We Write!
Alma T. C. Boykin I almost said "bad review" but that leaves a lot of wiggle room: unfavorable, badly written, for the wrong book/recording, totally ignored the entire plot of the book ("I didn't read it but the author is a terrible person so this is a horrible book.") What I mean is a negative... Continue Reading →
'World to end on Monday. Women and minorities most affected.' Anyone ever worked this one out: besides that it is the reliable Grauniad headline... this time too? It only works, of course, if the men aren't there. And, oddly, that is the case in this 'writer income ' Graun piece too. But let me explain.... Continue Reading →
As a monkey, the idea of a trickster and mischief-maker, who none-the-less is the champion of mankind, stealing fire from the gods for them, has always been something of a beau ideal and role model for me. I am not very large or powerful, and my only tool is ingenuity against various gods. While I... Continue Reading →
I recently came across a series of tweets by Sergej Sumlenny, discussing how Russia had used books, as well as other entertainment media, to prepare its citizens for war in general, prior to its invasion of Ukraine. Here's an excerpt from Threadreader's aggregation of the tweets. Let's start a long thread about how Russian book... Continue Reading →
I will be at FenCon this year, September 16-18 2022, in Irving Texas. Very much looking forward to it. I recommend it to anyone who'll be in range. I've got a booth, along with the rest of the North Texas Troublemakers, and we'll be selling books and other merch. Come by and say Hi! I... Continue Reading →
I have three items to share with you this week, one of which made me laugh out loud - but more of that later. First, Intellectual Takeout notes that "A Decline in Reading Skills Makes Geese for the Plucking". A teacher-friend of mine recently expressed sadness over the stagnation of her students. Before the pandemic... Continue Reading →
I missed this article when it was published last December, but it came up during an Internet discussion this week: Is Superman Circumcised? wins Diagram Prize for Oddest Book Title of the Year I did a double-take when I saw it, and looked it up to confirm what seemed an impossibly weird headline. Sure enough,... Continue Reading →
I'd like to highlight five news reports from the past couple of weeks that have a direct or indirect bearing on us as writers (and readers, of course). First, the Electronic Frontier Foundation reports on an interesting development where technology runs headlong into copyright law. Dymo’s latest generation of desktop label printers use RFID chips... Continue Reading →
It seems that anti-Semitic prejudice is impacting the publishing world, particularly in Europe, but here in the USA as well. The publishing world today is extremely woke. And woke-approved manuscripts on Jewish themes must now pass a simple purity test: Thou shalt not portray Israel or Zionism in a positive light. American novelist and former... Continue Reading →
I have no problem with parents deciding for themselves - and for their families - what they consider morally and ethically correct, appropriate and normative. That's their job. My wife and I have our own standards, which are not shared by all of our friends, but all of us respect each other's different points of... Continue Reading →
Mad Genius Club 