Jim C. Hines's Blog, page 212

I Hate This Part

IBARW link: rawles talking about Uhura.  "…please consider the point of view from which you are approaching your analysis because experiences vary wildly and one size does not fit all."  I was troubled by the way Uhura/Spock was presented in the movie.  I don't know that I agree with 100% of what rawles says here, but she's given me a great deal to think about, including the perspective and assumptions behind my reactions to that coupling.

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I love writing and being a writer (not always the same t

Talking About Mermaid

IBARW link: nojojojo talking about the cost of anger, and addressing the idea that people are just looking for something to be angry about, like it's some sort of hobby or something.  This one stayed with me.

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[image error]It was pointed out that while I've been freaking out over Red Hood's Revenge, the rest of the world (I wish!) has been anxiously awaiting the release of The Mermaid's Madness [Amazon | Mysterious Galaxy], which got me thinking maybe I should actually talk about the forthcoming book a little

Thinking About Freedom of Speech

So this is International Blog Against Racism Week, which seems like a perfect time to point to the Open Letter from the Carl Brandon Society on racial/gender discourse.

I'm hopeful that, as in previous years, I'll learn some things and get to read and participate in some good discussions this week.  But reading that letter, I found myself wondering how long it would be before I came across the first "Oh noes, the PC Nazis are Censorin' our Free Speech!" response.  (Answer: not long at all, as it

Busy and Mildly Burnt Out

1.  Shout-out to Rhonda Parrish, who won the Mermaid's Madness ARC Auction.  The winning bid was $105, so I was surprised to find a PayPal e-mail which read, "$125 was the highest I was going to allow myself to bid. Since I was willing to spend that much, I don't see why I shouldn't send that much — it's going to a great cause."  Rhonda — you win at awesome.  Thank you!

2.  You know, I like this book.  I think Red Hood's Revenge has a lot going for it.  There's a revelation about Talia's past tha

Change of Plans

Originally, the plan was to mow the lawn, then try to get some more work done on the Red Hood's Revenge rewrite before heading off to the RPG.  The past two days have been quite productive from a writing standpoint: two more chapters finished, and I crossed the 70,000 word mark yesterday.

Plans change.

The glasses were four years old, so I guess I can't complain too much. Wish me luck finding a decent pair that doesn't break the budget.

Anyone know that Oculus Reparo spell from Harry Potter?

Fundraising for NCADV and BARCC

Today is the last day to bid in the Mermaid's Madness Auction for NCADV.  Bidding is currently at $105, which means the winner not only gets an autographed ARC, but s/he will also receive another of my books as a bonus.  (Winner's choice.)

shadesong is doing a blogathon to raise money for the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center.  Details here.  Also see the sponsorship link and auctions.

And just to provide a break from the intensity of the past few days, have a LEGO zombie uprising, courtesy of Steam

Fantasy Covers: Doin' it Right

My thanks to everyone who's been contributing to the fantasy cover discussion, both here and elsewhere.

One of the things that came up in comment discussion was that in addition to talking about covers which are problematic, it's just as important if not more so to look at covers that work.  Many of the following links and images come out of yesterday's comments.  Thanks again to everyone who suggested them.

oldcharliebrown pointed to a gallery of old Realms covers.  While a lot of the old covers

Sexism is Not About Your Ego

I linked yesterday to Tempest's post about the disproportionate number of scantily-clad females on Realms of Fantasy's covers, and the mermaid gracing the new issue of the relaunched 'zine.  Last night, Doug Cohen posted a response.

Doug is the new art director for Realms, as well as being the long time editorial assistant for the magazine.  I've worked with him a few times, and he struck me as a generally nice guy, one who cared a lot about the magazine and was always willing to go the extra mil

Open Link Thread

A little brain-fried this morning.  I did another 6000+ words on the rewrite over the weekend, which left little time for coming up with brilliant blog ideas.  (On the bright side, after a year on the book and with less than a month until deadline, I'm getting closer to actually figuring out Red Riding Hood's character…)

So today, ya get links:

The anthology Gamer Fantastic came out while I was on vacation.  This one includes my story "Mightier than the Sword," which marks Smudge's triumphant retu

Diabetes Details 1

This is one of those blog posts where I have no idea if anyone else will be interested, but it's something I felt like talking about.

I've mentioned before that I've been diabetic (type 1) for a little over ten years.  My father was diagnosed with the same thing back when I was born, so in a way, I've been living with this thing for my whole life.

What fascinated me when I was diagnosed was how much I had never noticed before.  I knew in a vague way what diabetes was and how it could affect you.