a stranger here myself

closing a chapter

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:42:24 GMT

Oh hello there! I haven't forgotten about this online journaling stuff. In fact, I'm finally getting to the point where I'm ready to start anew.

But for now, I'm just poking my head up on Livejournal to share some news -- I'm stepping down as an editor of Strange Horizons.

Even though I've been coming to this decision for a while, I find myself really emotional about announcing it now. Working at Strange Horizons has been an extraordinary, life-changing experience, and a huge part of my world for a very long time. It's time for me to move on, but I'm still wistful about closing that chapter of my life, and I will miss it dearly. To all of you who've been a part of that, as readers and writers, I thank you with all my heart. Let's forge onward and create new wondrous things.

new fiction

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 15:12:36 GMT

Yes, I'm still here, even though I haven't been visiting my LJ much lately. More on that in a bit. But I must drop in this morning to let you know that there's a wonderful new story by Theodora Goss up at Strange Horizons! It's in two parts and both are up now, beginning here:

"The Mad Scientist's Daughter"

We don't judge. Who, indeed, are we to do so? We have all done things of which we are not proud. The club is a haven for us, a port in a particularly stormy world.

If you are a fan of the elegant Ms. Goss, or if you would like to become one, I highly recommend you check it out.

new fiction

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:33:46 GMT

Now playing at Strange Horizons, the complete two-part story, beginning here:

"Beautiful White Bodies" by Alice Sola Kim

The fall after Justine moved back home, the high school girls became beautiful. She saw it herself, from behind the counter of the coffee shop by her old high school. The beauty spread viciously: first to one girl, then two, then four, and now almost twenty.

There are so many layers to this piece that I am tempted to talk about it here. But I generally let our stories speak for themselves, so I won't say anything further to prepare you for this one, except to hope there are other readers out there who will find it as awesome and fascinating as I do. Enjoy!

new fiction

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 14:15:11 GMT

This week! At Strange Horizons! A new story, and it's a beaut:

"Tyrannia" by Alan DeNiro

The man crashes to the ground, and then lies still, and birds fly to the site of him. They land on him from head to toe. He doesn't move, and won't move again of his own volition. In his arteries, though, are the beginnings of a journey.

Also brand-new by Alan DeNiro this week is his debut novel, Total Oblivion, More or Less. It's been getting phenomenal rave reviews all over the place, and I can't wait to read it! Plus, with a fantastic cover like that, you know it'd make an uber-cool stocking stuffer.

indiebound | amazon

forsooth

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:45:06 GMT

Ryan North is a genius.

If you click through on this, don't miss the mouseover.

the z machine

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:02:43 GMT

Now this is some proper futuristic science: beautiful and scary.

the z machine, new mexico
(click to view full size)

the button

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:53:52 GMT

I haven't had time or cash to go out to the movies in forever, and there's all kinds of good stuff out there that I'm missing! But when it comes to "The Box", I suspect I'm better off with this two-minute sketch anyway.

"It was supposed to be like a moral puzzle!"
"...Solved."

new fiction

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:45:18 GMT

Suddenly the end of the year seems to be rushing towards us at an alarming speed. Must take time to smell the flowers, read the stories, etc. Why, here's a nifty one now!

A Brief Investigation of the Process of Decay, by Genevieve Valentine

There was a pause before "interested" that meant "acclimated," as if Mars was going to be just like the rez, except without oxygen.

If you're nominating short stories for any awards this year, I hope you will consider the delightful assortment available in the Strange Horizons archives. It would make us very happy to see some of our favorite stories get a well-deserved wider recognition.

Related only by virtue of the fact that Ms. Valentine is the purveyor of all things funny and has brought this skit to my attention: I have to admit there are times when I wish Jane Austen scenes would end this way.

new fiction

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:26:29 GMT

Good morning! Know what's a great way to start off your week? Reading a brand-new story at Strange Horizons.

"True Names" by Stephanie Burgis

When I let Sam sweet talk me into moving out here to the back of beyond to be his wife, it was all about the romance of the wild, the two of us standing at each other's sides against mountain lions and poisonous snakes, and me learning to be just as fierce against them as any man. Days like today somehow never got mentioned in any of his stories, back then.

We hope you will like it!

Fans of the lovely Ms. Burgis may be excited to know that her young person's novel, A Most Improper Magick, will be coming out this spring. Here is a quickie book trailer:

And for something completely different, check out last week's story:

Nomadology, by Chris Nakashima-Brown

I watched the muted television. On-screen, stop-motion set pieces illustrated a science fiction fantasy of the destruction of the state apparatus and the abolition of private property mediated by alien invasion and natural disaster. The only sound in the room was the soft clicking of aluminum knitting needles, like a DIY Geiger counter monitoring our entropic half-lives.

new fiction

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 21:01:11 GMT

This week at Strange Horizons:

"Ms. Liberty Gets a Haircut" by Cat Rambo

"If you're going to be our leader, you need to look like you haven't time-travelled here from the 20th century," Dr. Arcane grumbles to Ms. Liberty. "You may have been built with the blueprints from the Stepford wives, but you don't have to keep looking like one."

Enjoy!

*

Note to all interested writers: the Strange Horizons fiction department will be taking our winter break during November and December, and during those two months we will be closed to submissions. If you want to send a story to SH before the year ends, you've got a few days left!

bone shop

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:29:25 GMT

Tim Pratt has posted the final installment of Bone Shop, an urban fantasy novella about the early adventures of Marla Mason (Crime Boss. Sorceress. Badass.) Why has he written this online story? Not only because he loves you, but also:

My wife was laid off on June 23, 2009, and this novella is an attempt to bring in some extra income while also telling a story I'm passionate about. Your donations will help keep a roof over our heads, and pay our son's medical bills (he has congenital glaucoma, so you can help keep him from going blind). Pay whatever you think the story's worth. Enjoy!

In case you are wondering where the money goes, I hereby repost a photo of Tim and Heather Shaw's ridiculously adorable child River.

The novella can now be read in full (18 chapters!) for free, starting here, complete with behind-the-scenes dvd-extras-style notes from the author. Check it out, and chip in if you can!

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:53:14 GMT

This post by telegram_ about African fashion contains some amazing images of street style:

Stockholm. Paris. London. New York. Helsinki. Milan. Tokyo.

These seem to be to go-to places when it comes to "street-style" and what's hot in general on most fashion blogs, but I just wanted to share some of the street-style you'll find on the African continent. Most of these were taken by Chris Saunders, a South African based photographer whose made it a point to capture the emerging style of South African youth. South African street style is rarely sleek and chic - it's irreverent, vibrant and daring. It mixes patterns and textures, with echoes of mid 70s style (and just a splash of "geek chic").

Plus some high fashion shots advertising the fabric:

(I know, nobody could walk in this outfit, but still: visual vaVOOM)

via

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:54:51 GMT

Been thinking about communication lately, and forms of discourse, and political debate. Good article in the Atlantic last month about the intractability of our entrenched beliefs, and how we can hold onto them even in the face of evidence to the contrary -- sometimes especially in the face of that evidence:

...In other words, if people start with a particular opinion or view on a subject, any counter-evidence can create "cognitive dissonance"--discomfort caused by the presence of two irreconcilable ideas in the mind at once. One way of resolving the dissonance would be to change or alter the originally held opinion. But the researchers found that many people instead choose to change the conflicting evidence--selectively seeking out information or arguments that support their position while arguing around or ignoring any opposing evidence, even if that means using questionable or contorted logic.

That's not a news flash to anyone who's paid attention to any recent national debate--although the researchers pointed out that this finding, itself, runs counter to the idea that the reason people continue to hold positions counter to all evidence is because of misinformation or lack of access to the correct data. Even when presented with compelling, factual data from sources they trusted, many of the subjects still found ways to dismiss it. But the most interesting (or disturbing) aspect of the Northwestern study was the finding that providing additional counter-evidence, facts, or arguments actually intensified this reaction. Additional countering data, it seems, increases the cognitive dissonance, and therefore the need for subjects to alleviate that discomfort by retreating into more rigidly selective hearing and entrenched positions. [emphasis mine]

The article concludes with this rather poetic way of looking at the problem:

Part of the reason, according to Kleiman, is "the brute fact that people identify their opinions with themselves; to admit having been wrong is to have lost the argument, and (as Vince Lombardi said), every time you lose, you die a little." And, he adds, "there is no more destructive force in human affairs--not greed, not hatred--than the desire to have been right."

[...]He points to the philosopher Karl Popper, who, he says, believed fiercely in the discipline and teaching of critical thinking, because "it allows us to offer up our opinions as a sacrifice, so that they die in our stead."

A liberal education, Kleiman says, "ought, above all, to be an education in non-attachment to one's current opinions. I would define a true intellectual as one who cares terribly about being right, and not at all about having been right."

Such a subtle distinction there, the difference between being right and having been right, and such a vital one. Go read it.

Via io9, this brief article on some studies at Stanford, about the circumstances in which people are most comfortable voicing their opinions. Nothing too surprising here: people are loudest when they believe their statements reflect the majority opinion, and people holding extreme views tend to speak out more than those with more moderate views. Still essential stuff to consider, in light of the social/cultural divisions that come about when people form identity within communities who (seem to) share their politics.

“You have a cycle that feeds on itself: the more you hear these extremists expressing their opinions, the more you are going to believe that those extreme beliefs are normal for your community.”

And finally: a short video blog by Penn Jillette that I found really moving.

"I sat on TV, while my hero Tommy Smothers yelled in my face how pissed off he was at me for appearing on Glenn Beck. It broke my heart."

"I've just always thought that the answer to bad speech was more speech."

new fiction

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:32:00 GMT

Good morning! We're deep into autumn now, and the leaves here are turning from green to gold and red. Perfect time of year to appreciate this week's story at Strange Horizons:

"The Regime of Austerity" by Veronica Schanoes

Under the Regime of Austerity, Stella can no longer afford much color. What she gets she uses on her hair and her eyes, even though all the magazines say that's a waste. Hair falls out and eyes tear up, and eventually the color wears away and she's left with nothing until her next ration coupon.

emotional landscapes

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 21:09:41 GMT

Almost the weekend! If your spirits need a boost to get you through the rest of Friday, these might do the trick:

The PS22 Chorus has turned in many amazing performances, but my favorite may be this one, from their very first rehearsal of a song I love, Björk's "Jóga."

And this clip of Stephen Fry narrating an unusual encounter with a kakapo has been making the rounds, but the bonus framework of Rachel Maddow losing her composure makes it twice as sweet.

Have a spectacular weekend!

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 18:42:25 GMT

I was interviewed last month for the Online Writing Workshop, where I am a Resident Editor. At the end of the interview, they asked me: What one piece of advice would you give to anyone submitting to Strange Horizons? This is what I said:

Send us work you love, the stories that really mean something to you. Stories that are exciting and surprising. Don't be afraid to pour yourself into fiction, to reveal your inner strangeness. Not everything is going to work for us, but so what? We'd rather read something startling and new than just a competent, flat rehashing of the same types of story we've seen before. Think about where your true interests lie, the ideas you care about, the elements and characters that genuinely matter to you, and bring them into your work. Be brave. Or what's the point?

new fiction

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:41:19 GMT

Hello! This week at Strange Horizons, for your reading pleasure:

"The Second Conquest of Earth" by L.J. Daly

The bulls left us our religions; not from kindness, as some pretend to themselves, but to keep us docile—to tranquilize with hope. My mother's brand of snake-oil soothsaying passed the test, thanks to years on the best-seller lists. My con is a protected faith. That this Kus hasn't killed me tells me he thinks I can read his future.

fantastical wildlife

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 13:43:06 GMT

My friend Jane Washburn makes some of the most fantastic creatures in this world or any other. She's just finished work on her latest creation, the Child Empress of Mars (who is based on a Dora Goss story and will be donated to the Interstitial Arts Foundation's upcoming auction). Look at this alien beauty:

(Recommend you click on the pics to see more amazing detail; queenie looks better and better the closer you get)

Photos never do justice to the full effect of Jane's pieces, though: what it's like to hold them, how they feel like real live little creatures you might find hiding in the hollow of a tree. So much care goes into their creation; as she works on them, she gives each one a name, a story, a structural integrity right down to the bones. For example, Jane puts little teeth into every mouth, even the mouths that are closed so you'd never see what's inside. And she means for them to be played with; every creature she makes comes with a guarantee that if you break it, you can always send it to her and she'll perform an operation and send it back to you good as new (plus very possibly upgraded with new wings or something; you never know). Because she loves every one of them. And it shows.

Jane is selling off a handful of her critters right now at her Etsy shop Blackbird Marmalade Creations, and she'll be replenishing the shop with lots more of her stuff soon. I wish I could buy them all and fill my house with fantastical wildlife, but for now I'll have to be content with the two currently perched on the chandelier in my library.

OH SHNOOKUMS.

I interviewed Jane ages ago for an article that I've been meaning to write up for-fucking-ever and have still not gotten around to, but I really want to hop on that, because more people ought to know about her work. What she does is something rare and magical.

the winter wind howls through my arms

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:47:39 GMT

This has been haunting me for days and I suppose the only way to exorcize it is to release it into the wild: Polly Paulusma's "The Woods".

It's not often that we hear a fairytale from the perspective of the forest.

I saw it all crystal clear
I know who brought those children here

The video features artwork by Rima Staines, who wrote,

Polly's lyrics inspired the forest-as-witness-to-a-dark-happening story ... which calls to mind a rather less than sugary Hansel & Gretel tale and conjures imagined fears of the archetypal forest as well as a real horror of a terrifying bogeyman, in more tangible guises. It speaks too of the turning of the year ...

(The artist's website is so chock-full of images that it takes forever to load, but it's worth the wait, because there's a lot of great stuff over there.)

things that may get J justifiably beaten up some day

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 22:32:47 GMT

While playing with Legos:

Neighbor kid: I'm going to die of fustwation.

Jeremiah: "Fustwation" isn't a word.

Neighbor kid: Yes it is.

Jeremiah: No it's not.

Neighbor kid: YES IT IS.

Jeremiah: Nope! "Fustwation." HA!

new fiction

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:44:02 GMT

Happy October! Come curl up in the warm glow of a new story at Strange Horizons:

"And Their Lips Rang With the Sun" by Amal El-Mohtar

Look at them! Are they not beautiful? Had cinnamon been ground and rubbed into their skin, they could not have been more brown, more fragrant, more beloved of the wine-bright sky.

The author is known as an award-winning poet and poetry editor, but her published stories have been all too rare thus far. I hope you find this one as moving -- and, naturally, poetic! -- as I do.

asgarda

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 21:29:45 GMT

Have you heard about Asgarda, rumored to be a neo-Amazonian tribe/cult of women warriors in the Ukrainian mountains? Nadya Lev at Coilhouse provides an excellent overview, not only of the facts that can be gleaned about these women, but also of the media myth-making that's sprung up around them.

Exactly 37 new Asgarda fan clubs will pop up in Japan by the time I finish writing this post, and we still won’t be any closer to knowing who they really are.

Like most, I want there to be a legendary tribe of ass-kicking warrior princesses living in the mountains of Ukraine.

Whether they're really a new tribe of female warriors or a bunch of students on a martial arts retreat, I suspect Xena would approve.

(All photos by Guillaume Herbaut, from the Planet Magazine essay.)

oh (cold) snap

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 02:39:24 GMT

Jeremiah wanted to talk about astronomy before he went to sleep tonight. As Pär described the Earth's rotation, they got into some discussion of the North Pole, and Pär mentioned that the polar ice cap was melting. There was a startled pause. Then:

Jeremiah: The polar cap is melting?

Pär: Yep.

Jeremiah: Did we make that happen?

Pär: Yep.

Jeremiah: You mean... we're idiots? Humans are idiots?

Pär: ... Yes.

pants on fire

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 15:39:45 GMT

I was very young when I first read Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle, and it shook me up. I'd been turning the pages, soaking up spooky atmosphere and accepting the story at face value, when -- wait a minute... I started to wonder if things were not quite what they seemed. I started to look more closely, and question what I was being told. From between the lines emerged a whole other layer of mystery, and it was up to me to figure out the truth. I hadn't even known this was possible, that you could do that with a story: my world rearranged itself in a massive tectonic shift and suddenly I was in new territory.

It was unsettling and exciting all at once, the discovery that a novel could be read like a puzzle, like a treasure hunt, sifting through clues and layers of meaning to understand what might really be happening. Later on, I had similar revelations reading Nabokov and others, but it was Shirley Jackson who opened that door, who first taught me how to read a narrative more searchingly, to engage with it and look below the surface, to take pleasure in the discovery.

The narrator of Justine Larbalestier's LIAR tells us up front that she is a compulsive liar, so naturally we can expect her to be unreliable. But that barely scrapes the surface of what a compelling read her story makes, how beautifully it holds together, even while the ground shifts under us as we read. Liar stays thrilling all the way through; at several points along the way, I had those "oh my god!" moments and had to go talk to someone about what was going on, to share my excitement. I've liked everything Justine has written, but with her latest book, released this week, she takes it to a new level. I want to put Liar into the hands of every young person I know. I hope it can do that rare and delicious thing for them that Jackson's novel did for me, flexing new muscles, making them better readers. But more to the point: it's an awesome, fun, eerie book that I bet they'll love. I did.

Amazon/Indiebound

the inner drama

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:37:47 GMT

I can barely remember a time when PBS was actually interesting, but during its early years, before corporate funding took over, it was quite the provocative and controversial little network, to to mention the home for groundbreaking children's shows like Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood.

In the mid-1960s, the National Educational Television Center had a six million dollar yearly grant from the Ford Foundation to do programming on cultural and public affairs, which allowed it to produce a series of documentaries like The Poor Pay More, Black Like Me, Appalachia: Rich Land, Poor People, and Inside North Vietnam. These were critically acclaimed, but station affiliates, especially in the South, complained about the network's radical "East Coast Liberalism." Private funding dried up. PBS, created in 1969 to oversee NET, looked to the government in hopes of getting more support for educational television. But the Nixon administration was violently set against independent federally-funded programming, and was making massive budget cuts.

Here's an amazing clip of Fred Rogers going before the U.S. Senate in 1969, speaking for six minutes, and securing $20 million dollars of funding for PBS.

I know some of the widely reported stories about Mr. Rogers may be apocryphal, but I love them all anyway, because they speak to something true about the man. He really was that guy.

(thanks, neighbor)