The Button Man and The Murder Tree
Two minutes,
One left now,
The Button Man knows,
He’ll take me before long,
Six times today, he has spawned,
The itches are getting worse, I hear,
But, that’s all the news I get, anymore,
One minute left…actually, time’s up. No more excuses.
The Button Man’s seen my name on the Murder Tree.
Want to see literally dozens of SF/F writers in one place at one time? Who are there to sign books? For you?
Then come on down to the San Jose Hilton (300 Almaden Blvd), from 5:30 to 7:30pm tomorrow (Friday, May 17) for the SFWA Mass Signing. It's free and open to the public. Come see me! Not just me: Here are the some of the others signing books:
My brother, Jeremy, just days after graduating from Med School, shows the world his first published story.
Two days ago, I finished Peter V. Brett‘s The Warded Man, and thought it was pretty darn good. The story concept is great (I’m actually curious how he came up with that and long it took him to smooth out), and I thought he did a great job executing it.
The writing is solid, and, from what I’ve heard, it gets better with the next few books, which I’ve already decided to procure. I believe the 3rd book is already out, but I often need to slow down. One book at a time. At some point, my good friend at Written Permission will send out one of her book reviews of it, and I’m sure she won’t be disappointed.
I don’t want to throw out any spoilers here, but the short and sweet bit of it is, if you’re looking for fairly strong fantasy, I would give The Warded Man a read. Brett writes well, and I think he knows where his strengths are and plays to them. He surely understands that his writing can get stronger and, having only read the first book, I’m sure it does.
Oh, and one of the things I love about the book is that Brett includes elements of sex in his fantasy. So often in fantasy, there’s only focus on the magic or the fighting, but when it comes to any romance in the narrative, it’s sort of ignored. C’mon! You want your readers to live in this world and believe it to be as real as the one they’re living in, right? Sex is just as much a part of life as death is. Taxes, finance, health care – all that shit’s in there, but not sex! I’m not saying it has to be pornographic; just let us know it’s there.
Peter, a solid book. Thanks for keeping me turning the pages.
On Friday, May 10th 2013, my brother Jeremy graduated from medical school. A pretty hefty accomplishment, if you ask me. Even if you don’t ask me, it’s notable.
Jason, Jeremy, and I grew up together in Albuquerque, NM, and although I’m not biologically in the fraternal hood, they’ve adopted me as the third brother, and for that I’m ever grateful. Dammit! <<flaps hands up and down in front of face>> and I swore I wouldn’t cry!
But back to the whole graduating-from-medical-school thing. It’s something I’ve thought about (and I presume most people have at least once), but never has seemed fitting. When we first heard he had decided to go through with it, one of my initial questions was ‘why?’. Not that I didn’t think he could, of course; he’s a smart guy with a background solidly grounded in computer science. I wasn’t questioning his ability to absorb the material or make a career with. My question was aiming to understand the motive, as going through something that rigorous, generally speaking, requires some pretty staunch conviction, some purpose. I was curious as to what his was.
At the southern tip of Spain, near the small coastal town of Cádiz, travelers can have themselves ferried across the Strait of Gibraltar into Northern Africa (where, unbeknownst to many, the Spanish still retain a vestige of colonial expansion with the territory of Ceuta). Several years back, Jer had taken a trip through Europe, and stopped in Morocco for a stint. The only image I can associate with him in this place is a picture of his sad attempt at camel-riding. But, for Jer, there was more to it. He told me that it was from seeing the destitution of some of Morocco’s populous – the physical ailments, maladies, and deformities from those in and outside the city, that he wanted to do something about it. He wanted to help people.
So, he did just what good medical students are supposed to do. He shut himself in an apartment at the edge of the University of New Mexico campus, jumped into the deep end of medical-science madness, and treaded water for four years. On Friday, we celebrate and congratulate him for making his way back to poolside. It’s just for a breather, though; we all know that. These are the waters in which Jer has chosen to swim and know, and we support the hell out of that.
Anyway, Jer, congratulations. You’re an inspiration to us all. We love you, brother.
The Book Blogger Hop is hosted over at Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer. Prompts last for a few days, and it introduces people to other blogs.
This is my first week participating, and I am getting in JUST under the wire. You should check it out!
Tomorrow I get to be with my wife. Freakin’ finally! I’m done with school (for the semester) in one week, and then it’s a long break in Seattle with Kerrie and some good friends. The semester’s shot by, but I’m ready to get out of here. 
So very true.
I love Santa.
This has to have been the swiftest semester I’ve ever experienced. I remember the first week and thinking I had time – time to write the papers, time to make the presentations, read the articles, do the research…and here I am, three weeks out from closing the curtain.
Then what?
Then, that’s it. Kerrie’s going to fly down from Seattle, and we’re going to head over to Palm Springs to stay with family, see the sights, and let our proverbial hair down. Wow. That was quick.
This week is going to bolt by. The minutes are going to be filled with either classes, presentations, or library time. Before I know it, it will be Friday after class and I’ll have one week to go until I see Kerrie again.
Damn. I’ve said it before. I wish it would slow down every now and again, the time. But, I’ve also wished like hell it would speed up as well.
Well, one thing’s for sure. Here we are, in the now, and as always, I’m loving the show.
