Category: Life
who did we think we were?
Jon Lord died yesterday. He was 71.
Don’t know who Jon Lord was? Pity. But, then, you probably do, even if the name doesn’t evoke anything.
Jon Lord was the keyboardist for Deep Purple, the hard rock band that made music history in the early 1970s for their loudness, their energy, and their instrumental dexterity, especially Jon Lord’s who regularly threw in passages from Bach or Beethoven or Scarlatti in the middle of heavy, driving blues-based rock tunes.
Then there were the songs themselves—Hush, Wring That Neck, Kentucky Woman, Child In Time, Highway Star, Space Truckin’, My Woman From Tokyo…and of course Smoke On TheWater.…
Reflections On the 4th of July: A Personal Statement
I am not given to setting out pronouncements like this very often, but in light of the last several years I thought it might be worthwhile to do so on the occasion of the 236th anniversary of our declared independence.
I don’t think in terms of demonstrating my love of country. My affection for my home is simply a given, a background hum, a constant, foundational reality that is reflexively true. This is the house in which I grew up. I know its walls, its ceiling, its floors, the steps to the attic, the verge, and every shadow that moves with the sun through all the windows.…
Upon Finishing A Novel
Oculus, the sequel to my alternate history Orleans, is finished. I sent it off last week to my agent. (Which means that, in fact, I will have to do another pass when she gets through making notes, etc, but for now I am content.)
They’re all a slog at some point. The only novels I ever wrote that weren’t were the second Robot Mystery, Chimera, and the one Terminator novel I wrote, Hour of the Wolf (which wasn’t supposed to be the title—that was the working title I slapped on it because I have to have a title before I can write a piece, but given the impossible schedule and the fact that the publisher needed it, like, THEN, they went with the title as is). …
The Golden (Silver?) Good Ol’ Days
I just finished skimming through a fascinating little bit of fannish history, Earl Kemp’s Who Killed Science Fiction? Fannish in the sense of science fiction fandom. It has a rich and varied history and the concerns within the genre are as fraught with angst, ennui, and ambition as any literature.
I am always a bit bemused when I read about this sort of thing, because I came into science fiction through the rotary rack at my local drug store. (Literally—Leuken’s Pharmacy, on the corner of Shenendoah and Compton, a good old fashioned drug store with a soda fountain, a magazine stand, and two circular racks for paperbacks, two blocks from my house.) …
It’s Black and White
Years ago I got to have a long talk with the illustrator Kelly Freas and we found common ground in believing that black and white is a superior artistic medium to color. I’m a sucker for fine b&w drawings and my first love in photography was Ansel Adams.
I pulled out some old proof sheets, from our road trip back in 2001, and started scanning in a few negatives. These were 120 format, 2 X 2, which I like for the sharpness and lack of grain. Sometimes I still miss having a darkroom, the smell of the chemicals, and the magic of watching an image appear in the tray, little by little, growing before my eyes, details filling in. …
Petty Stuff, Harlan Ellison, and Therbligs
I am inspired to write this because of two things, one significant, the other merely annoying. I start with the merely annoying.
I’m hopelessly behind the curve tech-wise. I can barely make my way around the internet, and if something melts down on my computer I run in panic from the room wondering who to call to fix it. Partly, this is a result of being too busy the last three decades to keep up, partly it is a response to the incessant demands of the digital marketplace to constantly, eternally acquire the latest gadget, the newest thingie, the most recent incarnation of Nousmasticator 3.1, all of which is both time consuming to install and maintain and often pretty damn expensive. …
Miscellany
Just a bunch of assorted items of some minor interest.
First up, I did a new interview! Jared Anderson runs a blog specializing in author interviews and he asked me to contribute. Mine is now up, for the pleasure of anyone interested.
Apropos of writerly things, I have finished the second book of my Oxun Trilogy. The first book, Orleans, is currently making the rounds via the good offices of my agent, Jen Udden. Among the various projects I had on hand to work on this past several months, I decided finishing book two might be a good idea. …
Denying Reality.
The North Carolina state legislature has adopted new guidelines to address the impact of climate change on their state. Namely by banning the use of the term “climate change” or the term “sea level rise” unless “authorized.” In section 2 of their House Bill 819 the prohibitions are laid out very clearly—no state agency is to use those terms when studying, commenting on, or otherwise addressing the impact of…well, you know.
Virginia is following suit. At least there an answer as to why is offered. Supposedly, such terms as climate change and sea level rise are “liberal code.”
Excuse me? Code for what?…