The zeppelin was stuffed with parts. “What is all this crap?” she asked Gil. “Parts,” he said. Passing Cochran in the hallway: “What is all this crap?” “Crap,” he said. “F—ing dead weight. I thought you were bad.” “Better watch it,” she said. “That was almost nice.” “F— you,” he hissed and disappeared behind the […]

Yes, Virginia. Pound your head on the wall hard enough, for long enough, and you will have character development. But not too much at one time; that’s not believable. Update: Damn it, the terracotta warriors weren’t found until 1974, so I can’t use them. AAAAUUUUGGGHH! Semi-historical fiction pinches in strange places.

…isn’t the U.S. anymore. The U.S. has approximately 302 million people. The E.U. has 495 million. The E.U. has stricter policies regarding the environment and various toxins that can be used to make stuff, like toys and computers. The U.S. gets the stuff the E.U. rejects. I listened to a Fresh Air interview with Mark

…or are you just happy to see me? Pink seal mini taser. (via Retrospectacle.)

He may have to go into bankruptcy in order to pay the IRS and his medical bills. Here’s his donation page, set up under protest it looks like, if you’re interested. He says he’s doing better now, though.

I’m at the point where I have to say, “What was I thinking? THIS IS NEVER GOING TO WORK!” I took most of today off to do Christmas shopping and mess around with plot: one subplot removed, another added, two chapters changed to one, figured out why the main character wasn’t ringing true in the

Teller has a house in Vegas, of which he says, “Like much of my life, this house is a reflection of everything I wanted back when I was 12.” Don’t miss the pictures.

There’s a pirate in the book who just showed up. I asked Lee what the pirate’s beard should look like. “A pencil-thin goatee.” I held up a finger vertically on my chin. “Like this?” “No.” He drew the line around his chin. “Ohh. Like a hexagon. Hey! Our pirate’s going to have gamer face!”

*Or woman’s The fifteen top castles built largely by one person. Bishop’s Castle is #2. I am totally wanting to check out #14, the Magical Museum of Robert Tatin. But it’s in France. The House on the Rock is #15, which makes two on the list I’ve seen. I could totally think of worse things

My POV character in the current book, Nancy, is much more observant than I am. I’m having a hard time describing the things she sees: of course she sees things that I wouldn’t, but she also sees things in a different order than I would — she can only see so many things at a