Walter Jon Williams's Blog, page 125

Beaver Dam 1, Vacationers 0

Mittelmeer

SeaLife DC1400 I’m up the mountain at the Rio Hondo workshop right now, and I don’t have a lot of time to post. So please enjoy this view of a non-New Mexican subject, a Mediterranean sunset.

Sale on Sail!

My first published novel,To Glory Arise, originally titledThe Privateer when it was first released, will be on sale for the next week for a mere $0.99. It’s available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Google Play, Smashwords, iBooks, and (for those of you on the Indian subcontinent) Flipkart. The book is jolly good fun, though it has to be admitted that I’ve become a better writer since. Enjoy!

Clickable

So I have an ebook promotion coming up, and I’ve been uploading new versions of some of my ebooks to the various sites. The new versions have clickable links, which means that if you like the book, you can immediately click on another book by me and and download it. (And that is certainly an advantage etexts have over traditional books, for sure.) Anyway, I’ve had no problem uploading up the revised files, except on Kobo. Because Kobo refused a couple of the uploads, telling me “We can’t uplo...

Texas Joik

When you’re joiking, you’re joiking alone. But not really. Joiking is normally an a cappella art form, but here Wimme brings a rhythm track with him, for a song as big as all Texas. I’m not sure where the picture comes from. It’s not the album cover, anyway. But what I’d like to know is, why isn’t this the state song of Texas already?

1925-2015

“I just love singing my blues.” He lived 89 years, and he toured constantly till just a few months ago, and he could make a guitar weep. I saw him a number of times, and he was never less than a standout, even when he was opening for someone else. Sirius Radio’s blues channel is playing B.B. 24 hours, and I’ve been listening all day, but it has to be admitted the thrill is gone.

The Broken Road

I’ve just finished The Broken Road,the long-delayed third volume of Patrick Leigh Fermor’s memoir of the walk across Europe that the 18-year-0ld Fermor took in 1933, just after Hitler took power in Germany. I have mentioned the earlier volumes, A Time of Gifts andBetween the Woods and the Water elsewhere, and added a little appreciation of my ownon hearing of Fermor’s death, at the age of 96. Though the books are a window into the personality of the bumptious young protagonist (as remembered b...

Floating

SeaLife DC1400 I’m variously occupied at present, what with one thing and many other things, so I thought I’d give you a pretty picture to look at.

Days and Days

It’s Mother’s Day here in the States, so I thought I’d post a photo of my mom, on the right, enjoying a typical evening with her pal Sylvia Aakre. It occurs to me that my idea of a fun time just might be hereditary. Mom met Sylvia at university, where they were both studying to be teachers, and began a friendship that lasted their whole lives. My family used to vacation with Sylvia and her husband Hilman, usually at a lakeside cabin somewhere, where Hilman could spend much of the day fishing...

Superhero O.D.

I sawAge of Ultron,and I’ve reached Episode Seven ofDaredevil, and so I’m pretty well experiencing a superhero O.D. right now. What I’ve learned from both is a lesson in the limitations of the superhero genre, even if you gussie it up with A-list actors and a $250-million budget. I’m enjoyingDaredevil, and Charlie Cox’s take on the character, the bravura action scenes, and Vincent d’Onofrio’s chilling portrayal of Fisk. And I’m beginning to suspect that Matt Murdock isn’t merely a dark avenge...