Dispatches since 2005
The journal
Announcements, new editions, travel, diving, cooking and the working life of a novelist — 162 entries, all of them here in full.
October 29, 2017 · 91 words
We’re Baaaack!
Taos Toolbox, the two-week master class for writers of science fiction and fantasy, is getting set for 2018! The workshop (June 17-30, 2018) will be taught by Nancy Kress and Walter Jon Williams, along with special lecturers Carrie Vaughn, indiepub guru Emily Mah Tippetts, and special guest George RR Martin. This is Ye
Read entry →October 26, 2017 · 302 words
October Surprise #4
Hey, I’ve released the four Dagmar Shaw near-future thrillers volumes as ebooks! New and improved, the first two with covers by Roberta Berto, and the last two with provisional covers that will be replaced by Berto covers as soon as she gets back from a trip. Which provisional cover you get depends on where you’re [&he
Read entry →October 26, 2017 · 260 words
The Nutella War
Conflicts within a former Soviet republic are now posing a threat to the world’s supply of Nutella, the disturbingly tasty Italian hazelnut-chocolate spread. Hazelnuts are the second-largest export (after copper ore) from the Republic of Georgia, which is the third largest exporter of hazelnuts in the world. Georgia ha
Read entry →October 23, 2017 · 254 words
Punch-Drunk
I haven’t been posting for several days, because I’ve been trying to finish The Accidental War, which (according to the publisher) is Book IV of the Praxis series, but which (according to me alone, apparently) is Book VI, because I count Impersonations and Investments, and they don’t. See? It even has a cover! Though t
Read entry →October 17, 2017 · 51 words
I Sign
I will be signing book this coming Saturday, October 21, at Page One Bookstore in Albuquerque. We’ll be kicking off the festivities at 4pm. I’ll be talking about Quillifer. Accompanying me will be SM Stirling, who will discuss his latest in the Change series. Fun will be had. You should come.
Read entry →October 16, 2017 · 175 words
When Stars Collide
Want to see some “astrophysical ecstasy?” I think you do. Back in August, Caltech’s Laser Interferometer Gravity-wave Observatory (LIGO) detected a massive disturbance in the Force powerful ruction in space-time, the result of two neutron stars colliding a zillion and a half years ago, off in a galaxy far, far away. LI
Read entry →October 11, 2017 · 82 words
Swords on Your Shelf
Some people (like me) have swords on their shelves. Now you have the chance as well! The Book of Swords, with my story “The Triumph of Virtue,” is now available at your favorite bookstore, or online. My story is an adaptation of a couple chapters of Quillifer, but even if you’ve read the novel, you […]
Read entry →October 9, 2017 · 67 words
October Surprise #3!
I’ve indiepubbed a new trade paperback edition of my novel Voice of the Whirlwind. The book is printed in very readable type on cream paper, is a generous 6×9″, sells for a very reasonable $13.99, and features a glossy cover. It will make a handsome addition to your library. The book may be ordered from Barn
Read entry →October 9, 2017 · 209 words
Quillifer Contest!
Paul Di Filippo wrote a lovely review of Quillifer for Locus Online. Here’s your takeaway: ” . . . chockful of derring-do, blood and thunder, swashbuckling, and other good stuff evocative of Rafael Sabatini, Sir Walter Scott, and the penny-bloods: venomous and dangerous court politesse, reversals, betrayals, cowardice,
Read entry →