Dispatches since 2005
The journal
Announcements, new editions, travel, diving, cooking and the working life of a novelist — 119 entries, all of them here in full.
January 20, 2022 · 151 words
COVID Day Four
I’m lucky. Mostly it’s like a bad cold. My head is stuffed, and I have coughing and sneezing fits. I can function and perform basic tasks. I didn’t sleep well last night, and I don’t have a lot of energy. But there’s no fever. My O2 levels are 91+. I still have an appetite, and […]
Read entry →January 18, 2022 · 304 words
I Don’t Get It
Last night I started feeling a little ill, with a sore throat. This morning I still had the sore throat, plus a bit of elevated temperature that fell far short of anything I could call a “fever.” Otherwise I felt reasonably okay. But we’re in a pandemic, right? So Covid was the first thing that […]
Read entry →January 18, 2022 · 140 words
Across the Sea of Genre
Who says Taos Toolbox is only for writers of science fiction and fantasy? We teach skills that are applicable across all genres. Case in point: Stephanie Vance, a real-life DC political consultant, has written Across the Aisle, a romance set in our nation’s capital. Tough as nails DC lobbyist Dallas McGrath can’t belie
Read entry →January 13, 2022 · 439 words
Plot Rant
I just finished listening to an audio book, a mystery/thriller thingie with an interesting, somewhat science-fictiony premise. The writing was on the high end of competent, and the characters held my interest, and the novel’s milieu was interesting and fresh, at least to me. What finally broke my patience was the autho
Read entry →January 11, 2022 · 119 words
Rolling the Bones
We continue our survey of recent or forthcoming works by veterans of Taos Toolbox, the master class for writers of science fiction and fantasy. Sara A. Mueller’s The Bone Orchard was workshopped at Taos Toolbox, and will be published by Tor Books on March 22nd. Here’s your takeaway: “A masterfully woven plot with refre
Read entry →January 9, 2022 · 221 words
Marrying the Sea
In our review of recent and forthcoming books by veterans of Taos Toolbox, the master class for writers of science fiction and fantasy, we’ve seen Toolboxers write novels and edit a collection of stories. Here’s another kind of collection from award-winning author and Toolbox vet Fran Wilde, this of her poetry. In this
Read entry →January 8, 2022 · 244 words
Oops! We’re At It Again
Almost every day I check the New York Times Coronavirus map— which, unlike the rest of the NYT, is not behind a paywall, presumably so that citizens in other parts of the country, or the world, can see how safe it is to venture outside their own homes. (Good on the NYT for making these […]
Read entry →January 1, 2022 · 165 words
Vital Signs Are Good
Taos Toolbox veteran Ralph M. Ambrose has edited Vital: The Future of Healthcare, a new anthology on a timely topic. Our visions of the future – whether dark or hopeful, thrilling or mundane – have always challenged us to examine our world. How can we improve? What challenges will we face? Are we even ready
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