Conquering the mountain

So this last weekend, I decided to solo climb Y Mountain.  For those of you who don’t know, Y Mountain is one of the smaller mountains along the Wasatch range local to the Provo/Orem area.  It’s called Y Mountain because of the enormous letter “Y” painted on its side (yeah, that’s what they do to… Continue reading Conquering the mountain

Difficult choices and keeping perspective

So I have some news, and it’s probably going to freak my parents out a little bit…I decided to turn down the full-time job offer that I mentioned a few weeks ago. The company is great, they treat their employees well, I got along well with everyone there–so why not take the job?  Because it… Continue reading Difficult choices and keeping perspective

Skye Object 3270a by Linda Nagata

It’s not easy being a teenager in the orbital colony of Silk–especially when all the adults are functionally immortal and anyone under one hundred is considered an adolescent.  To make matters worse, Skye fell to the city in an escape pod when she was just a baby, with no idea who she is, where she’s from, or how long… Continue reading Skye Object 3270a by Linda Nagata

How do you know when you’ve succeeded?

With books and publishing changing so quickly, a lot of writers are wondering how they can tell when they’ve actually “made it.” It’s a valid question, one that I think we all need to answer if we want to write seriously.  For myself in particular, as an indie writer, how will I know when I’ve achieved… Continue reading How do you know when you’ve succeeded?

Ira Glass on storytelling

I just listened to this awesome presentation by Ira Glass, host of This American Life, on the art of storytelling and narrative, and I wanted to share it because it’s that good.  If you haven’t ever heard of This American Life before, do yourself a favor and check it out.  You may or may not… Continue reading Ira Glass on storytelling

Paradise Seekers by Nathan Major

Haven–a land where no one knows who they are, where they’re from, or how they got there.  A place where everyone has a different recurring dream every night, which gradually grows in intensity until it drives them to madness.  A place where everyone has only a short amount of time to find Paradise, before they… Continue reading Paradise Seekers by Nathan Major

Worldcon 2011: Saturday

Alright, I should just write this up and finish my convention report before life sweeps me away completely. Saturday was the main day of the con.  To be honest, I forgot all the panels I went to, except this really awesome one by a guy at NASA on near Earth objects (NEOs).  Holyfreakingcow there are… Continue reading Worldcon 2011: Saturday

Worldcon 2011: Thursday

Wow, the last couple days have been packed with awesome con-stuff, but I’ve got a short break so I thought I’d blog about it. Thursday was great, attended a few panels but mostly just wandered around meeting people.  I’m a little surprised with how many people read this blog.  Got Brandon to sign my Kindle,… Continue reading Worldcon 2011: Thursday