Category: articles
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When to write violence or sex? Re: Brandon Sanderson
Hope this comes off with the curious, reflective spirit in which it’s intended. You can never tell on the internet, but I wanted to respond to something Brandon Sanderson (whom I respect) said about violence and sex depicted in media. I wanted to respond to the 36:52 section of ep.11 of Intentionally Blank: I’ll admit,…
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John Vorhaus interview
Lancelot Schaubert — What was the impetus behind this book, John Vorhaus? John Vorhaus — In my professional life I have two classes of clients. One is, broadly speaking, writers and other creative types. The other is, unexpectedly, people trying to get into to business schools like HBS and the Stanford Graduate School of Business. I noted…
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Can God create a stone he cannot lift?
“Can God create a stone he cannot lift?” Queries of this form are intended to present a fatal dilemma to the notion of omnipotence: either there is a stone God cannot lift or a stone He cannot create. Let’s consider the predicate logic of the statement “God cannot create a stone he cannot lift”: Let:…
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Of the Making of Books there Is No End?
I grew up in a fairly conservative religious community that abhorred study and praised ignorance, in a way. From this assumption folks would often quote in my general direction of the making of books there is no end. They believed along what Asimov said of many Americans: that my ignorance is as good as anyone…
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Science Fiction 101 by Robert Silverberg
Thanks to Emily Munro for enlightening me about Science Fiction 101 (formerly Worlds of Wonder) by Robert Silverberg. Also double thanks to Emily for lending this book to me literally years ago and waiting all of that time for me to return it. This volume is a must-have both for superfans of the genre and…
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This is Water by David Foster Wallace
One of the more famous commencement speeches in recent history, David Foster Wallace’s THIS IS WATER speaks about the ethical basis and foundation of western civilization.
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Spanish Lacemaker Weaving
Tara found a video of a Spanish lacemaker, which is a kind of weaving. As you know the art of weaving is important to her, but the metaphor for magic metaphysics is important to me:
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The Weddings of 1970s: Stunningly Beautiful Photos from a Groovy Era
The 1970s was a decade marked by vibrant cultural shifts, and weddings during this time were no exception. This era saw an eclectic mix of styles and… The Weddings of 1970s: Stunningly Beautiful Photos from a Groovy Era
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Matthew Kressel Interview
Lancelot Schaubert — Hey there, Matthew Kressel! So when did you first dip your toe into the genre? Or into make believe? Matthew Kressel — The first time I wrote anything with the hope of it being published was in college after I had one of the most incredibly vivid dreams of my life, and…
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Foraged Cherries
I found a new tree for picking foraged cherries down the block. Here’s a wider pic of the tree and of the rose bush I found. Tasted tart and none of us died.
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William Atheling and The Issue at Hand
While he wrote fiction, James Blish secretly sent in a ton of critical essays pushing by force the entire genre to think critically about itself under the pseudonym William Atheling, Jr and the title The Issue at Hand. In it, he gave scathing rebukes of his best friends — some of his contemporary masters of science…
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AT Sayre Interview
Thanks to AT SAYRE for joining us for this wide-ranging interview and to his publisher for making it possible for you, the reader, to download the book directly from this site: links for that will be nested throughout the piece. The piece will be broken up into early years, philosophy, and then will go into…