reflections
What If?
Dear fellow man*, What if it’s your sister? Your daughter? Your wife or girlfriend? Or let’s for argument’s sake make it your mother, ‘cos we all have one of those. What if these women, who are dear to you personally, are the subject of lecherous locker room talk? About whom you colleagues wonder out loud […]
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Why I Don’t Debate Climate Change Deniers Anymore, But Unfriend Them
Earlier today, I came close to unfriending a guy on Facebook over climate change. He wasn’t even too rabidly fundamentalist about the topic. Nevertheless, his way of arguing his climate change point of view had all the hallmarks of the widespread climate change denial disinformation strategy. Which is why I refuse to engage in this […]
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On Perseverance, Running, and Writing a Novel
A year ago, I didn’t think I was capable of a sustained 5-minute run. Today, I ran my second uninterrupted 5km. This september, I’ll run my first 5 mile meet. A few years ago, I felt a sense of accomplishment if I managed to write a mere two short stories in any given year. Last […]
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Why I Don’t Debate Anti-Vaxxers Anymore, But Unfriend Them
Last night, I unfriended and blocked a guy on Facebook over vaccination.* He wasn’t even too rabidly fundamentalist about the topic. Nevertheless, his way of arguing an anti-vaxx point of view had all the hallmarks of the widespread anti-vaxx disinformation strategy. Which is why I refuse to engage in this debate any longer. And why […]
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Fantasy Books And Mental Illness
British headmaster Graeme Whiting has gone on record claiming that fantasy books cause mental illness. Odd, that. I thought that mental illness causes fantasy books. But seriously: one of the greatest gifts parents and educators can give a child is the gift of an open mind. And imaginative stories–fantasy literature and fairy tales, but also […]
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The Art of Being Good
Is it even possible to be good at art? Last year, I spent a very enjoyable week in a hotel on the beach, attending Bureau Zuidema‘s Personal Influence Program course. To balance out the emotionally harrowing, self-confronting content of the course as a whole, the final day contained the Flatter Yourself exercize. This exercize, intended […]
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It Was Tenty Years Ago Today
Has it been a decade* already? The calendar says it has. The 19th of August, 2005, in the Science Fiction Museum in Seattle, Washington, I had the honor of receiving the Writers of the Future Award from none other than Frederick Pohl and Jerry Pournelle. Since most of the good things that happened in my […]
Read MoreThe Tyranny Of Dontellia
An evil dictator has taken over the realm of writing critique. She has held sway for years now, if not decennia, and has cowed writers both green and experienced into near-blind obedience. Her dogma has become the staple of writing feedback, to such an extent that reviewers fear to leave out her central tenet: Show, […]
Read MoreNot Muslims: People
Much too much has been said recenty about the need, or even the obligation, on the part of Muslims to condemn and distance themselves from the Charlie Hebdo murders. The most seductive reasoning I’ve heard for this is admirably pragmatic: however regrettable, it is a given that the actions of a few (be they racist […]
Read MoreMy Year In Writing – 2014
EDITED TO ADD (with a huge facepalm): Oh, and I won the SF Comet contest! Another year over A new one just begun It may be corny to the point of maudlinity* to quote this particular song by Mr Lennon, but I can’t help getting a bit reflective upon the new year. Big changes occurred in […]
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