As many of you know, I work in a game store. Currently, I’m part-time, but I used to be the full-time manager of this same shop many years ago. I came back because A) being a freelance writer is not always so good for the cash flow, and B) a former co-worker convinced me to […]
From the title, this must sound like a desperately boring post, but please bear with me for a moment: I’d like to record a few summaries for future reference. First of all, I passed the 10,000 page views mark in the very last days of calendar year 2016. This represents how many pages were looked […]
Fellow author Chuck Wendig posted a very solid piece several years ago on his blog about why authors shouldn’t slag off other authors in reviews. It got me thinking: many authors don’t review the works of others at all. Amazon has a policy against posting reviews of authors’ work by other authors, which they enforce […]
Four Steampunks cosplaying at Gen Con, August 2015 Because I’m a fan of Steampunk — both the literary movement and Steampunk-oriented fandom — I get asked from time to time to define steampunk as concept. To quote Reference.com: “Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction literature that uses the aesthetics and technology from 19th-century industrial […]
Food is in the news these days, and it’s a surprisingly controversial topic. The biggest problem with food — as I see it — is that there isn’t enough of it for everyone. Perhaps the biggest news is the fight over labeling foods containing GMOs — Genetically Modified Organisms — and how major food conglomerates […]
Day the Sixth (Saturday September 3): Another dull day at the booth. Booth time was interrupted by a keynote address at noon. Since they closed the registration room and that’s where the Onyx Path table was located, I was sprung to go listen. Big plans ahead for the World of Darkness, folks. After we closed […]
This blog post originally appeared as a series of Facebook posts, cataloging my trip to New Orleans, Louisiana for the Grand Masquerade, a gaming convention focusing primarily on Live Action Role-Playing (or LARP, for short). I have collected these posts, edited them for clarity (and brevity) and present them to you here for your enjoyment. […]
As you read this, I will be wending my way home from the Grand Masquerade in New Orleans. It’s been an interesting trip, full of companionship and chaos, and was my first-ever visit to the Crescent City. The Grand Masquerade is not held every year, and I can see why; the logistics involved in running […]
Lego-inspired cosplay at CONvergence, July 2015 Recent articles quote a number of folks involved — either directly or peripherally — in the comics industry, decrying the state of modern comic conventions, and how the cosplayers, are, essentially, ruining everything. Perhaps I oversimplify their statements, but the sentiment is accurate, if not precise. Denise Dorman, wife […]
Geek.Kon is THIS WEEKEND in beautiful Madison, Wisconsin! I will once again be attending as a special guest, and I’m involved in several panel discussions and other events. The main guests of honor include: actor Jason Carter (Marcus Cole from Babylon 5), writer Enrica Jang, voice actress Christina Kelly, voice actor Jerry Jewell, writers, cosplayers, […]