Walter Jon Williams's Blog, page 133

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...

Let Toolbox be Toolbox

Time for a reminder/brief rant reminding you that Taos Toolbox, the master class for SF & Fantasy, will be accepting applications starting December 1.
If you’re serious about building your career as a writer, you might want to start putting your application together.

Reviews Too Late: Solemnity

While I was traveling, I caught up with some recent pop-culture blockbusters (by watching them on airplanes), and now I have a question:Where did all the damn solemnity come from?
When you watch a genre film, there are certain things you have a right to expect from that genre. And when you find that these things are not only missing, but replaced with a lot of tedious claptrap presented with the solemnity of a state funeral, I think you’ve got a right to complain.
Let’s look atGodzilla 2014. Th...

Meanwhile, in an Alternate Present

While I was abroad I had a story published and didn’t know it. My story “Road Kill” is now available in the the latest Wild Cards collection,Lowball,edited by George RR Martin and Melinda Snodgrass.
Pretty nifty cover, ne?
If you’re unfamiliar with the Wild Cards universe, I’d suggest that you not start with this one, but withWild Cards, the first volume, now available from Tor. It also has a story by me, “Witness,” which was nominated for a Nebula Award, so you won’t be missing out on any of t...

Listen to Me Talk For A Whole Hour, Nearly

This week I was on the John Mac Radio Show, and I talked for nearly an hour. If this is of interest, I urge you to check it out.
I was late in turning up for my own interview, so there’s a certain amount of vamping at the start, for which I apologize.