Monthly Archives: February 2013
10,000 Hours
Damien Walter, writer for The Guardian, is conducting a lengthy investigation to find the best sci-fi, fantasy and horror available from indie writers. Read about what he’s looking for, then nominate your personal favorites. Last year Walter released a checklist … Continue reading
A Calendar of Tales & A Big Thank You
If you scroll down, you’ll find a hit counter at the bottom of this page. I placed it there a year ago this week. This blog has been up and running since mid-2010, and for the first two years or … Continue reading
Hollywood Tales
Vanity Fair has an excellent article in next month’s issue, about the rise and fall of the spec market for Hollywood features. It’s a long piece, chock-full of great tidbits and interesting interviews. Even if you’re not a screenwriter, it makes … Continue reading
B&N & Bookstore Browsing
Last month the Washington Post published an open letter to Barnes & Noble about the bookseller’s continuing financial troubles. The author loves bookstores and wants to see B&N survive, making a case that show-rooming — in which readers find their … Continue reading
Final Words
Two things today: One comes from the first World Fantasy Convention (1975) in Providence, Rhode Island. It’s a clip of Robert Bloch speaking on a writing panel. Audio interviews with Bloch are rare; in fact, I’ve never heard him speak before. … Continue reading
Forbes & Used Ebooks
Forbes published an article earlier this week about the continuing struggles at Barnes & Noble. It goes into detail about why Amazon is spanking B&N in the marketplace, and what can be done to pull them out of a tailspin. In other news, Amazon released … Continue reading
Charles Beaumont & Book Porn
I stumbled across a great interview about Charles Beaumont. Beaumont, for those who don’t know, was a fabulous SF writer who died tragically in the ’60s of what today we’d call early onset Alzheimer’s. The interview is from 1987, to commemorate … Continue reading
Macmillan & King
Macmillan has finally reached an agreement with Overdrive, to supply libraries with ebooks. They’d held out until now, which hadn’t hurt anyone but readers. I think the terms are smart — 26 lends or 24 months, whichever comes first — in a deal that … Continue reading