We’re out and about today, and I’m finding inspiration in both natural and human worlds. I don’t have time to get started right now, but I’ve got two story ideas competing for space in my head. I look forward to chasing them down soon.
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Posts Tagged ‘inspiration’
In Pursuit
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, genre fiction, inspiration, Thoughts, writing on March 30, 2024| Leave a Comment »
Eclipse Fever
Posted in Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, astronomy, eclipse, eclipse 2024, inspiration, NASA, sciency fun, solar-eclipse, sun on March 27, 2024| Leave a Comment »
By now you have probably heard that there will be a full eclipse of the Sun on April 8th. (If you haven’t, this is your public service announcement. The world is not ending and the Sun will return to its place in the sky. No wolves, dragons or demons are involved. The gods of sun and light just need to slip out for a quick break.) The next time this will happen in the contiguous US won’t be until 2044.
Millions of people will be able to view the eclipse. Here’s a map of the eclipse path:
Keep in mind, of course, that even those outside the path of totality will be able to view a partial eclipse.
When will it happen? Here’s a table, with another map. Because I like maps.
Total Solar Eclipse on April 8, 2024 (Great North American Eclipse )
If you will be able to view this super cool space phenomenon, then you’ll want to get your hands on some eclipse glasses.
Of course, we now know that the Sun isn’t really eaten during an eclipse. Instead, it does what it always does: rain ultraviolet rays on everything in its path. That’s why you should never look at a solar eclipse without protective eyewear.
And if you are in charge of kids on April 8th (or adults, we should have sciencey fun too!) consider the ideas in this article:
How Schools Can Turn the Solar Eclipse Into an Unforgettable Science Lesson
If the weather cooperates, science students of all ages could be in for quite a show on April 8. The first sign will be a sudden temperature drop. The sky will darken, and winds will shift. A dark shadow will appear on the horizon. Faint waves of light may waft across the ground. A ring of bright light will shine from the outer edges of the otherwise darkened sun. Then the moon will cover the sun completely and, for a few seconds, a thin red layer may appear around its outer rim.
And just for fun, here’s a little something for your ears, too:
Listen to the Eclipse Song Made by the Sound of Light of an Eclipse
Ok, that’s a little edgy. But still fascinating!
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The Nebula Award Finalists
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, awards, books, Clarkesworld, genre fiction, inspiration, Nebula Awards, short stories, Uncanny, Writers, writing on March 22, 2024| 1 Comment »
Fun, new reading recommendations! SFWA Announces the Finalists for the 59th Nebula Awards – SFWA
Here are links to the short story and novelette finalists. Most are free to read. For the full list with info links (including those below), see Finalists for the 59th Nebula Awards | MetaFilter.
Nebula Award for Novelette
- “A Short Biography of a Conscious Chair,” Renan Bernardo (Samovar)
- “I Am AI,” Ai Jiang (Shortwave) — Goodreads / StoryGraph
- “The Year Without Sunshine,” Naomi Kritzer (Uncanny)
- “Imagine: Purple-Haired Girl Shooting Down The Moon,” Angela Liu (Clarkesworld)
- “Saturday’s Song,” Wole Talabi (Lightspeed)
- “Six Versions of My Brother Found Under the Bridge,” Eugenia Triantafyllou (Uncanny)
Nebula Award for Short Story
- “Once Upon a Time at The Oakmont,” P.A. Cornell (Fantasy)
- “Tantie Merle and the Farmhand 4200,” R.S.A. Garcia (Uncanny)
- “Window Boy,” Thomas Ha (Clarkesworld)
- “The Sound of Children Screaming,” Rachael K. Jones (Nightmare)
- “Better Living Through Algorithms,” Naomi Kritzer (Clarkesworld)
- “Bad Doors,” John Wiswell (Uncanny)
I read this delightful short by R.S.A. Garcia with lunch: Tantie Merle and the Farmhand 4200 – Uncanny Magazine
You could meet him if you want but take off the recorder first. I tell you my story, but you have to ask him if you want to hear his.
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Better Selves
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, inspiration, Thoughts on March 21, 2024| Leave a Comment »
“No matter who you are, no matter what you did, no matter where you’ve come from, you can always change, become a better version of yourself.”
— Madonna Ciccone
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Dream With Me
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, creativity, inspiration, Thoughts on March 18, 2024| Leave a Comment »
“Don’t listen to anyone who doesn’t know how to dream.”
— Liza Minnelli
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Reading Clarkesworld
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, free fiction, genre fiction, inspiration, Writers, writing on March 4, 2024| Leave a Comment »
The award-winning SFF magazine Clarkesworld recently released their Best Of 2023 list based on reader votes. While I don’t always love every Best Of story out there, I do like using those lists as starting points to explore new and interesting writers.
If you do too, check out the top 3 short stories and longer-form works.
Editor’s Desk: The Best from 2023
Best Novelette/Novella
3rd Place: “Imagine: Purple-Haired Girl Shooting Down the Moon” by Angela Liu (novelette)
2nd Place: “Light Speed Is Not a Speed” by Andy Dudak (novelette)
2023 Winner: “To Sail Beyond the Botnet” by Suzanne Palmer (novella)
Best Short Story
3rd Place: “Window Boy” by Thomas Ha
2nd Place: “Day Ten Thousand” by Isabel J. Kim
2023 Winner: “Better Living Through Algorithms” by Naomi Kritzer
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You Win
Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, courage, creativity, fear, inspiration, persistence, Thoughts on February 23, 2024| Leave a Comment »
For anyone facing a challenge today, two quotes:
“…very often a risk is worth taking simply for the sake of taking it. There is something enlivening about expanding our self-definition, and a risk does exactly that. Selecting a challenge and meeting it creates a sense of self-empowerment that becomes the ground for further successful challenges.”
— Julia Cameron, The Artist’s Way
“So do it. If you win, you win, and if you lose, you win.”
— Jake La Motta, Raging Bull
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Random Thought: What If Clouds Were Alive?
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, creativity, genre fiction, inspiration, Thoughts, writing on February 21, 2024| Leave a Comment »
“Stories of imagination tend to upset those without one.”
― Terry Pratchett
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Just Saying
Posted in Entertainment, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, #BlackAsSFF, genre fiction, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers on February 16, 2024| Leave a Comment »
I just finished the third book in N.K. Jemisin’s The Broken Earth trilogy and have to agree with this article:
Dear Hollywood, Where Are the SFF Book-to-Movie-TV Adaptations From Black Writers?
Since 2014, approximately 500 books of all genres have been adapted to film or television. In total, just over four dozen of those books adapted were written by Black authors. Only four of those 50+ Black adaptations were speculative works.
Just saying.
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Thought I’d Share
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2024, inspiration, Thoughts, Writers, writing on February 15, 2024| Leave a Comment »
I just posted this to a writer’s group and then thought, what the heck, maybe other people would appreciate this too. And here we are.
I saw a writer on Twitter feeling not great about his work, of the “everything’s terrible, no one wants this stupid book, what’s the point, why am I even bothering?” variety. Been there, of course, who hasn’t, and I had some thoughts. Sharing in case someone else needs to hear it too:
Think of the last book you read that brought you joy, or showed you that there is light at the end of darkness.
Your book is you, repaying the favor.
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