A new species of octopus discovered (potentially,) according to The Animal Blog. Isn't s/he cute??
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
Friday Cat Blogging
Iz in mah tent, campin'
Go 'way!
It's cold n gray out and sleepy n gray in
I'z the real napsterzzzzzzzz
Look at mah magnificent belly
I seez yer belly n raises a lap
Bonus big white woggie (Cabal)
Go 'way!
It's cold n gray out and sleepy n gray in
I'z the real napsterzzzzzzzz
Look at mah magnificent belly
I seez yer belly n raises a lap
Bonus big white woggie (Cabal)
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Blog Comments
I get comments on my personal blog, a lot of them, which appear to come from China. Either they are in Chinese and unreadable to me or they are in English and appear to be Chinese fortune cookie fortunes. I delete them. Does anyone else have this problem? Is there anything I can do, aside from deleting the comments one by one?
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Space is Big, I mean REALLY Big...
Because Eleanor shouldn't have all the fun pointing to cool science stuff, I wanted to share this article from World Science: "New Stars Shatter Known Size Limits."
"Astronomers have identified the hugest stars yet known, including one estimated to weigh the equivalent of 265 Suns"
Monday, July 26, 2010
Smart Things
Agent Kristin Nelson on the working of bookscan and how it can affect a carreer.
Nalo Hopkinson on story failure modes.
Kris Rusch on when and how to incorporate.
Tobias Buckell on why you don't see a lot of mid-career writing advice online. This one is part of an ongoing conversation that's been going on in the writersphere including big chunks at Scalzi's and Jay Lake's among others.
Michael Thomas on BarCon and knowing when to keep your mouth shut.
Jim Hines on taking the hits to your career and ego without going down for the count.
Finally, Lilith Saintcrow on (as usual) a bunch of stuff, including "artist is not a dirty word," which linked to her talking about the myth of the self-destructive artist, and the fact that getting paid is not selling out. Also, how to avoid being a self-indulgent noodlehead in public.
Nalo Hopkinson on story failure modes.
Kris Rusch on when and how to incorporate.
Tobias Buckell on why you don't see a lot of mid-career writing advice online. This one is part of an ongoing conversation that's been going on in the writersphere including big chunks at Scalzi's and Jay Lake's among others.
Michael Thomas on BarCon and knowing when to keep your mouth shut.
Jim Hines on taking the hits to your career and ego without going down for the count.
Finally, Lilith Saintcrow on (as usual) a bunch of stuff, including "artist is not a dirty word," which linked to her talking about the myth of the self-destructive artist, and the fact that getting paid is not selling out. Also, how to avoid being a self-indulgent noodlehead in public.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Friday Cat Blogging now with bonus extra blob cat shot
I haz found missing piece of da puzzle!
Blob cat blobs.
3 cats, 1 chipmunk, endless possibility
I killz it with my mindz!
Hold still down there, I needz landing pad
After 3 days in dezert dehydrated cat sayz:
Gin...I need gin...
Blob cat blobs.
3 cats, 1 chipmunk, endless possibility
I killz it with my mindz!
Hold still down there, I needz landing pad
After 3 days in dezert dehydrated cat sayz:
Gin...I need gin...
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Radio Interview Archive
If you missed listening to me blather live on KFAI's "Write On! Radio" you can catch it in the archived files: http://www.kfai.org/writeonradio.
Actually finding the file is kind of confusing. You have to click on the archive for 7/20/10, and accept the terms and conditions. Then it looks like you got nowhere because there's a list of all the guests, etc. BUT, if you scroll down past the announcements you'll find a tiny little header "Previous Shows" and a reddish button for either .mp3 stream or real audio. That's the show. I'm in the second half. As far as I know there's no good way to skip ahead, alas. I'd say I'm worth the wait, but I'm not sure that's true. (I felt like SUCH a dork.)
People who heard it as it happened tell me it went okay, but I felt like I was all over the place and a little giddy. I think I also talked over the host at one point, too.
Actually finding the file is kind of confusing. You have to click on the archive for 7/20/10, and accept the terms and conditions. Then it looks like you got nowhere because there's a list of all the guests, etc. BUT, if you scroll down past the announcements you'll find a tiny little header "Previous Shows" and a reddish button for either .mp3 stream or real audio. That's the show. I'm in the second half. As far as I know there's no good way to skip ahead, alas. I'd say I'm worth the wait, but I'm not sure that's true. (I felt like SUCH a dork.)
People who heard it as it happened tell me it went okay, but I felt like I was all over the place and a little giddy. I think I also talked over the host at one point, too.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Monday WIP - Open Thread
Happy Monday!
...or not.
For me, it's not looking too bad so far. One son is off at camp for most of the day, and the other has about two hours of tennis this morning. For me, that translates into two hours of writing time. Being a stay-at-home dad, and it being summer, (and me having a deadline) I have to grab those moments when I can.
Although, really, it should be a good week regardless. Number One Son (the one not in all day camp this week) has already expressed a desire to hang out in a coffee shop with me at least one day this week. This is something that started a few years ago on a whim, wherein I bribed him with smoothies and baked goods if he agreed to sit quietly (and read or play a video game) while I wrote. Turns out it was a hit, and is now something he thinks of as "our thing". (I'd like to take credit for being clever/sneaky, but really, he's the one who latched onto it as reading/writing/hang out time.) So, I should have some bonus writing time coming, as well as my morning shots when he is at tennis.
Other than my two solo hours this morning, the rest of the day is going to be spent planning out the rest of the week with N.O.S. and generally spending some "I have dad to myself, with no pesky little brother around" time with him. Oh, and I have to mow the lawn. But still, in balance, I can live with that last bit pretty easily.
How about you? What does your day (or week, for that matter) portend?
...or not.
For me, it's not looking too bad so far. One son is off at camp for most of the day, and the other has about two hours of tennis this morning. For me, that translates into two hours of writing time. Being a stay-at-home dad, and it being summer, (and me having a deadline) I have to grab those moments when I can.
Although, really, it should be a good week regardless. Number One Son (the one not in all day camp this week) has already expressed a desire to hang out in a coffee shop with me at least one day this week. This is something that started a few years ago on a whim, wherein I bribed him with smoothies and baked goods if he agreed to sit quietly (and read or play a video game) while I wrote. Turns out it was a hit, and is now something he thinks of as "our thing". (I'd like to take credit for being clever/sneaky, but really, he's the one who latched onto it as reading/writing/hang out time.) So, I should have some bonus writing time coming, as well as my morning shots when he is at tennis.
Other than my two solo hours this morning, the rest of the day is going to be spent planning out the rest of the week with N.O.S. and generally spending some "I have dad to myself, with no pesky little brother around" time with him. Oh, and I have to mow the lawn. But still, in balance, I can live with that last bit pretty easily.
How about you? What does your day (or week, for that matter) portend?
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Astronomy Photo of the Day (from NASA)
Two galaxies are squaring off in Corvus and here are the latest pictures. But when two galaxies collide, the stars that compose them usually do not. That's because galaxies are mostly empty space and, however bright, stars only take up only a small amount of that space. During the slow, hundred million year collision, one galaxy can still rip the other apart gravitationally, and dust and gas common to both galaxies does collide. In this clash of the titans, dark dust pillars mark massive molecular clouds are being compressed during the galactic encounter, causing the rapid birth of millions of stars, some of which are gravitationally bound together in massive star clusters.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Friday Cat Blogging
Rare sighting of the Wisconsonian potbellied muskrat
There was a crooked cat who had a crooked tail…
Practicing jackknife for Olympic dive competition
Your proposition intrigues me…
There was a crooked cat who had a crooked tail…
Practicing jackknife for Olympic dive competition
Your proposition intrigues me…
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Who Do YOU Write Like?*
I'm sure many of you have already seen this thing that has been going around the Interwebs: "I Write Like"* It's one of those thingies where you put in a couple of paragraphs of your writing and a program analyzes it. I tried it, and the first result was Dan Brown.
While I appreciate the idea that I write like an international bestseller, (I mean, who wouldn't?) I see my prose as a bit more breezy, chatty, etc., so I thought I'd try a few different paragraphs in the same book. The results were Vladimir Nabokov and David Foster Wallace. The more I tried, the more it kept coming back to Wallace. I even tried my alter ego's science ficition and got Wallace. So, I think that must be a more accurate reflection of who a computer thinks I write like.
Secretly, I was hoping it would say: "You write like Lyda Morehouse!".
------------
*Update:
On my LJ Jim Hines pointed me to this Signal Boost, re: "I Write Like" Meme which points to "We All Write Like White Men (Part 2)" basically points out that there are only 40 writers to choose from and all but three are white men (the three are women, but also all white). According to Part 2, the author of the meme isn't willing to add people of color to his database. The best part is that apparently Margaret Atwood plugged in her writing and got "P.G. Woodhouse." Whereas, the meme correctly identified Dan Brown as Dan Brown.
So, there's no way the meme would have suggested I write like myself. For although I am quite lily white, I am not a man.
While I appreciate the idea that I write like an international bestseller, (I mean, who wouldn't?) I see my prose as a bit more breezy, chatty, etc., so I thought I'd try a few different paragraphs in the same book. The results were Vladimir Nabokov and David Foster Wallace. The more I tried, the more it kept coming back to Wallace. I even tried my alter ego's science ficition and got Wallace. So, I think that must be a more accurate reflection of who a computer thinks I write like.
Secretly, I was hoping it would say: "You write like Lyda Morehouse!".
------------
*Update:
On my LJ Jim Hines pointed me to this Signal Boost, re: "I Write Like" Meme which points to "We All Write Like White Men (Part 2)" basically points out that there are only 40 writers to choose from and all but three are white men (the three are women, but also all white). According to Part 2, the author of the meme isn't willing to add people of color to his database. The best part is that apparently Margaret Atwood plugged in her writing and got "P.G. Woodhouse." Whereas, the meme correctly identified Dan Brown as Dan Brown.
So, there's no way the meme would have suggested I write like myself. For although I am quite lily white, I am not a man.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Up-coming Events
I've got a new book coming out in August, and, consequently, I'll be out and about town promoting it. I thought I'd invite all y'all to a few:
----
Tuesday, July 20, I'll be interviewed on KFAI's "Write On Radio" show. They're going prime time, so the show now starts at 7:00 PM. You can find KFAI on your dial at 90.3 Mpls/106.7 St. Paul or streaming live at http://www.kfai.org/writeonradio (look for the button in the sidebar). Also, for those in other time zones, there is a running archive at the bottom of the page so you can listen at your leisure.
Tuesday, August 3, I will be interviewed LIVE on KARE-11 TV at about 10:15 am, possibly for the "Showcase Minnesota" show. Details are still a bit uncertain as my publicist just landed this gig for me today. This will quite literally be five of my fifteen mintues of fame, so if you tune in DON'T BLINK or you'll miss me. :-) I haven't checked the website thoroughly yet, but I suspect the show will also be archived somewhere.
Saturday, August 7, I'll be two places at once. Actually, what happened was that I accidentally booked these signings right on top on one another, so first I'll be at Uncle Hugo's at 1:00 - 2:00 pm. You can find Uncle's at 2864 Chicago Avenue South in Minneapolis. Then, I'm going to make a mad dash across town to the Roseville Barnes & Noble for a reading officially starting from 2:00 - 3:00 pm. I've talked to the event coordinator and she knows that I'll be a bit late, but she suggests you come at 2:00 pm anyway and enjoy the free cookies and beverages while you wait. If you go, head to 2100 Snelling Avenue North (the HarMar Mall) or call (651) 639-9256 for directions.
----
Tuesday, July 20, I'll be interviewed on KFAI's "Write On Radio" show. They're going prime time, so the show now starts at 7:00 PM. You can find KFAI on your dial at 90.3 Mpls/106.7 St. Paul or streaming live at http://www.kfai.org/writeonradio (look for the button in the sidebar). Also, for those in other time zones, there is a running archive at the bottom of the page so you can listen at your leisure.
Tuesday, August 3, I will be interviewed LIVE on KARE-11 TV at about 10:15 am, possibly for the "Showcase Minnesota" show. Details are still a bit uncertain as my publicist just landed this gig for me today. This will quite literally be five of my fifteen mintues of fame, so if you tune in DON'T BLINK or you'll miss me. :-) I haven't checked the website thoroughly yet, but I suspect the show will also be archived somewhere.
Saturday, August 7, I'll be two places at once. Actually, what happened was that I accidentally booked these signings right on top on one another, so first I'll be at Uncle Hugo's at 1:00 - 2:00 pm. You can find Uncle's at 2864 Chicago Avenue South in Minneapolis. Then, I'm going to make a mad dash across town to the Roseville Barnes & Noble for a reading officially starting from 2:00 - 3:00 pm. I've talked to the event coordinator and she knows that I'll be a bit late, but she suggests you come at 2:00 pm anyway and enjoy the free cookies and beverages while you wait. If you go, head to 2100 Snelling Avenue North (the HarMar Mall) or call (651) 639-9256 for directions.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Yesterday's Astronomy Photo of the Day (from NASA)
What's happened to that moon of Saturn? Nothing -- Saturn's moon Rhea is just partly hidden behind Saturn's rings. In April, the robotic Cassini spacecraft now orbiting Saturn took this narrow-angle view looking across the Solar System's most famous rings. Rings visible in the foreground include the thin F ring on the outside and the much wider A and B rings just interior to it. Although it seems to be hovering over the rings, Saturn's moon Janus is actually far behind them. Janus is one of Saturn's smaller moons and measures only about 180 kilometers across. Farther out from the camera is the heavily cratered Rhea, a much larger moon measuring 1,500 kilometers across. The top of Rhea is visible only through gaps in the rings. The Cassini mission around Saturn has been extended to 2017 to better study the complex planetary system as its season changes from equinox to solstice.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Smart Things
I've been posting intermittently because I'm ugly busy right now and through to the end of July, but I hope to get back into the groove in August with posts from the frontiers of the new series where I am learning all about writing secondary world fantasy which I have not written since I was a larval writer back in the previous century. It's been highly educational. In the meantime, here are a bunch of other folks saying smart things about writing.
Snurched from Jay Lake: Jeff Vandermeer being very funny on the future of publishing.
Agent Kristin Nelson on why you often can't buy an ebook in English outside the U.S.
Charlie Stross on the post-novel empty feeling. I only get this occasionally. I'm more prone to delight at the opportunity to move on to the next shiny thing.
Lilith Saintcrow on the writer's need for time to be alone, and for stubbornness as a step on the way to developing your process, and on doing what you love even when you're afraid.
There's an interesting conversation going on about whether it's possible to be a full time science fiction writer. I picked it up at Scalzi's where he linked to this piece by Sawyer. More recently Silverberg has entered the discussion which I picked up, again via Scalzi. There's a sub-piece in the Silverberg bit chipping off writers of popular fantasy into a different subset as though they're not really part of the field, which is an argument that tends to annoy me, but hey what do I know, I write fantasy that's intended to be popular. Anyway, very worth taking a look at the ongoing discussion.
Richard Curtis on: Are agents doomed? Interesting perspective on what happens to intermediaries in a disintermediating world. It links to a piece on alternative revenue streams for agents by Jane Friedman which offers some more perspective, but I'm not at all sure that most of those alternative revenue streams are a good idea for writers and some of them strike me as possibly actively bad for writers in that they fuzz up the line between what a reputable agent will do and what the scammers claim to do. He also links to Are Agents Underpaid by Victoria Strauss, which is a nice piece of the puzzle.
Snurched from Jay Lake: Jeff Vandermeer being very funny on the future of publishing.
Agent Kristin Nelson on why you often can't buy an ebook in English outside the U.S.
Charlie Stross on the post-novel empty feeling. I only get this occasionally. I'm more prone to delight at the opportunity to move on to the next shiny thing.
Lilith Saintcrow on the writer's need for time to be alone, and for stubbornness as a step on the way to developing your process, and on doing what you love even when you're afraid.
There's an interesting conversation going on about whether it's possible to be a full time science fiction writer. I picked it up at Scalzi's where he linked to this piece by Sawyer. More recently Silverberg has entered the discussion which I picked up, again via Scalzi. There's a sub-piece in the Silverberg bit chipping off writers of popular fantasy into a different subset as though they're not really part of the field, which is an argument that tends to annoy me, but hey what do I know, I write fantasy that's intended to be popular. Anyway, very worth taking a look at the ongoing discussion.
Richard Curtis on: Are agents doomed? Interesting perspective on what happens to intermediaries in a disintermediating world. It links to a piece on alternative revenue streams for agents by Jane Friedman which offers some more perspective, but I'm not at all sure that most of those alternative revenue streams are a good idea for writers and some of them strike me as possibly actively bad for writers in that they fuzz up the line between what a reputable agent will do and what the scammers claim to do. He also links to Are Agents Underpaid by Victoria Strauss, which is a nice piece of the puzzle.
Friday, July 09, 2010
Friday Cat Blogging Feline Sprawl Edition
Sprawlrus
Anonysprawl
sprawling cafe style
I don't want to sprawl and you can't make me!
Okay, maybe you can, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Anonysprawl
sprawling cafe style
I don't want to sprawl and you can't make me!
Okay, maybe you can, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Pens and Knives
I'm having surgery today. Nothing complex or life-threatening--scheduled surgery, in fact. But I will be going under knife and anesthesia, and I've personally known someone who simply never woke up from routine surgery. These moments are an amazing reminder of how much I want to accomplish, and a good kick in the ass to get to work on my goals.
See you all tomorrow.
See you all tomorrow.
Thursday, July 08, 2010
I Had to Post This
This photo is from Yves Smith's economic blog, which is a very good source of cute animal photos and dire economic news. I enjoy both. I especially enjoy cute photos of rats. So here is one.
Per a request in comments, here is the link to Yves Smith's blog.
I can't believe it has taken so long, but I just figured out Yves Smith's nom de blog. Adam Smith is the patron saint of the free market. Yves is pronouced 'Eve.' Adam and Eve.
Anyway, the writing on finance is good, and the animal photos are wonderful.
Friday, July 02, 2010
Friday Cat Blogging
OMG, there's a lolcat at the end of the runway--waveoff!
I'z not ignoring you, I just can't be bother to notice you.
Even basement cat likes white fluffy blankies
Disgruntled cat is disgruntled
I'z not ignoring you, I just can't be bother to notice you.
Even basement cat likes white fluffy blankies
Disgruntled cat is disgruntled
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