Consulting Swordsman
I think that training ought to be focussed and goal oriented. The goal in any fencing context is to strike without being struck, so any problem can be thought of as “I’m getting hit” or “I’m not hitting”. Drills are the means by which we fix either of these core problems. Let’s start with the … Read more
I love the HEMA tournament scene. This will come as a surprise to many people, because I am not really involved with it in any direct way. In fact, I have seen people referring to me as “anti-tournament”.* Nothing could be further from the truth. Just because I am not personally interested in entering or … Read more
We often duck and dive to avoid something, when our interests would be better served by meeting it head on. Sometimes it’s better to just take the hit. By the time they are a few weeks old, most babies have mastered the art of the double-dump. Inexperienced parents react to the first load: a stinky … Read more
You know you’ve done something right as a teacher or writer when somebody takes your stuff and recombines it into something new and meaningful. In my latest book, Swordfighting for Writers, Game Designers, and Martial Artists, there are individual chapters for three of Fiore’s four virtues; boldness, strength, and speed. (I’ve yet to write the … Read more
I have been stuck in bed with some ghastly ailment for the last week or so, and am still not recovered yet (don’t tell my wife I’m working!), so I’ll be brief. The question on many fencers’ minds is how to win more matches. The solution is pretty simple: be a better fencer. Good fencers … Read more
Fear management is the key skill underlying all martial arts. If you are not afraid of getting hurt or killed, there’s something wrong with you. But if you are frozen in place by that fear, prevented from acting, then your training has failed. As you may have read, I am a great big fraidy-cat, and … Read more
My next book, Swordfighting, is, from a creative perspective, done. It is still being edited, tweaked into better forms, and has yet to be published, but the creative work, by which I mean “writing new material”, is over. I have a bunch of started book projects on my computer, and I am wondering which of … Read more
As I slowly progress towards mastery in my chosen Art, I get further and further ahead of my beginners. This could lead to me getting out of touch with their needs. I also get accustomed to a certain routine, a set way of doing things. Both of these things are death to a good teacher. … Read more
I am writing up the Fear section of my new book, Swordfighting for Writers, Game Designers and Martial Artists. This particular section seemed like a useful snippet. About half the book is blog posts from here, so cannibalising a section of it to make a blog post seems, well, fair. Here goes. “One of the … Read more
One of the most destructive forces in the world we live in is the “talent” mindset. I mean that literally. It underlies not only millions of minor miseries, but also the core of human evil. In short, if you believe in innate talent, you believe that some people are inherently better than others. It is … Read more