Tobias S. Buckell's Blog, page 3

How I Came to Write My Novel The Trove

I often tell people I pay attention to a rubric that goes something like this: If you do something you hate and you’re successful with it, you’ll still be stuck doing something you hate. It’s a 50% satisfaction situation. Because you'll be successful, which is great, but you'll be doing something you hate, and that's… Continue reading How I Came to Write My Novel The Trove

How I Came to Write My Novel The Trove

I often tell people I pay attention to a rubric that goes something like this:

If you do something you hate and you’re successful with it, you’ll still be stuck doing something you hate. It’s a 50% satisfaction situation. Because you’ll be successful, which is great, but you’ll be doing something you hate, and that’s not as much fun. That’s one bad thing and one good thing wrapped up together. There’s a ceiling on your awesome, even with success.

And if you do something you hate and you fail...

The Alien from Verapaz: A Free to Read Monthly Patreon Short Story

At five’o’clock, agents working for ICE swarmed through the doors of a childcare center on 35th Street, across the road from Eastern Park, and arrested the children of a superhero.

Free Short Story: The Alien from Verapaz

The Alien from Verapaz

by Tobias S. Buckell

 

At five’o’clock, agents working for ICE swarmed through the doors of a childcare center on 35th Street, across the road from Eastern Park, and arrested the children of a superhero.

Simeon got called in at six, when he was already on the Scozi Island ferry and thinking about passing by the store at the terminal for a pet six-pack of something as hoppy as he could stand to bring home and put on ice so he could watch the sunset in his backyard. Maybe...

Why I Downgraded My 2017 MacBook Pro to a 2015 MacBook Pro

For the past 11 months I’ve been using a 13" 2017 MacBook Pro after my old 2014 MacBook Pro was dropped going through airport security by an agent who picked up my bag without realizing the bag wasn’t zipped. The 13” was a workhouse that did well for me, and I’ve been using the model… Continue reading Why I Downgraded My 2017 MacBook Pro to a 2015 MacBook Pro

Why this author downgraded his 2017 MacBook Pro to a 2015 MacBook Pro

For the past 11 months I’ve been using a 13″ 2017 MacBook Pro after my old 2014 MacBook Pro was dropped going through airport security by an agent who picked up my bag without realizing the bag wasn’t zipped. The 13” was a workhouse that did well for me, and I’ve been using the model since it was a 12” form factor.

But I’ve not really been enjoying the 2017 MacBook Pro. Two things happened that were noticeable. One, the new butterfly keyboard by Apple was a huge adjustment. This is to make th...

Read 'Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance' for free at Lightspeed Magazine Online

Lightspeed Magazine has reprinted my story 'Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance' today online for all to read. Also, Locus put the story on their 2017 Recommended Reading List. This is the story that will be in 3 of the Year's Best anthologies. I'm grateful to everyone who has highlighted this story and talked… Continue reading Read 'Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance' for free at Lightspeed Magazine Online

Read ‘Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance’ for free at Lightspeed Magazine Online

Lightspeed Magazine has reprinted my story ‘Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance’ today online for all to read. Also, Locus put the story on their 2017 Recommended Reading List. This is the story that will be in 3 of the Year’s Best anthologies.

I’m grateful to everyone who has highlighted this story and talked it up. Thank you so much for the word of mouth. I can’t tell you how psyched I am that anyone can now head out and read it online. I hope you enjoy it.

Here’s an opening snippet. Yo...

Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance to be in THREE different Year's Best Collections and Year's Top Ten Tales

My short story 'Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance' has caught me off guard with just how much people seem to be singling it out. As of right now, I have signed four contracts for the story to appear in Year's Best collections. I am beyond amazed and incredibly grateful for the honor. Here… Continue reading Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance to be in THREE different Year's Best Collections and Year's Top Ten Tales

Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance to be in THREE different Year’s Best Collections and Year’s Top Ten Tales

My short story ‘Zen and the Art of Starship Maintenance’ has caught me off guard with just how much people seem to be singling it out. As of right now, I have signed four contracts for the story to appear in Year’s Best collections.

I am beyond amazed and incredibly grateful for the honor. Here are all the reprint requests I have signed contracts for:

– – The Best Science Fiction & Fantasy of the Year Volume 12 (Apr. 2018)
– – The Year’s Best Science Fiction #35 (Jul. 2018)
– – The Best Scien...