Walter Jon Williams's Blog, page 133

Rogue

So the U.S. Senate report on torture shows that it was far worse than I imagined, or I imagine anybody imagined. We’ve known about the torture for years, of course, but now we know just how depraved and disgusting and totally without merit it was.
Consider this: numbers are a little vague, but it appears there were 119 captives in the program. Of these, 26 were innocent.
We tortured innocent people, including “Abu Hudhaifa, who was subjected to ice water baths and 66 hours of standing sleep depr...

Speaking of Watching the Tube . . .

What I Are Watching

A few months ago I asked for recommendations about what I should be watching on the tube, and I’m pleased to report that I’m enjoying some of your recommendations.
I’m finding “Continuum” pretty darn good, though I think Keira loses points for somehow not noticing that she is a jackbooted enforcer for an illegitimate slaver regime. And also I’m now at the start of Season Three, and what with a brand-new alternate timeline the plot has now got too complex for even me to follow— and dammit, I’m...

Toolbox in the House!

December 1 is the first date for applications for Taos Toolbox,the master class for science fiction and fantasy, taught by Nancy Kress, yours truly, and special lecturer Carrie Vaughn.
The workshop will take place June 28-July 11, 2015, at the Snow Bear Lodge in beautiful Taos Ski Valley.
If you’re serious about a writing career, or know someone who is, then it’s time to get that application in the mail!

Episode Five

Part Five of the Hardwired serial is now available at Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Amazon, and Smashwords.
Apparently the folks at iBooks are still hung over from the holiday weekend, since I don’t see it there. It should be there soon, however, possibly by the time you read this.
In Episode Five, Cowboy is readying his strike against Tempel, but Tempel’s ready to hit back. They’ve got Sarah trapped, and the only way she can survive is to betray her allies.
How can you stand the suspense? Download now!...

Holiday Tradition

It’s a Thanksgiving tradition, apparently, for people in the UK to fill out maps of the US. Which has happened again this year.
They seem pretty good sports about it, too.
It seems a little unfair. We don’t spend our Bank Holiday Weekends trying to identify Old Jersey, Old York, and Old Hampshire.
Apparently I live in the Breaking Badlands, which is more true than the anonymous cartographer knew. Many younger people seem to think my name is “Walter White.” (I heard myself called that in a cafe...

Re-Creation

So who are these guys that I saw at one of the World War II museums in Normandy?
They wear period uniforms of the Royal Navy, but they would seem to be Japanese hobbyists engaged in some re-creation.

Remembrance of Kings Past

While noodling around on Tor.com after admiring the John Picacio art on my story, I found an essay by the excellent and learnèd Ada Palmer on Shakespeare in the Age of Netflix, with emphasis on BBC’s recentHollow Crown series, which I recommend as an excellent analysis of the problems of staging (or filming) the plays for a modern audience. I can contribute little to the discussion except for some minimal insights by someone who once played Prince Hal onstage.
Not that this was produced in any...

Tinting

From St.-Malo cathedral, the sun shining through a rose window onto an arch.
Pretty, ne?

Indoor Entertainment

If you live anywhere in North America, the overwhelming likelihood is that your weekend weather forecast is going to completely suck, and you’ll probably be spending most if not all of the weekend indoors, where it’s warm.
Lucky you! That means you can brighten your weekend with a brand-new story from me, and it’s free on Tor.com.
This is a Wild Cards story, but I don’t think you have to be familiar with the Wild Cards universe to enjoy it. There are only two things you need to know, which is...