My friend and fellow writer, Book View Cafe co-founder, Vonda N. McIntyre, died last month. There were a bunch of obituaries, including mainstream papers like The New York Times and The Guardian, and many genre publications. Her friends have been gathering memories … Continue reading
Dear Auntie Deborah: How can I find a real publisher for my YA novel, instead of one of the many vanity or scam presses? — Tearful Wannabee Dear Tearful: Do your research about publishers. Find out which accept unagented submissions. Check … Continue reading
Passover is my very favorite holiday, Jewish or secular. I love the warmth, the connection with tribal history, and so many of the phrases that remind me everyone is welcome at this table, and that until all of us are … Continue reading
I remember a time when there was no question about vaccination. It was a modern miracle, a triumph of science over disease. I grew up reading Paul de Kruif’s Microbe Hunters, thrilling to the discoveries first of microbes, then of the … Continue reading
At first I thought the current fashion of dark, gritty fantasy – fantasy noir – is just that, a recent shift in popularity, like the explosion of angsty teenage vampire stories. If we take the long view, it’s an established … Continue reading
It all started last December with an article in the local newspaper, saying that the animal shelter was overcrowded and were offering half-off on adoption fees. So, since mine beloved spouse had been languishing in the absence of a dog … Continue reading
What makes science fiction a genre? Is it the bells and whistles, the FTL space ships, the futuristic technology? Is it the ability to travel in time or across vast regions of space? Does it involve interactions with alien species, … Continue reading
Here’s a collection of recent science stories that deepen our understanding of the past, both here on Earth and in the heavens. ‘Treasure trove’ of dinosaur footprints found in southern England More than 85 well-preserved dinosaur footprints — made by … Continue reading
I’m not big on resolutions, New Year’s or otherwise. More often than not, all they do is set me up to fail or put me in competition with others, and who needs that? However, I do see a great deal … Continue reading
[This post is a bit late, but I can blame the Book View Cafe blog site being down…] For the past decade or so, whether Chanukah falls in early December or overlaps Christmas, I have wrestled with the meaning of … Continue reading
