Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, Fiction, poem, Thoughts, work, writing on May 21, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Hmm. Maybe writing after reading the news isn’t a great idea? Or maybe it is.
To the Billionaires Among Us
What will you do?
When the skies pour fire onto cracked and desolate earth,
tornadoes skip from your first mansion to your third yacht
and hail plays paddy whack with your bones?
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What will you do
when the oceans rise and the gates fall,
and there is nothing left to consume
but yourselves?
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Posted in Science!, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, space, Writers, writing on May 20, 2026| Leave a Comment »
The Surprising Truth About What Outer Space Smells Like
Some space veterans seemed to find this scent quite pleasant. “It is hard to describe this smell; it is definitely not the olfactory equivalent of describing the palate sensations of some new food that ‘tastes like chicken.’
Yes, these are the things I find interesting about space. Not the math (with apologies to all my math teachers ever) or the physics (with apologies to all the classes I never took), but the lived experience.
When I’m thinking about a story and need to ground the reader, this sort of information is useful. What would it feel like, what would it taste like?
What would it smell like?
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Posted in Food and..., Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, food, inspiration, InterestingAndUnusualOrganizations, Thoughts, writing on May 16, 2026| Leave a Comment »
I like reading interesting nonfiction, not least because it’s a great source of ideas for stories. I ran across this oddly fascinating article a while back:
Italy’s undercover pizza detectives
…the AVPN intermittently dispatches secret pizza agents on espionage missions to clandestinely spy on the restaurants.
Excellent title!
In related news, I might be hungry.
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, creativity, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 14, 2026| Leave a Comment »
There’s always a dream within a dream within a dream. — Dolly Parton
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, art, creativity, inspiration, Writers, writing on May 12, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, art, creativity, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 11, 2026| Leave a Comment »
“Your fans, the ones that exist and the ones you have yet to make, will appreciate that what they get from you is from you. That’s what people mostly want from art: Entertainment and connection. You will always be able to do that better than ‘Al.’” — John Scalzi
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, art, creativity, rules, Thoughts, Writers, writing on May 9, 2026| Leave a Comment »
It’s understandable that a lot of beginners at any art want rules for how to do it. But there comes a time when one has to make one’s own choices about how one’s art is structured, how it’s executed, what you want it to do. There is no rulebook that will help you with that, you just have to step up and decide. That’s scary! But there’s no getting around it. — Ann Leckie
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Posted in Science!, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, aliens, inspiration, science, self-reflection, writing on May 5, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Recently, Neil deGrasse Tyson visited Stephen Colbert to talk about aliens and his new book Take Me To Your Leader: Perspectives On Your First Alien Encounter. He discussed aliens, why you probably shouldn’t shake hands, and how they might mirror what they see of humanity.
It made me think of the story I wrote on that topic, and how I hope that humanity does more good than not. I’ve re-posted before but I like the story, so here it is again. Click through for the full piece.
You and Yours
I came from the stars to meet you. I was happy. Excited, even. First contact with your verdant world. Think of all that we could share with you.
“You” could have meant a lot of things. I started with one of the most populous. An insect.
I remember little of what it was like, a flash of light, a warm wriggle in a puddle after rain. The feel of wind in my wings.
It’s embarrassing to say this now, but I was promptly eaten.
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Posted in Other, Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, Artemis II, NASA, science, space exploration, Victor Glover, writing on May 1, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Here’s an interesting interview with astronaut and naval aviator Victor Glover, pilot for Artemis II’s Orion spacecraft.
Artemis II pilot talks about what it was really like to fly and land in Orion – Ars Technica
And when those parachutes came out, when the mains came out, it was like God himself led us down to the water. And I had a big old grin on my face. It was intense. It went from intense to pure elation.
If you are curious about what it’s like to pilot in space, the difference between a touchscreen controller and stick-and-throttle hand controllers, or the “very intense” 13 minutes and 36 seconds of reentry, read on.
I was!
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Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2026, creativity, Thoughts, Writers, writing, writing advice on April 28, 2026| Leave a Comment »
If you’ve seen it before, don’t do it again. — Shonda Rhimes
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