A Quick Note About WISB: New Design Coming (Comments Welcome)
I wanted to let all of you know that over the next couple days (starting tomorrow), there will be a lot of changes happening on WISB. I’m updating the design, which will take a while to set up, since I’m not as HTML/CSS savvy as I would like to be. This means that some things might suddenly be broken on the site, you might see a post or two pop up with very little in them (as a test), and so on. The new design is not a huge difference from what I already have, but the HTML is different, things are getting moved off of the sidebars, and so on. There will also be fewer sidebars, new pages (with an actual navbar), an updated header image (kind of), and so on. I should be done with most of the important tweaks by Monday. If not, then you can assume I broke something and spent Sunday night trying to fix it… Thanks for your patience. If you want to see what the new design will be, you can see it here. I am still taking comments, criticisms, and suggestions, if you have them. If there’s something you can’t stand about the new design, please let me know. Thanks!
Opinions Wanted: A New Template in the Works
Those of you who use Blogger might have noticed that they introduced a new template design feature and the ability to add “pages,” much as you can on WordPress. As a user of Blogger for almost four years now, I’ve been hoping and praying for this feature to appear, since it is one of the few things that makes WordPress so appealing (the only thing that kept me on Blogger was the fact that I could do just about anything to my template without having to pay a fee to access the CSS). Last night I decided to really play with the feature on a test blog to see what I can do about making WISB look even better. That’s where you come in. I’ll be honest in saying that I am not much of a design guru. I don’t have much of an eye for it when it comes to webpages, though I seem to do alright when it comes to other things. So, if you have the time to spare, I would appreciate it if you can offer your opinions on the test blog located here. Pop on over and then leave a comment on this post with your criticism. And, yes, when I say I want your criticism, I mean I really want your brutal honesty. If you think something looks downright ugly, say so. If you have a suggestion for improvement, I’ll take that too. I don’t want to move over to a new template until I’m sure I’ve come up with something good. Right now, I’m mostly trying to recreate this blog, but with more features. The only thing you’ll notice is that there really isn’t much content on the site. That’s just because I haven’t moved things over there yet. I’m worried about general looks right now. Thanks for the help!
My Essay on V and District 9 Published! (Crimethink)
I think I’ve mentioned a number of times on my Twitter account that I have been working on an essay on the television show V (the new one) and the movie District 9. Well, that essay is now officially published and available to read online on Crimethink: Politics and Speculative Fiction. The table of contents for the project is as follows: Politics on the Page“No News Is Good News: What Science Fiction Leaves Out of the Future #1” by Gary Westfahl“War: What Is It Good For?” by Lisa Agnew“Space Opera Rules; But By Whom?” by Ross Hamilton Speculative Ideologies“Reason, Sexuality, and the Self in Libertarian Science Fiction Novels” by Greg Beatty“Speculative Fiction & Political Struggle: The ‘New Wave’ of the 60s & 70s” by Jordan Humphreys Recent Media“The Future’s Bright? A Review of Shine: An Anthology of Optimistic Science-Fiction” by Deborah Walker“Political Allegory: Receptions and Their Implications in V and District 9” by Shaun Duke (that’s me!) Race and Gender Politics“Engendering Utopia: From Amazons to Androgyny” by Ruth Nestvold and Jay Lake“Aliens at the Office Christmas Party: How to Write Subtle Discrimination” by Romie Stott“Transracial Writing for the Sincere” by Nisi Shawl That’s a pretty impressive table of contents, don’t you think? And, the cool thing is that this will eventually be a print publication, with all proceeds going to support Doctors Without Borders! For me, it’s a win-win. I got an paper published and the publication of that essay may go towards helping people around the world, which makes me feel very good indeed. I’ll let you all know when the book becomes available and I expect you all to buy it, even if you have interest in reading the essays. Heck, buy it and give it to an SF nut or something! Or, you can just give $20 to Doctors Without Borders instead, if you so choose (not sure if that’s how much the book will cost, but I suspect not). Oh, and if you have the time to read my essay, I’d appreciate thoughts and opinions. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go scream and run around my apartment in a fit of excitement.
The Altercation Decision (or How I’m Looking Towards a Productive Future)
You might remember this rather cryptic post from a few days ago in which I discussed my apprehension about engaging, once again, with a community and topic I have addressed before (don’t worry, I’m going to clarify everything in the bottom of this post, but first, I want to explain my position). In that post, I commented that I thought there were really only two ways to go about it: 1) address the topic here and take apart all that happened and perhaps stir the controversy pot again and talk, yet again, about a topic I have discussed here a number of times so far this year (and all of them rather…controversial), or 2) disengage entirely from the people involved in this problem and those who use the same form of rhetoric or are at least part of the same general movement. Both of the above options are seriously flawed. In the first case, I’ll be adding fuel to a fire that I think is burning in the wrong place and needs to be seriously redirected, and that’s something that, quite honestly, I’m no longer interested in–mostly because I think the rhetoric behind said discussions general runs or dissolves into something like this: “I’m right because I say so and because I disregard contrary evidence and resort to ad hominem,” which is a poor argument indeed. In the second case, I’ll be punishing people who aren’t responsible for the actions of others. It’s a silly option the more I think about it, but the segment of that community who brought me to this decision have begun to influence how I think about the movement of which they are a part. Such influence wouldn’t a problem if I disagreed with all of them, but is because I think, overall, the movement is absolutely vital. The fact that my opinions are being tainted by the more radical group is, for me, unacceptable. It’s a terrible, unfair human reaction that we all have at some point or another. Pathos works in wondrous ways. So, I have come up with a third option that is a compromise between the two. I have made the decision not to discuss certain aspects of the topic on this blog. The topic will still appear, but probably less frequently and definitely not in relation to the aspect that I disagree with. I’m also going to officially cut out and ignore the segment of the community who I feel have lost their way, rather than everyone. I’m not going to allow that segment to influence how I feel about the movement in general, because it’s not fair to those who are doing good work with better arguments, better tactics, and a larger interest in open discussion with people who may be outside of their movement. I’d rather help the people I agree with and completely ignore those that I don’t, than disengage entirely. And I am well aware that this is not a perfect option either, but I prefer to save my sanity and focus more on what I can actually do to make things better, rather than waste my time arguing with people who cannot think outside of their view of reality. Having said all of that, you might be wondering what I’m actually talking about. I’m talking about the women’s rights movement. There have been a number of instances this year, but the catalyst was this “argument” (for lack of a better word) over at Cheryl Morgan’s blog (between Morgan and myself, and eventually between Morgan and a friend). You can read the comments if you so choose. I assume that if you read the comments (mine, Cheryl’s, and my friend’s) objectively, you’ll see what’s wrong with the whole thing (and I’m not saying that what I wrote was somehow infallible, because it wasn’t). So, that’s that. The condescension, rudeness, dismissal, and so on are not effective strategies, and seem only to alienate people who might actually be willing to learn, rather than change opinions or perform a didactic role. There’s a complete lack of mutual respect, and you can’t foster good relations, change, and so on without that (in my opinion). So, I’m disengaging and focusing my energies on things that are either more interesting to me or might produce better results (you know, like supporting campaigns to help bring educational supplies to women in impoverished regions across the world…like the one here, which I’ve donated to before). So, how are you?
Giveaway Winners!
Guess what? I have winners for the Darren Shan contest. I apologize for the long wait, folks, but some obligations came up and stole away my time, and part of my soul. But, I have winners now, and I’m going to tell you who they are…right after this message from our sponsors. Okay, so I don’t have any sponsors, but it might be funny if I did, right? Anywho, so there were three ways to enter the contest, as you might recall. You could leave a comment on this thread, you could send me an email, or you could leave a comment telling me the weirdest, scariest, most bizarre thing you had witnessed or had happen to you. Two winners would be picked at random, while the third (or first, depending on how you look at it) would be selected based on their little story. So, the first two winners (chosen at random by a computer program) are (after the fold): Dave Baxter and Teresa! The winner for the scariest or creepiest story is Tina, who said the following: The first time I went to India (in 1999), I went to Varanasi (aka Benaras) which is THE holiest of holy cities in India. It’s where the living and the dead collide. It is perhaps one of the most crowded cities in all of India, yet the river is littered with dead things (dead cows, dead fish) and, because mendicants (holy men who have forsaken all worldly possessions) travel to Varanasi to die (you gain a certain amount of karma for dying in such a holy place) it is not uncommon to see vultures picking at decaying human carcasses. True story–I saw it all. Varanasi is perhaps most famous in the western world for its ghats–you’ve probably seen those pictures in National Geographic of way too many people crowded together on steps that go down into the water.THAT’S Varanasi). One of the most famous ghats are The Burning Ghats–the place where Hindu’s cremate their dead. I was young, stupid, and totally out of line… I went as a sort of touristing expediton to the Burning Ghats. The Burning Ghats are lifeless. Literally. Dead bodies wrapped in white sheets rest atop pyres of dull brown logs. The men of the family–sons, cousins, nephews, sometimes fathers–huddle around the bodies. Also dressed in white, they look like wraiths waiting to welcome a new soul to their ghoulish brotherhood. The ghat is devoid of color–no flags, no colorful saries, no saffron robes for the sadhus. Only the brown, gray and white of death. Until they light the pyre and hot yellow, red, and sometimes blue flames lick up the side of the wood, devour the body. It smells like BBQ. But that’s not the worse part. Down towards the water, a man piles something into a boat. At first, it appears as though he’s stacking bundles of wood tied together by white cloth. It makes sense, but it doesn’t. If it were wood, he should be unloading it at the Burning Ghat for use in the pyres, not loading it from the Ghat into his boat. I squint and peer through the smoke that fills the air. I move down the steps, closer to the water. Babies. He’s stacking babies swaddled in the same white cloth as the burning corpses above. He rows out into the water. Solemnly, the boy that is with him lifts each white bundle, ties a weight around it and drops it into the water with a small, hollow plop. Babies can’t be burned. They have no soul. I’m not sure what is most terrifying about this story. Maybe it’s the end with the babies or just the general feel. I have no clue if it is real, but if it is, then that’s a place I don’t intend to ever visit. Sounds like something out of a really terrifying horror movie. So, congrats to the winners (who should receive an email from me soon). Thanks to everyone who entered! I appreciate it. Stay tuned for future giveaways!
Giveaway and Poll Reminder!
Just wanted to let you all know that there are only 2 days left in the giveaway of 3 copies of Procession of the Dead by Darren Shan. It’s open internationally, so enter before it’s too late. I also wanted to remind you about the poll I’m running about your favorite genre (science fiction, fantasy, horror, or other). Just pop on to the site; the poll is on the left hand side. So far fantasy is beating scifi something fierce, which is somewhat odd considering that this blog is largely scifi-based. Anywho!