Monthly Archives: July 2020

Five Things: July 9, 2020

Slow news day, am I right? Nevertheless, here are five things for you today: This just in: Trump not king. Which is to say the Supreme Court ruled against him today with regard to the release of his taxes to the State of New York, and didn’t rule for him with regard to having to […]

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The Big Idea: Catherine Asaro

Finally! An author brave enough to give an answer to The Question all writers get! The author: Catherine Asaro. Her newest book: The Vanished Seas. Her answer? Read on! CATHERINE ASARO: “Where do you get your ideas?” The dreaded question. It’s also a good one, deserving a good answer. Unfortunately, I never have a good […]

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Back to College? Not Yet

I posted this on Twitter a little while ago (with, of course, Athena’s consent): I have formally informed Athena I don't expect her to go back to college this next semester. She was, shall we say, neither surprised nor disappointed. We'll see where things are the semester after this. — John Scalzi (@scalzi) July 8, […]

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Goodreads’ 100 Most Popular Sci-Fi Books List: I’ve Got Some Stuff On It

Specifically Old Man’s War, Redshirts, Lock In and The Collapsing Empire. Neat! Here’s the full list for your amusement, perusal and commentary. In all it’s an interesting list, and it’s (reasonably) balanced between classics and newer work; the timeframe here ranges two centuries, from Frankenstein to some of current Hugo nominees. It’s worth noting that […]

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The Big Idea: Sarah Henning

From the title alone, The Princess Will Save You suggests there will be some trope-flipping involved in the story. But as author Sarah Henning explains in today’s Big Idea, flipping the trope isn’t enough. There has to be more. SARAH HENNING: The Princess Will Save You is the story of Princess Amarande of Ardenia, whose […]

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Five Things: July 7, 2020

It’s thundering and storming outside, so let’s see if I can get these five things out before my power cuts out on me. Donald Trump a father-damaged sociopath: Or so suggests niece Mary Trump in her new book about her uncle, and it’s difficult to argue the point. Advance copies of the book have made […]

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Dragon Con Going Virtual in 2020

After an exhaustive attempt to consider and uncover every possible option to hosting a safe and much-needed #DragonCon this year, it has become apparent that we cannot, in good faith, move forward with our 2020 event. pic.twitter.com/U9Vv0BHLvE — Dragon Con is going virtual for 2020! (@DragonCon) July 6, 2020 You can click on that tweet […]

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Back Into Quarantine

Covid infection numbers are up in Ohio, as they are in a whole lot of places, and in the US in general; I’m particularly looking at the infection numbers for Georgia, where I am meant to be at the beginning of September, and they are higher there now than they have ever been before, and […]

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On July Fourth, What to Get a Nation That Has Everything

It’s simple: Your vote! (Provided you are a US citizen of legal age.) Have you registered to vote? If not, do so here, it’s simple and easy. If you are registered to vote, then check your registration to make sure it’s current. This is also (usually) simple and easy. This year voting may be more […]

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A Note on the American Flag in 2020

I recently posted a couple of photos from my front porch and it was noted that we fly an American flag, which led to some comments about folks being reluctant to fly the flag considering the state of the nation and its leadership. While I understand the motivation there, I don’t particularly agree. The flag […]

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This Tweet Did Not Age Well

Masks will not be mandatory for the event, which will be attended by President Trump. PEOPLE ARE FED UP!https://t.co/Oykdz4xThD — Herman Cain (@THEHermanCain) July 1, 2020 For those of you missing context. Was Cain at Trump’s Tulsa event? Oh, my, yes he was. Thoughts and prayers to everyone attending that Mt. Rushmore rally this weekend. […]

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The Big Idea: C.T. Rwizi

Many authors have learned that just because a character comes out of your own head doesn’t mean they won’t fight you from time to time. Author C.T. Rwizi learned this very thing while writing Scarlet Odyssey. The details await you below. C.T. RWIZI: The big idea behind Scarlet Odyssey begins at my little sister’s preschool […]

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Nikon D780 Followup Report

I got my Nikon D780 in May as a birthday present for myself and explained my reasons for getting it (as opposed to a mirrorless camera) then. Today I archived the last couple of months worth of photos (roughly 2,000), and I thought it would be a good time to check in with how (and […]

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Five Things: July 1, 2020

As I wrote on Twitter earlier today, well, the first two decades of 2020 are done. Let’s get to the next few decades! And to start off, these five things: Trump, doubling down on being a racist piece of shit: This time by asserting that “Black Lives Matter” is a symbol of hate, which is […]

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The Big Idea: Alma Alexander

In this week’s Big Idea for The Second Star, author Alma Alexander goes big… and then gets small… and then tells how it’s all connected. ALMA ALEXANDER: There isn’t just one Big Idea in The Second Star – there are half a dozen of them, interwoven into a complex story tapestry. This is at once […]

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