Recently, I saw a quote from something or other that said “do more of what makes you happy.” At first, I thought that was a ridiculous piece of advice, because who doesn’t already know that doing things that make you happy will make oneself happier? Then I realized, as obvious as … | Continue reading
You’ve read or seen stories with clones. But there’s a reasonable chance you’ve not read a story with clones quite like These Fragile Graces, This Fugitive Heart. Author Izzy Wasserstein is here to tell you about how this story recontextualizes a plot device you thought you knew. … | Continue reading
The 2024 edition of the JoCo Cruise is about to embark. I’ll be mostly away for the next week or so. Try to have a good time in the world mostly without me. See you later. — JS | Continue reading
Smudge looks like he’s laughing at his own dad joke. If you want to suggest the dad joke he just made, put it in the comments. — JS | Continue reading
Coca-Cola’s been doing a number of “limited edition” flavors recently, both in full-sugar and zero sugar form, but apparently this new Spiced flavor is one that’s meant to be in the regular rotation from now on, and also the first new permanent flavor for the Coca-Cola line since … | Continue reading
As I live in rural America, on a rural road where cable lines do not exist, I am apparently forever cursed with slow Internet speeds: for a decade they hovered at 6mbps, and then a few years ago my DSL provider finally bumped up the speed to 40mpbs — still pathetically slow by mo … | Continue reading
For as long as there has been science fiction, there’s been women writing science fiction. Unfortunately, as time passes, some of these stories can get lost along the way. Thankfully, Gideon Marcus is here to bring them back into the spotlight, for you to discover for the first t … | Continue reading
I got a new music plug-in today which is useful for creating generative, ambient patterns, and so decided to work with it a bit and create a new track. When I was done with it, I noticed the track was exactly ten minutes long. Thus the title: “Ten Minutes of Your Life.” Which mig … | Continue reading
Don’t give me that look, cat. I can always revise! And yes, that is the current work in progress behind Spice. It’s coming along nicely. You’ll see the whole thing in roughly one year. There will be other stuff before then, don’t worry. You’re not getting rid of me that easily. — … | Continue reading
A pretty good song! And now I’m going to spend my Friday evening mostly watching TV and going “durrrrrrr.” I hope that’s all right with you (and if it’s not, I have some bad news for you re: me caring). In case I’m not back until Monday, have a fabulous weekend. If I am back […] | Continue reading
Stuck for information about how to make your cosplay come together — and stay together? Annye Driscoll has just the book for you with Glue Guide: Everything You Need to Know About Adhesives. Here she is to warm you up on this sticky subject. ANNYE DRISCOLL: I never in a million y … | Continue reading
I had to actually leave my house and go into the world today, to visit the Armstrong Air & Space Museum, to do some research on an upcoming project. While I was out and about, I stopped at a McDonald’s because I they were advertising that it was Shamrock Shake time again. It’s be … | Continue reading
One of the great advantages of speculative fiction is that it can take the legends, myths and trope you already think you know, and recontextualize them in a way that presents them in a way you’d never considered them before. For Fathomfolk, author Eliza Chan took a well-known aq … | Continue reading
A useful little video from Vox about how “artificial intelligence” is everywhere these days, like microplastics, and like microplastics, you may not be entirely aware of how pervasive it is in your day-to-day life. Part of the problem, I think, is the label “artificial intelligen … | Continue reading
The world is wider than we often know, with more people and communities in them than many of us have heard of before. In Sweet Malida: Memories of a Bene Israel Woman, author Zilka Joseph explores her own connection and history with a largely little-known group, and why she decid … | Continue reading
Those nefarious winged creatures are up to no good, and it falls to Spice the cat to make a comprehensive survey of their mischief, and report back to the other cats. She will not fail her duty. That’s dedication, people. That’s commitment. — JS | Continue reading
Sometimes as an author, you have to work to develop a character. And sometimes, they just… appear. Which of these did author Kerry Faye have happen for her novel Dead Girl? She’s here now to enlighten you. KERRIE FAYE: I’ve always been curious about how storytellers come up with … | Continue reading
It’s 2024, which means it’s an election year here in the US, and a particularly messy one at that, and also, the world in general is in a state which is best described by the very technical term “a real shitshow.” There are any number of issues one can get wrapped up in and focus … | Continue reading
I brought my laptop downstairs for a change of scenery whilst I work, and was immediately colonized by a cat. Typing is difficult. This may be my last communication to you, at least until the cat moves, and we all know how that goes. If indeed this is the end for me, know that my … | Continue reading
Surprise! I have another EP of electronic music ready for you. This one is called Difficult Time, after one of the tracks on the album, and also because [gestures at the world]. The five tracks here allude to the mess of the world, either by running toward the mess, or away from … | Continue reading
Even if you don’t know what the word “Bezzle” means — yet — you know what it is, because it’s almost a certainty that someone you know, and perhaps even you, have found yourself in that state at one time or another. Cory Doctorow is here now to explain to you what The Bezzle is, … | Continue reading
We all know about protagonists, the characters who drive the story, and the secondary characters, the ones who do… other things while the protagonists drive the story. What happens when one of those other characters want to take a turn at the wheel? Author Jennifer Estep knows, a … | Continue reading
Yes, it’s the Radiohead song. I fiddled with it some over the weekend. I was trying to make it more clanky. I think I may have gone a little too far over into the noisy end of things. Too many bouncing parts is a hazard when you have a lot of reverb at your command. […] | Continue reading
Now here it is for you. It’s a fabulous song. I wouldn’t mind if the Sundays came back with some more new music sometime. — JS | Continue reading
Smack dab in the middle of the month, a set of new books and ARCs that have arrived at the Scalzi Compound. What here looks good to take with you into the weekend? Share in the comments! — JS | Continue reading
There’s an investigative report out on the administration of the 2023 Hugo Awards, by Chris Barkley and Jason Sanford, and make no mistake about it, it is grim. The short version is that eligible people and works were kept off the Hugo ballot, not because the Chinese government o … | Continue reading
You’re welcome. — JS | Continue reading
Please meet the Summit Award, which is an award Amazon Original Stories gives to, apparently, stories they publish that have gotten 250,000 readers. And it turns out the stories of the Far Reaches collection, which includes my story “Slow Time Between the Stars” has crossed that … | Continue reading
In today’s Big Idea, author Gwenda Bond wants to pull off a heist — both in her latest novel The Frame-Up, and in the course of the post itself. Ready to be in on it? GWENDA BOND: Can I steal a moment of your time? There, gotcha. If you like a heist as much as […] | Continue reading
Well, here I am again at the airport, heading back after another convention. This Boskone was quite nice and it was lovely to see old friends and meet some new ones, but one of the best things about going out into the world is going back to your own home after you’re done. I’ll b … | Continue reading
The Edward E. Smith Memorial Award, more informally known as the “Skylark Award,” is awarded by the New England Science Fiction Association to those “Who, in the opinion of the membership, has contributed significantly to science fiction, both through work in the field and by exe … | Continue reading
I’m in town for the Boskone science fiction convention, where I will be doing panels, a reading, and a dance. I love that I somehow developed this side gig as a DJ. It’s strange yet wonderful. If you’re at the convention this weekend, be sure to say hello. I will not be difficult … | Continue reading
As noted in this Deadline article, which just dropped. Maximum Effort, for those who do not keep up with such things, is the production company owned by Ryan Reynolds. They’re lovely folks and I am of course delighted to be in business with them and with Paramount on this. I thin … | Continue reading
The very first album I ever bought with my own money was Escape by Journey, so it’s safe to say I had a fondness for the band and its music, both when I was younger and even today. But even for a fan, the journey (small “j”) of the band in American and musical culture, […] | Continue reading
Bluesky, the microblogging service that I joined last April, is finally out of beta and is no longer invite-only, so anyone who has an interest in joining is now free to do so. Here’s a link to the site; just follow the directions from there. Once you join (if you join), I am pre … | Continue reading
As a former professional movie critic, I find a lot to like in Jordan A. Werner’s Big Idea post for The Witch and the Ostrich. I must confess, however, to having no experience with very large birds. One cannot be into everything, I suppose. JORDAN A. WERNER: From my senior year o … | Continue reading
Spice is a lovely kitty, but my keyboard is also one of her favorite places to hang out. I don’t know how much time you spend typing around a cat, but I can tell you, it’s not as easy as it sounds. That’s all I have for you at the moment. Spice is currently napping […] | Continue reading
From when I was in town for the Southern Book Festival. We talk about Starter Villain and the writer’s life in general. It’s twelve minutes, so not too long. I hope you like it. — JS | Continue reading
Yesterday I posted a picture of my current music composition setup here and on Bluesky, which prompted requests by music nerds to go into detail about the hardware and software I’m currently using. All right, then, fellow obsessives, strap in, we’re gonna geek out for a bit. If y … | Continue reading
I mentioned earlier today that I had incorporated the new MacBook into the basement music studio, and having done so, I decided to run it through its paces by doing a quick cover. And thus: “I’m On Fire,” written and rather more famously performed by Bruce Springsteen. Among any … | Continue reading
I finally got around to bringing the new MacBook down to the basement to get it set up to make music, and took the opportunity to update a couple of other things, namely the USB-C hub, and connecting the iPad to the Mac to act as a command surface for Logic Pro. It’s very colorfu … | Continue reading
This is the first piece of music I’ve put together on my new Mac, and it’s a long, gentle ambient piece which feels (to me, anyway) as if it’s in the continual process of lifting; thus the name. Perfect for spacing out and staring into the night sky. Enjoy. (Photo credit: Interna … | Continue reading
A groundhog poked its head out of a hole and declared that there was at least six more weeks of reading, and then presented me with this stack of new books and ARCs. Which of these books would you like to take with you into February? Share in the comments! — JS | Continue reading
Yesterday Vox published a piece by Rebecca Jennings entitled “Everyone’s a Sellout Now,” about the nature of the marketing and promotion creators are required to do these days to get their work out into the public sphere, in a world where creative work makes less for nearly every … | Continue reading
“I’m not eating the dog food because the dog food tastes good. It’s dog food. It’s complete trash. I’m eating the dog food because the dog needs to learn her place.” Yes, Smudge eats the dog food from time to time. Yes, the dog seems confused about this. But she also doesn’t get … | Continue reading
It was a pleasant thing to wake up this morning and discover that Starter Villain is part of the Locus 2023 Recommended Reading List, the magazine’s annual list of what it considers to have been the best published work in the fields of science fiction/fantasy/horror in the last c … | Continue reading
On New Year’s Day, my local Cinemark was showing a 6 o’clock viewing of the extended edition of the first Lord of the Rings movie. I’m not sure why it was, but it was and I decided that I should see it. I’ve heard a good thing or two about it, so I figured it was […] | Continue reading
Is it a seed pod? An alien ship? Will I go to sleep and whatever was in here will hatch and take my place in the universe? I took this picture a couple of days ago and honestly it’s been haunting me ever since. I’m open to guesses, is what I’m saying. — JS | Continue reading