Monthly Archives: July 2012
Readercon, Harassment, Etc
Posted on July 31, 2012 476 Comments
While I was in LA, doing Wil Wheaton-related stuff and largely staying away from the Internets, the fandom-related portion of Teh Intarweebs exploded with events surrounding an incident of sexual harrassment at Readercon, a science fiction and fantasy convention. And when I say exploded, I do mean exploded; here’s a long list of blog posts […]
About That Hiatus
Posted on July 31, 2012 17 Comments
I mentioned last week I was planning to take off August from Whatever so as to focus on other work which needs to get done, and otherwise to take a break. I am going to modify this a bit mostly because I forgot I have writers to whom I promised Big Idea slots to, and […]
Last Chance: Hugo Voting
Posted on July 31, 2012 4 Comments
Just a reminder: If you don’t get your Hugo vote in by midnight tonight, Pacific Time, then you don’t get a Hugo vote. And that would be sad for you. The online ballot is here.
My Sneaky Weekend
Posted on July 30, 2012 31 Comments
You may have noticed I’ve been a little scarce from the site for the last couple of the days, and the reason was that I was traveling to LA in order to be at the surprise 40th birthday party of one Wil Wheaton (the picture is of his birthday cake, which was huge and awesome). […]
The Ghost Brigades eBook (Almost Certainly Temporarily) Down on Amazon
Posted on July 28, 2012 16 Comments
Some folks sent me e-mails over the last couple of days, letting me know that The Ghost Brigades appears not to be available in a Kindle edition at the moment. It turns out they are correct. Why is it not available? Who knows? Being a paranoid person I am, however, it makes me wonder if […]
Followup for “Geek”
Posted on July 27, 2012 92 Comments
I’m squashed down with busy today, so a few notes about yesterday’s piece on who gets to be a geek: * First, deeply delighted that in a comment thread of over five hundred comments, we’ve kept things nicely civil (in general), on topic (in general) and had relatively few malletings. Thanks go to the commenters, […]
Who Gets To Be a Geek? Anyone Who Wants to Be
Posted on July 26, 2012 736 Comments
(Adding this note in late 2019: It should be noted that the subject of this piece, Joe Peacock, has over the years changed his position from what I’m responding to here to one more encompassing and welcoming. I don’t think it’s especially fair of me to occasionally point to this piece without noting that. Take […]
Sunset, 7/24/12
Posted on July 25, 2012 21 Comments
Ohio has weather, it does. There’s at least three different types of clouds in this picture alone.
Wow, This Mushroom-Shaped Cloud Isn’t Worrying in the Least
Posted on July 25, 2012 33 Comments
I may still head down to the basement, however. You know, just to check on the provisions.
The Audible Giveaway
Posted on July 25, 2012 17 Comments
Yes, folks, I am aware that Audible is giving away an audiobook copy of “The Sagan Diary” to some of its members as part of its “Christmas in July” promotion. They asked if they could, and I said, sure, what the hell. Audible and its listeners have been good to me so far; this is […]
Various and Sundry, 7/24/12
Posted on July 24, 2012 51 Comments
Quickly, because I have other things to write today: * Saw The Dark Knight Rises last night, which I enjoyed but which I strongly suspect could have been about a half hour shorter without any significant loss of story or quality. I think it’s time for filmmakers to reconnect with the idea that more is […]
A Self-Made Man Looks At How He Made It
Posted on July 23, 2012 354 Comments
To begin, my mother and father are responsible for me existing at all, so I suppose the first round of “How I made it to where I am” begins there. I was born at Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, CA, and as I understand it I was not the easiest of births, taking on […]
Managing Whatever These Days
Posted on July 22, 2012 29 Comments
I was asked while I was at Comic Con whether I find it more difficult to write and maintain Whatever these days, because of all the other work I do and also because profile seems to have been raised a bit recently. It’s a fair question, so I thought I would delve into it briefly […]
What Krissy Did With Her Saturday
Posted on July 21, 2012 27 Comments
She ran in the 5k “Color Run” in Columbus, in which in addition to running for 3.2 miles, one also gets splotzed with colored powder. Why? Because it’s fun! Kicky fun! Apparently. Well, okay. It’s more than what I did with my Saturday so far, which was to stare glassily at my toes. Look: toes.
And Here is Bryan Ferry to Take You Into the Weekend
Posted on July 20, 2012 11 Comments
He’s so smooth about it, too. If only I had his voice. And his sartorial sense. And his money! For really quite a few other versions of this particular song, see this Metafilter thread. Enjoy.
Tor/Forge Totally DRM Free, Plus Anecdotal Notes Regarding Redshirts
Posted on July 20, 2012 18 Comments
Tor/Forge, my primary science fiction publisher, announced today that their previously-announced policy of putting out their eBooks DRM-free is now being implemented, which is to say that if you buy any of their eBooks moving forward, there will be no digital rights management software on it. So go! Buy! DRM free! And yes, this includes […]
Join the “B” Team
Posted on July 20, 2012 35 Comments
If you were at Comic Con, one of the things you could do is get a groovy button from to the Tor Books booth promoting The Human Division. These buttons has one of two URLs on it: JoinTheBTeam.us and PickYourSide.us. And if you typed either of those URLs into your computer or phone, you would […]
Advance Warning: I’m Taking August Off
Posted on July 19, 2012 34 Comments
Yes I am. Because I have soooo much work to do, that’s why, and my plan for August is to hole up, disappear from teh Intarweebs and write like the wind. What does this mean for Whatever during the month of August? I don’t know. I have, like, ten days. I will figure something out. […]
Reminder: Vote for the Hugos!
Posted on July 19, 2012 17 Comments
Allow me to put on my Toastmaster of Chicon 7 hat here for a moment and just say: Hey! You! Don’t forget to vote for the Hugos this year! Here’s the online ballot! Want to vote but haven’t become a member of Chicon 7? Here’s the online membership form! Remember that Supporting Members (the $50, […]
Fans and Pros on Gender Parity on Panels
Posted on July 19, 2012 91 Comments
The Hugo Award-winning fanzine Journey Planet has a new issue out (that’s a pdf link) which, in addition to reprinting my “Lowest Difficulty Setting” pieces and its attendant commentary by other spec fic fans and pros, also tackles the idea of gender parity on convention panels — i.e., having an equal number of male and […]
Whatever Everyone Else is Saying