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.
January 23, 2019 · 70 words
Clue the Second: Where am I?
Here’s the second clue to my Undisclosed Location, with a bit more information. Disclose it, and win a signed copy of The Accidental War, or any other book from my store. The last set of guesses were all plausible, but I’m going to need a little more precise location than “Baja” or “Hawaii.” There are a […]
Read entry →January 22, 2019 · 127 words
Clue the First: Where am I?
As I mentioned in a previous post, I’m away from home in an Undisclosed Location. It is up to you, however, to disclose it. I’m not saying anything. I’ll post a series of lovely pictures containing clues to my whereabouts. Anyone who unmasks my secret location will get a free signed copy of The Accidental War, or (if [
Read entry →January 21, 2019 · 57 words
Hyper Lupine Bloody Gobbet Moon
Here are my two best photos of the Hyper Lupine Bloody Gobbet Moon, or whatever they’re calling a lunar eclipse this time. It was very pleasant lying back on a lawn chair and watching the moon slowly devoured by the ravenous talons of the cosmic beast. But with the moon gone, who will I sacrifice […]
Read entry →January 19, 2019 · 57 words
Framed!
Here I go, breaking the fourth wall again. Now that I’ve changed my frame of reference, I’m on my way to an Undisclosed Location, so I may not be posting for a few days. If you’re looking for something to read, Locus has put the always-perceptive Russell Letson’s review of The Accidental War online for your […]
Read entry →January 18, 2019 · 367 words
Purple Gin and Pink Martini
Gotta say, last night had a lot to recommend it. I took the train up to Albuquerque to meet Kathy downtown, and then we went to the Apothecary Bar atop the Parq Central Hotel to watch the sunset turn the mountains pink, which it did right on schedule. We had cocktails and ate high-end bar […]
Read entry →January 16, 2019 · 114 words
Toolbox Time
Hey, it’s 2019! If your New Year resolution included working to become a professional author, you should consider applying to Taos Toolbox, the master class for writers of science fiction and fantasy. This year’s workshop, held in the deluxe Angel Fire resort in New Mexico, will be run by Nancy Kress and Walter Jon Wil
Read entry →January 12, 2019 · 840 words
Portals
There follow some thoughts on setting, inspired by the earlier discussion on corridors. Setting is a character in fantasy and SF, or should be if the author knows what he’s doing. This is particularly true in fantasy, where the setting can become this big, unwieldy character with which the protagonists have to wrestle
Read entry →January 3, 2019 · 260 words
Forty
On the first of January I celebrated my fortieth year as an author, the period in which I have supported myself solely on writing and related professions. I would have mentioned this on the day, but you know what? I forgot. It was early on January 1, forty years ago, that I got a phone […]
Read entry →December 31, 2018 · 158 words
Ring Out the Old
It’s New Year’s Eve, which is a chance to celebrate the old as well as ring in the new. To that end, let’s party like it’s 1973! (Just watch the video for now, I’ll tell you about it later.) This is two examples of Seventies excess mashed together. The tune is “Nutbush City Limits” by […]
Read entry →December 29, 2018 · 116 words
Corridors
I’m well into the as-yet-untitled second volume of the second series of Praxis novels— now that would make a poor title— and I’ve come to realize that I’m really missing having at least some of the action set on a planet, where there are things like wind and plants and pretty scenery. Every scene is either
Read entry →December 28, 2018 · 129 words
So. This Happened.
It’s the first big winter storm in a number of years, and the world is covered with a layer of ice buried under several inches of snow. It won’t really get above freezing for over a week, so we’re just going to have to get used to involuntary acts of skating. I hate driving under […]
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