Dispatches since 2005
The journal
Announcements, new editions, travel, diving, cooking and the working life of a novelist — 3,174 entries, all of them here in full.
April 18, 2015 · 1,005 words
Watching Now . . .
Someone— Connie Willis, I think— was saying just the other day that when writers want to talk about writing, they rely on movies or TV, because people have these in common much more than books. I think I’m about to prove her right. TV series are treading water right now, because they’re saving all their [&h
Read entry →April 16, 2015 · 605 words
The Froomistat Conundrum
Uh-oh. Our hero is in trouble. “Captain! The enemy’s Vetch Cannon are proving more than a match for the shields generated by our Krump Vanes!” “Blast it! I warned the Admiralty that this would happen!” “We’re really getting a pounding, sir!” “Mr. Blazey— do we still have those froomistats in the hold?” “Yes, sir,
Read entry →April 12, 2015 · 157 words
Holograms for Human Rights
The right-wing People’s Party in Spain has passed a series of draconian security laws that criminalize the following: Protesting the government without the government’s permission. Carrying out meetings Taking photographs or videos of police without the permission of the police. For “being present at an occupied space”
Read entry →April 12, 2015 · 79 words
I Seem To Be An Album
Alert reader Andrew Coyne informs me that my novel Voice of the Whirlwind seems to have inspired an album by rising electronic music star Access to Arasaka (whose name is itself a reference to the Cyberpunk 2020 card game Netrunner). The album is écrasez l’infâme, the defiant battle cry of Voltaire quoted by Steward in
Read entry →April 9, 2015 · 123 words
On the Road Again
Spot the fish in this picture. I’m not sure I can do it myself. I know there’s a frogfish in the frame somewhere, but I’m not sure which of the lumps is fish and which is coral. The guide said, “If you see a piece of coral with a frown on it, that’s a frogfish.” […]
Read entry →April 8, 2015 · 1,104 words
Revisiting the Classics
As part of my program to revisit books that I liked when I was younger, I recently re-read Heinlein’s Stranger in a Strange Land for the first time since I was in college. Oh, my. I should point out that as a young person I read all the Heinlein I could find. (Have Space Suit, Will […]
Read entry →April 1, 2015 · 257 words
Crisis Mode
I’ve been in Crisis Mode since I returned to the mainland last week, and so I haven’t been posting much. The term is misleading, however, because there’s no actual crisis. There’s just a bunch of annoying tasks with deadlines, one after the other, so that I barely have a chance to catch my breath. None […]
Read entry →March 29, 2015 · 322 words
Amen
We have here three versions of the “Amen Break,” as originally recorded back in 1969, on a song called “Amen Brother,” by a group called the Winstons. (There was a time, as George Clinton of Parliament recalls, groups were either named after cigarettes, cars, or birds.) “Amen Brother” was the B side of the Winstons’ hi
Read entry →March 22, 2015 · 151 words
Brides on the Beach
Kathy’s workshop is over, and we’re now spending a couple nights in Waikiki before heading home. Today (Saturday) the town was full of Japanese brides being photographed in front of iconic local sites. When we ate at Orchids, we shared the restaurant with several large bridal parties. I took any number of photos of cut
Read entry →March 18, 2015 · 559 words
Submariniana
Here’s a mother humpback whale breaching, while her calf waves a fin good-bye. We had to head for port before this pair became really active, and they started jumping once we were too far away to really get a good view. This was a formal whale watching cruise, sort of a disappointment because the whales […]
Read entry →