http://johndbrown.com Wed, 27 Aug 2008 15:37:37 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I want to tell you about a river that is emerald green, clear enough to see the rocks on the bottom sixteen feet below as well as the trout, and provides a wonderful family getaway. I'm talking about the Green River just below the Flaming Gorge dam in north-eastern Utah.  Yes, that picture's of the Green ... http://johndbrown.com/2008/08/flaming-gorge-ticket-to-ride-thai-evergreen/ The Titan Robot Show The first part scared the crap out of me. More here on their cool website: http://www.cyberstein.co.uk/ Oh, and remember the last monster created with a named that ended in stein? Not an auspicious beginning... http://johndbrown.com/2008/08/terminator-the-musical/ I'll be going to WorldCon this year in Denver. It will be my first BIG convention as an author with a contract. I did a World Fantasy once a long time ago in Monterrey, CA. Anyway, I expect to have a grand time and meet a lot of folks. And ... http://johndbrown.com/2008/07/worldcon-denver/ To allow my inner Swedish svelteness to manifest itself I've been doing some hiking and biking. I do my own Elmer Fudd biathalon in which I bike for a mighty 3 miles. Hike a hill interval style that I swear rises up at 90 degrees. Then go back to the bike and ... http://johndbrown.com/2008/07/hawk-games/ Brandon Sanderson, Howard Tayler, and Dan Wells are doing a series of podcasts on writing called Writing Excuses. The have two podcasts on magic: http://www.writingexcuses.com/2008/05/12/writing-excuses-episode-14-magic-systems-and-their-rules/ http://www.writingexcuses.com/2008/05/18/writing-excuses-episode-15-costs-and-ramifications-of-magic/ I found these two interesting, and, as always, entertaining to listen to. However, while their focus on limitations and ramifications is excellent, I’ve found asking "what does the magic cost" to ... http://johndbrown.com/2008/07/inventing-magic/ I don't like anti-perspirants because they gob up in the underarms of my undershirts. Which means I eventually go walking about with pebbles in my pits. And, yes, we do have a washing machine and use it regularly. There's something in there that defies anything less than hydro-chloric acid. I don't like deodorants because they wimp ... http://johndbrown.com/2008/07/thai-crystal-rothfuss-daily-life-in-the-middle-ages-perot-charts/ I voiced my opinions on the TC Boyle message board. Needless to say, I'm probably too aggressive in my stance. But a guy over there said: "(easy,chewable,harmless pages) shouldn't be the goal of any writer with even the tiniest self-respect." Here's my response. ---- I don't know any of these successful authors who ... http://johndbrown.com/2008/06/why-you-cant-popularize-literary-fiction-part-2/ T.C. Boyle is one of my favorite writers. He saved me in my undergraduate program. I was buying the The Best American Short Story, Pushcart, and O'Henry anthologies. I was reading for my coursework. And so much of it bored me to death. And then one day I began reading "The ... http://johndbrown.com/2008/06/why-you-cant-popularize-literary-fiction/ For many years people have been predicting the death of literature because the stats on the reading public  show fewer and fewer books are being sold because fewer people are reading. For an author it's a bit depressing. However, you might find this article provides some hope: http://www.newsweek.com/id/136961. Generation R (R ... http://johndbrown.com/2008/06/will-readers-completely-die-off/ So to save on taxes I've incorporated. The name of the LLC will be Blacksword Enterprises. I'm happy with it. And probably nobody but me will ever see it. I was going to go with Billy Bob's Story Shack, but felt it was too high brow. http://johndbrown.com/2008/06/business-name/