What does a futuristic, high-tech world look like for those who can't afford said high-tech? When cities start to look like Blade Runner 2049, what do the rural areas and boondocks look like? In Erica L. Satifka's newest novel, Busted Synapses, she explores a kind of dystopian fu … | Continue reading
Not bad. Let's see what tomorrow brings. -- JS | Continue reading
I've been annoyed with my hair a lot recently; it's sort of gotten a look that I can only describe as "consistently failed comb over," which is not a look that I think is great either for me or for people in general. So today I decided to do something about it, and after consulta … | Continue reading
Reposting from Twitter, because that's the easiest way to do it: https://twitter.com/scalzi/status/1323258389917556736 https://twitter.com/scalzi/status/1323258957658529792 https://twitter.com/scalzi/status/1323260564639023105 https://twitter.com/scalzi/status/1323261266815799296 … | Continue reading
As promised, here is the playlist from the (virtual) Halloween dance party I DJ'd last night. Enjoy for your own future Halloween enjoyment. Click on any song title to take you to a YouTube video of the song. 1. "Superstition," Stevie Wonder 2. "Devil Inside," INXS 3. "Disturbia, … | Continue reading
This entry has two roughly equal parts: The first part is why I decided to get a Pixel 5, despite some initial misgivings, and the second part is a "first impressions" review. I'm separating them out for reader convenience; if you just want the review, scroll down to the second p … | Continue reading
Back when I wrote on here in 2018, I did two posts where I shared a "favorite" of mine. One was my favorite movie, and the other was my favorite anime (both of these remain true, two years later). So I decided to continue on with another one of my "favorites"! Today, I'll be shar … | Continue reading
We've had Dish Network at the Scalzi Compound basically for as long as we've lived here. Back in the day cable didn't go all the way out to where we are in rural Ohio, and then until earlier this year what internet was available to us was too slow to reliably stream all the time. … | Continue reading
Earlier today I wrote a piece about the election and it was soooooo tedious I decided I could not in good conscience inflict it on any of you. Instead, look, some foliage photos. And yes, remember to vote if you have not already, but, nnnnnngh, I am so ready for this all to be do … | Continue reading
Hello everyone and welcome to another edition of Webtoon Recommendation Time! The time where I bring you the best webtoons around (in my opinion) and tell you to read them. Or, rather, try to give you reasons why you should read them. For this round of recommendations, we have Fr … | Continue reading
In Marshall Ryan Maresca's newest novel, People of the City, seven heroes come together for an Avengers-style ultimate team up. Who are these heroes, and how does their chemistry make it all work? Read on. MARSHALL RYAN MARESCA: Five years ago, when my debut novel The Thorn of De … | Continue reading
https://youtu.be/auzfTPp4moA On Halloween I'm DJing a dance party for SFWA as part of their online Halloween festivities; it's a two-hour slot so naturally I made a playlist that's four hours long, with five dozen tracks. And you may ask yourself, "Well, Scalzi, how do you make a … | Continue reading
After years of debating whether or not to come forward with this, I have finally decided to let it be known. This is a truth about myself that I am ashamed for my family to know, as well as all of you. But I shan't keep this dark secret any longer. I don't like bacon.… | Continue reading
I found this dude hanging out in my hedge this afternoon. Seems quite content. There's probably a lesson there. It was a relaxing weekend for me. Hope yours was nice, too. -- JS | Continue reading
Today was a platonically perfect autumn day: Crisp temperatures, sunny skies and foliage in full color. It's nice to be able to walk out of the house and get a photo like this. Hope your Saturday is likewise lovely. -- JS | Continue reading
As we ease into the weekend, here's a nice hefty stack of new books and ARCs that have come into the Scalzi Compound in the last couple of weeks. See anything here that makes your fingers twitch in desire? Share in the comments! -- JS | Continue reading
It may very well be pumpkin spice season, but let's not forget it's also apple cider season! Fewer things in life delight like a warm mug of apple cider. Well, that is, if it's my cider you're drinking. And it could be yours too! I'm here today to share with you a recipe for appl … | Continue reading
First off: Hey, you like fall foliage? I happen to have a lot of it around my house, and I've collected some photos of this year's foliage in a Flickr album. My plan is to add to it, not only this year but also in subsequent years, so it's just becomes this amazing album of… | Continue reading
Here's a piece I'm thinking about today, in the New York Times: The Real Divide in America Is Between Political Junkies and Everyone Else. The opening grafs from the article: The common view of American politics today is of a clamorous divide between Democrats and Republicans, an … | Continue reading
Things work... until they don't. And when they don't, what then? Elizabeth Bear has thoughts on this, and how they relate to her latest novel, Machine. ELIZABETH BEAR: Hello, everybody! Thanks for this moment of your time. I’m here to tell you about The Big Idea (or at least one … | Continue reading
Not a bad combination, I have to say. Hello, world. Let's get to it, shall we? -- JS | Continue reading
If you've ever tried to learn another language, or grew up bilingual (or tri or quad), you know that there are some words in each language that just simply can't be translated. Author Alexander dan Vilhjálmsson experiences this dilemma in the translation of his novel, Shadows of … | Continue reading
A new edition of Photoshop dropped today and one of it's new feature sets is "neural filters" which can, among other things, make one's face look younger or older. So for fun I took pictures of me and Krissy from the last month and ran them at the "-25" age setting, which may or … | Continue reading
It's that time of year again when The Nightmare Before Christmas is finally socially acceptable to watch, and thankfully it will remain in season until Christmas, because it is a wonderful film that doubles as both a Halloween and a Christmas movie. Though if you're anything like … | Continue reading
Have you ever felt the crippling anxiety of being lost? How about the feeling of being watched? Or both at the same time? Author James S. Murray (writing with Darren Wearmouth) explores this fear in his Big Idea for his new novel, Don't Move. JAMES S. MURRAY: I’ve only been lost … | Continue reading
In the last couple of months, I've -- quite mysteriously! -- been added to a number of PR lists inviting me to virtual sneak previews of upcoming shows and other related media events. The way it works is you're invited to an online "red carpet" event, with either sneak previews o … | Continue reading
And to do it, I'm bringing back the "talking to myself" format. Hello, me! Hello, you! Who, uhhhh, is also me. Indeed. So, what are your questions for me about this year's election? Well, since you've already detailed how you think Trump will do in your own county, any thoughts … | Continue reading
You know what, it's not too bad. Hope you're having a pleasant Sunday, folks. -- JS | Continue reading
Four years ago (almost exactly), I wrote about Darke County, the place in Ohio where I live, and how I expected it would vote in the 2016 presidential election. Darke County is a small rural county, and like most small rural counties in the United States, it skews pretty seriousl … | Continue reading
Welcome to another Small Business Saturday! In case you missed the last one, this is where I write about a brand/company that I have bought and tried products of. These are not paid promotions or instances where I have been given free items in return for a post about them. These … | Continue reading
Today I have a song for you, and you may or may not enjoy it, but here it is regardless of your enjoyment levels. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXM9KBHGT9w I actually first heard this song because it was used as the background music for the season 7 trailer of Voltron: Legendar … | Continue reading
When the main character is away, the side characters and antagonists will play! Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes in a novel? Read on to hear about Carrie Vaughn's newest book, Kitty's Mix-Tape and see what lies beyond the first-person perspective. CARRIE VAUGHN: Sometim … | Continue reading
I went into a bank for literally the first time in years. Why would I do such a thing? Because Krissy, who usually does our banking, is currently laid up recuperating from her foot surgery (she's doing great, thanks for asking, but she's not up to doing errands out of the house … | Continue reading
Ever feel like your tech knows too much about you? Like it's literally in your head reading your thoughts? What if it was literally in your head? In Amanda Bridgeman's newest novel, The Sensation, she explores a world in which neural implants are a reality, but much like the tech … | Continue reading
Every year around this time I take a moment out of my day to express my unsolicited appreciation for WordPress, which, in October 2008 and after a particularly rough year keeping my site up and running due to surging traffic, helped me transfer Whatever over to their tender care … | Continue reading
Why? Because, one, I was bored of my face as it previously was, and two, it's been a couple of years since I saw my chin, and I was wondering how it was holding up. Turns out, it's holding up okay! Also, the last time I was clean-shaven I was about 30 pounds heavier, and… | Continue reading
As C.L. Polk reveals in this Big Idea for her latest novel The Midnight Bargain, the state of affairs in our world can have a significant effect about the state of affairs in a fictional one... even if the connections are not immediately evident on surface of thing. C.L. POLK: Wh … | Continue reading
Tonight we're as close to Mars as we're going to be for a few decades. I thought I'd go out and get a picture of it. You can see it just barely clearing the trees here. It's bright and beautiful and I'm glad I got to see it tonight. If you have time and a… | Continue reading
Do you ever wonder about life after death? If you've ever seen The Good Place, you know that their version of the afterlife is based on a point system that determines a person's goodness. When a person dies, they either have negative or positive points, depending on what they did … | Continue reading
Few things in this world are as quirky a choice of fashion as a button, and according to author Christen Carter, few things encapsulate a story as well as one, too. This is their power -- which might be why the title of the book Carter co-wrote with Ted Hake is called Button Powe … | Continue reading
https://youtu.be/6au8u8-ZJhc "Celebrity Sanctum," by a profoundly unknown group with the unfortunate name of Dogs Die in Hot Cars. The song's pretty nifty, however, the sort of tune XTC could bat out over lunch, because, well, XTC was like that. Enjoy. | Continue reading
To be clear, not the last tomato anywhere in the world, here in 2020. Merely the final tomato from our tomato plants, this year. Krissy has pulled up and cleared out the vines as part of her autumn overhaul of the plants and gardens. It was picked green and is ripening on our cou … | Continue reading
Buckley being the neighbor's pup, whom they acquired a few months ago. He's friendly and decided to come for a visit. Smudge was not impressed. Ported over from Twitter because once again Flickr seems to be having issues. Come on, Flickr. Click on the tweet to see the whole photo … | Continue reading
Flickr, which I usually use to host my photos, is having some technical issues, so I'm going to post my tweet about this week's new books and ARCs instead. Tell us what here interests you down in the comments! https://twitter.com/scalzi/status/1314647085493424130 -- JS | Continue reading
The third time-traveling installment. https://youtu.be/Pbdk_lBCxJk The other two have been posted here before, but in case you missed them, here they are, and in reverse chronological order: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdyDpP2s-og https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ms7capx4Cb8 L … | Continue reading
Yesterday, I was driving past a local elementary school and I saw on their electronic sign out front the words, "Doors Open 8:25, Tardy Bell 8:35". Ten minutes. They're giving kids a ten-minute window to get into the school? I know what you're thinking, you could just drop your k … | Continue reading
As many of you probably already know, I love cooking. I especially love baking, but both are great activities that I enjoy very much and have considered making a career out of. One of the things I've considered doing is food blogging, or cooking videos on YouTube or something of … | Continue reading
I noted yesterday that Krissy was going in for a minor surgery today, which I know prompted some curiosity and concern. Here's the scoop: She had a bunion that needed attending to, and this morning she went in and they did whatever they needed to do to fix it. It was done in a co … | Continue reading