Mokka mit Schlag

My latest short story, “Claim Jumpers,” has been published in Hyperpowers, Third Flatiron’s Summer 2016 anthology, guest edited by Bascomb James. This story should be of particular interest to economists and logicians.

Available DRM free on Smashwords and or DRM-encumbered on Amazon.

Lately I’ve noticed a meme going around spec fiction writer’s groups and conventions. “Isaac Asimov couldn’t get published today.” “Don’t model yourself after Asimov.” “Isaac Asimov was a bad writer.” Sometimes I hear this from the same writers who cite Asimov as one of the authors who got them interested in science fiction in the first place.

Yes, Asimov does not craft words as well as Bradbury (an author who does seem to be making the transition from genre to canon). No, he’s not as much of a page turner as Heinlein. Yes, his characters sometimes read flat compared to characters in more modern fiction. Certainly, like most authors of his generation he overly focused on men (with the really notable exception of Susan Calvin). Nonetheless Asimov did one thing really, really well. Better than probably 99% of pro authors writing today, and that is ideas.
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Daily Science Fiction has published my latest short story, “Classified Ads“. It would take me longer to blurb it than it would to read it, so just go read it, OK?

The Flash Fiction Press has published my latest (very) short story, “31“. Arguably this is my first published non-genre (i.e. literary) fiction. It would take me longer to blurb it than it would to read it, so just go read it, OK?

Between my eye surgery in March that took 6 months to fully recover from and a major writing commitment that occupied most of my weekends before that, 2015 was not my best birding year. Nonetheless, I did manage trips to Oregon and Hawaii; and some rarities visited my “backyard.”

According to eBird, I added 20 species to my life list in 2015, though many of those are introduced exotics in Hawaii. Hawaii doesn’t seem to have a bird records committee, so there’s no one to rule on which ones “count” and which ones don’t. Clearly native birds like Wedge-tailed Shearwater and Hawaiian Coot count, but what to do about Red-crested Cardinal and Hwamei?
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