I’ve been gone for a little bit. I’ll go into what caused my temporary absence sometime, but for now I’m just trying to get back in the water, so toContinue reading “On The Joy of Discovery”

Stephen King’s A Bit of a Tweeker

I was doing some what I heard once called AFTK (away-from-the-keyboard) writing the other day—some of you may just call it ‘spacing out’—and as I thought about a particular story idea, I realized I needed a certain type of minor supporting character. As luck would have it, I had already created such a character forContinue reading “Stephen King’s A Bit of a Tweeker”

Auditory Time Machines and The Concert from Hell

A while back on Facebook there was a thread going around to list the first ten albums that sprung to mind that were special to you and had stuck with you over the years. It was a lot of fun, and not just in making up my own list but seeing the lists my friendsContinue reading “Auditory Time Machines and The Concert from Hell”

On Reading Bad Books To Become A Better Writer

I don’t know what happened to me. I used to be able to devour books like a hungry, gasoline-fed fire. It wasn’t unheard of to finish a book in a matter of days, and never more than a month. But now, I can barely finish a book in a month if I’m lucky. I knowContinue reading “On Reading Bad Books To Become A Better Writer”