The next “Inside the Blogosphere” question is up. This time it was about what makes a good battle scene exiting to read and what makes it drag or detract from the narrative. I’m curious what you all think about this. What makes a good battle scene exciting to read and what makes it drag the narrative? (Don’t click the read more, there isn’t any more after this!)
For those that are interested, here are some pictures from the wake of the late Thomas M. Disch. Looks like it was more fun that sadness, which is always good. Thanks to Matt Staggs for pointing them out to me and thanks to Jacob Weisman of Tachyon Publications for taking the pictures and thus giving them to Matt. (Don’t click the read more, there isn’t any more after this!)
London Lit Plus, the supposed fringe of London’s book festival, is looking for a new managerial team. In fact, a new team full stop. Apparently they want someone who can take it to the next level, since the current team are no longer able to do so. If you’re interested in the gig, check out here.
For those that don’t know what METAtropolis is, I’ll give you the official description: Welcome to a world where big cities are dying, dead – or transformed into technological megastructures. Where once-thriving suburbs are now treacherous Wilds. Where those who live for technology battle those who would die rather than embrace it. It is a world of zero-footprint cities, virtual nations, and armed camps of eco-survivalists. Welcome to the dawn of uncivilization. METAtropolis is an intelligent and stunning creation of five of today’s cutting-edge science-fiction writers: 2008 Hugo Award winners John Scalzi and Elizabeth Bear; Campbell Award winner Jay Lake; plus fan favorites Tobias Buckell and Karl Schroeder. Together they set the ground rules and developed the parameters of this “shared universe”, then wrote five original novellas – all linked, but each a separate tale. Bringing this audiobook to life is a dream team of performers: Battlestar Galactica‘s Michael Hogan (“Saul Tigh”); Alessandro Juliani (“Felix Gaeta”); and Kandyse McClure (“Anastasia ‘Dee’ Dualla”); plus legendary audiobook narrators Scott Brick (Dune) and Stefan Rudnicki (Ender’s Game). John Scalzi, who served as Project Editor, introduces each story, offering insight into how the METAtropolis team created this unique project exclusively for digital audio. And apparently the good folks over at Audible are offering Jay Lake’s story “In the Forest of the Night” for free! Talk about a good deal, eh? You can find the free download here. Yay for free stuff! (Don’t click the read more, there isn’t any more after this!)
Apparently WISB was two years old last month on the 3rd. Yeah. I’ve been around for 2 years on this blog. That’s incredibly, if you ask me. I’ve stuck with this for 2 years and I’m still going strong. Okay, pointless post, I know, but I just thought you all should know. Anywho!
Well, yet another blogger question thing has graced the interwebs, and it can be found here. This time we were asked about our ideal reading environment. Looking back I don’t think I have an ideal reading environment. Lovely. What about you? Do you have an ideal reading environment?
