Monthly Archives: August 2020
Okay, Sure, It’s My Fault Science Fiction is the Way It Is Right Now
Posted on August 20, 2020 105 Comments
The dimwitted bigot brigade finally came across my piece about the Science Fiction canon from a couple of weeks ago and had a predictable spasm about it, asserting how it was evidence that (I’m paraphrasing from various sources, here) a) science fiction and fantasy was dying, b) traditional publishing (the sf/f parts of it anyway) […]
The Big Idea: Derek Künsken
Posted on August 20, 2020 6 Comments
Moving is hard. Moving to Venus is harder. Author Derek Künsken shows us just how difficult acclimating to strange new lands can be, and what it means to be a family in a place so far from home in his Big Idea, The House of Styx. DEREK KÜNSKEN: I often start my stories from a sense […]
Spread Your Anger Like Soft Butter Over Warm Bread
Posted on August 19, 2020 50 Comments
2020 has been undoubtedly and completely fucked. Don’t get me wrong, things before 2020 were fucked, too, but it just seems so much more prominent this year. Everything is bad all the time and nothing ever seems to get better. There are so many issues to be angry about. There are so many topics that […]
The Big Idea: Thomas Levenson
Posted on August 19, 2020 10 Comments
Author Thomas Levenson has discovered that when it comes to writing books, one thing truly does lead to another. And thus, we have Money for Nothing, a look at one of the most ruinous financial collapses in the western world, and how one of the greatest minds of the 17th century was caught up in it. […]
Today’s Tech Acquisition: Onyx Boox Nova 2
Posted on August 18, 2020 39 Comments
I’ve been wanting to get a new e-ink book reader lately, but the problem with doing that is, since most e-ink readers are tied into one book-selling ecosystem or another, you pretty much have to choose which retailer you read in e-ink from, whilst everyone else you have ebooks with, you read on a regular […]
The Big Idea: Chris Mooney
Posted on August 18, 2020 7 Comments
In today’s Big Idea for Blood World, author Chris Mooney asks the tough questions, hitting hard on the morality of exploiting some people to help others, making readers ask themselves if they would willingly benefit from others’ suffering for what they thought was a noble cause. Read on to see how Mooney puts a sci-fi […]
New Books and ARCs, 8/17/20
Posted on August 17, 2020 18 Comments
It’s not every week that a new book and ARC stack shows up on a Monday — but this is that week! What books here would you want to read through your workdays? Share in the comments.
Of Its Time
Posted on August 17, 2020 51 Comments
I was looking through some writing from the mid-90s last night — no particular reason for it, I was just wandering through my own archives — and after having done so, noted this on Twitter: I was reading some of my work from 25 years ago, and it turns out I was rather a bit […]
Delta Phi Corona
Posted on August 16, 2020 57 Comments
Schools opening up has been a hot topic of debate lately, for obvious reasons. It’s finally the end of summer and kids are starting to go back to school, and it seems like every school is handling things differently. Some are doing half online, half in-person classes, some are just making teachers put their classroom […]
I, Too, Have Music to Share Today
Posted on August 14, 2020 6 Comments
Perhaps a tad grungier than Athena’s contribution, but heck, that’s fine. Enjoy (and if you like it, click through to the band’s Bandcamp page). — JS
Music Recommendation Time: Conan Gray
Posted on August 14, 2020 13 Comments
For the past three months, I’ve been listening to a relatively new artist named Conan Gray. And when I say listening, I mean playing over and over and over again. So if you’re wondering what the cool kids are listening to nowadays, here’s some of my favorite songs of his. This is my all-time favorite […]
Fuck You, I’m Voting
Posted on August 13, 2020 147 Comments
I want to live in the universe where "This is administration is destroying the postal service and doing almost nothing to deal with a pandemic mostly to keep people from voting" is conspiracy mongering, not an actual real thing backed by quotes and data.https://t.co/YOSYSPGukL — John Scalzi (@scalzi) August 13, 2020 Trump has officially said […]
The Big Idea: David Mack
Posted on August 13, 2020
Betrayal is never a simple thing. In this Big Idea for The Shadow Commission, New York Times bestseller David Mack pulls back the curtain on the complexity of this concept, and gives us a closer look at the process of turning coats. DAVID MACK: The Shadow Commission is about betrayal: how we betray ourselves, how […]
Periods. What Are They Good For.
Posted on August 12, 2020 118 Comments
If you use TikTok, have children who have cell phones, or follow basically any youngin’ on social media, you probably know exactly what I’m talking about when I say: my generation does not use periods. Unless, of course, we say, “Period!” But usually we punctuate that with an exclamation mark. More often than not, people […]
The Last Emperox a Finalist for the 2020 Dragon Awards
Posted on August 12, 2020 14 Comments
In the category of Science Fiction novel. And as you can see from the picture above, it has some very fine company, in terms of the other finalists. If you can’t see it, here they are again: 1. Best Science Fiction Novel The Testaments by Margaret Atwood The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow […]
The Big Idea: Julie E. Czerneda
Posted on August 12, 2020 3 Comments
A library of information right at your fingertips? Or rather, the very flesh of your fingertips containing a library of information? Read all about Julie Czerneda’s mystical Web-beings and their ability to keep archives of knowledge within their bodies, as she presents the Big Idea of her new book, Mirage. JULIE E. CZERNEDA: Alien Squabbles? […]
Kamala Harris, Vice-Presidential Candidate
Posted on August 11, 2020 156 Comments
Some of you may recall, back in June 2019, when I surveyed the landscape of potential Democratic presidential candidates, Kamala Harris was my first choice. This is what I said at the time about why that was: Because she’s hella smart, pretty savvy and because I think her background and daily practice in politics shows […]
Updates to Guidelines for Publicity and The Big Idea
Posted on August 11, 2020 2 Comments
They’re small updates, but important updates. If you’re a publicist, editor, publisher, or otherwise wish to send me (or Athena!) something to promote here or on social media, please review them. Here are the publicity guidelines. Here are the Big Idea guidelines. They are both additionally and henceforth to be found in the sidebar for […]
The Big Idea: Shveta Thakrar
Posted on August 11, 2020 6 Comments
Hindu mythology, women in power, and spicy food are all just a few of the things featured in today’s Big Idea for Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar — also featured is an examination of the question: where does one belong, when one is of two worlds? SHVETA THAKRAR: Sometimes it’s hard to point to the […]
Webtoon Recommendation Time: Let’s Play!
Posted on August 10, 2020 41 Comments
One thing you probably see on here a lot is book recommendations. I mean, makes sense, sure, but wouldn’t it be nice to explore another medium of stories? Well, have I got just the thing for you! For the past two years, I have been reading an amazing webtoon called Let’s Play; a story about an […]
Whatever Everyone Else is Saying