Will Shetterly's Blog, page 97

On Toby, the best cat in the universe, and Barnabas, the worst

Thursday, September 10 No, this is not aboutThe Worst Cat(which you should click if you don't know the site). This is about Toby, who was the best cat in the universe, and a little bit about Barnabas, who is still the worst cat because Toby set the bar so high. I have been crying a lot in the last 24 hours, and I am a man who almost never cries. This is the reason why: ( Susan

On Toby, the best cat in the universe, and Barnabas, the worst

No, this is not about The Worst Cat (which you should click if you don't know the site). This is about Toby, who was the best cat in the universe, and a little bit about Barnabas, who is still the worst cat because Toby set the bar so high.

I have been crying a lot in the last 24 hours, and I am a man who almost never cries. This is the reason why:

(© Susan Levy-Haskell)
I suspect Toby was always the best cat in the universe, even when he was a kitten whose owners called him Spider because he climb...

Writing tip: The Darla Mistake when naming immortal characters

I love using Joss Whedon shows as examples because what's good is very good, so what's wrong stands out. I forgive TV shows that get historical costumes wrong because they're working fast on limited budgets. But getting historical names wrong is embarrassing, especially when a screenwriter can ask a researcher how old a name is. Case in point: Darla. When the character was introduced in the

James Tiptree Jr. vs. Yi-Fen Chou: on writers whose personas are more "privileged" than they are

ReadSherman Alexie, 'The Best American Poetry 2015,' and Race, especially for Alexie's reasoning for publishing a poem that had been submitted byMichael Derrick Hudson,a white man writing as Yi-Fen Chou. Alexie's a smart man and a fine writer who is caught between the needs of his identitarian beliefs and his desire to publish the best work, regardless of the writer's identity. Then think

Using Sady Doyle to illustrate the Motte and Bailey Doctrine

The most useful tool for understanding online debate that I've encountered in the last year or so is theMotte and baileydoctine(pdf). Scott Alexanderexplains: The motte-and-bailey doctrine is when you make a bold, controversial statement. Then when somebody challenges you, you claim you were just making an obvious, uncontroversial statement, so you are clearly right and they are silly for

The future that was: Miss Earth 1952

ViaMiss Earth contest, 1952 Thanks to Mark..

1954 comic asks "Are you a Red Dupe?"

At the height of the Red Scare, comic books were facing censorship. EC Comics tried to point out that censorship was un-American with a house ad inThe Haunt of Feardrawn by the great Jack Davis and written by Albert B. Feldstein. But the comic book industry cavedin tothe Comics Code soon after that, and EC quit publishing comics. ETA: I quite admire "Some of these people are no-goods

Fixing the internet: Donald Trump is nativist, not racist

Trump's most prominent black fans: From a recent Facebook conversation: Will ShetterlyI hate defending the guy, but he has black supporters because his message isn't racist; it's nativist. Yes, it is ironic when people descended from immigrants become nativists, but privileged people tend to forget their past. Like·Reply·Yesterday at 8:21am D** F**

On Dylan Roof and Vester Lee Flanagan II

It's easy to find identitarians who wave away mental illness and blame belief systems when they speak of Dylann Roof, a white racist who murdered black people. Googling "dylann roof white privilege" brings up articles like these: Calling Dylann Roof a 'terrorist' doesn't erase the privilege of his race | Yassir Morsi | Comment is free | The Guardian Dear white allies after Charleston: Please

Blogging about identitarians in fandom vs. blogging about them in general, and questions about trigger warnings and lesbian content

Q. What's the line between blogging about fandom's SJWs and blogging about identitarians in general? A. Attention outside of fandom. When something begins in fandom and makes it to a general interest site like The Guardian, it's no longer just a fannish issue, and I'll happily discuss it. Hmm. Or unhappily discuss it. I've accepted that partisans keep their own histories. So long as they keep