La. La.

by wjw on March 26, 2024

The big residuals check from Hollywood came in! Imagine the fun I could have with all this money!

I can’t quite believe that Mariza is performing on a freaking talent show, but that doesn’t make her any less awesome.

Not Saving

by wjw on March 21, 2024

So the other night something weird happened with Scrivener, my word processor. I finished my work, backed it up to Dropbox, and went about the rest of my evening. Next night, I opened Scrivener, and discovered that none of the new writing I’d done the previous night was anywhere in the file.

I checked the time stamp, and the file had registered no updates from the time I first opened it. When I hit “save,” nothing happened.

I very much doubt that I’d forget to save after hours of writing, and in any case I’m pretty sure that Scrivener automatically backs up the file every few minutes.

I checked the backup on Dropbox, and the file had the same omissions as the original.

After performing a number of frantic and useless actions, I remembered that Scrivener automatically saves the file when the file is closed. I’d never seen any of these backup files, and I presumed they were hidden in some little Scrivener folder somewhere. A search of the hard drive located these backups, and I discovered they were in ZIP files.

When I tried to open the latest file, I got a notice that opening a ZIP file could result in some kind of catastrophic alterations to the text. But what did I have to lose?

I opened the ZIP file and found all the missing text from the previous night, which I copied and pasted in my original file, which I then saved under another name. It actually saved! Yay!

But now I have to wonder what the hell all that was about. How often does this glitch turn up? Dare I trust that my work will be saved when I try to save it? What’s going on?

{Note: I’ve had to close comments here due to an inundation of Cyrillic spam, but maybe I’ll leave comments open for a bit just in case one of you has some answers.]

{UPDATE: thank you for the comments, which for some stupid reason are not displaying. I’m having too close comments again because the Cyrillic spam is starting to flood in.]

Honor St. Urho!

by wjw on March 16, 2024

It’s St. Urho’s day! Time to dress up in green and purple, and empty the bars of all contents before the Irish get in tomorrow!

Shining, Darkly or Otherwise

by wjw on March 12, 2024

Here’s a brand-new March release, and another in our survey of books by veterans of Taos Toolbox, the master class for writers of science fiction and fantasy. My Stars Shine Darkly is the first book in a new YA series, featuring a young heroine’s attempt to escape the dystopia into which she was born.

Living on a conservative colony world, Sienna Tascioni is no stranger to pushing boundaries. Constrained by what’s expected of her as a proper young lady, she still reads books from classes she’s not allowed to take, secretly races speeder bikes, and even dresses up as her twin brother in order to gain a small taste of independence. But when her parents allow a loutish Ambassador’s son to begin courting her, she feels the trap of an arranged marriage beginning to close its jaws around her.

At the same time, a diplomatic mission from the faraway planet of Satori arrives with promises of mutual cooperation and advanced technology. Ereni and Burke Lhasa, two young people attached to the mission, show Sienna a glimpse of freedom she never dreamed possible. Before she knows it, she’s drawn into a web of intrigue, spying on her Senator father . . .

But as she becomes more deeply embroiled in the politics of her country, the stakes become higher–and more personal–than she could have ever imagined, forcing her to decide where her true loyalties lie.

If you want a career in science fiction or fantasy, Taos Toolbox is the workshop that can give you the skills to survive in the literary marketplace. You have only a couple weeks to apply, however, since the deadline for this year is April; 1st.

Start polishing that manuscript now!

Glassical Glass

March 9, 2024

Here’s another in the series of works recently published by veterans of Taos Toolbox, the master class for writers of science fiction and fantasy.. Dorothy Winsor attended the very first Toolbox in 2008, and has been publishing regularly in the time since. I’ve often felt that glassmaking and glassblowing was magical, and Dorothy liberalizes the […]

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Hail to the Chief

March 8, 2024

The mysterious, enchanting red-gold shimmer of an el presidente cocktail. Rum, dry vermouth, Grand Marnier, and a few dashes of my friend Terry Boren’s homemade grenadine.

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Spooky Kitty

February 27, 2024

I’m not your ordinary gumshoe. My name’s Nina Cohen. Born: 1898, died: 1912. I’m a poltergeist in a human body. I work from home as a private investigator. I watch entirely too much TV, and I talk to my cat. Say hello, Djinn. Meow. Thus begins Dead of Winter, the second in James R. Strickland’s […]

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Medium Rare

February 23, 2024

Tonight’s dinner: sous vide leg of lamb cooked medium rare, with a sort of roux/wine sauce, plus cheesy potatoes and a spring salad.

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Six Weeks In

February 17, 2024

So I’ve been to the Cancer Center for my six-week checkup. My PSA came in at 0.1— any lower and it would have been undetectable. (It was over 70 when I started treatment.) So . . . happy news! Cancer confirmed dead! Champagne in my sights!

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