Monthly Archives: December 2020
2020 Signed Books Update
Posted on December 7, 2020 5 Comments
For everyone who ordered books this year from Jay & Mary’s Book Center: All the books have been signed as of last night and will begin winging their way to you starting today. We ended the signing window a little early to compensate for mail being a little slower than usual this year due to […]
The Four Movies That Have Made Me Ugly Cry, Part 2: Coco
Posted on December 6, 2020 25 Comments
You had to have known this one would be on the list at some point, right? If this movie isn’t on your list, I question whether or not you have tear ducts at all. Disney, Pixar, and Disney-Pixar movies are exceptionally good at making people cry, no doubt. I’ve definitely cried at just about every single one […]
Additional Technical Notes, 12/6/20
Posted on December 6, 2020 25 Comments
I noted last week that WordPress was transferring me over from its now-shuttering-VIP hosting tier to its business tier, and that there were likely to be a couple of changes, mostly not on your end but on mine. That switchover is (mostly) done, so I thought I’d give an update on things as they stand. […]
The Littlest Hibiscus Flower
Posted on December 5, 2020 9 Comments
Slow day here at the Scalzi Compound, so, here, have a picture of our hibiscus plant, which we potted and placed in the garage for the winter, so it wouldn’t die in the cold. The hibiscus is determined to keep doing its thing and is throwing out flowers — tiny flowers, relative to the ones […]
Whatever Holiday Gift Guide 2020, Day Five: Charities
Posted on December 4, 2020 38 Comments
For the last four days, the Whatever Gift Guide 2020 has been about helping you find the perfect gifts for friends and loved ones. But today I’d like to remind folks that the season is also about helping those in need. So this final day is for charities. If you’re looking for a place to […]
My Experience With Getting a COVID Test
Posted on December 3, 2020 70 Comments
I made it ten months into the pandemic without getting tested for COVID. Honestly, I think that’s a pretty good run. I know several people that have to get tested frequently for work or school and whatnot, and I’m ridiculously glad that’s not been the case for me, because it was, shall we say, less […]
The Big Idea: Matthew Castleman
Posted on December 3, 2020 4 Comments
A near-lifelong, almost forgotten about idea of author Matthew Castleman’s ended up turning into his newest novella, Privateers of Mars. Read on to learn how a child’s drawing transmuted itself into a published work. MATTHEW CASTLEMAN: Mars will be free. It’s a trope well-trodden into the red sand, and for good reason. The Free Mars story […]
Whatever Holiday Gift Guide 2020, Day Four: Fan Favorites!
Posted on December 3, 2020 34 Comments
For the first three days of the Whatever Gift Guide 2020, I’ve let authors and creators tell you about their work. Today is different: Today is Fan Favorites day, in which fans, admirers and satisfied customers share with you a few of their favorite things — and you can share some of your favorite things […]
A Tale of Billboards and Burritos
Posted on December 2, 2020 37 Comments
First, you should know that Amazon took out a big damn ad celebrating The Last Emperox and put it up in midtown New York, and that got the social media folks at Tor books pretty excited. So naturally, I tried to press my advantage. The folks at Tor offered an alternative. I was, naturally, amenable […]
Not Necessarily a Miracle on 34th Street
Posted on December 2, 2020 12 Comments
But still lovely to see: A big ‘ol advertisement for The Last Emperox in NYC, through the good graces of Amazon, which included the book in its annual Best Books of 2020 list, along with, of course, many other very worthy tomes. You can see the science fiction and fantasy selections here, if you have […]
Whatever Holiday Gift Guide 2020, Day Three: Arts, Crafts, Music and More
Posted on December 2, 2020 83 Comments
The Whatever Holiday Gift Guide 2020 continues, and today we move away from books and focus on other gifts and crafts — which you can take to mean just about any other sort of thing a creative person might make: Music, art, knitting, jewelry, artisan foodstuffs and so on. These can be great, unique gifts for special folks […]
A Small Technical Note
Posted on December 2, 2020 11 Comments
Last night WordPress, which hosts Whatever, switched me over to a new plan, which has additional and/or different functionality from my previous plan. Most of this functionality relates to the back end of the site, which no one except me and Athena see, but there are a couple of minor things on your end that […]
Guest Post: Why You Should Run For (Local) Office, by Adrienne Martini
Posted on December 1, 2020 13 Comments
Hey, did you know we had an election last month? Seems so long ago now, I know, but it’s true! And in the wake of the national, state and local elections — and the attendant hoofraw about the results — we here in the US have been getting a bit of a refresher in what […]
Whatever Holiday Gift Guide 2020, Day Two: Non-Traditionally Published Books
Posted on December 1, 2020 210 Comments
Today is Day Two of the Whatever Holiday Gift Guide 2020, and today the focus is on Non-Traditionally Published Books: Self-published works, electronically-exclusive books, books from micro presses, books released outside the usual environs of the publishing world, and so on. Hey, I put my first novel up on this very Web site years ago and told people to […]
Whatever Everyone Else is Saying