Dispatches since 2005
The journal
Announcements, new editions, travel, diving, cooking and the working life of a novelist — 178 entries, all of them here in full.
October 18, 2014 · 758 words
Jazzar
Henry and Daniela took us to Acco today, the ancient city known in Crusader times as St Jean d’Acre. The old city is still surrounded by massive (mostly Ottoman) fortifications, and the huge stone headquarters of the Knights Hospitaller, with its vast echoing gothic halls and conspiratorial underground tunnels, still s
Read entry →October 15, 2014 · 565 words
Wikiday
It’s my Wikiday today, by which I mean the date given as my birthday in Wikipedia. This date is not my actual birthday, and I’ve never corrected the error, firstly because errors in my biography make me seem more interesting than I actually am, and secondly, because the error makes it more difficult for people [&hellip
Read entry →October 14, 2014 · 343 words
First Breathless Report
I’ve been extremely busy since arriving in Tel Aviv, racing off in one direction on sightseeing excursions, then dashing in another direction to participate in the Icon Festival. Everyone has been amazingly friendly and supportive, and my events have been well attended. My signing had enough people to fill the hour, bu
Read entry →October 14, 2014 · 98 words
Let the Toolbox Roll!
The dates for next year’s Taos Toolbox have been set! The two-week master class for science fiction and fantasy will be held June 28-July 11, 2015, in Taos Ski Valley. Nancy Kress and I will be teaching, with special lecturers Carrie Vaughn and Emily Mah Tippets. The application period begins December 1, 2014. Toolbox
Read entry →October 9, 2014 · 401 words
Launching Monday!
If you happen to read from right to left, you might want to check out the forthcoming Hebrew editions of Hardwired and The Green Leopard Plague and Other Stories. And if you happen to be in Tel Aviv this coming Monday, you should definitely attend the launch party for the books, which will take place alongside the [&he
Read entry →October 8, 2014 · 305 words
Riding for a Showdown
My alternative-history novella “The Last Ride of German Freddie,” a tale of Tombstone, is now available for your highly discriminating reading pleasure at Barnes & Noble, iBooks, Smashwords, Kobo, and Amazon. It’s a mere $2.99. At that price, you should buy lots of copies! It’s one of two stories I’ve set in the Old We
Read entry →October 7, 2014 · 655 words
Harper Slips In
My sometime publisher HarperCollins has quietly re-entered online retail by relaunching its online site, hc.com, and announcing that writers would earn an additional 10% royalty for ebooks sold through the site. Bully for them! Ebook royalties offered by major publishers are, let’s face it, low. 25%, maybe, against 70%
Read entry →October 4, 2014 · 117 words
Bardabunga
I know that “Bardarbunga” sounds like something Silvio Berlusconi might do with one of his teenage girlfriends, but in fact it’s the volcano in Iceland that’s presently erupting. And the “d” isn’t a “d”, it’s a ð, which is to say a thorn, and pronounced like a “th.” (Vikings didn’t mind their Ps and Qs, […]
Read entry →October 1, 2014 · 55 words
Episode Three Goes Live!
Episode Three of the Hardwired serial is now live at iBooks, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Smashwords. If you have the first two installments, you’ll want this one! Episode Three comes with special bonus content, an essay explaining why the term “panzerboy” has to do with Belgian butter smugglers.
Read entry →October 1, 2014 · 669 words
Reviews Too Late: Young Detective Dee and the Rise of the Sea Dragon
A title like that tells you pretty much all you need to know, neh? Directed by my onetime creative associate Tsui Hark, Young Detective Dee is a prequel to Tsui’s 2010 Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame, which I reviewed a couple years ago. The first film was set at the court of the steely, […]
Read entry →September 28, 2014 · 94 words
Strati-Cumulate
Here’s the Strati, the first car created by a 3D printer. Well, except for the mechanical bits. The parts that actually make it drive an’ stuff. The parts that make it an actual car. Those aren’t printed, those are manufactured elsewhere. But still. Pretty, no? In the old days, people would buy a frame and engine, [&he
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