Monthly Archives: November 2021
The Big Idea: Jane Yolen
Posted on November 15, 2021 13 Comments
It’s never too late for surprises, and as Jane Yolen relates in this Big Idea for Arch of Bone, some surprises are absolutely worth the wait. JANE YOLEN: Here’s a surprise. Take a bookish Jewish girl from New York, one who knew nothing about sailing, whaling, harpoons, but a lot about the city (Manhattan, not […]
RIP, Petra Mayer
Posted on November 14, 2021 9 Comments
This is one of those “wait, what?” deaths, in that Petra as I knew her was so absolutely full of life and energy that the idea all of that would come to a sudden stop is a little breath-taking. I knew Petra through science fiction and through the JoCo Cruise, where she was always in […]
BOOOOO SNOW BOOOOO
Posted on November 14, 2021 15 Comments
The first substantial snowfall of the season. I prefer the first snowfall to happen after Thanksgiving, but I guess the weather doesn’t actually care about my needs or wants, so. Here it is, mostly in slow motion, because it’s prettier that way. I go now to hibernate until April. — JS
Clackety Clackety Clack
Posted on November 12, 2021 21 Comments
My previous keyboard, which I have had for a few years and have written at least three novels on, developed an alarming list on the right side of its space bar; it was suddenly catching and not releasing. Which meant it was time for a new keyboard — or at least, now I had an […]
The Big Idea: Erica L. Satifka
Posted on November 12, 2021 5 Comments
Look, you can like apocalypses all you want, but here’s a fact: Erica L. Satifka was into doom before doom was cool. And in this Big Idea for the appropriately-named How to Get to Apocalypse and Other Disasters, Satifka traces her obsession back to the beginning of the end. ERICA L. SATIFKA: My name is […]
Your Transgressing Dog Photo of the Day
Posted on November 12, 2021 35 Comments
Charlie knows she is not allowed up on the furniture. And she always looks guilty and ashamed when she is caught on the furniture. And yet she does not stop climbing up on the furniture. Which suggests that in fact she is not ashamed at all. I’m on to you, Charlie. — JS
The Big Idea: Dan Hanks
Posted on November 11, 2021 1 Comment
In Swashbucklers, author Dan Hanks takes his characters on an adventure… which includes the quest for child care. I know that got the attention of every parent out there. Here Hanks is to delve deeper. DAN HANKS: Saving the world is hard. However, some would argue that being a parent is harder. So, what if […]
Charlie and Smudge Are Friends, 11/11/21
Posted on November 11, 2021 16 Comments
Honestly I should probably just write a series of beloved children’s picture books about these two. Also Charlie isn’t supposed to be up on the ottoman like this, but of course the Rule of Pet Photography (“If it’s cute, it’s allowed, until the picture is taken”) applies here. Also hopefully until just this second you […]
The Big Idea: Tobias S. Buckell
Posted on November 10, 2021 5 Comments
Short story collections aren’t (or at least don’t have to be) mere compilations, where the author just takes the latest collection of short pieces and shoves them into a single book-shaped container. No, there can be something else going on as well. Tobias S. Buckell has that “something else” going on in his latest collection […]
First Impressions: Twitter Blue
Posted on November 9, 2021 4 Comments
“Twitter Blue” is Twitter’s new subscription service, which adds some new functionality and lets users try experimental features before anyone else. Here are some early impressions. Cut and pasted from Twitter using Twitter Blue’s threading app, with minor editing: “I discovered today that I have access to Twitter Blue, and as it happens I have […]
The Big Idea: Amanda Foody and Christine Lynn Herman
Posted on November 9, 2021 2 Comments
Teamwork makes the dream work — but does teamwork make for dream novel writing? Authors Amanda Foody and Christine Lynn Herman decided to make a go of co-writing their novel All of Us Villains, not knowing how it would work… and discovered something about themselves as writers in the process. AMANDA FOODY and CHRISTINE LYNN […]
Reminder: Two Weeks (More or Less) Left to Vote For the Hugos This Year
Posted on November 8, 2021 5 Comments
Also, yes, the following is true. I do not encourage you to vote for The Interdependency in the Best Series category just to see me accept dressed as a Christmas Elf. However, if you after sober consideration decide that The Interdependency is your top choice in the category or somewhere close to it (remember, the […]
A Genuine Existential Quandary, If You Are a Dog
Posted on November 6, 2021 50 Comments
Before you lay a stick, and a ball. There is a human approaching to take them away from you. You can save only one from the human’s predations. Which will you choose: The stick? Or the ball? And why? Speculate on which was Charlie’s answer in the comments. — JS
The Big Idea: Marshall Ryan Maresca
Posted on November 5, 2021 4 Comments
Writing characters is often one of the most fun parts of the creation process, especially when those characters end up doing more — or doing things differently — than we initially expected. Sometimes, as Marshall Ryan Maresca explains in this Big Idea, they even end up making, shall we say, An Unintended Voyage. MARSHALL RYAN […]
A Pro Tip Regarding Frost on Grass
Posted on November 5, 2021 15 Comments
If there’s frost on your grass and your dog is out in the yard and doesn’t want to come in, resist the temptation to say “Oh, well, I’ll just walk across the yard in my bare feet to get her, how cold can it actually be” because the answer is, in fact, really friggin’ cold, […]
The Big Idea: Jennie Goloboy
Posted on November 4, 2021 5 Comments
Comedy comes to us in surprising times and surprising circumstances, as Jennie Goloboy discovered as she sat down to write what would become Obviously, Aliens. Here is to give you all the (possibly hilarious) details. JENNIE GOLOBOY: Obviously, Aliens was not the book I intended to spend 2017 writing. I planned to polish the novel […]
One Week With the Pixel 6 Pro
Posted on November 3, 2021 17 Comments
I’ve had the Pixel 6 Pro for a week now, and have used it as a daily phone and taken lots of pictures with it. I did a piece of (very) first impressions the first day I had it, so this is a follow-up having lived with it a bit. The verdict so far: I […]
The Big Idea: Charlie N. Holmberg
Posted on November 3, 2021 1 Comment
Inspiration comes from anywhere, but for Star Mother, author Charlie N. Holmberg found inspiration from a most unusual place. But from unusual places can come stellar ideas, as you’ll discover here. CHARLIE N. HOLMBERG: The big idea behind Star Mother actually came from the cover of another book. A book I’d never read. I’d recently […]
Your Reminder to Exercise Your Franchise, If Applicable
Posted on November 2, 2021 41 Comments
Spoiler: It was me. I voted. This was one of the “off-off years” for voting, in that there were no national or state level elections; on the ballot this year were things like township trustees and local levies. But, hey, guess what? Those things directly influence my day-to-day life; the local levies included emergency services, […]
The Big Idea: Rebecca Kim Wells
Posted on November 2, 2021 2 Comments
Fairy tale curses are familiar territory, but for Briar Girls, author Rebecca Kim Wells wanted to go beyond the supposed curse and look at what that magical apparent impediment would do to those that have it, and how they live going forward. REBECCA KIM WELLS: When I started writing Briar Girls, I was mostly thinking […]
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