Category: Miscellaneous
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A Political Paradox
In most of the United States, if your vote matters, then it doesn't matter. Huh? Let me explain. We're all familiar with the increasingly polarized nature of our national politics. More and more, the country is divided into "Red" and "Blue" states. I happen to live in one of the Bluest of the Blue States:…
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MidAmeriCon II, Featuring ME!
On August 17-21 I'll be a participant at the 2016 World Science Fiction Convention. The convention moves around and has a different name every year — this year it's called MidAmeriCon II, and will be held in Kansas City, where everything is up to date. If you're anywhere in central North America that weekend, stop on…
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Tales of the Dark Knight!
I don't write comic books, but I've been reading them for decades and I like speculating about the characters. The recent Batman Vs. Superman film got me thinking about how I would write Batman if DC Comics were to hire me. Bruce Wayne, Gothamite One thing which becomes obvious when you start thinking about Batman…
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Thirty-Six Hours Over Albacon!
Tomorrow I set out for Albacon* in romantic Albany, NY. I'll be at the convention for thirty-six hours, but those hours are packed! Friday, March 4, 11:00 a.m.: POV Waltz — Panel discussion about the use of point-of-view in fiction; part of the Albacon writing workshop series. Saturday, March 5, 11:00 a.m.: Autographing — As always, bring…
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Boskone 2016, Featuring ME!
Join me at Boskone (February 19-21, 2016) at the Westin hotel in Boston, MA for New England's longest running science fiction and fantasy convention. It's going to be a fun weekend filled with books, film, art, music, gaming, and more. For more information about Boskone, check out The Boskone Blog, Twitter, and Facebook. Visit the Boskone…
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David Hartwell
Earlier today I was at the memorial service for David Hartwell. It has been a week since he died, and in that week I have read a number of tributes, some heartbreaking, some funny, from his family and people who knew him for decades. I knew David for less than twenty years. I can't remember…
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We’re Living in a Japanese Anime Series
Terror and violence are spreading. War looms. And a couple of super-robots go to school. This is pretty much the plot of every Japanese animated series ever made. Except now it's reality. If you live in Greater Boston, this is bad news, because while it means you now have super-robots to defend the city against…
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Trader Joe’s Reaches the Pumpkin Singularity
Maybe it's because I grew up in Louisiana. Pumpkin pie was not a common dessert when I was a kid. At Thanksgiving we ate pecan pie, and I remember my grandmother making sweet potato pie a few times. I heard of Pumpkin pie, from the song "Over the River and Through the Woods" or various…
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Excerpt From A Neglected Collaboration
Piglet has on rare occasions whispered disjointed and irresponsible things about what he saw in the Heffalump trap: "the empty jar", "the fawn-colored fluff", "the nameless cylinder", "the condensated milk", "the primal gold jelly", "the West Pole", "the eyes in the darkness", "the very bouncy animal", "the Thing of Little Brain" and other bizarre conceptions;…
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Empire of the Dragon Khan
That's actually a pretty good fantasy novel title . . . This weekend I will be an "attending professional" (kind of like a guest, only not as cool) at Dragon-Con in Atlanta. You can find me (if you can find anything in the massive crowd of Star Wars stormtroopers, anime catgirls, superheroes, and Klingons) at…
The Cambias Digression 