When we think about villains in fantasy literature, our minds often conjure the iconic figures who tower over their worlds, dripping with malice and menace. Sauron. Voldemort. The White Witch. These are the names that dominate the genre—the villains who are grand, larger than life, and indisputably evil. But what about the ones who aren’t? […]
The Banality of Evil in Fantasy Fiction: What Makes a Villain? Read More »
Every system has its core principles, and managing your email is no different. At the heart of email organization lies a deceptively simple rule: Delete or Filter.
Inbox Reboot – Part 3: Working the System Read More »
The Defynnog yews in Wales are a marvel—living relics that bridge history and myth. Some claim these venerable trees are over 5,000 years old, while others suggest they’ve “only” stood for 1,500 years. Regardless, they’ve witnessed an astonishing sweep of human history.
Ancient Trees and Timeless Tales: The Defynnog Yews of Wales Read More »
I recently cleaned my email list and received responses from readers saying they just didn’t notice my emails in the crush of the hundreds (sometimes thousands) they receive daily. That inspired me to start this new series: Inbox Reboot, a guide to managing your email effectively.
Managing email isn’t just for office admins anymore—it’s a survival skill for the modern world.
Inbox Reboot – Part 2: Keep It Clear Read More »
I recently cleaned my email list and received responses from readers saying they just didn’t notice my emails in the crush of the hundreds (sometimes thousands) they receive daily. That inspired me to start this new series: Inbox Reboot, a guide to managing your email effectively.
Managing email isn’t just for office admins anymore—it’s a survival skill for the modern world.
Inbox Reboot — Part 1: Why It Matters Read More »
Atlas Obscura recently reported that some of the WWI battlegrounds in France, particularly around Verdun, still have great swathes of land, some of it larger than Paris itself, that are hostile to humans. World War I was the first modern war. Over a century later, we sometimes have trouble thinking of the Great War as
Fallout from World War I Read More »
Authors can go to extraordinary lengths to build their fictional worlds. They have travelled the world, and spent decades in research. James Cameron has gone where few men have gone before–in ocean depths that few have ever seen. Based on his research he wrote The Abyss (one of my favourite movies ever) and Titanic. J.R.R. Tolkien invented
Tolkien’s Sources… Read More »
Cory Doctorow is a science fiction writer who is also a political activist, with a lot to say about capitalism, most of it not nice. He does not mince words. Recently, he wrote a long post that is of relevance to both authors and readers. ‘How a billionaire’s mediocre pump-and-dump “book” became a “bestseller“‘ takes
Helping Authors Without Spending A Penny Read More »
Under one of my other pen names, I received an email from a reader who had found a post I wrote years ago, debunking the myths about crop circles. His email was a single line, which I will paraphrase: You write about magic, but you don’t think crop circles are supernatural? I admit my jaw
Authors Must Write About What They Believe? Read More »
On this day in 532, five days of rioting ended with the death of tens of thousands of residents of the city of Constantinople (now Istanbul), and more than half the city destroyed by fire and violence. It is the most violent riot the city has ever experienced. Chariot racing was a huge sports entertainment
The World’s Largest Sports Riot. Read More »