Walter Jon Williams's Blog, page 29
July 21, 2022
Available or Not
Audiobooks of The Macedonian and Cat Island, the final two books (of three) about Favian Markham, USN, have been released, narrated by Bronson Pinchot, who is very fine indeed.
The problem is that I can’t seem to find The Macedonian anywhere but on Audible’s own site, and there I had to go to some effort to locate it. Ideally a reader will want to read the books in order, and since The Macedonian is the middle book of three, I see this as a problem.
I’m sure it will get straightene...
July 14, 2022
Portrait of the Young Man as an Artist
From the archives, a photo of me dating from 1980. I’m a brand-new writer, with a three-book deal but nothing yet in print.
In this photo I’m in England, researching the Privateer books. (The librarian at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich was a great help.)
In another year or two I’d ditch the spectacles and start wearing contacts, which greatly improved my social life— I was able to look at people without these aggressive metal-rimmed distorting lenses getting in the way. I c...
July 8, 2022
Lynch and Who???
Today I learned a mind-croggling facticle, which is that Mel Brooks produced “The Elephant Man” film. (He kept his name off the project so the people wouldn’t expect a roistering Mel Brooks comedy.)
The thought of Brooks and David Lynch collaborating on a film has me stripping my mental gears.
But then Brooks also collaborated with Cronenberg on “The Fly.” And it’s clear enough from “Young Frankenstein” that he’s a horror fan. So maybe I shouldn’t be so surprised.
July 6, 2022
Flames
So I’m now well into Heaven in Flames, the third book in the Metropolitan sequence. I’m confronting the normal problems of writing a sequel: how much of the backstory to reveal at any given moment, working out how the characters may have changed, and— after a gap of 25 years— how well I remember what I was trying to accomplish in the first place.
But I’m also adrift in a sea of words, ideas, and characters that never seem to sit still enough for me to get ahold of them. The book is moving ...
June 26, 2022
Achievement Unlocked
First there was Taos Toolbox, and then there was . . . this.
Four days after the workshop ended, I successfully tested for my 6th degree black belt in Kenpo Karate. In the days since, I’ve been judging at the tests of lower-ranking belts, and participating in a demonstration in front of a live audience.
All with a torn achilles tendon which requires me to walk with a cane much of the time.
Fortunately most of the test consisted of theory and philosophy. I was required to do som...
June 19, 2022
Sleepless at Sonesta
Someday I may catch up on my sleep. Until then I’ll just cut and paste from Nancy’s
Facebook wall.
More quotes from Taos Toolbox:
“I want the details about how Grandma got wrapped up in vines.”
“I cannot picture a ‘godscoop’ non-hilariously.”
“Every dystopia needs a good investigative reporter.”
“The time between the candy dish and the candy was too long.”
“It’s like the truth of the universe was revealed to me but it was in Estonian.”
“I want her to find a research area. ...
June 16, 2022
More Quotes
Still sleepless at Taos Toolbox. Some more quotes from Nancy’s notebook:
“He should make a more romantic gesture, like cleaning her sword.”
“There is too much capitalization going on.”
“Alex is kind of a Schrodinger’s Boyfriend.”
“Migraines suck but they’re not magical.”
“All I know about medieval weapons is that they are either pointy or smashy.”
“Nako is my favorite character–please don’t kill him!”
“You need more gross stuff.”
Percival was unremittingly terrible and ...
June 12, 2022
Tooling Along
I’ve spent the last week at our new, undisclosed location, teaching with Nancy Kress at Taos Toolbox, the master class for writers of science fiction and fantasy. This year is actually the workshop for 2020, 2021, and 2022, due to repeated postponements due to the pandemic. Kudos to those accepted for earlier years who hung in there and worked hard during the interim, because their first week’s submissions were all superior to their application stories.
Here we are with guest speaker...
June 1, 2022
Two Bucks!
The ebook of my novel The Accidental War is available for a mere $1.99 for the month of June. Wherever fine ebooks are sold.
Ramping up, I’m guessing, for the release of Imperium Restored in September.
May 31, 2022
Agley
So quite a number of plans have gang agley in the last days, so I’ve been putting out fires— nearly literal fires.
Taos Toolbox, the master class for writers of science fiction and fantasy, starts this weekend, and has been held at the Angel Fire resort for the last decade or more. It’s a deluxe place in a beautiful mountain setting, and unless there’s a mountain bike rally or something, it’s not too crowded or noisy and we can concentrate on our work.
Except this year we have the Hermit...
