Posted in Entertainment, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, booksbooksandmorebooks, inspiration, reading lists, recommendations on October 29, 2023| Leave a Comment »
I spend a not-insignificant amount of time asking that most critical of reader questions: What should I read next?
Goodreads can be helpful, as can library collections, author interviews and award lists. Even pure chance can lead to delightful finds, and I’m always on the lookout for new and interesting book ideas.
Enter this website:
What Should I Read Next? Book recommendations from readers like you
I’m having fun sorting through the mix of books known and unknown. Perhaps you will too.
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Posted in Entertainment, Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, adventure, creativity, deals, Fiction, genre fiction, inspiration, science fiction, Writers, writing on October 5, 2023| Leave a Comment »
It’s last call for StoryBundle’s To the Stars Adventure SciFi bundle, featuring Writers of the Future v.39 and so much more!
This new StoryBundle will take your autumn, and your e-reader, to the far edges of the universe. Curated by bestselling author Kevin J. Anderson, this cosmic batch of eighteen books showcases the range of epic science fiction, from galactic empires to time-travel adventures to alien invasions. These books are from classic award-winning science fiction authors and hot new indie authors.
Only a few hours left to grab this Great Deal on Sci-Fi. Enjoy!
Am I biased? Sure, I happen to think our collection is great. But the bundle is curated by Kevin J. Anderson and also includes books by other names sci-fi/fantasy fans may have heard of, like Todd McCaffrey and Nancy Kress, as well as others I look forward to discovering.
Enjoy!
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Posted in Entertainment, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, genre fiction, science fiction, Writers on September 27, 2023| 1 Comment »
Ever wonder where your favorite books, shows and movies take place in space? This person has you covered. Stellar!
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Posted in Entertainment, Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, astronomy, inspiration, look up, yay on August 11, 2023| Leave a Comment »
What are you doing this weekend? Maybe you have plans for an all-night rave this weekend, but if you’re free at some point between the hours of dark Saturday night and dawn Sunday morning, consider the Perseids.
That’s right, it’s that time again, for one of the best shows in the night sky, the Perseid Meteor Shower. And unlike last year, the Moon won’t be crashing the party.
Here’s a time-lapse video from 2021 to whet your appetite:
How to Watch the Highly Anticipated Perseid Meteor Shower | Smart News| Smithsonian Magazine
The Perseids are known to treat viewers to a fantastic display, and coupled with a particularly dark sky, this year’s show is shaping up to be one you won’t want to miss…
During a meteor shower such as the Perseids, Earth passes through a large cloud of debris in space. Right now, the planet is moving amid the rocks and ice left behind by the comet Swift-Tuttle, which last was seen from Earth in 1992. The 16-mile-long comet orbits the sun over a 133-year period, which means it won’t be seen again until 2125. But every August, its remains create the radiant Perseid meteor shower.
/rubs hands in anticipation
This weekend’s Perseid meteor shower is ‘worth staying up for’ | CBC News
While there’s a major meteor shower every month, there’s nothing quite like the Perseid shower for those in the northern hemisphere, with the warm summer nights and better chances of clear skies. And this year, Canada is in a particularly favourable position for the peak night of Aug. 12–13.
And what do you know? I’m in Canada!
Perhaps you’re interested in a bunch of complicated graphs and a cool “activity level” dial? The Global Meteor Network has you covered.
The dial shows the peak sum of activity from all currently active showers and the sporadic background in the next 24 hours.
More interesting background information:
The 2023 Perseids Meteor Shower – YouTube
Sky & Telescope gives advice on how to watch the 2023 #perseids and explains how the #Perseids are formed in this video.
Not into staying up late? In that case, I recommend looking for new time lapse video of the weekend event on Monday morning.
Because this weekend, the best show in the solar system will be right on our doorstep.
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Posted in Entertainment, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, genre fiction on May 27, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Spotted on the drive from Los Angeles to San Francisco.
I thought that company was Terminated.
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Posted in Entertainment, Favorites, Likes, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, creativity, Fiction, genre fiction, Writers, Writers of the Future, writing, yay on May 16, 2023| 5 Comments »
Today is the day: Volume 39 of Writers of the Future is live!
Where to buy: Amazon | Apple Books | Audible | B&N | BAM | Bookshop | Google Play | Indigo | Kobo | OverDrive Libraries | Powell’s | Vroman’s
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Here’s the synopsis:
In the world of speculative fiction…
Your favorite authors…
Have selected the best new voices of the year.
24 Award-winning Authors and Illustrators
3 Bonus Short Stories by Kevin J. Anderson • L. Ron Hubbard • S. M. Stirling
Art and Writing Tips by Lazarus Chernik • L. Ron Hubbard • Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Edited by Dean Wesley Smith • Jody Lynn Nye
16-page color gallery of artwork • Cover art by Tom Wood
Check out the stories Brandon Sanderson, Orson Scott Card, Nnedi Okorafor, Robert J. Sawyer, Kevin J. Anderson, Jody Lynn Nye and others chose as the best of the best.
Be amazed. Be amused. Be transported … by stories that take you by surprise and take you further and deeper into new worlds and new ideas than you’ve ever gone before….
Twelve captivating tales from the most exciting new voices in science fiction and fantasy accompanied by three from masters of the genre.
A miracle? An omen? Or something else? One day, they arrived in droves—the foxes of the desert, the field, the imagination….—“Kitsune” by Devon Bohm
When a vampire, a dragon and a shape-shifting Chihuahua meet on a beach in Key West, fireworks go off! But that’s just the background. —“Moonlight and Funk” by Marianne Xenos
Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I., faces one of his funniest and most perplexing cases ever—an enlightened ogre, a salamander with low self-esteem, and a raging fire dragon terrorizing the Unnatural Quarter! —“Fire in the Hole” by Kevin J. Anderson
The Grim Reaper, trapped in an IRS agent’s dying body, must regain his powers before he dies and faces judgment for his original sin. —“Death and the Taxman” by David Hankins
In a metaverse future, a woman who exposes falseness in others must decide what is real to her—the love she lost or the love she may have found. —“Under My Cypresses” by Jason Palmatier
Vic Harden wasn’t lured by glory on a daring mission into the reaches of outer space—he was ordered out there by his editor.—“The Unwilling Hero” by L. Ron Hubbard
Dangerous opportunities present themselves when an alien ship arrives in the solar system seeking repairs. —“White Elephant” by David K. Henrickson
With her spaceship at the wrong end of a pirate’s guns, a former war hero must face down her enemies and demons to save Earth’s last best chance for peace. —“Piracy for Beginners” by J. R. Johnson
Years after the Second Holocaust, the last surviving Jews on earth attempt to rewrite the past. —“A Trickle in History” by Elaine Midcoh
When I said I’d do anything to pay off my debts and get back home to Earth, I didn’t mean survey a derelict spaceship at the edge of the solar system—but here I am. —“The Withering Sky” by Arthur H. Manner
High-powered telescopes bring galactic life to our TVs, and network tuner Hank Enos figures he’s seen everything—until the day an alien boy stares back. —“The Fall of Crodendra M.” by T. J. Knight
Knights, damsels and dragons, curses and fates foretold—the stuff of legends and stories, but unexpectedly perverse.—“Constant Never” by S. M. Stirling
Determined to save his wife, Tumelo takes an unlikely client through South Africa’s ruins to the heart of the Desolation—a journey that will cost or save everything. —“The Children of Desolation” by Spencer Sekulin
When a terrorist smuggles a nuclear weapon into London, a team regresses in time to AD 1093 to assassinate a knight on the battlefield, thereby eliminating the terrorist a millennia before his birth. —“Timelines and Bloodlines” by L. H. Davis
The Grand Exam, a gateway to power for one, likely death for all others—its entrants include ambitious nobles, desperate peasants, and Quiet Gate, an old woman with nothing left to lose. —“The Last History” by Samuel Parr
You will love this collection of the best new voices because, as Locus magazine puts it, “Excellent writing…extremely varied. There’s a lot of hot new talent.”
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Posted in Entertainment, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, chilling, Thoughts on April 2, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Perhaps you recently watched the F1 Australian Grand Prix, had to trim your cat’s nails, or experienced a similarly stressful moment. You may enjoy a few calming minutes spent with these birds of the world:
I know I will.
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Posted in Entertainment, Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, inspiration, NASA, Nichelle Nichols, science, space, star trek, Thoughts, trailblazer on August 1, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Lieutenant Uhura is now with the stars.
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Nichelle Nichols, Lt. Uhura on ‘Star Trek,’ dead at 89
Nichols was one of the first Black women featured in a major television series, and her role as Lt. Nyota Uhura on the original TV series was groundbreaking: an African American woman whose name came from Uhuru, the Swahili word for “freedom.”
“For the first time, we are being seen the world over as we should be seen.”
— Martin Luther King Jr., Star Trek’s Uhura Reflects On MLK Encounter
Nichelle Nichols showed us all that the future belonged to more than just white men, and then she helped NASA build that future.
“After Apollo 11, Nichelle made it her mission to inspire women and people of color to join this agency, change the face of STEM and explore the cosmos. Nichelle’s mission is NASA’s mission. Today, as we work to send the first woman and first person of color to the Moon under Artemis, NASA is guided by the legacy of Nichelle Nichols.”
— NASA Administrator Bill Nelson
She demonstrated, with talent, conviction, determination and grace, that the future is brighter when all of us are in it.
“If they let me in the door, I will open it so wide that they will see the world.”
— Woman in Motion tells story of how Star Trek’s Uhura changed NASA forever | Ars Technica
She did. We did. And humanity is so much better for it.
“If you can see it, you can be it,” the saying goes. Nichelle Nichols gave millions of people the opportunity to see themselves on the frontiers of science and exploration, boldly expanding human understanding.
She inspired so many of us to reach for the stars. What a legacy.
— Hillary Clinton
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Posted in Entertainment, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, genre fiction, inspiration, movies, RyanReynoldsForTheWin, tech tools on July 16, 2022| Leave a Comment »
It’s Saturday, hooray. Thinking about streaming a movie tonight? If so, this site may be for you:
Let’s check out my options. Hmm, lots of maybes, some no thanks, but wait, what’s this? Deadpool?
Yes, please!
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Posted in Entertainment, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2022, family, history, inspiration, music on June 20, 2022| Leave a Comment »
As a bonus Father’s Day gift, today I’m featuring a podcast I know he’ll like.
A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs
In it, Andrew Hickey discusses the history and culture of rock & roll as seen through 500 songs. He’s up to episode 150.
If you prefer to consume your media via the written word, each episode includes a transcript. I also found myself somewhat at a loss as to which, what and where, so (being me) I made an episode list with links. (If an index already exists, I didn’t see it.)
Note: I built the list by translating episode titles into URLs in Excel and haven’t tested every link, but hopefully they’ll get you to where you’re going.
Enjoy!
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J.R. Johnson 
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