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Cameron Montague Taylor

Fantasy Author & Fiction Editor

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Cameron Montague Taylor
Fantasy Author & Fiction Editor
Cameron Montague Taylor
Fantasy Author &
Fiction Editor
books
Looking for a Fiction Editor?

Check out the services offered by AuthorShip Publishing & Editorial

LEARN MORE
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Wicked Waters is on Patreon

Book three: Frozen Fathoms now updating weekly

READ IT NOW
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authorship background

Check out my blog The AuthorShip where I post about the craft of fiction writing, my process, and try out writing advice from sources across the internet... and beyond!

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books
Looking for a developmental editor?

Now taking bookings for Spring/Summer 2022

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The Oceana Series is on Patreon!
READ IT NOW
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Pirate by day, writer by night…

Hi there! I’m Cameron Montague Taylor, a fantasy author and developmental editor of fiction. Check out the editorial services I offer or take a look at my writing: novels, novellas, and epics set in far-flung worlds with queer heroes and thick romantic threads.

Outside the writing world, I’m a sailor and scuba diver by trade. Those experiences inspired and shaped the Oceana Series: a dark nautical fantasy epic posting in installments on Patreon.

When I don’t have a pen in hand, you can find me on the water, underwater, or chasing my cat away from my houseplants.

Hi there! I’m Cameron Montague Taylor, a fantasy author and developmental editor of fiction. Check out the editorial services I offer or take a look at my writing: novels, novellas, and epics set in far-flung worlds with queer heroes and thick romantic threads.

Outside the writing world, I’m a sailor and scuba diver by trade. Those experiences inspired and shaped the Oceana Series: a dark nautical fantasy epic posting in installments on Patreon.

When I don’t have a pen in hand, you can find me on the water, underwater, or chasing my cat away from my houseplants.


Recent News
News and Updates

Deathmark is on Patreon

Gaslamp Fantasy? Paranormal Romance? Queer heroes? If that sounds like your jam, Deathmark, the newest novella in the Ilia 'verse, might be your next read.

The Dark Arm of the Maker is LIVE on Kindle Vella!

Amazon recently launched a new serialization platform called Kindle Vella. Check it out to get 200 free coins for unlocking episodes!

Planning the External Plot

A look behind the curtain at how I use beat sheets and scene cards to scaffold my external plot.

Attributing Dialogue

Four methods of attribution that will make your dialogue read like a dream.

Morning Pages: Only My Pride

Spring has sprung with April’s flash fiction roundup.

Morning Pages: Fireweaver

March was a mad month this year, folks. Come on in and process the madness with another round-up of flash fiction prompts.

Tips for Writing Action Scenes

Having trouble with slow pacing in your action scenes? This tool might help!

Morning Pages: Wildcat

February’s flash fiction prompt roundup is here! Sharpen your pencils, check ’em out, and join a discussion about editing in the comments.


Follow for more writing tips from a developmental Follow for more writing tips from a developmental editor!
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#amwriting #authorsofinstagram #writersofinstagram #writingcommunity #bookstagram #bookish #instabook #instabooks #fantasy #amwritingfantasy #fantasybooks #fantasyauthor #fantasywriter #amediting #editorsofig #editorsofinstagram #queerbooks #queerwriters #iwroteabook #howtowriteabook  #writingadvice #indieauthor #indiebooks #selfpublishing #writingtips #writerlife #romanceauthor #amwritingromance
My favorite new focus tool for writing:⁠ ⁠ 4th My favorite new focus tool for writing:⁠
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4thewords(.com)⁠
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I checked out 4thewords on a recommendation from a friend and have absolutely *loved* it so far.⁠
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If you're looking for a simple, lite markup editor with good document organization and cloud storage, PLUS wordcount tracking and timed sprints, you should check it out!⁠
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4thewords gameifies writing, sending you on quests where you sprint words to defeat monsters, gather items, equip your hero, and defeat the big bad. It has all the adventuretime goodness of a simple and cute mmorpg plus the functionality and community of a site like NaNo.⁠
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There's a monthly free trial, after which use of the site is paid either annually, or month-by-month. (But it looks like you can earn site currency to extend your membership by completing challenges and quests, too!).⁠
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I'm not sponsored by or partnered with 4thewords -- I'm just a happy, newb user and recommend it to anyone looking for a fun accountability app that makes the words fly by.⁠
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#amwriting #writer #authorgram #authorsofinstagram #writersofinstagram #writingcommunity #bookstagram #instabooks #fantasy #amwritingfantasy #fantasybooks #fantasyauthor #fantasywriter #fantasynovel #fantasyseries #instalove #romancebooks #amwritingromance  #lgbtbooks #lgbtwriters #queerwriters #queerbooks #lgbtfantasy #writingtips #writingadvice #writinginspiration #storytellersaturday
Writers, what setting in your current WIP is your Writers, what setting in your current WIP is your favorite?⁠
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I'm working on a Paranormal Gaslamp Fantasy where everyone has magic, and magic-users organize into guilds to provide services (like firefighting!) and ward against supernatural enemies who stalk the abandoned city center.⁠
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My main characters are part of a guild called Silvershield. Headquarters is an old, five-story stone building on the edge of the park. I based it off the dormitories at my alma mater: ivy-covered buildings with wood paneling, latticed windows, and homey, welcoming spaces on the main floor. Though most of the book takes place elsewhere in the city, Headquarters is a home base of sorts, and I love the feeling those scenes invoke as I write them.⁠
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What's yours?⁠
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#instabook #instabooks #amwriting #writersofinstagram #bookstagram #amwritingfantasy #fantasybooks #paranormal #supernatural #ghosthunter #darkfantasy #lgbtbooks #queerbooks #lgbtromance #authorgram #authorsofinstagram #writingcommunity #fantasyauthor #fantasywriter #fantasybookseries #lgbtfantasy #authorlife #findmywritingcommunity #writerlife #fantasyworld #writinginspiration #worldbuilding #craftofwriting
Have you ever struggled to describe your character Have you ever struggled to describe your character's appearance in first person or third limited? I have! Here are five ways to get creative with your descriptions.

But remember, less is more! Even if you're avoiding the dreaded "mirror-gaze," it's possible to bog down the story with too many descriptive details.

Try focusing on 1-3 evocative, specific, meaningful details when describing appearance.

If you call your character "pretty," that doesn't give us much information. But if you tell us she has a birdlike stature and long, elegant hands, *that* gives the reader a much more vivid picture to work with.

(And it's a lot more fun than looking in the mirror.)
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#bookstagram #instabooks #booklover #iwroteabook #writingabook #writersofinstagram #authorgram #writerscommunity #writingcommunity #characterdesign #writingtips #writingadvice #writinghelp #howtowriteabook #fantasyauthors #fantasybooks #amwriting #amwritingfantasy #amwritingromance #editorsofig #booklovers #fantasyromancebooks
It can be painful to combine side characters, but It can be painful to combine side characters, but your story may very well end up better off for it!
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#amwriting #amediting #booklover #bookish #indiebooks #indieauthor #selfpublishing #writingcommunity #writingadvice #writinghelp #queerwriters #queercreatives #tipsfromaneditor #amwritingfantasy #instabook #amwritingromance #bookishcommunity #writersofig #writingtips #fantasybooks #selfpublishing #amediting #fantasybooks #authorsofinstagram
I'm so fortunate to have amazing clients who share I'm so fortunate to have amazing clients who share their stories with me.

Is your story next?

Get in touch!
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#amwriting #writer #authorgram #authorsofinstagram #writersofinstagram #writerscommunity #writingcommunity #bookstagram #instabook #instabooks #authorlife #findmywritingcommunity #writingadvice #writingmotivation #writingtips #writerlife #booklovers #fantasyworld #characterbuilding #craftofwriting #writinginspiration #amreadingfantasy #amreadingromance #authorssupportingauthors #indieauthor #selfpublishing #worldbuilding #fantasybooks #editorsofinstagram #storytellersaturday #indieauthor #selfpublishing
Here's something I wish I knew when I first starte Here's something I wish I knew when I first started writing Fantasy:⁠
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Even soft magic systems need bounding rules and limitations.⁠
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If you haven't heard of the difference between hard and soft magic, it goes a little something like this:⁠
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🧙🏼‍♀️ Hard magic systems require the reader to understand the mechanisms behind how the magic works. There's a parallel here with Hard SciFi (in which the science is 'real' and must make sense as we understand it). The plot can't function if the reader doesn't have an intrinsic understanding of how magic functions.⁠
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🧙🏼‍♂️ Soft magic systems, by contrast, don't require the reader to understand the way magic is created; the descriptions can be vaguer. HOWEVER:⁠
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Just because the plot doesn't depend on the nitty-gritty mechanics of magic *doesn't mean* soft magic systems don't need rules, boundaries, and limitations.⁠
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They ✨absolutely✨ do.⁠
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I wish I'd built my magic system with the same care I built the rest of my world and considered the following while doing so:⁠
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1. What limits a magic-wielder's power? Are there consequences for overstepping those limits?⁠
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2. What determines a magic-wielder's overall strength?⁠
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3. What governing body regulates the use of magic?⁠
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4. How does the use of magic interact with the development of technology?⁠
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5. What socioeconomic impact does magic-wielding have on both a societal and individual level?⁠
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Working out some of these questions would have saved me an awful lot of grief going into endless rounds of edits!⁠
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#amwriting #writer #authorgram #authorsofinstagram #writersofinstagram #writerscommunity #writingcommunity #bookstagram #instabook #instabooks #authorlife #findmywritingcommunity #writingadvice #writingmotivation #writingtips #writerlife #booklovers #fantasyworld #characterbuilding #craftofwriting #writinginspiration #amreadingfantasy #amreadingromance #authorssupportingauthors #indieauthor #selfpublishing #worldbuilding #fantasybooks
Horse girls and sailors, are you with me on this o Horse girls and sailors, are you with me on this one?
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#fantasyseries #fantasywriter #fantasyauthor #amwriting #amwritingfantasy #writingcommunity #writinghelp #writerscommunity #writingabook #writingthefirstdraft #writerlife #writingtips #authorsofig #instabooks #booklover #instabooks #queststory #indieauthor #indiebooks #selfpublishing #authorsofinstagram #authorlife
Looking for a developmental editor for the fall? I Looking for a developmental editor for the fall? I have openings beginning in October through the end of the year! Get in touch now to start the sample edit process.
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#bookishcommunity #booklover #iwroteabook #writingcommunity #writinghelp #writerscommunity #writingabook #actionbeats #actiontags #writingtips #writingadvice #writersofig #authorsofig #authorsofinstagram #amwriting #amwritingscifi #amwritingromance #amwritingfantasy #fantasybooks #fantasyauthor #selfpublishing #indiebooks #indieauthor
A great in medias res drops the reader into the mi A great in medias res drops the reader into the middle of the conflict that immediately precedes the turning point in the character's life that drives the story's external plot!
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#amwriting #amediting #booklover #bookish #indiebooks #indieauthor #selfpublishing #writingcommunity #writingadvice #writinghelp #queerwriters #queercreatives #tipsfromaneditor #amwritingfantasy #instabook #amwritingromance #bookishcommunity #writersofig #writingtips #fantasybooks #inmediasres
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