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Archive for the ‘Writing’ Category

Obviously!

Posted in Science!, Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 16, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Today’s question of the day: 

BBC World Service – The Climate Question, Can Science Fiction help us fight climate change?

The acclaimed US sci-fi author Kim Stanley Robinson is also a star in the world of climate activism because his work often features climate change – on Earth and beyond. Robinson has been a guest speaker at the COP climate summit, and novels such as The Ministry For The Future and The Mars Trilogy are admired by everyone from Barack Obama to former UN climate chief Christiana Figueres. 

Now, the answer to this question seems fairly self-evident to me. I see innovation as a conversation, in a way, between what is and what we can imagine will be. And fiction is excellent at helping us imagine new and better worlds.

Other examples of sci-fi ideas made real:

Ten Inventions Inspired by Science Fiction | Smithsonian

6 scientific innovations inspired by science fiction

10 ‘Star Trek’ Technologies That Actually Came True | HowStuffWorks

Look around you. What are our technological and social capabilities? What are our needs? And what do you think we’ll invent next?

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Ever Curious

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , on September 15, 2024| Leave a Comment »

“Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see, and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.”  

— Stephen Hawking

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You Can Do Anything! *

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on September 1, 2024| Leave a Comment »

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Why Not Enjoy It?

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , on August 30, 2024| Leave a Comment »

“This afternoon, burn down the house. Tomorrow, pour critical water upon the simmering coals. Time enough to think and cut and rewrite tomorrow. But today-explode-fly-apart-disintegrate! The other six or seven drafts are going to be pure torture. So why not enjoy the first draft, in the hope that your joy will seek and find others in the world who, by reading your story, will catch fire, too?”

— Ray Bradbury

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Crazy or Cool?

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , , , on August 29, 2024| Leave a Comment »

I’m toying with an idea and I can’t decide if it’s crazy or cool. Here’s a peek inside my head:

“Hey self, maybe we should try something a little bonkers.”

“Why not? Sounds fun. What do you have in mind?”

“What about writing a bunch of drabbles?”

“One-hundred word stories? We do that all the time, so sure.”

“What about writing a hundred drabbles?”

“A hundred? As in, One hundred? 100? Ten times ten? Roman numeral C?”

“Yep. Because numerical symmetry. One hundred hundred word stories.”

“I know you like challenging goals but that’s completely bonkers.”

“Yeah?”

“Absolutely. Also… pretty cool, actually. Hmm.”

So there you have it, my current writing target dilemma. A project like this would be a fun challenge but the real question is whether it would help my writing or distract me from larger projects. 

What do you think, is this idea too much or not enough? Crazy? Cool? Bit of both?

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Onward, My Friends!

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , , on August 26, 2024| Leave a Comment »

“Talent is helpful in writing, but guts are absolutely essential.”

― Jessamyn West

You’ve got this.

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Cuddle Time

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , on August 25, 2024| Leave a Comment »

“There is no way around hard work. Embrace it.”

— Roger Federer

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The 2024 Hugo Award Winners

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , on August 22, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Apologies for the delayed announcement, but in case you were looking at the clock and idly wondering, “Who do you suppose won the Hugos this year?” I am here to help!

The awards are announced at the annual Worldcon, and this year it was held in Glasgow. I’ve never been, but it sounds like a lovely, storied locale. 

Right, ahem, the envelope please!

2024 Hugo Award Winners | Glasgow 2024

Best Novel

Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh (Tordotcom, Orbit UK)

Best Novella

Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher (Tor, Titan UK)

Best Novelette

“The Year Without Sunshine” by Naomi Kritzer (Uncanny Magazine, November-December 2023)

Best Short Story

“Better Living Through Algorithms” by Naomi Kritzer (Clarkesworld, May 2023)

Best Series

Imperial Radch by Ann Leckie (Orbit US, Orbit UK)

See the above link for the complete list of winners. 

I haven’t read all of these yet but I do love the feeling of having good stories waiting in the wings.

/rubs hands with glee!

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Consider This…

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on August 21, 2024| 2 Comments »

Consider this: when you over edit something, you polish off the edges that made it unique and vibrant. A little polish is good, but not too much. Nobody wants a diamond polished into a ball bearing. They want something unique. Something sparkly. The world is full of uniform ball bearings. Be a flawed diamond.

— David Hankins, award-winning writer, author of Death and the Taxman, and all-around good duck

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A Touch of the Medieval

Posted in Writing, tagged , , , , , , , , on August 19, 2024| Leave a Comment »

So, here’s the thing: I don’t really like the Middle Ages. I feel a little bad about that because if you have a History degree it seems like you are obligated to keep an open mind about even the worst centuries, but it’s true. The Middle Ages are very much middling in my book.

Is this bias a result of the (relative) lack of historical records, the goofy headgear, or the whole Black Death, Inquisition, feudal lords fighting over tiny territories, and “Bad Times All Around” vibe that so many of those centuries have?

Well, maybe.

However! While reading an interesting article on a medieval herb garden (as one does), I realized that the era was into some of the things that I am into: the many uses of plants, bookbinding, woodturning, weaving, dyeing, and a wide variety of handmade hacks designed to moderate the vicissitudes of life. (The fantasy genre also owes a lot to that time period, and to be fair the bycocket, or Robin Hood hat, was pretty cool.)

So, yeah. It’s possible that I might have a touch of the medieval in me. Which goes to show that I shouldn’t rule out whole swaths of history, or people, or things. (Except the Plague, I continue to be very much down on pandemics. For, you know, reasons.)

So while I’m never going to be a fan of petty monarchs, famine, uncertain hygiene or strict class divisions, the next time the topic of the Middle Ages comes up, I’ll do my best to keep an open mind. 

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