I made beef stew last night and it turned out really well...

I made beef stew last night and it turned out really well. I use a variation on this Food Network recipe, which is a variant of Julia Child's famous boeuf bourguinon recipe. I use shallots instead of onions, added sweet red wine to the stock, and didn't use the flour or the whole tomatoes.


The con_or_bust fundraising auction is about to get started up again in February, and people are starting to post items for auction. My item is an autographed copy of The Cloud Roads. Bidding will open on February 21.


The posts on The Night Bazaar this week are about finding an agent.


Weird Tales has a new web site. Several exciting developments mark the start of 2011 for Weird Tales. In addition to launching this new website, editor-in-chief Ann VanderMeer and publisher John Betancourt have raised the pay rate to 5 cents per word and implemented a new submissions portal for potential contributors.

These changes come on the heels of the news last year that VanderMeer would be taking over as editor-in-chief, with Paula Guran retained as nonfiction editor and Mary Robinette Kowal named as art director. This is the first time in the magazine's 88-year history that Weird Tales has had an all-female editorial/management staff.