Dispatches since 2005
The journal
Announcements, new editions, travel, diving, cooking and the working life of a novelist — 268 entries, all of them here in full.
November 16, 2010 · 278 words
Tycho Brahe Has Risen From the Grave!
A few years ago I made an effort to visit the crypt of pioneering Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe, which is located in a moderately obscure Prague church called Our Lady Before Tyn. Tycho’s meticulous astronomical observations, all with equipment he designed and built himself, were so good that his Rudolphine Tablets wer
Read entry →November 14, 2010 · 1,471 words
Fiction Factory
Wanna write a novel for a $250 advance? Apparently a lot of people would. There are these organizations in our business called fiction factories. They are run by people called “packagers,” who basically operate very much like Hollywood producers. They come up with an idea for a book, or more likely a series, then sell
Read entry →November 11, 2010 · 49 words
Taos Toolbox 2011
I’m happy to announce Taos Toolbox 2011! Our lovely two-week master class in science fiction and fantasy will take place July 10-23 in Taos Ski Valley. Teaching will be Nancy Kress, Walter Jon Williams, and Jack Skillingstead. Applications are accepted beginning December 1. Write! Submit! Tell your friends!
Read entry →November 11, 2010 · 353 words
This Just Made My Day . . .
Ah, don’t you just love the winds of change blowing in Washington? For instance, noted Illinois shithead congressman John Shimkus— who last made headlines by walking out of one of the Commander-in-Chief’s speeches to a joint session of Congress— now tells us that we don’t have to worry about global warming,
Read entry →November 8, 2010 · 207 words
Muerto
So apparently nobody told the folks on the West Side that they should have their Day of the Dead parade on the actual Day of the Dead. Here we are, a week into November, and here are the Dead marching along in their hundreds— and when they’re not marching, they’re riding in vintage cars, speeding […]
Read entry →November 7, 2010 · 160 words
Yves, Not Buck
So here’s Swiss adventurer/inventor Yves Rossy aloft in his newly redesigned jetpack. His last, slightly larger jetpack carried him across the English Channel. This one can loop. Yves Rossy, the Swiss adventurer who has already flown across the English Channel using a winged jet-pack, pulled off another exploit Friday,
Read entry →November 5, 2010 · 503 words
In a Nutshell
World Fantasy was a terrific convention. I saw numbers of old friends I rarely meet, and I hope I made some newer, lasting friends. Because too many of my peers now belong to the early-to-bed, early-to-rise school, I found myself partying with a younger crowd. (They had better Scotch, anyway.) It was great to see [&hel
Read entry →October 26, 2010 · 214 words
On to Columbus!
Have I mentioned that I will be spending this coming weekend in Columbus, OH? No? Careless of me, that. Halloween weekend is the World Fantasy Convention. I will be in attendance along with a whole bucketload of writers, editors, publishers, and artists. So if you’d like to meet a favorite author or get a book [&hellip
Read entry →October 23, 2010 · 434 words
Directing You Elsewhere
I’m hunkered down trying to finish the novel, so instead of posting something structured, intelligent, and thought-provoking, I thought I’d just point you at structured, intelligent, and thought-provoking discussions going on elsewhere. Over on Daniel Abraham’s site, we have an extended discussion of genre, featuring M
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