Dispatches since 2005
The journal
Announcements, new editions, travel, diving, cooking and the working life of a novelist — 181 entries, all of them here in full.
June 23, 2013 · 77 words
Science Prison
My sometime student and terrific writer Kim Jollow Zimring has a great idea. (Inspired, by the way, by the legislator who opined that global warming was caused by wind farms, because the giant turbines stole the cooling breezes.) She suggested that everyone in this country be sentenced to Science Prison, and that the o
Read entry →June 20, 2013 · 93 words
ACE
This coming weekend I’ll be at ACE, the Albuquerque Comics Expo, where I will be sharing the Convention Center with Neal Adams, Claudia Wells, Dean Stockwell, Nicholas Brendon, Chrissie Zullo, Larry Welz, and a host of others. My only program item will be a panel at 1pm, on the Star Wars Expanded Universe. Not exactly
Read entry →June 18, 2013 · 741 words
Privacy
I’ve been considering the proposition that maybe privacy is a mid- to late-Twentieth Century concept that’s already proving obsolete. Up until the 20th Century there wasn’t any privacy to be had, unless you were some kind of hermit that lived by himself in the wilderness far away from any civilization. (And even some h
Read entry →June 18, 2013 · 45 words
Two Surprises
So, a free election in Iran in which the liberal candidate won. And in Turkey, the prime minister is threatening to treat demonstrators as terrorists, calling for a new constitution, and threatening to send in the Army. The world is full of surprises, isn’t it?
Read entry →June 15, 2013 · 133 words
Two Good Causes
Hey writers! The Clarion Writers’ Workshop is having their annual write-a-thon beginning June 23. You write, and other folks pledge money depending on how much you write during the six-week period. Everybody benefits, because you get something written, and Clarion earns a few bucks. Check it out! A few years ago, I att
Read entry →June 13, 2013 · 1,014 words
Police State
Recent events, here and in the world, have me thinking about police states, and what they are and how they come about. In Turkey, Prime Minister Erdogan— who has been democratically elected three times— heads a state that is increasingly authoritarian, and he is now depending on police forces to maintain hi
Read entry →June 12, 2013 · 705 words
Deep State (of Depression)
Once again I’m watching scenes from one of my novels play out on television, and once again I’m finding it depressing. Deep State was a novel about a revolution against an oppressive Turkish government, and now we get to see that on CNN— and to watch Christine Amanpour try to corner a Turkish official about exact
Read entry →June 10, 2013 · 145 words
My Ebooks Are Live At Baen!
My various ebooks are now available at Baen Books, which I hope will help to find them a new audience. You can click to them via the ebook page, or head straight for my index page at Baen. Baen is also bundling some of my books into easy-to-click collections, including the Hardwired Bundle (Hardwired, Solip:System, [&h
Read entry →June 6, 2013 · 55 words
As The Knee Bends . . .
Kathy’s home from the hospital a mere two days after the knee replacement, and is getting along well on a walker. She’s experiencing little to no pain, and was the star of her physical therapy class. Thanks to all of you who expressed your good wishes. No doubt she’ll thank you herself very soon now.
Read entry →June 6, 2013 · 98 words
For Wild Cards Fans
I’ve been remiss in pointing out the recent appearance of a couple Wild Cards stories over on Tor.com. These were both edited by George RR Martin, and they are free. Free as in, y’know, just click and read. Cherie Priest, known for her Clockwork Century novels, offers up “The Button Man and the Murder Tree.” […]
Read entry →June 4, 2013 · 71 words
Piña Coladas. Five Cents.
Kathy underwent knee replacement surgery this morning. Which means either that posting here will be scarce, or that I’ll be posting a lot, since I’ll be sitting in a hospital room with a keyboard in front of me and little else to do. In the meantime, enjoy this amazing video of New York in 1939, […]
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