Because why not. Enjoy. https://youtu.be/_pEtS1vdzEo -- JS | Continue reading
Every year as the holiday season begins I run a gift guide for the holidays, and over the years it’s been quite successful: Lots of people have found out about excellent books and crafts and charities and what have you, making for excellent gift-giving opportunities during the ho … | Continue reading
Notwithstanding the existential trash fire that 2020 has been on a global and national scale, I can say that on a personal level I have had a lot to be thankful for, and that today I am going to set aside a little time to reflect on that, in between, of course, stuffing myself si … | Continue reading
I take a lot of pictures with my Nikon, and mostly I take them with my 28mm-300mm zoom lens, because it has (obviously, if you're a photo geek) a wide range of focal length options baked in. With that said, I also have a fixed 50mm lens which I sometimes use because it has better … | Continue reading
Meg Frank is an artist and one of the Scalzi family's Favorite People on the Planet™, and as such we are delighted to give them a little space here today to talk about their latest project: Mermaids Monthly, a magazine that you can help Kickstart. MEG FRANK: Asking for help makes … | Continue reading
As a teen, I really liked adult cartoons, like South Park, Family Guy, and American Dad (and I was in my early teens when Rick & Morty came out, but didn't watch it until I was about sixteen). I'm not really a big fan of most of those titles anymore but they were hilarious to me … | Continue reading
And what five things am I thinking about today? Well! Biden gets 80 million votes: According the Cook Political Report's Popular Vote Tracker. That's ten million more than Obama got in 2008 -- the previous record for a winning presidential candidate -- and currently about six mil … | Continue reading
The genesis of Spellbreaker is a short but critical line in a beloved story. What's the line and why does it matter? Author Charlie N. Holmberg is here to reveal all. CHARLIE N. HOLMBERG: I am not exaggerating when I say nearly every single novel I’ve written has been inspired, i … | Continue reading
The transition can formally begin, finally, only two weeks and change after everyone knew Trump had lost. Well, not everyone, I suppose. I'm aware some alt-right QAnon types are having a dark night of the soul at the moment. Well: good. Get used to that feeling, my dudes. You're … | Continue reading
Do we have destinies? Or are we agents of our own fate? These questions are a mystery, but one thing author B. J. Graf makes certain in her Big Idea is that life isn’t fair. Read on to hear about how these questions play a part in her newest novel, Genesys X. B. J. GRAF:… | Continue reading
Hello, everyone! I hope you're all having a good weekend. Mine has been very lazy and relaxing, so to keep up with that trend, I'm going to share a song I like with y'all instead of posting something that requires me to use my brain. This song is actually one you may have heard b … | Continue reading
Because, hey! Just because I haven't done one for a bit doesn't mean I can't do one now. Trump loses again, again: Yesterday saw Georgia definitively go into the Biden win column, and (presumably) Trump's grand plan to steal Michigan via the state legislature go into the crapper. … | Continue reading
Here comes the weekend -- and here comes a stack of new books and ARCs! What here is calling to you? The comments exist for your sharing. -- JS | Continue reading
Hey! Wanna see me, Mary Robinette Kowal, Becky Chambers and Simon Guerrier talk about exoplanets on a panel moderated by Phil Plait? The answer is: Yes, yes, you do. And here it is. Enjoy. https://youtu.be/2qlrlabIt58 -- JS | Continue reading
And to convince you, here's an hour-long presentation on the matter by and actual lawyer who specializes in constitutional law, who is (incidentally) also a conservative. In addition to what he says here, if you go to the actual YouTube page, there's supporting material in the de … | Continue reading
Hello, everyone, and welcome to another edition of me showing off my enamel pin collection! Last time, I shared five of my favorite pins with you, and I'm going to do the exact same thing today. Though these are some of my favorites in my collection, they're not in any particular … | Continue reading
The word "con" has more than one meaning, and for JD DeLuzio's debut novel, The Con, this is a very very relevant fact. Read on to discover more. JD DeLUZIO: A woman recalls the arrival of Haile Selassie to Jamaica in April of 1966, and the seven mystic white flying greyhounds th … | Continue reading
https://youtu.be/EECAzdqfiPs One of their more underrated songs, really, although I suppose at this point in time, all their songs aside from "Down Under" and "Who Can It Be Now" are underrated and relatively obscure. Time catches up with us all. Enjoy anyway. -- JS | Continue reading
What would the inside of your head look like if someone went exploring in it? What is behind the closed doors of your mind? In author James Van Pelt's Big Idea, he invites us to tour the back alleys of his creativity, and tells us of how he tries to fit all that into his… | Continue reading
Everyone knows the drill by now. You work from home in your sweats, you have a dozen Zoom calls a day, and you avoid the outside world like the plague (because, duh). But of course, there's our essential workers, too. Those who are out in the world every day, providing much-need … | Continue reading
When given a choice between adventure and stability, what would you choose? When staring the unknown in the face, do you choose to explore it, or stay in your comfort zone? Author Essa Hansen asks the tough questions in the Big Idea for her newest novel, Nophek Gloss. ESSA HANSEN … | Continue reading
If you've been wondering when the print and ebook version of Murder By Other Means, my latest story in the "Dispatcher" series, was going to be available, good news: There's a date! And it is: April 2021, when my friends at Subterranean Press will be releasing a special signed ha … | Continue reading
In today's Big Idea, editor Nibedita Sen delves deep into the nature of the anthology she's worked on, Nebula Awards Showcase 54, to examine what it is, what it means, and how to do honor to the concept. NIBEDITA SEN: What’s the purpose of an awards showcase? For that matter, wha … | Continue reading
Over on Twitter today, my pal Sharon Stiteler posted this, with regard to the possible return of hugging after the COVID vaccine is widespread. She is not a fan, as the image of the hiding cat representing non-huggers being dragged out of a corner by huggers shows: https://twitte … | Continue reading
Hello, everyone, and welcome to another edition of Small Business Saturday! In case you missed the last two of these, this is where I post about a small business I've ordered from that I really like and can highly recommend to y'all. And again, this is NOT where I am sent somethi … | Continue reading
Oh, look, it's Friday, and we have another stack of very fine new books and ARCs to peruse! Is there anything here that would make your reading list for a crisp autumn weekend? Share in the comments! | Continue reading
News organizations have finally called the last two uncalled states (see the New York Times graphic above), with Georgia going to Joe Biden and North Carolina going for Trump. With those last two pieces set into the election puzzle, Biden has 306 electoral votes, and Trump 232. Y … | Continue reading
Do you worry about making a good first impression? How about a first impression with an alien race? Author Kimberly Unger discusses in her Big Idea just what would happen with these first impressions... if our emissaries weren't necessarily the ones everyone expects them to be. R … | Continue reading
As I mentioned in my apple cider post last month, it is truly the season for pumpkin spice! However, there is one seasonal flavor that I think is leagues above pumpkin spice, that being chai. Chai is truly a divine drink, especially iced chai lattes! So when I saw one of my favor … | Continue reading
Donald Trump has lost the 2020 presidential election and has absolutely zero chance of winning it now. This is because the election has already been run, and it resulted with Joe Biden winning, with, to date, 77 million votes, 50.8 percent of the voting electorate and 290 elector … | Continue reading
There comes a day in the fall when the wind really picks up and all the trees that have been still hanging on to their leaves let them go, and, well, today was that day. Overnight we had a cold front move in with winds and rain, and in the morning all the leaves on… | Continue reading
What does one do with themselves when their purpose is fulfilled? How do you adjust to a life you weren't built for? In Ginger Smith's newest novel, The Rush's Edge, she explores finding meaning in a world so different from the one you're accustomed to, and finding brotherhood al … | Continue reading
Okay, so, I just started playing Dark Souls III last week, and let me tell you, that shit is hard. I've put in eighteen hours so far, and I feel like I've barely accomplished anything. In Dark Souls, it's not a matter of if you're going to die, it's when. And how many times (prob … | Continue reading
SHORT VERSION: For a limited time, as part of my annual "signing and personalizing for the holidays" service with my local bookseller Jay & Mary's Book Center, if you order two books from them, I'll kick in for a third. Because support local indie bookstores, that's why. Some con … | Continue reading
In today's Big Idea, author Emily C. Skafton is thinking about death... for starters. With a book title like Living Forever & Other Terrible Ideas, perhaps this is not entirely surprising. EMILY C. SKAFTUN: Death! There is no bigger idea. The theme that emerged as I was putting … | Continue reading
Well, here we are in month nine of our pandemic, and things are worse than ever! So that's... something. This pandemic has completely changed our sense of normality in our day-to-day lives. Social distancing, avoiding crowds, wearing masks, working from home, it's all just kind o … | Continue reading
I've had a number of people ping me to ask me if I had any further thoughts on the Pixel 5 since I did my first impressions review a couple weeks back; apparently a lot of folks are in the market for a phone right about now. The answer is, yes, I do, and they… | Continue reading
Here's Krissy. Because she fabulous and I love her, that's why. -- JS | Continue reading
Earlier today I wrote a long piece about white supremacy and the 2020 election, which is here if you want to see it, but in case you're wondering if I had any other thoughts about the election, here are some of them, in no particular order. 1. I am fucking relieved. In part becau … | Continue reading
This election should have been a landslide. Faced with a choice between a decent, if uninspiring, former Vice President with a long and solid track record of competent governance, and literally the worst president since the Civil War era -- a president under whom the economy crat … | Continue reading
Biden: His time. Yes, I know. I'm sorry for that pun, too. But not for what it means. More later. But for now: Thank Christ this part is over. And also: https://twitter.com/scalzi/status/1325114119402434564 -- JS | Continue reading
Which is: The spam filter has been unusually aggressive in the last month and is capturing a larger-than-expected number of actual comments from real humans. So if your comment doesn't post immediately, don't panic: I will (probably) find it in the spam queue and release it at so … | Continue reading
https://youtu.be/co6WMzDOh1o https://youtu.be/GCsyXSr7u-Q https://youtu.be/gM4Xm2MGLNQ https://youtu.be/Kz3oJeDfP1M https://youtu.be/3GwjfUFyY6M https://youtu.be/721JQZw6Spg https://youtu.be/jyX6JlpVHsQ https://youtu.be/RI4SzEb5tog https://youtu.be/Qy9_lfjQopU https://youtu.be/Ly … | Continue reading
Today's a special occasion for me: Twenty years ago today, I became an author. Not a writer -- I had been writing professionally for more than a decade at that point, and had been writing non-professionally even before then -- but an author, someone who had written a book and the … | Continue reading
In my last post, I mentioned how I had a hard time understanding people who can't order at drive-thrus or ask for help in a store. I also mentioned people who can't make phone calls, and noted that a lot of the time, these people can't really explain why they feel the way they do … | Continue reading
Figure it might come in handy right about now. Back to novel writing for me -- -- JS | Continue reading
If you live with a disability, I'm sure you're familiar with how difficult it can be to explain your disability to others. Whether it be a doctor, a friend, or a family member, trying to get them to understand how it feels to have your disability can be rather challenging. Trying … | Continue reading
Mind you, almost one hundred million Americans have already voted, via early voting and mail-in voting (including me and my family). This is around three quarters of the number of people who voted in the 2016 election, so, well done them. But if you haven't voted yet, today is a … | Continue reading